Chapter 28: Deep In The Forest

Guan Xi is usually terrified of snakes, insects, rodents, and ants, especially caterpillars. Even if she sees them on the screen, she can scream and run a hundred meters away.

The current situation has her standing in a grassy area, uncertain about what lies beneath. She feels uneasy, saying, “Can’t we stop walking? If you want money, just call my family already.”

The man in black, pulling the rope tied around her wrists, fabricates a story, “There’s a small cabin not far ahead, let’s go there.”

“How far is ‘not far’? I can’t walk anymore,” she complains.

Impatiently, the man in black clicks his tongue, “Why are you so annoying!”

“What can I do?” She refuses to move and angrily says, “Where are we anyway? My ankles are scratched by the weeds, and it hurts.”

She is wearing jeans today, ankle-revealing, and her fair skin looks distressed.

She suggests, “Brother, can’t we just settle things here? I promise not to pursue anything once you get the money. Besides, I can’t even see what you look like now, so there won’t be any threat in the future.”

The man in black coldly snorts, “Blabbering nonsense, you’re truly a bad woman.”

She falls silent.

“You’re shameless. What qualifications do you have to enjoy what you have now? Why do you snatch things from others?” he berates her.

Perplexed, she finds the man in black confusing. Despite talking about money, he hasn’t asked to make a call for a long time. The signal here must be bad, so why bother going further?

Considering his words from the beginning, she tentatively asks, “Do you know Wei Zihan?”

Pausing, she feels her speculation is absurd but still asks, “Or perhaps, Guan Ying?”

The man in front stops abruptly, turning back in panic, “What nonsense are you talking about! I don’t know anyone named Guan Ying!”

“Oh, okay, just asking.”

Unexpectedly, he does know Guan Ying…

Well, someone who knows Wei Zihan is not ordinary. It’s unlikely for them to ask for a confusing ransom of ten million. Guan Ying might not have a deep understanding of their family background, thinking they are simply wealthy. Realizing this, she is surprised. His tone seems to be defending Guan Ying, sympathizing with her grievances. If Guan Ying didn’t give him that impression, why would he be hostile towards her?

Frowning, she wonders if Guan Ying, despite her seemingly gentle demeanor, harbors hidden resentment. It’s too perplexing, and for now, she puts aside the possibility of Guan Ying orchestrating this situation.

This guy is so clueless, full of flaws, a complete amateur. So, is he doing this voluntarily? That seems to be the only possibility. Then, if he’s not interested in assaulting or robbing her and is afraid to kill her, could he be hoping for her to… take care of herself?

Suddenly, Guan Xi tightens up again. This place looks like a primitive forest, easy to get lost or encounter wild animals. If he abandons her here, she might really struggle to find a way out and could die in this remote location.

Realizing this, Guan Xi quickly steps forward, grabbing the man in black’s clothes. “Um, I really can’t walk anymore. Can we take a break?”

“No.”

“Well, if you insist on moving forward, how about carrying me? I’m quite tired.”

The man in black, silently looking at her for two seconds, erupts in anger. “What do you take me for? A mount? This is a kidnapping! Behave yourself!”

“Then let me rest for a while and continue later!”

With that, she forcefully pulls the rope and walks to sit under a tree. The man in black stands there in silence, irritated by her affected demeanor.

“Why are you standing? Sit down, aren’t you tired?”

He coldly snorts but reluctantly sits down beside her. He doesn’t want to be too far, fearing she might escape. This location is not too deep, and she might find a way out. After some hesitation, the man in black finally sits beside her.

Guan Xi’s mind races. Jiang Suizhou was on the phone with her earlier; he must have sensed something was wrong and called for help. However, it couldn’t have been that fast. She needs to find a way to delay them.

Crack, crack…

Suddenly, she hears the sound of footsteps in the weeds.

Someone?

She pauses and immediately looks up. When she sees the newcomer, she is utterly shocked.

Jiang Suizhou?!

How could he appear so quickly here!

He brought people to rescue her, he actually brought people to rescue her!

Guan Xi’s eyes light up, standing up from the ground. The man in black beside her also notices the commotion and panics when he sees Jiang Suizhou. He knows this man. A long time ago, he went to find Guan Ying, wanting to take her back. However, Guan Ying refused at that time and even hid in this man’s car. The man threatened him back then, saying he would make him sit in the police station!

He quickly stands up, grabbing Guan Xi and pulling out a small knife from his pocket. “Stop! Come closer, and I’ll… I’ll kill her!”

Guan Xi is stunned. A knife? This clueless guy actually brought a knife!

Jiang Suizhou followed the traces of trampled grass and trees to find his way. When he sees Guan Xi sitting calmly, he breathes a sigh of relief. However, the next moment, the scene before him tightens his heartstrings.

“I won’t get close, put down the knife!”

The man in black’s hands were shaking a bit. He really wanted to get rid of Guan Xi, but he dared not and couldn’t cross that line. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have hesitated until now. Actually, he had no idea what to do when he initially followed her car. However, seeing the rare opportunity of her being alone, his mind became chaotic, and he decided to intercept her.

