The two kidnappers continued driving the speedboat for another couple of miles before landing and walking further.

Ah Shu led them into a patch of forest, from which he drove out a dilapidated little truck.

Liu Bo, who had already come down from the effects of the anesthesia, had woken up and, of course, followed along as well.

As they ventured further into the darkening night, deep into the woods, Liu Bo was overcome with guilt, tears and snot running down his face. “Young Madam, I’m sorry. I’m sorry to the He family!”

Su Linlang cut off his rambling and turned to Ah Shu, asking, “Which way should we go?”

Ah Shu pointed in the opposite direction, “The hostages are in the riverback pond, up the mountain.”

Xu Tianxi, concerned that Su Linlang might not be familiar with the Hong Kong government’s terrain, clarified, “The riverback pond is located on Lianhua Mountain. It’s a high-altitude pond, and currently, there’s only one road leading up to it—the other road is under construction.”

Su Linlang looked up at the mountain.

The deep mountain with only one road was easy to defend and hard to attack—a perfect place to hide hostages.

There were five people in total, but the truck could only fit four.

Xu Tianxi had considered tossing Liu Bo into the back of the truck, but Su Linlang directed him to stay in the front and have Liu Bo lie in ambush in the back.

Xu Tianxi was a little concerned. “Ah Sao, Liu Bo can’t be trusted. What if they team up and betray you halfway?”

She was one woman traveling with three ruthless criminals, one of whom was in charge of the wheel.

Who knew what could happen along the way?

Su Linlang had her reasons for letting Liu Bo sit in the front seat.

She didn’t talk about this, but took out the watch that Ah Xia had given her, the one from He Puting, and asked Xu Tianxi: “Is this watch very expensive? How much is it roughly worth?”

Xu Tianxi took a look: “This is a Patek Philippe, it’s priced around 100,000 francs.”

Su Linlang, who had just arrived in the new place and only had a vague understanding of exchange rates, asked, “Is the franc equal to the Hong Kong dollar?”

Xu Tianxi took the watch, examined it closely under the light, and was shocked: “This is my cousin’s watch, a gift from the old man, a custom-made model, priced at 250,000 francs, which is 700,000 Hong Kong dollars.”

He was so excited that he almost cried: “Ah Sao, the watch is here, and so is my cousin. We’ve really found him!”

Although Xu Tianxi had been loyally following Su Linlang, he had not been hopeful about the rescue mission.

Kidnapping cases were frequent in Hong Kong, and no one had ever rescued a hostage from the kidnappers’ lair.

Only when he saw his cousin’s watch did he dare to believe that with Ah Sao’s guidance, they would indeed be able to bring his cousin back safely.

He was so excited that he stammered, “Ah Sao, you’re so good. Ah Sao, thank you!”

Su Linlang had a special memory attached to this watch.

…

It’s said that although the He family disapproved of her marriage, Su Linlang came from a military background and had once held the rank of general.

She wanted to live freely and unrestrained, unwilling to be bound by marriage.

However, since her transmigration, her two souls had to go through a long period of adjustment within her body.

During that time, it happened to coincide with when He Puting came to the farm to find her and took her back to the Hong Kong government.

At that time, she was slow to react and could only say vague words like “uh-huh” without expressing her true thoughts.

He Puting was a good man, a very good man.

After arriving on the mainland, he couldn’t communicate at first, but he actively learned Mandarin and saw how poor the people at the farm were, so he even gave away his Western suit.

He was not a rich playboy but a genuinely well-bred noble young man from a distinguished family.

A man as excellent as him marrying a northern girl naturally caused an uproar in the He family.

Xu Wanxin was okay, although she cried every day, she believed in Buddhism and lived a life of a lay practitioner, treating Su Linlang as though she were invisible.

However, even though she had started in adult films, after her persistent effort, Sun Linda had earned a business master’s degree and felt deeply wronged.

After all, she had once kneeled for three days and nights to enter the He family’s door, which showed just how high the He family’s threshold was.

