In a remote mountain village surrounded by mountains, the night has not completely faded, and a faint, ink-like color still shrouds the earth.
Suddenly, a series of clanging sounds woke up the quiet little village, adding a touch of noise.
Every household that heard the sound opened their tightly closed doors and ran in the same direction.
In an instant, the noise replaced the silence, with urging voices everywhere, seemingly concealing unease and fear.
Amidst the hurried crowd, two thin and short figures suddenly came into view.
Then I heard the younger one say anxiously, her voice trembling with tears, "Sister, hurry up, or you'll get beaten."
As she spoke, her small body trembled slightly, as if she had remembered something terrifying.
The other one, which was slightly larger, trembled and its feet moved much faster.
Two small figures trailed closely behind the main group, struggling to keep up.
Suddenly, a loud shout came from behind: "Make way, make way, make way, you little brat, make way!"
Immediately afterwards, there was a loud thud, the sound of something heavy hitting the ground, followed by a small cry, "Sister, sister... are you alright? Are you okay?"
Looking around, I saw the larger one lying on the ground, eyes closed, motionless, and I had no idea what was wrong with it.
The little girl's panicked and timid voice was full of fear, but she could only glance at the figure that had already run past with a beam of light, wiped away her tears and squatted down.
The girl lying on the ground had a sallow complexion; her small face seemed to consist of only a layer of skin, with no flesh at all. Her eyes were tightly closed, and if it weren't for the slight rise and fall of her chest, one would mistake her for being dead.
The little girl cried and shook her, "Waaah... Sister, what's wrong? Waaah... Sister..."
The little girl didn't know what to do, so all she could do was keep shaking the person lying on the ground and cry.
As she swayed slightly, the girl on the ground suddenly moved her eyes, and then her eyelashes trembled, as if she was about to wake up.
The little girl beside her, feeling the movement in her hands, was greatly encouraged and tightened her grip. "Sister... please get up..."
She felt a little anxious. Everyone had already gone far away, and only a few people were walking past them in a hurry.
However, not a single person stopped to ask or lend a hand.
The little girl could only cry helplessly. She didn't know who could help her.
When Song Li could hear a sound, she heard a sound like a kitten crying.
She was a little surprised. Why were there cats here? None of the houses nearby had cats!
When she opened her eyes, all she saw was complete darkness, with only occasional glimmers of light. But she wasn't surprised; it was nighttime after all.
The next moment, she was startled because someone was pushing her and saying, "Sister, get up, get up quickly." The voice was full of anxiety.
Instinctively, she looked toward the source of the sound and saw a dark mass, from which she could vaguely discern that it was a person.
Then, that kitten-like voice was heard again: "Sister, everyone has gone to the stage, let's go quickly too."
"Otherwise, the captain will beat people if it gets too late," the little girl sobbed.
Song Li was puzzled. "Captain? A stage? What is this?"
However, before she could figure these things out, she was interrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps coming from the side.
"Lili? What are you still doing here? Get up and leave quickly, or it will be bad." Song Renyong said breathlessly.
"Jianshe, you hold Lili's hand, and I'll take Fangfang. Let's go quickly."
Before Song Li could speak, she was forcefully pulled up and dragged along as they ran.
The words that were not yet spoken were blocked in the throat by a gust of cold wind, and no matter how hard they were done, they could not be said. Instead, they choked and brought tears to their eyes.
She could only passively follow the unfamiliar boy who was pulling her along, looking completely bewildered and confused.
What exactly is going on?
She struggled to stop, trying to figure out what was going on.
But the person in front of her was too strong, and she was powerless to break free. She could only stumble and fall as she ran forward.
Before long, Song Li felt like she was panting heavily and had difficulty breathing.
Just as she was about to give up, an open space appeared in front of her, filled with people who were all whispering among themselves.
The person holding her stopped, found a secluded corner, and shrank into it, remaining motionless.
Song Fang and Song Yongren, who followed behind, stood beside them, waiting silently.
Only then was Song Li able to spare some time to think about what exactly was going on.
She was sleeping at home, so why did she have to face this scene as soon as she opened her eyes?
And this place... where exactly is this? And who are these people?
Countless questions raced through Song Li's mind, causing her to momentarily lose her composure and become unable to discern the truth.
Before she could think it over, her thoughts were interrupted by the deafening sound of gongs.
"Everyone, please be quiet. We've gathered you all here so early today for one thing."
In the open space surrounded by the crowd, there was a platform that was noticeably higher than the rest of the area. A man, about forty years old, with a dark red face, was shouting at the top of his lungs.
Along with the man's voice, the people quieted down, and all the noise and commotion suddenly vanished.
Song Li watched curiously, wondering to herself, "Who exactly is that person? Why are these people so obedient to the person on the platform?"
It seems this man is no ordinary person!
Before she could finish her thought, she heard the man's voice again: "I brought everyone here to tell you something."
"Last night, someone actually went to the field to steal potatoes and damaged public property. Such a person should be taught a good lesson."
As soon as the man finished speaking, the people around him suddenly started buzzing with discussion.
"Who is this? How dare they steal from the fields? They'll be in big trouble if they get caught..."
"Who's so shameless? The potatoes were only planted a month ago, what could they possibly have?"
"Exactly! Aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning for wasting food?!"
"Sigh... If I fall into Luo Weijia's hands, I'll be lucky to escape with my life..."
The sound was like an echo in a valley, reverberating and growing louder and louder.
"clang"
The sound of the gong rang out again, along with the voice of the man on the platform.
"So the purpose of bringing you all here is to show you what the consequences of stealing are, to teach you a lesson so that you'll think about the consequences before you do something like that in the future."
Then, the man on the platform, Luo Weijia, suddenly looked at the crowd below with a ferocious expression.
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