At Yinian Hall, Madam Sun jolted awake from a nightmare, drenched in cold sweat.
Her first instinct was to look toward the cradle.
It was empty.
No sign of her granddaughter. No sign of Youyou.
Her brows knit sharply. She turned and strode into the inner chamber. On the small couch, Midwife Ma lay asleep, her chest rising and falling steadily.
Madam Sun’s heart dropped.
Something was wrong.
Tiangua and Taozi did not know how to care for an infant. They would never dare move the cradle outside on their own.
Midwife Ma had taken the child out into the courtyard for sunlight once or twice—but with her temperament, she would never act without reporting first.
Madam Sun’s voice rang out, sharp and loud:
“Tiangua! Taozi! You useless girls—where have you gone?!”
Her voice was so loud that Midwife Ma woke instantly, sitting up in alarm.
“Old Madam—what is it?”
“The cradle—and the girl—are gone.”
Madam Sun didn’t wait. She strode out, shouting for people.
Tiangua and Taozi came running from the back, breathless.
“Old Madam—we’re here!”
“Where is the girl?” Madam Sun demanded.
Taozi froze. “Wasn’t she in the room?”
“The cradle and the girl are both gone!”
Madam Sun was frantic, her voice nearly a roar.
Tiangua suddenly remembered something and stammered, “Earlier—I saw the young master and Youxi sneaking around the courtyard…”
Before she could finish, Madam Sun had already spun and rushed into the east wing.
No one was there.
Her vision went black.
She gripped the edge of the table to steady herself, forcing the words out:
“Go—ask the gatekeeper at the back door. See if the young master took Youyou out.”
The back door was right by the courtyard wall of Yinian Hall—a small side gate.
As Madam Sun hurried in that direction, she nearly collided with Taozi, who came running back, clutching her skirt.
“The young master left about a quarter of an hour ago—with Youxi,” Taozi said, gasping. “The gatekeeper said Youxi was carrying a basket.”
Madam Sun’s heart pounded wildly.
She was only holding herself together by force of will. Even so, her vision blurred, everything doubling and shifting.
But she steadied herself.
“Listen carefully,” she said, forcing her voice to remain firm.
“Taozi—send someone to fetch the master back. Tiangua—go to Lady Huang’s and borrow some people. Midwife Ma—gather everyone in the household. We’ll search for the young master first. He’s small—he can’t have gone far.”
Without waiting, she led the way into the back alley.
She and Midwife Ma went door to door, knocking and asking.
Jiang Jingxing was young. Even with Youxi accompanying him, he was never allowed to wander far. This area was still within the high walls of the county yamen—safe, in theory.
But when every household answered the same—
They had not seen him—
Madam Sun finally stepped out toward the main road.
At the intersection—
A crowd had gathered under the great banyan tree.
The street itself was strangely empty.
Madam Sun paused, seized by an inexplicable dread. She reached out and tapped the shoulder of the person in front of her.
“What happened?”
The man didn’t even turn his head, still craning forward to see.
“Seems a one-month-old baby was snatched by bandits.”
Madam Sun’s heart dropped.
She shoved her way into the crowd.
Midwife Ma, less sturdy, was pushed back and left behind.
At the front—
Jiang Jingxing stood there, unharmed.
Youxi sat on the ground, clutching his abdomen.
But—
There was no baby.
No crying.
Only the cradle.
Broken into pieces.
On the ground beside it lay a piece of pale cloth—the very one Madam Sun had laid inside that morning.
That child—her child—
Jiang Jingxing pointed at a man and a woman pinned down by two villagers and shouted,
“They’re traffickers! They tried to take my sister!”
The tall man immediately retorted,
“In broad daylight—who would dare snatch a child in the open? It’s clearly this young master bullying my foolish sister. I stepped in to stop it, and now you accuse us? I beg all of you righteous people—help us!”
The girl—who had been pretending to be slow-witted—grinned vacantly, drool still hanging at her lips.
Someone in the crowd shouted, “Let them go first—then talk!”
Voices rose in agreement.
The two villagers exchanged glances, uneasy.
“They really are child traffickers,” one insisted weakly.
The tall man burst into tears.
“You’re all in league with the yamen boy—you’ll naturally side with him…”
At that moment—
Madam Sun pushed through.
She grabbed Jiang Jingxing by the shoulders.
“Which way did they take your sister?!”
If she chased now—there might still be time.
Jiang Jingxing stared at her face, terrified by the ferocity in her expression.
“G-grandmother…”
“Speak!”
Youxi, sitting on the ground, lifted a bamboo basket at his feet and held it out.
