“The commune’s film projection team is coming! They’re showing an outdoor movie at the threshing floor at the entrance of the village the day after tomorrow night!” This news shattered the peace of Jiangjia’ao, and the entire village was in an uproar.
For two whole days, the children in the village were immersed in the excitement of the upcoming movie.
Ever since Jiang Yaozu decided he didn’t want to go to school, he hadn’t been going to work either, spending his days idle and loafing around. During the day in Jiangjia’ao, adults would head to the fields, and children would go in groups to cut pig grass.
He had stayed home for two days, but Jiang Jianguo kept a tight watch on him, leaving him no chance to bully Jiang Tangtang. He decided to head into town to look around.
“… I’ve confirmed it. Jiangjia’ao, the day after tomorrow night, they’re showing a movie.”
He had just come out of the restroom when he heard some people whispering near the wall nearby. They actually mentioned “Jiangjia’ao.” Suddenly curious, he stopped to listen to what they were saying.
“Great opportunity. It’ll be crowded and chaotic then, easy to make a move. We’ll target a smart-looking kid, three to five years old; they’re not as noticeable and are easier to move…”
“Same old rules. Once you’ve got the target, retreat directly into the mountains. There’s someone there to meet you…”
Jiang Yaozu’s heart skipped a beat. He realized these were child traffickers plotting to kidnap a kid! Terrified, he didn’t dare to even breathe loudly. He quietly lightened his footsteps and scurried away.
He was immediately fearful, wondering if he should report them to the public security bureau. Suddenly, a wicked thought flashed through his mind: “Jiang Tangtang, that brat… she caused me to get beaten by Third Uncle. What if she were the one to be kidnapped…”
Finally, the day of the movie arrived. Before dark, children were already running to the threshing floor with all sorts of benches, chairs, and even bricks, excited to grab the best spots.
The adults also finished work early, and smoke began rising from every household.
At the Jiang household, Old Lady Jiang rarely gave an order, but she told them to start dinner early.
Jiang Jianguo and Lin Wanting planned to take Jiang Tangtang to join the fun. Jiang Tangtang was incredibly excited. In her past life, she had always heard her parents mention that the happiest thing in their childhood was watching movies in the village; she never expected she would get to experience it herself.
By evening, the threshing floor was bustling with noise, and a white screen was hung high up.
Jiang Yaozu squeezed into the crowd, his eyes darting around like a rat. Sure enough, on the outskirts of the crowd, he saw a few shifty-looking strangers with their heads tucked in.
His heart beat faster, filled with both fear and a wicked sense of excitement. He didn’t dare to speak to those people directly, but he could do something.
Holding a canned glass bottle filled with water, he pretended to be playing and weaved through the crowd, slowly closing in on where Jiang Tangtang’s family was standing.
He saw Lin Wanting carefully protecting her daughter while Jiang Jianguo chatted with someone nearby.
He deliberately ran past Jiang Tangtang, pretended to trip, and splashed all the water from the bottle onto Jiang Tangtang and Lin Wanting.
The early autumn night still held a chill, and the wind made their wet clothes feel freezing.
Jiang Tangtang had only recently recovered from a serious illness; she certainly couldn’t handle the cold.
Jiang Yaozu intentionally raised his voice and said to Lin Wanting, “Oh, sorry, Third Aunt. I accidentally spilled water on you and Tangtang. Why don’t you go home and change?” Without thinking much, Lin Wanting took Jiang Tangtang home to change.
This move, just as Jiang Yaozu expected, caught the attention of the traffickers. One of the men quietly followed Lin Wanting back to the Jiang house.
Back at the house, Lin Wanting changed her daughter’s clothes first and told her to play in the courtyard for a while, waiting for her to finish changing so they could go to the threshing floor together.
But unexpectedly, while Tangtang was alone in the yard, the trafficker who had followed them snuck in. He grabbed Jiang Tangtang, covered her nose and mouth with a drugged handkerchief, and before she could even react, she lost consciousness.
