The walk, though not long, revealed no one in the corridor. However, Huo Rou's sharp hearing detected movement from different sides.
They had guarded well.
As expected from someone she had dealt with before, someone who knew her skills.
At the end of the corridor, Shen Yuanshu called out to someone, instructing him to prepare a set of tools.
"Bring another woman."
The man hesitated, "What kind of woman?"
Shen Yuanshu narrowed his eyes, "Someone with good skin."
As he spoke, a sinister glint flickered in his eyes.
Huo Rou, diligently playing the role of an obedient hostage, returned to her room after her stroll. Seeing Shen Yuanshu busy at the console again, she picked up a book to read.
"Can you still understand it?" Shen Yuanshu asked her as he stole a moment.
Huo Rou choked slightly, "Why not just give me WiFi so I can entertain myself?"
She toyed with her useless phone, a carefree smile on her face.
Shen Yuanshu had long since ordered the WiFi to be shut down, with all external information relayed through his subordinates.
He ignored her and continued to work on the equipment before him.
Soon, a subordinate brought the tools he needed. Huo Rou glanced up from her book.
Surgical supplies?
Suspicion stirred within Huo Rou. Recalling the strange look Shen Yuanshu had given her earlier, she fumbled with her phone, her fingers hovering over two specific keys.
Shen Yuanshu disappeared into a small room nearby. Huo Rou heard a woman's whimpers from outside the door.
Shortly after, the sounds ceased, and Shen Yuanshu emerged from the adjacent room.
"Huo Rou."
He approached her with an exaggerated tenderness.
Several burly men followed closely behind him.
At his command, they swarmed her, and Huo Rou met their assault with all her might.
"Just grab her!" Shen Yuanshu stood at the periphery, holding a syringe.
It was a syringe with a sedative that had rendered her unconscious so quickly that night.
This time…
Something was amiss, and she had no choice but to fight back with full force.
Huo Rou pressed a mechanism, and a small blade sprang out from the side of her phone.
She struck with ruthless precision, her expression calm.
"There's a hidden weapon here too?" Shen Yuanshu clicked his tongue in surprise.
He called for more men. He stood to the side, unhurried, watching with a smile on his face.
It was as if he were enjoying a performance.
In an instant, two or three men lay dead with slit throats.
Shen Yuanshu remained unhurried, merely observing.
The splattering crimson, like blossoming plum flowers, dyed his eyes a deep red.
Having been tormented by Samael for so long, Huo Rou's stamina was rapidly depleted.
She wiped a thin sheen of sweat from her forehead and the bloodstains from her face.
Shen Yuanshu slowly walked towards her.
This time, before she lost consciousness, she clutched her phone tightly. The blade cut into her palm, and the pain brought a fleeting moment of clarity.
She heard Shen Yuanshu's ethereal voice, "We'll leave here once we give you a new face…"
Shen Yuanshu placed Huo Rou on the operating table. On another bed lay a woman, tears streaming down her face.
Her mouth was taped shut, and she whimpered, shaking her head.
Shen Yuanshu, observing the fear and struggle in her eyes, smiled wickedly. He approached her and traced her face with a knife.
"Don't be scared," his sinister voice whispered. He leaned in close, his breath fanning the woman's face, intensifying her terror.
"We might not even need your face, what's the rush?" Shen Yuanshu muttered. "I don't want her face to have traces of another woman."
With that, he stood up, looking at Huo Rou, gesturing with his hand, contemplating where to start the incision.
The operating room was eerily silent, save for the woman's muffled sobs.
Outside, however, chaos had already erupted.
As Si Nian interrogated Shen Xiumei, Xiao Konglin arrived.
"President Qin, the Zhou family is making a scene."
Xiao Konglin had been by Qin Ningyi's side for many years and had encountered many fools, but he had never seen anyone as foolish as this.
"What's going on?"
Xiao Konglin, a mix of amusement and exasperation, explained, "Zhou Qin hasn't been able to contact her backers for days and has started making increasingly desperate moves."
"She confronted us at the bidding for a project we've been meticulously preparing for. They've now acquired it at more than double the price."
Even he was stunned.
This move was more idiotic and disgusting than anything the Eleventh Company had ever done.
Qin Ningyi's eyes held only two words:
That's it?
Xiao Konglin, seeing his gaze, suddenly felt a pang of doubt.
Wasn't this the company's main project?
Hadn't this sudden turn of events disrupted their long-term plans?
The company's development plan for next year…
"Has Zhou Deren not come out yet?" Qin Ningyi genuinely didn't have the inclination to deal with this matter; he could afford the financial loss.
Xiao Konglin's furrowed brow suddenly relaxed. "He's out! He's looking for Zhou Qin everywhere."
"Then tell him where Zhou Qin is."
Qin Ningyi made arrangements and prepared to leave.
It was a dogfight, and he had no interest in watching it live.
After a few steps, he remembered Zhou Qin's actions towards An An and Huo Rou, and paused.
He added, "Just to fan the flames a little more. Winter is here, and it's time for the Zhou family to hibernate."
The Zhou family rapidly disintegrated in a short period.
As the saying goes, when a wall falls, everyone pushes. Many who had suffered at the hands of the Zhou family were eager to kick them while they were down.
Before Qin Ningyi could return to the interrogation room, someone hurried towards him with a report.
"Master Qin, we've recovered something!"
"Recovered what? Huo Rou?" Si Nian rushed out of the interrogation room, clearly concerned about the ongoing situation.
The man glanced at Qin Ningyi and, upon receiving a nod, continued, "Tests have been conducted, and the deceased's identity has been confirmed. As you predicted, it's not Miss Huo."
While Qin Ningyi had always trusted his judgment, he felt a genuine sense of relief now.
"What did you find out?" He had already made arrangements, and they wouldn't be reporting to him unless they had found something useful.
The man produced a map and pointed to a farmhouse near the golf club.
"The daughter of this family disappeared on the same day Miss Huo was kidnapped."
"The perpetrators likely found someone nearby," the reporting individual offered their assessment, marking their suspected area on the map.
"The golf club…" Qin Ningyi repeated the name, recalling the owner's unusually uneasy demeanor.
Si Nian's brow furrowed at the mention of the name. "Shen Xiumei just said her brother had a secret base, which he never told her about, but she had secretly followed him there once."
"It's near the lakeside park."
Reports from other interrogations were also collated, almost confirming the club's involvement.
As they were about to depart, An An's call came through.
"Daddy!" An An's voice was filled with urgency.
The sound of howling wind could be heard, along with the distant roar of engines.
He shouted excitedly, "Hurry and save Mommy, hurry and save Mommy!"