Chapter 84

Chapter 84

The news of Ye Mingzhao and Chu Hengyi meeting Mark Brown and nearly being poisoned quickly reached the ears of the other members of the Ye family.

Madam Ye was horrified, breaking out in a cold sweat: "Hua Rui, already a public enemy, still clings to her wicked schemes!"

As she spoke, she gratefully grabbed Ye Mingzhao's hand: "Fortunately, you were well-prepared, otherwise I wouldn't be able to see you now!"

Upon receiving Ye Mingzhao's police report, the officers immediately dispatched in two groups—one to the café to take statements, and the other to capture Hua Rui's henchmen who were waiting nearby, ready to secretly transfer Ye Mingzhao and Chu Hengyi to another location after Mark Brown contacted them.

The police also learned from these individuals that Hua Rui's purpose in kidnapping Chu Hengyi and Ye Mingzhao was to kill them. The reason for such a roundabout method to silence them, rather than having Mark Brown directly poison their drinks, was because the café where Ye Mingzhao and Mark Brown met was located in a bustling downtown area, right across from the Ye family business headquarters. Directly killing them here would cause too much of a scene.

Given Mark Brown's cunning and cowardice, he might follow Hua Rui's orders to drug Ye Mingzhao and Chu Hengyi, but he would never risk ruining his future and going to jail to help Hua Rui kill someone.

Thus, Hua Rui had to go along with the plan, having Mark Brown find a way to drug Ye Mingzhao and Chu Hengyi, and then she would find a way to take them away. Once in a secluded place, she would directly kill them and dispose of the bodies.

Hua Rui's plan was both meticulously crafted and ruthlessly executed, but she hadn't anticipated Ye Mingzhao's extreme caution and fear of death. Not only did he choose a meeting spot across from the Ye family business headquarters, but the café was also owned by Ye Mingzhao. The moment Mark Brown's accomplice poured the drug into the coffee, the café staff noticed. They then turned the tables, turning Hua Rui's own strategy against her, and captured all the assassins she had spent a fortune to bribe.

Even Mark Brown was caught up in it.

Of course, Hua Rui didn't regret losing Mark Brown, a two-faced traitor. She only cursed herself for being so foolish, falling into Ye Mingzhao's trap of playing the long game, not only exposing her location but also adding a charge of contract killing to her list of crimes.

Hua Rui wasn't afraid of this—after all, she already had enough charges against her, one more wouldn't matter. But this incident made Hua Rui realize that Ye Mingzhao was the biggest roadblock to her revenge.

If Ye Mingzhao didn't die, she would never be able to take revenge on the Ye family in this lifetime.

"We have no grudge between us, yet you insist on getting in my way..."

In a remote town in southwestern China, Hua Rui muttered to herself while watching the news on TV.

As the CEO of Paramount Pictures in Hollywood, Mark Brown had become involved in a poisoning case, with the victims being Ye Mingzhao and Chu Hengyi, two high-profile social figures.

As soon as the news broke, it sparked widespread debate among netizens. The real-time buzz on major social media platforms shot up like a rocket. Hua Rui's long-concealed name, along with her photo and past events, was repeatedly brought up and shared by the public.

Faced with such overwhelming exposure, Hua Rui first felt discomfort, followed by an indescribable irritability.

She grew even more fearful of going out, always worried that she would be recognized. She also feared that the Ye family's increasing bounty would tempt those around her to betray her—after all, even the once-loyal Mark Brown had turned against her.

*

While Hua Rui was consumed by paranoia, the Ye family also felt uneasy: "This gutter rat keeps coming after our family. We must find a way to catch her, or I won't be able to sleep peacefully at night."

That said, if they could really catch Hua Rui, they wouldn't have waited this long.

All they could do now was keep raising the bounty and wait for Hua Rui to be caught by "concerned citizens" and handed over to the police.

Fortunately, with the high bounty, the Ye family didn't have to wait long—

When the furious Chu Hengyi directly offered a $1 billion reward for Hua Rui, the news spread quickly, and the bodyguards who had been following Hua Rui could no longer sit still.

On a dark and windy night, they slipped into Hua Rui's room, where she had already foreseen her fate.

Not wanting to die at the hands of these traitors, Hua Rui could only watch as they tied her up and delivered her to the nearest police station.

"Have you thought about it? You also have criminal records. Even if you hand me over, do you really think you'll get the bounty? Aren't you afraid of having the money but not the life to spend it?"

The bodyguards who had fled with Hua Rui were naturally her most trusted confidants. Some had been with her for over twenty years, and even if they hadn't participated in Chu Hengyi's kidnapping, they were still aware of it. The others had also helped Hua Rui with dirty deeds.

Hua Rui didn't believe the Ye family would let these people go—even if the Ye family didn't care, Chinese law wouldn't let them off, nor would Interpol.

"You don't need to worry about that," one of the bodyguards said coldly. "As long as the Ye family pays, we can just serve a few years in prison."

This was the only option left.

The Ye family raised the bounty to one billion dollars, captivating the attention of people worldwide. If they didn’t take the opportunity to deliver Hua Rui to the police before others could react, they would end up being rounded up and taken to the police station together.

Since the outcome would be the same, they naturally wanted to secure the best possible outcome for themselves.

At least by turning themselves in voluntarily, they could still receive some money.

And this point, Hua Rui’s bodyguards had also secretly contacted the Ye family before taking action, receiving a definitive response.

