Yun Su spotted a car that had just pulled over by the roadside and hurried over to stop the driver.
“Big brother, can you lend me your car? I’ll pay you for it and return it tomorrow,” Yun Su said as she stuffed the money she had just taken from the bracelet into the driver’s hands.
The driver stared at the person who had suddenly rushed out in front of him, thoroughly startled and almost convinced he had run into a scammer.
Yun Su knew he definitely wouldn’t believe her, but she truly had no time to waste. She pulled out another stack of cash and pushed it toward him.
“Big brother, take a look at the money and check whether it’s real. I really need to use the car urgently.”
The driver glanced at the cash, then at his vehicle. The amount she had given him was enough to buy this beat up second hand car of his…
At last, Yun Su got the keys and quickly climbed into the car.
Starting the engine, she slammed her foot down on the accelerator.
As soon as the car moved, Yun Su activated the bracelet’s tracking function. The location display showed that the distance between the two parties had already become very great.
She kept the accelerator pressed all the way down, but the van was also moving quickly, and there was simply no way for her to catch up in such a short time.
At that moment, Yun Su desperately wished the car could sprout wings and take flight.
She felt incredibly frustrated. Why didn’t she have some sort of teleportation ability?
The golden finger she had received as a transmigrator was far too weak!
At the same time, in the suburbs.
Gu Yan’s vision was shrouded in darkness. Around him echoed the muffled sobs of children and the roar of an engine.
Earlier that afternoon, Gu Jian’an had gone to the school to pick him up and had even told the teacher that he would no longer be attending kindergarten.
Gu Yan didn’t know what Gu Jian’an intended to do by taking him home in such a hurry.
But Sister had promised that she would come to pick him up after school.
Unfortunately, he wouldn’t get to see her today.
Perhaps… he would never see her again.
After Gu Jian’an had taken him home, someone arrived not long afterward.
It was the same person who had spoken to him at the bus stop before.
Although Gu Yan was still young and didn’t fully understand what was happening, he could sense the danger.
The Gu Jian’an family had never liked him. Bringing him back so suddenly today meant they had finally found a way to get rid of him.
As expected, after Gu Jian’an secretly discussed something with the man, he dragged Gu Yan over and handed him to the middle aged stranger.
Gu Yan struggled and tried to run, but Gu Jian’an grabbed him and pulled him back.
He was still too young and completely unable to resist the strength of two grown men. Together, they shoved him into the back compartment of the vehicle.
Inside, he found several other children around his age. Their hands and feet were tied with ropes, and their mouths had been sealed shut with tape.
Then the traffickers bound Gu Yan in the same way.
Before long, the doors closed and darkness swallowed the compartment.
Gu Yan waited there for quite some time before hearing the sound of the vehicle starting up.
He didn’t know where he was being taken, nor did he know what awaited him.
Gu Yan was terrified. His entire body trembled, but he didn’t cry. He knew crying was useless. The traffickers would not spare him just because he shed tears.
There were five children in the compartment altogether. The oldest looked to be around ten years old. With tape covering their mouths, they could only let out soft whimpers.
No one knew how long they had been traveling. Gu Jian’an hadn’t given Gu Yan any lunch earlier that afternoon, and now hunger was making him dizzy.
Just as he was about to slump sideways and collapse, he noticed the vehicle gradually coming to a stop.
A while later, he heard the front door open.
The trafficker had gotten out of the van.
Gu Yan pricked up his ears, carefully listening to the sounds outside.
He heard the compartment door being opened, and the light shining in from outside was so harsh that he couldn’t open his eyes.
By then, night had already fallen. The source of the light was the flashlight in the trafficker’s hand.
Once his eyes adjusted, Gu Yan saw a bag of plain steamed buns and several bottles of mineral water tossed into the compartment.
The trafficker’s hoarse voice rang out.
“Hurry up and eat. Don’t get sick from hunger.”
As he spoke, he untied the children one by one.
Once the ropes were removed, Gu Yan quickly tore the tape from his mouth and stretched his numb limbs.
After everyone had been untied, the compartment door slammed shut again.
The moment they saw the food, the children rushed forward. Holding the steamed buns in both hands, they lowered their heads and devoured them.
Gu Yan also received two buns and a bottle of water. After eating, he felt somewhat better.
Once everyone had finished eating, some of the children began to cry.
One little girl sobbed as she said, “They’re bad people… bad people are taking us somewhere… sob… I miss my mommy. Mommy said she was going to buy me cotton candy… sob…”
The other children started crying too.
“I miss my mommy too… sob…”
“When are my mom and dad coming to save me? I miss them so much.”
They had all been frightened by the trafficker’s vicious demeanor. Afraid of being beaten, they didn’t dare cry or speak too loudly. After all, they were stranded in this desolate wilderness with no one around.
Gu Yan knew that they had all been abducted by traffickers and had parents who loved them.
Only he had been sold to the traffickers by Gu Jian’an.
Even if he cried now, he didn’t know who he should be calling for.
Unlike the others, he couldn’t cry out for his father and mother.
In the darkness, Gu Yan asked in a cold voice, “Don’t you need to use the bathroom?”
After a moment, a timid voice replied, “We don’t have anywhere to go…”
“We haven’t even asked yet. Maybe he’ll let us out to use the bathroom,” Gu Yan continued.
“Then how should we ask?” one of the girls questioned.
“We can all shout together.”
As he spoke, Gu Yan moved to the compartment door and began banging on it while shouting outside.
“We need to use the bathroom!”
The others followed his lead, pounding on the door and calling out with him.
Very soon, the door was yanked open. The trafficker glared at them viciously.
“What are you yelling for? Keep causing trouble and I’ll beat you.”
One of the braver boys spoke in a small voice.
“We just want to use the bathroom.”
“Go take care of it in the grass over there. Hurry up. One at a time,” the trafficker said impatiently as he grabbed the boy who had spoken.
After the boy was dragged out, the compartment door was locked again, plunging everything back into darkness.
Gu Yan estimated the time. The two of them had probably already gone into the nearby woods.
In the darkness, he began feeling around the partition at the front of the van. Since it had been installed inside the vehicle, it consisted of only two ordinary wooden boards used to separate the cargo compartment from the driver’s area.
Gu Yan pushed one of the boards aside and squeezed his small body through into the driver’s seat area.
He reached for the driver’s side door handle.
It wouldn’t open.
The door had been locked.
But he couldn’t let such a precious opportunity slip away.
Using the moonlight streaming into the van, Gu Yan searched around and spotted a wrench and other tools beneath the front passenger seat, likely kept there for vehicle repairs.
Picking up the wrench, Gu Yan gathered every ounce of strength in his tiny body and swung it toward the driver’s side window.
With a crisp crack, the window shattered…