Chapter 55: Are you fucking bullshitting me?
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A few jokes temporarily dispelled the unease weighing on everyone’s hearts.
But the cold grew ever more biting.
The three of them fell silent. The only sound was the chattering of their teeth.
Gradually, they edged closer together until they were huddled side by side.
Cheng An opened his loose outer robe and said somewhat awkwardly, “If we hold each other, it won’t be so cold. Do you two want to try?”
Heaven and earth be his witnesses—he had absolutely no ulterior motives at that moment!
Besides, they were all only eight or nine years old. What was there to be so particular about?
The three of them curled up on the straw.
With flushed cheeks, Gu Xiaorou shifted uncomfortably.
After a while…
“Cheng An?”
“Hmm?”
In the dim prison cavern, their faces were close enough to touch.
Gu Xiaorou’s voice was as soft as a mosquito’s buzz. “Do you… like Sister Qingqing?”
“What?”
Even though he had lived two lifetimes, Cheng An still blushed slightly.
“Eldest Senior Sister is indeed very kind to me.”
“Oh…”
It was hard to tell whether Gu Xiaorou understood his answer.
After hesitating for a moment, she murmured, “Actually, I don’t want to keep pestering you either, but Father…”
The Gu family had no son!
Under the circumstances of the current society, this was undoubtedly the greatest blow to Gu Changqing.
Never mind the rumors and gossip.
How could the Gu family line be carried on in the future?
“But…”
Cheng An finally asked the question that had troubled him for so long. “Why does it have to be me?”
With the Gu family’s wealth and influence, how difficult could it be to find a son-in-law if they put their minds to it?
“Because you’re filial!”
“What?”
Cheng An stared blankly.
He had imagined all sorts of reasons. He had even narcissistically believed that he was an exceptional talent among men, which was why Gu Changqing favored him above all others.
But he had never expected…
“Filial?”
“A person without filial piety cannot be loyal!”
Gu Xiaoyue quietly joined in. “Although you’re a little delinquent, and usually so full of yourself that people want nothing more than to slap you…”
“Stop!”
“Enough!”
Cheng An darkened his expression and snapped, “You don’t need all those qualifications. Just say ‘but’!”
“Humph!”
Gu Xiaoyue rolled her eyes at him before continuing in a sweet voice, “But you were willing to stand up for your parents, and even take a beating to protect your mother. That is benevolence and filial piety!”
“That’s right,” Gu Xiaorou added. “There are plenty of capable people, but it is rare to find someone who is both capable and filial.”
People always talked about the gap between rich and poor.
This was a perfect example!
Ordinary people might place greater importance on ability, while the wealthy tended to care more about character.
Neither was necessarily right or wrong.
People simply stood in different positions, and thus sought different things.
But whether rich or poor…
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Loyalty, benevolence, and righteousness were the foundations of being human.
The conversation ended.
After the silence that followed, everyone grew a little awkward again.
Cheng An unconsciously shifted his arm, accidentally brushing against Gu Xiaorou’s hairdo.
“Hiss!”
Something sharp pierced him, making him draw in a breath.
“Oh!”
“Did I hurt you?”
Gu Xiaorou hurriedly loosened her hair and pulled out a delicate silver hairpin.
“This…”
A spark lit up in Cheng An’s eyes. “They didn’t find that when they searched us?”
“No.” Gu Xiaorou shook her head. “This is the latest style of coiled hairdo this year. The pin is fixed inside, which makes it look more beautiful.”
“Mm!”
“Beautiful, beautiful…”
Cheng An nodded perfunctorily, his smile growing wider.
…
No one knew how much time had passed.
In a hazy half-sleep, the prison door suddenly flew open with a slap.
“Time to eat.”
A bandit came in carrying several coarse corn buns.
The three of them woke instantly.
“It’s so hard!”
Cheng An took a bite of a bun, then frowned. “Big Brother, could you give us a bowl of water? It’s too hard to swallow!”
“Heh!”
The bandit laughed angrily. “What else do you want? Shall I bring you a plate of pastries too?”
“Really?”
Cheng An gave him an innocent smile. “But if you could brew us a pot of flower tea as well, that would be even better.”
“What?”
“You little…”
The bandit’s temper flared. He grabbed Cheng An by the collar and lifted him off the ground.
But just as he was about to strike—
His neck suddenly turned cold.
A razor-sharp silver hairpin was pressed against the side of his throat.
“You…”
The bandit instinctively released him.
Cheng An’s voice turned cold. “I advise you not to move. One light stroke downward, and you’ll bleed to death.”
“You wouldn’t dare!”
“Heh.”
Cheng An smiled.
He applied a little more pressure. The hairpin pierced the skin and sank into the flesh.
“Don’t!”
“Don’t do anything rash…”
The bandit was only human. Faced with life and death, he was just as capable of fear.
His voice trembling, he gritted his teeth. “It’s only pastries, isn’t it? I’ll get you some! But we don’t have flower tea. Conditions here…”
“Are you trying to play dumb with me?”
Cheng An nearly laughed from anger. His voice was icy as he said, “Behave yourself. Don’t force me to kill.”
The bandit was forced to kneel on the ground.
The two sisters hurried over and bound him with Cheng An’s belt.
What a familiar scene!
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The three of them instinctively glanced at one another, then sighed helplessly.
Damn it!
That made twice now!
…
It was dusk.
The winter sun vanished beyond the horizon in no time.
The three of them crouched in the weeds, moving forward along the mountainside.
“Cheng An…”
Gu Xiaorou shivered as she whispered, “We went the wrong way. The exit is over there.”
“No!”
“We can’t run yet.”
Cheng An cautiously surveyed their surroundings and whispered, “There are too many bandits here, and watch posts line the entire route. We won’t make it out!”
“Then what do we do?”
The two girls immediately grew tense.
Cheng An glanced around and sighed. “We’ll hide for now. If we can endure for three days, there may be a turn of events.”
The family would return with the ransom after three days.
But if they did not see the captives, conflict between the two sides would naturally arise.
That included the remaining payment owed to Dong Dakang.
By then…
Matters among all three parties would begin to ferment together, magnifying the conflict.
“Could it be…”
Gu Xiaorou suddenly understood. “Are you waiting for the authorities to come suppress the bandits?”
“That would certainly be best…”
Cheng An had barely finished speaking when the entire mountain stronghold suddenly erupted into commotion.
“This is bad!”
“The hostages escaped! Hurry! Seal off every route down the mountain and catch them!”
Dozens of bandits rushed into action upon hearing the news.
Behind the stronghold, however, three small figures silently vanished into the dense forest.
Night had fallen completely.
The three of them fled wildly, no longer knowing how far they had gone.
“It’s… it’s so cold…”
“Achoo!”
Gu Xiaoyue shuddered. Her little face was flushed, and she sank weakly to the ground.
Cheng An frowned slightly.
He reached out and touched Gu Xiaoyue’s forehead. It was faintly hot.
They could not go on.
Even if they managed to evade the bandits’ search, they would still die of illness and hunger.
“Hold on a little longer…”
Cheng An took one sister by each hand and encouraged them. “Do you see that stand of pine trees ahead? There’ll be food once we get there.”
“You’re lying.”
Gu Xiaoyue gritted her teeth and forced herself to stand. “This is a barren wilderness. Where would there be food?”
“You really don’t know how to live off the land, do you?”
Cheng An smiled as he walked ahead.
“Do you know about squirrels?”
“Yes…”
“Squirrels love storing food, especially in winter. They…”
The two girls’ attention was drawn to the subject, and for the moment, they forgot their hunger.