Chapter 63: Borrowing the Tiger’s Skin to Raise the Banner

“Name?”

“Su Hui. Hui as in going back and forth.”

“Age?”

“Twenty-two, nominal age.”

Su Hui sat wilted in the chair, his legs still weak even now. There was a large bruise on his knee. The bruise hadn’t come from being beaten, but from bumping into the toilet edge in the washroom—after all, not everyone could remain calm upon seeing countless snakes drilling in through the gaps above, below, left, and right of the wooden door before them. He, who once thought of himself as someone who could be a man of steel in the past, had let out the most miserable scream he’d ever produced in his life. He almost jumped directly into the toilet to flush himself away.

He glanced at the two people before him, hesitated, and decided it was better to take control of the conversation. He didn’t feel much psychological pressure. Anyway, his dad had told him, if he was ever kidnapped, just say he wants money, don’t fight back. He wasn’t sure what his dad actually did, but pulling out a few million shouldn’t be a big problem.

The problem was, the two kidnappers before him were truly too strange. If it weren’t for having just witnessed the superpower-like method with his own eyes, he would never have dreamed that the kidnappers would be two schoolgirls who still looked like students. One was even wearing a high school uniform, not even bothering to hide it. The Jiang High badge on her left chest was displayed so openly, so openly that it frightened Su Hui—he had read plenty of novels and knew the rules of the underworld. If he had seen the kidnappers’ faces, maybe they weren’t after money, but his life.

But the problem was, the two girls before him looked like they had no intention of hiding at all. The girl in the school uniform with the inner-dyed highlights was just sitting in the opposite chair, legs crossed, fingertips slowly tapping a beat on her leg. Su Hui didn’t dare look up. He just felt, based on the aura of someone who had at least ten lives on their hands, that saying something like “stuff you into a cement barrel and sink you in the river” wouldn’t be out of the question.

He stewed for a long time, unable to figure out how to properly address the two in front of him. “Miss” felt too frivolous, “Ma’am” was clearly wrong for their age. Finally, his mind short-circuited, and he stammered: “Spare me, you two… mighty heroes. Let’s talk nicely. Whatever amount you want, my family can pay. Just please, please don’t release any more snakes.”

He thought to himself, Please don’t do that thing you see in TV dramas—cover my mouth, beat me up first as a show of force, then ask questions. Heaven and earth as witness, he, Su Hui, had very soft bones. Wouldn’t it be better to talk nicely, have a mutually beneficial solution?

Qi Ran’s brow furrowed slightly. She had more or less guessed the boy before her was a standard second-generation rich kid, but she hadn’t expected his mental fortitude to be this poor. Jiang Zhique, standing behind her and looking like an executor, spoke in a low voice: “What is your father’s name?”

Su Hui didn’t hesitate for a second, quickly selling out his own father’s name: “Su Decai. His contact info is in my phone, the first one in my contacts.”

“We’re not here to kidnap you,” Jiang Zhique said. Her gaze lingered briefly at the door, her brow furrowing slightly before shifting away. “We are from the Bai Family. My apologies for just now. The reason we sought you out is to ask for your cooperation.”

Qi Ran wondered why Jiang Zhique had directly abandoned the bluff and openly stated their purpose, but said nothing, just continued to remain silent.

Su Hui thought, I know the drill. Next comes the payment demand for “friendship fees,” right? But the words “Bai Family” from the girl’s mouth truly puzzled him. Racking his brains, he couldn’t figure out which branch of his relatives had the surname Bai. Or were they actually some business competitor of his dad’s?

At this thought, his mind seemed to explode. He couldn’t help but marvel at his own clarity of thought. Yes, that was highly likely. The two girls before him knew his name and weren’t unfamiliar with his dad’s name. They were clearly sent by a business competitor, trying to win him over, to get him to betray his dad and older brother—at this thought, he almost wanted to sneer. Not at the competitor’s dirty tactics, but at the fact that they apparently didn’t know exactly what kind of useless waste he was. Ten of him couldn’t stir up any waves. He really was worth less than just kidnapping him for ransom and at least making some money.

