Shen Dafú and his wife moved fast, leaving Shen Nian far behind.
Gu Xiao heard everything clearly. He could feel Shen Nian’s hand gripping his wrist trembling, the hatred surging in her heart almost spilling over.
Suddenly, a flash of insight struck Shen Nian.
A few human traffickers and two beasts crashing into each other—this was bound to be one hell of a show.
Gu Xiao had thought of the same thing and said in a low voice, “Don’t rush. Are you familiar with the terrain around here?”
Shen Nian nodded, her voice icy. “Not far in front of the thatched hut there’s a wild boar trap. To the left is an old manure pit where the production brigade used to ferment fertilizer.”
“You stay here and behave. We’re outnumbered—I’ll go up and harass them.”
In the pitch-dark night, Gu Xiao’s hoarse voice carried an unexpected hint of gentleness, warming Shen Nian’s heart for no clear reason.
“You don’t know the place. Come with me—I’ll point it out to you.”
After agreeing on a plan, the two silently followed behind Shen Dafú.
Up ahead, the traffickers reached the thatched hut. Seeing the door locked, they swept flashlights around the area.
One of the men who had scoped the place out earlier stared at a few bamboo poles on the ground and said in a low voice, “Boss, I checked this afternoon. This is the only thatched hut on the hillside with people living in it.”
The leader gave a signal. One man picked up a rock and smashed the lock.
With a loud clang, the lock fell to the ground.
Several men rushed in with flashlights. Inside, there was only a pile of dry straw—not even a bed.
Near the front, a small table had been stacked together with stones, holding pots and bowls.
The leader frowned. “He’s not here. Could he really be dead?”
On the other side, Shen Dafú hurried forward, one hand holding a flashlight, the other gripping a rope and a wooden club. Hearing the sound of the lock being smashed, he quickened his pace.
It must be that crazy woman back again, smashing the lock!
He turned to Wang Dàhua and said viciously, “In a moment I’ll rush in first, tie her up, stuff her mouth, strangle her with a rope, and dump her in the river.
“When the body’s found in a few days, we’ll just pretend we don’t know anything.”
Wang Dàhua curled her lip coldly. “If you want to strangle her, you do it. I can’t.”
She didn’t want to be a murderer.
“You just help me hold her down!”
The traffickers were about to head out to look for clues when a blinding beam of flashlight suddenly shone straight into their faces, forcing them to squint.
Shen Dafú froze when he saw them.
Why wasn’t it that crazy woman?
Thinking of how she had gone berserk waving a cleaver that afternoon, he roared angrily, “Who are you people? Where’s my daughter?”
The traffickers exchanged looks, unwilling to stir up trouble. It seemed they had found the wrong place.
Suddenly, Wang Dàhua screamed, “They must be traffickers hired by Old Man Liu! Since that crazy woman can’t be his wife, he wants to sell her off!”
The traffickers were stunned, still processing it. The moment Shen Dafú heard the words “human traffickers,” all the rage he’d bottled up during the day exploded. He raised his club and smashed it toward the leader’s head.
“You bastards! Old Man Liu took away my pig, and now you dare sell my daughter? I’ll kill you!”
One blow split the leader’s temple open, sticky blood streaming down his face.
“Boss!” the others cried out.
The man touched his head and found his hand covered in blood. Murderous fury flashed in his eyes as he gritted his teeth, pulled a gun from his waist, and pressed it to Shen Dafú’s forehead.
Bang—
Bang, bang—
Three deafening gunshots rang out. Wang Dàhua was scared out of her wits, but some mad instinct took over—she lunged forward and bit down hard on the wrist holding the gun.
The muzzle jerked aside, and the bullets missed.
In the pitch-black chaos, six people tangled together, roars and screams blending into one.
Outside the hut, Gu Xiao rushed in a step ahead of Shen Nian, moving as fast as a phantom.
The moment he entered, there were several sharp cracks—bones breaking.
He snapped the arms of two traffickers. The clean, efficient movements made it obvious he had professional training.
Before the others could react, Gu Xiao picked up a flashlight and some rope from the ground and, in just a few swift motions, bound all four traffickers securely.
Shen Dafú slumped against the door, his pants soaked—he had pissed himself in fear.
Wang Dàhua abandoned him, scrambling and crawling out of the hut. After running only a few steps, something caught her foot. Like a broken ball, she tumbled head over heels downhill.
With a loud splash, she fell straight into the manure pit filled with fermented fertilizer.
There wasn’t much fertilizer in the pit, but the stench shot straight to the brain, strong enough to make someone pass out.
Shen Nian stood there dumbfounded, still trying to process what had just happened, when Gu Xiao emerged slowly from the hut with a flashlight.
He deliberately shone the beam at her feet. The warm yellow light enveloped her, and for no reason at all, Shen Nian felt her heart relax—and even felt a hint of joy.
In his other hand, he was holding a gun. A smug, proud smile curled at the corner of his mouth, looking exactly like a kid waiting to be praised.
Shen Nian hurriedly asked, “Where are they?”
“Tied up,” Gu Xiao replied casually.
Shen Dafú crawled out as well, still not understanding what had happened. He lay on the ground, pointing at Shen Nian, his voice trembling.
“You beast… you actually found people to harm your own father… you’ll die a horrible death…”
Before he could finish, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted.
Gu Xiao glanced back at Shen Nian, his tone grave.
“Hurry back to the village and hide. Leave this place to me.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Don’t ask. Go down the mountain—now.”
Worried but obedient, Shen Nian turned to leave. Then she suddenly remembered there was still half a steamed bun and several jin of rice in the thatched hut. She doubled back, hugged them to her chest, raised the flashlight, and hurried down the mountain.
Watching her figure disappear into the night, Gu Xiao tied Shen Dafú to a large tree nearby. His tall figure soon vanished into the darkness as well.
Shen Nian ran to Li Hong’s courtyard gate and knocked hard for a long while before Li Hong came to open the door, wrapped in clothes.
Seeing Shen Nian, Li Hong sniffed, pulled her disheveled clothes together, and hurriedly turned her head aside to wipe away her tears.
“Nian Nian, why are you here?”
“Sister Li, something happened on the mountain. Can I stay here for the night?”
Li Hong’s eyes flicked uneasily toward the side room. She nodded, her voice trembling slightly.
“Come in quickly. You can sleep with me tonight.”
Once inside, Li Hong turned on the electric light she usually couldn’t bear to use.
Only then did Shen Nian see that Li Hong’s mouth was swollen and red, with several glaring red marks on her neck. Her eyes were red from crying.
There was definitely someone in the next room.
“Sister Li, did someone bully you?”
Shen Nian clenched her teeth. The men in this village were disgusting!
Picking on Li Hong because she was a widow with two children—sneaking over the walls in the middle of the night!
Li Hong hurriedly shook her head, lowering her voice to a whisper.
“No, Nian Nian. Let’s hurry and rest.”
Seeing how deliberately she was hiding someone, Shen Nian was confused—and felt even more sorry for her.
How hard must life be for a woman raising two children on her own?
She placed the five jin of rice she had been holding onto the table, her tone softening.
“This is for you and the kids. Keep it and eat it.”
Li Hong froze. The tears she had been holding back spilled down instantly.
At the same time, Gu Xiao found the signal flare he had hidden in the reeds when he was injured.
Standing in front of the thatched hut, his fingers moved.
Bang.
The signal flare shot upward with a red tail of light, streaking straight into the ink-black night sky…