Chapter 30 Wan Jinzhe's Death
The woods were so quiet that you could almost hear a pin drop.
Even though there were so many people sitting together to rest, no one spoke. Most of them were so tired that they didn't even have the strength to speak.
Wan Laoer lied that he wanted to go to the bathroom, and walked towards the woods not far away with his bag. Wan Jinzhe thought Wan Laoer's behavior was strange, so he also lied that he wanted to pee, and quietly followed Wan Laoer into the woods.
Wan Laoer found a low-lying place, looked around vigilantly, and after confirming that no one was coming, he threw the steamed bun on the ground without hesitation, and then walked back with an empty bag.
All of this was seen by Wan Jinzhe who was hiding in the dark. His eyes almost popped out of his head and he thought: What kind of family is this? How can they just throw away so many steamed buns?
After Wan Laoer left, Wan Jinzhe couldn't wait to run to the place where he had thrown the steamed buns just now, picked up all the steamed buns and stuffed them into his clothes.
He wanted to report this family so that the officials would no longer give them food and would starve them to death.
Wan Jinzhe picked up the food and stuffed it into his mouth at random.
Even though the steamed corn bread was already cold and hard like a rock, Wan Jinzhe was so hungry that he could eat a whole cow, so how could he care about the taste?
After Wan Jinzhe picked up all thirty or so steamed buns, he prepared to go back.
But after taking a few steps, he suddenly foamed at the mouth and fell to the ground.
The steamed buns on his body also rolled off and fell scattered on the ground.
It was not until this moment that he realized that there was something wrong with the steamed corn bread thrown by the peasant.
The half-hour rest time passed in a flash, and Liu was shocked to realize that one of her sons was missing.
"Master, Master, my second son is missing. He said he was going to the bathroom, but he hasn't come back in half an hour!"
Zhou Qiang winked at another officer, who understood and immediately stepped forward to inquire about the details.
"Where did your son go before?"
"Sir, my son said he went to the bathroom, but it's been a long time and he hasn't come back yet. Could something have happened?"
The more Liu thought about it, the more frightened she became. She had lived a life of luxury all her life and never imagined that she would have to endure such torture in her old age. If she lost another son, it would undoubtedly be a heavy blow to her.
Several soldiers walked inside in the direction Liu pointed to check. Not long after, one of them came back hurriedly.
"Brother Qiang, Wan Jinzhe is dead. Go and have a look. He looks like he was poisoned."
Although Zhou Qiang felt a little suspicious, he didn't think much about it. After all, it was normal for one or two people to die on the road to exile. Even if these people died, he had people supporting him above. Those laws were nothing but empty words to people like them with backgrounds.
But since something has happened, he, as the leader, still has to go and take a look.
Zhou Qiang followed the officers and soldiers to the place where Wan Jinzhe had the accident. He saw Wan Jinzhe foaming at the mouth, his face was blue and purple, his lips were black, and his limbs were stiffly lying in the fallen leaves. There were dozens of steamed buns scattered around him.
Zhou Qiang's attention was instantly attracted by the steamed bread scattered on the ground.
He bent down and picked up a steamed bun, thinking to himself: "No wonder Wan Xingmo's family is still safe and sound. It turns out that they actually realized that the steamed bun was poisonous. I thought they were indestructible!"
Zhou Qiang threw away the steamed bread without changing his expression, patted the non-existent dust on his hands as if nothing had happened, and said to the two people present: "When you go back later, tell them that you didn't find Wan Jinzhe. He's missing."
"But, Brother Qiang, what's the matter with all these steamed buns on the ground? How does Wan Jinzhe have so many steamed buns?" A soldier looked suspicious.
Zhou Qiang was too lazy to explain, and just said, "Who knows, but don't talk nonsense about the steamed bread, we have to hurry on our way."
After saying this, he strode away without looking back.
The soldier grumbled in confusion: "What's wrong with Brother Qiang? Why does he look a little strange?"
"Alright, don't ask questions that you shouldn't ask. Just do whatever Brother Qiang says. You're new here, and you won't understand the ins and outs of this for a while. Hurry up and leave, and keep your mouth shut."
After the two soldiers came back, Zhou Qiang said loudly, "Wan Jinzhe went to relieve himself just now, but he disappeared. We have checked and found blood and dragging marks on the ground, which means there are man-eating creatures in this forest. Everyone, follow closely. If you fall behind, you will end up like Wan Jinzhe.
Hurry up, we must find a cave to stay in before dark, otherwise none of us will survive."
Although Zhou Qiang wanted to use Wan Jinzhe's death to scare everyone, what he said was true. If there was no cave to spend the night in the woods, the danger at night would increase exponentially, and he was unwilling to take the risk.
When Liu heard that her son was missing, she felt like she was struck by lightning and fainted on the spot. Wan Jinzhe's daughter-in-law Sun and two sons burst into tears.