“Easy, easy. We’re all friends here. Whatever you need, I’ll fully cooperate,” he replied without blushing. After all, he truly didn’t know any important matters. Even what his dad actually did for work, he only knew it was probably running a logistics company and owning some land. Whatever these two said, he’d just tell his dad everything once he got back, and the issue would be resolved.

“It’s nothing difficult. Just read the contents of these sheets of paper aloud,” Jiang Zhique shook her head, handing him a few pre-written notes. Then she pressed the number for the front desk.

With a beep, the call connected. Jiang Zhique handed the phone to Su Hui. Holding the phone in one hand and the first note in the other, Su Hui read: “Tell your manager to come to 6014. Tell her my surname is Su.”

After reading, he felt a bit uneasy. That single sentence was enough? But that was all that was written on the first note. After he finished, the girl holding the phone hung up. He didn’t know what response the front desk would give. After hanging up, the two girls moved the chairs away and instead stood behind him. If it weren’t for what had just happened, it would just look like they were his two lackeys. Su Hui didn’t dare turn around, just stared at the room door, waiting for the manager to arrive.

The doorbell rang very quickly, quick enough to surprise Su Hui. He was just about to stand up to open the door, but the girl in the school uniform pressed him back into his seat. The other girl walked forward and opened the door, letting the woman standing outside into the room. The manager was panting slightly; she actually looked like she had jogged all the way here.

Su Hui looked closely and realized she was an acquaintance he’d met while unloading the goods earlier… She also reacted upon seeing his face, but was even more nervous, completely lacking the brisk, decisive aura she’d had downstairs. She lowered her head and said, “Mr. Su, is there something I can help you with?”

Su Hui was a little dazed. Glancing at the words on the second note, he said: “Looking for a person. Works here. Surname Zuo. Around twenty years old.”

The manager didn’t ask why, just nodded, then took out her cell phone and connected a call. Her tone finally regained some of the familiarity Su Hui recognized. After asking, she hung up and said respectfully: “Mr. Su, I asked around. We don’t have any employee surnamed Zuo here.”

Su Hui looked at the third and final note, reading: “Take them to your archives room. I have urgent business to attend to. Don’t tell anyone I was here—tell me your name.”

How could a KTV have an archives room? Su Hui’s mind was in a jumble, but that’s what the note said. He could only stiffly finish reading it. Upon hearing this, the manager opened her mouth slightly, wanting to say something but held back. She still lowered her head, conducting herself properly: “Understood. My name is Liu Xia. I won’t disappoint Mr. Su.”

“You can take us there now,” Jiang Zhique nodded, speaking to Liu Xia.

“Understood. Take care, Mr. Su.” The manager bowed deeply once more, then nervously led Jiang Zhique and Qi Ran out of the room.

Su Hui sat blankly in the chair for a long time before finally hesitating and standing up. Could he just… leave now?

He walked into the elevator and pressed the button, but his mood didn’t feel any lighter.

His own surname… it seemed to be far more significant than he had imagined. What exactly did his dad do? Why had that manager been so terrified? It was as if with just one word of displeasure from him, she would immediately lose her job—or even worse. Was all this simply because his surname was Su?

As he was letting his thoughts run wild, the elevator finally reached the first floor. He returned to where the truck was parked, subconsciously showing an apologetic smile: “Sorry, I took a bit long in the bathroom.”

The manager named Liu Xia had them take the private inner elevator. Swiping her employee card, she pressed the button for the top floor. Jiang Zhique hadn’t spoken, so the manager didn’t speak either. The elevator ascended in silence. After arriving, they exited the elevator and followed the corridor to the innermost room. Pushing open the door, Liu Xia did not enter, only standing outside and saying: “I don’t have authorization to enter. You two can go in by yourselves. I’ll wait outside.”

Jiang Zhique nodded, her voice low: “I will inform the main family about today’s events. Your performance was good.”

The manager sighed deeply in relief, nodding gratefully. She then closed the door, and the room fell silent.

“What are we looking for?” Qi Ran didn’t relax immediately. She wasn’t sure if this archives room had surveillance or other things.