As he spoke, Zhao Jun added, as if deliberately stalling for time, "Actually, Third Brother, you don't need to worry too much about that woman's ankle being injured by the rope. Although she has been taking medicine during this time, it certainly won't heal that quickly. Even if we let her run for a while longer, she won't get very far."
The third brother heard Zhao Jun's words, turned his head and glanced at Zhao Jun: "I know that woman has an injury on her foot, otherwise I wouldn't be so leisurely. But we can't let that woman run for too long. We still have to catch up with her quickly."
Xu Xinchen was unaware that Zhao Jun was trying to buy her time inside the house. After jumping from that building, she endured the pain in her foot and ran frantically outside.
She had just seen the direction Lin Bingchun and her group had gone; it seemed they were heading towards the next mountain. She had also memorized their route, and if she followed that path, she was sure she could find Lin Bingchun and the others.
After Lao San and Zhao Jun chased after her, they never expected that Xu Xinchen would know the group of young people who had just argued with them in their garden. Therefore, they did not immediately think of those people and decided to split up.
The third brother pointed eastward and said to Zhao Jun, "You go look this way, and I'll go look for the two of us. Whether we find them or not, come back here in a little while and tell us your situation."
Zhao Jun nodded, turned around and ran in the direction Lao San pointed. Lao San also ran frantically in the other direction, and the two of them separated.
Xu Xinchen ran headlong in the direction she had just seen, and before she knew it, she had indeed run to another place.
On a hilltop, far away, she heard voices coming from ahead.
Lin Bingchun's voice was the one Xu Xinchen was most familiar with. She was hearing Lin Bingchun talking about what happened with Sister Hua and her group earlier: "I don't know why those people are so sensitive. It's just a small, shabby house. What's wrong with letting people take a look? Why did they have to kick people out like that?"
Beside her came the voice of an indignant girl, who sounded somewhat like the short-haired pretty girl who had just led the criticism against Sister Hua: "That's right, I don't know what those people are doing building a house in this deep mountain forest, and they're so wary of others. They're definitely not doing anything good!"
Xu Xinchen had no interest in listening to any more of what was said. She ran frantically toward the group of people, calling out as she ran, "Bing Chun, Bing Chun."
Lin Bingchun was chatting with the girl next to her when she suddenly heard someone call her name. Her first reaction was to turn around and ask the group of people, "Who called me?"
The group exchanged bewildered glances, each face showing obvious confusion: "It wasn't me, I didn't, I was just talking to someone..."
"It wasn't me either. I was just listening to them talk; I didn't say a word..."
"I didn't say that..."
After asking around, everyone said they hadn't called her. Lin Bingchun frowned deeply, signaling everyone around to quiet down and listen quietly to the direction the sound came from.
Everyone fell silent, and now the voice became much clearer: "Bing Chun... Bing Chun..."
As Lin Bingchun listened, her brows suddenly furrowed tightly, and she turned her head away, forgetting the house she had just gone to.
He ran in the opposite direction: "Min Shi, Min Shi, is that you?"
Xu Xinchen pulled aside the tree branch blocking her way and immediately saw Lin Bingchun. She shook her aching legs, her eyes glistening with tears.
"Bingchun, turn around, I'm here." Xu Xinchen said, tears streaming down her face, as she walked towards Lin Bingchun.
Lin Bingchun turned her head and saw Xu Xinchen's figure. Then she saw Xu Xinchen's clothes, which were wrinkled like pickled vegetables, her messy hair, and the fact that her hands and feet were wrapped in gauze.
She was so surprised she almost jumped up: "Min Shi! What happened to you? How did you suddenly get yourself into this state?"
Xu Xinchen didn't have time to answer Lin Bingchun's question. She turned her head to look in the direction they came from, and after seeing that no one was chasing after them, she reached out and patted Lin Bingchun's hand that was leaning towards her.
"Don't ask me that yet, and don't touch me. I haven't showered for days, and I smell awful. Don't let the stench bother you. This is a long story. Could you take me down the mountain first? I'm not familiar with this area, and I need to get down here as soon as possible."
Seeing Xu Xinchen's miserable state, Lin Bingchun could easily understand that Xu Xinchen must have encountered something incredible. Therefore, upon hearing Xu Xinchen's words, she immediately nodded.
He reached out and took Xu Xinchen's hand, saying solemnly, "Come with me. We just came up from that mountain. I still have some memory of the path here. I'll take you down the mountain right away."
Xu Xinchen turned her head and glanced at Lin Bingchun's hand that was gripping hers. Just as she was about to pull away, she heard Lin Bingchun say, "I see your foot is already injured. You should hold onto me; it'll be better if I help you."
Don't talk to me about taste or anything like that, I don't care about that.
Xu Xinchen was taken aback, and a warm feeling welled up in her heart. She stopped insisting on shaking off Lin Bingchun's hand and obediently placed her hand on the back of Lin Bingchun's hand.
She put her other hand on Lin Bingchun's shoulder, letting Lin Bingchun lead her step by step toward the group of young people.
When the others saw that Lin Bingchun had left alone, but returned with a ragged person, everyone looked surprised.
The short-haired, pretty girl who had just started arguing with Sister Hua asked, "Lin Bingchun, what's going on? What happened? And who is she?"
Lin Bingchun supported Xu Xinchen, her eyes filled with a hint of wariness as she looked at the group of people. She didn't intend to tell them the truth, but instead casually made up an excuse.
“This is my friend. She came into the mountains to play and got lost. Now that she sees me, she wants me to take her out.”
Regardless of whether others believed it or not, Lin Bingchun was convinced of this statement and had no intention of changing it. After saying this, Lin Bingchun helped Xu Xinchen walk outside step by step.
The girl who had spoken earlier stepped forward and put her hand on Xu Xinchen's other shoulder: "You must be having a hard time by yourself. Let me help you."
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