Chapter 379: Chapter 379: Colluding with Each Other _1
The movements of the two were kept absolutely secret; they had not told anyone.
So, without much thought, Xia Ningning knew for certain that Wan Yang and Xia Yu must have been following them in secret.
Even though she had just mentioned that the two might be conniving with each other, Xia Ningning hadn’t expected them to join forces so quickly.
Although he was scolded, there wasn’t a hint of anger on Wan Yang’s face. He still maintained a smile as he said, "Ningning, if you say that, it really breaks my heart, how could it be stalking?"
"Ever since your last incident, I’ve been extremely worried about your safety, so we are actually protecting you from the shadows!"
"Considering we’ve been protecting you for so long, it’s not too much to ask for a meal together, right?"
Clearly uninterested in dealing with him, Xia Ningning spoke bluntly, "I’m sorry, but sitting with you, I really can’t stomach any food!"
Xia Ningning’s outright refusal, coupled with her seizing the chance to scoff at Wan Yang, made him feel quite uncomfortable.
Fortunately, Xia Yu patted his shoulder and gave him a look, which stabilized Wan Yang’s emotions.
Forcing a small smile, he said, "Ningning, actually it’s like this, we’ve just found out who the real mastermind behind the kidnapping was and wanted to find an opportunity to tell you!"
Xia Ningning furrowed her brow, revealing a serious expression as she asked, "Who is the real mastermind?"
Wan Yang’s eyebrows lifted as he saw that Xia Ningning took the bait. He became smug, saying, "The street is not the place to talk; if you really want to know, we need to find a quiet place to sit down and talk properly!"
Fuming and on the verge of snapping, Xu Lele quickly tried to calm her down, "Ningning, don’t be hasty, I think we should go take a look!"
"If we can find out who the real mastermind is, it can save us a lot of trouble. After all, it’s not so much the theft I fear as the thief’s lingering thoughts."
After weighing the pros and cons, Xia Ningning felt that Xu Lele did have a point.
This matter had almost cost Xia Ningning her dignity; it was of great importance to her, but she had always been unable to find the person pulling the strings behind the scenes.
Since Wan Yang had found out, it would save her a great deal of effort, and tolerating a meal with him didn’t seem so unacceptable.
So she nodded and said, "You better not play any tricks!"
"Of course, you could give me a hundred guts, and I still wouldn’t dare to play tricks on you!" Wan Yang said with a laugh.
Having succeeded in his scheme, Wan Yang and Xia Yu exchanged looks, revealing sly expressions.
Then, led by Wan Yang, the group entered a high-end restaurant and selected the most luxurious private room.
After entering the private room, Wan Yang immediately said to the servant following behind him, "You all don’t need to come in!"
Xia Ningning thought it over and decided that the upcoming matters indeed weren’t suitable for too many to know about, nor did she see any problem, so she signaled the two servants to leave.
She wasn’t afraid because her team of bodyguards was with her, ready to rush in at a moment’s notice if anything went wrong.
What she didn’t know was that outside the private room, Master Leu had started to make his move.
He took the initiative to lead Xia Ningning’s team of bodyguards into the adjacent room, ostensibly to better protect her safety.
Once they were inside, Master Leu stood guard at the door.
On the other side, Wan Yang’s bodyguards also came over and quickly assumed advantageous positions inside the restaurant.
They moved as if they had rehearsed many times, swift and proficient, showing no sign of panic.
However, Xia Ningning inside the private room was completely unaware of all this, not knowing that danger was silently approaching.
...
On the other side, Ye Ming received a call from Feng Yun.
"Brother Ming, I just checked the surveillance and found that Miss Xia and Miss Xu have gone out,"
A sense of foreboding suddenly sprang up in Ye Ming’s heart.
He asked, "Do you know where they went?"
Feng Yun said, "I installed a tracker on their car. It’s stopped on a commercial street. Just now, I could still see them shopping, but then, they were led away by two men."
Ye Ming slightly furrowed his brow, feeling that things were not so simple, so he asked Feng Yun to send back the surveillance photos from the scene.
With a top hacker like Feng Yun, it became very easy for Ye Ming to find out certain things.
As the photos were transmitted to his phone, Ye Ming’s face immediately darkened.
He clearly saw that the two men in the photos were Xia Yu and Wan Yang.
"Which restaurant did they go to?" Ye Ming continued to ask.
Feng Yun replied, "I can locate the restaurant for now, but all the surveillance cameras inside have been forcibly shut down. I felt something was fishy, so I called you."
Ye Ming acknowledged with a grunt and praised, "Well done, now send the location to my phone immediately!"
Soon, Ye Ming’s phone beeped, and a location map was sent to his device.
...
After entering the private room and taking their seats, the fragrant dishes were served.
Wan Yang also appropriately opened a bottle of high-end red wine.
"Ladies, with such a perfect ambiance today, shouldn’t we have a drink?"
Wan Yang said very gentlemanly.
However, for some reason, Xia Ningning felt a wave of disgust upon seeing him and could hardly bear it.
She said coldly, "Sorry, we are not drinking today. All you need to do is tell me who the mastermind is!"
At the same time, Xu Lele also said, "We just want to know the truth of the matter."
The smile on Wan Yang’s face froze at this point; he had originally wanted to take advantage of them after a few drinks, waiting for the girls to get tipsy so that he could make an untoward move.
But seeing the firm stance of the two women, Wan Yang felt very troubled.
At this moment, Xia Yu raised his eyebrows and said, "It’s not easy for us to meet like this; it’s fate. And Miss Xu, it’s our first time dining together. A drink shouldn’t hurt, right?"
"Can’t we talk without drinking?" Xu Lele retorted.
Xia Yu sighed and said to Xu Lele, "Miss Xu, that’s not right. Didn’t you see Young Master Wan’s face? If he is not happy, it’s hard to say he’ll tell the truth."
"You know, Young Master Wan is interested in Ningning, and as Ningning’s best friend, you should facilitate this to be good for both parties!"
On the other side, Wan Yang’s face showed a faint smile of indifference, chiming in, "Yeah, there are some things I can’t say if I’m unhappy. Moreover, I have spent a lot of manpower and resources to investigate the truth. So, Ningning, if you don’t have a drink with me, don’t expect to know who the mastermind is."
Xia Ningning’s face grew dark, and she said coldly, "If that’s the case, then keep all those words to yourself. Le Le, let’s go!"
With that, Xia Ningning was about to leave with Xu Lele.
But to their surprise, they found that the door had already been locked from the outside.
