The news of the Ruan family’s disappearance quickly spread from Country M to the entire world, causing quite a stir.
After all, this was a once-top club that nearly dominated the entire world.
Netizens couldn’t resist discussing the event, with countless speculations, some of which were utterly outrageous.
“Why would the Ruan family flee? Even if the Ruan Manor is sealed and auctioned, they don’t have to go to jail. Ruan Yanshun, the one needing jail time, is already there.”
“Could they have been kidnapped? It’s such a large, empty manor. They could barely afford to keep servants, meaning no one was guarding it. It’s so big and gloomy, like a castle. You could hardly spot a group of thieves entering!”
“Could it be that Marceau’s mother sent someone to do this?! Based on social media and interviews, she’s unhappy with Ruan Jiaojiao as her daughter-in-law. Could she have gone so far as to threaten Ruan Jiaojiao to leave her son by killing her in-laws?”
“Haha……”
“Am I the only one who feels a little sad? I saw them rise and now fall. Why does society kick people when they’re down? The Ruan family’s situation is so miserable.”
“Enough with this sympathetic nonsense! The Ruan family, who exploited others for status, were hypocritical, corrupt, and even murderous. They’re facing the law because heaven has eyes! Call it what it is: justice!”
“Bravo to the internet voice above—finally, someone who speaks sense!”
“+10086!”
“And the person sympathizing with the Ruan family is from a particular province in China. Realistically, please don’t use Professor Lin Zhiyu’s life-saving research or treatments in the future!”
“Are we supposed to pity the Ruan family, who tried to ruin Professor Lin Zhiyu’s career and life countless times? They’ve been punished accordingly, and those who sympathize should avoid any benefits from Professor Lin Zhiyu’s work!”
“Haha, so well put!”
“In any case, all I can say is I’m happy to see karma playing out. Running away will only bring worse consequences.”
“Ahem, am I the only one who noticed something? In the video of Ruan Jiaojiao fainting, I zoomed in, and her fingers were moving. Really!!!”
…
People around the world began to watch the developments with curiosity, and even some of Lin Zhiyu’s students couldn’t resist discussing it quietly.
Lin Zhiyu also saw the news quickly and immediately frowned.
This event had no precedent in the original story. Was the Ruan family attempting an escape, or was there a hidden reason?
His face darkened as he quickly typed a message to Xie Youzhou. But just as he was about to send it, a new message from Xie Youzhou popped up in the chat.
“Gege, I checked all the surveillance cameras in the Ruan Manor. Due to a large-scale power outage, I haven’t found any clues yet. I’ll send an update as soon as I find anything.”
…
Xie Youzhou scoured the Ruan Manor’s surveillance system but found no useful information. He began tracing nearby surveillance lines around the Ruan Manor.
However, given the manor’s remote and sparsely populated location, even Xie Youzhou faced difficulties finding results quickly.
Meanwhile, Hortez had already entered H University in disguise.
Ruan Jiaojiao had classes that afternoon.
Usually, she would be picked up when leaving campus, so Hortez could only find an opportunity to meet her during class.
Just before Ruan Jiaojiao’s first class ended, someone knocked on the classroom door, and a girl peeked inside.
“Excuse me, is Ruan Jiaojiao here? The dean urgently needs to see you in his office.”
As a campus celebrity, all eyes turned to Ruan Jiaojiao instantly.
Even the professor at the front said, “Go ahead, and let your classmates fill you in on the rest.”
“Thank you, Professor Ryan.”
Confused but somewhat pleased with the attention, Ruan Jiaojiao felt this was how it should be: always the center of attention.
She left the classroom and headed to the office building, where the department head’s office was at the end of the top floor.
Intending to take the elevator, she found it under maintenance, so she begrudgingly took the stairs.
Unaccustomed to exercise, she felt exhausted by the sixth floor, and by the eighth, she could hardly move forward. But just as she stopped to rest, footsteps approached from above.
Before she could react, the footsteps stopped beside her, and she heard a familiar voice.
“Jiaojiao!”
Stunned, Ruan Jiaojiao froze, unwilling to look up.
Suddenly, her shoulders were gripped, and as she was about to scream, a hushed, shaky voice reached her ear.
“Jiaojiao, it’s me… I’m back.”
An overwhelming mix of fear, disgust, and frustration filled her, almost pushing her to scream. She wanted to shake off Hortez’s hands and run away.
Why had he come back? What did he want?
Her mind reeled, but when she finally looked up, her eyes were red, and filled with tears, and she looked vulnerable.
“Brother Hortez, is it really… you? You’re back?!” she exclaimed.
A flicker of red appeared in Hortez’s dark eyes. He immediately pulled her into a tight embrace.
“Yes, I’m back, Jiaojiao. I’m back! Come with me. No one can force you to marry someone you don’t love!”
Holding her close, his arms shook with excitement, barely containing his emotions.
But Ruan Jiaojiao’s expression changed.
Did he want to take her away? What was he thinking?
Sensing her hesitation, Hortez added, “Jiaojiao, don’t worry. I will rebuild everything. I’ll make sure you never suffer again. Didn’t you say they harassed you after I left? I will make each one of them pay, especially Marceau!”
Mentioning Marceau, Hortez’s eyes flashed with rage, his words chilling Ruan Jiaojiao.
A voice in her head screamed that this was going very wrong. She needed to get away, but she didn’t dare let her feelings show.
Feigning tears, she sobbed, “But my grandfather and family are missing. Marceau is helping me search. I can’t leave now.”
She cried softly, hiding her true emotions. She didn’t notice Hortez’s smile.
He hugged her closer and whispered, “Your grandfather and family… I know where they are.”
“What?! Really?” she exclaimed, her eyes wide.
“Yes, I met with them last night and discussed my plan for a comeback. They were all supportive and wanted to cooperate with me. Jiaojiao… soon, the Hortez Group and the Ruan Group will rise again!”
Hortez looked at her with obsessive love in his eyes.
“Come with me, Jiaojiao. I’ll give you everything, and we’ll be a family.”
Ruan Jiaojiao’s heart raced with panic and disgust.
Inwardly, she regretted the sweet promises she had made during his initial escape when she could still communicate with him. She now wished she had severed ties.
But now, she had no choice but to play along. Pretending to be overcome with emotion, she whispered, “I missed you so much, Brother Hortez.”
Suddenly, she winced, clutching her stomach.
“Jiaojiao, what’s wrong?”
“Just a sudden pain… maybe my period. Could you get me some pads from the vending machine downstairs?”
“Of course, Jiaojiao, I’ll get them right away.”
Once he left, she hurried to the restroom, quickly sending an urgent message to Marceau, Wright, and others.
“Help! Hortez is here on the eighth floor of Building C at H University. He wants to take me away and has kidnapped my family. Please, come quickly!”
Although she didn’t know for sure that he had kidnapped her family, she included it for added urgency.
Within moments, responses flooded her phone. She took a shaky breath of relief.
Meanwhile, just as Hortez was about to send one of his men to the vending machine, a long message popped up on his phone.
It was from one of his new hires, a hacker known as LHK.
Thanks to LHK, he had returned to the country undetected and easily tracked Jiaojiao’s movements, even hacking her phone.
Hortez clicked on the message, assuming it was an update.
When he saw what it contained, his expression changed.
The screenshot was of Ruan Jiaojiao’s social chat, showing her message calling for help.
Hortez’s eyes darkened, his face a mask of fury.
