"Miss Xu, did I do something wrong? Why the sudden coldness?" Yan Zijun asked, his face a picture of innocence.
I didn't answer him, just glanced at the time on my phone. It was already eleven at night. The number of pedestrians on the street had thinned out, making it feel somewhat desolate.
Hugh Pei's call came through again. I had just answered when my hand was forcefully gripped. Yan Zijun, his gentle demeanor gone, now looked furious. "Come with me!"
"Let go of me!" I was startled. I hadn't expected Yan Zijun's sudden change. His grip was strong, and he practically dragged me towards the car.
A few passersby saw us, but no one dared to intervene. I had never been in a situation like this before, and my mind was in a state of chaos. Remembering the ongoing call, I shouted "Help!" a few times.
Yan Zijun shoved me into the car and snatched my phone. "Behave yourself!"
In the driver's seat, He Kang was smoking. He turned to look at me, a sinister smile on his face. "Zoe Xu, surprised?"
"He Kang, what are you trying to do?" I forced myself to stay calm.
"You bitch, you made me lose my job, and Ella Li broke up with me. You ruined my life. I won't be able to rest until I teach you a lesson. I have nothing to lose. Tonight, you'll pay tenfold!" He Kang threw his cigarette butt and drove off.
I don't know how long we drove. The car finally stopped at a pier. He Kang and Yan Zijun took me to a container warehouse. Before I could even steady myself, a slap landed on my face. I felt a burning pain, and my vision went dark for a moment.
Yan Zijun found a chair, and He Kang tied me to it tightly with a rope. He kept cursing at me, the words incredibly vile.
"You have two choices now," He Kang said, holding up two fingers. "First, transfer five million to me as compensation. Second, we'll rape and kill you, then dump you in the sea."
I never realized He Kang was so vicious.
"He Kang, you were with Ella Li for so long. She was so good to you, yet you wronged her. Shouldn't you let her go? You're the one who made the mistake, why are you blaming me?" I stared at He Kang.
"Do I need you to tell me what to do?" My words seemed to have agitated He Kang again. He suddenly kicked me to the ground. The back of my head hit the floor hard, and the pain made the world spin.
Yan Zijun didn't have a grudge against me; he was probably just in it for the money. He stopped He Kang, who was about to strike again. "Forget it. Her life is not as valuable as her money. Let's get this over with."
They helped me up again. He Kang pointed my phone at my face to unlock it with facial recognition, then opened the banking app. He set the amount himself and told me to give him the password.
"You can't transfer that much at once. There's a limit," I said, enduring the headache and trying to stall for time. "You can only transfer fifty thousand per transaction, one by one."
I was lying to He Kang. He had no idea what my bank card's limit was.
He Kang's financial situation was average. He probably had never made a large transfer and might actually be fooled by me.
Sure enough, he changed the amount to fifty thousand. Each transfer required going through the whole process again.
"Transfer some to me too," Yan Zijun said, his eyes red with greed.
The two of them focused on the transfers. Sometimes the screen would time out, and they would have to get me to unlock it again. Every second they wasted was a glimmer of hope for me.
I stared at the warehouse door, my heart pounding, chanting a name in my mind over and over again: Hugh Pei.
That last phone call was my only hope. He Kang was deranged. Even if he got the money, he would likely still harm me.
Suddenly, I heard Lila Wei's voice from outside. "Sis Zoe? Sis Zoe?"
Her voice was very soft, as if she was deliberately whispering.
"I'm here!!" I grasped at the hope, responding with all my might. He Kang and Yan Zijun were startled and quickly covered my mouth.
The footsteps outside grew closer and stopped at the door. Tears streamed down my face, hoping that someone would kick the door open the next second.
But the footsteps paused for two seconds, then hurried away. I vaguely heard Lila Wei's voice, "President Pei, Dr. Yu, there's no one here."
My pupils constricted, and my whole body went rigid.
What was Lila Wei saying?!
"Go look somewhere else! What are you standing there for?" Hugh Pei's voice was a roar, filled with intense anger.
I wanted to make a sound, but my mouth was covered so tightly that I could barely breathe, let alone shout.
I felt like I was watching a flame slowly extinguish in the darkness.
"Ring, ring, ring!" A sharp phone ring suddenly sounded. He Kang fumbled in his pocket, pulled out his phone, and hung up, cursing, "Shit!"
I took the opportunity to scream, "Hugh Pei!!"
Yan Zijun, frustrated, slapped me across the face again. I was starting to lose it. I felt a tearing pain at the corner of my mouth.
Just as the two of them were about to gag me with a cloth, the warehouse door was hit with a violent crash.
"Bang!"
The lock was smashed, and Hugh Pei kicked the door open. He stood there for two seconds like a wrathful god. When he saw me, the ferocity on his face reached its peak. His eyes seemed to have turned red with anger. He rushed in, wielding the steel pipe he had used to smash the door. He Kang was so scared his face turned pale. Before he could use me as a hostage, he was knocked to the ground with a single swing of the pipe.
Evan Yu followed him in. When he saw my pathetic state, a hint of grim anger appeared on his usually calm face.
He grabbed Yan Zijun by the collar with one hand, took off his glasses with the other and put them in his pocket, then landed a heavy punch.
"Ah!!" The bloody and violent scene made Lila Wei scream. She scrambled back, as if afraid the blood would splash on her. Her falling tears were crystal clear.
Jake Fu and Lucas Lu also arrived. Seeing this, they were both a bit stunned.
Lila Wei ran behind Jake Fu and grabbed the corner of his shirt, her frightened expression heart-wrenching. Lucas Lu, however, was quick-witted. He turned to the men he had brought and ordered, "Get them!"
A dozen men rushed in, taking over from Hugh Pei and Evan Yu, and continued to beat He Kang and Yan Zijun.
Hugh Pei walked over to the back of the chair and untied me. I wanted to say thank you, but my head hurt too much. The moment I opened my mouth, I fainted.
I don't know what happened next. I just woke up in a hospital bed, with IV fluid slowly dripping into my veins.
Ella Li was by my side, her eyes red. When she saw me wake up, she grabbed my hand and started crying. "Zoe, I'm so sorry. It's because of me that He Kang took revenge on you. I'm so sorry..."