0005 Chase
The full moon hung in the night sky, and a beam of dim yellow light shone into the dark room.
Two figures appeared in the half-open door, one of them slowly walking into the room.
Song Ning closed her eyes and pretended to be fast asleep.
The person who came in moved very quietly, as if afraid of waking Song Ning.
The man walked to Song Ning's side, picked up the doll she had thrown on the ground, patted it, and placed it next to her pillow.
"Are you asleep?" a man outside asked in a low voice.
The woman tucked the blanket in and quietly walked towards the door: "I'm going to sleep."
"Hmm, I feel like this child is adapting too quickly, I'm a little worried..." the man said.
"Shh, let's talk about it when we get back," the woman said quietly.
The door was gently closed, and Song Ning opened her eyes.
Song Ning lay on the bed, waiting quietly until the outside became quiet and there was no more movement, then she quietly got out of bed.
She reached under the pillow, found a leather wallet, and tiptoed barefoot toward the room.
The door was opened a crack, and the corridor outside was pitch black.
Song Ning peeked into the master bedroom and, after confirming that Su Qingru and the others were asleep, breathed a sigh of relief.
She opened the door and cautiously walked downstairs.
Slow down, be gentle, it's okay, take your time, they're all asleep.
She murmured to herself, her small toes stepping on the cold steps, then gently lowering her heels, each step slow and light.
A very soft noise suddenly came from behind her. Song Ning was startled and quickly covered her mouth and nose, squatted down, and nervously looked around.
The night was silent, so quiet that it seemed as if the commotion just now was an illusion caused by Song Ning's tension.
She waited for a while, and seeing that no one was around, she continued walking downstairs.
After a long period of fumbling, Song Ning's hand finally touched the door latch.
She became even more nervous, but couldn't hide her excitement. As she turned the lock, her movements became hurried.
"Where are you going?" A clear, gentle voice sounded softly in the darkness.
Song Ning's pupils contracted, realizing she had been discovered, and she felt extremely frustrated.
She gripped the handle, hesitating whether to pull her hand back or continue opening the door.
"I..." The person behind me seemed to want to say something.
Song Ning suddenly made up her mind, turned the handle, gripped her wallet tightly, and ran wildly out the door.
The surrounding trees swayed in the breeze as Song Ning walked barefoot on the bluestone path, panting heavily.
There were sounds of pursuit behind her. Shen Yuxiu called out to her in a low voice, but she dared not stop.
She ran forward with all her might, but before she could even reach the front gate, her path was blocked.
Shen Yuxiu stood in front of Song Ning.
The courtyard lights shone on Shen Yuxiu, his soft hair falling and brushing against his forehead. Beneath his straight, sharp nose, his thin lips were slightly parted as he breathed out softly.
He was wearing a short suit that looked more like a uniform than pajamas, barefoot on the ground, arms outstretched, a pair of men's plus-size slippers in his right hand: "I'll go with you, where are you going?"
Song Ning was only about waist-high to Shen Yuxiu. Knowing she couldn't outrun him, she stopped, hid her wallet behind her back, and looked at Shen Yuxiu warily.
“It’s so late, it’s dangerous for you to go out alone.” Shen Yuxiu lowered his arms and suggested, “Let me go with you.”
Song Ning looked at Shen Yuxiu, trying to discern the truth or falsehood in his words.
"You're not wearing shoes, do you want to wear mine?" Shen Yuxiu looked at Song Ning's bare feet. "I'll put the shoes next to you, you can put them on first."
Song Ning took a step back.
"Don't worry, if I wanted to stop you, I would have woken up Mom and Dad when I found you sneaking downstairs." Shen Yuxiu knelt down on one knee and stretched out his hand to accurately throw the shoe to Song Ning's feet.
Song Ning wasn't wearing shoes, but she was less wary of Shen Yuxiu.
Over the past few days, Shen Yuxiu has treated her very well, even better than the adults who refused to take her home. But she wants to go home, and she is afraid that Shen Yuxiu will be like those adults and not let her go back.
If the adults hadn't refused to take her home, she wouldn't have needed to secretly hide money and run away in the middle of the night.
Actually, she didn't really intend to go home. Since no one was home, she just wanted to go back and take a look.
