Chapter 22

Chapter 22

"System, monitor the Favorability System in real-time. Notify me immediately of any abnormal fluctuations, especially concerning Lu Huainan and Shen Liuyun. Also..."

Shen Muyun looked at the system with interest, tweaking its tiny wings and smiling faintly. "Do you have an automatic monitoring function, like a bug that can spy on others' actions?"

The system gently shook its little wings, its screen flashing red in displeasure.

"Respected Host Master, it shows here that Shen Liuyun's favorability has increased a tiny bit, hmm, for unknown reasons... As for the monitoring function you mentioned, as a legitimate system, I do not possess such strange features. That kind of behavior is considered snooping, and snooping is not a good habit. Even as a system, I do not support it."

His phone buzzed abruptly. Shen Muyun glanced at it—it was a message from Shen Liuyun. He tidied the documents on the desk, casually grabbed his car keys, closed the doors and windows, and hurriedly left the office, heading to the underground garage. Along the way, he checked the messages on his phone and noted the time. The evening rush was over; normally, the roads wouldn’t be too crowded, so if he drove a little faster, he could probably make it.

"Alright, System, I got it. Remember what I said. You can clock out early today. I have to go now. By the way, are you available whenever I call?"

"Respected Host Master, as your system, I am, of course, at your service anytime, even after work hours. Just call my name directly whenever you need me. Wishing you a wonderful evening. Well, for now, see you tomorrow. May you be happy every day." The system vanished in a blink—off the clock.

The weather had been gloomy all day, with continuous autumn rain. The underground garage felt particularly damp and stifling, uncomfortable. Shen Muyun had felt like someone was following him since earlier but didn’t pay it much mind, assuming it was just a colleague also heading home after work.

But once inside the garage, it was eerily quiet. That sense of unease crept back into his nerves. The footsteps behind him, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, matching his stride. He really was being followed. Shen Muyun quickened his steps, trying to shake them off.

Where had he parked? Shen Muyun tried to recall the scene from when he arrived at the company that morning.

After walking a few steps forward—B23—that’s the one. Just as his fingertips touched the car door, he felt a jolt of numbness in his lower back. Something was wrong—it was a stun gun. In an instant, everything went black—a blindfold. But his consciousness lingered, hazy.

"Boss, this is the second Shen son? Better not get it wrong."

"No mistake, it’s him."

The leader held a knife, tapping the back of it against Shen Muyun’s face a few times. "Score. Let’s move, we still need to check in."

Shen Muyun’s strength had been mostly drained by the earlier stun gun shock. He wanted to struggle, but a sharp pain shot through his neck—tranquilizer. His body completely went limp. Then came the sound of a car engine. Who? Who wanted to harm him? He really couldn’t figure it out—after all, he’d offended plenty of people. His consciousness gradually faded until it completely disappeared.

On the other side, the victory banquet was proceeding on schedule. More than a banquet, it was more like a gathering among friends. Shen Liuyun arrived first at Lu Huainan’s estate, where he saw Lu Huainan happily trimming rose bushes at the entrance.

"Huainan, these roses are your pride and joy."

Hearing the voice behind him, Lu Huainan laid the scissors down on a nearby round table. "Ah, you’re here. Where’s Shen Muyun? Didn’t he come with you?"

Lu Huainan glanced outside the estate—indeed, no sign of Shen Muyun. An inexplicable anxiety stirred within him.

"Yeah, I reminded him earlier to come here. Maybe he’s running late wrapping up the meeting room and related documents. Why? Why so worried about him? It couldn’t be..."

Lu Huainan smiled, carefully placing the trimmed rose stems one by one into vases before him, sorting them by color into different vases. Glittering raindrops on the petals fell onto the table.

"Nothing, just asking. Since you’re here, let’s head inside. The weather hasn’t been great these days—standing around chatting here might lead to a chill. The new chef prepared a few new dishes, all rose-themed. Perfect for tasting. I remember both you and Shen Muyun have a sweet tooth."

Shen Liuyun gently rubbed the dew-kissed rose petals, thoughtful. "Hmm, let’s go ahead. Shen Muyun should be here soon."

Shen Liuyun followed Lu Huainan into the banquet hall. The previous decorations were completely gone, replaced by rose-themed paintings, nearly all by famous artists.

"Huainan, do you really like roses this much?"

Lu Huainan instructed the nearby butler to begin serving the dishes, then turned to look at Shen Liuyun, who was admiring the paintings. "Hmm? It’s alright. Recently, the company’s R&D department has been developing a rose-scented perfume, so I’ve been looking into it. Don’t you like roses?"

"It’s not that I dislike them. Flowers are nice, but they wither too easily. I’d rather appreciate something more lasting. Where is this Shen Muyun? Still not here."

Shen Liuyun checked the clock in the center of the banquet hall—it was already half an hour past the scheduled time.

"It’s fine, give him a call. Shen Liuyun, keep calm. After all, the contract was signed today, and he’s your assistant. He might be working overtime to finish up before coming."

"Sorry! The number you are calling is unavailable for the moment. Please try again later. Sorry! The subscriber you dialed cannot..."

A mechanical female voice came from the phone. Shen Liuyun’s face fell slightly. "Still not answering. I told him to hurry earlier, and now he’s vanished. Just goes to show he’s flaky."

