Financial Workplace Survival Guide – CH 053

Chapter 53 ☆, Hanging by a Thread.

That night, Xin Xin experienced the greatest fear of her life.

When she first started investigating Su Chengjie, Zheng Zaochuan told her how terrifying this person was. But living in a familiar city, in broad daylight, she had no idea that this person was a madman, a lawless outlaw.

People living in cities with cameras everywhere and a constant flow of people and cars did not experience strong feelings of fear.

Although there were some frictions, Xin Xin couldn’t imagine any frictions that could lead to death.

However, when people were in uninhabited areas, the stark contrast between their individual insignificance and the cruelty of nature could evoke a profound sense of fear of the unknown.

Xin Xin was afraid to sleep, so she quietly called to Fu Meng, “Don’t sleep; let’s chat for a while.”

The two leaned against each other. Fu Meng, who was about to fall asleep, mumbled sleepily, “Okay, what do you want to talk about?”

“Let’s talk about the gold market and about your home.”

Fu Meng still hugged her, leaning her head against hers in a comforting manner, and spoke softly with her eyes closed: “There are three children in my family, and I am the eldest. My family is like that: a father who is addicted to gambling, a mother who is weak, a young brother, and me, who is helpless. Fortunately, my sister and I both have good grades. After the college entrance examination, the county gave us awards. We used the awards and saved money by working during the holidays to successfully go to university.”

Xin Xin felt a pang of sadness and moved closer to Fu Meng, as if squeezing together would make her feel less afraid.

She imagined Fu Meng’s tragic situation. “Did your parents keep pressuring you to give money to your younger brother?”

Fu Meng chuckled softly in the darkness, “You saw it on a TV show, right?”

“No, some people online say the same thing. Isn’t that how it usually is?”

Fu Meng sighed, “Life is life, and TV dramas are TV dramas. Families that would oppress their daughters for the sake of their sons at least still care about their sons. In our family, they treat everyone equally and don’t care. We’re all just unlucky people. My mother has always been in poor health and can barely take care of herself. My father is already doing his best to keep us from starving.”

Xin Xin never imagined Fu Meng would think this way. In her mind, a girl like Fu Meng hated her family the most. Because of her excellence, she would only highlight the awfulness of her family.

But Fu Meng’s attitude was calm, with a kind of composure that showed she had long accepted her fate.

“Xin Xin, sit to my right; I can’t hear you clearly. Let’s move closer; it’s cold in Jin City at night. Don’t catch a cold. It’s dangerous enough as it is; you’ll suffer even more if you’re not healthy.”

Xin Xin suddenly remembered that Fu Meng was deaf in her left ear, so she obediently switched sides.

Fu Meng asked her, “If we can get back safely, what would you most like to do?”

Things happened so fast that Xin Xin was almost constantly in a state of fear. Then, when Fu Meng asked her a question, Zheng Zaochuan’s face suddenly flashed into her mind. She remembered how Zheng Zaochuan had carefully packed her luggage the day before she left; a third of the 28-inch suitcase was filled with snacks for her.

At the time, she didn’t think much of it. She even thought Zheng Zaochuan was like a meddlesome old mother and took out the things he had taken one by one.

“I can buy it even if I go, and besides, it’s only for a week; it’s not like I’m never coming back.”

Who knew that her words would become a self-fulfilling prophecy?

Xin Xin looked at the small storage room with a wronged expression, and tears welled up in her eyes again. She felt like one of these commodities, facing an unknown fate. Who would have thought that she was usually treated like a treasure?

At that moment, Xin Xin suddenly felt that her usual insecurities were utterly insignificant.

If she died, she would definitely regret not telling Zheng Zaochuan “Let’s be together,” the moment she fell for him.

Why did she insist on finding a perfect lover? Why did she insist on finding a true love that would not hurt her?

And then there were her parents. Although they often said she was immature, urged her to get married, and felt ashamed in front of her friends because she did not have a stable partner.

But their complaints were only at home; they never said anything bad about her outside the home. She was always a daughter her parents were proud of.

And then there was her friend, whom she had known since right after graduation. Although Mary often said she was slow-witted and inflexible, their friendship had never been complicated, without much scheming or comparison.

It turned out that so many people in life loved her and were loved by her.

“If I can get back smoothly this time, I won’t weigh the pros and cons of everything anymore. I will not lie to myself at any moment and will follow my heart.”

Fu Meng laughed and said, “Only people with many choices have this problem. People like me who don’t have many choices don’t really have any problems. Every decision I’ve made in my life was the only option at the time.”

Xin Xin truly admired Fu Meng after this ordeal, asking, “Aren’t you afraid at all?”

Fu Meng paused for a moment, then fell silent. “To be honest, I’m not afraid. I don’t even think it would be a particularly regrettable thing if I couldn’t go back.”

Her words were a mixture of sadness and open-mindedness, but they only made people feel more desperate.

