Na Lan Yan Rou wanted to surprise her elder sister. Since her school had allowed her to leave early today, she took advantage of that to drop by Gao Zhong High School. She was sure that Na Lan Yan Ran would be pleasantly surprised to see her.
The two sisters had always been close, having gotten along with each other over the years. Na Lan Yan Ran tended to pamper Na Lan Yan Rou a lot, while Na Lan Yan Rou listened obediently to whatever Na Lan Yan Ran told her. Perhaps it was because they were real biological sisters, there was none of the ridiculous drama surrounding them like with Shi Xiao Nian and her adopted family.
To be honest, the drama around the Shi family and their adopted daughter was extremely exaggerated. Most foster parents didn't ill-treat their adopted children to such an extent. Sure, there was undoubtedly favoritism, but to the extent where they would abuse the adopted daughter, tarnish her reputation, abandon her and even kick her out of the family?
Such nonsense happened only in trashy CEO web novels and manhua.
In any event, Na Lan Yan Rou didn't have to worry about that. She had heard that her sister had only recently completed her Gao Kao, some super important and difficult examination that she found scary. Now she was on her way to graduating, and Na Lan Yan Rou wanted to congratulate her. Not to mention, she could feel a sense of longing from Na Lan Yan Ran. The older Na Lan sister had spent three years of her life in this school and she couldn't imagine leaving just like that.
Such was life. People moved on. Nobody stayed in a single place forever. Well, almost nobody anyway.
Recently, Na Lan Yan Rou had noticed how stressed out her sister was, and she wanted to relieve the tension on Na Lan Yan Ran by any means possible. Going home together was a big step in the right direction. Perhaps she could even cajole her sister to bring her out shopping, to take her mind off things. It would be fun.
To pull off the surprise, however, she couldn't be conspicuous. So she told her bodyguards to go home for the day, so that she could hide by the gates and spring the surprise on her sister when she stepped out of school.
That turned out to be a mistake. The moment she reached the school gates, everything fell apart.
"That's her sister, isn't she?"
"Yeah, there's no mistake."
Blinking, Na Lan Yan Rou glanced in the direction of the hushed voices. A group of men were huddling outside a car, staring at her when she stepped outside the school grounds.
They immediately moved toward her. Sensing danger, Na Lan Yan Rou stopped and took a step back.
"Who are you? What do you want?" she asked warily. The guy at the front grinned.
"Sorry, little lady, but you'll have to come with us for a bit."
"I refuse. My sister will be coming out soon. You…"
The guy's grin widened. "I'm afraid you don't have a choice in the matter."
Na Lan Yan Rou regarded them warily. She might be a small eleven-year-old child, but she had trained in the same cultivation arts as her sister. If these adult men meant her harm, that she might be able to fight back.
When the first guy reached for her, she slapped his hand away and kicked him in the crotch, causing him to howl in pain.
"You bitch…!"
The others closed in, but Na Lan Yan Rou calmly spun away from the second guy and replied with a kick to the third, discouraging him. One of them managed to grab her, but she slammed her arms against his elbows, breaking his grip, and then rammed her own elbow into his solar plexus, causing him to double. Whirling around, she kicked another guy in the head, sending him down.
"Why, you…!"
"Grab her!"
"What the hell, she's just a child?! How are you idiots losing to a single little girl?!"
The sheer numbers of the strangers were beginning to overwhelm her. While Na Lan Yan Rou kicked a fifth guy, the third and fourth grabbed hold of her from either side, each gripping one of her arms. She tried to kick one of them, but the second guy tackled her.
Then they dragged her, struggling and flailing desperately, toward their car.
"Let go!" she shouted. "Let go of me!"
"Shut up!" the first guy snapped and struck her at the side of her head, almost knocking her out.
"Hey! Don't hit her face!" one of his comrades protested hotly. "You'll ruin her beauty!"
"She won't stop struggling!"
"Then hit her somewhere else!"
These fellas were clearly sick in the head, and they had no compunctions hurting her. Moreover, they seemed awfully concerned about spoiling the beauty of an eleven-year-old girl, which made the whole affair creepier.
Na Lan Yan Rou gritted her teeth and fought as best as she could, but the men overpowered her. She kicked and lashed out, but they pinned her down and bodily carried her.
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
Na Lan Yan Rou's eyes widened when she spotted one of the high school students from her sister's school striding forward, glaring at the men. She had a petite figure, and her long hair was dyed blond. She looked pretty innocent and cute. Most likely she was one of Na Lan Yan Ran's schoolmates.
Mu Zi Xing. She was popular among the guys, but no one dared to approach her because of how close she was to Si Nan, who was overly protective of her. There were rumors that Mu Zi Xing and Si Nan were a couple, but their relationship was never made official.
