Rescued, Escape Successful

After Fu Yanzhi drew the skinny man away, Feng Yunxiao kept running forward. He didn't dare stop and could only keep running, because this was the chance Fu Yanzhi had secured for him.

The few stars left in the dead of night were wrapped in thick clouds, letting not a trace of warmth through. Feng Yunxiao gradually lost his bearings as he fled. But he could only keep running forward. Now this was his battle alone.

Feng Yunxiao's canvas shoes had long since been caked into heavy lumps by mud. The worn holes in their uppers rubbed against his ankles, sending a sharp sting through him with every step. Bloodstains spread in dark brown marks across his light-colored socks.

Cold sweat plastered his hair to his temples. Beneath the loose strands over his forehead, his wide-open eyes were bloodshot. His thin jacket hung open, flapping noisily as the night wind filled it. The T-shirt underneath was already soaked with sweat and clung coldly to his back.

"Huff—huff—" His heavy panting was especially harsh in the silent wasteland. His chest heaved, his throat was painfully dry, and every breath carried the astringent taste of rust.

The path beneath his feet was rough and difficult to navigate, strewn with stones and dead branches. Several times he stepped on loose rocks and abruptly lost his balance, forcing him to wave his arms wildly to steady himself.

At last, after running a while longer, Feng Yunxiao saw hope: a village. Paying no mind to the wounds on his feet, he sprinted toward it.

Feng Yunxiao reached the door of a house and knocked. After a while, a man's voice came from inside. "Who is it, knocking in the middle of the night?"

Before long, a light came on inside. Feng Yunxiao waited outside, and after a while, a man opened the door.

The man saw only a disheveled child. His clothes were torn in several places, his shoes were covered in mud, and his hair was stuck together in clumps, mixed with mud and bits of grass and plastered to his forehead. The skin at his temple was broken, and the beads of blood seeping from it mingled with sweat, leaving several grimy streaks down his cheeks.

The man asked, "Kid, why are you knocking on my door in the middle of the night?"

Feng Yunxiao replied, "Uncle, I just escaped from some human traffickers. Sorry to trouble you, but could you call the police for me?"

The man looked at Feng Yunxiao and hesitated for a moment before saying, "Come inside first, kid."

Hearing this, Feng Yunxiao went in. Afraid his shoes would dirty the house, he took them off and left them outside. Once Feng Yunxiao was inside, the man had him sit on the bed and poured him a glass of water. Feng Yunxiao took it and drank in great gulps until he had finished it.

Feng Yunxiao collected himself a little and looked gratefully at the man. "Uncle, sorry to trouble you, but please call the police quickly. Those traffickers might still be chasing me."

The man smiled and nodded. "Kid, you rest first. I'll make the call."

With that, he took out his phone and called the police. Feng Yunxiao sat on the bed, feeling a little more at ease. After speaking with the police, the man hung up.

After making the call, the man went into the kitchen. A while later, a delicious aroma drifted out. The man returned to the room carrying a bowl of noodles topped with a glistening fried egg. He handed the noodles to Feng Yunxiao. "Eat up. You must be exhausted after escaping."

Feng Yunxiao took the bowl. The hunger in his stomach left him little time to think about anything else, and he wolfed the noodles down. As the warm noodles filled his stomach, his whole body warmed up.

The man sat beside him and said with a smile, "Slow down. No one's going to fight you for it. There's more in the pot."

After finishing the noodles, Feng Yunxiao wiped his mouth. "Thank you, Uncle. The noodles were delicious."

The man looked at Feng Yunxiao. "Kid, what's your name? How did you escape? Did any other kids get away?"

Feng Yunxiao said, "My name is Feng Yunxiao. Seven of us escaped in total. I don't know what happened to the others. We split up right from the start. I went with Big Brother, but later they almost caught up to us. To let me escape, Big Brother went to draw the traffickers away himself." When he finished, tears rolled down Feng Yunxiao's cheeks.

The man handed Feng Yunxiao some tissues, his voice softening. "It's all right, kid. Now we just have to wait for the police. I'm sure they'll help find your brother. You've been held captive for so long; your parents must be worried sick. Do you want to call them?"

