Shen Liannuo recounted the events truthfully, detailing everything from the previous night to Meng Jingwei. She sighed, "To this day, we still can't confirm whether it was Tang Nian who kidnapped Grandma Qing or people from Antina's side."
The lack of definitive answers left them feeling very passive.
Meng Jingwei held her phone, stood by the floor-to-ceiling window of the Ye Se Club, and gazed out at the brightly lit Lancheng, saying thoughtfully, "It wasn't Tang Nian."
"Why are you so sure?" Shen Liannuo asked, perplexed.
"We've already confronted Tang Nian directly. Her wife is in our hands now. If Tang Nian had kidnapped Grandma and Qiao Ziqian, she would certainly use them as leverage to exchange for Mrs. Tang. But there's been no movement from the Tang family, which tells us everything."
Meng Jingwei's analysis was sound.
"You mean..." Shen Liannuo shifted her suspicion to Antina, "the people from Country C?"
"Not yet certain."
The current situation was like a boundless net, tightly ensnaring her, leaving her no room to struggle, escape, or see the overall picture.
Cornered from all sides, she found every step an arduous one.
Meng Jingwei let out a wistful sigh, her heart filled with melancholy.
Sensing her heavy thoughts, Shen Liannuo quickly comforted her, "Lu Yanming is helping too, so don't worry too much. All you need to do now is adjust your state of mind completely and successfully auction Zhuo Rui Technology."
"Have you considered that the party who kidnapped Grandma Qing and Qiao Ziqian, yet has remained silent until now, might be waiting for the auction of Zhuo Rui Technology to begin?" Meng Jingwei finally spoke after a long silence.
Shen Liannuo remained quiet.
It wasn't that she didn't know what to say, but their thoughts had converged.
"It's six o'clock now, four hours until the Zhuo Rui Technology auction," Shen Liannuo said, leaning back on the sofa and glancing at the clock on the wall. "If Lu Yanming can't get any results within two hours, we'll have to wait for them to make their demands."
Then followed a long and agonizing wait.
About half an hour later, the ringtone of Meng Jingwei's phone on the table suddenly blared.
The quiet morning in Lancheng was broken by the abrupt ringtone, making her heartstrings tighten.
She picked up the phone; it was Lu Yanming. "Yanming Ge?"
"Liannuo said you know everything, right?" he asked.
Meng Jingwei nodded and replied, "Yes. Do you have any news about Grandma Qing from your end?"
"No. But..." Lu Yanming paused, then after a moment said, "Liannuo's analysis is correct. Although I haven't found Grandma Qing, Ma Ke has sent me a message. I tracked his location based on the signal and am now at the old Qing family mansion. I believe this is the work of Qing Sihui."
Ma Ke was the one who had disguised himself as Meng Jingwei's father.
Lu Yanming had found Ma Ke but not the elder Mrs. Qing, which clearly indicated she had been abducted by two separate groups.
"Qing Sihui..."
Meng Jingwei murmured Qing Sihui's name, her slightly narrowed eyes flashing with a hint of depth.
Before she could say more, Lu Yanming asked, "What should we do next?"
With Qing Muye not in the country, all matters had to be discussed with Meng Jingwei, so Lu Yanming naturally sought her opinion.
"We should contact Qing Sihui, of course." Since Ma Ke had been taken by Qing Sihui, and he was now wrapped in bandages like a mummy, his original appearance was unrecognizable. Therefore, Qing Sihui should still believe he was Meng Tianhua.
Since they were acting, they had to see it through.