Xiao Bai squinted on the kang (a heated brick bed), and there seemed to be a sound again. He crawled to his father's side and gently patted him.
Yan Ci suddenly opened his eyes and saw that it was his son. He asked softly, "Xiao Bai, what's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"
Afraid of waking her mother, Xiaobai whispered in Yan Ci's ear, "Dad, there seems to be a noise outside."
Yan Ci was startled, quickly got up and dressed.
He tiptoed outside Chang Le and Xiao Bai's room and listened, but heard no sound.
He first walked around the room, making a little noise.
A moment later, Chang Le opened the door and came out:
"Uncle Yan, what's wrong? Have thieves come knocking?"
Yan Ci asked Chang Le, "Is everything alright in your room? Xiao Bai said she heard some noises, so I got up to check."
Chang Le shook her head: "Ruyi and An'an are both sleeping soundly."
He immediately frowned and said, "Xiaobai has the most sensitive hearing. If he says there's a sound, then there definitely is."
She turned her gaze to Xiaobai's room.
Yan Ci went up and knocked on the door. Wang Weiguo, while putting on his clothes, opened the door and asked, "Yan Ci, what's wrong?"
Yan Ci said, "Let me see if your room is safe. Everything is fine at home. I'll go out and take a look."
Chang Le said, "Uncle Yan, I'll go with you."
Yan Ci disagreed: "You stay at home, I'll just check on things and come right back."
Xiao Bai also got dressed and came out, sitting with her sister.
Yan Ci looked around the courtyard inside and out, but found nothing unusual.
He frowned, climbed over the courtyard wall, and glanced around. It seemed that Wen An's door was not closed properly, and a sliver of light was leaking out of the window crack.
Listen carefully, it sounds like someone is talking. I guess the voice Xiaobai heard is coming from Wen An's house.
The door was ajar in the middle of the night; that's very unusual. Something must have happened.
Could it be that the thieves haven't left yet and have sneaked into Wen An's house today?
Wen An's family consists mostly of elderly people and children. Wen An is a frail scholar, while Wen Tong is slightly better off. However, even as a woman, she wouldn't stand a chance against several men.
Liu Guoan said last time that there were several ruthless people inside, and he didn't know what the situation was like inside.
He retreated to his own courtyard and went inside to find his wife already up.
When Bai Xiaoyue saw Yan Ci return, she quickly went up to him and asked, "A-Ci, is anything unusual?"
Yan Ci pressed down on his wife's shoulder: "Listen to me, don't panic. The noise is coming from Wen'an's room."
Bai Xiaoyue covered her mouth. What were they going to do about her parents and the two children, Wen An and Wen Tong?
After a while, everyone got up. Yan Ci told everyone to be quiet, lest they startle the thieves and make them desperate.
Chang Le said, "Uncle Yan, the situation is unclear right now. Let me go and see what's going on. I'm a girl, so I can lower their guard."
Xiao Bai also said, "Dad, I'll go with my sister. I'm a little kid, so I can put those people at ease. If things get weird, I'll run. I'm fast."
Wang Weiguo said, "Yan Ci, let me go too. More people means more help."
Yan Ci disagreed: "You stay at home and keep an eye on them, just in case."
Wang Weiguo nodded: "I'll listen to you."
Yan Ci pondered for a moment, then said to Chang Le and Xiao Bai:
"If we can take them down by catching them off guard, that would be best. If not, we'll just have to play it by ear."
Bai Xiaoyue's heart was breaking. She selfishly didn't want her husband and children to take the risk, but over there were the original owner's parents and younger brother, as well as two very young children.
Yan Ci said to his wife, "Don't worry."
Yan Ci, Chang Le, and Xiao Bai nimbly scaled the courtyard wall and quietly approached the house.
I heard several men's voices, including Wen Tong's voice.
Chang Le said, "Uncle Yan, judging from Aunt's voice, it seems she's still trying to negotiate. Xiao Bai and I will go in and take a look first. You shouldn't reveal yourselves yet."
Chang Le pushed the door open and went in, shouting, "Auntie, why didn't you close the door properly? Do you know we're coming back late today?"
She glanced inside and saw four strange men. Her grandfather and uncle were tied up and had cloth stuffed in their mouths.
The maternal grandmother crouched in a corner, protecting the two children. Only the aunt was not tied up; a knife was pressed against her neck.
Chang Le breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, everyone was safe and the thieves hadn't made a move yet.
Wen Tong was sweating profusely and desperately tried to signal Chang Le to leave.
Seeing that Chang Le remained unmoved, he cursed loudly, "You brat, you brought your brother here again to eat and drink for free, get out of here!"
Bai Wen'an and his father were so anxious that the veins on their foreheads were bulging, and Bai's mother was too frightened to speak.
When the four men inside saw a pretty young girl walk in, they were all delighted.
Chang Le blinked her big eyes and asked, "Auntie, what's going on? Have debt collectors come to collect? And four uncles came with them."
"Just tell me what you owe, why are you tying up Grandpa and Uncle? You can't sell them for money."
The group over there burst into laughter:
“Little girl, we are indeed here to collect a debt. It’s good that you’re back. Come over here quickly, or I’ll kill your grandfather.”
The man even brandished a knife at Bai Yongkang's neck.
Little Whitey yelled from behind, "Oh no, that's scary!" and ran away.
A bearded man, seeing that a child had run away, feared that he would be exposed, so he sent someone out to chase after him:
"Fourth brother, you're fast, go after him. Just take care of him."
Then a man ran out and chased after Xiaobai.
With tears welling up in her eyes and her voice trembling, Chang Le said, "Uncle, I'm coming here, please don't kill my grandfather."
She moved forward step by step, standing in front of her grandfather and uncle, separating them from the thief.
Wen Tong said to the group, "You're all just after money, right? I've given you all the money, what more do you want!"
This girl is the child of a poor relative; she has nothing to do with my family. Please let her go!
One of them said, "Boss, don't let go. We haven't seen such a beautiful girl in a long time. Let's have some fun tonight."
The other day, that guy looked like a bean sprout; it was such a disappointment.
Another said, "Third brother, you're such a spoilsport, how many more times will you go?"
The third brother retorted, "Second brother, I was just trying her out because she's a virgin."
It's a pity, I was so fragile, I only lasted a few times before I was out of breath.
Seeing these people treating human life like a game, Chang Le felt her blood boil. She quickly blinked and said pitifully:
"My brother has already gone back, can you let me go too?"
The third brother said, "Little girl, what are you dreaming about? He's gone back. That kid's in the fourth brother's hands now, hehe!"
Chang Le exclaimed in surprise: "What? You dare to kill people?!"
The third brother said smugly:
"I've taken countless lives. You better behave yourself and make me happy. If I'm in a good mood, I'll let you go."
The second brother roared, "Third brother, shut up."
The third brother said sheepishly, "What's wrong with talking about it here? They won't live to see tomorrow anyway."
The bearded man, probably the boss, glared at the third brother:
"You talk too much. Go see why the fourth brother hasn't come back yet. Tell him to tone it down."
Chang Le said loudly, "Third Uncle, could you please stop chasing after my brother? I promise I'll behave."
Wen Tong also said, "Do as you please, but don't make things difficult for a child."
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