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墨書 Inktalez
As soon as the boy started to walk away, Ye Xiaohan quickly got up from the ground, grabbed a piece of cloth, and wrapped it around her remaining clothes before chasing after him.
The boy's attitude was cold and distant, giving off a sense of being thousands of miles away from anyone.
Under normal circumstances, Ye Xiaohan would have thanked him and offered a token of gratitude without lingering.
But this time was different. Ye Xiaohan had observed the environment around her and realized she had no memory of it. If she went out alone, she feared she would get lost in the mountains.
Moreover, the light was beginning to fade; once the last rays of sunlight disappeared, darkness would soon envelop everything.
Spending the night in an unfamiliar forest was definitely not a wise decision.
Her only option now was to follow the boy in front of her. He seemed very familiar with this forest, his footsteps never faltering as he walked straight ahead.
"Young Hero, thank you for saving me."
Ye Xiaohan tried to greet the boy. Although they were both walking together, it felt even more oppressive than being alone, as if the air itself had frozen.
The boy appeared uninterested in everything around him; even in situations like this, he showed no change in expression. After cutting the ropes, he hadn’t acknowledged Ye Xiaohan again.
What a strange boy, Ye Xiaohan thought. Doesn’t he feel any curiosity about what just happened?
Clearly, this boy had no such curiosity.
After Ye Xiaohan spoke to him, he simply acted as if he hadn’t heard her and continued on his way.
Only birds returning to their nests flew overhead, leaving behind a few calls that seemed to respond to Ye Xiaohan but only added to the desolation.
"Young Hero, are you just passing through? I really had a stroke of bad luck today. If you hadn't shown up in time, I don't know what I would have done."
Ye Xiaohan could no longer tolerate the oppressive silence and stubbornly continued to engage the young man in conversation, hoping to coax him into speaking.
However, the boy remained focused on his path, showing no sign of distraction from her persistent attempts.
"Young Hero, may I ask your esteemed name? When I return, I will surely send you a generous gift."
She did not want to feel indebted for saving her life; if money could resolve it, she would not hesitate to offer it.
Ye Xiaohan took a couple of steps forward to walk alongside the boy. It felt awkward to speak from behind him.
But this action seemed to provoke the boy's displeasure. As she drew closer, he slightly shifted away, increasing the distance between them and casting a glance at her.
His gaze was devoid of emotion, yet it carried an unsettling chill.
It was like a bottomless lake; on the surface, it appeared calm and serene, but its depth warned passersby that something unknown lurked beneath.
Unconsciously stepping back a bit, Ye Xiaohan maintained some distance from the boy, following him from afar as long as he remained within her line of sight.
As for trying to improve their relationship, she had already given up on that notion.
This boy was so aloof; was this the characteristic of a master?
Ye Xiaohan muttered to herself while keeping pace with the boy.
Gradually, she began to sense something amiss. Although the boy's expression remained calm, his pace was anything but slow.
Rather than hurrying home, it felt more like he was fleeing for his life.
Ye Xiaohan felt a sudden shock. The experts mentioned in legends were always facing the turbulent world of martial arts; could this young man also be hiding from enemies?
The possibility seemed quite high. After all, why would a young boy appear alone in this mountain forest? He didn’t seem to be resting either, as he had left immediately after saving Ye Xiaohan.
Thinking about the possibility of a whole group of the boy's enemies chasing after them, Ye Xiaohan quickly focused all her attention. Although it didn’t really help.
The difference was merely between being consciously attacked and being struck before one even realized it.
The light had completely faded, visibility dropped sharply, and Ye Xiaohan struggled to keep up. She silently prayed to safely exit the forest soon and return home.
She should have been home by now; at this hour, she would usually be arriving. She wondered if her family had noticed her kidnapping.
Li Yang, who usually praised her cleverness, should be using his wits right now! He needed to realize something was wrong and come find Gu Bei to rescue her!
Thinking of Gu Bei made Ye Xiaohan angry. This person would fuss over her if she accidentally cut herself while trimming her nails, yet when such a big incident occurred, he hadn’t helped at all!
Deep down, she knew she was being unreasonable. Even in this modern age with convenient communication, it was impossible for professionals to locate someone in such a short time.
Ye Xiaohan didn’t try to suppress these thoughts; it was a way to vent her emotions. What happened today truly left her shaken. If she bottled it up, it could lead to more serious psychological harm.
Meanwhile, at the Li household, Li Yang did not disappoint Ye Xiaohan’s expectations. He glanced at the darkening sky and began to feel anxious.
Although the tavern was doing great business and sometimes Ye Xiaohan would return late, those instances were usually communicated in advance.
It was rare for her to come home late without any news.
Li Yang called for Li Qi and instructed, “I’m going to the tavern to check on things and bring my sister-in-law home. You stay here with White Maiden; I’ll be back soon.”
"Alright, Second Brother, hurry up," Six Seven replied obediently, waving at Six Yang. "Go and come back quickly, bring Sister-in-law home."
Six Yang hurried off, making his way straight to the tavern.
Upon arriving at the tavern, he found it brightly lit and bustling with customers. He squeezed inside and sought out the staff member on night duty to inquire about the situation.
"Boss Ye? She left a long time ago. What's wrong? Is she not home yet?" the staff member exclaimed in surprise.
Six Yang's heart sank immediately, but he kept encouraging himself. "Well, she might have just missed her way back; I'll check again."
He asked in detail about Ye Xiaohan's departure time and the circumstances at that moment before hastily leaving the tavern.
As Six Yang stroked his chin, he pieced together the information he had gathered to reconstruct what had happened.
Sister-in-law had left the tavern under normal circumstances. Timing-wise, it was also around the usual time for her to return home. Given her usual habits, she should have arrived home half an hour ago.
This meant something must have happened on the way that delayed her.
While deep in thought, Six Yang followed the route Ye Xiaohan usually took home, hoping to find some clue along the way.
As he walked halfway, he passed by a stall and overheard the vendor chatting with someone familiar.
"You saw it too! Oh my, it was truly terrifying!" the vendor said. "It's so blatant; those people have some nerve."
Six Yang was focused on finding someone and didn't pay much attention. He just wanted to ask if they had seen Ye Xiaohan pass by.
As he got closer, he heard another person say, "Yeah, I was right there at the time; it really startled me. A living person just got knocked out and taken away like that."
The vendor shook his head and sighed, "The world is going downhill. What did that woman do to get involved with those scoundrels?"
"I wouldn't know," another person replied, shaking his head. "Why bother with them? We just need to focus on our own business and avoid getting into trouble."
The vendor nodded in agreement. "Yes, these matters are beyond us common folks. It's better to leave it to the Government Office to investigate."
"Exactly, exactly," the other man echoed.
Liang had a bad feeling creeping in and stepped forward to ask, "Excuse me, were you talking about a woman who was knocked out and taken away on the road? I was too far away to see clearly. Was she dressed like this?"
He described Ye Xiaohan's outfit from earlier.
"Yes, yes! That's the woman!" one of them exclaimed. "Brother, you have sharp eyes; you could see that clearly from a distance."
Liang's heart sank to the bottom. His sister-in-law had been knocked out and taken away? What on earth was going on?
He stayed behind to chat with the two men for a few more moments, trying to glean details about what had happened and when the incident occurred.
Calculating the rough timing, it coincided perfectly with when his sister-in-law would have been returning home.
On Ye Xiaohan's way back, a woman who looked just like her and was dressed similarly had been abducted. What did this mean?
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