Wang Zhuo had left home in his Audi Q7.

It was nearly impossible to hail a cab at that hour, but thankfully, with the help of his satellite navigation system, he didn't waste any time on the road.

Gan Lin's location was remarkably easy to pinpoint; he effortlessly found the river and drove upstream along its bank until the two would meet.

The traffic dwindled along this route, so he decided to accelerate, using his extraordinary vision to take in sights two or three kilometers away.

The benefits of his special ability were obvious. From a distance of a full three kilometers, he spotted Gan Lin, and almost simultaneously, a black van pulled up beside her.

The scene that followed instantly shot Wang Zhuo's heart into his throat. Seeing those men forcibly haul Gan Lin into the van felt like a physical wrenching in his chest, and his foot slammed the accelerator to the floor.

A distance of two or three kilometers took just over a minute for a fully accelerated SUV, but the van wasn't moving slowly either; it was speeding away from the scene of the crime, completely oblivious to the vehicle chasing it from behind.

One car fled, the other pursued, maintaining a gap of one to two kilometers. They soon hit the elevated highway. The van in front didn't even realize it was being tracked; Wang Zhuo would have lost them long ago if not for his superhuman vision.

The navigation system incessantly chirped warnings at Wang Zhuo: speeding, running a red light camera, upcoming junction, slow down... If he didn't need the device to maintain his bearings, Wang Zhuo would have smashed it with a single punch.

After exiting the elevated road, the traffic grew dense. Both vehicles slowed, and the distance between them finally began to close.

This was where Wang Zhuo's inexperience in driving showed; it was no issue with fewer cars, but he lacked the skill for maneuvering and pursuit through heavy traffic. Meanwhile, the van expertly swerved between lanes, overtaking one or two cars now and then.

"Damn it," at a time like this, he couldn't adhere to traffic rules. Wang Zhuo gripped the steering wheel with one hand and snatched up his phone with the other, rapidly dialing 110.

"Hello, this is the Jiangzhou City 110 Emergency Dispatch Center, how may I help you..."

"I'm reporting that my girlfriend was just abducted by a group of men in a van. The license plate is Meng 19853, and they are heading east toward Dongjiang."

"Sir, when was she abducted? Do you have any witnesses?"

"It happened five minutes ago. I need police assistance in the Dongjiang area immediately; that car is about to enter the urban sector."

"Sir, can you confirm she was actually abducted? Have you tried calling her phone, or using any other method to confirm this isn't a prank?"

"...I saw it with my own eyes. It's not a prank."

"Sir, please repeat the emergency contact number for the Dongjiang Branch Bureau. Please call the Dongjiang Branch Bureau to file your report. The number is—did you write it down?"

Wang Zhuo paused, surprised that 110 was just dismissing him with a contact number. After all that questioning, were they just trying to figure out if they should give him this number? What a waste of time!

...

In the van, Xue Guangtou, who had just knocked Gan Lin unconscious, poked his head toward the front and cursed, "Heizi, what the hell is your problem?"

"It's not my fault," Heizi explained helplessly. "That woman was too vigilant. Before I could even say anything, she was already on guard."

Chang Lian, driving, chuckled, "Brother Xue, you can't blame Heizi for this. There wasn't another soul around; it's natural for her to be alert when she was alone."

Hearing them, Xue Guangtou's expression softened slightly. Just then, a few muffled whimpers came from behind.

Xue Guangtou turned around to see Shan Yazi had already let down his pants and was reaching for the young woman they had just grabbed. The other woman, witnessing this, was terrified and whimpering soundlessly.

"Damn it, Yazi, what are you doing?"

Xue Guangtou’s eyes widened, and he slapped Shan Yazi’s arm, pulling his hand back.

"Just playing around, what else?" Shan Yazi grinned slyly, then reached down and patted his crotch. "Brother Xue, this chick is seriously hot. Why don't we take care of her right now, boys?"

"I'll take care of you first," Xue Guangtou shot back, his eyes fierce. "Put your pants up, and nobody touches her."

Shan Yazi didn't dare talk back and obediently pulled up his trousers. Chang Lian, who was driving, turned back after hearing this and tried to persuade him, "Brother Xue, why don't you go first? This is a juicy piece delivered right to our mouths; it would be a waste not to bite."

"You all know nothing," Xue Guangtou retorted with an impatient glare. "I have big plans for this girl."

Shan Yazi grumbled internally, What big plans? You just want to use her yourself.

It was Heizi who caught the underlying meaning. He offered a cigarette and lowered his voice slightly, asking, "Brother Xue, are you planning to present her to that person?"

"Smart boy," Xue Guangtou said with satisfaction, taking the cigarette. After Heizi lit it, he took a deep drag. "If this really works out, it'll be a huge accomplishment. Then we can get reassigned to manage protection rackets—eating well, drinking fine liquor every day, and women will be plentiful."

"Brother Xue is brilliant."

"Brother Xue is mighty, Brother Xue is incredibly smart!"