He really wanted to help Guan Ying remove this obstacle, but he truly didn’t dare to kill. In the end, after much thought, he decided to take her to the deep forest, letting her face her own fate. Even though he thought about letting her face her own fate, he was still uneasy. On one hand, he thought he would do anything to keep Guan Ying from being sad, but on the other hand, he hesitated and couldn’t make up his mind.

“Who would believe you?” The man in black, also known as Fang Zhihong, said, “You, just get away from me.”

The knife was somewhat sharp, his emotions were intense, and the blade accidentally grazed, leaving a thin red line on the neck.

Jiang Suizhou’s pupils contracted, and he took a step back. “Fine, don’t hurt her.”

Fang Zhihong took a deep breath to calm down, cut off a part of the rope binding Guan Xi, and threw it over.

“Now, throw away your phone! Tie your hands yourself, tight! A dead knot! I’m watching!”

Guan Xi was initially happy that Jiang Suizhou came so quickly, but now she only saw his figure alone, and her heart sank halfway. What’s going on? How come he’s alone? Wasn’t he supposed to come with a group of people?!

Could it be… the backup hasn’t arrived, and he rushed in alone?

Guan Xi looked at the tossed phone and Jiang Suizhou tying himself, not knowing what it felt like. On one hand, she wondered when Er Gou became so reckless and stupid, and on the other hand, her heart couldn’t restrain its palpitations.

Was he too worried about her, so he acted so urgently?

Seeing Jiang Suizhou cooperating in tying himself, Fang Zhihong finally let out a sigh of relief. He didn’t have confidence in defeating the man in front of him. If he recklessly charged forward, uncovered his face, and recognized him, it wouldn’t be good.

“Go!” Fang Zhihong placed the knife at Guan Xi’s waist, forcing her to move forward, while keeping an eye on Jiang Suizhou. “Don’t get close! But don’t leave my sight, or I’ll take action.”

The situation now exceeded Fang Zhihong’s expectations. After thinking it over, he decided to take both of them deeper into the forest. This way, Jiang Suizhou wouldn’t be able to go back and locate the phone, and he would be wary of harming Guan Xi, being forced to follow them.

Having grown up with experience in living in the forest, Fang Zhihong was not afraid. However, these two young masters and miss were different. If he slipped away directly, it would be strange if they could survive. Guan Xi was dragged into the deep forest, and after walking for a while, the sky darkened, and it unexpectedly started raining. The ground was already slippery, and with the rain, Guan Xi could barely walk.

“Ah—” Guan Xi couldn’t open her eyes under the rain, slipped, and fell to her knees.

Seeing her fall, Fang Zhihong reached out to pull her up, and at this moment, he withdrew the hand holding the knife.

It was at this moment!

Jiang Suizhou seized the opportunity and quickly rushed forward. The rain was pouring heavily, and Fang Zhihong couldn’t hear the sound for a while. Unexpectedly, he was kicked in the waist and abdomen, flying out and falling heavily to the ground. The knife was thrown into the bushes as he tumbled.

Jiang Suizhou didn’t stop for a moment. He had used a special knot on his wrist – it seemed tight, but with a pull, the rope would loosen. He untied the rope and rushed to Fang Zhihong’s side. Before Fang Zhihong could climb up, he was relentlessly beaten. But Fang Zhihong wasn’t one to be trifled with. After reacting, he immediately fought back!

Guan Xi got up from the ground, wiped her face, and saw two men not far away fighting in the rain. The rain was loud, but she felt like she could hear the muffled sound of fists hitting bodies. Guan Xi was anxious, but she knew that going over now would only affect him. She stood there, desperately biting the knot on her hands!

Finally, under her persistent efforts, the rope loosened. She threw it aside, picked up a rock, and was about to rush over. At that moment, the struggling figure not far away suddenly slipped, and both of them rolled down the slope together!

Guan Xi: “Jiang Suizhou!!”

Everything seemed to fall silent. Guan Xi’s legs went weak, and tears burst out. She stumbled and ran to the place where they fell. In that moment, besides panic and fear, her mind was blank.

“Jiang Suizhou! Jiang Suizhou—”

She shouted loudly, but human voices were negligible in the face of nature. Guan Xi was terrified to the extreme, but perhaps reaching the extreme gave her tremendous courage. In the pouring rain, holding onto the tree trunk, she began to descend the slope bit by bit. She couldn’t bear to wait here alone, enduring that heart-wrenching feeling. The path was extremely difficult to traverse. Guan Xi, in a sorry state, failed to grasp a tree trunk and slid down.

“Ah—”

Smack!

Sliding all the way down, she finally landed on a stone platform.

“Ugh…” It hurt; her whole body hurt.

Guan Xi’s face was now indistinguishable, whether it was tears or rainwater. She endured the pain and climbed up.

“Guan Xi?!”

It was a familiar voice. Guan Xi was stunned and immediately looked towards the source. Not far away, Jiang Suizhou sat there, and the man in black lay farther away.

Guan Xi choked up, almost crawling to Jiang Suizhou’s side and hugged him tightly: “Er Gou—”

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