Feng Yunxiao hesitated for a while, but decided to make a call. What if Mom and Dad are more worried about me now that I've been abducted? The man handed his phone to Feng Yunxiao, who took it and dialed his father's number. After it rang for a while, a man's voice came through. "Hello, who is this?"

When Feng Yunxiao heard his father's voice, he said, "It's me, Dad. I'm Xiaoxiao."

When the person on the other end heard that it was Feng Yunxiao, he said, "Where are you now? I'll send someone to pick you up."

Feng Yunxiao asked the man and learned he was in Peach Blossom Village, then told his father. After offering a few words of comfort, his father hung up.

At the Feng residence, Feng Canghai had just instructed his subordinates to go to Peach Blossom Village. He leaned back in a leather chair, an unlit cigarette between his fingertips. Half a cup of lukewarm coffee sat on the desk. His gaze rested on the moonlight outside the window, his eyes unfocused.

The study was so quiet that the ticking of the wall clock could be heard, as though it were helping him sort through his tangled thoughts. Just then, a knock sounded at the door. Feng Canghai told the visitor to come in.

A woman entered silently, her figure slender and upright. A plain long dress set off her cool, aloof bearing, like moonlight. Her calm gaze swept across the room without lingering. Only when she reached the desk did she lean forward slightly, her voice as light as the wind. "I'm not disturbing you, am I, darling?"

The woman turned and sat on Feng Canghai's lap. "Darling, are you still worried about Xiaoxiao? Don't worry, Xiaoxiao will be all right."

Feng Canghai said, "Xiaoxiao has been found. He's in Peach Blossom Village. I've already sent someone to pick him up."

When she heard that Feng Yunxiao had been found, a dark glint flashed in the woman's eyes, so quickly it could have been an illusion. When she looked up again, her usual composure had returned. "That's wonderful, darling. Xiaoxiao has finally been found. Darling, remember to get some rest early. I'll go back to my room first."

Feng Canghai said, "All right, go get some rest."

The woman returned to her room, shut the door, took out her phone, and dialed a number. After it rang for a while, a man's voice came through. "What is it, calling in the middle of the night?"

The woman tightened her grip on the phone. "How did you let that damn brat escape? Didn't you say it was foolproof? Why is the little bastard in Peach Blossom Village now, and why did he even call his dad? Is this what you call foolproof, you damn fatty?"

The man on the other end was stunned by her scolding, then flew into a rage out of embarrassment. "How would I know the kid escaped?! What's the use of saying all this now? I'll send someone to Peach Blossom Village to bring the little bastard back."

The woman snorted coldly. "You'd better hurry. If Feng Canghai gets him back, neither of us will come to a good end."

After hanging up, the woman paced back and forth in her room, her eyes full of anxiety.

After hanging up, the fatty called the bald man. "Tietou, take some men to Peach Blossom Village right now and bring back that little bastard from the Feng family. And where's Skinny? Why isn't he answering his phone?"

The bald man replied, "What about the others, Boss? I'm about to catch them."

The fatty said, "Leave them alone for now. Go to Peach Blossom Village first. That little bastard is more important."

The bald man said, "All right, Boss."

Meanwhile, in Peach Blossom Village, Feng Yunxiao was eagerly waiting for the people his father had sent to pick him up.

Suddenly, several dark figures flashed past the window. The man's expression changed, and he said to Feng Yunxiao, "Kid, the traffickers have come after you. Hurry and run out the back door."

Feng Yunxiao nodded in terror, then ran out the back door.

The bald man and several burly men kicked the door open. He demanded viciously, "Where's the kid? Hand him over!"

The man said calmly, "What kid? I haven't seen one."

Just then, the bald man looked out the window and spotted Feng Yunxiao fleeing through the back door. He and the burly men immediately rushed after him.

Feng Yunxiao ran desperately along the muddy path, the footsteps behind him drawing closer and closer. Fleeing blindly in his panic, he plunged into a cornfield behind the village. The corn stalks rustled in the night wind, as though lamenting his fate.

