At the entrance of Zijing Kindergarten, Chen Yinuo opened the backseat door to let little Yoyo, her daughter, get in. She had no idea she was already being targeted.

Untrained in counter-surveillance, Chen didn't notice anything unusual, even though her Porsche Cayenne was being followed by a van for several minutes.

After driving for more than ten minutes, when the Cayenne slowed down to enter a construction zone at a fork in the road, the van behind suddenly changed lanes, overtook her, and swerved in front of the Porsche.

Then came a sudden brake!

Bang!

Despite driving at a low speed and slamming on the brakes instinctively, the Porsche still crashed into the van ahead.

Inside the Cayenne, Chen Yinuo was unharmed but broke out in a cold sweat from fright. In the backseat, little Yoyo started crying, terrified by the abrupt collision.

The traumatic memory of a similar incident under Liberation Bridge hadn't faded for the child.

"Yoyo, are you okay? Did you get hurt?" Chen Yinuo asked in a panic, turning around anxiously.

"I'm fine, Mommy, but why did we crash again? Waaa..." Yoyo sobbed, her face tear-streaked.

"It's okay, sweetie. Don't cry. Mommy will check what happened." Relieved that Yoyo wasn't hurt, Chen wiped her daughter's tears, told her to wait inside, and stepped out of the car.

To her surprise, no one emerged from the van they had hit.

Frowning with anger, Chen marched toward the van. She had been driving cautiously, yet the van had suddenly braked and caused the accident—and they weren't even stepping out to apologize?

Before she could knock on the driver's window, the van's door swung open violently, slamming her to the ground.

At the same time, the rear door of the van was flung open, and two men wearing Ultraman masks jumped out, racing toward the Porsche as if in a timed drill.

"What are you doing?!" Chen shouted in terror, scrambling to her feet and trying to run back to her car.

But before she could get far, the masked driver of the van leaped out and pinned her against the vehicle, gripping her neck.

"Well, aren't you something..." came a nasal voice from beneath the Ultraman mask.

"Let go of me! Help! Somebody help!" Chen struggled desperately, screaming for help.

Nearby passersby hesitated, some looking like they might intervene, but one of the masked men who had rushed toward the Cayenne brandished a gun.

"Who dares come closer? Take one more step, and I'll shoot!" he roared.

The sight of the weapon—real or fake—stopped everyone in their tracks.

Meanwhile, the other masked man dragged the screaming, sobbing Yoyo out of the car.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Yoyo wailed as one of the kidnappers covered her mouth and shoved her into the van.

"Should we take the woman too?" one of the men muttered, swallowing hard as he looked at Chen.

"Shut your filthy mouth! Once we've got the money, women are the least of our worries. No time for this—drive!" snapped the leader, shoving the man into the driver's seat.

Turning to Chen, he barked, "Don't do anything stupid! Cooperate, and your daughter will be fine. If you call the police, prepare to bury her."

With that, he shoved Chen to the ground and climbed into the van.

The van sped off, leaving Chen screaming Yoyo's name in anguish as she watched it disappear into the distance.

Ignoring her own injuries, she crawled back to the Porsche, only to find that the kidnappers had taken her keys and phone.

"Ahhh!"

She pounded the steering wheel in despair. The van was gone.

Pulling herself together, she ran to a nearby pedestrian. "Phone! Please lend me your phone!"

"Here!" The stranger handed over their unlocked phone.

Dialing Ye Chen's number with trembling fingers, she could barely hold herself up. Darkness began creeping into her vision.

"Hello?"

At Shanshui Residence, Ye Chen answered the unfamiliar number while cooking.

"Ye Chen! They've taken Yoyo! Someone kidnapped Yoyo!" Chen sobbed uncontrollably.

"What?!"

Ye Chen's phone nearly slipped from his hand. His voice trembled—a rare crack in his usual composure. "Where are you now?"

"On Tianyuan Road, near the construction site. They took my car keys—I can't follow them! Ye Chen, please! You have to save Yoyo! They said not to call the police, or they'll kill her. It's all my fault..."

Collapsing to the ground, Chen couldn't hold on any longer.

"Stay there. I'm coming. Yoyo will be fine. They're after money, not her life. As long as money can solve it, we'll handle it. Trust me."

Ye Chen repeated the reassurance three times before hanging up. Grabbing his car keys, he ran to the elevator, slapping himself hard across the face.

"This isn't Chen Yinuo's fault—it's mine," he muttered angrily.

He had failed to anticipate the dangers facing his family. Despite warnings and signs, he hadn't acted.

"Fool! Fool!" Ye Chen berated himself as he rushed to rescue his daughter, vowing not to make such a mistake again.