Zhou Qiqi's next lip movement was filled with a desperate plea: "Please! Don't let us find out!"

The heavy word "beg" caused Zhou Shuhua a sharp pain in her chest, and she could no longer take a step.

She looked into Zhou Qiqi's eyes, which were brimming with tears yet filled with unwavering determination, and then listened intently.

The chaotic footsteps and vulgar laughter of the kidnappers in the distance grew closer and closer.

She bit her lip hard, suppressing the urge to rush over.

He suddenly dodged behind the nearest big tree, covered his mouth tightly with his hand, and even breathed very softly, afraid of making a sound that might alert those people.

But she was unwilling to give up so easily, so she could only peek out from behind the tree.

Silently, he mouthed and anxiously asked Zhou Qiqi, "What should we do?!"

Seeing that Zhou Shuhua had finally hidden herself, Zhou Qiqi's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, eased a little.

She forced herself to calm down, her mind racing faster than ever before.

What to do? What to do?

That's right! A clue!

She was just worried that even if she tried to leave clues, no one might find them, or they might be discovered too late.

The appearance of Zhou Shuhua is a godsend!

As long as she leaves marks along the way, Zhou Shuhua can notify Shen Huaichuan and let him find her by following the marks!

But what should we use as the marker?

She has no idea where she will be taken or how far the journey will be. The marker must be small, not easily noticed by the kidnappers, but easily recognizable by the rescuers...

In a flash, Zhou Qiqi remembered something in her handbag—a button!

She was in a rush to finish making the pattern today and hadn't decided on the final button design, so she simply grabbed a handful of buttons of various colors that she had prepared for testing and stuffed them into her bag, thinking she could choose them slowly when she got home tonight.

Unexpectedly, it will come in very handy now!

It's a big bag, all brightly colored, all prepared for the new spring products. I'll drop one every now and then on the street, it should be very eye-catching!

Although the item is small, it is the best solution she can think of and do right now!

Once she made up her mind, Zhou Qiqi no longer hesitated.

She first cast a look in the direction where Zhou Shuhua was hiding, as if to say, "Don't worry, trust me."

Then, with extreme difficulty, he shuffled his bound body, exerting tremendous effort, to slowly move the canvas satchel from his feet to his mouth.

She painstakingly bit open the zipper with her teeth, then tore open the small cloth bag inside containing buttons, carefully picked out a bright orange button, and tossed it onto the muddy ground outside the car.

She was about to mouth to Zhou Shuhua to "follow the buttons" when the heavy footsteps of the kidnappers reached the car!

We must not let them discover anything amiss!

Zhou Qiqi felt a chill run down her spine. She quickly stuffed her handbag under her body to hide it, and then, suppressing her nausea, she used her tongue and cheeks to push the dirty cloth back into her mouth, trying her best to make it look like it had been blocked all along.

She had barely managed to tidy herself up when the car door was flung open with a whoosh, and several burly men pushed their way in, making a ruckus.

The burly man at the head of the group glanced suspiciously at the back seat, his gaze lingering on Zhou Qiqi's face for a moment before he asked the skinny driver in a gruff voice:

"Skinny Monkey, I think I just heard that woman yelling? Are you fucking touching me again?"

Skinny Monkey felt guilty and quickly forced a smile to deceive the other person, saying:

"No, no! Brother, you've got it wrong! I was just checking if it was plugged in properly, it's tight! You guys did a great job!"

As he spoke, he hurriedly pulled a crumpled pack of cigarettes from his pocket and handed them out one by one, saying:

"Come on, have a cigarette, it's a good one from Brother Long! Let's close the door and get out of here quickly, don't keep Brother Long and his wife waiting!"

The burly man took the cigarette, put it in his mouth, glanced sideways at the skinny guy, and warned:

"You're smart to know your place! Skinny Monkey, let me tell you, this trip is for money! My wife said this woman is a cash cow, so stop thinking about your crotch all day and ruining Brother Long and my wife's big plans, or you'll be in big trouble!"

"I know, I know! Don't worry, brother, I know what I'm doing!"

Skinny Monkey nodded repeatedly, urging the others to close the door quickly.

They got this beat-up van from a scrapped auto repair shop; the doors were so badly damaged they were unrecognizable.

It took several people a lot of effort to finally manage to turn it off.

However, a noticeable gap remained along the edge of the door, where Zhou Qiqi's head was facing.

They weren't the ones getting chilled, so the group didn't pay much attention and waved their hands impatiently, saying:

"Alright, alright, as long as you can walk! Skinny Monkey, drive!"

Zhou Qiqi secretly breathed a sigh of relief, glancing out of the corner of her eye at the small piece of dry twig she had secretly nudged to the crack in the door with her foot during the chaos.

This was another little trick she had set up, tucked into the side of the car door, hoping to keep the door gap closed so she could continue dropping buttons.

Fortunately, these people were impatient and didn't even bother to check.

Skinny Monkey started the car, and it slowly began to move, ready to leave.

But just then, the skinny monkey inadvertently glanced back through the car window.

In the twilight, he thought he saw something moving over the bushes.

His heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason, and he shouted sharply:

"Who?! Who's there? What's that over there?!"