Hearing that she had seen her son, Chen Zhanliang breathed a sigh of relief. "Sixth brother's wife, where did you see Erbao? What is he doing? Who is he with?"

"Yes, sister, where exactly did you see my second son? Is he still there?" Sun asked anxiously.

The sixth son's wife recounted what she had just witnessed.

“I was gathering firewood in the mountains when I saw your Zhancai leading Erbao from afar. They were talking about going to town to buy some good food and taking him to see the monkey show. I wanted to say hello to them, but they were walking in a hurry, and by the time I got there, they were long gone.”

"Did the third son take Erbao to town?" Sun asked in shock.

Chen Zhanliang was also taken aback. "What's he doing taking Erbao to town?"

"Why are you two glaring at me like that? Didn't I already tell you that your third son took your son to buy some good food and also to see the monkey show?"

Chen Zhanliang's head suddenly went blank as he recalled how last year, his third brother had tried to persuade Old Madam Chen to marry off Qing'er in order to get her to study. When that failed, he wanted his eldest brother, Chen Han, to become a eunuch in the palace. At that time, he was constantly on guard against Old Madam Chen trying to harm Erbao.

Half a year passed, and the third son passed the imperial examination and became a scholar. Overjoyed, he neglected his son.

His eyes were bloodshot with resentment as he sternly said to Liu Fengjiao, "Third brother's wife, Erbao left with Zhancai. Why did you just say that Erbao was still in the yard?"

“Yes, Fengjiao, why did you lie to us? Why did you lie?” Madam Sun also questioned.

Seeing the murderous glares in their eyes, Liu Fengjiao panicked for a moment, but quickly regained her composure.

"What kind of questions are you asking? I've been staying inside the house the whole time and haven't been looking after the children. How would I know where Erbao went? As for whether Zhancai took him, don't talk nonsense, Lao Liu's wife."

Upon hearing this, the sixth son's wife immediately became displeased. "When did I lie? I watched with my own eyes as your husband took the second child to town via a shortcut. There's absolutely no mistake about it."

"Impossible. It's true that my son Zhancai went to town, but he went to the academy on business. How could he bring Erbao with him?"

Liu Fengjiao would never admit it. As long as she could stall these people and let them search the desolate mountains outside the village, she estimated that Old Lady Chen and the others would be able to get things done. By then, even if they went to the town, they wouldn't be able to find Erbao.

Thinking of this, she added, "Don't forget, there are several paths leading up the mountain. Maybe Erbao ran off to play in the mountains."

Hearing her say this, the villagers who were watching all nodded in agreement.

"What she said might be true; the kids in our village love to run up the mountain whenever they have nothing to do,"

"Yes, if they go up the mountain to play, they'll probably be back in a little while,"

"Yes, yes, kids are naughty. They should come back when they've had enough playing."

......

Sun looked at Chen Zhanliang with a face full of anxiety, "Husband, hurry up the mountain and look for him."

"Yes, yes, second brother, you should hurry up the mountain and search carefully. Maybe Erbao is lost." Liu Fengjiao also chimed in, pretending to be anxious.

"No way, my third uncle was going to take me to town this morning, but I didn't go. He must have taken Erbao with him." Chen Han said with certainty.

Chen Zhanliang panicked. He knew Liu Fengjiao was lying. His sixth brother's wife was an honest person and would never lie to him.

Chen Han and Er Bao are the closest of friends, so it's even less likely that Chen Han would lie.

The only thing that is certain is that Erbao was indeed taken to town by Zhancai.

Considering that his parents weren't home, he was absolutely certain that something was going to happen to Erbao.

He stamped his foot in frustration and complained to Sun, "I told you I could finish the work in the fields, but you wouldn't listen and insisted on coming with me. Now look what's happened, Erbao is lost, are you satisfied now!"

"You, you really don't know what's good for you. I also feel sorry for you and want to help you share more of the burden." Madam Sun's face was pale as she stammered, "Father, don't blame me yet. What do we do now?"

Seeing his wife's tears streaming down her face, Chen Zhanliang's heart softened. "Cuiqin, don't worry."

Chen Zhanliang knew perfectly well that his wife cared about him. Now that the eldest son's family had been separated, he was the only one managing the family's more than ten acres of land, with no one to help him.

His eyes were bloodshot as he stared intently at Liu Fengjiao. "Third brother's wife, tell the truth, was Erbao taken away by the third brother? What was he doing taking Erbao to town?"

"I've been inside the house the whole time. How would I know where Erbao went? Besides, if Zhancai really took Erbao to town, what's the big deal?"

Is it illegal for an uncle to take his nephew out to play?

Seeing Liu Fengjiao's shifty eyes, Chen Qingqing could tell that Erbao had definitely been taken to town by Chen Zhancai.

Her heart sank, and a bad premonition welled up inside her.

Chen Zhanshan immediately understood what was going on, but he couldn't say it directly in front of so many villagers, so he quickly said to Chen Zhanliang,

"Don't worry, Qingya came back by carriage. Zhanliang and Erbao can't walk that fast, they shouldn't be in town yet. You should hurry and chase after them, you should be able to catch up."

Knowing the seriousness of the situation, Chen Qingqing quickly jumped onto the carriage. "Second Uncle, Second Aunt, get on the carriage quickly, let's go to town to find Erbao."

"Alright, alright." Mr. and Mrs. Chen quickly got into the carriage, and Xiaoyu followed closely behind.

Seeing this, Liu Fengjiao sneered inwardly. Even if you go to the town, you will never imagine that your own grandparents would sell their grandson to a brokerage firm. By the time you search the whole town, the child will probably have already been moved away.

Chen Zhanshan also felt a little uneasy. He knew Chen Zhancai's character; he had never given other people's children a kind look. Why would he take other people's children to town? It was possible that he was a wolf in sheep's clothing, with no good intentions and who knew what bad things he was up to!

Thinking this to herself, she hurried to the carriage and said, "Qing'er, I'm going with you too."

"Dad, you can stay home." Chen Qingqing said, and loudly instructed the driver, "Hurry up and go back to town."

With a shout from the driver, the whip cracked repeatedly, and the carriage sped off towards the town...

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