Song Ning listened intently, but heard no one answer.
The cloth covering her face was still in place.
Perhaps the other person had responded with a gesture.
The ground underfoot was full of pits and bumps.
Unable to see the path, she stumbled along.
Several times, when she nearly fell, her hands found a wall beside her.
It was damp, an earthen wall.
Someone behind her would also grab her by the collar and haul her upright.
The group walked single file through a narrow space.
There was no wind, and barely any circulation of air.
Dongtuanbao Township was nestled in a hollow among the mountains to begin with.
Mountains surrounded it.
According to the information Kong Jianming had just provided,
they had walked only about half an hour from that house.
Song Ning deduced that they were most likely walking through an excavated tunnel.
After all, burrowing underground... was these people's specialty.
With their vision obstructed, the group moved slowly.
They groped along in the dark like this for another forty minutes or so.
Suddenly, she felt a cold breeze against her face. A little farther on, soft grass appeared beneath her feet, and she could feel the space around her open up.
They had emerged from the tunnel.
The group paused. Someone spoke quietly a short distance away, apparently discussing something.
A little later, they began climbing the mountain.
The feeling was familiar.
When Lin Xiaoming had held Song Ning hostage, she had climbed a long stretch of mountain path blindfolded.
He had been afraid she would study the surroundings and remember the route.
Now it was the middle of the night, yet they still kept her blindfolded.
Song Ning guessed they were afraid she would recognize someone.
But there was one thing she had always been certain