Lv Shaojie. Male. Born in 1978, currently twenty-three years old. One of his hidden identities was... Li Qingshan’s son. Li Qingshan’s surname was Li, while the child’s mother’s surname was Yu. Li Qingshan had always hidden this child, so he hadn’t dared to let the child take his surname. Thus, Li and Yu... became Lv. He combined the sounds of their two surnames to form the child’s surname. Li Qingshan had told Chen Nuo that his son was a doctor. That wasn’t entirely true. Lv Shaojie could only be described as a prospective doctor. He was currently enrolled in a medical school, pursuing a combined master’s and doctoral degree. Barring any accidents, he would indeed become a doctor in the near future. Two weeks ago, Lv Shaojie had accompanied his mentor to Thailand in Southeast Asia to attend a small industry forum in the medical field. After the conference, his mentor returned to China first, giving the students a few days off. Lv Shaojie and several other classmates took the opportunity to stay in Thailand for a few days of sightseeing. Then, earlier today, Li Qingshan received news that Lv Shaojie had been missing in Thailand for two days. That very afternoon, after receiving the news, Li Qingshan received the mailed bullet casing pendant! The other party had timed it perfectly. At this moment, Chen Nuo was holding a photo provided by Li Qingshan. In the photo, Lv Shaojie had short hair and looked very spirited. He was a slim, tall young man with a very clean and refined aura. The photo was likely taken around his undergraduate graduation; Lv Shaojie, dressed in a graduation gown, was smiling brightly, his arm around a middle-aged woman, and was even making a V-sign at the camera. His features bore a resemblance to Li Qingshan, but he was much more handsome. The middle-aged woman beside him was attractive and was presumably the child’s mother. "I met his mother in the south back then," Li Qingshan rambled on beside him, trying to use his words to influence Chen Nuo and soften his attitude. "I was busy making money, and many of my dealings couldn’t see the light of day. When she gave birth to our son, I was still running my business in Myanmar and hadn’t married her. After that incident, I didn’t dare contact her and fled all the way back to Jinling. "Only after I had established myself in Jinling and got my business going did I secretly bring her to Shanghai City to settle down... All these years, she has been in Shanghai City, raising our son. Shaojie is an excellent student and has a promising future. Unlike me, he’s an upright person." "Any news from Thailand?" Chen Nuo asked. "Regarding how he went missing, what’s the official story?" "No news yet." Li Qingshan shook his head. "My son and two classmates were enjoying themselves in Thailand for a few days. The day before yesterday, he left the hotel alone, saying he was going to buy something, but he never returned. At first, his classmates weren’t concerned, thinking he had gone off alone to take photographs. Oh, right, my son loves photography. "But when it got very late and he still hadn’t returned to the hotel, his classmates started to worry. They couldn’t reach him by phone, so they tried reporting it to the police. But you know... in those small Southeast Asian countries, well... the efficiency of the government and police often means they just muddle through things. So, there’s been no progress. The police there are also looking, but still no news." Chen Nuo frowned. "The people who captured your son... they haven’t contacted you? Just mailed a bullet casing pendant?" Shaking his head, Chen Nuo touched his brow. If this were simple revenge, just to vent anger... then Lv Shaojie would probably be dead by now. But... that seems unlikely. What Li Qingshan did was indeed despicable and ungrateful. At most, the other party would hate Li Qingshan for taking that money. For revenge, they could have targeted Li Qingshan himself; killing his son directly seemed too extreme for such a deep-seated grudge. They most likely kidnapped his son as a threat and would then make some demands, making Li Qingshan pay for his past ingratitude. That would definitely require contacting Li Qingshan. If they haven’t made contact yet, they certainly will later. "Alright, I’ll handle this." Chen Nuo nodded, placed the photo on the table, tapped his fingers on it, and pondered for a moment. "Arrange a plane ticket for me. I’ll fly to Thailand and check the area where your son disappeared. Meanwhile... you wait here at home. If the other side contacts you with any news, you must tell me immediately." Li Qingshan was overjoyed! He looked at Chen Nuo with immense gratitude, grabbed his hand, and shook it vigorously. "Mr. Chen Nuo! I can’t thank you enough! I won’t say more, but as long as you can bring my son back safely... if you ever need me, Li Qingshan, in the future, just say the word!" Chen Nuo wasn’t about to be moved by Li Qingshan’s display of gratitude. This man had even cheated his sworn brothers out of their money. Coming from his lips, words like ’gratitude’ and ’righteousness’ were probably worthless. "No, I don’t need your gratitude, nor do I need any more favors from you," Chen Nuo said, shaking his head. He stood up and walked over to Li Qingshan. Pointing a finger at Li Qingshan’s chest, he said, "Remember, I’m helping you this time, firstly, because at least one thing you said is correct: your family is innocent. Secondly, because you helped me... us, me and Zhang Linsheng, with some things before, and I owe you for that. But once this is done and your son is safely returned, we’ll be even. Understand, Hall Master Li?" Li Qingshan’s expression flickered, but he ultimately said nothing, only murmuring, "Mr. Chen Nuo, are you confident you can save my son? What do you need me to do?" "Wait for them to contact you. Then wait for them to make their demands. Try to get them to propose a method of transaction. Whether it’s money or something else they want, agree to everything. Don’t provoke them; your son is still in their hands. Even if their demands are exorbitant or unreasonable, agree to them! Then tell me everything. Get me a chance