Return of the King, Dominating the City-Chapter 1658 - 1552: Mockery

"Phew!"

Song Yun let out a sigh of relief. This time, luck was on his side. The people crouching near him were all sensible. If they had been a bunch of hotheads who turned to look at him as he retreated, they would have surely been noticed, and if the other side had any inclination to check their position, they would realize there was someone there just a moment ago. Then, although Song Yun himself might not be in great danger, his friends certainly would be.

But now, these people all seemed as if nothing had happened, which wouldn’t arouse suspicion in the two men. Because there were over two hundred people here, even if one were missing, it wouldn’t appear strange from the outside perspective. Moreover, in these people’s eyes, Asians actually all look the same.

As soon as he rounded the corner, Song Yun slightly exerted force with his hands, and the rope on his hands directly snapped.

Song Yun walked through the corner and entered the bathroom inside.

Then, Song Yun picked up his phone.

The first call Song Yun made was to Meng Ku, mainly to reassure Meng Ku and prevent him from acting heedlessly. If Meng Ku, worried about Song Yun, brought over those twenty Shura Alliance elites, it might disrupt Song Yun’s plan. In this situation, having more people wouldn’t help.

Meng Ku indeed intended to bring troops into the building to rescue Song Yun. Before he could even gather the people, he received Song Yun’s call.

After learning that Song Yun was safe and sound, Meng Ku relaxed and stayed put according to Song Yun’s orders.

What to do next?

The first thought that crossed Song Yun’s mind was naturally to rescue Chen Mengjie.

Because now, it seemed that Chen Mengjie was the only one taken by Mude, and if Song Yun didn’t go to rescue her, who knows what might happen next?

How to rescue Chen Mengjie, that’s a tough question.

Song Yun had heard Mude’s words. He wasn’t worried about the remote control in Mude’s hand; he was confident he could disarm Mude before he pressed the button. However, the trickiest part was Mude’s so-called chest-mounted controller, which apparently was triggered by Mude’s heartbeat stopping. That means Song Yun needs to disable Mude in one strike without killing him, all while securing the detonator from Mude’s hands.

These three tasks must be accomplished almost simultaneously, posing a significant challenge for Song Yun. As Mude is a human, not a lifeless object, a slight mishap would lead to mutual destruction.

"Phew!"

Song Yun exhaled deeply, he would do his best when the time comes, and as for the outcome, it would be up to fate.

Meanwhile, on the other side, in the lounge on the second floor.

Mohammed sat backward on a chair, resting his head on the backrest, eyes closed, clutching the detonator in his hands.

Chen Mengjie stood behind Mude, forming a fist and gently tapping on Mude’s shoulder.

"A bit harder." Mude said softly.

Chen Mengjie pouted and slightly increased the force.

"I suppose you’ve never served a man like this in your life, huh?" Mude asked with a smile.

Chen Mengjie didn’t respond.

Mude continued, "Maybe I’m the luckiest fan in the world, to have my idol massage me. Ah, life."

Chen Mengjie still remained silent.

"Are you mute?" Mude turned his head, looked at Chen Mengjie, and asked, "Are you disagreeing with what I’m saying?"

Chen Mengjie kept quiet.

Smack.

Mude raised his hand and slapped Chen Mengjie in the face. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Chen Mengjie, angrily touched her face and looked at Mude, saying, "What are you doing!"

"If I ask you a question, you need to answer. If you don’t, I’ll think you’re mute, and if you want to be mute, I don’t mind cutting off your tongue." Mude said calmly.

Chen Mengjie held her face, teary-eyed, looking at Mude, but ultimately didn’t let the tears fall.

Mude seemed to have little tenderness for women, turning his head to rest against the chair, then continued asking, "Do you have a man you like?"

"A man I like?" This time, Chen Mengjie didn’t dare pretend to be mute, thinking who knows if this person might get angry and kill her? So she murmured the question, then wondered if she truly liked any man.

After pondering for a while, Chen Mengjie realized she hadn’t truly liked any man over her twenty-something years of life. She had a few with whom she felt some good impressions, but it was only that—none she genuinely liked. The closest one was Song Yun, though even that was only a favorable impression, not something she could call liking or disliking.

"No." Chen Mengjie shook her head and replied.

"Then if I succeed in escaping, would you be willing to leave with me? We could enjoy a lifetime of luxury with one billion dollars." Mude looked at Chen Mengjie passionately; he seemed genuinely to be a fan of hers.

Chen Mengjie’s mind raced; considering he was her fan, maybe she could say something to him? If she could persuade him to turn over a new leaf, that would be greatly promising.

"You like my singing, right?" Chen Mengjie asked Mude.

"Yes, I love your singing, Miss Mengjie." Mude said with a smile, "Your voice sounds like it’s from heaven. No one in this world can surpass your singing, Miss Mengjie."

Seeing Mude’s expression, if it weren’t for the fact he had slapped her earlier, Chen Mengjie would have thought him quite a decent fan. But the pain in her face persisted, and with a heavy heart, she said, "Do you remember I have a song called ’Freedom’?"

"Of course, I remember!" Mude exclaimed, his face showing admiration, saying, "My favorite song is ’Freedom’. I also hope someday everyone in the world can have wings and fly toward their own freedom."

"Since you like this song, do you think your current actions completely contradict its message? The meaning of ’Freedom’ that I try to convey is for everyone to live equally, peacefully, and freely. But now, you’re holding over two hundred people hostage just for your own interests, arbitrarily stripping away their freedom. Don’t you feel guilty?" Chen Mengjie said.

A hint of confusion appeared in Mude’s eyes, "I just want to live a better life."

"But is living well worth depriving so many people of freedom or easily killing a person who poses no threat?" Chen Mengjie said, feeling a surge of anger. She despises selfishness, and Mude clearly epitomizes that. Yet, she suppressed her anger since she was in his hands. To her surprise, Mude seemed to be swayed!

The confusion on Mude’s face deepened. He said, "But how can I get the money without doing this?"

"You could earn it through your own efforts! Look, who doesn’t need to work for their money now? Even the richest man in Asia, worldwide, they earned their wealth themselves. I genuinely dislike bad people!" Chen Mengjie said earnestly.

A struggle appeared on Mude’s face, making Chen Mengjie rejoice and she was about to say more.

Suddenly, a slap struck her face again.