Everyone fell silent, the King and Pei Xing were furious.
Pei Xing, besides his anger, felt more guilt.
"It's my fault, I shouldn't have gone," Pei Xing gritted his teeth, filled with regret. "I should have realized sooner. Pei Xi's methods are insidious. Once discovered, Pei Ji would surely be harmed."
He had thought that if Shen Qingqing didn't know, Pei Xi definitely wouldn't find out either.
Shen Qingqing closed the box and handed it to King. He held the box but remained unusually silent, never expecting things to escalate to this point.
The Queen had lost all her elegance, sobbing uncontrollably.
Her legs felt so weak she knelt on the ground. If Pei Lie hadn't supported her, she would have already collapsed.
"Queen, please calm down."
As Shen Qingqing approached, before she could even reach out, the Queen grabbed her hand. She looked up, her eyes swollen red, her face pale. Deep sorrow and despair filled her eyes, and upon closer inspection, a hint of pleading.
"Please help me, Miss Shen. Help me. Pei Ji is my child. If he has made any mistakes, punish me. If Pei Xi must kill someone, let him kill me!"
"Use me as a substitute. I'll exchange myself for Pei Ji. Let Pei Ji come back, my child..."
This was the deepest plea of a mother.
At this moment, the Queen had completely forgotten her status. All she wanted was to save her child.
It didn't matter if she had to die.
Shen Qingqing was momentarily lost in thought. She thought of her own mother, who, if still alive, would surely protect her in the same way.
She wanted to help the Queen up.
"Please get up first, let's talk while standing."
"Miss Shen, please help me..." the Queen cried, gasping for breath, her body trembling.
Shen Qingqing nodded and, with a slightly firm hand, helped her stand. "I know, I understand your worries and concerns. Don't worry, I will help you."
The Queen's whole body trembled, her voice choked and intermittent. "R-really?"
"Of course." Shen Qingqing took a tissue and gently wiped the tears from her face. Her movements were gentle, and her voice, though cool, held an underlying firmness. "Stop crying for now, calm down. Let's think carefully about what to do next."
"But..."
The Queen turned to look at the coffee table. Not seeing the box, a look of bewilderment flashed across her face. But the memory was too vivid and resurfaced in her mind, causing her pain as she recalled it.
Shen Qingqing put her arm around the Queen's shoulders. "It's just a finger. This is just a warning to us, not a real intent to kill Pei Ji."
The Queen clung to her as if she had found a lifeline. "Are you serious?"
"I am!"
Shen Qingqing's tone was so certain that the Queen finally began to calm down. Supported by Pei Lie, she sat on the sofa, her body feeling weak.
Shen Qingqing sighed inwardly and glanced at King, who was fiddling with a piece of paper in his hand. "What is this?"
"I took a closer look at the box just now and found a note. There's a sentence on it," King handed the note to Shen Qingqing.
She took it. It read a line of text.
— This is a lesson. Next time, I will send you Pei Ji's head.
Shen Qingqing showed the note to the Queen, but thoughtfully blocked the latter half, leaving only the first four characters. Seeing this, the Queen's body slowly relaxed a little.
Pei Lie ground his back molars and said, "How audacious!"
But he had to restrain himself. Showing anger now would truly fall into Pei Xi's trap.
Seeing the words on the note, Shen Qingqing became calmer. "Don't rush. Pei Xi will definitely contact us."
Compared to her composure, the others were far from at peace.
The Queen huddled on the sofa, her eyes red and swollen. She had stopped crying. Pei Lie and Pei Xing sat beside her, offering silent companionship.
Even the King sat in a corner of the sofa, his face still etched with anger.
Time trickled by in silence. After an unknown period, Shen Qingqing looked at everyone and calmly suggested,
"Perhaps we could go to our rooms to rest for a while, instead of all waiting here."
The others exchanged glances but said nothing.
Shen Qingqing sighed and didn't press the issue. Just then, her phone rang. It was still an unknown number, but she knew it must be Pei Xi.
"Hello."
Pei Xi's voice held a hint of amusement. "You received the gift, didn't you? How was it?"
Shen Qingqing was indifferent to his tone. "Just tell me your next conditions directly."
"You're so impatient," Pei Xi grumbled. "Alright, since you're in a hurry, let's reconfirm the terms."
"Money, the car, the books, and you, alone. My conditions remain unchanged."
His voice was slow and drawn-out. There was even the sound of a can being opened, as if he took a sip of something, sighing with satisfaction.
"If you agree, wait for me to contact you."
"Agreed."
"Prompt."
Pei Xi was pleased. "Then it's settled. As for the meeting place, I'll decide it. This time, if you let anyone follow you again, I won't mind."
He even looked forward to it. If someone followed, he'd just cut off another finger.
He glanced at Pei Ji, who was lying unconscious on the ground, and began to consider which finger to cut...
"You'd better not do anything."
A cold, warning female voice came from the phone.
Pei Xi seemed to realize he had inadvertently spoken his thoughts aloud. "My apologies, I didn't mean to. But you are too disobedient. I told you not to follow, not to follow, why did someone other than you come?"
He sounded very disappointed.
Shen Qingqing furrowed her brow slightly. "Pei Xi, negotiations require sincerity. It was my mistake last time for not detecting someone following. This time, I guarantee there will be no one else."
"Alright, I'll trust you one more time."
A faint sound came from the other end of the phone, as if something was kicked, followed by a muffled grunt. Everyone present recognized the sound.
It was Pei Ji!
The Queen immediately looked up at Shen Qingqing. "Pei Ji..."
Shen Qingqing shook her head slightly, and when she spoke, her voice was calm. "What are you doing? Do you not want to negotiate with me anymore?"
"Of course not. I just wanted you to hear that he's still alive," Pei Xi said considerately. "After all, I need to confirm it for you."
"Time and place. Send me the decision once it's made."
Shen Qingqing hung up the phone.
The King shuddered, his expression full of anger. "What are you doing? Let him say more, so we can pinpoint his location!"
Shen Qingqing placed her phone on the coffee table, her gaze sweeping over him with a hint of sarcasm. "Do you think the other party is an idiot?"
The last few times, he had hung up at the last moment. Would he allow them to pinpoint his location this time?
Rather than being toyed with like a monkey, it was better for her to hang up proactively and maintain control.
The King felt incredibly frustrated and uttered a harsh threat. "Since you're so full of ideas, I'll see if you can rescue Pei Ji. If you fail..."