Chapter 41 Chapter 41 It's obviously a happy thing

Chen Ling'an didn't allow Xiaoman to enter the torture room, so Xiaoman had to wait in the small room next to it.

The walls of the room were made of stone, with a small dark window three inches square, through which one could see what was happening next door.

The trafficker was dragged up with the clatter of chains. Xiaoman recognized her; she was the middle-aged woman she had caught when she and Chen Ling'an were watching the shop together.

The human trafficker's body was covered in blood from being whipped, and he huddled up in a ball, shaking. Without waiting for Chen Ling'an to ask, he just poured out all the beans.

Near Xihuamen, a wealthy family was in chaos, and there was an unattended little girl, about four or five years old...

Xiaoman saw Chen Ling'an's hands shaking.

"Where is that kidnapper? Where did he sell the person to?"

"I don't know. He didn't tell me, and it's not the rules of our business to ask. Five years ago, the Temple of the God of Wealth disbanded, and I haven't seen him since. I don't know where he is. I just remember he was from out of town, and his accent sounded like he came from the north."

Chen Ling'an stopped asking questions and simply twisted one of her fingers off.

The trafficker screamed and cried: "I really don't know——"

Click, click, the second one, the third one...

Chen Ling'an seemed to be unable to hear her pleas for mercy. He just concentrated on crushing her bones inch by inch, as if this was more interesting than anything else.

Under the intense pain, the traffickers actually dug out something from the corners.

"I remember... once someone called him a 'candle embryo' and he got furious. He said he had to make a name for himself. Maybe, maybe he was a local. When he was worshipping the God of Wealth, he called himself Zhuang, Zhang, or Jiang. I couldn't hear clearly from the distance."

Chen Ling'an kicked her on the head, and the human trafficker fainted without a sound.

Without any instructions, Wu Yong took the kidnapper's portrait and went to look for him.

Xiaoman pushed open the door and slowly walked into the sunny field.

Chen Ling'an also came out of the torture room. When he saw her, he was stunned and subconsciously put his hands behind his back.

"Well done!" Xiaoman said angrily, "Human traffickers deserve to be beaten to death. They've caused so many families to be torn apart and left in agony! Your kick wasn't strong enough. If it were me, I'd chop her up with a knife. Humph, beating her to death wouldn't satisfy my anger."

The heavy mood seemed to be a little better. Chen Ling'an pulled the corners of his mouth, wanting to smile, but his expression was uglier than crying.

Xiaoman: "You didn't eat anything tonight, so mother sent some for you. Eat something."

Chen Lingan shook his head.

"I haven't eaten either, so just consider it as keeping me company, okay?"

Chen Ling'an still didn't say anything.

"If you don't say anything, it means you agree." Xiaoman gently pulled his fingers.

My fingertips are cold.

A wave of sour and hot taste surged up, choking Xiaoman's nasal cavity and causing her eyes to ache and burn.

Her voice was even softer than Mu Feng's. "It all matches up. It must be her. You must take good care of yourself and protect your sister. Make up for what you have missed out on over the years. From now on, you will be her support."

Chen Ling'an followed her silently to the tea room behind the signing room.

Xiaoman opened the food box and laid out the items one by one: red bean rice porridge, sesame cakes, and six dishes, and then put the chopsticks in his hand.

Regardless of whether there was a response or not, Xiaoman continued to chatter while serving him the food.

The weather is getting colder, so it's time to buy some warm clothes and prepare the charcoal fire. Oh, this is my first time spending winter in Jinling, and I don't know if it will be cold, whether it will snow, whether the river will freeze, and whether I can ride a dog cart...

He ate whatever she put in the bowl. By the time Xiaoman could no longer find a topic to talk about, most of the dishes on the table had been finished.

Chen Ling'an took out a paper bag from the drawer and handed it to her.

Yanjin plums!

Xiaoman was surprised and happy, and her heart was relieved a little.

"Don't waste time here. Go back and rest early." He said, "I'm fine."

Xiaoman clenched the paper bag in her hand and said, "Well... I'm leaving now. Don't forget to let me know if you have any news."

Chen Lingan said "hmm".

Night fell, like a huge net pressing down heavily.

Xiaoman couldn't fall asleep with her eyes open. She tossed and turned in bed, sighing long and short sighs. She couldn't tell why, but she always had a bad feeling.

The next day she wanted to look for Chen Ling'an, but Mrs. Jiang advised her, "He must be very busy these days. Don't cause him any trouble."

Xiaoman had no choice but to give up.

After waiting for another half a month, there was still no movement. Xiaoman could not bear it any longer and secretly ran to the door of the Beizhenfu Division.

The doorman smiled when he saw her and said, "Please come in, young lady. Our masters knew you would come and told us to come."

Xiaoman couldn't help but feel a little secretly happy.

But when he saw Chen Ling'an, his secret joy turned into heartache.

He was incredibly thin, with sunken eye sockets, no flesh in his cheeks, a pointed chin, prominent brow bones and cheekbones, and a scruffy beard. He was still wearing the same clothes he had worn the last time they met.

"You... haven't you been resting all this time?"

"fine."

His voice was hoarse and tired, like a dying person who had been walking in the desert for a long time without drinking water.

Xiaoman was shocked by her own thoughts and hurriedly poured water for him.

As soon as Chen Ling'an put it to his mouth, he started to dry heave. Xiaoman was so frightened that she pounded her back and rubbed her chest, almost crying.

