Chapter 13: Still a Breath

"Damn it! Where are the people?"

Yang Rang was so angry that he kicked the tree next to him. He clearly saw Geng Hao running towards this side, so why did the trace stop here?

He held a knife in one hand and a horse in the other, and searched the surroundings for a long time, stabbing all the places where people could hide with his knife, but he could not find any trace of Geng Hao.

That's strange, can that guy fly?

Yang Rang was so angry that he chopped the ground with his knife a few times, but he had to accept the fact that he really lost the person.

The sound of horse hooves gradually faded away. Shang Wan was carrying Geng Hao, and the cat was lying motionless on the tree.

The next second, there was a subtle sound of dead leaves being crushed, and Yang Rang came back with a knife in hand.

If Shang Wan had really jumped down from the tree just now, he would have been caught by him.

Yang Rang looked around desperately but still couldn't find any trace of Geng Hao, so he left unwillingly.

Shang Wan listened carefully, and after confirming that Yang Rang had really left, he jumped down from the tree carrying the person.

It was because the forest here was dense and the light was poor, and she was hiding high up, otherwise she would have been discovered by Yang Rang who was looking up.

Shang Wan put Geng Hao down and neatly put his limbs back into place. He said with a smile, "If you had moved just now, we would have been discovered. We had to make the necessary decisions in this emergency. I think you should understand, right?"

Geng Hao: “…”

Does he dare to say no? Who would just come up and tear someone's bones apart?

"I'll help you put your jaw back in place now." Shang Wan stared at Geng Hao's terrified eyes. "I don't like people yelling in front of me. Understand?"

Geng Hao nodded repeatedly.

Shang Wan reached out and skillfully put his chin back in place.

"I just saved your life. You must repay me for that." Shang Wan folded his arms and glanced at Geng Hao. "I don't need you to work like a slave for me for the rest of your life. All you have to do is answer a few questions. Isn't that a good deal?"

Does he dare to say no?

Geng Hao cursed in his heart but acted politely on the surface. He moved his aching jaw and said, "Please ask."

"Why did Tian Sheng send someone to kill you to silence you? What did you do for him?"

Hearing these two questions, Geng Hao's heart suddenly tightened. Who is this woman? Why does she know so much?

He thought for a while, and just as he opened his mouth, he heard Shang Wan say leisurely: "I can definitely break bones faster than you can lie. Do you want to try?"

Geng Hao, who was really planning to make up a lie: "..."

Not at all, thank you!

Shang Wan looked at the person sitting on the ground, "Tian Shengdu has sent people to kill you. If he is unkind, you can be unjust too. Why bother to hide it for him?"

"I..." Geng Hao pursed his lips, his expression hesitant.

"I don't have much patience." Shang Wan squatted down and looked at him directly, "If you don't tell me, I'll kill you."

Although he was talking about murder, his tone was as casual as breaking a branch on the roadside.

A chill penetrated into Geng Hao's heart through his ears. He only now realized that the woman in front of him was not only not a good person, but might even be more terrifying than Tian Sheng.

Choose the lesser of two evils.

"I can say it," Geng Hao said, his voice tense as he unconsciously grasped the weeds on the ground. "But after I say it, no matter what you want to do, you have to make sure I stay alive."

If Yang Rang fails to kill him, he will definitely go back and report to Tian Sheng, and Tian Sheng will not let him go.

The woman in front of him was investigating Tian Sheng and was obviously not on the same side as Tian Sheng. With this woman's strength, she could definitely protect him from Tian Sheng as long as she wanted.

Shang Wan curled his lips, "Do you think you have the qualifications to bargain with me?"

"I never helped Tian Sheng do anything that was against the law of nature," Geng Hao said, defending himself. "I just want to live a good life."

Shang Wan stared at him for a long while, then reached out and took the green leaf off his shoulder. "Tell me what you did for Tian Sheng first."

Geng Hao noticed that her tone had softened, and he was delighted. He didn't dare to make trouble anymore and poured out everything he knew like pouring out beans from a bamboo tube.

As he said, what he did to help Tian Sheng was indeed not against the law.

He simply helped capture the mother and brother of Niu Baoqing, a waiter at the Fuyuan Inn. Then, after the poisoning incident at the inn, he deliberately let Niu Baoqing off during the interrogation and simply went through the motions.

These two effortless things could earn him five hundred taels of silver, so Geng Hao was naturally happy to make a fortune.

He wasn't stupid. After the incident, he quickly realized that Tian Sheng was definitely involved in the poisoning of the county magistrate. But it was too late to regret. He had already boarded Tian Sheng's pirate ship, so he had no choice but to play dumb and wait for him to take the money and run away.

Shang Wan understood, and she asked, "Is Niu Baoqing still alive?"

"Alive." Geng Hao nodded. "His family is fine too."

Shang Wan was a little surprised. Tian Sheng could order Yang Rang to kill Geng Hao, so how could he let Niu Baoqing continue to live?

She frowned and thought for a moment, then figured out the key.

Tian Sheng probably felt that the sudden death of Niu Baoqing, a fellow involved in the case, was a bit abrupt, and wanted to wait until the case was settled and the hype had died down before killing him to silence him.

But Yang Rang failed to kill Geng Hao tonight, and the poisoning of the county magistrate was at risk of being exposed. There was no guarantee that Tian Sheng would not take the risk and send someone to kill Niu Baoqing first.

Thinking of this, Shang Wan's face darkened. He covered Geng Hao's mouth, carried him on his shoulder, and rushed towards the city gate at a rapid speed.

Following Geng Hao's directions, Shang Wan arrived at the Niu family's home in Tieshu Hutong. As soon as he entered, he smelled a faint smell of blood.

Oh no!

Shang Wan followed the smell of blood to the pitch-black kitchen, and with his excellent eyesight he could clearly see three people lying in a pool of blood.

An elderly woman, a young man, and a boy under ten years old.

The woman and the boy were both stabbed in the chest, killed instantly. Blood was still oozing from their wounds, clearly having been killed not long ago.

The man had two knife wounds on his stomach. Shang Wan squatted down and felt his pulse in his neck, and found that it was still beating slightly.

She felt a little relieved, pried open the man's tightly closed mouth, and fed him ten drops of spiritual spring water in one breath, and also dropped a drop on each of the knife wounds on his stomach.

Fortunately, the spiritual spring water in the space is increasing every day, otherwise it would not be enough.

Niu Baoqing is the key to identifying Tian Sheng as the murderer of Li Wenhua, and is also the key to rescuing Lu Chengjing. He cannot die now.

Geng Hao had just gotten used to the darkness and could barely see what was happening in the room with the dim moonlight streaming through the window. His heart started pounding and he touched his neck in fear.

If Shang Wan hadn't saved him, he would be a dead body now.

Just in case, Shang Wan called Geng Hao, "Come over here and identify him. Is he Niu Baoqing?"

Geng Hao walked over, squatted down, and brushed the man's hair away from his face. He stared at him for a moment with wide eyes, then nodded, "It's him."

He looked at Shang Wan's pulse-feeding movements and asked in surprise, "Is he still alive?"

Shang Wan hummed, "There's still a breath left."

"They are so lucky." Geng Hao sighed, reached out to close the wide-open eyes of the woman and the boy, and secretly cursed Tian Sheng for being so cruel that he didn't even let the elderly and children go.

Noticing that the spiritual spring water was beginning to take effect, Shang Wan picked the man up and placed him on Geng Hao's back, "Let's go to the clinic."

Geng Hao, who suddenly felt the weight on his body, said: "..."

There’s a curfew. Where can I find a clinic that’s open?

(End of this chapter)