The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 766 - 765: Rescued

Chapter 766: Chapter 765: Rescued

Ou Liya’s malice was so great that even the three kidnappers behind her shuddered, let alone Pei Tang, a seven-year-old child.

Big, glistening tears rolled down from her eyes.

Mom, brother, when will you finally come to save me, woo woo woo.

The girl was exquisitely beautiful, with long curling eyelashes and bright almond eyes that, brimming with tears, were indescribably pitiful to look upon.

The three kidnappers stood still for a moment.

Though they were cruel and brutal, they found it difficult to employ torture on such a young girl.

"What are you waiting for, get moving!"

Frustrated by her subordinates’ hesitation, Ou Liya loudly reprimanded them in English.

One of them responded in English, "We were only paid to kidnap her for you, you didn’t say anything about hurting her, that’s a different price."

Under the laws of Y Country, the crime of child torture was far more serious than kidnapping, and naturally, the price was different too.

Although Ou Liya was angry, she had no choice but to compromise, "Add three thousand for each person."

The three men exchanged glances.

"Make it five thousand each."

The previous speaker, who appeared to be the leader of the kidnappers, bargained with Ou Liya.

Ou Liya frowned in thought.

Five thousand each would total fifteen thousand, and this was in British Pounds.

This additional expense was a significant burden for her.

"I’ll add fifty thousand."

Pei Tang’s tearful voice hushed the basement.

"I’ll give each of you fifty thousand British Pounds!"

She said again.

Before the three kidnappers could react, Ou Liya stepped forward to teach Pei Tang a lesson,

but her raised hand was immediately seized by the leader of the kidnappers.

"Alright, five thousand each!"

Realizing the situation was turning against her, Ou Liya quickly agreed, just about to instruct them to start when she heard Pei Tang bid again, "I’ll give five hundred thousand!"

"Shut up!!"

Growing up with a cunning and highly intelligent brother like Ziheng, how could Pei Tang be ignorant?

This moment was a prime opportunity for her to save herself; keeping quiet would spell death!

"My mom, dad, and brother all run businesses, they have plenty of money, just don’t harm me, and I’ll ask my mom to give you five hundred thousand."

The eyes of the three kidnappers lit up.

Five hundred thousand British Pounds, each would get about one hundred sixty-six thousand six hundred, enough for them to live carefree for the rest of their lives.

It should be noted that many Londoners don’t even make five hundred pounds a month.

Greed moved hearts.

After quickly exchanging glances, two of the kidnappers went forward to untie Pei Tang, while the third negotiated with Ou Liya.

"Between thirty thousand and five hundred thousand, I believe you know what to choose."

Ou Liya clenched her teeth in hatred.

She blamed herself for underestimating the intelligence and eloquence of a seven-year-old and was even more aggrieved by choosing to work with strangers.

Her main base was in her home country, but she couldn’t wait for Shen Mingzhu to return next year.

She had already dealt with the Zhuang family and Wu Mei, leaving only Shen Mingzhu, who haunted her sleep like a fishbone in her throat.

Thus, she took a risk coming to London to hire a hitman to kidnap Pei Tang.

Seeing the situation unfavorable to her, Ou Liya wisely turned to leave but then heard Pei Tang shouting from behind, "Tie her up, and I’ll ask my mom to give an extra hundred thousand!"

Ou Liya stiffened, just as she attempted to flee, she was kicked down by the kidnapper leader.

"What are you doing? Have you gone mad?"

"Let me go!"

"I have money, I can give you money, just name your price!"

Ou Liya went from furious to pleading, but to no avail. She was quickly tied up tight, switching roles with Pei Tang, becoming a prisoner herself.

While the kidnappers were discussing having Pei Tang call home for ransom, there was a clang as several smoke grenades shaped like landmines were hurled into the basement.

Before the kidnappers could react, the basement was engulfed in thick smoke.

"Cough cough cough!"

"Bang bang!"

"Crackling!"

Three kidnappers were subdued in the blink of an eye, but the fight was far from over.

Members from three major mercenary organizations fiercely contested for the ownership of Pei Tang.

Continuing the struggle would only result in mutual harm, so they ceased and negotiated a truce, with each organization’s leader informing their "boss" that the target was safe.

Fortunately, the "bosses" were all generous. Upon hearing that Pei Tang was safe, they readily agreed to pay the remaining balance.

Everyone was overjoyed.

"Mommy! Mommy!"

Seeing her daughter being carried towards her by Ye Jianli, Shen Mingzhu ran forward with tears brimming in her eyes.

All her fears and anxieties dispersed the moment she embraced her daughter’s soft, warm body.

"Mommy, why did you take so long! That mean auntie was so bad, she wanted to chop off my legs and take my kidneys, wu wu wu..."

"Guoguo, it’s alright now, it’s all over."

Watching her daughter’s tear-streaked face, Shen Mingzhu felt heartbroken and guilty as she wiped her daughter’s tears.

Pei Tang, with her red nose and eyes, looked like a pitiful child, "Mommy, I won’t ever litter again!"

"Alright, mommy promises you, we will never litter again."

The terrifying experience left Shen Mingzhu with a mental scar about losing her daughter while throwing out the garbage.

"Mommy, I’ll take Guoguo to the ambulance for a checkup, you should really thank Uncle Ye."

Reminded by Pei Ziheng, Shen Mingzhu then noticed Ye Jianli standing to one side.

"Mr. Ye, thank you so much for saving my daughter, thank you."

Her repeated thanks made Ye Jianli somewhat embarrassed, "Actually, I wasn’t the only one who exerted effort, my cousin also helped a lot. Without him, I couldn’t have contacted MPRI."

Hearing this, Shen Mingzhu quickly asked, "May I know your cousin’s surname? If it’s convenient, I would like to personally visit and express my gratitude."

"His surname is Yan, and his name is Yan Yi. But there’s no need for thanks, he doesn’t mind it, haha."

Shen Mingzhu was slightly stunned.

It was Yan Yi.

He had saved her years ago, and now he had saved her daughter.

This debt of gratitude, she feared, could never be repaid in this lifetime.

But according to IZO, there were three organizations involved in rescuing her daughter.

One was IZO, which her son contacted, one was MPRI, which Yan Yi helped to contact, but who had hired Polar Fox?

After a thorough examination by the doctor, Pei Tang had only some bruises from being tied and slap marks on her face, and no other injuries.

This result undoubtedly provided much relief for both mother and son.

...

While Pei Tang’s successful rescue was certainly good news, the high-profile operation of over a hundred elite mercenaries digging through the slums caused quite a stir both domestically and internationally.

A civilian Chinese girl’s kidnapping had prompted action from four of the top ten global mercenary organizations.

Thus, various rumors about Pei Tang’s background also began to swirl wildly.

Some said Pei Tang was a lost princess from a royal family of some country, others hinted she might be the illegitimate daughter of some president, and so forth.

Upon completing her statement and returning to the villa, Pei Yang had just arrived.

Seeing his daughter rescued in one piece, his anxiety that had persisted throughout the ordeal finally settled.

From what Pei Yang shared, Shen Mingzhu finally learned who was behind hiring Polar Fox.