*

The news of Hua Rui’s capture quickly reached the ears of the Ye family.

Chu Hengyi, true to his word, immediately transferred the money.

The mastermind behind his childhood abduction and eighteen years of abuse by his adoptive family was finally captured, leaving Chu Hengyi momentarily stunned.

"What are you thinking about?"

Ye Mingzhao walked to the edge of the pool, looking at Chu Hengyi, who floated in the water like a seal, with only his head above the surface. He smiled and sat down on a nearby lounge chair: "I noticed you didn’t eat much during dinner."

After a pause, Ye Mingzhao teased: "The enemy is caught, the danger is over. Shouldn’t such a joyous occasion call for an extra serving of rice to celebrate?"

The moonlight spilled onto the surface of the water, and the pool shimmered with a soft glow. The flickering light and shadows played across Ye Mingzhao’s face, making his handsome features appear even more striking and captivating under the moonlight.

"I don’t know," Chu Hengyi wiped his face, letting the cool water splash onto his skin before sliding down his face: "Maybe it’s because Hua Rui was caught too easily; it doesn’t feel real to me."

Ye Mingzhao chuckled: "What were you expecting? A bloody battle with Hua Rui’s bodyguards, with bullets flying everywhere, and after a fierce fight, justice finally triumphs over evil, and you personally capture Hua Rui?"

Ye Mingzhao’s sharp tongue, which had been absent for a while, made Chu Hengyi instinctively curl his lips into a smile.

Ye Mingzhao stretched out comfortably on the lounge chair: "In this world, problems that can be solved with money are the easiest. Both the problem itself and the way to solve it."

"We threw money at the problem, and all we had to do was wait for the result. And it had to be a perfect, hassle-free result. That’s what you get for your money."

When the Ye family’s bounty reached one hundred million dollars, it sent shockwaves around the world, but Hua Rui was still able to hide with her trusted aides, even setting traps for Ye Mingzhao and Chu Hengyi to fall into.

But when Chu Hengyi raised the bounty to one billion dollars, even Hua Rui’s most loyal followers turned against her.

"So you see, this solution is far from simple," Ye Mingzhao said with a smile: "Not everyone can come up with a billion dollars like you. Even if they could, they might not be willing to spend it."

Chu Hengyi quietly watched Ye Mingzhao under the moonlight.

After the sound of splashing water, Chu Hengyi leaned on the edge of the pool, looking up at Ye Mingzhao, who lounged leisurely on the chair: "And what about you?"

Ye Mingzhao raised an eyebrow: "What about me?"

"Would you be willing to spend a billion dollars," Chu Hengyi paused, then continued: "To put a bounty on someone who threatens your life and the lives of your family?"

Ye Mingzhao smiled candidly: "If I were willing, I wouldn’t have waited for you to take action."

"No," Chu Hengyi shook his head, logically analyzing: "You weren’t unwilling, you were waiting for me to act."

Ye Mingzhao didn’t speak, just quietly watched Chu Hengyi.

Chu Hengyi said solemnly: "You were gambling, betting on whether I would value money over life, betting whether I would spend that money for you, for the Ye family."

Ye Mingzhao lazily shifted to a more comfortable position: "Why would you think that?"

"From the moment you arranged to meet Mark Brown at the café, and he agreed to help Hua Rui poison us but failed, immediately confessing under your questioning, I felt something was amiss," Chu Hengyi pondered for a moment, perhaps organizing his thoughts: "Things unfolded too smoothly, as if it were a carefully laid trap, waiting for everyone to take the bait."

Ye Mingzhao smiled and asked, "What do you mean?"

Chu Hengyi replied, "First of all, given how careful you are, it's unlikely that you would hire a part-time employee with an unreliable background. Secondly, considering the salary of coffee shop employees, it's also unlikely that they would be bribed with a small sum to be convinced by Mark Brown to spike the coffee. As far as I know, Mark Brown spent 200,000 yuan to bribe that part-time employee. While that’s a lot of money, it's probably not enough to drive someone who isn’t exactly strapped for cash to risk their future and face jail time for poisoning."

"Unless this was all a trap from the start."

A calculated scheme to lure Hua Rui into a trap, making her be charged with hiring someone to poison, kidnap, and kill, while also provoking Chu Hengyi to raise the bounty.

"I guess you and Mark Brown must have planned this together. You leaked the news on purpose about your meeting with Mark Brown at the coffee shop, luring Hua Rui into contacting Mark Brown and convincing him to spike our drinks during the meeting. Then, you had the part-time employee who was supposed to do the poisoning intentionally slip up, leading to their discovery. Once the cops were called, Hua Rui could be framed, as the kidnapping case was past the statute of limitations, and a new charge was needed to pin her down..."

Finally, it was about exploiting people's fear for their safety to provoke Chu Hengyi—or perhaps to test him. To test if Chu Hengyi really cared about his life and his vendetta, and whether he cared about the safety of the Ye family.

Ye Mingzhao had figured everyone out completely, and the final outcome was Chu Hengyi, under the threat to his life, angrily putting up a billion-dollar bounty for Hua Rui. Hua Rui's right-hand person, tempted by the reward, turned on her and turned her straight over to the cops.

This also fits Ye Mingzhao's typical vengeful streak, his preference for reciprocal revenge, and his penchant for *killing two birds with one stone*.