But Su Linlang, a village girl from the North, not only entered easily, but the old man also hosted a grand feast and welcomed her with grandeur. Sun Linda couldn’t bear it.

The day before, Su Linlang had held a wedding with He Puting.

At the wedding, her outfit included a pink watch adorned with diamonds, a very cute watch. Su Linlang didn’t understand watches, and the maid put it on her, so she just wore it.

However, at the wedding, when she was alone, she happened to run into Sun Linda, accompanied by a group of high-society ladies.

When Sun Linda saw the pink watch on Su Linlang’s wrist, she was first shocked, then started sobbing, and soon fainted.

The wedding was full of guests from the prominent families in Hong Kong, such as the Ji, Gu, and Lu families.

They were all friends with Sun Linda and gathered together.

When they saw Su Linlang’s watch, they understood the reason.

The pink color with diamonds was a watch commonly worn by women in Mong Kok, signaling they were involved in the flesh trade.

Wearing such a watch implied involvement in such business, and men would naturally approach for transactions.

In other words, Su Linlang was wearing a watch that prostitutes would wear.

This caused an uproar, and even though Sun Jiaqi repeatedly comforted Sun Linda, saying that Su Linlang had just come from the mainland and didn’t understand, it wasn’t intentional, Sun Linda still fainted, cried uncontrollably, and a group of high-society ladies sympathized with her.

Some even said, “Because Linda once acted in films, He’s old master rejected her for twenty years. I thought the family’s morals were strict, but now the eldest son marries a northern girl. He family’s morals are really something!”

Su Linlang could only remain silent, unable to express herself, and cried.

Yes, she had once been a killing machine, ruthless and devoid of emotions.

Now, trying to express her feelings, she choked up and ended up crying herself.

At that moment, He Puting returned.

He didn’t say anything but immediately wiped away her tears, took the Patek Philippe watch from his wrist, and put it on hers, throwing the cheap pink watch into the trash.

Then, he took her hand and left.

There were many people at the wedding, and it was noisy.

Xu Wanxin pretended to be ill and refused to serve tea, and He Puzhi had been following Su Linlang closely, causing the Patek Philippe watch to mysteriously disappear.

That evening, when He Puting discovered the watch was gone, he didn’t blame Su Linlang but said that the watch was very important and must be found.

He had originally planned to return home with her, but he took He Zhang’s car back to the wedding venue to look for the watch, and that was when they were both shot.

Since the watch was in the hands of Ah Gui, it meant that He Puting had found the watch before being kidnapped that night.

Su Linlang naturally knew that there were no real feelings in the marriage between the rich families. He Puting treated her like a little sister, with care and affection.

But a kindness should be repaid.

She had to rescue him and get him home safely.

As she took the watch, she said: “Get in the car, let’s go rescue him!”

…

The road was narrow, the mountain high, and the moss was wet.

The old truck’s tires had no grip, and the ride was bumpy and slippery.

Sitting in the car, they bounced around like they were at a disco.

After a stretch of mountain road, they reached a downhill path.

In the late night, the fog started to clear, and the bright moon hung high. In the distance, the shimmering water was the river’s backwater pond, and the truck suddenly stopped.

On the roadside, there was a small two-story building with a light on upstairs, resembling a guard post.

The truck had just stopped when two people came down from the building.

One held an AK and blocked the way: “Who’s there?”

A Shuai rolled down the car window: “It’s me, your Shuai Ge.” Then he asked, “Is Rong Ge waiting for me urgently?”

The guard saw four people in the car and, thinking they were the same group as before, didn’t check carefully.

The guard holding the AK asked, “Shuai Ge, why did you come back so late?”

“I had something to do, had to pick up some supplies. Here, take a smoke, Gold Medal Marlboro.” A Shuai handed a cigarette through the window.

The man with the gun didn’t take the cigarette but waved his hand and said, “Rong Ge has already asked several times, hurry up.”

The car drove off, and Su Linlang breathed a sigh of relief.

She had once killed many people, but she didn’t enjoy doing it. She truly loved peace.

