Chapter 196 Useless Phone Number

The snakes varied in size and thickness, red, white, purple, green, of all colors. They were coiled together, utterly terrifying. Those with trypophobia would die of fright just by looking at them. Even more horrifying, She Yong's men moved the iron cages from the van into the lobby of Xun Rong, and then opened the valves. With a gentle pull, the cage doors would open, and hundreds, even thousands, of venomous snakes would flood into the Xun Rong building! Some of the timid employees turned deathly pale and screamed repeatedly. Others climbed onto their desks, brandishing fruit knives, shouting, "Don't come any closer!" Jiang Lan was both anxious and angry, feeling helpless. She glared at She Yong and demanded, "What do you mean by this?" She Yong shrugged. "Can't you tell? If I hear another 'no' from you, Manager Jiang, these snakes will flood your office building. I can't say what the consequences will be then." Jiang Lan clenched her fists in fury. Just as the rumors said, She Yong's methods were utterly despicable. He Qingzhou coughed and mediated, "She Yong, you don't have to be this ruthless, do you?" She Yong chuckled. "I don't want to be either. I'm here for money, not to kill people. It's just that some narrow-minded fools insist on arguing with me. Heh, does she think she can win an argument? She's a complete idiot." He lit another cigarette. Smoking, She Yong said, "Hurry up, my patience is limited. Thirty million, are you giving it or not?" He Qingzhou narrowed his eyes and replied, "Yes, of course, we'll give it. It's just that all our company's money is tied up in the project. We can't come up with that much all at once." He Qingzhou was trying to stall, but She Yong didn't fall for it at all! He said, "You need time to raise the money? Fine, you have one hour. If I don't get thirty million in an hour, don't blame me for being cruel. Go on, go raise the money. Oh, and if you call the police, my men will release the snakes immediately, and then it'll be a mutual destruction, which wouldn't be good." She Yong had completely cornered them. There was no other way but to pay. He Qingzhou sighed, pulled Jiang Lan into the elevator, and went directly to the office. Outside the main entrance of Xun Rong, across the street, a black sedan was parked. Inside, an old man was watching everything unfold in Xun Rong. This was Yuan Chengji, the head of the Yuan family. He grinned and said, "She Yong's performance is quite good. It was worth the one million I spent to hire him. Jiang Lan, I'm sorry, but who told you to be a member of the Jiang family? First, I'll get rid of you, destroy Xun Rong, and then I'll destroy the main Jiang family. By then, the task assigned by General Murong will be completed." ... In the general manager's office at Xun Rong. Jiang Lan gritted her teeth and said, "Scoundrel, absolutely despicable! This is blatant extortion!" He Qingzhou sighed. "Who doesn't know it's extortion? The problem is, we can't do anything about him. Lu Ming isn't here, and President Jiang isn't here, which is why She Yong is so arrogant." Jiang Lan said, "I'm going to call headquarters right now and have them figure something out." He Qingzhou nodded. "That's all we can do." He said this, but He Qingzhou knew in his heart that it was hopeless. Jiang Mengxin taking Lu Ming away was clearly aimed at Xun Rong, intending to use a borrowed knife to kill. Now that the goal was about to be achieved, why would headquarters offer assistance? As expected. When Jiang Lan made the call, explained the situation, and requested help, the reply from headquarters was: "Await notification." Await notification for what! In an hour, She Yong would release the snakes, and they had time to await notification? Jiang Lan angrily pounded the desk. "No, I can't let such evil forces be so arrogant. I'm calling the police right now!" Jiang Lan moved to call the police. He Qingzhou immediately stopped her and advised, "No! If we call the police, all those snakes will be released, and Xun Rong will become a snake pit!" Jiang Lan was almost in despair. He Qingzhou said, "How about calling Lu Ming and asking him?" Jiang Lan gave a wry smile. Call Lu Ming? Lu Ming was currently in Modu, how could he possibly rush over? No matter how capable Lu Ming was, he couldn't be in two places at once. In desperation, Jiang Lan finally remembered something—when Lu Ming left Jinling, he had left her a phone number. She remembered Lu Ming saying that the number belonged to a friend of his. This friend was very powerful, and if she encountered danger, she could ask for his help. "The phone number!" Jiang Lan immediately opened her drawer, found the phone number, and dialed it without hesitation. Ring, ring, ring... Ring, ring, ring... Ring, ring, ring... The phone rang for over thirty seconds. Jiang Lan waited anxiously for over thirty seconds, and finally, it was connected! "Hello!" Jiang Lan exclaimed excitedly. However, there was no sound from the other end, as if no one had answered. This... Jiang Lan remembered that Lu Ming had said this friend didn't talk much and that she could just state her problem directly without worrying about his reaction. Since that was the case, she had to try. Jiang Lan directly said, "Hello, sir. I apologize for the intrusion. This is the phone number Lu Ming gave me, asking me to seek your help when I'm in danger. I've encountered some trouble that's difficult to resolve and would like to ask for your assistance. I wonder if you... would be willing to help?" There was still no sound from the other end. Jiang Lan's heart sank to the bottom. Without any further thought, she continued, "The snake man She Yong came to Xun Rong to extort me, demanding thirty million within an hour, or he would release over a hundred venomous snakes into the Xun Rong building! Sir, please help me, help me deal with She Yong." Jiang Lan was frantic, but the person on the other end seemed completely unconcerned. Not a sound. It was eerily quiet. Jiang Lan even suspected if anyone was listening. "Sir, did you understand? Sir, are you willing to help me?" Jiang Lan asked anxiously. But to her embarrassment... there was no response at all, and the call was hung up! Beep, beep, beep... Jiang Lan felt dead inside. It seemed the person on the other end was unwilling to help! Lu Ming's number was useless! "Damn it!" Jiang Lan threw the phone number into the trash can, utterly despairing. What to do? Who else could help her? "No, no one can help me anymore," Jiang Lan sighed weakly. "Old He, there's no other way. Immediately transfer thirty million from the project funds and prepare to pay She Yong." "Alas..." He Qingzhou was deeply saddened but helpless. He could only do as Jiang Lan instructed.