After the True Heiress Travels Back
Chapter 241 Temporary Alliance

Chapter 241: Chapter 241 Temporary Alliance

Cheng Lingdang and her mother held their breath together, waiting for him to reveal the name of the person behind the scenes.

The man wasn’t foolish, and of course, he wouldn’t reveal his employer’s name.

He simply said, "If you must blame someone, it’s only because you’ve obstructed someone with intent, the rest... I’m afraid I can’t disclose!"

"My daughter isn’t someone driven by self-interest; how could she possibly have blocked anyone’s path? This... could this be a misunderstanding?"

"Misunderstanding?" The man sneered, "If it were a misunderstanding, would I still be standing here?"

Upon hearing this, any last shred of hope in Cheng Lingdang’s mother’s heart vanished.

She claimed she was pregnant, but it was just a ruse she was playing with Cheng Lingdang.

They were trying to buy time, waiting for someone to come to their rescue.

As for who the real mastermind was, it actually didn’t matter at all.

Or rather...

Cheng Lingdang had a definite suspect in mind.

That person was none other than Shi Yiqing!

If she had done anything to block someone’s way, going over it again and again, it could only be the matter of Shi Yiqing becoming an apprentice.

Shi Yiqing wanted to apprentice simply for the legacy in Mrs. Xiao’s hands.

And the connections of Xiao Cenyang, who after all... was a famous teacher with many students.

Once she had those two things in her grasp, whether her character would lead to burning bridges, it was truly hard to say.

However, Cheng Lingdang was almost certain there was an eighty percent chance that she would.

Therefore, no matter what, she could not give in.

This way, the conflict between her and Cheng Lingdang had become utterly irreconcilable.

Of course, Cheng Lingdang wasn’t someone who just took hits without fighting back.

Since Shi Yiqing had gone this far, she surely couldn’t remain indifferent.

If she allowed the other party to scheme against her and she got out of this situation, she would make sure Shi Yiqing also experienced what it was like to have one’s life hanging by a thread.

...

While Cheng Lingdang was resolutely dealing with the man, her phone call with Shi Yaoguang had never been disconnected.

Shi Yaoguang was constantly aware of the noises coming from the phone. Suddenly, her hand gripping the steering wheel tightened.

In a rush, she said to Cheng Lingdang, "Lingdang, bend down!"

Cheng Lingdang, hearing the voice, instinctively did as told.

As she bent down, a bullet shot past where she had been standing.

If Cheng Lingdang hadn’t bent over, that bullet would have hit her right in the chest.

Cheng Lingdang, seeing the bullet pierce the ground, felt a surge of fear.

So close!

She had nearly been hit!

She didn’t even dare to look back now, afraid to see what was behind her.

Through the earpiece, Shi Yaoguang’s voice came, "I’ll be there in three minutes, stay safe."

"Okay," Cheng Lingdang responded softly, not daring to say much else.

The man standing opposite of her was also stunned.

A subordinate looked at the leader, trembling, "Boss, boss? Wasn’t it just about kidnapping a person? Why... why have real guns gotten involved? If the aim had been off, wouldn’t we..."

As he spoke, he looked around fearfully.

The lead man was stunned himself.

What exactly was going on?

He had just accepted a job to kidnap someone, that was all.

Despite his previous hostile talk, it was all to scare people.

Their actual day job was to collect protection money as street thugs.

A group of thugs, what can you expect from their ability to kill and plunder?

At most they deceive people, scrape by just enough to keep warm and fed.

He had never actually considered real bullets and guns.

This unexpected gunshot really nearly scared someone to death.

"Do you know that committing violence in public is illegal?"

Cheng Lingdang eyed the man with his knees buckling in fear.

The man felt bitter inside, and he just blurted it out.

"I...I really don’t know what’s going on here."

Cheng Lingdang frowned, "Who sent you to block my path, what exactly else have you prepared?"

"I, I really don’t know anything!" the man said with a guilty conscience, "I only took some money... The person who hired me just told me to scare you, I really don’t know anything else."

"You know nothing, and yet you dared to take this job?"

"I...I...I didn’t know, alright! If I had known it was this dangerous, I wouldn’t have taken this job."

The man wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, asking Cheng Lingdang what to do next out of reflex: "What do we do now that it’s come to this?"

Cheng Lingdang herself was stumped, "What do you mean, ’what to do’? Big brother, just a reminder, you’re the kidnapper, and I’m the hostage; we’re not on the same side."

"What’s the use of saying that now?" the man said anxiously, "I was deceived too, the person who hired me never mentioned that this job was so dangerous..."

Having said that, his face looked as terrible as terrible could be: "I was duped as well, damn it, once I’m safe, I’m going to make them pay."

He could become the leader among the thugs precisely because he was smart.

Thus, he quickly grasped the crux of the problem.

He and his brothers took the money and came to ambush someone, likely just a diversion.

The person who really wanted to deal with Cheng Lingdang had other, hidden means at their disposal.

Generally speaking, someone pushed forward like him was just cannon fodder.

The man didn’t want to die.

He especially didn’t want to drag his brothers down with him.

So, the best course of action right now was to form an alliance with Cheng Lingdang.

Cheng Lingdang, watching his changing expressions, had come to the same conclusion.

Since the man had not reached an agreement with those behind the scenes, this was a good opportunity for her to protect herself.

With this in mind, she accepted the man’s proposal.

"We can cooperate temporarily."

"Good," the man said, then asked, "What should we do next?"

The voice of Shi Yaoguang came into Cheng Lingdang’s earpiece, "There are foreign forces lurking near Gull Street, the people behind this are likely trying to make it look like terrorists are out to get you, find a way to avoid the crowd."

Cheng Lingdang relayed the message to the man directly.

Upon hearing this, the man’s face was a mix of conflict.

Seeing this, Cheng Lingdang quickly asked, "What’s the matter?"

"Behind Gull Street, there’s a concealed secret passage, if someone really is after your life, it’s likely..."

Before the man could finish, the sound of gunfire erupted.

Cheng Lingdang pulled him away swiftly, barely missing the bullet by a hair’s breadth.

They looked toward where the bullet had come from, but could only catch a fleeting glimpse of a shadow.

"This is..."

"A sniper."

"How the hell do we dodge this?" the man said in irritation, scratching his head, "We can’t go toward the crowded area ahead, and behind that is the secret passage, but entering the passage would be delivering ourselves to the slaughter, damn it, had I known this job was so dangerous, I wouldn’t have touched it with a ten-foot pole."

Cheng Lingdang couldn’t help but make a sarcastic comment, "If you really cared about your own safety, you shouldn’t have taken this kind of job, it’s not unusual to be capsized in a sewer."

The man snorted, "I make my living this way, what else am I supposed to do? It was just bad luck today, running into you and your unlucky mother and daughter, causing us as well—"