"Let go of her!" Mu Zi Xing ordered, trying to grab hold of Na Lan Yan Rou so that she could pull her free. "She's just a little girl! What's the matter with you people? Are you sick in the head?"
"Crazy bitch! This is none of your business!"
"What do you mean it's none of my business?! You're kidnapping a little girl in front of my eyes!"
"Fuck!" one of the thugs growled. "Trying to play hero? Have you looked in the mirror?"
"What's wrong with my looks? Are you saying I look like a villainess?"
"That's not what I mean…"
"Just grab her!" the first hoodlum growled impatiently. "Since she wants to come along so badly, we'll bring her to accompany Na Lan Yan Rou!"
"Eh? What?! Hey!"
"Let go of that big sister!" Na Lan Yan Rou yelled frantically when she saw two of the thugs seize a struggling Mu Zi Xing. The petite girl was swinging her fists about wildly, accidentally socking one of the guys. But other than a grunt, he didn't seem hurt. However, he retaliated by squeezing Mu Zi Xing's wrist and causing her to squeal in pain. Rage flared up inside Na Lan Yan Rou and she lunged forward, only to find herself restrained. "I'm the one you want, right? Don't drag uninvolved parties into this!"
"It's not our fault," the first guy retorted, his lips curled into a sneer. "This little brat is the one who got herself involved. Blame her instead."
Then the two girls found themselves bundled into the car. The thugs piled in after them, slamming the door and sealing them in.
Before half a minute had passed, the vehicle roared and drove off before any of the other students could digest what had just occurred in front of the school.
*
By the time Si Nan and I reached the school gate, the girls were long gone, along with the car they were bundled into.
"Those bastards!" Si Nan hissed, clenching his fists. Behind us, Ban Zhang finally caught up, panting heavily. Unlike us, he wasn't very fit. Hell, I wouldn't be very fit if I hadn't trained in martial arts.
"We have to call the police," I said and took out my smartphone.
"Already did," Teacher Jiao informed me as he walked over, his phone in his hand. He had a grave expression. "I was too late. By the time I got here, those thugs had already abducted the girls and driven away."
He then called over several of the students to ask them for more details. There were a few schoolmates who had witnessed the entire event, and they were still standing around in shock. Teacher Jiao listened intently, taking note so that he could provide the police a more accurate account when they finally arrived.
"Why would they kidnap Na Lan Yan Ran's sister?" I asked, frowning. "Money?"
"Maybe." Ban Zhang nodded. "The Na Lan family is pretty loaded. They might want to ransom her. But it also could be revenge. A family as big and influential as theirs have no shortage of enemies."
"They didn't have to take Xiao Xing!" Si Nan growled. He was trembling in fury. "We have to save them!"
Ban Zhang and I stared at him. I sighed and shook my head. "It's best to leave it to the police. They are professionals. We blundering in will only make things worse."
"Yeah," Ban Zhang agreed. "Don't do anything reckless."
Na Lan Yan Ran chose that moment to show up, sprinting forward and grabbing at a bemused Teacher Jiao.
"Teacher Jiao! My sister! Where is she…?"
"I'm sorry. They took her. We've contacted the police, but…"
"Damn it!" Na Lan Yan Ran looked distraught. I could tell that she was very close to her sister. "Why did they take her? What do they want?! Who are they?!"
"We don't know. Some of the students managed to record the incident. We'll be presenting the videos to the police. I'm sure they'll figure something out."
"I will never forgive them!" Na Lan Yan Ran clenched her fists furiously, gnashing her teeth. "How dare those bastards kidnap my sister?!"
"They didn't just take your sister. They also took Xiao Xing." Si Nan was also trembling from rage. "We'll track them down and beat them up, even if that's the last thing we do."
"How do you plan to do that?" I asked dryly. "Do you know who they are? Or where they are right now? If not, how are you going to find out?"
"Shut up! You're not helping!"
"I'm telling you to calm down. Leave this to the police. Like I said earlier, if we try to play hero, we might end up aggravating the situation instead."
"Shu Cong is right," Teacher Jiao said with a sigh. "Calm yourselves down. Student Na Lan Yan Ran, you should go home and tell your parents about this. The kidnappers will most likely contact your family shortly…probably to make demands or ask for a ransom. Don't give them another target. Make sure you stay at home and keep yourself safe."
"But my sister…!"
"What do you intend to achieve by running around outside? You don't know who the kidnappers are or where they are. If you also get kidnapped, wouldn't that cause your parents more trouble? At least if you're safe, that's one less thing they have to worry about."
He turned to Si Nan, Ban Zhang and me.
"Can you guys send Na Lan Yan Ran home? Make sure she is safe."
