《Once Upon a Time in a Foreign Land》Chapter 135 : Ximen Yixiong
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Fifteen minutes past four. Still no call from the kidnappers.
"Could it be that they realized we had tricked them?" Yiren said in a low voice.
"I don't think that's possible. What caused them to suddenly realize that the person they were talking to wasn't Biaoshu?" asked Qiuzhen.
"I don't know. Maybe they had felt something strange about the person who spoke to them. And it was only a few moments later that they realized it," said Yiren.
"If that's true, they'll just call again and get angry at us and ask to speak to the real Biaoshu," Qiuzhen said.
"Never mind! You guys just shut up. We'll just have to wait. Maybe they're really facing a problem," said Yixiong.
Twenty minutes past four, their phone was still silent.
"Mr. Ximen!" Qiulin Xinzhang's voice came from their earphones. "We ask the gentlemen there to stay on standby. We don't know what happened. But we believe the kidnappers can contact you at any time."
"Alright, Sir! We're always ready!" Yixiong replied.
"Package!"
Suddenly, there was a loud voice from outside the house.
"Package! I'm delivering a package!"
Yiren rose from his seat. He immediately left the house to meet the deliveryman of the package.
"What is it, Mr. Ximen?" asked Qiulin Xinzhang.
"It's nothing, Sir. A courier sent the package," Yixiong replied.
Less than two minutes later, Yiren was back again. He was holding a package. The object was a package that was rectangular.
"Package for whom?" asked Qiuzhen.
"For Dahge," answered Yiren.
Yiren sat in the dining room. It was obvious that he would soon open the package.
"Why did Renge open the package?" Qiuzhen looked on in surprise. "Isn't that for Biaoshu?"
"Here it is written that this package must be opened as soon as we receive it," said Yiren. He pointed to the writing on one side of the package.
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Yiren opened the package with a very fast movement. It seemed that he was very curious. Yiren took out a wooden box from the package. Without hesitation, he opened the wooden box speedily.
"Eh?" Yiren screamed when he opened the package.
"What is it?" Qiuzhen got up and walked towards Yiren's side.
Yiren put his hand into the wooden box. He took something from the box. Yiren raised the object he had just taken out high.
"That's Xinxiu's watch!" Qiuzhen shouted.
Yixiong was surprised. He turned to Yiren. It was true that it was a Xinxiu watch. If he wasn't mistaken, it was a gift from his family. Xinxiu received it about nine months ago.
"Mr. Qiulin! It turns out that this package came from the kidnappers," Yixiong shouted.
"Don't worry, Mr. Ximen. We've been monitoring people going in and out of this housing complex. When you said that a package had arrived, we immediately alerted. At this time, our members are following the courier who sent the package," Qiulin Xinzhang replied.
Qiuzhen pulled out a piece of paper from the wooden box. "These are instructions from the kidnappers!"
"What's in it?" Without realizing it, Yixiong made a very loud voice. Jingkang, who was right next to Yixiong, jumped up in surprise.
"This is a clue about the time, place, and how the process of handing over the goods that Songfei left us," Qiuzhen said.
"Mr. Ximen! We have caught the courier who sent the package. We will question him immediately," Qiulin said.
"The police have arrested the courier," Yixiong said.
"I don't think it will help much," Qiuzhen said. "The courier must know nothing. His job is only to deliver packages. So there's no way the kidnappers would have leaked information that could lead the police to their hiding place."
"But at least the courier can provide additional clues for the police. Information about when and where the kidnappers gave this package to the courier or the package delivery company will be very useful for the police," said Yiren.
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"I hope so," said Qiuzhen.
"Give me the paper," Yixiong said.
Qiuzhen handed the paper that was in his hand to Yixiong.
"Mr. Qiulin," Yixiong said. "This package contains Xinxiu's watch and detailed instructions on where, when, and how to hand over the ransom items."
"Okay, Mr. Ximen. Now you have to copy all the writings on the paper. We'll talk later. At this time, I can't give further details," said Qiulin Xinzhang.
Yixiong removed the earphones from their ears. Jingkang saw what Yixiong was doing and did the same promptly.
"What should I do now, Sir?" Jingkang asked.
"Nothing. You just stand by. I will copy and study first the clues the kidnappers sent," Yixiong replied.
Yixiong stood up and walked towards the dining table. He sat there to read carefully the instructions from the kidnappers. Qiuzhen handed Yixiong some pieces of paper and a pen.
"Thank you," Yixiong said.
The writing on the paper was written by hand. However, the font used was very similar to the font used in the letters printed in newspapers. It was obvious the writer wrote very slowly to avoid writing in a certain style. At the top center was a pentagon with a smaller pentagon inside it.
"It doesn't look like handwriting. It's more like print. The police would have a hard time figuring out who wrote this if it was just based on the form of writing," Qiuzhen said.
Yiren, Qiuzhen, and Jingkang stood clustered behind Yixiong. Immediately, they all wanted to read clearly the details of the instructions that the kidnapper gave them.
"Why are you guys here?" Yixiong tried to suppress the annoyance he felt.
The friends who had gathered behind him were silent. They just looked at each other.
"What you're doing is just making it hard for me to breathe."
They all took a half step back.
"Never mind. I'll read it first. You can take turns reading later after I finish," said Yixiong.
Yixiong's friends nodded. They all then shuffled around, taking their distance from Yixiong.
Yixiong then continued to read the contents of the instructions. The point of the letter was that the kidnappers asked them to bring all the things, including bags, that they got from Songfei. They wrote Shanquan had to deliver the goods to a fairly well-known park.
But that place is far from here! It takes time to get there!
Although the park was a famous place, Yixiong had never been there. He also wasn't sure his housemates were familiar with the place.
Furthermore, the letter said that at exactly eight o'clock, Shanquan should be near the trash can in the pentagon-shaped pond in the park. To be more precise, he had to stand next to the trash can. Later, someone would come to see Shanquan there.
The kidnappers allowed Shanquan to come with others to the park. However, while standing beside the trash can, Shanquan had to be alone. The person who escorted him had to stand far from that point.
Yixiong sighed. Right now, they really didn't know where Shanquan was. Even if soon after this, Shanquan could be found, it was very likely that he was injured. It was clearly impossible for them to force Shanquan to come along to deal with the kidnapping problem.
Yixiong massaged his temples. Such a situation gave him a headache.
What should we do now?
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