157 Step On I (1/2)
Vroom… Vroom… Vroom…
With the phone gently vibrating in her pocket, Wu Ruoyu felt like her heart was about to jump out of her chest. She quickly stepped on the clutch with her left leg, before stepping on the accelerator, so that the roaring sound from the engine could mask what was happening.
Wu Ruoyu skillfully controlled her driving tempo by gradually increasing the roaring sound of the engine. With the external noise of traffic and the sounding horns as a cover, it did not raise the hoodlums' attention, nor could they have ever associated the cause-and-effect relationship between all of these things.
Only a silhouette could be roughly seen, due to the dim light that was shining in from the streetlights. With a glance at the hoodlum in the front seat, Wu Ruoyu pretended to hang her left hand down naturally, before quickly inserted it into the pocket of her windbreaker to press on the accept call button. Then, she slowly removed her legs from the clutch and accelerator.
”Were you thinking of secretly unfastening your seatbelt, before jumping out of the car to escape?” The guy with the grey jacket noticed Wu Ruoyu's minor movements, but he did not see her placing her hand in her pocket, due to his poor sight and the dim lighting.
”You are welcome to give it a try, just to see who can act faster!” said the guy with a dark smile.
”Big brother, how… How could that be?” Wu Ruoyu forced a laugh, her face pale. ”I was just scratching myself!” Wu Ruoyu quickly retracted her left hand to grab onto the steering wheel, after she had finished speaking.
”Do you still feel itchy elsewhere? I can help you scratch it!” Liu Zi, who sat in the back seat, stretched his head in between the two with a perverted gaze.
”Behave yourself and keep looking at our rear!” The guy with the grey jacket pressed Liu Zi's head back with his palm while swaying the blade in his hand in front of Wu Ruoyu's eyes. ”As long as you cooperate obediently and get us to our destination, we won't hurt you.”
”Then, Big Brothers, may I know where is your… your destination?” Drops of sweat were oozing from Wu Ruoyu's fair forehead.
The car was currently traveling at the speed of 50 miles per hour, as if headed towards Highway 103. If there were no unexpected events, then there would only be 20 minutes left before the car passed through Ring Road and entered into a sparsely populated section of the highway.
”Listen to the party's command and follow the party!” The guy with the grey jacket rolled his eyes.
”Hello? Hello? Hello?”
Chen Fan stood at the entrance of Catherine's Love with a gloomy expression. He did not manage to find Wu Ruoyu, despite having walked around the whole place. And, although she had answered his call later on, there had been no response on the other end even after he had said hello for quite a while.
What is going on here?
Chen Fan returned to his car. The reason why no sound could be heard from the call was not due to a system error from the telecommunication company. The fact that he had heard the occasional sound of horns from cargo trucks in the background allowed Chen Fan to understand that Wu Ruoyu was purposely refusing to speak after answering the call. After saying hello two more times, Chen Fan hung up the call gloomily.
Could it be that it was not convenient for her to pick up my call, because she is currently driving? Or could it be that she was taking her revenge for the previous incident by not showing up?
Chen Fan thought about it for a while, then felt that it was neither of those reasons. It was not as it she was racing on Autumn Mountain with nine consecutive cornerings, so how could she have no time to speak after answering the call? If she planned to stand him up, then the effect would have been better if she had simply made up a reason versus silence.
Chen Fan sat in the car, bored. He then started to listen to music, deciding to call again in five minutes.
”Little girl, I suggest that you speed up a little!” The guy with the grey jacket smiled gently, but his dark brown pupils had a cold look in them.
”Big… Big brother!” Wu Ruoyu's body was trembling under such immense pressure. ”I… I am afraid that I cannot control the car if I drive too fast…”
”Haha…” The guy with the grey jacket felt an inexplicable sense of delight. To him, this was even more pleasurable than blocking a girl in an alley at night. As he was unable to resist it, he laughed. ”Foreign girl, your Mandarin is excellent. Which country are you from?”
”Bel… Belgium!” Wu Ruoyu replied, strategically choosing a lesser-known small country.
”What kind of a weird country is that?” Liu Zi stretched his head to the front again. ”Big Brother, now that the cars have turned on their headlights, I can't see anything!”
”Then, you just behave yourself and sit down. Don't talk nonsense here. This incident is more serious now, based on the news that I saw this afternoon. So, we need to hurry up and lay low at Lao Shan's place, at least until it blows over.”
