Chapter 86 Rescue
"I'm too tired, let's sleep," Song Yushu covered the entrance to the cave, took off the clothes she was wearing outside, leaned against the rock, and closed her eyes.
Xiong Erni felt somewhat relieved at this moment. She felt a little guilty. If she hadn't been so reckless in running to catch the thief, Boss Wei wouldn't have chased after her. She was determined to bring Boss Wei back safely.
"Huh?" Song Yushu opened his eyes, somewhat dazed. He glanced around and, not seeing Xiong Erni, was startled.
"Boss Wei! Look what I caught!"
Song Yushu looked out of the cave and was amazed to see that the girl was incredibly fierce, holding a two-finger-wide, half-meter-long flower snake in her hand.
"Just call me sister. We've been through thick and thin together, no need to be so formal," Song Yushu said. Although she didn't want to eat, her stomach was already aching from hunger, and she wouldn't be able to leave the forest without eating.
Once the snake was cooked, the two of them didn't care about anything else and ate the meat clean without even looking up.
After extinguishing the fire, Song Yushu felt that although his body was sore, he at least had the strength and immediately took Xiong Erni on their way.
Just when the two thought they would have to camp out in the wilderness again, they saw a light in the distance.
"Someone lives there! Let's hurry over!" Xiong Erni exclaimed.
"Who are you? What brings you here?" An old woman opened the door.
"We were just out for a trip, but we got lost. Our home must be in complete chaos. We'd be grateful if you could take us in for the night, and take us to town tomorrow. We'll thank you afterwards," Song Yushu said, making up an excuse instead of revealing that they had escaped from human traffickers.
The old woman was skeptical, but she still let them in.
"Third daughter-in-law, prepare some food for the guests, and make room for Er Ya's room for them to stay in," the old woman instructed her daughter-in-law before going inside and not coming out again.
A young woman came out and brought them some food, then led them inside to rest: "You two should rest. Tomorrow my father-in-law will be going to town to buy grain, so you can go with him on your way."
After Song Yushu thanked her, the young woman left. Song Yushu didn't dare to sleep too soundly, so he and Xiong Erni slept separately, one sleeping in the first half of the night and the other in the second half, otherwise he was really afraid of being sold again.
Before dawn, the young woman came to wake them up. After a simple meal of mixed grain buns, just as she had said, the old man of the house was going to drive the oxcart to town.
"You two young ladies aren't from around here, are you?"
Song Yushu, who had been sitting in the oxcart and had just breathed a sigh of relief, immediately became wary upon hearing these words.
How did the old man know?
"Hmph! You're lucky. If it were any other family, you wouldn't have made it out," the old man didn't answer Song Yushu's question, but just snorted and continued driving the cattle.
Song Yushu was filled with unease. The old man's words didn't seem to mean him any harm, but they still made her very uneasy.
"Alright, you should hurry to the government office. Just go straight from here and then turn right. Don't talk to anyone. The villages around here are very poor, and there are many bachelors without wives. Every year, human traffickers bring people here. Good luck to yourselves," the old man said, then told them to get out of the car and left without looking back.
Song Yushu had no choice but to lead Xiong Erni toward the county government office.
"You were sent here by that Third Master Liang, weren't you? You're lucky. If it were anyone else, they wouldn't have brought you to the government office," the official said. He didn't make things difficult for them, but he guessed who had brought them from their words.
"Who is this Master Liang?" Song Yushu asked curiously.
"Poor man, a hunter, but his daughter was kidnapped by human traffickers. It was he who provided the authorities with the clues that led to the capture of those traffickers, but his daughter is gone too," the officer explained casually, as he was related to the man, Master Liang.
Song Yushu was also covered in a cold sweat. If she and Xiong Erni hadn't been so lucky, they might have fallen into a tiger's den after escaping a wolf's den.
After being properly settled, the two were finally relieved of their worries and slept soundly until dawn.
“This is Qishan County, at least three days’ journey from where you are. The place you fled to was Lingshui River. The magistrate has already sent people to investigate. Just stay here and wait for the results. We will send someone to take you back.” It was the same official who was related to Master Liang from yesterday.
"Okay, if there's anything we can help you with, just come to us and we'll definitely cooperate," Song Yushu had already told them the characteristics of the human traffickers, as well as the number of victims.
“Alright, I’ll mail your letters right away,” the official said, and then left with the letters.
At this moment, Xue Huai'an in the prefectural city had bloodshot eyes. In the past few days, when he found the dens of these human traffickers, the people had already been moved. Trying to trace the direction they fled was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
"You should at least take a rest. What will happen to Boss Wei if you collapse?" Gu Cheng was also helpless when he saw him like this. This man simply wouldn't listen to advice. If this continued, he would collapse before they even found him.
"Master Xue! I just wanted to ask if my Fang'er has been found," Aunt Yang's eyes were swollen from crying. There was still no news of Song Yushu. She couldn't sleep all night. If it weren't for them, Song Yushu wouldn't have come to the prefectural city. If he hadn't come to the prefectural city, he wouldn't have encountered human traffickers. Aunt Yang felt like the sky had fallen. She had no way to go back and face Wei's mother and the others.
"Get up first. We are still investigating. We will send someone to inform you as soon as we have any news," Gu Cheng had just finished speaking when another troublesome matter arose, so he had no choice but to have someone take Aunt Yang back first.
"You really didn't tell her parents about her disappearance?" Gu Cheng sighed.
“It’s not the right time yet. She wouldn’t want her family to live in fear,” Xue Huai’an said at this moment.
"Sir! There's news from Qishan County!"
"What?" Before Gu Cheng could even take the secret report from his subordinate, Xue Huai'an beat him to it.
"Found it..." Xue Huai'an staggered as he read the contents of the secret report. He hadn't rested well for several days and suddenly got up, his vision going black.
“Go directly to Qishan County. We’ve made some progress there. I’ll stay here to guard against any underhanded tactics they might pull,” Gu Cheng said, knowing Xue Huai’an was anxious, and simply handed the matter over to him.
Upon receiving the news, Xue Huai'an immediately led his men to Qishan County.
Song Yushu never expected to see Xue Huai'an here. Before she could even speak, she was pulled into a tight embrace. Upon seeing this, Xiong Erni turned around and went back.
"Were you sent to arrest human traffickers? How is my aunt?"
Song Yushu didn't push him away and let him hug her for a while.
"Yes, I've been looking for you ever since I knew you went missing. Thankfully, I found you..." Xue Huai'an was reluctant to let go of him.
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