RYEY -Chapter 328 A-San’s Mistake

The old man glanced at Li Huan, a streak of white flashing at the corner of his eye. In his heart, he cursed silently: what a fool.

He then used the back of his kitchen knife to strike the door lock several times. The small lock fell off, and with the lock removed, the door swung open with a push.

Cheng Qiao took out a flashlight, and with two flashlights illuminating the room, it was brightly lit. The old man felt envious—this young couple must have some savings to have two flashlights.

A quick scan of the small room revealed a bed made from door panels in the corner. The bed was bare, with nothing on it except a worn-out panel.

Next to the bed was a small square stool, on which sat a jar for pickled vegetables.

The jar contained no pickles, only some water. Under the flashlight’s beam, the top layer had a thin sheet of ice, and below it, tiny wriggling creatures seemed to move in the water.

Near the door was a legless square table propped up with bricks. On it were messy bowls, chopsticks, and a few empty wine bottles.

Cheng Qiao had originally wanted Little Red to come out and sniff the items that Wu Fan had used, but the old man’s murky eyes, like searchlights, stayed fixed on the two of them.

Cheng Qiao turned off his flashlight. Li Huan shone his light toward the ceiling. Little Red appeared quietly, silently, circling the room before coming straight to Cheng Qiao’s feet.

“Well? You’ve seen it. There’s nothing here but trash. Let’s go—I’m closing the door.”

Cheng Qiao could feel Little Red’s helplessness. The place was too filthy; with so many overlapping smells, Little Red couldn’t distinguish which one belonged to that brat.

Moreover, Little Red was better at detecting herbs, so this messy environment was truly a challenge. Cheng Qiao called Little Red back into the space, and the two left, disappointed.

“Go check the train station or under the bridge—this guy likes running there.”

The old man, noticing the disappointed look on Cheng Qiao’s face, thought of the two yuan he hadn’t recovered. Feeling a pang in his heart, he called after them.

Li Huan waved back in thanks, and the two returned to Wu Fan’s home. Wu Fan’s eyes showed tension upon seeing them.

Earlier, when Cheng Qiao and Li Huan had left, he had been elated. He had planned to wake the neighbors and have them send him to the hospital, and he would escape.

Who would have thought that as Cheng Qiao approached the door, she popped a pill into her mouth. Just by the familiar taste, Wu Fan realized his hope was gone.

When Li Huan and Cheng Qiao exited and closed the door, Wu Fan tried to sit up with all his strength. Once he stepped out, he could call for help.

But the moment he exerted himself, pain shot through his body as if thousands of needles were stabbing into his flesh, and he froze. Yet even when still, the pain persisted.

He couldn’t cry out, he couldn’t move, and Wu Fan finally understood the potency of the poisons Ye Jun had created. The skin irritation from two days ago had only been a minor warning.

Wu Fan now regretted having no children. “If I don’t have a son, I’ll adopt a baby from an orphanage. As long as I keep it secret, no one will know it’s not mine.”

But there was no medicine for regret in the world. He hoped A-San had returned so that Cheng Qiao and Li Huan could bring their son back, giving him a sliver of hope for an antidote.

When he heard the door open, he knew his hope was dashed. Cheng Qiao poured a large tea basin of water at Wu Fan’s bedside and placed a wheat straw in it.

Seeing this, Wu Fan panicked—were they planning to starve him? No, he thought. There were still three days until he could meet A-San. With water, he wouldn’t die of hunger.

Cheng Qiao and Li Huan returned home. Cheng Qiao pulled out a map of Beijing to study. In the past few days, besides Li’s family, Cheng Liguo, Zhao’s family, and Ye Jun were all searching for little Cheng Li.

Ye Jun had contacted Ye Chengying the day Cheng Qiao boarded the train. Ye Chengying took it seriously, secretly sending people in Beijing to search.

But Beijing was huge, full of large courtyard homes, siheyuan, and small houses—not places they could just search randomly. Progress in the search was minimal.

On the sixth evening, after Cheng Qiao returned and found Wu Fan, several men finally dragged him to a warm, unfamiliar room.

At this moment, Wu Fan was a pitiful sight—beard stubbled, soiled his clothes, and his stomach growling from hunger. He looked utterly dejected.

Thankfully, the men gave him a pill. Half an hour later, his numb limbs began to regain feeling; his arms and legs could move slightly.

Overjoyed, Wu Fan exercised his limbs nonstop. An hour later, he could stand and even stumble forward.

He noticed a wooden bucket in the corner, half-filled with water, meant for bathing.

The water had cooled, but Wu Fan felt too filthy to care. He washed his face first, then gritted his teeth and immersed himself in the cold water.

Bathing in icy water during a northern winter wouldn’t kill him, but would make him bedridden for days. Yet coming from a large family, he couldn’t tolerate feeling filthy.

After cleaning himself, he collapsed onto the heated kang. The room was warm, clearly the kang had been fired up, and Wu Fan’s basic knowledge told him that much.

Feeling warm again, he noticed fresh clothes on the kang. He exhaled, counting the days—tomorrow would be the day he met A-San.

Cheng Qiao and Li Huan didn’t sleep that night. Early the next morning, they went to Gucheng Tower, eating breakfast at the state-run restaurant outside the gate while watching the road, waiting for Ye Chengying’s people to bring Wu Fan.

Wu Fan also ate breakfast in the room. After two days without food, he could only drink some porridge. But after half a bowl, someone came to take him away.

Seeing the car waiting outside, Wu Fan was shocked. Such a car belonged only to high-ranking officials or government leaders. Had he already attracted the attention of a big shot?

The car quickly arrived at Gucheng Tower. Wu Fan stood at the place agreed with A-San. Minutes ticked by until finally a man appeared.

But the man was alone; little Cheng Li wasn’t with him. Wu Fan’s eyes widened: “Where’s the child?”

A-San lowered his head in guilt. Cheng Qiao tried to approach, but Li Huan stopped her. To know the truth, they had to wait a moment.

“What happened? Tell me now!”

Seeing A-San remain silent, Wu Fan’s voice grew hoarse with anxiety.