Lu Huainan chuckled. "Maybe he’s afraid of my sister? Earlier, I said family members could come. Maybe he overthought it and assumed my sister would be here too. Awkward, not wanting to run into her."

"No, that’s not it. You haven’t interacted much with Shen Muyun, but he fears nothing. Besides, the marriage arrangement between the Lu and Shen families was just a childhood joke—it doesn’t count. I’ve talked to him about it before, and he agreed. You know he apologized for provoking your sister before. I think Miss Lu, being a well-bred lady, wouldn’t dwell on such trivial matters."

Lu Huainan nodded. "Yeah, my sister has moved on. Anyway, it’s just the three of us here today—catching up and enjoying ourselves. It’s raining outside now, so maybe he’s stuck in traffic. Let’s wait a bit longer."

The car rattled along. Shen Muyun didn’t know how long he’d been asleep, but he finally came to. He shifted slightly—his head pounded. Why hadn’t the car stopped yet? Shen Muyun struggled fiercely, but his hands were tightly bound with coarse rope. The anesthetic hadn’t fully worn off; he still felt weak.

The man in the passenger seat inexplicably glanced back and noticed Shen Muyun’s movements. "Boss, this kid seems to be awake."

The man in the driver’s seat looked back. "Tsk, must’ve given too little anesthetic. Doesn’t matter, we’re almost there."

Shen Muyun’s head felt heavy and dull, extremely uncomfortable.

"Who are you people? Why are you kidnapping me?"

The driver laughed. "No info on the employer—that’s the rule in our line of work. Kid, blame yourself. Did you offend someone you shouldn’t have? Think about it."

Shen Muyun took a deep breath and continued, "Offend someone? Didn’t your employer tell you who I am? The people I’ve offended might outnumber the grains of rice you’ve eaten. Should I go through them one by one? That’d be pointless."

"We’re just hired to solve problems—we don’t care about the rest. If you’ve offended many, then it’s troublesome. Maybe when you get down there, discuss it with the King of Hell. See which one it is—might even bring the person who framed you down sooner."

Hearing this, Shen Muyun felt unsettled. No way, what nonsense is this? Could it be the system increasing the difficulty? But that doesn’t make sense—the system just went to sleep. What does this mean? If it were a system task, it would’ve mentioned it earlier.

"Oh? If you kill me, there doesn’t seem to be much benefit. There must be something you want—money or favors. Or maybe you have some demand? You should say what it is so we can meet it."

"You’re quite clever, kid. We really don’t know who the employer is. He said you’re just a hundred-something pounds of flesh. Once we get the money, whether you live or die is up to us. Kid, if you behave, maybe we’ll let you go. If not..."

"Beep beep beep..."

Shen Muyun’s phone rang again. This time, the kidnappers didn’t want to miss it.

"Get his phone. Let me see who’s so lovesick—they’ve called several times already."

The person in the passenger seat leaned over, deftly retrieved the phone from Shen Muyun’s pocket, and glanced at the name. "Boss, it’s Shen Liuyun—isn’t that Young Master Shen?"

"Well, isn’t this convenient? Answer it."

Shen Liuyun impatiently dialed the number again, trying not to lose his temper in front of Lu Huainan. "Huainan, if it comes to it, let’s just have dinner ourselves. Shen Muyun—who knows what he’s doing? I’ll have a serious talk with him when I get home."

The phone rang for a while before it was abruptly answered.

Shen Liuyun couldn’t suppress his anger. "Shen Muyun, where are you? I told you earlier the celebration banquet is about to start. Do you have any sense of time? It’s almost nine now. Where are you? Lacking time awareness—is that how a businessman should behave?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end. "Young Master Shen, hello."

Shen Liuyun paused slightly. "Who are you? Why do you have Shen Muyun’s phone? Where is he? Put him on!"

"Don’t rush, Young Master Shen. We’re just here to have a nice chat. We’ve invited Second Young Master Shen to be our guest—showing him hospitality."

Shen Liuyun immediately understood the situation. Clutching the phone tightly, he gritted his teeth. "Who are you people? Where is Shen Muyun right now? What are your demands?"

Lu Huainan, noticing Shen Liuyun’s changed expression, gestured to put it on speakerphone.

Shen Liuyun understood and placed the phone on the table.

"Who we are doesn't matter. We're just inviting Second Young Master Shen to have some tea with us. If you don't believe it, you can let Second Young Master Shen speak to you."

The abductor in the passenger seat leaned over and held the phone in front of Shen Muyun.

"Brother, don't listen to them. They kidnapped me," he protested. "Brother..."

"Enough. If you don't know how to talk, then don't say anything."

The captor in the driver's seat grabbed the phone. "Hear that, Eldest Young Master Shen?"

"Tell me your demands. As long as you guarantee my brother's safety, any condition is acceptable."

The abductor clapped softly. "How touching, your brotherly bond. Should we have a drink together to celebrate such a strong family relationship? But now is not the time for that. Shen Liuyun, the longer you delay, the greater the risk to Shen Muyun becomes with every second. Think about it."

Shen Muyun, unable to move in the back seat, murmured to the system. A sensation like an electric current passed through his body, tingling and numb, but the system gave no response. Where had it gone at such a critical moment?

The abductor yanked Shen Muyun by the hair. "Tsk..."

"Eldest Young Master Shen, his life is in your hands. If you don't hurry up, I'm afraid..."

Only static came from the phone, then silence—deep and unnerving.