"I'll do that." I nodded, showing my compliance. Before Na Lan Yan Ran could argue, I quickly interjected. "You have resources you can use at home, don't you? Your staff, networks and all that. You should employ them."
Na Lan Yan Ran took a deep breath and nodded.
"You're right," she conceded, calming down. "We'll get to the bottom of this."
"Let's go then. I'll help as best as I can."
"Then I'll come along too, if you don't mind." Si Nan gritted his teeth. "I wish to save Xiao Xing, no matter the cost."
Ban Zhang was out of place, so he ended up going his separate way. There wasn't much he could do even if he tagged along, so we just bade him farewell and proceeded toward the Na Lan family's manor. As it turned out, Na Lan Yan Ran didn't need Si Nan and me to escort her. A huge, black limousine pulled up in front of the school and the bodyguards of the Na Lan family piled out to surround her protectively.
"Any news on my sister?" Na Lan Yan Ran asked without any hesitation. The lead bodyguard consulted his smartphone.
"We have yet to track her precise location, but we believe we have a few leads." He rubbed his bald head as he studied the screen on his smartphone. "Unfortunately, the GPS on her phone isn't working."
"I see." Na Lan Yan Ran then turned to Si Nan. "I will contact you when there's any update. We'll work hard to rescue both my sister and your childhood friend."
"I…" Si Nan began, but Na Lan Yan Ran shook her head.
"My staff will handle this. They are trained professionals."
Her intent was clear. We were amateurs. If we tried to blunder into this, we might make things worse.
Si Nan bristled, but he didn't argue. We watched as the limousine pulled out of the driveway and disappeared into the distance.
"I hope they find Mu Zi Xing," I told Si Nan, hoping to offer him some assurance before I left. When he said nothing, I turned away with a sigh and prepared to go home. I didn't get very far when my smartphone chimed.
"Hmm?"
My jaw dropped when I saw the text message. There was a photograph of Na Lan Yan Rou and Mu Zi Xing, the both of them tied up in a chair and blindfolded, attached to an address and instructions.
"If you don't want your friends to die, come to this place. Don't inform the police, or they will suffer the consequences."
I read the message, my eyes blank. Who were these guys? Were they hired by Shi Ting so that he could settle his grudge with me? Or were they from the Ghost Bear Clan, seeking revenge after I had beaten up their members?
That was right…the challenges I had received over the last few weeks. All of them were sent by the Ghost Bear Clan. I had ignored them, and now they seemed to have resorted to kidnapping my schoolmate's sister to force me into meeting them. At least that was what I believed, but I didn't know for sure. I would only find out when I get there.
Shaking my head, I read the text message again. I didn't recognize the address – it was different from the warehouse that Qi Fu Ren had lured me to the other time.
"Where the fuck is this place?"
"The red light district."
I jumped when Si Nan suddenly spoke up beside me. I had sensed his approach, but I never thought he would be bold enough to intrude on my privacy and read my text message.
The handsome fella stared at me, his eyes dark. "Seems like they kidnapped Na Lan Yan Ran's sister to use her as a hostage, to blackmail you into going there."
"Why?" I rubbed my forehead. "Of all the people, why did they choose to kidnap her? And why do they think I would come for her? I have nothing to do with her."
Si Nan gave me a look that told me what he thought of my lack of intelligence. "There are rumors going around that Na Lan Yan Ran is your fiancée. I know you've denied it directly, but whoever these guys are, I don't think they care about the truth. They don't know you that well, and so they grabbed whoever they thought is linked to you – Na Lan Yan Ran's sister, for example, to force you into a confrontation."
He paused and nodded.
"You were receiving challenge letters and whatnot from the Ghost Bear Clan, right?"
"How do you know about that?"
"Dude, the whole school knows. Some of them are even from the basketball club, errand-runners tasked with sending you the challenges. Not to mention, those gangsters have been highly disruptive, showing up in school to deliver those challenge letters."
"So you think this is the Ghost Bear Clan?"
"Who else can it be?"
I suspected as much, but until I received confirmation, I was open to other possibilities. Nonetheless, it was probably best to proceed with that assumption for now while also preparing for other scenarios.
"If they want me, why don't they just grab me directly? Why kidnap someone who's completely uninvolved?"
Si Nan gave me a stare. "Given your skills – especially after you trounced five of their members by yourself – do you think they'll be able to take you? That's also why they didn't target Na Lan Yan Ran herself. There are rumors that she's skilled at fighting. So they went for her kid sister instead."
"…oh." He had a point.
"Anyway, I'm coming along." Si Nan cracked his knuckles as he growled ominously. "They took Xiao Xing as well. I'm going to save her, and then teach those bastards a lesson. They will regret ever laying hands on her."