Chapter 346: Heard A Voice
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Fu Zheng rested for a while before sitting up from the ground. He looked at the scattered cloth bundles in shock. He knew that Ling was still wrapped in one of the cloth bundles!
He surveyed the surroundings. After locating a sharp stone, he cut the rope binding him with the stone, and began to search for Ling at the bottom of the slope.
There was a small forest at the foot of the hill. The forest was filled with shrubs, and these shrubs were full of thorns that could prick people. They were particularly painful.
Whenever Fu Zheng located a bundle of cloth, he would unroll it with all his might, but he still couldn’t locate Ling.
He endured the pain in his body and continued to walk forward. He could vaguely see a bundle of red cloth in front of him.
He remembered that those two people had wrapped Ling in a cloth bundle of this color.
Fu Zheng quickly ran forward and unrolled the cloth bundle. Sure enough, he saw Ling inside.
Perhaps because the cloth bundle that rolled down did not become unfurled along the way. Under the protection of the cloth, Ling was not injured.
“Ling, Ling! Wake up quickly, Ling…”
Fu Zheng untied Ling and pinched her philtrum, but Ling still didn’t react. It was very likely that the knockout powder hadn’t lost its effect yet.
Fu Zheng had no choice but to carry her on his back.
He didn’t know if Prince Qi and his men had caught up. It was almost dark now, so Fu Zheng could only look for a place to settle down. He didn’t dare to shout loudly as he was afraid that he would attract the bad guys.
What Fu Zheng didn’t know was that Xiao Jin was currently looking for them on the other side of the slope.
“Ling! Ling!”
Xiao Jin searched one round but he still couldn’t find anyone. The man who had fallen down had been captured alive, his limbs and chin dislocated and taken away by the Imperial Guards.
Night fell, and the sky turned dark.
The Imperial Guards lit their torches and were only barely able to illuminate the surroundings.
“Your Highness, we found bloodstains and some torn clothes in a swathe of cloth just ahead.”
Xiao Jin looked at the cloth in the hands of the Imperial Guards with a grim expression. If he remembered correctly, this cloth came from Fu Zheng’s clothes. He had seen Fu Zheng wearing it yesterday.
“Search in the vicinity where you found this cloth.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Fu Zheng carried Ling up the slope and found a very small cave. It wasn’t really a cave but a small mountain burrow. It was just enough to accommodate the two children.
After Fu Zheng put Ling into the mountain burrow, he went to get some rocks and piled them outside the mountain burrow as a cover to prevent the bad guys from discovering them.
After he was done, he sat down beside Ling.
As soon as he sat down, the unconscious Ling stirred beside him.
Fu Zheng called out softly, “Ling? Ling?”
Ling gave a snort and slowly opened her two eyes. However, it was pitch-black all around and she could not see anything.
“Brother Fu Zheng?”
Fu Zheng smiled happily when he heard her speak. “Sister Ling, you’re finally awake.”
“Brother Fu Zheng, where are we? It’s so dark.”
“We were caught by bad guys. We might have rolled down the mountain. We’re still in the mountain right now. When the sun rises and those bad guys leave, we’ll go out.”
Ling leaned towards Fu Zheng in fear. “Brother Fu Zheng, I’m scared.”
Fu Zheng was only an eight-year-old child himself. He was afraid too, but in front of Ling, he still said bravely, “Don’t be afraid, Ling. 1 will protect you.”
The two small figures huddled together in the dark. As they were cold and hungry, the two of them fell asleep in a daze.
Su Ying immediately rushed over when she learned of the unusual situation at the city gate. She met up with Xiao Jin outside the city when night fell.
Until now, her positioning device still had not found Ling’s whereabouts. She suspected that there was something wrong with Ling’s location indicator. “How was it? Have you found her?”
Xiao Jin’s face had darkened so much that it almost blended into the night. “No. She should be at the foot of the hill, but we haven’t been able to find her.”
“How can you be sure that she’s there? Did the person you caught confess?”
“Mm-hmm. They hid Ling and Fu Zheng in the cloth bundles and tried to take them out of the city.”
Su Ying frowned. “Fu Zheng was captured too?”
Xiao Jin nodded.
“If I had known earlier, I would have brought the big kitties back.” The tigers had a keen sense of smell and were very familiar with Ling. They could easily locate Ling by smell.
However, it was useless to think about this now.
“Have you heard of the Red Demon Sect?”
Xiao Jin frowned. “Red Demon? It is an assassin organization in the martial arts world that specialized in contract killing. The Red Demon Sect once claimed that as long as they were paid enough money, they would dare to kill anyone.”
Su Ying gave a scornful laugh. “What an arrogant attitude. Where is their lair? After 1 was lured to the Mountain Roaming Temple, two people from the Red Demon Sect attacked me. Their sect master should know who hired them to attack me.”
After she had found Ling, she would definitely destroy this Red Demon Sect!
In the darkness, two sneaky figures hid in the shadows and watched the Imperial Guards search.
“Those two useless trash. They can’t even handle such a small matter. What’s the use of having them?”
“What should we do? Now that the children have escaped, how are we going to report to the higher-ups?”
“Let’s wait. They might not be able to find them.”
“Mm-hmm.”
The sky gradually turned bright.
A ray of golden light shone through the gap. Fu Zheng moved his stiff body and slowly opened his eyes. He saw Ling sleeping soundly in his arms.
He could not bear to wake Ling up, so he sat there stiffly. When Ling finally woke up, he said softly, “Ling, you’re awake?”
Ling opened her eyes somewhat groggily. She looked at Fu Zheng and was still in a daze. “Brother Fu Zheng…”
“Ling, 1’11 go out and take a look later. If there are no bad guys outside, we’ll think of a way to get out.”
Ling nodded obediently. She searched all over her body with her tiny hand and found a small bag of snacks. She took them out happily.
The snacks inside were all squashed, but it was still a huge joyous surprise for her. “Brother Fu Zheng, I still have delicious snacks.”
Fu Zheng looked at the snacks and gulped hungrily, but he still said, “That’s great, Ling. Quickly eat up. After that, you will have the strength to walk.”
Ling happily picked up the snacks and started eating. She looked at Fu Zheng and fed him the rest of the snacks. “Brother Fu Zheng, have some too.”
Fu Zheng pushed her hand away. “I’m not hungry. You can eat them all, Ling.”
“Do have some. It’s very delicious.”
Fu Zheng had no choice but to open his mouth and take a bite.
The snacks were already dry and did not taste very good. However, for the hungry children, they were undoubtedly the best delicacy.
After the two of them finished their snacks, they felt a little stronger. Fu Zheng pushed away the rocks and branches at the mouth of the mountain burrow and led Ling out.
Fu Zheng looked at the surrounding and found it difficult to determine the direction. However, he felt that they could go back the way they came. Perhaps they could meet the people who came to save them.
“Ling, follow me closely.”
“Oh, okay.”
Ling followed closely behind Fu Zheng obediently and they walked back the same way.
“Huh? Brother Fu Zheng, I think I heard Father’s voice..”