Chapter 132 They're all family.

Chen followed her out, touched her cold face, and leaned closer to ask in a low voice, "Sister-in-law, do you think... this can really work out?"

Seeing the glimmer of hope in her sister-in-law's eyes, Zhang Xiuying's voice was terrifyingly deep: "Nonsense! Kidnapping and extortion are serious crimes! If this gets out, the men of both our families will be in big trouble! You can just wait to become a widow!"

Chen panicked, still clinging to a sliver of hope: "Sister-in-law, we're all family, the Liu family couldn't be so heartless, could they?"

Zhang looked at her like she was an idiot: "You showed no mercy when you kidnapped someone's child, you showed no mercy when you extorted a thousand yuan, and now you expect them to show you mercy? Have you lost your mind?"

Chen was taken aback for a moment, then her eyes lit up and a greedy glint appeared on her face: "Sister-in-law, a thousand yuan! That's enough for us to live on for a lifetime! By then, my Er Gou will be able to go to school, get married, and we can afford all the necessities! This is a chance to make a fortune!"

Seeing Chen's dreamy smile, Zhang frowned deeply.

In this crazy house, she felt like an outsider.

Zhang ignored Chen and went back to her room with a sullen face. Looking at the sleeping dog on the bed, she was in a state of turmoil.

Although the big dog was stupid and the child's father was a scoundrel, he was still her own flesh and blood. If the big dog were gone, she would go even crazier than Shen Hongmei.

Now that the Shen brothers have committed such a heinous crime, once the truth comes out, the man will be shot, and the child will be ruined for life by bearing the stigma of being the son of a murderer!

"No... I can't do this! I have to report it! Even if I get beaten to death, I can't let the child be implicated!"

Zhang gritted her teeth and made up her mind to rush out.

As soon as she opened the door, she saw Shen Hongmei sitting in the courtyard, staring intently at her with a sinister look in her eyes.

"Big sister... what's wrong?"

Shen Hongmei's face was gloomy, and her tone was frighteningly calm: "What were you muttering about in the room just now?"

Zhang's heart skipped a beat. She grabbed Shen Hongmei and whispered, "Sister, the brigade is still guarding outside. Let's sneak off and send word so the brigade can rescue Dabao! He's your own son!"

Shen Hongmei narrowed her eyes and sneered, "No wonder my parents made me guard the door; they were keeping an eye out for you, the mole! The Liu family is rich; a thousand yuan is nothing to them. If we give them this money, Da Bao can go home, and our family can survive. What's wrong with that?"

Zhang stared at Shen Hongmei in disbelief. Tears still clung to the corners of her eyes, yet her words were chillingly cold-blooded.

"Big sister! Are you crazy? That's your own flesh and blood!"

"I'm not crazy!" Shen Hongmei roared hysterically. "If it weren't for this money, Da Bao would have been sold to a remote mountain village, and I would have been sold to a bachelor as a wife! Since the Liu family has money, why don't they use it to save us? They owe me this!"

Zhang was so shocked by this twisted logic that she staggered backward, feeling a chill run through her body: "You...you bunch of lunatics!"

She turned to run, but Chen suddenly rushed out of the house and grabbed her tightly.

"Sister-in-law! We used to argue endlessly about the children's education, but now that we've finally found a way to make money, both of our children can go to school. Don't do anything foolish or bad!"

Shen Hongmei rushed over, and the two of them together pushed Zhang into the house and locked the door with a "click".

Zhang pounded on the door frantically, yelling, "Let me out! You bunch of idiots! This is serious, you'll lose your heads!"

Shen Hongmei peered through the crack in the door, her eyes bloodshot and her face contorted in a ferocious grimace: "Shut up! If the Liu family dares to report this to the police station, I'll take Da Bao with me and die!"

After yelling, she wiped her face and followed Madam Chen into the main room to discuss how to get the ransom from the Liu family.

Liu Zhixia, hiding in the space, saw this scene clearly.

