The Complete Guide to the Use and Care of a Personal a.s.sistant
Translator: Jury
Editor: NomNom
First Published on Chaleuria
Chapter One Hundred and Eight
Ling Miao resembled a drowning man. He couldn"t cry out for help and his body was suspended in the water, quietly sinking.
To Ling Miao"s knowledge, most kidnappers wouldn"t let their victims see their face. If someone familiar to the victim was committing the crime, they wouldn"t let the victim know who they were, either.
"Why did Tang Xuan let me know it was him who kidnapped me?" Ling Miao"s heart skipped a beat. "Unless he"s preparing to… me…" Thinking of the worst-case outcome, Ling Miao"s hair all stood on end. He swallowed down the word "kill."
Tang Xuan couldn"t see the look in Ling Miao"s eyes, and in the dark room he couldn"t see Ling Miao"s expression either, but he was very happy. Tang Xuan patted Ling Miao"s face and said in disgust, "Ling Miao, aren"t you and Su Yuyang in love? If you die, do you think Su Yuyang will follow you, or will he find someone new?"
He"s really going to kill me? Fear shot through Ling Miao from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, almost splitting his body apart. Ling Miao twisted his body to show his resistance. Tang Xuan laughed coldly and placed his hand on Ling Miao"s waist, slowly caressing.
Tang Xuan"s actions agitated Ling Miao. After a period of shuddering, Ling Miao didn"t dare move any more. Tang Xuan looked at Ling Miao, who had calmed down, with satisfaction, and laughed, "Ah, no wonder you can"t say anything. I forgot to take out the gag."
As Tang Xuan spoke, Ling Miao felt a pair of hands raising his head. Several seconds later, the thing in Ling Miao"s mouth fell out.
"Despicable!" Ling Miao spat. "Tang Xuan, you"re really f.u.c.king despicable. If I get out of here alive, I"ll cut you into a thousand pieces! I…"
Suddenly, cold metal pressed against Ling Miao"s face, scaring him so much he shuddered. He flinched and said, "I… I…"
"You, what you?" Tang Xuan patted Ling Miao"s face with the knife. "Don"t you know angering your kidnapper is a very dangerous move? If I"m angry, and I… to you…" Tang Xuan didn"t say what he was going to do to Ling Miao, but his actions indicated his intentions.
The back of the knife slid down Ling Miao"s face and cut gently at Ling Miao"s neck. Ling Miao"s whole body shuddered and his limbs stiffened. "Tang… Tang Xuan, it"s against the law to murder. You…"
"Ling Miao, you really are naive!" Tang Xuan"s mockery cut off Ling Miao"s words. "Kidnapping isn"t against the law now? Kidnapping is also a capital crime, so if I kill you, I"ll even stand to gain. I"ll die either way." As Tang Xuan finished, he became vicious. He caught hold of Ling Miao"s neck, as if he would end Ling Miao"s life like this.
"Tang Xuan…" Ling Miao spat out the words with difficulty, but before he finished, the gag was shoved into his mouth again.
f.u.c.k, f.u.c.k, f.u.c.k! Ling Miao internally cursed up a storm. If this thing is stuck in my mouth the whole time, my mouth will become stiff! f.u.c.king Tang Xuan! I don"t believe that I can"t get out of here before you kill me! f.u.c.ker, I don"t know what"s happened to Su Yuyang.
Thinking that Su Yuyang must be beside himself with worry, Ling Miao actually began laughing.
Su Yuyang currently resembled a headless fly. He paced back and forth in W&S so much Feng Ji got dizzy looking at him. No one dared come into the shop, so Feng Ji closed the shop door and let Su Yuyang pace as much as he wanted.
An Yan was somewhat puzzled by Feng Ji"s instructions. Feng Ji pointed at Su Yuyang who was currently rus.h.i.+ng about like a spinning top and said, "Big Boss has just lost his wife."
"What?"
"Don"t worry about this. If there"s time, I"ll explain everything to you, but right now go close up shop. There aren"t any customers, anyway.
An Yan was still confused. But since the boss had decided, who was he, a worker, to quibble?
Feng Ji glanced at An Yan"s back, his gaze sweeping over An Yan"s broad shoulders, narrow waist, upturned b.u.t.tocks, and long legs. He fell into a daze: Ah, he has an body. I want to hug him.
"You"re drooling." A cold clear voice came from one side, the chill making Feng Ji s.h.i.+ver. Feng Ji turned to look at the man radiating the chill. He made a show of wiping his mouth and said, "Where do you think Ling Miao would go?"
"If I knew where he was, would I be wasting time here?" Su Yuyang snapped.
Ling Miao had been missing for almost a day.
Yesterday, after Su Yuyang had ended the call with Ling Miao, he had waited at home for Ling Miao. But a couple of hours had pa.s.sed and Ling Miao still hadn"t come back. He called Ling Miao again, but the phone was turned off.
Su Yuyang didn"t know what had happened to Ling Miao, so he called all their mutual friends. But Yan Li and Ji Linxi were in Beijing, so only Feng Ji fit the bill. When he called Feng Ji, Feng Ji said he hadn"t seen Ling Miao.
Now Su Yuyang was anxious. He couldn"t sit or stand still, so he went to Feng Ji"s to try to find calm.
"You also know that you"re wasting your time here?" Feng Ji laughed. "You"ve been here for almost an hour. That time might have been better spent at the police."
"The police?" Su Yuyang slapped his head. "f.u.c.k, why didn"t I think of calling the police."
As Su Yuyang finished he walked towards the door.
Su Yuyang was in a hurry and wasn"t looking where he was going, so he collided with An Yan who was walking in his direction.
"Ow—" Su Yuyang"s stomach had knocked into something hard. He rubbed at the sore place and said in pain, "An Yan, what are you holding?"
"Something fell from the sky and landed in front of me…"
"Are you hurt anywhere?" Hearing An Yan"s words, Feng Ji instantly ran up to him and checked him over from head to toe.
"No… nothing." An Yan shyly avoided Feng Ji"s gaze. He pa.s.sed the box to Feng Ji and asked curiously, "The words "Su Yuyang" are written on the box. Is there someone called Su Yuyang here?"
"Su Yuyang?" Su Yuyang grabbed the box and looked. Indeed, his name was written on it.
The box was tightly secured with rubber bands. Feng Ji got a pair of scissors, which Su Yuyang used to open the box.
Inside the box lay a cellphone, a pair of shoes, and a photograph.
Su Yuyang was very familiar with all three things in the box: Ling Miao"s phone, Ling Miao"s shoes, a photo of Ling Miao…
Ling Miao in the photo looked like a corpse.
Su Yuyang"s lips trembled and every muscle in his face twitched. With trembling hands he picked up the photo of Ling Miao, confused gaze on Feng Ji. He asked, "Is this Ling Miao?"
Feng Ji nodded.
"Then is he…" Dead?
Su Yuyang hadn"t the courage to ask.
Feng Ji seemed to know what Su Yuyang was thinking. His hand came down on Su Yuyang"s head and he shouted, "You really want Ling Miao to die so much?"
Su Yuyang was in no mood to joke with Feng Ji. He clutched the photo of Ling Miao and walked unsteadily in the direction of the door. Suddenly, Feng Ji called him. "Su Yuyang, wait!"
Su Yuyang turned around blankly. Feng Ji picked up the box and showed the bottom to Su Yuyang. There was a big character on the bottom: "Xuan."
Xuan. The "Xuan" in "Tang Xuan."