Heizi and Shan Yazi immediately started flattering him. Chang Lian, however, sounded hesitant. "But Brother Xue, I heard that person only plays with movie stars and university girls. Is this woman acceptable?"

"She will definitely work. This kind of prime specimen is hard to find even with a lantern," Shan Yazi chimed in again, already daydreaming about the good life managing a racket—that huge fish tank, he wouldn't even have to choose; being able to enjoy leftovers every day would be enough!

"Hmph, so what if she's prime? What kind of prime has that person not played with?" Chang Lian scoffed disdainfully.

"You wouldn't know," Shan Yazi rebutted, bumping Chang Lian’s shoulder. He eagerly pulled up Gan Lin's hand to show him, "Look here, Brother Xue. There isn't a single callus on this hand; it’s definitely not a working woman's hand."

Xue Guangtou took a close look. Indeed, the hand was snow-white, soft as if boneless, with neatly filed, slightly pointed nails. Forget a textile worker; even someone who did minimal housework couldn't maintain hands like that.

"Brother Xue, this... she might have some background?" Heizi expressed a flicker of worry. If they had run into someone with connections, it would be serious trouble.

Shan Yazi immediately countered, "What kind of background could she have? Her clothes aren't expensive, and we searched her—she doesn't even have a wallet. I say there’s nothing to fear." He was determined to leverage this opportunity to secure a better position.

"Even if she has a minor background, it can't be too big," Chang Lian analyzed. "We've already caught her; we can't just let her go now, can we?"

Xue Guangtou's expression shifted between dark and light. He gritted his teeth. "Take her back first and see."

...

Watching the traffic thicken around him and the black van gradually pulling further ahead, Wang Zhuo became utterly desperate.

The Dongjiang Branch Bureau’s emergency line remained constantly busy. When it finally cleared, the call went unanswered. Wang Zhuo was making calls while simultaneously struggling to drive with his mediocre skills, all while peering through the traffic to track the van's movements and the situation inside. The effort was exhausting.

Fortunately, he could see that the men weren't molesting Gan Lin; they were just smoking and talking. Gan Lin remained unconscious, and only the other woman, whose face was now smeared with tears, continued to weep silently.

When he first saw Gan Lin being intercepted, Wang Zhuo assumed it was a robbery. He had heard that following drive-by snatchings, a new type had emerged: carjacking robberies where targets were forcibly pulled into a vehicle in sparsely populated areas, robbed blind, then dumped somewhere deserted before the criminals fled.

But Wang Zhuo quickly dismissed that theory because he could see through his vision that there was another woman in the car, her limbs bound and her mouth stuffed with cotton padding. This wasn't the modus operandi of simple robbers.

Kidnapping, perhaps? Wang Zhuo could only guess for the time being, never imagining that their goal was to seize Gan Lin to become a "hostess," and later, the plan shifted to offering her up to some powerful figure who enjoyed the company of starlets or university coeds.

After the nth time his phone returned the message, "The number you have dialed is currently unavailable...," he finally gave up all hope of police assistance. With a grim resolve, he yanked the steering wheel and swerved onto the non-motorized vehicle lane.

Screeech! The sharp sound of brakes startled numerous passersby. Several cyclists swerved frantically, crashing into each other in a clatter.

"Can you even drive?"

"Little brat, are you trying to die?"

Wang Zhuo ignored the curses. He shot out of his car like an arrow and rushed toward a cursing woman, frightening her into retreating quickly.

"Lend me your vehicle."

Before the woman could process what was happening, Wang Zhuo had already hauled her off the pedal scooter.

"Robbery..." The woman managed to shout halfway through before a set of car keys flew toward her. "You drive mine."

The woman numbly caught the keys and instinctively replied, "I don't know how to drive."

The scooter roared away. A crowd of onlookers immediately gathered in front of the Audi Q7. A middle-aged man standing by the car suddenly had an idea, cried out "Ouch!" and collapsed in front of the Audi with his electric bicycle, shouting, "That kid hit me and then fled the scene! You all have to witness for me!"

A young man watching nearby immediately burst out laughing. "Idiot, look up. There’s a traffic camera right there."

...

The van did not venture deep into the city but quickly turned onto a secondary road. After driving for another ten minutes, it finally pulled into the back courtyard of a building in the suburbs.

The sunset glow was fading from the horizon, and dusk was setting in. The journey had taken forty minutes. Although Wang Zhuo never managed to close the distance to the van, he hadn't been completely shaken off either, and because the distance was so great, Chang Lian, the driver, had no idea anyone was following him.

With only a kilometer left, Wang Zhuo's heart tightened. He estimated dealing with these four men would be difficult, and critically, if he failed, the consequences were unbearable for him.

The van entered a garage. Guangtou and the others gradually disembarked, and three men immediately came forward to greet them, even opening the doors and pointing, evaluating them like cargo.

Seeing this, Wang Zhuo's heart sank instantly.