Chapter 2274 — Wang Xinyan's Headache

"Maybe you'd better do it yourself?" Wu Chengtian suggested.

"It's fine. He's a subordinate I brought with me from Songshan City—Liu Wangli. There's no problem with him," Qiu Lingshan said.

Liu Wangli knew all about the relationship between Qiu Lingshan and Wei Zhao. This time he had been transferred along with her and promoted to deputy captain; before, he had been a squad leader.

"All right, then," Wu Chengtian said with a nod.

After calling Qiu Lingshan, Wu Chengtian phoned the eldest young lady as well, to tell her that Wang Xinyan was safely out of danger and there was no need to worry.

The eldest young lady and Xiaoshu breathed a sigh of relief at last. It seemed the Pi family was dependable after all.

Only, at that very moment, Big Mule, who had gone to deliver food to the abandoned farm, was struck dumb! Test Subject No. 02 had vanished—and so had Wang Xinyan!

Judging by the scene, there were signs of a struggle and traces of blood. The lock on the single-story house had been smashed open with brute force, and the ropes that had bound Wang Xinyan had been snapped clean through by sheer strength. All of which proved that a fierce battle had taken place here—but Test Subject No. 02 had been no match for his opponent, and his whereabouts were now unknown...

The discovery gave Big Mule a violent start, yet he dared not linger another moment. He knew just how formidable Test Subject No. 02 was—even Wu Chengtian and the Wind-Thunder Purple-Lightning Beast together had been no match for him. Whoever had defeated him and carried Wang Xinyan off must be no ordinary figure!

Never mind that Big Mule was no cultivator; even if he had been one, he would not have dared remain, lest that person come back and settle accounts with him directly!

As Big Mule sped away in his car, he also dialed An Liwen's number.

"Big Mule, how are things?" An Liwen had no idea that something had already gone wrong on that end.

"Brother Wen, bad news! Wang Xinyan has been rescued, Test Subject No. 02 is missing, and there are signs of a fight and blood at the scene!" Big Mule said in a rush.

"What!" An Liwen was startled on the spot. "Rescued? Then where are you? Get back here at once—whatever you do, don't linger!"

"I'm already on my way!" Big Mule said. "In a situation like this, how would I dare stay a moment longer?"

"Good that you're back..." An Liwen sighed. He had not expected the venture to fail so soon after setting out. But Wei Zhao was not at home—so who on earth had rescued Wang Xinyan, and who could possibly be a match for Test Subject No. 02?

Qiu Lingshan had been about to gather her subordinates for a meeting to study matters related to the kidnapping case. When Wu Chengtian's call came, she hurried off with Liu Wangli to Wei Zhao's villa.

This was the first time Qiu Lingshan had ever set foot in Wei Zhao's villa here in Dong Hai. Along the way, Liu Wangli had gotten a clear picture of what had happened. So it was Wei Zhao who had pulled it off again? And this time, with Wei Zhao away, even Wei Zhao's underlings had come through?

But Liu Wangli said nothing more. Once they arrived, he simply hauled Test Subject No. 02—missing an arm and a leg—into the police car, while Wang Xinyan rode in another car with Qiu Lingshan, and they drove all the way back to the station...

Seeing their daughter returned safe and sound, Wang Xuben and Xiao Qinlin thanked Qiu Lingshan profusely. Qiu Lingshan felt a little embarrassed, but Wu Chengtian had instructed her not to breathe a word about the Pi family, so Wang Xinyan also held her tongue and said only that Qiu Lingshan had rescued her.

In the lounge, Wang Xuben and Xiao Qinlin drew their daughter aside to talk, while Qiu Lingshan and the other officers first took the suspect to the hospital, then prepared to take his statement once he regained consciousness.

"Yanyan, I hear... you've found yourself a boyfriend at school?" After all the fussing and concern, Xiao Qinlin finally asked the question she cared about most.

"Ah? I..." Wang Xinyan's expression changed, and her face went instantly scarlet. She had not expected her mother to bring this up so suddenly.

Xiao Qinlin caught the shift in her daughter's expression, and her own face changed slightly. "So it's true, then?"

"I... well, he's not really my boyfriend... just a classmate I'm on good terms with..." Wang Xinyan said, a little embarrassed, as though she had been caught red-handed doing something wrong.

"Just a classmate you're on good terms with?" Xiao Qinlin clearly did not believe it. "Earlier, a girl classmate named Gu Mengyao came by—and she had plenty to say."

Wang Xinyan had not expected Gu Mengyao to be the one who let the cat out of the bag. Helpless, she pressed her lips together, not knowing how to explain.

"Yanyan, you're betrothed to someone... you're not like other people. When the time comes... if the Kang family finds out, we'll have no way to answer for it..." Xiao Qinlin said worriedly. Thinking back to the last time they had been put under house arrest by the Xiao brothers, who had used Wang Xuben's company to pressure them, she felt a chill of dread even now.

"That's enough—stop asking!" Wang Xuben frowned and cut Xiao Qinlin off. "That boy from the Kang family—I never thought much of him to begin with. If Yanyan has a choice of her own, then I'll give up the company. I've thought it through these past few days, and I've had my fill! This kidnapping especially—losing our daughter and getting her back has made one thing clearer to me than ever: nothing matters more than our daughter. The company can go. The ten million the kidnappers demanded—I'd bankrupt myself to raise it. So let's not push Yanyan too hard. Whatever she likes is fine with me!"

"But my family and the Kang family... I'm afraid they might do something out of line... after all, they're cultivators, and they have powerful backers behind them..." Xiao Qinlin truly saw no way out. What she feared most was that if they broke off the engagement, that side would do something excessive.

"That..." Wang Xuben was taken aback, and the crux of the matter occurred to him as well. He could not help falling silent, then heaved a despondent sigh.

"Dad, Mom, don't argue. I... I know what I'm doing..." Seeing her parents so distressed over this matter, Wang Xinyan sighed helplessly and said quietly.

The atmosphere in the lounge abruptly turned somewhat heavy and strange. Wang Xuben and Xiao Qinlin looked at their daughter and sighed, a flicker of guilt in their eyes.

Xiao Qinlin especially was deeply unhappy about the way her two brothers had behaved, yet there was nothing she could do.

But Wang Xinyan's heart was in turmoil... Her parents had found out about her and Wei Zhao after all. How was she to deal with it from now on? Should she let nature take its course and give herself free rein, or draw a clear line between herself and Wei Zhao?

Yet Wang Xinyan knew that although there was something ambiguous between her and Wei Zhao, their relationship had never gone any further. She did not want to change her way of living for the sake of a fiancé who was little more than a name, and besides, she did not like this fiancé at all.

For a moment, Wang Xinyan could not help feeling a headache coming on...

She had told her father and mother that she knew what she was doing—but did she really?