Jiapingguan Chronicle

Chapter 2703 Still Vigorous in Old Age 87.0
"Wait!" Song Yaojia waved her hand at Xiao Fengqi. "Even if there's an inside man, are kidnappers so common in Linhuang Prefecture? Is no one investigating? They just kidnap people like that? That doesn't make sense, does it?"

“Your Highness is right. After this matter was over, I also asked the elders in my family, and the answer I received was that there was more to those kidnappers than meets the eye.”

"Not simple?" Xia Chen stroked his chin. "How is it not simple?"

"It is said that their presence has been seen not only in Linhuang Prefecture, but also in the major cities, prefectures, and counties of the Xia, Liao, and Jin dynasties. They don't commit crimes frequently, but every time they do, it's a major case, and they always abduct children, especially children with influential backgrounds. However, this group has never been caught. Even when they are caught, it's only their low-level henchmen. Except for the time my benefactor was arrested, it seems that this group of kidnappers, along with the people behind them, were completely wiped out. Since then, no kidnapper has dared to act recklessly in this place."

"Grand Uncle," Song Yaojia thought for a moment, then exchanged a knowing glance with Xia Chen, "It couldn't be..."

“Yes, most likely. Now that you mention it, it makes sense.” Xia Chen nodded. “Besides being beheaded immediately, those who committed heinous crimes also suffered the death by a thousand cuts. I remember that the three cities of Xijing, Linhuang, and Yiqing were almost simultaneously stained with blood.”

"What...do you mean?" Xiao Fengqi was taken aback. "Does the Prince or the Heir Apparent know about that kidnapper?"

“If we’re not mistaken, it should be Mian, right?” Seeing Xiao Fengqi and Qi Zhifeng pause for a moment, Song Yaojia chuckled and said, “Judging from your expression, we must be right.”

“What the young master says is true, it is indeed Mian.” Xiao Fengqi and Qi Zhifeng exchanged a glance, then looked at Song Yaojia, “But how did the young master know?”

"How else could we know? We experienced it firsthand, except it wasn't us who were abducted, it was her." Xia Chen yawned lazily and pointed at Shen Cha. "As you know, before the tragedy at home, she was a native of Xijing, growing up in the city. However, when she was very young, she was abducted once, but because she was incredibly lucky, she was discovered very quickly. So, the abductors didn't even have time to leave the city gate before they were stopped by the Imperial Guards and the patrol battalion. And the people who abducted Xiao Cha were later found out through interrogation that they had an organization called Mian."

"You need to be careful. This organization is not just a child trafficking organization. They only kidnap children, but they don't sell them. They send these children to branches in Xia, Liao, and Jin, where they undergo very cruel training to turn them into assassins, spies, agents, and so on."

"But why would they target a prominent family?" Xiao Fengqi frowned slightly. "For extortion?"

"On one hand, it's extortion, and on the other hand, it's about saving lives. If they want the child to be able to return to his family safely, they have to pay a large sum of money to ransom him. The exact amount of this money is the result of their negotiation. In addition, they also have evidence of everything the child has done. Once they are reported, the child and his family will not be able to escape either."

"That's really vicious."

"Wait, wait!" Shen Cha looked at Xia Chen and then at Song Yaojia with a blank expression. "When was I kidnapped? I don't remember it at all?"

“If you could remember anything, something would have gone wrong.” Xia Chen said with a wry smile, “You were only a few months old at that time, so…” He held up both hands to show what you could possibly remember. Qi Zhifeng moved closer to Shen Cha, but didn’t forget to keep a certain distance as previously mentioned, and looked her up and down.

"What are you doing?" Shen Cha pushed his head to the side. "What's so interesting?"

"When I was little, I was so big," Qi Zhifeng gestured, "I must have been very cute."

"You know what, you were absolutely right." Xia Chen chuckled mischievously and said, "That tiny little tea is really adorable. Even the former Empress Dowager was very fond of Little Tea."

"I saw her when I was little?" Shen Cha looked at Jin Miaomiao and said with a wronged expression, "I don't remember anything about her."

“You’re only a few months old, it would be strange if you could remember anything.” Xiao Fengqi smiled helplessly and said, “I’ve heard from the elders that children start to remember things around three or four years old. Some may start earlier, and some may start later, but not too early or too late. However…” He looked at Xia Chen, “a few months old doesn’t seem like the kind of child Mian would abduct. The children abducted by Mian in Liao are mostly over one and a half years old. There are too many uncertainties with a few months old. If they are abducted, they are likely to die, which is not good for them.”

“Mian will also take orders for babies who are only a few months old, but there is a condition: the child must die.” Xia Chen spread his hands and said, “In other words, if the family that is dealing with Mian must want the child dead, then they would ask Mian to take the order when the child is only a few months old. If they want the child to live, Mian will not accept the order.”

As he spoke, he kept an eye on Shen Cha, paying attention to her condition.

After hearing Xia Chen's explanation, Shen Cha immediately understood what was going on. However, she didn't seem to care as much as before about what those two people had done to her, nor did she feel upset because of what they had done. Instead, it felt more like listening to someone else's story than her own.

Xiao Fengqi and Qi Zhifeng also knew some things about Shen Cha. In particular, Xiao Fengqi, along with Yelü Nan and Yelü Lan, had accompanied Shen Cha to the dungeon of Linhuang Prefecture and witnessed the confrontation between Shen Cha and those two people. After seeing it, he felt nothing but heartache.

He used to think he was probably the most pitiful person in the world. His parents died early, and apart from his great-aunt, none of his elders were genuinely kind to him; they were all eyeing him covetously, wishing they could tear him apart. But those people were just relatives, and some weren't even relatives at all, only becoming relatives because they shared the same surname, Xiao. Even so, sometimes he still felt very pathetic.

But after learning about Shen Cha's experiences, Xiao Fengqi felt that the most pitiful person in the world should be someone like Shen Cha, who was born without being expected by her parents and was even regarded as a thorn in their side, whom they wanted to get rid of as soon as possible. They even tried to kill her more than once. Fortunately, Shen Cha was not destined to die. In addition to being able to save herself, she also had the help of benefactors and was able to escape from danger every time.

"After great calamity comes great fortune!" Xiao Fengqi looked at Shen Cha and said very seriously, "The General is a blessed and lucky person. After experiencing these hardships, he will surely have smooth sailing in life."

"Thank you!" Shen Cha knew that Xiao Fengqi's feelings were very genuine, so she smiled at him. "I also believe that everything will go smoothly for Young Master Xiao."