The dagger's tip was just a hair's breadth away from slashing her face.
Wen Yan's heart leaped into her throat.
"You want money, right? I'll give it to you. How much do you want?"
"Haha, what capital do you have? Don't I know it?" The thug burst into laughter.
They had thoroughly investigated Wen Yan before kidnapping her.
Wen Yan quickly thought about who she had offended recently. The only ones who could do this to her were the Li family.
"It was the Li family who sent you, wasn't it?" Wen Yan looked at them. "The Li family is bankrupt now, they probably can't give you much money. But you know I'm an internet celebrity now, with nearly a hundred thousand fans. Anything I design starts at five figures. Who do you think has more to gain?"
Her words hit the mark. The thugs fell silent.
The one holding the dagger asked, "Then how much can you give us?"
"At least five hundred thousand," Wen Yan stared at them.
As expected, she saw their expressions waver.
The people hired by the Li family could at most offer less than a hundred thousand.
The three men exchanged glances. The one with the dagger said, "Then transfer the money to us now, and we'll let you go."
They weren't going to let her off easily.
"Okay, but you have to let me go first, don't you? I can't transfer money like this," Wen Yan said, looking at the ropes binding her hands.
The thugs pondered.
Wen Yan added, "Can't three of you control just me? I'm just a weak woman, and I don't have any other weapons."
Her words convinced them. That's right, could three of them not handle one woman? The thugs untied her ropes. "You'd better not try anything funny. The three of us are watching you."
Wen Yan nodded and took out her phone, logging into her bank account.
"Someone at the door!" Wen Yan suddenly exclaimed.
Everyone looked towards the door.
The doorway was silent. Where was anyone? When they turned back, they saw Wen Yan had already run to the window.
The thugs immediately cursed, "Bitch!"
It was a ground-floor window, and Wen Yan easily jumped out. This was the fastest escape route she had been observing.
The thugs quickly followed.
Wen Yan ran while calling the police, panting. The sound of footsteps seemed to be getting closer.
There was a significant difference in stamina between men and women. Wen Yan looked back and saw the figures getting closer. Her heart pounded. Suddenly, her foot found no purchase, and Wen Yan, not noticing the stairs, tumbled down.
"Ah!"
Wen Yan was dazed from the fall.
Her knees throbbed with intense pain, as if they were scraped open. But Wen Yan immediately got up and ran, only to be hit on the head by a shoe. The pain made her vision blur.
The next second, she was caught and thrown to the ground.
"You slut, how dare you trick me? See how I teach you a lesson!" The thug said angrily, sitting on Wen Yan and slapping her several times.
A stinging pain shot through her. Wen Yan's face swelled, and her ears buzzed.
"You bastards, I've already called the police! Let me go, and maybe I can spare your lives!" Wen Yan shouted.
"What? You little tramp!"
The thugs were furious, but they couldn't help but worry. What if the police really arrived...
Suddenly, a beam of white light flashed, and they instinctively covered their eyes.
"It's the police! They're here so quickly!" Wen Yan exclaimed with joy.
Hearing "police," the thugs scattered from Wen Yan like mice seeing a cat, running away in a panic.
The car grew closer and finally stopped in front of Wen Yan.
Wen Yan struggled to get up. Seeing the person getting out of the car, surprise flickered in her eyes.
An Xileng quickly scooped her up in a swift movement.
"President An?"
"Yes, I saw these people take you away and felt something was amiss. I followed. Who are they, and why did they run?" An Xileng asked coldly.
"It was people from the Li family. They're still not giving up because I sued my cousin," Wen Yan said hatefully, then looked at him and struggled to get up. "President An, please put me down, I can walk myself."
"You're in this state, don't be stubborn," An Xileng said forcefully, carrying her into the car.
Wen Yan's top had torn from the fall. She looked down and realized the tear was in an awkward spot, just above her chest. The next second, a suit jacket was draped over her. A low, charming male voice said, "Don't catch a cold."
Wen Yan nodded, surprised by his thoughtfulness.
"Where to now?"
"Let's go to the police station first," Wen Yan rubbed her forehead.
She wouldn't let off Madam Li; otherwise, there would be a next time. After filing the report, Wen Yan looked at her disheveled state and hesitated about where to go. Home? Leng Xunze would surely notice something was wrong. They had just reconciled, and Wen Yan really didn't want him to worry about her affairs anymore.
"If you go back like this, you'll definitely be misunderstood. Men can't accept their women being touched by others," An Xileng saw through her thoughts.
Wen Yan's heart ached.
"I'll take you to a nearby hotel to rest for the night."
"...Thank you, President An."
For now, this was the only option.
They found a hotel nearby and checked in. Wen Yan slept restlessly. She finally managed to fall asleep close to dawn, only to be woken by the doorbell at 7:30.
Wen Yan got up to open the door.
"Miss, here are your clothes. President An said to change and come down for breakfast."
Wen Yan took them. They were a simple, chic suit set.
She hadn't expected An Xileng to be here as well.
After changing, she went downstairs and indeed saw An Xileng in the buffet restaurant. Wen Yan walked over to greet him. "President An."
"Mm, how did you sleep last night?"
"So-so," Wen Yan replied softly.
"I guessed you didn't sleep well, but it's normal. After what happened, no one sleeps well. But you have to go to work today, so eat something quickly. The restaurant in this hotel is quite good."
Wen Yan nodded. There were many choices, but she opted for plain congee and milk. After drinking it, she felt much warmer.
"Let's go, I'll drive you to work," An Xileng said.
Wen Yan pondered for a moment and declined.
"My company is not far from here, I can walk. Thank you for your kindness, President An," Wen Yan said softly.
Suddenly, Wen Yan's peripheral vision seemed to catch a familiar figure.
It was just a fleeting glimpse, and she didn't see clearly.
She got up and went to her company.
On the way, she suddenly received a call from Leng Xunze.
"Why didn't you come back last night?"
"I, didn't I tell you? I hadn't seen my best friend in a long time, so I went to see her," Wen Yan said softly, feeling guilty as she was not good at lying.
"You were there the whole night?"
Wen Yan hummed in agreement.
He hung up the phone directly.
Wen Yan was suddenly bewildered, looking at her phone in confusion. What was wrong with him?
Wen Yan left him a message, but he didn't reply. She just assumed he was unhappy because she hadn't returned all night. Wen Yan tried to appease him and make promises, but Leng Xunze still didn't respond.