The Extortion

As long as money can solve the problem, it's not a problem.

The middle-aged woman, seeing Kaden's straightforwardness, immediately demanded an exorbitant sum. "My husband is the breadwinner of our family. You've injured him, preventing him from working. There's lost wages, medical expenses, nutrition fees, and so on. I'm not asking for much; just give us fifty thousand yuan, and we'll consider the matter settled. We won't bother you again."

Her face was full of condescension, as if they were doing Kaden a favor.

Fifty thousand yuan! The audacity!

With a bit more, one could even make a down payment on a single apartment. She was clearly treating Kaden as an easy mark.

Kaden, uninterested in further discussion, pulled out a wad of cash from his wallet and handed it to the woman. "This is all I have. Take it. Now, move him away."

He pointed at the man groaning on the ground.

The woman, seeing the thick stack of hundred-yuan notes—at least ten thousand yuan—couldn't believe her luck. The man on the ground, noticing the money, also stopped groaning.

The couple exchanged glances, both thinking the same thing: they couldn't let this fat sheep escape so easily. They wouldn't let them leave without getting the full fifty thousand.

At this moment, Kaden's phone rang. It was a call from Liu Da.

"Did you find out?" Kaden asked.

"Yes, boss. It's Li Rui's gang that went to the shantytown today. I've sent their address to your phone," Liu Da replied.

As Kaden hung up, the couple seemed to have reached a consensus.

"Move aside," Kaden commanded the man on the ground, who still hadn't budged.

The woman screamed, "Move aside? You hit someone and now you're acting all righteous? Today, you're paying us fifty thousand yuan, or we're not leaving."

Kaden was disgusted by the woman's greed, barely containing his anger. "You'd better take the money and leave. I can pretend this never happened. But if you keep pushing, you might not live to spend it."

If someone in their world heard this, they'd probably leave as quickly as possible. But unfortunately, the woman wasn't frightened, especially since these words came from a young man.

"Oh, threatening me, are you? Look at you, barely an adult. Are you even eighteen? Do you have a driver's license? I bet you're driving without a license," she said, realizing she could ask for even more money.

Zuri, seeing this situation, knew they wouldn't get away without hours of negotiation. This couple was clearly greedy. Even if they gave them fifty thousand, they'd ask for more. No amount of money would satisfy them.

She had no time to waste. "Kaden, send me the address. I'll go ahead. You deal with this."

If they had time, this couple wouldn't get a cent from them.

"Okay," Kaden agreed.

Seeing Zuri about to leave, the woman wouldn't let her go easily. They targeted them because they seemed in a hurry and had money. Such people were the easiest to extort. If someone left to handle the urgent matter, the remaining person wouldn't be in such a hurry, making it harder to get a large payout.

The middle-aged woman grabbed Zuri, who was in a hurry and had her mind on little Siyuan. Caught off guard, she was successfully held back by the woman.

"You can't leave. You two aren't going anywhere until this is settled."

"Let go!" Zuri demanded, frowning.

The woman shouted loudly, "Everyone, come and see! These people hit someone and are trying to leave!"

In this day and age, there's never a shortage of onlookers. Hearing the commotion, a crowd began to gather.

Zuri gripped the woman's hand, increasing the pressure. The woman cried out in pain and let go. Zuri turned to leave, but three young men blocked her path.

"You can't go."

Zuri ignored them.

Seeing the young men helping, the woman shouted, "This girl hit me! You can't let her leave!"

Zuri scrutinized the four men. They had strong blood, firm expressions, and despite their ordinary clothes, an undeniable aura of authority. These four were clearly not ordinary people, possibly belonging to a special task force.

Facing them would be tough. Even with Kaden, they weren't a match for these professionally trained individuals.

Zuri didn't want to fight them, knowing her chances of winning were slim. "This couple is extorting us. I have an urgent matter to attend to, a matter of life and death. Someone else will handle this situation."

The woman quickly interjected, "This girl was driving. She hit someone and then hit me. She can't leave."

"Fine, I'll stay," Zuri conceded. "Kaden, you go."

Hearing the name 'Kaden,' the four men's expressions subtly changed.

Kaden prepared to leave, but the men still blocked his way.

"What are you doing?" Zuri narrowed her eyes, glaring at the four men.

"Neither of you can leave."

Kaden, suppressing his anger, looked coldly at the middle-aged woman. "I only have ten thousand on me, which I've already given you. I'll wire you the remaining forty thousand."

The couple was secretly delighted.

"No, it has to be cash. I've heard you can retract wire transfers within twenty-four hours. What if you take it back? Where would we find you then?"

"So, what do you want?" Kaden asked.

"Cash. We want cash."

"Fine. Come with us to the car, and we'll go to the bank," Kaden said coldly.

"No, we don't trust you. There's a bank across the street. Go there and withdraw the money," the woman insisted.

To prevent Kaden from escaping, the woman enlisted the help of the four young men, asking two of them to accompany him to the bank. The remaining two stayed with Zuri to ensure she didn't leave.

Though thorough, the woman would never know that her thoroughness could sometimes be fatal.

Kaden, sensing Zuri's urgency, reassured her, "I've already sent people ahead. Don't worry. If Li Rui's men hurt him, I won't let them get away with it."

"Mm," Zuri nodded.

Despite Kaden's preparations, she couldn't shake her anxiety.

As Zuri waited, a feeling of unease grew within her.