Uncle Niu nodded, "Constable Hong is at home today. I informed him of the situation here, and he went to the Yamen to call for help. He asked us to keep an eye on things here."
Yang Chuxia nodded her head. Seeing the people here, she knew that Constable Hong indeed went to call for assistance from the bailiffs. However, he probably had to go to the county town, which would take some time. Thus, she found a spot and sat down.
Upon seeing this, Ye Zi’an went to a nearby pile of extinguished firewood, gathered some dry wood, and set it up for another fire.
Uncle Niu asked, "Miss, do you think there will be more people coming while we watch over this place?"
"You mean the people behind him?" Yang Chuxia asked, and Uncle Niu nodded.
"No," Yang Chuxia said, "At least not now. Currently, they are in a precarious situation, so their master is probably in hiding. They wouldn’t dare expose themselves. As for him, it’s likely due to personal grudges. He probably was either scolded or abandoned by his master and is now seeking revenge on me. He wouldn’t let his master know about this. We’ll just wait for Constable Hong."
As Yang Chuxia said, the ritualist was caught red-handed and many of the girls were found, which led to a severe reprimand from his master.
However, his master didn’t abandon him; instead, he asked him to find a way to make up for the losses.
This made the ritualist extremely grateful to his master, and without waiting for things to settle down, he started causing trouble again. Many of these girls were newly abducted from remote villages. Of course, while causing trouble, he didn’t forget to cause trouble for Yang Chuxia as well.
Little did he know that his actions were precisely what his master intended.
When Constable Hong arrived with the men, it was already daylight. Ye Zi’an gently nudged Yang Chuxia, "Xiaxia, Uncle Hong is here."
"Mm." In fact, Yang Chuxia had already woken up when she heard people outside, but she hadn’t slept well the whole night and didn’t want to open her eyes. She suddenly realized that she seemed to have lost the diligence she used to have. Her sense of diligence as a secret agent had faded, proving that people can be influenced by their environment.
Yang Chuxia stood up, rubbing her eyes. Just as Constable Hong entered, he saw several people scattered on the ground, including a fat man who had an arrow stuck between his legs. The fat man had his eyes tightly closed.
Constable Hong felt a moment of unease. He hoped the man wasn’t dead.
"Uncle Hong, he’s not dead; he’s just unconscious," Yang Chuxia said.
"O-Okay," Constable Hong nodded, but looked at Yang Chuxia strangely. Noticing his gaze, Ye Zi’an stepped forward and said, "Uncle Hong, I was the one who shot him. Since he’s alive, it won’t affect your investigation."
Constable Hong’s strange gaze shifted to Ye Zi’an, his mouth twitching. How could these two kids be so incredible?
"Take them all away!" Constable Hong was glad that no one was dead and that questioning could proceed.
Yang Chuxia continued, "What about these girls?"
Constable Hong took a quick look and saw that there were dozens of them. He kicked the ritualist again, cursing, "You bastard!"
"I’ll take them back to the Yamen first, and then their family members can come to identify them."
At this news, the group of girls began to sob.
Without needing to think too hard, Yang Chuxia knew why they were crying. Even if these abducted girls were released, they might not have a good life. Rumors and gossip alone could drown a person.
Yang Chuxia glanced at a corner and walked over to Constable Hong, saying, "Uncle Hong, I would like to take that person away first. Is that alright with you?"