The falling snow blurred the vision of the father and his two sons, and they hurried towards the city market.
Along the way, they looked around from time to time, trying to find the children's traces through the tracks on the snow.
But the snow was so heavy that all traces had been covered by the snow. They went to the market with hope.
When they arrived in front of the shop covered in snow and wind, they saw that the shop was locked. The hearts of the father and his two sons instantly sank to the bottom!
Mr. Li panicked instantly. He frantically grasped his son's arm and asked anxiously, "Erlang, Min'er and the others aren't in the shop. Where could they have gone? Could something unexpected have happened?"
Li Erlang was also very panicked at this time. He forced himself to calm down and began to analyze. The children must have gone back at this time, but they did not return home. Did something unexpected happen on the way?
He took a deep breath and said to Li Dalang, "Brother, take Dad back to the village and hire more people to search along the way. I'll go to the city to ask the county magistrate for help!"
After hearing his son's words, Mr. Li seemed to have found his backbone. He grabbed his son's arm tightly and said worriedly, "The city gate should be closed by now. Can you go in?"
"I have to give it a try!"
Finding the person was of utmost importance, so the three of them immediately split up into two groups. Mr. Li followed his eldest son to look for the person in the village, while Li Erlang went to the city.
When the guard on the tower saw a dark figure slowly approaching the city gate, he shouted, "Stop! The city gate is closed! No one is allowed to approach!"
The dark figure stopped, raised his head, and spoke through the falling snow, "It's me, Li Wenzhi!"
When the gatekeeper saw that it was Li Erlang, he changed his arrogant attitude and personally went down the city wall to let the person into the city.
Now Li Wenzhi is not only a popular figure around the county magistrate, but also the father of the county lady!
County Lady Li donated so many high-yield crops to the people of Rongcheng without blinking an eye. The local people who benefited from this now respect Li Yan!
Therefore, when the gatekeeper saw him, he would naturally make some concessions.
After entering the city, Li Erlang bowed to the others and said, "Thank you all for your kindness. I have important matters to discuss with the county magistrate, so I will be leaving first. I will definitely treat you all to a drink someday!"
Seeing Li Erlang's anxious expression, the officer also bowed to him and said, "Master Li, please do as you please!"
Because of his haste, Li Erlang fell countless times along the way. When he arrived at the county government office, the gatekeeper saw Li Erlang in such a state of distress and hurried forward to support him: "Master Li, what happened?"
"Quick, go and get the county magistrate for me. I have something important to report!"
County Magistrate Zheng had just finished dinner and was about to wash up and rest when he heard his attendant hurriedly report that Li Erlang had arrived!
County Magistrate Zheng immediately stood up and strode towards the front hall, asking what had happened.
The attendant shook his head. "Lord Li didn't say anything, but it seems very urgent to me!"
As soon as County Magistrate Zheng arrived at the front hall, Li Erlang knelt down before him and said, "Sir, please save my daughter!"
County Magistrate Zheng hurried forward to help the man up and asked in astonishment, "What happened? Don't worry, tell me the details!"
The more County Magistrate Zheng listened, the heavier his expression grew. Not to mention that Li Yan was a county lord personally appointed by the emperor, even if robbers and kidnappers appeared within his jurisdiction, it would be a dereliction of duty for him!
He immediately ordered the detectives to gather people and go out of the city to investigate.
On the other side, the father and son who returned to the village to look for someone went straight to the home of Patriarch Li.
After a moment, the gong from Patriarch Li's house rang, and the dull sound of the gong resounded through the silent night sky.
When the villagers heard the noise, those who had been resting quickly got up and put on their clothes, while those who had not rested immediately put on their raincoats and went out!
The villagers who had left their homes met in groups of three or four, asking each other if they knew what had happened.
"The clan leader must have something important to say when he summoned us so late. You'll know when you get there. Let's go!"
Soon the patriarch's courtyard was crowded with villagers wearing conical hats.
Seeing that most people had arrived, Patriarch Li stopped waiting and raised his hand to stop the noisy chatter in the yard.
"I called you here because I have an urgent matter. The Li family's children came back from the shop in the evening and haven't returned home yet. Let's go look for them together!"
After Chief Li finished speaking, the villagers were in an uproar. How could a healthy person disappear?
Seeing that many villagers were not wearing straw raincoats, Chief Li said, "Everyone go back and prepare, light the lanterns, and gather at the village entrance after half a cup of tea."
Upon hearing this, the villagers immediately rushed home. They had all received kindness from the girl from the Li family, and now that she was in trouble, the villagers ran home more actively than they did for their own affairs.
After a while, many villagers holding lanterns or torches came to the entrance of Lijia Village.
There were more people coming than those who had just gathered in the patriarch's courtyard, including men, women, and even teenagers!
They gathered at the entrance of Lijia Village, unafraid of the severe cold or the wind and snow, waiting to set out to search for people.
Upon hearing the news that their children were missing, Lin and Liu naturally could not stay and followed everyone in the search.
If they come across a place with mountains nearby, they will stop and call out and search.
When they searched to a place three miles away from Lijia Village.
Suddenly a cry of surprise was heard: "Here, I found the mule cart!"
The Li family rushed into the forest first, only to see their mule tied to a tree, but there was no sign of their children around!
At this time, a noisy voice came from the crowd, "The officials are coming!"
Old Master Li turned around and saw County Magistrate Zheng striding towards him. He seemed to have found his backbone. His legs softened and he knelt before County Magistrate Zheng. "Sir, please save these children?"
If the Li family were still fantasizing in their hearts, they might have thought that the children were hiding from the snow somewhere.
But when I saw the animals tied up in the woods, even if I didn't want to believe it, I had to guess that the children had an accident!
County Magistrate Zheng hurried forward to help the man up: "Old man, please get up and talk!"
County Magistrate Zheng first asked the people of Lijia Village about the circumstances of their discovery of this place, and then asked the officers to search the surrounding area.
With many years of experience in handling cases and the on-site investigation, County Magistrate Zheng knew clearly that there was a high possibility that County Lady Li and her group had been kidnapped!
Thinking of this, County Magistrate Zheng's heart sank!
Looking at the footprints on the ground, they were soon covered by heavy snow.
At this time, several hours had passed since County Lady Li disappeared, and all traces left by the kidnappers were covered by the heavy snow. It was obviously impossible to track the kidnappers at this time!
Faced with such a dilemma, County Magistrate Zheng couldn't help but think deeply!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
