At that exact moment, her phone on the table began vibrating against the glass surface. Qiao Meixia glanced down at the flashing screen before reaching over and picking it up.
An encrypted message from MadDog had just arrived.
She tapped on the secure chat window and opened the message to read it.
[MadDog]: Hey, NineHell just increased the bounty reward from five million to ten million. Are you really not interested in taking this job?
Qiao Meixia did not hesitate as she quickly typed out a single, definitive word.
[Q]: No.
[MadDog]: Fine... If that's what you really want.
[Q]: Well, if they offer thirty million, I will take a look.
[MadDog]: Really?! Then let's wait and see whether they're desperate enough to increase the reward again.
[Q]: Send me a laptop.
[MadDog]: Eh?! What the hell happened to your laptop?
[Q]: A crazy man broke it.
[MadDog]: What?! Who did it? Should we go ahead and 'click' him?
[Q]: No need for now.
[MadDog]: Oh... You want to wait for a more suitable time to strike? Well, suit yourself.
Qiao Meixia did not bother replying to any further messages from him. Instead, she casually placed her phone aside on the plush sofa and decided to close her eyes to take a well-deserved nap.
Little did she know that, at this exact moment, complete and utter chaos had already begun to erupt back at the luxurious Jiang family residence.
Over in the grand dining room, the Jiang family members were currently having their breakfast.
Jiang Yanna was the very first one to arrive and take her seat, followed shortly after by Feng Lan and the head of the household, Jiang Lukang. The last one to finally appear at the table was Jiang Chinan. His face was dark, and he was clearly still in a terrible, explosive mood after yesterday's humiliating incident.
The family began eating their breakfast in a heavy, tense silence as usual.
A moment later, Jiang Yanna paused, looking around the spacious dining room as though she were actively searching for someone who was missing.
"Father, Mother, Sister Meixia is not here yet. Should we wait for her before we finish?" Jiang Yanna asked softly, playing her usual role as the sweet, deeply considerate younger sibling to perfection.
"Why on earth should we wait for a person like her? Just let her starve." Jiang Chinan snorted coldly, stabbing a piece of food on his plate with his fork.
"She is probably just out exercising early in the morning, just like she was doing yesterday." Feng Lan reasoned, sipping her tea.
"There is absolutely no need to wait around for her. Just eat your food. If she wanted breakfast, she should have made sure to come back on time." Jiang Lukang spoke up, his voice firm and completely authoritative.
Hearing his father's dismissive words, the corners of Jiang Chinan's lips curled upward into a nasty, satisfied smirk. 'Good. She should just starve to death out there,' he thought maliciously to himself.
However, even after the entire family had finished eating their lavish breakfast, they still did not see a single trace of Qiao Meixia. Not even her shadow appeared anywhere near the dining area.
Soon afterwards, Jiang Lukang wiped his mouth, stood up from the table, and left the house to head to the company for work.
Feeling somewhat uneasy and concerned about the optics of the situation, Feng Lan stood up after breakfast and decided she should go check on Qiao Meixia herself. She called out for Butler Jun, who quickly and obediently came straight to her side.
"Where exactly did you settle Meixia last night?" Feng Lan asked, looking at the older man.
"Since there were absolutely no prepared guest rooms available in the main house last night, I arranged for Miss Qiao to stay temporarily in the servants' quarters." Butler Jun replied truthfully, keeping his head slightly bowed.
***This novel is a work with w e b n o v e l. c o m. If it is not read this novel on w e b n o v e l. c o m, then it has been stolen. Thank you, from your shameless author, ZerahNeko***