It was 2:30 AM, five hours since Wen Xinya had been kidnapped.
The military was still actively trying to locate Wen Xinya. However, there was still no news of her.
The progress of the rescue mission had come to a halt!
For now, the military was hoping that the abductors would call the Wen Family to rush them to pay the ransom so that they could track down the signal of their mobile phone and trace their location. However… that would mean that the abductors would suspect if there was a delay in the payment of ransom. Once they handed the ransom over, there would be no guarantee.
There was a grim tension in the air of the Wen Family’s living room.
They had raised the full sum of ransom.
The Wen Family had raised a total of 300 million yuan and 100 million yuan from Wen Xinya’s stocks, while Old Mr. Mo raised 200 million yuan. All they had to do now was to wait for the abductors to call again.
Mother Wang proceeded to the kitchen to make some supper. Although the military personnel ate some of the food, Old Mr. Wen and Old Mr. Mo had no appetite at all.
Mother Wang tried to persuade them. “Old Mr. Mo, Old Sir, you have to eat some food too! There are still a few more hours to go before daybreak. You won’t be able to take it if you don’t eat or drink.”
Shaking his head, Old Mr. Wen said, “I can’t eat.”
He was filled with hopelessness as he actually knew that Wen Xinya would die once they hand the ransom over.
Old Mr. Mo said, “I can’t stomach anything too. Give the food to the rest!”
It was still unknown if Wen Xinya was dead or alive, and he obviously didn’t have the appetite to eat at all. The thought of the abductors killing her made him shudder in fear. Since there was no news from the military, his only hope was for Si Yiyan to rescue her.
Mother Wang had no choice but to go brew some ginseng tea, thinking that they would probably drink something.
The tension continued.
Old Mr. Wen’s mobile phone rang all of a sudden.
Xiao Huang immediately said, “Answer the call now.”
There was only one reason for the abductors to call and press for the ransom to be paid, and that was to make the Wen Family hand the ransom over in advance. It would then make it harder for Wen Xinya to be rescued. He guessed that Wen Xinya must have alarmed them. Hence, he made Old Mr. Wen answer the call immediately, so as to avoid arousing suspicion and pose a threat to the hostage.
Old Mr. Wen hurriedly answered.
“Old Mr. Wen, I’ve changed my mind. I want you to pay me the ransom before three in the morning. Otherwise, your granddaughter is going to die!” The abductor hung up soon after. The abductors were clearly anxious and aware that the police would definitely not be able to track their location using their mobile signal.
Old Mr. Wen did not expect Xiao Huang’s prediction to have been accurate about the abductors wanting for the ransom to be paid in advance. “It’s only been a few hours. There’s no way for us to raise so much money in such a short amount of time. Could you please give us some more time? We don’t need too long.”
The man in gray stared at the call time and said, “In that case, I shall not put you in a spot. Get 50 million US dollars ready before 3 AM, not a single cent less. Transfer it to the account that I gave you earlier on. Otherwise, I’ll kill your granddaughter.”
He then ended the call and switched off the mobile phone.
Beep-beep…
The sounds of the call ending rang in his ears repeatedly.
Old Mr. Wen abruptly looked at the clock on the wall, only to see that it was already 2:35 AM. There was less than half an hour until the deadline. Even if the police were able to locate them, they might not be able to rush there within 30 minutes and save Wen Xinya.
Old Mr. Mo’s mind went blank, while the sounds of the abductors abusing Wen Xinya rang in his ears. He could not believe his ears at all.
What can they do in half an hour?
Half an hour is not enough to rescue Xinya.
Xiao Huang did not expect the abductors to reduce the ransom and ask for it to be paid in half an hour.
Old Mr. Mo asked in a shaky voice, “Will the rescue team be able to save Xinya within half an hour?”
He could not help but feel worried and hopeless because there had yet to be any news from the military or Si Yiyan.
Greatly taken aback, Xiao Huang was at a sudden loss for words. His eyes lit up and he said, “Old Mr. Mo, don’t worry too much for now. We’re already trying to find out the abductors’ location and the military are cooperating with us as well.”
The phone call had lasted for only thirty seconds. Although they had managed to obtain the mobile signal, they still could not track the location yet.
Old Mr. Wen turned pale and he seemed to have aged ten years. “IS my granddaughter going to die?”
Xiao Huang frantically said, “Old Mr. Wen, there are still 25 minutes to go before the deadline. We can’t give up until the very end.”
However, his words did nothing to help.
Old Mr. Mo asked in a hoarse voice, “What do we do now, then?”
Just like what Xiao Huang said, they could not give up until the last moment. He had now pinned all of his hopes on them.
After a moment of silence, Xiao Huang said, “When the abductors call again to rush you, you must ensure that the hostage is safe. Also… request for the hostage to be released and try your best to stall for as much time as possible. If the abductors disagree, you shall decline the payment of the ransom.”
Time was precious.
Old Mr. Wen and Old Mr. Mo nodded with heavy hearts.
Old Mr. Wen stared at Xiao Huang and begged. “Officer Huang, my granddaughter’s life is in your hands. I hope that you guys will be able to save her.”
Old Mr. Mo bowed and pleaded. “Please, Officer Huang!”
Xiao Huang could not accept their plead at all, especially since they were esteemed and reputable people. “Old Mr. Mo, as the country’s soldiers, we ought to serve the nation and society. It’s only our duty to protect everyone. You’re standing on ceremony with me. Don’t worry… we’ll definitely do our very best to rescue Miss Wen.”
Old Mr. Wen and Old Mr. Mo were incredibly grateful.
Old Mr. Mo said, “It’s all my fault. If I didn’t transfer those assets to Xinya on the day of her coming-of-age ceremony, she wouldn’t attract so much attention and others wouldn’t covet her wealth.”
Old Mr. Wen patted him on his shoulder and said, “It’s not your fault. I even announced that I would be bequeathing five percent of the Wen Corporation’s shares to Xinya on the day of her coming-of-age ceremony. No one expected this to happen.”
However, they actually knew that it was because of the excessive attention that Wen Xinya had attracted. Besides, she was the only heiress of the Wen Family and hence, it would be more likely that they would pay the ransom.
