Chapter 065
Shimen Yihshyong
Yihshyong's musings were interrupted when suddenly there was a sound from one of the Huahshiangs lying on the small table where their phone was. The sound of the small box was similar to the sound of Yihshyong's alarm clock. Yihshyong walked over to the small table where the box lay. Then he put earphones to his ears.
"Good afternoon!" There was a voice from the other end.
"Good afternoon," Yihshyong said.
"We are from the police. My name is Chioulin Shinnjaang. Who am I talking to?"
Shannchyuan had already told Yihshyong about the policeman who spoke to him last night. Chioulin Shinnjaang's voice was not as heavy as Yihshyong had initially imagined.
"I am Shimen Yihshyong. Is there anything I can help you with, Mr. Chioulin?"
"Has Mr. Duanmuh arrived home yet?"
"Not yet, Sir! I've also been waiting for him to come home. Has he been back from there for a long time?"
Yihshyong shook his head several times as he felt a little upset. He did not know where the police were monitoring this case. But he knew the distance between him and Chioulin should be quite close.He could already guess that in order to maintain secrecy, his friends might have to use tricks to transit elsewhere before heading to a place not far from their house. When they returned, they should have used the same method. Even so, they should have returned a long time ago. It was impossible for them to make a place so far away a transit point.
What's even weirder is why did he even ask me? Shouldn't he have known better about when Dahge and the others had left?
"They have been away from this place for a long time. So, they had transited at the mall near Jongharng Station, both on their way here and on their way home."
"Then I think they must have had lunch at the mall first. Ouch! I hope they don't linger there."
Yihshyong's anxiety rose again when he learned his friends had left the monitoring house long ago. Shannchyuan and the other friends were very careful. It was almost impossible for them to linger deliberately at the mall at such times.
It seems impossible for Dahge to act recklessly like that. Even if that happened, surely Jenqyih or Chioujen would remind him.
"Listen, Sir! I have something to say." Chioulin's voice sounded a little odd.
"Please, Sir!"
Yihshyong's feelings were getting worse.
Chioulin's tone was exactly like that of the police in Yeuandong when they intercepted people for suspecting that the person had done something illegal. Things like that in Yeuandong usually end badly.
"Something happened at the mall building!"
Chioulin's words made Yihshyong even more restless. Even though he was getting ready to receive bad news, there was still a part of him that wasn't easy to calm down.
"What happened there, Sir?"
"We have reports that the incident three days ago just happened again!"
"Are you referring to a flash of light that could temporarily blind human eyes?"
"That's right, Mr. Shimen."
"Could you explain in more detail?"
"At this point, that's all we can say. We haven't received any further detailed information yet."
Why did it have to happen again today? It's really weird!
Yihshyong began to feel cold sweat dripping from his forehead and palms. He turned when he heard someone open the door of one bedroom. It turned out that Juger Chiouwoei, who had been sleeping all this time, had woken up. His face still looked pale. He didn't seem to know what to do now. Yihshyong gestured for Jinqkang to help Juger. He was worried that Juger was still weak, so he couldn't stand for long.
"Then what about what we're dealing with here soon? I mean, about the kidnappers calling here?"
"Inevitably, Mr. Shimen, you had to replace Mr. Duanmuh to receive the call."
The thing I feared happened!
"No problem, Sir!"
"Mr. Shimen, please don't worry too much. We are always on standby to monitor everything that happens."
"Thank you, Sir!"
After that, without saying anything else, Chioulin hung up the phone.
Jinqkang had carried Juger up to the dining room. He helped Juger to sit in the chair over there. This morning Yihshyong had given medicine to Juger. But looking at Juger's state, it seemed the drugs weren't working. Instead of getting better, Juger's condition was getting worse. This morning, he was still able to walk upright. It differed completely from now. If Juger's condition continues this afternoon, Yihshyong must take Juger to see a doctor or go straight to the hospital. But now, Yihshyong absolutely could not leave the house. He felt his head throb at the thought of such a complicated thing.
Yihshyong looked at the clock hanging stiffly on the wall.
There's still a little time!
He walked to the dining table. Then sat down on the chair opposite Juger's seat. Jinqkang sat down next to Juger.
"How do you feel?"
Juger shook his head weakly. "Sorry, Sir! I didn't know my condition would drop so drastically like this!"
"It's okay. I'll prepare lunch first. After that, you eat first. Take some more medicine. Then go straight back to the bedroom to rest!"
