I initially thought Xiao Tianci's move, this show of courtesy before force, was a feigned probing tactic.
If he truly possessed such great capabilities, then Snakehead Dabao would have had no chance of escorting Cheng Minglang and Zhu Wenjing, two living souls, out of Longxi territory.
As it turned out, I was wrong, terribly wrong!
In the afternoon, around three or four o'clock.
Just as I had found the camel master and apprentice again for paid assistance, my phone in my pocket began to vibrate incessantly.
I pulled it out to see an unfamiliar mobile number.
The moment I saw this strange number, an indescribable sense of unease arose within me.
After answering the call, I got straight to the point and asked, "Hello, who is this?"
"It's me."
From the other end of the line came Xiao Tianci's chilling voice.
It was Xiao Tianci!
"I wonder what Mr. Xiao is looking for me for?" Despite my taut nerves, I tried my best to ask in a very calm tone.
I heard Xiao Tianci on the other end sneer, "Of course, I'm looking for you to reconfirm matters concerning Cheng Minglang."
"What I told you at the guesthouse this morning still stands!" Xiao Tianci said in his usual flat tone.
Before I could even speak, I heard him add, "There's no third time for the same mistake!"
"I've already given you two chances, if you truly take my words, Xiao Tianci, as mere wind..."
"You'll know the consequences!"
After speaking, Xiao Tianci hung up the phone and quickly sent me a text message.
"I'll only wait for you until nine o'clock tonight! After nine, if Cheng Minglang doesn't appear at Tianci Tower, you'll bear the consequences yourself!"
Looking at the text message from Xiao Tianci, I frowned and began to ponder.
Why would Xiao Tianci repeatedly ask me to hand Cheng Minglang over to him?
Since he could find me at the guesthouse for a face-to-face conversation, he must surely be aware of the fact that Cheng Minglang had already fled.
If I was determined to conceal it to the end, what serious consequences could he threaten me with?
After thinking it over and over, I still couldn't figure out what trump card Xiao Tianci held in his hand.
So, after coming back to my senses, I told the camel about the situation and asked him to analyze it from an outsider's perspective.
The camel showed a thoughtful expression, as if he had thought of something, and immediately said to me, "Wait a moment, I'll make a call!"
With that, he dialed Snakehead Dabao's number in front of me.
After the call connected and a period of communication and questioning, the camel said thank you and hung up.
"Dabao said there were no issues on his end! Everything was normal when he sent Cheng Minglang and Zhu Wenjing into the train station."
He paused, then shook his head, and the camel looked at me and said, "Boss, from my perspective, there shouldn't be any problems!"
"As long as you can confirm that you have no weaknesses that Xiao Tianci can exploit, then he's definitely bluffing you!"
Taking advice is like eating well!
After the camel's analysis and judgment, my previously somewhat tense mood immediately relaxed.
It seemed Xiao Tianci was getting anxious from not being able to find Cheng Minglang and was trying to intimidate me into revealing something.
I thought to myself, the worst of his so-called consequences would be nothing more than using my life to exchange for the lives of Cheng Minglang and Zhu Wenjing!
However, a gambler isn't that easy to kill!
Perhaps in other aspects, gamblers are not as visible or comparable to others, but in terms of wealth alone...
The net worth of a gambler is likely much greater than the combined annual income of hundreds or even thousands of ordinary families!
If he couldn't find Cheng Minglang and wanted to kill me out of anger, Xiao Tianci couldn't just do it with words; he would have to spend real money!
He could spend money to buy my money, and I could equally spend money to protect my life!
At this moment, I had already made up my mind.
No matter what the outcome of this trip to Longxi would be, this bodyguard, the camel, had to be kept by my side, no matter the cost!
...
That evening, about ten minutes had passed since the nine o'clock deadline set by Xiao Tianci.
My phone suddenly received a text message, the sender still being Xiao Tianci.
His unfamiliar yet incredibly conspicuous mobile number was something ordinary people could remember at a glance, let alone gamblers.
"In the city, there's a huge surprise waiting for you in the apartment your brother bought!"
Upon seeing this message, my heart couldn't help but pound rapidly, beating several times in succession.
I knew very well that if Xiao Tianci wanted to make a move against me, he wouldn't need to resort to these roundabout tactics; he could simply have someone come to my door.
The fact that he said this meant there was definitely a "surprise" waiting for me.
Han Jinlun had given me and Cheng Minglang two of the three apartment keys before he died. Although I didn't know how Xiao Tianci got the keys, the surprise he mentioned was certainly not a good thing for me.
Could it be...
I didn't want to think any further and hurriedly took a taxi with the camel to go there.
Using the key to turn the doorknob and open the door, I forced myself to suppress the extreme anxiety within me and pushed the door open, stepping inside.
The room was very dark and cold, and there was a strange smell.
I fumbled for the switch on the wall and quickly turned on the light.
*Click!*
Once the room was illuminated, I instantly saw a scene.
In a bedroom with the door ajar, a woman lay on the bed, on the verge of death.
Her hair was splayed out, hanging over the edge of the bed, and her thin clothes were covered in mottled bloodstains.
Upon closer inspection, it was Mu Haitang!
At this moment, Mu Haitang had long lost her former radiant appearance. Her eyes were swollen and oozing pus, and her beautiful face was covered in dense small blood holes, clearly scalded by cigarette butts.
Not only that, but Mu Haitang's arms and legs were dangling limply on either side of her body; it was obvious that all four limbs were fractured.
It was hard to imagine what kind of inhuman abuse Mu Haitang had endured before!
She was still struggling to breathe. Since her eyes were swollen and she couldn't see, perhaps sensing my presence in the room, her neck moved slightly.
Seeing this scene, the anxiety and unease that had been hidden within me were instantly replaced by an overwhelming surge of rage and a deep sense of guilt.
Closing my eyes, I couldn't bear to look at Mu Haitang's current suffering.
Xiao Tianci had someone beat Mu Haitang like this and then sent her here, deliberately keeping her alive, most likely to send me a signal.
The trap I had set for Xiao Tianyu had been discovered by his elder brother!
And his revenge had arrived!
Mu Haitang, lying on the bed and gasping weakly, opened her mouth but couldn't speak.
Her chest rose and fell, her breaths shallow.
I knew very well that Mu Haitang, in this state, was unlikely to be saved.
Taking a deep breath and preparing to speak to Mu Haitang, my phone in my pocket suddenly vibrated...