When they were almost there, Jiang Qiao asked Song Zhi to park the tricycle on the side of the road, and the three of them ran forward.

Everyone in this industry knows why Jiang Qiao did this.

When they arrived, Jiang Qiao and the others didn't dare to knock on the door, because the courtyard where the children lived was quiet and didn't look like anyone lived there.

Jiang Qiao's heart skipped a beat. It wasn't like this before. These kids would automatically and consciously study together in the evening, with those who were in school teaching those who weren't. Usually, there would be the sound of them reading aloud, but today was very unusual.

Jiang Qiao pushed the door open, only to find it locked from the inside. She whispered to Song Zhi for a while, then took something out of her pocket and handed it to Song Zhi.

Jiang Qiao quietly circled around to the other side of the courtyard, while Song Zhi started knocking on the door and calling for people, and his men hid to the side to prepare.

"Mengzi, Mengzi, are you there? It's your Uncle Du. I've brought Er Ya some cold medicine. Come out and get it."

The children inside were all silent with fear. In front of them stood a man with a gun, the muzzle pointed at them.

Hearing the shouts outside, the man in black pointed his gun at the children.

"Who is Mengzi? And who is that person outside?"

Mengzi raised his hand and said, "I am Mengzi. The person outside is our neighbor. He heard me this morning that my sister was sick, so he came to bring us medicine tonight."

The man then asked the other children, and it turned out that all the children in the room could tell who the person outside was.

Uncle Song Zhi, the uncle who solved a big problem for them back then, and he was also the police chief. They were all familiar with that voice.

However, all the children nodded in agreement with Mengzi's words, "It's Uncle Du, our neighbor."

The man looked at the children with suspicion. He had never dealt with children before and didn't know whether what they were saying was true or false.

However, at this moment, he absolutely could not let anyone in. He pulled Er Ya over, pointed the gun at her head, and said to Meng Zi, "Hurry up, go out and get rid of that person. Tell them you don't need them. Don't try anything funny, or I'll blow her head off."

Mengzi hesitated for a moment, then glanced at Er Ya, who was trembling with fear.

Nodding, he turned and left. The assassin, still not at ease with Mengzi, stood by the window with his arm around Er Ya's neck, watching Mengzi intently.

Mengzi walked to the door, turned around and looked into the house, his eyes filled with a conflicted expression. No one could understand how bad he felt right now. Outside, their savior had arrived, but inside, his younger siblings had become hostages. What should he do?

"Mengzi, open the door!"

"Uncle Du, my sister is almost fully recovered and no longer needs the medicine. Thank you so much!"

Upon hearing Mengzi's words, Song Zhi immediately understood. He whispered something to his subordinate, who glanced at Song Zhi and then quietly left.

Although he didn't know what was going on inside, Mengzi recognized him as surnamed Du, so it was obvious that there were other people inside, and the child was being threatened. Song Zhi didn't hesitate; the assassin must be inside.

There are children inside. It's probably not enough for him and Jiang Qiao to manage alone. He needs to have someone quietly come and cordon off the area, at least to prevent the assassins from roaming around anymore, otherwise even more people will be harmed.

"Mengzi, I brought you some food, open the door—"

Mengzi glanced back at the man standing at the door. Should he open the door or not?

The assassin also found it strange. What was this person outside doing, bringing both medicine and food?

With a pistol pressed against Er Ya's head, he asked, "Do your neighbors usually bring you food?"

Er Ya nodded her little head. "We are beggars. People around us take pity on us and often help us out."

The little girl is quite shrewd. How could she not understand what was going on outside? Not only Er Ya, but even the other children in the room knew.

However, spending years begging on the streets has made these children mature very early. Even if things are not right, they don't want to show it in front of bad people.

"I'm hungry, I want to eat something—"

One of the children spoke up, and the others joined in.

The assassin, seeing that the children were about to rebel, brandished his gun menacingly at them, shouting, "Shut up, all of you! If you make another sound, I'll blow your heads off! Get down!"

He glanced at Mengzi, gestured with the tool in his hand towards Er Ya's head, and pushed the little girl out.

It's unlikely that the door will remain closed. If the children aren't interested in the food, the people outside might become suspicious.

Especially after what he did tonight, he doesn't believe that little girl will let it go so easily.

He now suspected that the people outside might be police officers. He grabbed Er Ya's head and whispered, "Go open the door, don't let anyone in, and get rid of them. Otherwise, this day next year will be the anniversary of the little girl's death."

Mengzi did as he was told, and Song Zhi understood everything when he saw Mengzi's somewhat flustered face.

"Mengzi, here, this is medicine and some food. Take these back to your younger siblings. Are they alright? Why haven't I seen them come out?"

Mengzi blinked frantically at Song Zhi, "He, they're all fine, thank you, Uncle."

As Song Zhi handed over the item, he squeezed Mengzi's hand tightly.

"Then you all need to be careful. I heard they're catching bad guys outside. If anything happens, just call out. All of us neighbors are here."

Mengzi gave Song Zhi a complicated look and nodded. "Uncle, we understand. Don't worry, it's alright."

Song Zhi sighed inwardly. Mengzi's condition wasn't good, and the children inside probably weren't much better off. He guessed that person must be in the courtyard, otherwise, Mengzi wouldn't be so silent.

"Alright, hurry up and share the food with your younger siblings. Uncle's leaving."

Jiang Qiao hid behind the tree branches on the wall. The trees in the yard were quite large and leafy, but it was winter now and the leaves had all fallen, so they weren't as well-hidden as they were in summer. Therefore, she didn't dare to show her face on the wall, but the muzzle of her gun was pointed at the man.

She had been hesitating for a moment, afraid that if she made a mistake, Er Ya's life would be lost in her hands. But if she let the assassin into the house now, the danger would be even greater. There were more children in the house. She was torn between one and more.

Even a life matters, but the key issue is that she lacks confidence right now. What if she makes a mistake?

Song Zhi was also anxious at the door. Seeing that Mengzi was about to close the door, he wondered why Jiang Qiao hadn't made a move yet. Now that she was back inside, it wouldn't be so easy for them to get in.