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墨書 Inktalez
Ding Derun did not hesitate and immediately answered the phone.
The kidnapper spoke in a tone of satisfaction, "Not bad, you really are punctual. You arrived quite quickly."
"I have come as agreed," Ding Derun replied. "I have prepared the money. Where exactly are you? I can give you the money; if it's not enough, I will sell my house to gather the funds. But please, do not harm my old partner. Where are you?"
The kidnapper's tone was relaxed, "No rush. If I'm not in a hurry, why should you be? Rest assured, as long as you listen to me, your partner will be perfectly fine. But if you don't follow my instructions, you will lose everything, do you understand? By the way, I assume the police officer next to you can hear me now?"
"Give Jiang He call permission," Shao the Elder instructed. "Remember, Guan Deng has already tracked this kidnapper's location to Morning Dew Street. We are on our way; just follow the kidnapper's instructions and do not provoke him."
Moments later, Jiang He received call permission.
"Hello, I am Jiang He, a member of the task force," Jiang He said.
"Very good," the kidnapper replied. "Now, Ding Derun, stay in the car and wait for my command. You are not allowed to leave; otherwise, your partner will be in danger, understand?"
Ding Derun quickly responded, "Understood, understood."
The kidnapper continued, "Good, I was waiting for you to say that. Jiang He, take out that four hundred thousand and head to the location I told you."
"Okay." Jiang He picked up the backpack from the back seat; its weight of about ten pounds was nothing for an adult man. He slung it over his shoulder and asked, "Where do I go now?"
The kidnapper's instructions came through: "Alright, head straight down Phoenix Street until you reach the first turn; there you'll see a slope."
Jiang He turned to Ding Derun in the car and said, "I'm going to deliver the money now; please wait here for a moment."
Ding Derun shouted, "Officer, please make sure to agree with whatever the kidnapper says! As long as we can rescue my partner, I can give you one hundred thousand."
At that moment, Ding Derun's phone was still connected, and naturally, the kidnapper heard his words. The kidnapper laughed heartily: "Officer, look at this! We kidnappers work hard to abduct someone and only earn four hundred thousand. But you, Officer—you just have to run an errand and can make one hundred thousand! Sometimes this world really is unfair."
Ding Derun, realizing he had misspoken, hurriedly said, "That's not what I meant. As long as I can save my wife, I can give you houses, really."
"Oh?" the kidnapper replied. "Are you talking about the one at Kant's Home or the one in Youth City?"
At that moment, Old Shao interjected, "The kidnapper must be very familiar with Ding Derun's family. Just do as the kidnapper asks; we're already on our way. The police officers at the station are secretly searching Morning Dew Street. We should be able to find out where the kidnapper is in about an hour and a half."
Jiang He understood that the location could not be pinpointed too precisely, so finding the kidnapper among so many houses on Morning Dew Street was not going to be easy.
Naturally, Jiang He couldn't communicate with Old Shao at this moment; otherwise, the kidnapper would overhear. He simply followed the kidnapper's instructions and walked along Phoenix Street.
While Old Shao was speaking, the kidnapper continued, "So which of your houses do I want?"
Ding Derun knew that property transactions were a lengthy process. However, even if the kidnapper wanted his house, Ding Derun didn't care because as long as he was alive, he could acquire another house in ten years. He was confident in his ability to do so, which made him unafraid of losing money.
With this thought in mind, Ding Derun spoke up, "Let my wife go, and I'll give you two houses along with the one from my hometown."
The kidnapper laughed heartily. "We are also people of our word. You don't need to say anything more. Where is Jiang He? Has he arrived yet?"
Hurrying a few steps forward, Jiang He reached the first turn and indeed found a slope leading upward. From this slope, it was clear that the road was quite dilapidated. Phoenix Street was an old street with aging houses; some even looked like they could collapse at any moment.
Jiang He wondered why the kidnapper had chosen this location for the transaction.
"I'm here," Jiang He said. "I see the slope."
The kidnapper responded with a grunt, "Then just walk up the slope."
Jiang He carried his bag and ascended the slope, which was paved with smooth red bricks. One side of the slope was lined with walls of residential homes that were cracked and peeling in many places. Jiang He wasn't familiar with Jingzhong City's layout but could tell that this area seemed relatively impoverished.
On the other side of the slope was a railing; looking down revealed rooftops of single-story houses below. The slope was narrow and led to an unknown destination. As Jiang He continued upward, he observed his surroundings. On the lower side, he saw seven or eight children playing games on the road below.