to complete the transaction and make contact with them. That’s all I need! As long as your son is alive, I can definitely bring him back to you safely." Just then, there were three knocks on the door, and it was pushed open. Lao Qi walked in, glanced at Chen Nuo, nodded a greeting, and then said to Li Qingshan in a low voice, "...I’ve found the person." Li Qingshan’s spirits lifted! Chen Nuo heard this and felt a sense of unease. He frowned. "What person?" Lao Qi didn’t speak, merely looking at Li Qingshan. Li Qingshan hesitated. "I... My son went missing, and I received the mailed bullet casing pendant, confirming it was his doing, so I... I had Lao Qi find his daughter... Just in case he intends to harm my son, at least I’d have some leverage..." Chen Nuo’s face changed instantly upon hearing this! He cursed fiercely, "Fuck! Li Qingshan, you fucking leopard can’t change its spots, can you?! You already owed his family! And now you’ve kidnapped his daughter? Are you trying to get your son killed faster?!" "And you have the fucking nerve to tell me that family is innocent! Your son is innocent, so isn’t his daughter innocent too?!" Chen Nuo berated him furiously, then glared at Lao Qi. "Where is she?!" "...Uh..." Lao Qi was startled, his expression conflicted and apprehensive. But seeing Li Qingshan nod at him, Lao Qi quickly said, "She’s in the apartment downstairs." Chen Nuo took a deep breath and said coldly, "Take me there!" Li Qingshan’s apartment was on the 16th floor. The unit directly below on the 15th floor, with the same layout, also belonged to the old man. When Chen Nuo had Lao Qi lead him downstairs to see the person, he had expected to open the door to find a terrified, bound girl, perhaps already in tears from the traumatic kidnapping. To his surprise, however, after Lao Qi opened the door and went in, Chen Nuo saw a girl in the living room. She was sitting on the sofa, her legs comfortably crossed, a can of Coke on the coffee table before her, and a handful of sunflower seeds in her hand, which she was munching on. Sunflower seed shells were even scattered on her skirt. Yes, a plaid skirt, Burberry’s signature check pattern. The girl looked up at Lao Qi, who had entered first, and casually smiled. "Uncle Qi..." Then, when she saw Chen Nuo walk in behind him, her voice trailed off. Her eyes widened, and her mouth formed an "O" as she stared at Chen Nuo in astonishment. Chen Nuo frowned at the girl, his expression also one of surprise. "It’s you? What are you doing here?" the girl asked, shocked. Chen Nuo sighed, his tone complex. "It seems you weren’t drunk at all, were you..." "Mr. Chen Nuo, you’ve really misunderstood." Li Qingshan had followed them. Chen Nuo immediately stepped back, quickly closed the door, and pulled Li Qingshan into the hallway. "...Her father was a brother of mine back in the day," Li Qingshan hurriedly explained. "Although later, her grandfather and mother grew to dislike me, and our families interacted less, this girl still calls me uncle. I’ve taken good care of her these past two years, sometimes sending people to help her with minor troubles. "Yes, I’d occasionally give her some pocket money on holidays and such... So I just had Lao Qi bring the girl here. I didn’t harm her..." Chen Nuo frowned, looked back at Li Qingshan suspiciously, his expression darkening. Chen Nuo narrowed his eyes. That short skirt the young girl on the sofa was wearing, and her thighs visible beneath it... He turned his head and gave Li Qingshan a hostile look. "You didn’t..." "No! Absolutely not!" Li Qingshan understood instantly and vehemently denied it. "I... no matter how much of a scoundrel I am, I could never do something so beastly..." Only then did Chen Nuo nod, frowning. "So you tricked her into coming here, intending to hold her hostage? They captured your son, so you captured his daughter as a bargaining chip?" "I didn’t mean to hurt her," Li Qingshan quickly explained. "Hmph!" Chen Nuo snorted coldly, staring into Li Qingshan’s eyes. "But what if they hurt your son? What would you do to his daughter then?" "I..." Li Qingshan was speechless. "Let her go," Chen Nuo said, shaking his head. "I agreed to help you precisely because you said innocent family members shouldn’t be harmed. If you also harm his family, Li Qingshan, then I won’t help you with this anymore." He stared at Li Qingshan. "No ifs, ands, or buts! No conditions! Release her immediately." Thɪs chapter is updated by 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝~𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖~𝕟𝕖𝕥 "...Alright," Li Qingshan sighed. Chen Nuo glanced at the old man. "Don’t look so resentful! Do you realize how stupid this is? Use your brain! If he truly cared about his daughter, he would have moved his family to safety before making any move! He found your hidden son; he must know about your current power and status in Jinling! Wouldn’t he have anticipated that if he challenged you and kidnapped your son, you might retaliate against his family? Could he really not have thought of that? The fact that he didn’t move his family beforehand strongly suggests... he might not care about them anymore! Kidnapping his daughter will only enrage him further." Li Qingshan’s expression changed. As Chen Nuo spoke, he too frowned. This whole situation was indeed suspicious. This ’Second Brother’ sounded like a man of great loyalty and righteousness; otherwise, he wouldn’t have volunteered to be a decoy and die in Li Qingshan’s place all those years ago. It was understandable that such a man would want revenge on Li Qingshan... but why hadn’t he taken precautions for his family in Jinling, like moving them away or protecting them? Thinking deeper... this man didn’t die in that incident in the eighties. Nearly twenty years had passed since then. For twenty years, why hadn’t such a loyal and righteous man returned to find his family? He was now powerful enough to abduct Li Qingshan’s son in Thailand, evading the local police. That proved he certainly wasn’t weak anymore. If so, why hadn’t he come back in twenty years to see his family, to take care of them? Logically, it made no sense.