The yacht Su Cheng had rented at an outrageous price had vanished into thin air—and that caused serious trouble.

All the killers hidden aboard had fallen into the water and were later rescued. Although they had failed the mission, they had already received half the payment as a deposit. Naturally, they weren’t going to return it.

Worse still, the compensation for the yacht was astronomical. Even if Su Cheng emptied every last bit of his family’s wealth, he still couldn’t afford it.

Gu Heng had acted as guarantor, so he was dragged into the mess as well and soon received warnings from the debt collectors.

The man who owned the yacht was a big shot known respectfully as Master Wan. He had made his name through shady business. His legitimate ventures were nothing impressive, but his influence was vast, and he was well-versed in every crooked trick imaginable.

Especially after the disaster, with social order collapsing, people like Master Wan thrived more than ever.

Gu Heng couldn’t afford to offend him.

“The priority now is compensating him for the yacht,” he discussed with Su Cheng. “Sell off whatever supplies you can. We have to gather the money first. I’ll find a way to negotiate with Master Wan.”

Hopefully, Master Wan wouldn’t think he had made up some excuse to swallow the yacht himself.

Liu Yaqin sobbed, “My son! When are you going to save my son?”

Su Rou threw herself into Gu Heng’s arms, eyes brimming with tears. “Brother Ah Heng, please think of something…”

Gu Heng’s irritation flared. He pushed her away. “What else can I do besides pay compensation?”

Su Rou stumbled and nearly fell.

Her watery eyes widened in disbelief as she stared at the man who had always treated her so gently. “Ah Heng, you…”

Only then did Gu Heng realize he had lost control. He hurriedly pulled her back into his arms and explained, “I’m worried about Su Ke too. We still haven’t heard anything from him. I’m afraid something really happened.”

“Brother Ah Heng, what are we supposed to do?” Su Rou clung tightly to his arm as if he were her last lifeline, her nails digging into his flesh.

Gu Heng felt another surge of annoyance, but he forced himself to remain patient. “The most urgent thing is raising money to compensate for the yacht. Master Wan is not someone we can afford to anger.”

Su Cheng collapsed weakly onto the sofa, his face ashen. “Do I really have to empty out everything…”

Wouldn’t that make him poor again?

“Right now, staying alive matters most. Money is just an external thing.” Gu Heng swore earnestly, “As long as I’m here, your family won’t go hungry. Rou’er is the woman I love, so of course I’ll take care of her family too.”

But Su Cheng was not so easily fooled.

He thought bitterly to himself: Easy for you to say. When it comes to actually paying, you refuse.

But at this point, what choice did he have?

He would have to hide part of the supplies first. He needed to leave himself a way out.

If the compensation fell short? Then Gu Heng could make up the difference. After all, he was the guarantor. If the money wasn’t enough, Master Wan wouldn’t let him off either.

—

Tang Xiaoman and Zhou Yichen returned to Tiannai Villa by assault boat.

Zhou Yichen deflated the boat, folded it up, and prepared to walk back to the villa.

After seven days away, Tiannai Villa had changed quite a bit.

Tang Xiaoman noticed that the entire villa district had been surrounded by wire fencing, turning what had once been semi-open grounds into a fully enclosed compound.

The wire mesh stood taller than a person, enough to keep crocodiles out.

But it also meant entering the villa district was now restricted. They had to find an entrance first.

Arrows on the fencing marked the general directions of four entrances.

The two walked along the perimeter for a while before entering through the northwest gate.

Just then, an electric scooter approached.

A young woman sat on the back with one arm in a sling, her other hand gripping the rear handle tightly.

“Tang—Xiaoman!”

The woman stared at the newly returned Tang Xiaoman as if she had seen a ghost and shouted, “Stop! Stop the scooter!”

The driver was also a young woman. Both had work bags slung over their shoulders, as though they had just gotten off duty.

Tang Xiaoman lifted her eyes.

Well. She knew them both.

The one with her arm in a sling was Shu Jia. The other was also an employee of Gu Group, named Feng Li.

This northwest entrance to the villa district happened to be close to two companies: Golden Vision Plaza and Greenfield Natural Organic Farm.

Most likely, Gu Heng had transferred these two here and planted them in those businesses to work for him.

Both Shu Jia and Feng Li had accounting certificates, making them professional finance staff. Company ledgers, inventory records, goods coming in and out—all of that required people like them.

They had just finished the middle shift and had coincidentally run into Tang Xiaoman.

Feng Li braked the scooter and glanced back, not understanding Shu Jia’s shock. “It’s just someone you know. Why are you acting like you’ve seen a ghost?”

Shu Jia jumped off the back seat and pointed at Tang Xiaoman with her right hand.

“You—you—you… aren’t you supposed to be dead?”

“Well, who told you I was dead?” Tang Xiaoman looked at her with a faint, mocking smile. “You believe whatever he says? Do you not have eyes or a brain of your own?”

Shu Jia choked on the retort.

She glanced at the young man standing beside Tang Xiaoman and seemed to understand something.

Hurriedly, she climbed back onto the scooter and urged Feng Li, “Go! Hurry!”

Feng Li was baffled, but she still waved at Tang Xiaoman before riding off.

—

Tang Xiaoman didn’t take a small fry like Shu Jia seriously, nor did she care whether Gu Heng knew she was alive.

So what if he knew?

If he had the guts, he could come try to cut her down.

When she returned to the villa, Fubao was the first to rush at her.

Tang Xiaoman hugged and kissed it, then took a steaming chicken leg from her backpack and handed it over.

Shanshan, dressed in a little skirt, fluttered into Tang Xiaoman’s arms like a butterfly. “Sister Xiaoman, are you okay?”

“I’m perfectly fine.”

Tang Xiaoman patted her little head, then reached into her bag again and pulled out a heavy pouch, handing it to Lu Jingming beside her.

Lu Jingming opened it and was instantly delighted. “Fresh blueberries? Where did you get these?”

“I remembered Shanshan loves blueberries, so I picked some while searching the mountains for supplies. There’s over ten jin—everyone can have some.”

The smile on Lu Jingming’s face vanished. Worried, he said, “I heard climbing mountains is extremely dangerous now. Hillsides collapse all the time, and there are mudslides…”

“I chose a safe spot. You don’t need to worry about me.”

After saying that, Tang Xiaoman turned to the rest of the team.

One after another, her teammates came forward to ask whether she and Zhou Yichen had been safe these past days.

Zhou Yichen also took off his bulging backpack. Inside was a fresh, large pumpkin and several thick bundles of tender Malabar spinach.

A rare find.

The team had learned how to grow vegetables hydroponically and sprout beans, but without enough sunlight, the leaves always came out pale and yellowish.

It had been a long time since they’d seen vegetables this green, fresh, and lush.