The children’s clothing was quite simple, some of which looked like they had been worn for many years. Both boys and girls were scattered in the alley, tossing sandbags and playing hopscotch.
This scene suddenly reminded Jiang He of his own childhood. He recalled sitting at Great-Aunt's doorstep, watching the children play in the alley. Back in Jiang He's day, everyone was poor, yet the children playing games were filled with joy, just like the group of kids here now. Their laughter even reached the ears of the kidnapper.
“Wait a minute,” the kidnapper suddenly raised his voice.
“What’s wrong?” Jiang He and Ding Derun asked almost simultaneously.
The kidnapper said, “Ding Derun, you wait here. I need to have a word with Jiang He.”
“What is it?” Jiang He asked.
The kidnapper slowly replied, “Why do I hear children laughing on the phone? Where are you right now?”
Jiang He answered, “I’m halfway up the slope. On the right side, there’s a lower area with some houses, and between those houses is an alley where many kids are playing. The laughter is coming from them. Should I keep going up?”
“No,” the kidnapper interrupted Jiang He.
Jiang He looked around but couldn’t see anyone from the kidnapper’s side. To his left was a wall, and to his right was a rooftop; the only people he could see were those children.
“How am I supposed to hand over the backpack to you?” Jiang He asked.
“It’s simple,” the kidnapper replied nonchalantly. “Just stand on this slope and scatter all forty thousand into the alley.”
Everyone listening to the kidnapper was taken aback. Was he out of his mind? To throw all that money into the alley? Was this some kind of joke?
“What?” Jiang He asked again.
The kidnapper emphasized his words: “I mean it. Break down this forty thousand and scatter it all into the alley. Remember, you must break it apart; otherwise, it might hit my friends. My people can see everything. Whether you believe it or not, do it immediately, or I will kill someone.”
"Do it!" Ding Derun shouted. "Officer Jiang, do it right now! Don't kill my old partner!"
"Alright!"
At this point, Jiang He had no more concerns. He immediately took off his backpack and began to untie the white strips that bound the money, scattering it everywhere. Then, he unzipped the backpack to its fullest extent, flipped it over, and suddenly, four hundred thousand yuan spilled out. From a height of three or four meters above the ground, the coins scattered in all directions as they were caught by the gentle breeze.
Moments later, among the children playing games, some with sharp eyes spotted the fluttering coins falling down.
"Look!" one child shouted. "Mom, Mom! Come out and see! Money is falling from above!"
All the children cheered.
"What's wrong with you? Are you lying again? How could money fall from the sky? You've been watching too many cartoons!" a woman shouted with a coarse voice.
"It's true!" The children began to clamour excitedly.
Everyone rushed out of their houses to see for themselves, and they soon realized that the children were not lying. Money was indeed falling from above—hundred-yuan bills floated down like goose feathers in a snowstorm, landing in people's hearts. Some even knelt on the ground, shouting that there was something miraculous happening.
Jiang He watched this scene unfold and listened to their words; for some people, money might as well be life itself.
Then, both adults and children began to pick up the money. Some even brought plastic bags, waving them in the air in an attempt to catch as much as they could.
Jiang He looked at these people and felt like he was being toyed with by the kidnappers.
The crowd collecting money included people of all ages and genders. There was no way so many people could be actors hired by the kidnappers; thus, it was clear that these funds would never return to them. Why would the kidnappers scatter forty thousand yuan here?
"What exactly do you want?" Jiang He asked.
The kidnapper burst into laughter, laughing for a full minute.
"Ding Derun!" The kidnapper called out his name.
"What is it?" Ding Derun hurriedly replied.
The kidnapper said, "Alright, I need you to head to Shangde Road immediately. However, I'm only giving you twenty minutes."
"What?" Ding Derun exclaimed. "It takes at least an hour to get from here to Shangde Road. How could I possibly make it?"
The kidnapper laughed and replied, "Why not? It takes an hour to reach Phoenix Road, and you can get there in half an hour. What are you waiting for? Hurry up and drive! Are you going to wait for Officer Jiang to come back before you start driving? He'll take three or four minutes to return, and time is of the essence right now."
Ding Derun understood the kidnapper's intention and immediately got into his car.
Meanwhile, Jiang He also realized what the kidnapper meant; he was trying to shake him off. He immediately sprinted down the slope.
But when he ran out onto the road, all that was left for him was the fading silhouette of Ding Derun's car.
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