“You’re smart and brave, but do you know how to get there?” Shen Yuxiu glanced at her hands hidden behind her back, his voice sounding like he was suppressing a laugh. “This is in the mountains. There are no buses or taxis. You have to walk down the mountain to find a car, but it will take a long time to get down.”
Song Ning lowered her eyes, knowing that what Shen Yuxiu said was true.
Shen Yuxiu softened his voice: "When you get down the mountain, it's so late and you're traveling alone. What if you run into bad people? Even if you don't run into bad people, would they give a ride to a child? They might even mistake you for a lost child and take you to the police station, which would alert your parents, and you wouldn't be able to go where you want to go."
Seeing that Song Ning was stubborn yet somewhat wavering, Shen Yuxiu smiled brightly: "Why don't you take me with you? I look like an adult. If I take you on a ride, they shouldn't refuse to give you a ride or misunderstand. We can just say that the older brother took his younger sister out to play and they're coming home late."
"So? Do you want to reconsider and bring me along?" Shen Yuxiu asked.
Song Ning met Shen Yuxiu's sincere, smiling eyes and was somewhat moved by his words.
She frowned, thought for a long time, and decided to try to believe him: "No. 113, Wutong Lane, Anning Town, Zhennan District."
"Okay, let's go together, but we can't get a taxi here, so I'll go get my bicycle first. Once I get you to a place where we can get a taxi, we can take one together, okay?"
"You're not lying to me?" Song Ning asked, half-believing, worried that Shen Yuxiu would take the opportunity to run back and call for help.
“I’m not lying to you. You can make me swear or we can pinky swear, but you have to stand here and wait for me. You can’t run out by yourself,” Shen Yuxiu said.
Song Ning nodded: "Go ahead, I'll wait for you here. But if you lie to me and call those adults, I'll never believe you again."
"Okay, I'll be back soon." Shen Yuxiu stood up, shook his leg awkwardly, and then ran back.
The courtyard was planted with trees and flowers, which looked somewhat frightening in the shadows.
Song Ning looked at the slippers beside her feet, hesitated before stepping into them, and then, dragging the slippers which were several sizes too big, leaned against a tree with a thick trunk.
She waited for a while, but when Shen Yuxiu did not arrive, she began to have doubts.
So slow!
Song Ning clutched her wallet to her chest, stared at her shoes, and finally decided to wait a little longer.
A moment later, she heard the sound of wheels. She hid behind a tree trunk and looked in the direction of the sound.
"Song Ning? I'm here. Are you still there?" Shen Yuxiu called out softly.
When Song Ning saw Shen Yuxiu come out alone, a hint of joy appeared on her face. She slowly stepped out from behind the tree and said, "I'm here."
"I thought you ran away." Shen Yuxiu pushed his bicycle, seemingly very happy. "I'm sorry, I went to get you your shoes and pants, I'm late."
"Put them on."
Shen Yuxiu parked the car next to Song Ning and took two bags from the back seat.
"Pants?" Song Ning asked, puzzled.
“It’ll be uncomfortable for you to sit in the back of the car in your nightgown. It’ll be better if you wear pants.” Shen Yuxiu took a pair of trousers out of the bag and handed them to Song Ning. “You should be able to dress yourself, right?”
Song Ning snatched the pants from his hand, feeling looked down upon and very unhappy: "Of course I will. I always come by myself when I'm at the hospital."
Shen Yuxiu's clear eyes darkened. He turned his back and took out shoes from another bag: "Tell me when you've changed."
Song Ning sensed that the person next to her seemed a little sad because of her words. She glanced at his tall and slender back, put on her pants through her nightgown, and then pulled the hem of her skirt out: "Okay."
"Why are you sad?" Song Ning asked.
Shen Yuxiu did not answer.
He turned around, and just as he was about to put his shoes on the ground, he saw that Song Ning was wearing his slippers.
Song Ning lowered her head, then took two steps back, her face slightly flushed: "I..."
"Wear your own shoes. My shoes are too big, and they might fall off if you sit behind me." Shen Yuxiu smiled, bent down, and put the shoes on the ground. "I'm quite happy that you're willing to wear my shoes."
Song Ning thought for a long time but couldn't come up with a reason, so she simply squatted down quietly and changed her shoes.
Shen Yuxiu put the extra slippers into a bag, then had Song Ning sit on the back seat, and pushed the bike for a while before getting on.
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