Juger nodded weakly. He didn't even seem to have the energy to argue with Yihshyong.
Yihshyong went to the kitchen to prepare lunch. Fortunately, there were still leftovers that he could process quickly. In no time, he was back in the dining room with some dishes.
"Jinqkang! You should have lunch too. I have a feeling we'll be very busy after this. It might be difficult to find time for lunch." Yihshyong tried to be as firm as possible when he said those words.
"Yes, Sir!" Jinqkang didn't argue.
Yihshyong ate his lunch at lightning speed. Jinqkang also did the same.
"You don't have to hurry," Yihshyong said when he saw Juger trying to keep up with him as he ate. "I have to finish eating soon because after this I have to take a call. You take it easy. Eating too fast is not good for your digestion."
Juger nodded. He then ate at a normal pace. The thing that pleased Yihshyong was that even though he was sick, Juger still had an appetite. In caring for the sick, nothing was more troublesome than a patient who won't eat. It was what Shannchyuan had once told him. Yihshyong didn't know how true Shannchyuan's statement was. But to Yihshyong's knowledge, Shannchyuan was quite patient in caring for the sick. At least, that's what Yihshyong witnessed when Shannchyuan took care of his mother.
"Has something happened to Mr. Duanmuh and the others?"
Jinqkang suddenly asked such a question. He had heard what Yihshyong said earlier when he was communicating with the police through the Huahshiang device. The young man must have guessed what had happened at the mall. Yihshyong had no idea how much information Tsaehorng had told Jinqkang. But at that time, no one else was home. Inevitably, he had to believe in Jinqkang.
While continuing to eat quickly, Yihshyong spoke to Jinqkang. "Do you know about the explosion of light that happened at the mall near Jongharng station?"
"Yes, Sir! There is a lot of news about it. There is so much speculation going around about it."
"As you might expect. Earlier, it happened again. Just when Mr. Duanmuh and the others were inside the mall building."
"It means they won't be home anytime soon. It must be a mess over there."
"Right! So this responsibility is on my shoulders." Yihshyong sighed.
"I'll help as much as I can, Sir!" Jinqkang's voice was so steady.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome, Sir! Mr. Mingju said we all have to help the gentlemen here."
Tsaehorng is weird! He doesn't have to help us. He shouldn't even have asked his employees to get involved in this matter.
Five minutes to twelve, Yihshyong and Jinqkang had finished eating. Yihshyong immediately left the dining table while Jinqkang was still accompanying Juger. He had asked Jinqkang to help Juger eat the medicine and then ushered him into the room to rest. Yihshyong put his earphones back on to receive instructions from the police. He pressed the button on the box to turn on the Huahshiang.
"Are you ready, Mr. Shimen?"
Yihshyong could clearly hear Chioulin's question.
"I'm ready, Sir!"
"All right! Now we wait for the call from the kidnappers!"
"About yesterday's call. Have the police been able to trace where the call came from?"
"Regarding that, we can't give a definite answer yet. But we'll still keep trying!"
It means that yesterday they failed to find out where the kidnappers were calling from. In fact, I think, yesterday, Dahge talked for a long time with the kidnappers. The police should be able to track him down. The technology owned by the kidnappers may be equivalent to or even higher than the technology used by the police. If that's true, then in the future, this will definitely be very difficult! I hope the organization where Jenqyih's friend works can do better.
Yihshyong waited tensely for the seconds before the kidnapper called. He wasn't sure he'd be as calm as Shannchyuan when he talked to the kidnappers.
Ring Ring
Finally, the time came. Yihshyong steadily grabbed the receiver.
"Hello!"
"Hello," came a voice from the other end. "Who's this?"
Even though Yihshyong had only said one word, it turned out that the person on the other end could already recognize that the recipient of the call was not Shannchyuan.
"I am Shimen Yihshyong. The representative of Duanmuh Shannchyuan," Yihshyong said in a voice he tried to be as firm as possible.
"Where's Duanmuh?" asked the caller.
"Mr. Shimen! Please, try to stay calm. They're trying to intimidate you!" Chioulin's voice came from the earphones in Yihshyong's ears.
"He's on business. So this time I'm in charge of taking the call!"
"No way! We just want to talk to Duanmuh!"
"But he's not here!"
"Okay! We'll call back in fifteen minutes. We hope Duanmuh can answer the phone by then."