The guy with the grey jacket let out a long sigh. Now that the three of them were seated in the car, it would be best for them to behave themselves. Even they had to admit that, if they forced this foreigner to become anxious, it would not be beneficial to anyone.
Vroom… Vroom… Vroom…
Just when the car fell into silence, the phone in Wu Ruoyu's pocket started to vibrate again.
”Cough… Cough…” Wu Ruoyu quickly used coughing sounds to cover it up, before using the prior method to gradually increase the sound of the roaring engine.
”You should use the tip of your toes to gently step on the clutch, otherwise it will waste a lot of gas!” Without the bustling environment and the sound of honks, the guy with the grey jacket was able to hear the change in the engine sound. However, he did not suspect anything. Instead, he rolled up his sleeve to look at the time, before continuing to gaze outside the window.
”Cough cough…” Wu Ruoyu patted her chest. Then, when there was a flash of white light shining from the car's headlights in front of them, thus preventing everyone from opening their eyes, she took the opportunity to quickly insert her hands into her pocket to press on the accept call button.
”Hello… Hello…” Chen Fan was sitting in his car, frustrated. After Wu Ruoyu answered the call, she remained silent.
”Liu Zi, get me a cigarette!” The guy with the grey jacket snapped his fingers.
”Ah, Big Brothers, there are policemen in front of us. Please don't use me as a hostage!” Wu Ruoyu suddenly pointed to the front of the car, screaming loudly.
”F*ck!” Liu Zi slapped Wu Ruoyu's head with his palm, before placing a knife horizontally on her neck and shouting, ”What the heck are you shouting for? You scared the hell outta me! That is just a stupid traffic police booth that is used to catch and issue summons to cargo trucks. What the heck are you shouting for, when your car is not pulling any cargo? Don't pull any tricks! Just drive steadily, or I will slash you with my knife.”
”Did you hear me?” Liu Zi shouted beside Wu Ruoyu's ear with his rough voice once again.
”I hear you…” Wu Ruoyu's whole body was trembling. The immense fear and pain from her head caused her eyes to well up with tears.
Wu Ruoyu knew that this rare chance would only come once.
If the call was not from Chen Fan, or if Chen Fan was not as smart as she thought he was…
Wu Ruoyu did not dare to think further…
Is there any point, even if Chen Fan reported her missing to the police, or chased after her himself?
As long as the hoodlums noticed something was wrong with the situation and slashed her with a knife, she would still need to bid farewell to the next day's sun. The guy sitting in the back seat was right. The two policemen, who held torchlights, did not even spare a glance at the white Audi A4 that slowly drove by the police booth.
After the car passed by the police booth, Wu Ruoyu stared ahead quietly. Then, an incoming light from afar directly shone on the windscreen…
Instantly, Wu Ruoyu bit her lip, while she quickly inserted her left hand into her pocket to press on the speaker button, just at the precise moment when everyone could not open their eyes, due to the flashing light.
...
Chen Fan did not do anything that would worry Wu Ruoyu, neither was he a fool. The moment he heard Wu Ruoyu's scream and another guy's roar from the other end of the call, he immediately realized that things had taken a turn for the worst. The dialogue replayed back in his mind...
”Big brother, there are policemen in front of us, please don't use me as a hostage...”
”F*ck! That is just a stupid traffic police booth that is used to catch and issue summons to cargo trucks. What the heck are you shouting for, when your car is not pulling any cargo? Don't pull any tricks! Just drive steadily, or I will slash you with my knife.”
These two sentences, together with the horn sounds from the previous call, implied that Wu Ruoyu had been kidnapped by two people and was traveling somewhere in Zhongyun.
Chen Fan quickly wound up his car windows before maximizing the volume on his phone. His anxious and brooding expression was like a storm brewing on the ocean, getting worse as time goes on.
”Turn left at this junction!” There was a clear voice coming from the other end of the phone.
”Big… Big Brother, I think the road sign showed… showed Canglong Hill. Why are we… we headed there…” The sound of Wu Ruoyu's tearful voice could be heard from the phone.
”Don't be afraid, little girl. Nothing that you are worried about will happen, as we are just passing by that route!”
Canglong Hill?
Chen Fan quickly scanned the car once, before pulling out a towel that he used for wiping the car. He then cut out a strip of cloth to tie his phone around his head, just like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle!
He then fired up the black BMW and rushed towards the motorway. Residents of Zhongyun would remember Canglong Hill, because of their specialty, which was a fish that glows in the dark, known as the Night Pearl.