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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Ninety-Five: Third Party Forces
"Pregnant...?"
It wasn't just Song Yao who was left in shock; the Jiang He team and the natives from the Air Raid Shelter displayed expressions of disbelief as well. Even the injured lying on the mattress paused their cries of pain, holding their breath and staring intently at the frail young girl whose life was hanging by a thread.
The reasons for everyone's astonishment varied. Song Yao's shock stemmed from a mix of anger and sorrow—how could Pan Luo, this underage girl, be pregnant? She knew all too well. Without a doubt, the father of Pan Luo's child was Zhou Huai, the one who had killed Jinhua and had nearly sent everyone to their deaths multiple times! Song Yao felt utterly disoriented, gazing at Pan Luo's tightly shut eyes and her still-flat belly, her mind turning to mush.
Chao Yifan and Ming Junwei had heard some rumors and, seeing Song Yao's astonished face, began to piece things together. Xiaomi and Xiao Wei were completely unaware of the situation, staring at the woman with a mix of shock and suspicion.
As for the others, they simply felt that it was a pity for two lives to be lost at once. In the mountain village, people married young, and among those present were girls around Pan Luo's age who were already mothers.
After a long silence, Pan Luo's unconscious moan pulled everyone's thoughts back.
Song Yao hurried over, leaning in close to try to hear what the young girl was saying. Pan Luo was merely murmuring softly, without any coherent words. Song Yao reached out to touch Pan Luo's forehead, which was burning hot.
"Where is Jiang He? Why hasn't he returned?" Ming Junwei lay down to rest for a while; his coughing had subsided. After a brief moment of shock, he remembered the two people who had gone to fetch a doctor.
"It doesn't matter who comes back; it's such a pity," the woman sighed deeply as she dampened a towel with water and placed it on Pan Luo's forehead, muttering, "Two lives wasted."
Zheng Er leaned against his pillow, silently surveying Song Yao and the others. Jin Zhong whispered in his ear, recounting Jin Bo's original words and mentioning how this group had just offered assistance. Zheng Er lowered his gaze, glancing outside at the grim scene before letting out a deep sigh.
"Bind this girl with rope; there are too many people here, and if she turns into a corpse, it could cause trouble," Zheng Er waved his hand, instructing Jin Zhong to pass the rope to Chao Yifan. "We won't interfere with your people."
Chao Yifan did not take the rope but met Zheng Er's cold gaze with one of his own.
“Yi Fan,” Ming Junwei said, stopping the agitated Chao Yifan. He tilted his head and added, “Understood, we will handle it.”
“Kid, don’t look at me like that. I’ve taken a knife from you, and I’ll remember this debt,” Zheng Er ignored Ming Junwei and lifted the thin blanket to reveal the crimson bandage at his waist. “But you don’t need to worry; I won’t touch you for now.”
Chao Yifan regarded Zheng Er with his usual disdainful gaze, sizing him up before sneering, “Don’t concern yourself with me if you’re about to kick the bucket.”
The natives of the Air Raid Shelter glared angrily at Chao Yifan, their faces filled with fury.
Zheng Er relaxed his brow and chuckled softly. He waved his hand to signal everyone not to be tense and said, “Indeed, you can’t compare to the young ones. Once your people return, you can leave this place.”
Ming Junwei halted Chao Yifan’s retort and greeted Zheng Er from across two beds. “We won’t stay long; I have a question. Would it be convenient for you to provide an answer?”
Zheng Er glanced at him sideways and replied, “You’re the leader, right? Go ahead and ask; the old man might not answer you anyway.”
Ming Junwei didn’t mind and smiled as he asked, “Earlier, we spoke briefly with your subordinate, a young man named Jin Bo… Are you aware of the broadcasting situation?”
“Broadcasting?” Zheng Er twisted his neck and looked at him with confusion. “What broadcasting?”
Song Yao and the others exchanged glances, all equally puzzled.
“So? Are you from Huang Huzhi’s group?” Ming Junwei scanned the expressions of those around him and noted their bewilderment; they didn’t seem to be faking it.
"Not at all." Ming Junwei propped himself up and said, "We heard on the car radio that there is a shelter at Daliugou Coal Mine, and they welcome Survivors, so we came here. I mentioned this to one of your men earlier, but he said he didn't know anything about it."
Zheng Er turned his face to stare at Ming Junwei, seemingly trying to confirm whether he was lying.
"Given the situation, I have no reason to deceive you. We haven't felt welcomed at all; as soon as we set foot on your territory, two girls were taken from us, and now it's come to this. Out of fairness and reason, you need to give us an explanation. Even if you're running a black market, we'll accept that."
The locals whispered among themselves, seemingly hearing this explanation for the first time. They pointed and exchanged doubtful glances focused on Ming Junwei and Zheng Er.
Zheng Er coughed a couple of times and said to Jin Zhong beside him, "Where's the pipe?" Jin Zhong was taken aback and hurriedly ran outside.
"I don't know what broadcast you're talking about. As you can see, we are just poor folks working in the fields, struggling for food and clothing. We don't understand what you're saying, nor do we have any means to..." Zheng Er spoke slowly, but as he continued, a glimmer of insight flashed in his eyes as if he had thought of something. He tilted his head in contemplation and frowned, "Broadcast..."
Ming Junwei and the others sensed that this old man might know something and kept a keen eye on him.
"Damn it," Zheng Er gasped in surprise, taking a puff from the pipe handed to him by Jin Zhong and exhaling a thick cloud of smoke.
"Come on, just say it!" Chao Yifan was impatient; seeing him act so mysteriously made him angry.
Although Jin Zhong and the others had fought alongside them, they were still two separate groups. Hearing Chao Yifan's tone escalate, they all stood up, hands reaching for weapons behind their backs.
Xiaomi and her group were not pushovers either. Seeing the tension rise, they also pulled out knives and clubs, both sides ready for a confrontation that could erupt into violence at any moment.
Zheng Er waved his hand to signal everyone to calm down. Smacking his lips, he asked, "This radio broadcast thing—it's really not something we did. However... if you're not lying, then this situation is indeed absurd."
Ming Junwei furrowed his brow, pondering the implications of the words he had just heard. "What do you mean?"
"This Daliugou mine has collapsed long ago. That broadcast is just a way to fool outsiders."
"So what?"
"So... I've been played for a fool too." Zheng Er knocked his pipe on the ground, squinting as he thought for a moment before suddenly asking, "What about Old Timer?"
"Ah? He took Qiu Tong to Nantang to blow the whistle." Jin Zhong was taken aback, thinking that Uncle Two must have lost his mind. Had he forgotten the orders he had given?
"Damn it, hurry and call Little Gold to bring him back!" Zheng Er slapped his thigh and cursed. "It must be those soldiers causing trouble! They’ve stolen military vehicles, and I heard there are plenty of things in those vehicles—guns, cannons, and maybe even a radio!"
Ming Junwei and the others exchanged glances, while Xiaomi and Xiao Wei looked utterly confused.
"Do military vehicles even have radios?" Ming Junwei asked.
Xiaomi scratched his head and replied, "Not necessarily. They could have food, clothes, medicine, weapons—anything really."
Song Yao, not quite understanding the local power dynamics, asked in confusion, "Why would they call for people here?"
"You don't know our situation," Zheng Er said, giving Song Yao a few more glances. "My daughter is about your age."
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