After passing the checkpoint, she said, “If there are two 30-round AKs at the checkpoint, there should be three inside the bandits’ lair, right?”

A Shuai was stunned and asked dumbfounded, “Ah Sao, how do you know our weapon configuration? Have you been here before?”

“If you guys are a combat unit, the usual weapon deployment for defense would be three heavy weapons to two light ones. Besides, there should be six handguns inside. So, we need to watch out for nine gun positions. Am I right?” Su Linlang casually analyzed based on her combat experience.

A Shuai was deeply shaken, thinking, “This Ah Sao is too amazing, she can even calculate how many people and weapons are inside the bandits’ lair.”

But could they really rescue the hostage with just a knife?

Thinking about the three automatic AKs and seven handguns inside the bandit’s lair, he felt a chill.

As they ventured deeper, the forest on both sides became dense. Liu Bo started sobbing again: “Young Madam, I deserve to die, I can die here, but please don’t blame my father.”

Fear is contagious, and A Shuai felt uneasy seeing Liu Bo cry. He couldn’t help but say, “Ah Sao, my baby just turned two months old. How about this? I’ll take only 30% of the money, just let me go here. Please, give me a way out, okay?”

His subordinate, Xiao Huangmao, was a fool but had principles. He coldly asked, “Shuai Ge, we haven’t rescued the hostage yet. What right do you have to take the money?”

Then he said, “Ah Sao, kill these two, and I’ll take you to rescue the hostage. But that one million should all be mine. I want the full amount.”

He wasn’t very capable but had a bad temper, and his first response was always to kill.

The situation is tense, with tensions rising within the group of criminals.

Ah Shu, enraged, nearly jumped up. “You’re my little brother, but you’ve betrayed me multiple times. I will kill you and clean up the house!”

Internal strife? Before they even reached the destination?

Su Linlang looked around and scolded them, “A bunch of idiots—cowards who love money. If you don’t die, who will?”

What was even more despicable than being ruthless and inhuman was being greedy, stupid, and cowardly.

The group she was leading now was a combination of all three.

However, as a general, no matter how inept her soldiers were, she had to adapt to the situation and win the battle.

An excellent general could win a war even with a group of disabled soldiers.

She opened a suitcase and tossed five stacks of cash to Ah Shu—250,000 Hong Kong dollars.

Then she gave Huang Mao two more stacks—100,000 in total.

The two kidnappers, desperate for money, were stunned as they received the cash.

Su Linlang spoke again, “If you want to leave now, this is all you get. Leave immediately. But if you’re willing to help me, I’ll ensure everyone’s safe exit from this criminal lair, give you the rest of the money, and make sure you won’t face legal consequences later. I swear to this, as the eldest granddaughter-in-law of the He family. I’ll even testify for you at the police station!”

They wanted money, and she just gave it to them and even offered them a way out?

Liu Bo was panicked, thinking that the kidnappers would take the money and flee immediately.

But Ah Shu, after a moment of silence, said, “Ah Sao, I’ll stay and help you.”

Huang Mao also raised his hand, “Ah Sao, I’ll follow you to the end.”

“If the hostages are rescued, you’ll be washed clean,” Su Linlang added, looking around. “From now on, no more brother-on-brother conflict. Love peace, protect your brothers, and only then will you succeed in this world, understand?”

“We’ll do whatever you say, Ah Sao,” the second kidnapper said as they stuffed the cash into their pockets.

Liu Bo was still confused, wondering why the criminals had suddenly changed their minds and stopped fearing Su Linlang.

Ah Shu had wanted to take 300,000 and escape, but Su Linlang gave him 250,000 and he still decided to stay.

Why? Liu Bo couldn’t make sense of it.

The answer lay in human greed—no one would ever turn down more money.

Also, as kidnappers, they eventually wanted a way out.

Su Linlang’s actions had built enough trust for them to continue following her in hopes of a better future, driven by the remaining cash she promised.

After a long silence, Liu Bo suddenly sobbed, “Young Madam, I’ll protect you. I’ll take the bullets for you.”

“Shut up!” the other three yelled in unison.