"Mom, what happened to my dad? I want my dad, I want my dad..." Wan Xinghui, who was only six years old, was so scared when he heard that his father would not come back that he threw himself into Sun's arms and burst into tears.
Sun burst into tears. While she hugged Wan Xinghui and comforted him gently, her heart was broken.
Liu fell to the ground and no one paid any attention to her.
Liu's other son, Wan Jinhan, selfishly mixed into the crowd and walked forward on his own, ignoring his wife and daughter, and not paying any attention to his mother. He even ate the steamed buns distributed in the morning by himself.
"Hurry up, don't dawdle." Zhou Qiang shouted loudly in front.
Wan Die Lan woke Liu up with a look of disgust.
"Mom, wake up, wake up quickly." Liu was finally woken up by Wan Die Lan.
"Lan'er, where is your second brother? Have you found him?" As soon as Liu woke up, she grabbed Wan Die Lan's arm and asked nervously.
Wan Die Lan frowned, shook off Liu's hand, and said unhappily, "Mother, you hurt me. The official said that my second brother is missing, and there must be nothing left of him. He was not good to you, so why do you still miss him? Hurry up and leave."
With a "slap", Liu slapped Wan Die Lan hard on the face, furious.
"Are you still human? He is your own brother, how can you say such heartless words? Go find your second brother right now." Liu growled at her daughter almost crazily.
Wan Dielan felt that Liu was unreasonable. How could she, a weak woman who couldn't even tie a chicken, go find someone?
Her second brother, such a strong man, has disappeared, and her mother can even say that she, a woman, should go to look for him?
Wan Die Lan covered her face angrily, snorted angrily, and stood up suddenly, "Mom, if you want to find it, go find it yourself, I won't go! The official just said that if we can't find a cave to stay tonight, our lives will be in danger! If you want to die, don't involve me!"
After saying that, Wan Die Lan strode away without looking back, leaving Liu sitting alone on the ground.
A cool breeze blew through the forest, and Liu couldn't help but shiver, feeling cold all over.
She looked around and found that everyone else had already walked away, and she was the only one still sitting there stupidly.
Liu was frightened now and no longer thought about looking for her son. She quickly got up from the ground like a frightened rabbit and ran desperately, as if there was an evil ghost chasing her.
Wan Xingmo fell to the end of the team, looked in the direction where Wan Jinzhe disappeared, and then moved closer to Wan Laoer and asked in a low voice: "Uncle Wan Er, what did you do with those steamed buns?"
"I just lied and said I was going to the bathroom and threw them away. What's wrong?"
Wan Xingmo instantly understood the reason why Wan Jinzhe disappeared. It must be because he ate those poisonous steamed buns.
But it’s better this way, so that he won’t cause trouble to everyone in the future.
"It's okay, I was just asking casually, just throw it away."
The group traveled for another two hours. It was very dark in the forest and it got dark earlier than outside.
The officers and soldiers lit torches one after another, trying to find a cave to live in before dark.
There are more than forty of them now, and it is not easy to find such a big cave.
Old Mrs. Wan could hardly hold on any longer, and Boss Wan was by her side supporting her.
Seeing that Mrs. Wan looked pale, Mr. Wan hurriedly said, "Mom, let me carry you on my back."
Old Lady Wan waved her hands and said weakly, "No need. The road in this forest is not easy to walk on. If you carry me on your back, we might both fall. I'll just hold on. The terrain is going up all the time, so we'll probably be there soon."
Boss Wan had no choice but to continue supporting Old Lady Wan, but most of Old Lady Wan's body was leaning on Boss Wan, and Boss Wan was almost half dragging her forward.
At this moment, they were already deep in the dense forest. The lush forest here was like a natural maze, and it seemed that few people had ever set foot in it.
The surrounding environment is primitive and simple. The sturdy trees are like pillars that support the sky, reaching straight into the sky, and the vines hanging from above are like nimble giant pythons that will trip people if they are not careful.
"Sir, let us rest for a while. We really can't walk any more."
Someone from another branch of the Wan family uttered a pleading cry.
They were covered in wounds and exhausted after two days of high-intensity trekking. Their legs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead. Every step they took required gritting their teeth and trying their best.
"Still resting? There's no cave at all. If you don't want to live, just rest!" Zhou Qiang said sternly, and then took the lead to continue moving forward.
Suddenly, one person rolled down the slope and hit the person behind him like a huge rock, and the two of them rolled down together.
Fortunately, there were many trees in the forest, which stopped them and prevented a disaster.
The crowd in the woods suddenly became agitated and stopped to watch.
At this moment, a faint tiger roar sounded like thunder from the depths of the forest.
The commotion was stunned for a moment, and then an even greater commotion was heard in the woods.
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