There was only one door and one window in the room. The window was locked and the door was blocked. Hence, they were doomed.
Xia Muqing whispered into the boy’s ear and he nodded hesitantly.
She promised him, “I will definitely bring you out of here.”
The boy nodded earnestly.
The sky gradually darkened, and there were many sounds at the door.
Xia Muqing hid behind the cabinet and got the boy to hide under the bed.
The door was pushed open and the woman walked in. She was completely flustered and shouted when there was no one inside. “Where is he? Where did he go?”
The guards repeatedly swore that no one had left the room today.
It was a mess outside, and everyone started to search the residence.
Xia Muqing took the opportunity to signal to the boy. The two of them successfully escaped the room, but it was still not easy to get out.
They could only find a place to hide.
There was a pile of straw fit to be a good hiding place. Xia Muqing led him there and they ran quickly. They were very close to the wall. Once the guards were gone, they could escape immediately.
The woman searched around the entire house but she didn’t find him. Suddenly, she returned and said, “We’ve fallen into a trap.”
The entire residence was bustling with noise. A man with a huge belly walked out and asked, “What are you all doing?”
The woman stiffened and smiled ingratiatingly. “Master, why are you out? We’ll be there in a while.”
Old Master Wang rubbed his belly and grinned lewdly. “I can’t wait anymore. Just hand him to me.”
The woman’s expression was a little ugly, and the people around her lowered their heads and kept mum.
Such a scene enlightened Old Master Wang instantly.
He said angrily, “That child ran away again?”
He grabbed the woman’s hair and dragged her to the middle of the courtyard. “Did I warn you that if he escapes again, I’ll break your legs?”
The woman’s elegance and arrogance disappeared instantly. She was dragged along the ground and her face was covered in dust.
She cried, “Master, I will find him. Please give me another chance.”
Old Master Wang sneered and looked around. He shouted, “Beat her!”
Several servants approached with sticks in their hands. The woman screamed and fumbled, but she was surrounded by them.
The sticks landed on the woman, who cried out in pain.
Old Master Wang suddenly waved his hands to stop them. He personally picked up a stick and went to her. “I’ll break your legs myself.”
He raised the stick high in the air. The boy, who was in Xia Muqing’s arms, suddenly rushed out and shielded the woman. The stick hit his back.
Old Master Wang laughed in disgust and said, “I finally forced you to come out.”
He had known all along that he hadn’t escaped, and that was why he had put on a show.
The boy spat out a mouthful of blood, but he still subconsciously propped himself up so that he wouldn’t touch the woman’s wounds.
The woman looked at the child who had shielded her. A complicated expression flashed across her eyes, but it disappeared in the end.
She smiled and said daintily, “Master, I found him for you.”
Old Master Wang put down the stick in his hand and extended his hand to the boy.
Xia Muqing took the opportunity to bolt out quickly. She pulled the boy and was about to run, but she was stopped when she was about to leave.
She hugged the boy and panted non-stop.
When Old Master Wang saw Xia Muqing’s face, his furious expression vanished. He said lustfully, “Lass, why didn’t you greet me when you came to my residence as a guest? I’ll treat you well.”
With joy, his interest in the injured boy diminished. “Guards, lock them up. I’m marrying my eighteenth concubine tomorrow.”
The two of them were locked up together. Xia Muqing looked at the boy lying on the bed. She walked over and asked, “How do you feel?”