"It's okay, it will be fine in a while." Chen Ling'an waved his hand. "We already have a clue. We estimate that we can catch him in the next two days. You came at the right time. I just walked in and you arrived right after me."

Xiaoman pushed him down and said, "Go to sleep! You haven't found the person yet, but you collapsed first. Who can your sister rely on?"

Chen Lingan smiled bitterly: "I can't sleep."

"You have to sleep even if you can't." Xiaoman said without hesitation, covering his face with a handkerchief, "Close your eyes and don't think about anything."

The handkerchief exudes a fresh fragrance, so pleasant, just like... just like the sun is shining brightly, the fields are filled with the fragrance of leaves, the breeze brings the faint scent of unknown wild flowers in the distance, and the light herbal scent of mugwort.

It makes people feel inexplicably peaceful.

A soft snoring sound came from under the handkerchief.

Xiaoman breathed softly and stayed quietly beside him.

The afternoon sun shone into the room, lengthening the two people's shadows and gradually overlapping.

There was a slight sound at the door, and Wu Yong lowered his head.

Xiaoman tiptoed out, "He just fell asleep, are you worried?"

Wu Yong hesitated. "Forget it. Let's wait until the master wakes up. He can't run away anyway. He hasn't slept for five or six days."

Chen Lingan's voice rang out from inside the room: "Wu Yong? Come in."

Wu Yong looked at Xiaoman and sighed helplessly.

Caught the kidnapper.

Because she was kidnapped from near Chenjia Lane, Chen Xiaomei was dressed exquisitely and was as beautiful as a porcelain doll. The kidnapper was deeply impressed and even remembered clearly who she was sold to.

"The kidnapper originally planned to sell her far away, but before he could find a buyer, she was spotted by a noblewoman who bought her to be her maid. We checked the official record of the deed, and it seems to be in the Zhao family south of the city. She is currently the concubine of Zhao Zhe, the Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Justice."

When he said the last two words, Wu Yong's voice was almost inaudible.

Chen Ling'an's face was filled with coldness and gloom. "Was there anyone named Zhao Li among those arrested by the Ministry of Justice last month?"

"Yes, he impeached you, and his insults were awful. When we were handling the suspected corpse-fraud and property-stealing case, we also arrested him." Wu Yong continued with a stiff upper lip. "It is said that Zhao Li loved her very much, almost to the point of being inseparable. The two of them had a very good relationship."

"Love?" Chen Ling'an laughed heartily as if it were a joke, then flew into a rage, "My sister is only fourteen, fourteen! Son of a bitch, I'll kill him!"

Wu Yong hurriedly hugged him, "Sir, don't be impulsive! Think about whether her relationship with that beast is deeper or with you!"

Chen Ling'an suddenly stopped.

Xiaoman tried her best to pull back his hand that was tightly gripping the knife handle, "At least you have to take a look and confirm if it's her."

Wu Yong nodded quickly, "Yes, yes, if not, we'll just kill that beast with a single blow. If so, we'll have to make careful plans."

Chen Ling'an's arms slowly relaxed. "If that's the case, I'll kill him anyway."

"Kill, kill, kill." Wu Yong sighed, "Shall we go to the Zhao family now?"

Chen Ling'an forced himself to suppress his turmoil. "It will scare her. Let the Zhao family know and allow family visits."

Wu Yong: "What if it's his wife who comes?"

Chen Ling'an's eyes suddenly flashed, and his voice turned cold: "Then let's keep those annoying people away."

-

The sun had not been visible since morning that day, and thick dark clouds hung low over people's heads, as if the sky was about to fall in at any moment.

The cool breeze blew up the dust, swirling it around the corners of the wall, lifting the corners of the robe hidden in the shadows high up.

Chen Ling'an stared at the closed iron gate, clenched his fists, breathed lightly and rapidly, and his head was covered with sweat.

Xiaoman looked at him worriedly and wanted to comfort him, but it would be unnecessary to say anything at this time.

While I was daydreaming, the iron gate creaked open and a bailiff led a little girl in.

Xiaoman held her breath.

The little girl was not tall and was thin and weak. She was holding a large bag tightly in her arms and had some difficulty walking.

The light was dim and her appearance was blurry.

Gradually, she came closer, and her face was reflected in the lantern that Chen Ling'an had specially lit.

Xiaoman opened her eyes wide.

She has an oval face, delicate eyebrows, a straight nose, and beautiful eyes, big and round, with slightly upturned corners, looking as pure as a deer.

Just hunched shoulders and a look of panic and fear on her face made the originally beautiful girl look somewhat ordinary.

She doesn't look much like Chen Lingan, so it shouldn't be her.

Xiaoman sighed softly and looked up at Chen Ling'an.

Chen Ling'an also looked over at her and laughed, "No need to check further, it's her...it's her...she looks exactly like my mother."

The smile shattered.

Xiaoman felt a loud bang in her head and her heart felt like it was stung by a scorpion. The pain was so severe that she could hardly breathe. She opened her mouth, wanting to cry and shout, but no sound came out.

She stared at Chen Ling'an, reached out and hugged him.

Tears flowed down and fell on his chest.

Chen Ling'an slowly lowered his head. "Why are you crying? This is good news. I found my sister. You should be happy for me."

Xiaoman cried even harder.

Yes, it’s obviously a happy thing, why do I feel so sad?

"Okay, come with me to meet my sister." Chen Ling'an asked with a smile, "What do you think I should do when meeting her?"