The transaction went smoothly—money exchanged for goods. The owner handed Qiao Xin the warehouse key, instructing her to simply toss it back inside once she’d emptied the place; he kept a spare.
Once the coast was clear, Qiao Xin checked for surveillance equipment. Finding none, she waved her hand and vanished the entire haul of oil drums into her space before driving away.
The next day, she sought out a middleman and purchased one hundred tanks of liquefied gas—the maximum he could procure.
She then hit the markets, buying five electric tricycles, five gasoline-powered tricycles, a pickup truck, and a hybrid SUV. She paid the down payments for the vehicles, instructed the staff to drive them to her designated location, and then quietly stowed them into her space.
Large ships, yachts, and speedboats were out of her budget, so she settled for several inflatable speedboats and kayaks—just in case. It was better to be safe than sorry.
Checking her balance, she saw less than 400,000 yuan remaining. She visited several gold and silver jewelry shops, trading 200,000 yuan for silver. She insisted on unmarked bullion. With the amount of cash she had left, buying gold wouldn’t yield much, but silver was practical for the ancient world—it was the most cost-effective choice.
With the remaining 100,000-plus, she spent a few thousand online and decided to put the rest toward high-quality prepared meals. Whenever she felt like a treat later on, she’d have a stash ready.
However, while Qiao Xin was busy darting from shop to shop, two sleazy-looking men had quietly latched onto her trail.
Fortunately, Qiao Xin had remained vigilant. She only transferred her goods into her space once she was shielded by the van, ensuring the men hadn’t seen the items disappear. Otherwise, the situation would have been dire.
Qiao Xin was walking down a quiet, tree-lined path, carrying a large bag in each hand, when the two men closed the distance. One of them pressed dangerously close, a blade hidden in his sleeve digging into the small of her back.
Qiao Xin didn’t know when they had targeted her, nor did she know if her space had been exposed. She hoped not—they hadn’t checked her delivery van, so they couldn’t know that the cargo hold was already empty.
“Move. Don’t even think about calling for help. The moment you make a sound will be your last,” one of them hissed.
Qiao Xin wasn’t afraid. Perhaps this was the catalyst fate had arranged for her transmigration; this might be the path that led her to Lin Qing.
She followed them calmly toward a van. One man stepped ahead, opened the door, and signaled for her to climb in.
She obeyed. Once inside, her hands were bound and her eyes were covered with a blindfold. She heard them mutter, “Let’s go.”
The engine started. She lost track of time—it felt like at least two hours of driving, the road becoming increasingly bumpy. Finally, the van screeched to a halt.
She was hauled out, still blindfolded. Dragged into a building, she heard the hollow echoes of a large, empty space. They forced her upstairs and shoved her violently into a chair before ripping the cloth from her eyes.
The sudden light stung. As her vision adjusted, she realized she was in a room dominated by a large bed and littered with a chaotic mess of furniture, sofas, and coffee tables. She only had a fleeting second to glance around before her eyes locked onto her captors—the same two men.
“Oho, quite a calm little miss, aren’t you? Not even going to ask why we brought you here?” one of them sneered, his tone dripping with malice. The other stood by, leering at her with equally vile intentions.
Qiao Xin felt a wave of disgust, but she knew that kidnappers were never up to anything good. “If I ask, will you tell me?”
One of them chuckled. “Bringing you here is a favor. Our boss has taken a liking to you. Just be obedient, and you’ll be living in luxury.”
“And who is your ‘boss’?”
“So impatient, are we? Just wait—the boss will be here soon. Come on, let’s go downstairs and wait.” The last part was directed at his accomplice. They seemed to think there was no way Qiao Xin could escape; they slammed the door shut and left her behind.
Hearing their footsteps fade, Qiao Xin flicked her consciousness into space. Here, she was the master of all she surveyed. She first untied her hands, her mind racing with a plan to deal with their so-called “boss.”
With a thought, a taser and a can of pepper spray materialized in her hand. Thank goodness my deliveries arrived these past two days, she thought. Using a knife was out of the question—she had no confidence in her combat skills, and as a law-abiding citizen, she didn’t have the stomach to kill.
Back in the room, she returned to the chair and repositioned her hands behind her back, feigning bondage. She scanned the room; it was cluttered but relatively clean. Near the bed sat a safe that reached her mid-thigh. Maybe there’s something useful in there. She’d whisk it into the space to examine later.
Before she could act, the door creaked open. The man who stepped inside shocked her: it was the owner of the knife shop.
He strolled in with a smug grin. “Pretty lady, remember me? We meet again.”
“If I’m not mistaken, we’ve only met once. Boss, why have you had me kidnapped?” Qiao Xin asked, voicing the question that had been burning in her mind.
The man slumped into a sofa, looking her up and down. “How about this, beauty? Come with me. I’ll make sure you’re living the high life, eating good food and drinking fine wine. No need to exhaust yourself running around out there anymore.”
Qiao Xin gave him a sharp, disgusted look. Not wanting to waste another word on an idiot, she turned her head away.
He seemed annoyed. He stood up and strode over to her, reaching out to force her face toward his. Qiao Xin exploded into action. She unleashed the pepper spray and jammed the taser, set to maximum power, right into his stomach. The double-strike was instantaneous; the man couldn’t even manage a scream before he collapsed, convulsing and foaming at the mouth until he passed out.
I didn’t overdo it and kill him, did I? she wondered. She cautiously reached out to check his nose—he was still breathing. Good. She wanted to avoid prison at all costs.
She dashed to the window and peered out. It was nearly dark, and the surroundings were pitch black. They were clearly in the countryside; the building looked like an old factory.
Returning to the room, she moved the safe into her space and stepped inside, but no matter how she tried, it wouldn’t open without the code. She’d have to deal with it later.
She exited the space and eased the door open. The hallway was silent. In the dim light, she confirmed it was indeed an old, abandoned factory. Seeing no one, she crept out of the room, her footsteps feather-light as she descended to the first floor.
The ground floor was massive, filled with a row of makeshift barracks along the wall. Qiao Xin moved with agonizing care, terrified of making even the slightest sound.
Only one room near the entrance was lit; the rest were pitch black. She pressed her body against the wall outside the lit room and listened to two men talking inside.
“You know, the boss has good taste. Just looking at that woman’s figure is a thrill. Tsk tsk, if the boss gets bored of her and lets us have a turn, I’ll be smiling in my dreams.”
The other laughed. “You’re just dreaming. When has a woman the boss has played with ever walked out alive? Even if they did survive, they wouldn’t last long. You know the boss’s methods.”
The first man seemed to pause. “The boss has been in there for a while now. How come we haven’t heard a peep? Should we go check?”
“Yeah, it is quiet. Come on, let’s go take a look.”
The sound of chairs scraping against the floor followed, along with messy, heavy footsteps.
Qiao Xin’s heart hammered against her ribs. She tightened her grip on the taser, checking the power setting one last time. As the first man opened the door, she slammed the taser into him. He hit the ground convulsing. His accomplice saw her and tried to shout, but he didn’t even get a word out before the taser hit him, sending him crashing down in a fit of electrical spasms.
Qiao Xin let out a long, shaky breath, her hands and legs trembling violently. Her eyes wandered into the room.
It was a surveillance station. The equipment was archaic, connected to a liquid crystal display. Several of the feeds were blacked out. She felt a shiver of relief—the men had been too busy boasting to watch the monitors. If they had been paying attention, they would have seen her descend from the second floor; one of the active cameras was aimed directly at the second-floor stairwell.