Wenjie had lost his sense of time. All he knew was that it was daytime, and they were once again on their way to an unknown place. The motorhome they occupied drove leisurely towards its destination wherever that might be. 

Wenjie sat on the sofa next to the back wall of the driver's cabin. Across from him, on the other side of the table, sat his captor, blocking his path to the door. It would have been no use trying to escape, anyway. 

The door was locked from the inside and all the curtains of the few small windows were drawn. The interior was spacious, equipped with the sitting area, a small cooking facility, a shower room with toilet and two beds. There was also a small room above the driver's cabin with an additional sleeping area. Wenjie assumed that Xu Zhengqing would tie him up again later and put him there, hidden and safe. 

Xu Zhengqing placed a small hourglass on the table. Wenjie looked at him with a blank expression. He had many questions, but lacked the strength to say them. It was also impossible to tell whether Mister Xu would not lie to him. Even with what had happened during his unconsciousness, he could not be sure. After all, he had discovered no hematomas or bruises while bathing. Aside from that, he was sure Xu Zhengqing liked to play mind games. The uncertainty gnawed at him, but the watchmaker's presence wouldn't let him rest. 

"By now, the police will have found our hiding place." 

Wenjie listened up. 

Xu Zhengqing smiled slyly. "I'm sure Captain Luo will be pleased with the gift I left for him."

Wenjie swallowed and bit his lower lip. 

"I don't mean your clothes," Mister Xu countered. He then pulled out a black device from his pocket and placed it on the table. On the device's display was a timer. Underneath, there was a switch. Xu Zhengqing flicked the switch. "Captain Luo has five seconds to leave the building if he is still in the basement looking for you."

Wenjie winced. His eyes widened. Instinctively, he tried to reach for the device, but the clockmaker pulled it off the table before he reached it. Wenjie's breathing quickened. 

"We'll find out tomorrow whether he fell into my trap or got away." Mister Xu laughed spitefully. "I will kill any person who tries to get you away from me."

"Why?" Wenjie finally regained his speech. "Why are you doing this? Why is it not enough for you to blackmail me? I will not put my friends in danger. As long as their safety is at risk, I'll do whatever you want. Why isn't that enough for you?"

"Because I've never stopped being greedy." Mister Xu reached under a chair and pulled out a Weiqi board, which he now placed on the table. "I regret not fetching you back then. It would have saved us a lot of trouble."

Wenjie breathed heavily. His hands were cold and clammy. 

"Now I have to break your resistance first. It's clearly reflected in your eyes. You can't hide it. You are reluctant to call me Uncle Xu. You only do it because you have no other choice."

With that, he hit the nail on the head.

Mister Xu began placing white and black stones on the Weiqi board. "I know what you have done," he said. "If you try to send Morse code or otherwise tip off the police again, I won't use knockout drops." He paused in his action and looked at him. 

Wenjie avoided his gaze. The psychological pressure that continued to weigh on him had just increased significantly. "I'll do whatever you want, Uncle Xu." His voice was barely more than a whisper. "You don't have to threaten me. I get that you're capable of anything."

"I hope so for your sake." He leaned back. Then he tapped his fingers on the table. "Look at the position and tell me what's wrong with it."

The request distracted Wenjie from his anxiety about Captain Luo. Irritated, he looked at the stones. The positions of the stones looked familiar. He had seen a similar board before. Again, he swallowed. Briefly, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Before he had died, his father had shown him this position. No, it wasn't quite true. It had looked different. 

Slowly, he opened his eyes again and met Xu Zhengqing's lurking gaze. 

"I've seen this before."

"I know. Ding Shenghuo was watching you and your father that day." Mister Xu smiled. 

"This has something to do with the secret of Luoshen?" 

Xu Zhengqing nodded. "Smart boy."

Wenjie reached for the pieces that were too many and took them off the board. "This is the position my father showed me." 

"Are you sure?"

Wenjie nodded. "It was the only time he made me memorize it." 

Xu Zhengqing stood up and attached a ladder to the edge of the upper sleeping area. "You've earned some sleep. We'll be on the road for quite a while."

"That's all?" Wenjie stared at him, aghast. "All you cared about was this? That's why you wanted us to steal the painting? That's why my father had to die? That's why you kidnapped me? All because of this?" His pulse raced. His heart pumped adrenaline through his veins and his voice swelled again. He was close to slamming the board into Xu Zhengqing's face if it weren't for the certainty that he would be the one to pay if he stood up to him. It cost him an effort to keep his composure. But his voice quivered and his breath rattled. He was glad to be sitting. Otherwise, his legs would not have carried him. 

Xu Zhengqing did not reply. 

His silence said more than his words. The world began to spin before Wenjie's eyes. He leaned back on the sofa and concentrated on his breathing. Slowly, the whole situation became too much for him. He felt something inside him threatening to break because he couldn't escape the pressure that was burying him underneath. 

When Xu Zhengqing tried to help him up, he instinctively slapped his hand away. 

"All you had to do was ask me. I am not like my father," Wenjie whispered. "I care more about the lives of my friends, my family, than I do about a painting and the secrets it hides." All the pain about the past burst out of him. He still didn't understand why his father had acted the way he did back then. Why had he risked his mother's life? Why had he stolen Luoshen when he had already known the secret? All he had to do was tell Xu Zhengqing the position. Then neither his mother nor his father would have died and his life would not be in a constant downward spiral. 

Xu Zhengqing sat down beside him and put a hand on his shoulder. Wenjie lacked the strength to slap it away again. Then the watchmaker did something that completely paralyzed him. He took him in his arms. Not to hurt him, but actually with the intention of comforting him. 

Wenjie guessed what was behind it. Xu Zhengqing wanted to awaken in him the desire that he would treat him again as he had in the days before the kidnapping. The consequence of this would be a first step towards Stockholm Syndrome.

to be continued...