After succeeding, he carried Jiang Tangtang and ran out of the courtyard toward the mountains.
When Lin Wanting came out after changing, she found her daughter was gone from the yard!
“Tangtang! Tangtang!” She called out anxiously a few times, but there was no response.
She rushed toward the threshing floor, calling her daughter’s name, fearing that she might have been impatient and headed there on her own.
At the threshing floor, Jiang Jianguo, who was still chatting in the crowd, heard his wife’s anxious shouts. His scalp tingled. He looked around but couldn’t see his daughter, so he hurried to his wife’s side. “What’s wrong? Where’s Tangtang?”
“Tangtang is missing! I came out after changing and didn’t see her in the yard! I didn’t see her on the way here from the house either!” Lin Wanting’s face was deathly pale, her voice trembling, terrified.
Jiang Jianguo’s heart sank, and a cold wave of fear gripped him. With red eyes, he scanned the crowd and shouted his daughter’s name: “Tangtang! Jiang Tangtang!”
Just then, he saw a stranger holding a child whose face was wrapped in a piece of torn clothing, walking away from the threshing floor.
“Stop! Put my daughter down!” Jiang Jianguo let out a roar. Casting all reason aside, he shot off like a cannonball, chasing after them regardless of anything else!
Only then did the boisterous crowd realize that a kidnapper had been taking advantage of the chaos to steal a child.
Hearing the shouts, the man carrying the child began to trot away. People nearby immediately stepped in to help, rushing forward to kick the man down.
“Ouch!” the man shrieked as he fell forward, his grip on the child loosening.
Jiang Jianguo seized the opportunity, lunged forward, and snatched the child back from the man’s arms, hugging her tightly. However, when he lifted the child’s clothes to check, he realized this was not Jiang Tangtang.
Jiang Jianguo’s heart turned cold. He immediately rushed at the man, punched him in the face, and roared in fury: “Where is my daughter! Speak now, or I’ll beat you to death!”
By this time, the village militia and cadres had been alerted and quickly surrounded them.
Seeing that there was no way to escape and being already battered and bruised by Jiang Jianguo, the man realized that if he didn’t confess, Jiang Jianguo would truly kill him. He finally, honestly told them that someone else had taken the other child and was running toward the hills behind the village.
The film screening was forced to stop, and the threshing ground dissolved into utter chaos. Although Jiang Jianguo was terrified, he joined the militia and the villagers who had self-organized to help, setting off in pursuit toward the hills.
Meanwhile, after realizing she had been drugged, Jiang Tangtang spent a small fortune of 2,000 gold coins to buy an antidote from the [DY Mall], which successfully helped her wake up.
However, she didn’t dare move, fearing that if the kidnapper discovered she was awake, he might kill her and dump her body. While lying on the kidnapper’s shoulder, she quietly bought a piece of ragged cloth from the system shop and dropped it along the path, hoping someone would find it.
She seemed lucky this time; the kidnapper was unfamiliar with the terrain and had gotten lost. She prayed that her mother and father would realize she was missing quickly.
Jiang Jianguo and the villagers reached the hills. Because there were so many of them and they knew the terrain well, they managed to find the piece of cloth Jiang Tangtang had dropped. The group immediately pressed on in that direction.
Exhausted, the kidnapper heard the sounds of people chasing behind him. He dumped Jiang Tangtang under a tree and fled on his own.
Seeing that the kidnapper had run off, Jiang Tangtang finally dared to stand up slowly. She ran toward the direction where she heard the villagers searching, shouting as she went: “Mom, Dad, I’m here!” She didn’t even realize how filled with terror and tears her voice sounded.
Jiang Jianguo seemed to hear his daughter’s voice. He quickly followed the sound and finally saw his disheveled daughter, crying and calling out.
The father and daughter embraced, both breaking into tears. Holding his recovered daughter, Jiang Jianguo didn’t dare to loosen his grip for a single second.