“The young miss is here.”
The basket was woven from bamboo strips—rough in appearance, but tightly made, smooth, without splinters.
A piece of patterned cloth lined the bottom.
Miss Player lay inside.
She had been listening the entire time.
When she saw Madam Sun—
She was not surprised.
But her expression shifted instantly.
Her mouth trembled.
“Waa—waa—!”
Madam Sun snatched her up, clutching her tightly against her chest.
“My girl—my precious girl—my Youyou, my heart—”
Her voice broke.
“Thank heavens you’re safe… If anything had happened to you, I couldn’t have lived either…”
Miss Player cried in controlled bursts—three sobs, one pause.
She was already a month old. She would not easily cry until she choked as before.
But the situation was delicate.
She adjusted her crying carefully.
Things were already chaotic enough.
The man, the woman—
And the “old lady” who had lured the attendants away—
They were all together.
Even among the crowd, those shouting the loudest might be accomplices.
If chaos broke out—
It would give them a chance.
If the traffickers escaped—
She might lose her appetite for three days straight.
All traffickers deserve to die.
At one month old, she had filled out like a swelling balloon.
Wrapped in soft green cotton, her plump limbs peeked through, her cheeks round and flushed, impossibly lovely.
For a moment—
Half the street seemed to freeze.
“Waa—waa—waa—!”
Only when the crying grew louder did people snap back to themselves.
Such a beautiful child—
Crying.
And yet, the sound did not irritate. It was like the finest instrument played by a master.
But her pitiful expression tugged at everyone’s hearts.
At last, someone spoke.
“With a child like this, it’s no wonder someone would try to snatch her in broad daylight.”
“With such an adorable sister, how could this young master be bullying anyone?”
“They must be traffickers!”
“Despicable!”
“Good thing they didn’t succeed.”
Others began to step forward.
“Need help? We can hold them down too.”
Youxi quickly set down the basket and moved in front of Jiang Jingxing, shielding him.
Madam Sun, now steadier, noticed the blood on the basket.
Her voice trembled.
“Whose blood is that?”
Youxi grinned.
“Mine.”
Madam Sun: “……”
She looked at his abdomen.
His clothes were dark, and he had been holding his stomach—no one had noticed.
Now, blood seeped down, pooling on the ground.
Bright red.
Blinding.
The crowd gasped.
“Who did this to you?” Madam Sun asked.
Youxi pointed at the girl.
“She stabbed me.”
Madam Sun pulled Jiang Jingxing back with one hand, Miss Player held tightly in the other.
That single movement—
Broke the tension.
The crowd retreated.
Whatever the spectacle, their lives came first.
There were knives involved.
“Officials are here! Make way!”
Jiang Yan arrived, sweat beading on his forehead, striding forward so quickly the yamen runners nearly failed to keep up.
Seeing his family safe, he steadied Madam Sun.
“Mother—what happened?”
Before she could answer—
Jiang Jingxing jumped up.
“Father! They’re traffickers—they tried to take my sister!”
The yamen runner’s eyes lit up.
A merit delivered straight to his door.
He unfastened the chain at his waist and approached the girl.
Ordinary people might feel sympathy toward a young, seemingly slow-witted girl.
But a yamen runner was different.
Dealing with all manner of people hardened the heart.
If anything, children, women, and the elderly were more suspect.
The villagers released their hold.
In that instant—
A flash of malice flickered in the girl’s eyes.
Her sleeve flicked—
A dagger dropped into her palm.
She lunged.
Straight for the runner’s lower abdomen.
The runner blocked with his chain, forced back two steps.
The girl didn’t linger.
She turned and ran.
With a blade in her hand, the crowd scattered like birds.
Youxi bent down, seized a wild boar leg from a vendor’s load.
Muscles bulging, he spun and hurled it.
“Smack—!”
It struck her squarely in the back.
She crashed to the ground.
The pursuing runner leapt forward, pinning her down.
Two more rushed in, binding her with chains.
Only once she was fully restrained did the three of them wipe sweat from their brows.
The merit had nearly slipped away.
Other runners, arriving too late, could only curse their bad luck.
Jiang Jingxing spoke clearly,
“They have another accomplice—a disguised old woman. She should be at the clinic.”
The runners’ eyes lit up again.
Even if she had fled—
What if she hadn’t?
Jiang Yan selected four men and sent them to the nearest clinic.
Then his gaze swept over the crowd.
He noted every face that avoided his eyes.
Calmly, he said:
“Everyone—please remain where you are. When the inner gate opens, you will accompany me to the hall and give testimony.”