"You little bastard, let's see where you can run!" The bald man's roar echoed through the cornfield. Feng Yunxiao didn't dare breathe loudly. He curled up in a corner, clapping a hand tightly over his mouth, his heart pounding wildly in his chest.

Suddenly, police sirens sounded in the distance, drawing closer like a clarion call of hope. The bald man and his companions' expressions changed drastically when they heard them. "Damn it, the police are here! Retreat!" The bald man waved a hand, and the men hurriedly turned and fled.

Before long, the police reached the cornfield. One officer spotted Feng Yunxiao trembling and gently comforted him. "Don't be afraid, little one. We're the police. You're safe now."

Just then, the people Feng Canghai had sent arrived as well. After a brief discussion, the two sides confirmed Feng Yunxiao's identity. Feng Yunxiao finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Feng Yunxiao looked at the police. "Officer, several of my older brothers escaped too, but we got separated. Sorry to trouble you, but could you help me find them?"

The officer said, "Don't worry, kid. We'll find your brothers."

With that, the police set off to search. Feng Yunxiao thanked the villager who had helped him, then returned to the Feng residence with the driver.

Bo Qing hid in the cornfield with Li Huanhuan. After watching for a while and seeing that the bald man hadn't caught up, he led Li Huanhuan out of the field and continued fleeing.

Before long, they spotted the beam of a flashlight. Bo Qing instinctively hid with Li Huanhuan, but after seeing the police badge on the approaching person, he ran out with Li Huanhuan.

After they explained the situation to the police, the officers saw their injuries and took them to the hospital.

Elsewhere, Wen Shiming ran wildly with Kong Fanyue and Kong Fanxing, not daring to slacken for a moment. As they ran, he comforted Yueyue and Xingxing. "Don't be afraid. Big Brother will protect you. We'll be out of here soon." As they fled, they ran straight into the skinny man, who was also fleeing.

The skinny man was out of his mind, his body and hands covered in blood. He kept saying, "I didn't kill him. He ran into my knife himself. Why didn't he dodge?"

Hearing that he had killed someone and seeing the blood on him, Wen Shiming charged forward and grabbed the skinny man. "Who did you kill? Tell me, who did you kill?"

The skinny man was scared witless. "I didn't kill Fu Yanzhi. He ran into it himself."

When Wen Shiming heard Big Brother's name, he was stunned. He grabbed the skinny man by the collar. "Who did you say? Fu Yanzhi, was it? Say something! Why Big Brother?"

Wen Shiming's face was covered in tears. He punched the skinny man in the face. "You killed Big Brother. I'll fucking kill you!"

Wen Shiming punched the skinny man in the face again and again. When Kong Fanxing heard that Big Brother had been killed, he burst into frightened sobs. Kong Fanyue shielded his younger brother at his side, but tears streamed down his cheeks.

How could the frail Wen Shiming be a match for the skinny man? He was soon shoved away and fell heavily to the ground. Just as the skinny man was about to attack Wen Shiming again, a police siren sounded in the distance.

The skinny man panicked. Abandoning his attack on Wen Shiming, he stumbled toward the woods nearby.

Wen Shiming struggled to his feet and tried to chase the skinny man, but he was too exhausted and fell to the ground again.

Kong Fanxing ran over in tears and threw his arms around Wen Shiming. "Third Brother, what do we do? Is Big Brother..." Kong Fanxing was too choked with sobs to continue.

Wen Shiming fought back his grief and comforted his two younger brothers. "Don't be afraid. Big Brother is here. Let's find the police first and have them catch the bad man and avenge Big Brother."

Just then, police officers appeared in their line of sight. Wen Shiming led Kong Fanyue and Kong Fanxing over to meet them and told them what had happened.

The police immediately launched a hunt for the skinny man while arranging a vehicle to take the boys to the hospital for examinations. Wen Shiming sat in the vehicle, gazing out the window, his mind filled with images of Big Brother. Big Brother will be all right, he repeated to himself over and over.