Zhang was indeed a breakthrough point.

Seeing that Zhang's conscience was not completely extinguished, Liu Zhixia slipped out of the space and gently knocked twice on the door.

Zhang collapsed to the ground, mistaking it for Chen and the others, and weakly cursed, "You bunch of heartless bastards! If you want to die, go die yourselves, don't drag me and Big Dog down with you!"

"Sister-in-law Shen, it's me, Liu Zhixia."

Zhang shuddered and lunged to the crack in the door, whispering, "You really came?! Quick! Call the police station right now! The child is in the hands of those two beasts!"

Liu Zhixia went straight to the point: "Where is the child?"

Zhang suddenly fell silent, her eyes filled with struggle.

Liu Zhixia immediately added, "Sister-in-law Shen, I know you care more about your child. As long as you tell me where Dabao is, I'll give you some money. You can take your child back to your parents' home and leave this hellhole of the Shen family. Life will definitely be better than it is now!"

Zhang smiled bitterly, tears streaming down her face: "If my family had a way to survive, would I have married into this den of wolves? These days, a woman with a child will only be beaten and driven away if she goes back to her parents' home!"

Liu Zhixia's heart sank, but she quickly adjusted her strategy: "Then I'll have my second sister-in-law find you a job in the city. Have you ever taken your child to the city before?"

Zhang smiled bitterly: "I can't read a single word, what can I do in the city? I won't earn that kind of dirty money."

"As long as you're willing to put in the effort, there are plenty of decent jobs! There are female workers in lumber mills and brick factories. If you help me rescue Da Bao, I'll spend money and pull strings to get you a job!"

"Really?!" Zhang's eyes lit up instantly, as if she had grasped a lifeline.

"It's absolutely true! The Shen family is asking for a thousand. Even if I only spend half that amount to settle you down, it's still a good deal and I can save you from this misery. What do you say? Are you in?"

Without further hesitation, Zhang declared decisively, "Let's do it! I'll tell you! There's an abandoned cave at the west end of the village. The children used to go there often, but recently the weeds have grown so wildly that they've blocked the entrance, and nobody knows where they're hiding!"

"Okay! Thank you!"

Having obtained the exact location, Liu Zhixia didn't delay any longer and quickly evacuated by climbing over the wall.

Outside the wall, Liu Xuejun and several militiamen were waiting anxiously. Just as they were about to reach out to catch her, Liu Zhixia landed steadily.

Liu Xuejun asked anxiously, "Sister, how is it? I just heard Shen Hongmei screaming. Is the child really in their hands?"

Liu Zhixia nodded and quickly told the village militia the location.

The militiaman slapped his thigh: "I know that place! It's definitely well-hidden; you can hide people there! Quick, find the brigade commander!"

With the captain's command, the group split into two and headed straight for West Mountain.

As soon as we reached the foot of the mountain, we saw Shen Lao Er squatting at the cave entrance, smoking and keeping watch.

When Shen Lao Er looked up, he saw a huge group of people. He was so frightened that he threw away his cigarette butt and ran up the mountain as fast as he could.

Unfortunately, he hadn't run two steps before Liu Xiangyang and his men, who had been lying in ambush, caught him red-handed and pinned him to the ground.

With red eyes, Liu Xiangyang straddled Shen Lao Er, raining down punches: "You son of a bitch! Da Bao called you uncle, and you still dared to hit him?!"

Shen Lao Er was beaten and howled, but he refused to reveal the child's exact location, only shouting that he didn't know.

Just then, a child's cry came from deep within the cave: "Dad! Help!"

"Da Bao!"

Liu Xiangyang suddenly sprang up, shook off Shen Lao Er, and rushed into the cave like a madman.

The cave was dimly lit. Old Shen was holding a butcher's knife, pressing it tightly against the neck of Da Bao, who was bound like a dumpling. He roared menacingly.

"Don't come any closer! Anyone who dares to take a single step, I'll kill them!"