Chapter 296: Found
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Gu Yanfei looked for the voice and walked over. She saw a medium-sized man in his 30s at the entrance of the alley holding a piece of paper in his hand, calling for his little darling in a daze.
The man was dressed in a straight green robe. His robe was washed white and covered in patches of all sizes, making him look very shabby.
His forehead was swollen and bruised, and his hair was a little messy. He was in a sorry state.
“Grandpa, have you seen my little darling? She’s wearing a blue flower jacket...” He handed the piece of paper in his hand to an old man pa.s.sing by. “This is her appearance...”
The old man shook his head. “I’ve never seen her.’
The green-robed man stumbled forward, grabbing pa.s.sersby and asking questions as he walked.
“Big Sister, have you seen a 10-year-old girl?”
“Brother, have you seen such a tall, oval-faced little girl in a blue flower jacket?”
The pa.s.sersby either shook their heads, avoided him, or whispered to each other by the roadside.
“It’s pitiful to lose his daughter,” a plump middle-aged woman said sympathetically from the side of the road.
“I heard that he’s a scholar and has a scholar’s reputation. He used to teach in his hometown in Yuzhou. Because of the disaster in Yuzhou last year, he became a refugee and fled to the capital with his daughter , ” another middle-aged man added. He raised his hand and pointed in a direction. “He usually writes for someone not far ahead and earns a living... I remember his surname is Zhang.”
“He even went to the government office to report it early in the morning, but he kowtowed at the entrance of the government office, and they still ignored him... He was even beaten out by the guards and injured his leg...”
“That’s outrageous. It’s one thing for the authorities to ignore him, but they even hit him,” someone in the crowd muttered, and the others stirred. “Madam, have you seen my daughter?” Scholar Zhang stopped another old woman with silver hair.
The old woman also shook her head.
Scholar Zhang’s face turned even paler. His expression was panicked, as if his soul had been taken away, and even his eyes were empty.
Seeing that he was really pitiful, the old woman comforted him kindly, “Scholar, don’t be discouraged. Look for her again.”
“She was most likely abducted by a beggar.”
“Go ask the procuress and see if there’s any news. Those procuresses are very well informed. ”
“I don’t think so?” another young man in gray said eloquently. “In one night, many children went missing, and all of them were older. Shouldn’t beggars be abducting those younger children?!”
“That’s true.” The other pa.s.sersby agreed and nodded repeatedly.
The young man in gray waved his fist and said indignantly, “Speaking of which, those officials are really hateful. They don’t stand up for the commoners!”
“That’s right, that’s right. Who wouldn’t be anxious when their child is lost?
Isn’t it only right for the authorities to help find the child?’
“Sigh, it’s better to rely on yourself than on others. I have to think of a way to take good care of my child myself.”
The pa.s.sersby were getting more and more agitated as they spoke.
Gu Yanfei slowly continued along the street outside the alley. Along the way, she heard the surrounding commoners talking about the disappearance of children.
Every family had a child, and every family was worried that their child would be the next victim.
For a moment, everyone was panicking and speculating.
An uneasy, oppressive atmosphere filled the air, spreading at an incredible speed.
The sky was covered in dark clouds, and the sky looked even gloomier than yesterday.
Gu Yanfei stopped and took out the compa.s.s that had just been repaired yesterday from her sleeve pocket. She casually plucked the needle on the compa.s.s.
The needle spun rapidly, not stopping for a long time, emitting a faint buzzing sound.
It was still the same as last night. Nothing could be calculated.
Gu Yanfei silently put the compa.s.s back into her sleeve pocket. She looked up at the dark sky and muttered, “How shameless!”
The Heaven’s Will of this small world was really shameless!
“My Lady,” Juan Bi asked uneasily, holding Qing Guang’s favorite bell ball, “is Qing Guang...”
Before she could finish, there was a commotion behind her.
She turned and saw the scholar sprinting forward as if he had gone crazy, clutching the paper in his hand.
His eyes were red as he rushed forward without caring about anything else. He accidentally b.u.mped into several people.
Some people only staggered two steps. Some were lucky enough to be supported by their friends, while others fell to the ground.
“Poor scholar, do you not have eyes?!” A square-faced young man, who had fallen to the ground, was so angry that his face turned green. He cursed at Scholar Zhang’s back and shouted, “You b.u.mped into me. Don’t you know how to apologize?!”
However, Scholar Zhang acted as if he hadn’t heard anything and continued to charge forward with his head lowered.
“Forget it, forget it.” The silver-haired old woman kindly walked over to be the peacemaker and comforted the square-faced young man. “Little Brother, don’t be calculative with him.”
“He lost his daughter last night. He was so anxious when he heard that Kang
w.a.n.g had asked someone to help search for the child in the capital.”
There was an uproar.
It was as if a drop of cold water had fallen into a hot pot of oil and exploded.
The pa.s.sersby on both sides of the street rushed over like a tide to listen to the commotion. All of them perked up, and their eyes lit up.
“Kang w.a.n.g is really benevolent and loves the citizens like his own.”
“If he can find those missing children, I’ll definitely set up a memorial tablet for Kang w.a.n.g!”
The more the commoners spoke, the more excited they became. They were all grateful.
These ordinary people didn’t ask for much. They only wanted a place to settle down, have a full meal, and for their families to be safe and sound.
A young man in gray sighed with emotion. “Kang w.a.n.g has a n.o.ble character. No wonder a true dragon bowed down to him!”
His friend beside him tugged at his sleeve and reprimanded, “Don’t spout nonsense! ”
The gray-clothed young man didn ‘t say anything else, but the pa.s.sersby beside him heard his words. Those pa.s.sersby all started talking about the rumors of a true dragon descending on Kang w.a.n.g’s manor at the beginning of the new year.
The commoners on the street became noisier bit by bit. They spoke vividly, as if they had all seen the dragon wagging its tail with their own eyes.
Gu Yanfei, who had stopped by the roadside, decided not to leave. She glanced around, and her gaze landed on a restaurant on the right. She said to Juan Bi, “Let’s go there and sit.”
The master and servant entered the restaurant and sat down at a private table on the second floor, facing the street.
The waiter quickly served tea, pastries, nuts, and so on.
As Gu Yanfei drank her tea, she calmly looked down at the street from the window.
Scholar Zhang had long since run away, but the pa.s.sersby still didn’t disperse. Words like “true dragon”, “missing”, and “children” floated up from below from time to time.
After Gu Yanfei slowly finished a pot of tea, rumbling footsteps suddenly came from the end of the street. Coupled with the messy sound of hooves, it was Imposing.
A team of people dressed as guards ran over, either spurring their horses or running. They were all in a hurry, going door to door to ask about the missing children.
When the pa.s.sersby saw this scene, they were all in high spirits and became even more noisy. Some people heard the commotion and came over, but some gradually dispersed..
“Found it!”
In an alley in the distance, a high, loud voice shouted. The shout was extremely penetrating, echoing almost from one end of the street to the other..