After a moment of silence, Chu Xiaoran’s gentle and sweet voice came through the phone, sounding a bit downcast: "Brother, I’m fine, everything is okay, don’t worry."

"Did they bully you? Are you getting enough to eat?"

"They didn’t bully me and they’re giving me food, rest assured."

Shen Congru felt much relieved by his sister’s answer.

The impatient voice of the kidnapper came through the phone: "Alright, stop the chatter, remember to make the exchange on time tomorrow, only one person is allowed to come, don’t try anything funny, or you’ll never see your sister again."

Xu Xiangbei decided to go in place of Shen Congru for the hostage exchange.

At East City Overpass, noon is the busiest time, with many cars below and many people on the bridge.

Xu Xiangbei carried a black Elysée handbag containing the Heart of the Ocean Blue Diamond worth hundreds of millions. He looked like a tourist wandering on the overpass eating an ice cream sundae.

Below, cars roared past quickly, while pedestrians hurriedly walked by the side of the bridge.

It was agreed to make the exchange upon sighting, but the appointed time came, and there was no sign of Chu Xiaoran.

Suddenly, Xu Xiangbei’s phone rang; it was a call from Shen Congru. The voice over the electronic device said, "Come down from the overpass and stand by the second green garbage bin."

Following the instructions from the call, Xu Xiangbei went under the bridge. Just as he reached the garbage bin, a speeding white van screeched to a halt in front of him.

Two burly men jumped out like eagles grabbing a chick and hauled Xu Xiangbei into the van.

Several people were already in the car; two burly men sat in the driving seat, two more in the back, with Chu Xiaoran sitting teary-eyed between them.

The two burly men held sharp knives and looked at Xu Xiangbei with disdain.

Seeing Xu Xiangbei getting in the car, Chu Xiaoran tried to keep her pretty smile but couldn’t help shedding tears.

Noticing Chu Xiaoran’s desolate expression, Xu Xiangbei smilingly grasped her wrist. Feeling her pulse strong and steady, he knew her body was fine, though her emotions were likely hurt.

He softly asked, "You don’t need to be afraid, I’m here. You’ve suffered, haven’t you?"

Hearing Xu Xiangbei’s comforting voice, filled with kindness, Chu Xiaoran felt much calmer and smiled, "I did suffer a little, but I’m okay."

The leading burly man waved the knife in his hand and sneered, "Kid, where’s the Star of the Ocean?"

Xu Xiangbei grinned as he patted the black handbag, "It’s here, do you want to see it?"

The burly man felt disgusted by Xu Xiangbei’s smile, "What are you smiling at, hurry up and give me the bag, or I’ll make you cry."

Xu Xiangbei obediently handed over the bag, grinning, "I advise you not to take this Star of the Ocean; it’s Mr. Calia’s, not Shen Congru’s."

These burly men didn’t know who Mr. Calia was; they sneered, "I don’t care who it belongs to; it’s ours now."

The men opened the black handbag, revealing a blue diamond like the ocean, emanating a soft, deep light like the sea. The men gasped in awe simultaneously.

"What a treasure."

"I feel like I’ve seen the ocean."

"Hehehe, I even hear the sound of the waves."

Xu Xiangbei, beaming, said, "Look quickly, with each glance you’re losing one."

The men finally remembered Xu Xiangbei was still in the car, and they all looked at him with disdain, "Shut up, no more nonsense, or we’ll kick you out of the car. Number six, pull over and kick this brat off the car."

The van stopped by the roadside. Xu Xiangbei signaled for Chu Xiaoran to get off first. Having been in the car all morning, with the men dragging her around, Chu Xiaoran smiled with relief at being able to breathe fresh air after getting out.

However, as she waited for Xu Xiangbei to get off, he seemed in no hurry to leave and signaled her to move far away before suddenly closing the car door.

Then, she heard a series of smashing sounds from inside the vehicle, with the van’s body shaking continuously and shrill screams emanating from within.

Curious to know what was happening inside, she didn’t dare to approach but also didn’t want to stray too far, worried something might happen to Xu Xiangbei inside.

It was only when someone passed by her that she borrowed a phone to call the police.

Soon after, the car door reopened, and the six burly men were stacked together like cargo inside the van, while Xu Xiangbei still held the black handbag containing the Heart of the Ocean.

With the sound of sirens approaching, Xu Xiangbei gently embraced Chu Xiaoran’s shoulder, "Let’s go, someone will clean up the mess."

The Heart of the Ocean was recovered, and his sister was saved; Shen Congru was overjoyed. With the exhibition period over, he flew to Italy overnight to return it to Mr. Calia.

Chu Xiaoran had been kidnapped on her way to Jiangcheng University. Although she returned unharmed, she was still traumatized and didn’t dare to go out alone.

"Teacher Chu, how about I drive you back to Jiangcheng University?"

"That might be a good idea."

Xu Xiangbei drove his silver Thunderbolt and took Chu Xiaoran to Jiangcheng University. From Earth Sea to Jiangcheng, it was an eight or nine-hour journey during the day, and by the time they arrived in Jiangcheng, it was already dark.

He called Gu Xiangyi, who had to work overtime until eleven at night, and since Spring Villa was empty, there was no point in going back.

He quietly drove to the courtyard on Anhe Road, where the lights were still on; Ding Keke was reportedly focused on her postgraduate studies lately.

He rang the doorbell, and Ding Keke’s melodious voice came from inside, "Who is it?"

"I’m with the gas company; is the owner home?"

Upon seeing Xu Xiangbei, Ding Keke playfully hit his chest with her fist, "Where have you been these days? Did you run off with some hussy? Still know to come back, huh?"

Grinning cheekily, Xu Xiangbei held Ding Keke’s small hand, "Ouch, that hurts! There’s been so much happening in Earth Sea, one thing after another, I’ve been swamped. This time I came back to take Teacher Chu to school; she was just kidnapped and is now too scared to go out alone."

Hearing about Teacher Chu’s kidnapping, Ding Keke looked concerned, "Is she alright? Was she hurt?"

"She’s fine, just needs time to heal the psychological trauma. Your best friend is off to Italy, so you must be enjoying your solitude here, right? You’ve kept my courtyard very clean; that’s worth rewarding. Look what I bought for you."

After rescuing Chu Xiaoran, Xu Xiangbei extorted quite a few diamond necklaces from Shen Congru and gave Ding Keke one of them, a ruby necklace weighing ten carats.