After saying that, the kidnappers hung up the phone right away.
"Mr. Shimen! We are trying to find Mr. Duanmuh in the mall. The situation is very chaotic there. We have reports that the scale of this incident is much larger than what happened three days ago. There are far more victims. In fact, there were some victims who were seriously injured! This didn't happen in the previous incident."
Chioulin's words sounded very frightening. Yihshyong sighed. It meant that if his friends weren't hurt, it would still take them a long time to get home. If one or more of them were injured, the problem would be even worse. Yihshyong's head throbbed again at the thought of the possibility.
Yihshyong removed the earphones from his ears. More and more cold sweat trickled out of his forehead. He felt so nervous.
The situation is really dire!
Juger had finished lunch. With the help of Jinqkang, he ate the medicine already available on the dining table. After that, Jinqkang helped him into the bedroom to rest. In less than two minutes, Jinqkang was in the bedroom. He got out and quickly walked over to Yihshyong.
"How was it, Sir? They didn't want to talk to you?"
"They just want to talk to Mr. Duanmuh," Yihshyong replied.
"And Mr. Duanmuh is unlikely to be home anytime soon."
"What do you think?" Yihshyong looked at Jinqkang deeply. He really wanted to know Jinqkang's opinion on the matter.
"There are two things we might be able to do. The first is to inform the kidnappers that Mr. Duanmuh is at the mall and is completely unreachable. I'm sure news of what happened at the mall will soon be broadcast on radio and television. The kidnappers will eventually realize that we aren't lying."
"And the second?" Yihshyong closed his eyes as soon as he asked that question.
"The second is that we say that if they still want to get what they want, then they have to follow our way. Among other things is to accept other people in this house to represent Mr. Duanmuh. If they don't want to, that's fine! The deal is off!"
"The second way is very dangerous. They can hurt Shinnshiow," Yihshyong said.
"They can threaten to harm Mr. Beeihae. But not necessarily they will."
"It means we're risking Shinnshiow's safety. We can never be sure how determined the kidnappers really were."
"That's right. This second method is dangerous."
"I think there's a third way." Yihshyong opened his eyes.
"The third way? What kind of method, Sir?"
Yihshyong smiled bitterly. "This way, I'm not sure it will work. It takes a tremendous amount of courage to do it."
Jinqkang raised his eyebrows. "Please explain about this third way."
When he had closed his eyes earlier, Yihshyong focused on the voice of the person speaking to him. At that time, Yihshyong felt he was dealing with Shannchyuan. Jinqkang's voice, accent, word choice, emphasis, and style of speech were exactly the same as Shannchyuan's. Even Yihshyong dared to say that maybe Shannchyuan himself would feel like he was doing a monologue if he talked to Jinqkang with his eyes closed.
"The kidnappers contacted this house by phone. They didn't really see who was talking to them. If someone who sounded like Mr. Duanmuh had picked up the phone, they probably wouldn't have suspected it. The voice of the person on the phone is not exactly the same as the voice we hear when speaking in person. The slightest difference in face-to-face conversation won't be as obvious in a telephone conversation. They will assume that they are talking to Mr. Duanmuh. That way, I think, things will be a lot simpler."
"You mean...." Jinqkang looked at Yihshyong with a doubtful look.
"Yes! What I mean is, what if you pretended to be Mr. Duanmuh? You just tell them you are Duanmuh. Technically, you're not lying because your surname is Duanmuh," Yihshyong said bluntly.
Jinqkang looked speechless. Yihshyong knew it was a strange request. However, when one faced such an emergency, strange things were not taboo thing to do.
"We don't have much time. They'll be calling again soon."
Finally, Jinqkang nodded. "All right! I'll try."
Yihshyong smiled. They both stood at the phone, waiting for the kidnappers to call again. Yihshyong put earphones in both ears. The other Huahshiang box he gave to Jinqkang.
"You put it in one ear only. You use the other ear to hear from the receiver," said Yihshyong.
Yihshyong hadn't turned on the huahshiang yet, so the police couldn't hear what they were talking about.
"Shouldn't we talk to the police about this first?" Jinqkang asked.
"No need. I'm afraid they will think too much. Let's just do it. Think of it as a surprise for them."
Hearing that answer, Jinqkang looked at Yihshyong with a surprised look. But he still did what Yihshyong did. He put earphones in one ear. Yihshyong intended to turn on the huahshiang right after the phone rang.
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