Xin Xin was startled. “Don’t say that. We’ll work hard; we can definitely go back. Didn’t you say that as long as we’re still of use, everything will be alright?”

Fu Meng patted Xin Xin’s shoulder reassuringly, “Okay, if you can live, you should definitely live. But if a situation really arises where only one person has a chance, don’t worry about me; you must save yourself first. And don’t worry, if I have a chance, I will save myself too; I won’t worry about you.”

Xin Xin nodded in the darkness. “Okay.”

Then, Fu Meng, still feeling uneasy, added, “Try to talk as little as possible and let me handle the negotiations. Your intentions are too obvious, written all over your face. I’m afraid you’ll reveal our hand.”

Xin Xin guessed that Fu Meng was trying to get information out of the landlady by chatting with her.

She had confidence, but to be honest, she couldn’t really help much.

“Okay, whatever you say.”

They talked about their current perilous situation, their families, childhood memories, and their colleagues. They chatted until an unknown time, when Xin Xin drifted off to sleep.

They were woken up early the next morning by the sound of the door opening.

As soon as Fu Meng moved, Xin Xin almost jumped up from the ground.

The driver from that day opened the door and came in. He glanced at Fu Meng and Xin Xin and asked, “What’s your name?”

He was looking at Fu Meng when he spoke.

Fu Meng understood immediately. The fact that she was the one being questioned indicated that Xin Xin was known to the kidnappers. Furthermore, their concern about their names indicated that this was not a simple kidnapping.

“I am her colleague; my name is Fu Meng.”

The kidnapper frowned and complained, “This is such a hassle. Just stay put, and I’ll let you go once this is over. I only want the money; I have no interest in your lives. But if you insist on causing trouble, I have plenty of ways to deal with you.”

Fu Meng pretended to be a little scared. “We will definitely obey. Actually, if you let us go, we can give you whatever money you need.”

The driver chuckled. “Do you think I’m stupid? Let you out to call the police and arrest me? Don’t worry, once it’s all over and the money’s in my account, I’ll let you go. By the time you find the police, I’ll already be abroad.”

Xin Xin quickly calculated in her mind that since he said that, someone must have arranged an identity for him.

“Have you ever considered that you might not be able to leave at all?”

The driver was taken aback. “What do you mean?”

Xin Xin pondered for a moment. “I just thought of a story that you can find online. A bank employee embezzled company funds, donated the money, and fled for three days, eventually dying in a car accident. It happened in Su City, which is right next to yours. Later, the money was never found. Do you think he deliberately caused the accident?”

Fu Meng glanced at Xin Xin. This was indeed a case that many people knew about a few days ago. The bank employee was burned to death in his car, but the money had disappeared, and his family knew nothing about it.

“You guys behave yourselves; I’ll handle my own affairs.”

Seeing that the driver was wavering, Xin Xin continued, “We ordinary people just want to have some money and live a decent life. But those who would make you do such illegal things are desperate criminals. Give me a chance, and I can guarantee that I can transfer the money to you right now via mobile banking.”

“Do you think I’m stupid?”

“Let me tell you straight, the person who ordered you to kidnap me is not only a desperate criminal, but he also has enough power to ensure your demise. You can inquire about it; there’s a case in Haining City, the kidnapping of the president’s secretary at Hanhai Group, and the person who was sentenced has already died in prison.”

Of course, Xin Xin was just making this up; the person who was supposed to be arrested was currently in the appeal stage. But she had searched online before and found that the case had generated a lot of discussion, with many different opinions about the process and the final outcome, and many people speculating that the person would die in prison.

The more uncertain the outcome, the more different speculations would arise among the viewers.

The driver became visibly uneasy and quickly closed the storage compartment door.

“You guys behave yourselves.”

Xin Xin smiled slightly. She didn’t believe that if she said that, the driver would have no suspicions and would willingly become a scapegoat.

Sure enough, an hour later, the driver rudely pushed open the door and threw Xin Xin and Fu Meng’s phones at them.

“Send a message to your company and family to let them know you’re safe. Don’t try anything funny. There’s only internet in this room; there won’t be any signal outside. We’ll leave after you send the message.”

Xin Xin didn’t understand what was going on, but as soon as she turned on her phone, the flood of messages almost crashed it.

She sent a mass message saying, “I’m fine, don’t worry,” but only left the message “No food today” to the person on the list labeled “takeout lunchbox vendor.”

Soon, the driver pulled out a knife from behind his back, handed them two bottles of water, and threatened them, “Drink the water and come with me.”

Xin Xin speculated that the driver had her and Fu Meng send these messages for two reasons: first, to let everyone know that they had been in an accident; and second, to confuse everyone and make it impossible for them to determine whether they were still alive.

But in the end, the message she sent to Wang Zhuo was a coded message known only to them. She hoped that this message would let Wang Zhuo know that they were still alive and that he shouldn’t give up looking for them.

But soon, before Xin Xin could think any further, both she and Fu Meng lost consciousness.