Chapter 280: Finding Cheng Qianqian
The young man on the other end of the line snapped, "You can’t even handle something this simple? Now the leader has to clean up your mess! You just wait. I’ll ask the leader."
"My apologies for the trouble, Secretary Jiang."
「Provincial City.」
Inside an office.
An elderly man with a troubled expression was smoking, the room thick with smoke.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.
Secretary Jiang knocked lightly, then pushed the office door open.
The smell of smoke in the office was overpowering. Secretary Jiang hurried to open a window to ventilate the room and said with a note of concern, "Sir, you must take care of your health!"
The elderly man sighed. "It’s just... I’m worried about Liangliang. That boy was born with a heart condition and has panda blood. It’s all just so agonizing."
With a fawning expression, Secretary Jiang said, "We’ve received word from the field. The goods have been acquired."
The elderly man’s eyes lit up. "Since the goods are in hand, have them brought here at once!"
"Sir, Luocheng is overreacting. Transporting the goods won’t be easy. Perhaps we should..."
"You go have a word with Shen Jiangnan. Tell him it comes from me."
"Yes, Sir."
Secretary Jiang immediately dialed Shen Jiangnan’s number and put the call on speakerphone.
The call connected quickly, and Shen Jiangnan’s voice came through. "Secretary Jiang, what can I do for you? Does the leader have any instructions?"
Secretary Jiang glanced at the elderly man, then said in a low voice, "Lord Shen, we’ve received a report that you are making a mountain out of a molehill, disrupting daily life in Luocheng and inconveniencing the residents! The leader is furious, and he orders you to immediately remove the roadblocks!"
Shen Jiangnan explained, "Secretary Jiang, please explain to the leader for me. A child has gone missing in Luocheng! To ensure the child isn’t moved out of the city, we must block all the exits!"
Secretary Jiang said coldly, "Lord Shen, that has also been reported! They’re saying you’re abusing your authority! A missing person case can only be officially filed after twenty-four hours, but Cheng Qianqian has been gone for less than an hour! Is it necessary to put the whole city on high alert? Dismantle the roadblocks immediately! And pull back Constable Xing and all Patrol Officers!"
"Secretary Jiang, I’m very sorry, but I’m afraid I can’t comply."
"This comes directly from the leader!"
"Even if these are the leader’s orders, I cannot comply! Not unless I receive a formal directive through the proper channels!"
With that, Shen Jiangnan decisively hung up the phone.
Shen Jiangnan’s blatant show of disrespect infuriated both the elderly man and Secretary Jiang.
"Sir, Shen Jiangnan seems to be getting out of line. Shall we have him transferred?"
"Teng Qingshan was more obedient. A pity he was too stupid and let Shen Jiangnan find his fatal flaw; there was no way to bail him out! Get Liu Zhengde from the Central Organization Department to see me at once."
"Yes, Sir."
Liu Zhengde and Shen Jiangnan were on good terms. After leaving the leader’s office, he immediately called Shen Jiangnan.
"Old Shen, how did you get on the wrong side of the old leader? He wants to transfer you to the Tourism Bureau. You need to hurry and smooth things over with him!"
’The Tourism Bureau?’
’What a joke.’
Shen Jiangnan’s expression darkened. He had assumed Secretary Jiang’s call was simply due to slander from his rivals.
’It seems these waters run very deep.’
’What should I do?’
’If it were anyone else’s sister, maybe I would have compromised. But this is Cheng Yuan’s sister!’
’Cheng Yuan saved my life. How could I possibly stand by and do nothing?’
"Old Liu, I’m afraid this can’t be explained away. It’s a matter of principle."
"Then there’s nothing I can do. On my end, I have to follow orders and start the procedure immediately. But let me give you a way out: if you can get someone from the Central Organization Department to speak up for you, you might be able to get out of this."
"Thanks for the heads-up, Old Liu."
After hanging up, Shen Jiangnan took out his phone and dialed Cheng Yuan. The call connected quickly, and Cheng Yuan’s slightly anxious voice came through. "Uncle Shen, is there any news about Qianqian?"
Shen Jiangnan’s voice was grim. "Xiaoyuan, I’m facing immense resistance on this! The forces at play are beyond what I imagined! I’m afraid I can’t hold out for much longer!"
"Uncle Shen, I’ll be back in Luocheng in an hour. Can you hold on for at least two more hours?"
"No problem. I can hold on for three hours!"
"Thank you, Uncle Shen."
...
An hour later, Cheng Yuan finally arrived at Luocheng Railway Station. He hailed a cab and headed straight for Villa Number One.
Cheng Yuan rummaged around and found a jacket his sister had just taken off, then began his ritual.
Moving like a shaman performing a dance, Cheng Yuan circled the jacket and chanted an incantation.
"Celestial Witch above, grant me your divine might! Three souls and seven spirits, leave the body and follow me! By my life, be guided back to the path home!"
Gusts of eerie wind rose within the room. This wind seemed to recognize Cheng Qianqian’s jacket, and with a WHOOSH, it dove right into the clothing!
Cheng Qianqian’s jacket suddenly billowed out, as if an invisible person was wearing it.
Cheng Yuan bellowed again, "By order of the Celestial Witch! Return to your place at once!"
The jacket began to spin rapidly, whirling for a full ten seconds before gradually settling. Then, a sleeve slowly lifted, pointing in a specific direction.
Cheng Yuan was suddenly overcome with a strange sensation. It was as if his gaze had instantly crossed more than ten kilometers and landed on a farmhouse courtyard!
The farmhouse courtyard looked perfectly normal. Grain was drying in the yard, and several poultry were milling about.
But Cheng Yuan spotted something amiss.
In a corner of the courtyard were the feathers of several old hens. Clearly, the owner of the courtyard had eaten several old hens!
’Normally, farmers raise hens for eggs. Why would they bear to eat several of them?’
In a flash, Cheng Yuan was gone, heading straight for that farmhouse!
Fueled by a towering rage, Cheng Yuan’s speed was incredible. In just over ten minutes, he reached the farmhouse on the outskirts of the city.
WHOOSH! In a flicker, Cheng Yuan appeared on top of the wall.
Cheng Yuan activated his Double Pupil and found Cheng Qianqian hidden in the cellar.
Seeing that her clothes were intact and she was just unconscious, Cheng Yuan breathed a small sigh of relief.
Making no attempt to hide his killing intent, he leaped down and landed in the courtyard.
The young couple in the courtyard was startled, looking at Cheng Yuan with grave expressions.
"Who are you? Why are you trespassing in our home?"
Cheng Yuan looked at the two as if they were already dead. "I’m your grim reaper. Spit it out. Who had you kidnap Qianqian?"
The couple’s expressions changed. Realizing this wouldn’t end peacefully, they drew knives. One aimed high and one aimed low, and they stabbed viciously at Cheng Yuan.
Cheng Yuan snorted coldly. ’With this pathetic level of skill, you dare attack me?’
With a flick of his wrist, Cheng Yuan produced a handful of Silver Needles.
WHIZ! WHIZ! WHIZ! WHIZ!
The two were turned into human pincushions.
Their Meridians and blood vessels sealed, they collapsed to the ground.
The female assailant was particularly unlucky. As she fell, she landed on her own knife, which pierced her stomach. Dark red blood began to flow out.
Cheng Yuan looked at her indifferently. "Tell me, who sent you? I can spare your life and bandage your wound."