Chapter 38: Chapter 38: The Shadow, It’s Me
As Zhao Nuanyue was searching aimlessly, she suddenly spotted a short, stout figure running stealthily forward.
Zhao Nuanyue observed carefully. Even in the darkness, she could tell that the short, stout woman was Liu Lanhua.
’Rather than searching like a headless chicken, following Liu Lanhua is definitely the right move.’
About two minutes later, at a fork in the road, Liu Lanhua met up with several people. Some were carrying clubs, others sacks. After whispering a few words with her, the group began to head south.
Zhao Nuanyue’s consciousness roamed through the water, but she couldn’t immediately find Yang Guanghui, Li Qiong, or Wang Yuan.
Worried about her brother, Zhao Nuanyue kept a tight grip on his hand as they gave chase.
By the moonlight, Zhao Nuanyue could faintly see a person standing on the Great River Dam. The group rushed forward and knocked the person unconscious.
Zhao Nuanyue froze. ’Who did they just hit?’
Zhao Nuanyue didn’t dare to stop, nor did she dare to make a sound. She placed a finger to her lips and whispered to Zhao Nuanyang, "Shh! Don’t talk."
"Mmm," Zhao Nuanyang nodded, then pointed toward the Great River Dam. "Yang!"
Only then did Zhao Nuanyue realize that the person was Yang Guanghui.
Zhao Nuanyue was terrified. ’Should I chase after them, or should I hide?’ There were too many of them up there; she and Zhao Nuanyang were no match for them at all.
But if she didn’t try to save them, once Wang Dadan and Liu Lanhua succeeded, she and her brother would be next.
She couldn’t use the Dragon Scale to control the water against these people, so she had to go to the threshing ground to get help.
"Nuanyang, go find Uncle Miao. Once you find him, stay by his side and don’t lose him, understand?" Zhao Nuanyue instructed. "Nuanyang, listen to me, hurry up and go!"
"Sister..." Zhao Nuanyang was reluctant to leave his sister and was also a little scared. He had never walked alone at night before!
"Go, hurry! Any later and Yang, Li Qiong, and Wang Yuan will be done for," Zhao Nuanyue said urgently. ’If the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold. Since Wang Dadan and Liu Lanhua are being so bold, they must have already planned an escape route.’
Just then, a dark figure came up behind Zhao Nuanyue and Zhao Nuanyang. It scared Zhao Nuanyue so much that she was about to scream when a hand clamped over her mouth.
"It’s me," Hua Yusen said in a low voice. ’This foolish woman is too bold, actually trying to save those three.’
That voice was like the sound of heaven, instantly giving Zhao Nuanyue a flicker of hope.
Hearing Hua Yusen’s voice, Zhao Nuanyang finally let go of the handful of Hua Yusen’s clothes he had grabbed.
"You... How did you get here?" Zhao Nuanyue was still shaken, her expression frantic. "Quick... quickly, go save Yang Guanghui, Li Qiong, and Wang Yuan! I saw Liu Lanhua meet up with a group of people and knock out Yang Guanghui."
"Help!" Li Qiong’s cry for help was faintly heard—just once, and then silence. It was clear she had been subdued.
Hua Yusen frowned. "You and Nuanyang go to where they’re showing the movie and find Uncle Miao. Tell him to bring people here. I’ll go after them."
Hearing Hua Yusen’s words, Zhao Nuanyue finally felt a bit relieved. ’Hua Yusen is an expert in Martial Arts. Liu Lanhua and her gang only know how to sucker punch people; they should be no match for him. My brother and I will only hold him back. The right thing to do is to get help quickly.’
"Okay, be careful," Zhao Nuanyue said urgently, handing the club she was holding to Hua Yusen. "Take care of yourself!"
Hua Yusen took the club and charged off in the direction the group had gone.
Zhao Nuanyue and Zhao Nuanyang ran as fast as they could. The frigid air stung their chests, but they couldn’t stop now.
Her three companions were waiting for her to save them.
’Uhh, well, they’re waiting for me to find help, anyway!’
As she ran, Zhao Nuanyue used her consciousness to contact the Little Red Carp, hoping it could offer some help.
Heaven does not disappoint the earnest. Zhao Nuanyue finally managed to contact the Little Red Carp.
"Little Red Carp, do you have a way to help?" Zhao Nuanyue asked anxiously. ’There isn’t much water in the ditch. My consciousness was able to follow, but I don’t dare to rashly use the Dragon Scale’s power to control the water in the pond.’
The Little Red Carp frowned, thought for a moment, and said, "You absolutely cannot use the Dragon Scale’s power. I’m in Nianqiao Village and can’t get over there either. You should hurry and bring people to find them. I hope you’re fast enough, or those three are done for."
"A friend of mine went after them. He’s very skilled and should be able to save them. This time, I want to catch Liu Lanhua and Wang Dadan. I can’t use the Dragon Scale on them, but I want you to give me their route so I can have the villagers come and capture them," Zhao Nuanyue said, out of breath. "Little Red Carp, that should be okay, right?"
The Little Red Carp thought for a moment and replied, "You can. That’s a conflict between you and other humans; it has nothing to do with the Dragon Scale or me. Your friend is very skilled and is about to catch up to them. I’ll give you directions so you can lead people over to cut them off and catch them."
"Thank you, Little Red Carp," Zhao Nuanyue replied, muttering as if she were talking to herself.
Zhao Nuanyang was confused and very curious. He wanted to ask his sister what was going on, but he knew the situation was urgent and suppressed his questions.
"Why are you two in such a panic?" a familiar voice called out. Li Guihua was looking over, along with several other middle-aged women from the village.
It turned out they had arrived late and couldn’t squeeze to the front, so they were watching from the back. That’s how they spotted the panicked expressions on Zhao Nuanyue and Zhao Nuanyang’s faces.
Seeing Li Guihua, Zhao Nuanyue rushed forward and said, "Director Li, Li Qiong and Wang Yuan went to relieve themselves, and Yang Guanghui went along to protect them. But I got worried just now and followed them. I saw someone knock Yang Guanghui out, and Li Qiong yelled for help, but then there was nothing. Nuanyang and I are just kids, we were no match for them, so we ran back to get help."
"What?" Hearing this, Li Guihua was also startled. "Who would be so bold?"
She remembered the previous incident where Wang Yuan and Li Qiong had been drugged, taken to a cave, Wang Yuan had been violated, and Li Qiong had been stripped of her clothes.
’The perpetrator wasn’t satisfied, so of course he wouldn’t give up.’
’It’s just that they had been safe for so long that they’d forgotten their initial terror and let their guard down.’
"Aunt Li, hurry and get Aunt Miao! We have to catch those criminals," Zhao Nuanyue said urgently. "If we don’t go now, I’m afraid..."
Zhao Nuanyue couldn’t continue, bursting into tears out of fear.
"Go get help, quickly," Li Guihua said, her expression grim. "Everyone, stop watching the movie. Two of you search the perimeter, and I’ll take the rest to search the nearby area in groups."
The other women readily agreed with Li Guihua. They split up to search, asking other villagers they met for help. Even some of the village men came out to join the search.
When Miao Cunzheng heard that someone had attacked the village volunteers again, he was furious. ’The village’s dirty laundry probably can’t be hidden today.’
With the Little Red Carp’s deliberate guidance, Zhao Nuanyue chose an intersection and led the group of people in that direction.
