I'm only five years old, how come I've become the military region's darling?

Xiao Chun, who was riding on Ruan Jianhua's head, was stunned.

Her gaze was fixed on the courtyard, where the old woman who had been sobbing uncontrollably against Jiang Hongxia had now closed her eyes, her chest heaving as if she had fainted from crying.

The child's mother watched as her husband and sister-in-law, who were comforting the old lady, stood to the side, gritting their teeth and silently shedding tears.

Those around couldn't help but sigh; everyone knew that once a child was lost, it was as if they could never be found again.

I've seen plenty of things like this around me.

After Xing Yong understood the whole case, he said, "Comrade Jiang, it has been more than 24 hours since the child went missing. We are not sure if the child is still in the city. We will apply for more manpower, but in order to better understand the case, could you please ask the old lady to come with us to the place where the incident occurred?"

"No problem, thank you for your help, Captain Xing."

The strong man forced back his tears. "Wife, I'm taking Mom with me. You..."

"I want to go too."

The woman bit her lip with a determined expression.

"Jingjing is timid by nature. I can't even imagine what would happen if she were to be sent away."

The woman's silent, suppressed sobs felt like a heavy stone pressing on Xing Yong's heart.

"Then let's go together."

As Xing Yong and his men were about to leave, Ruan Xiaochun waved to him.

Xing Yong walked over quickly. "What's wrong, Xiao Chun?"

"Captain Xing, are you looking for the lost child?"

Xing Yong looked at her soft face and pinched it. "You go back to the guesthouse obediently. I'll take you out to play after I'm done with my work."

Xiaochun's soft fingers grasped his large hand, and she said in a childish voice, "Captain Xing, Xiaochun also needs to go to the city to take care of some things. Could you give me a ride?"

Ruan Xiaochun went to the city with Xing Yong. She didn't know how to tell Captain Xing that the old lady was problematic, so she could only go along and see what happened.

The group soon arrived at the Tanshui City Railway Station.

Xing Yong walked up to the steamed bun shop where the incident occurred. "Auntie, please tell me what happened."

The old lady was being helped by Jiang Hongxia. "I was taking Jingjing across the street to buy steamed buns at the supply store here. After I paid, I saw Jingjing go into the alley across the street. I called out and chased after her, but the child was gone."

A group of adults were busy at the entrance of the supply store, but Xiaochun stepped into the store. Several employees inside saw the little guy come in and wondered if he was the child of the policeman from earlier.

The little guy stood there, looking back left and right.

That's not right.

The little guy clung to the doorway, "Captain Xing, could you come in for a second?"

Jiang Hongxia was annoyed. "What's wrong with you, kid? Can't you see I'm busy?"

Xing Yong frowned. "Comrade Jiang, please don't be so harsh on a child."

Jiang Hongxia's face flushed slightly.

"Captain Xing, my niece is missing now. You're letting this kid cause trouble while you're handling a case? Do you not want to find her?"

"Hey, how can you talk like that? Our captain has been working all morning without even having a sip of water. Maybe Xiaochun has something on her mind?"

Niu Qiaobao retorted sharply to Jiang Hongxia.

"you......"

"Hongxia." The child's father looked at Xing Yong. "Captain Xing, could you check on that little girl first?"

Xiaochun's face was tense, and her voice was crisp, "Don't blame Captain Xing, come and see for yourselves. Xiaochun thinks what that grandma said is wrong."

Everyone was taken aback.

"What's wrong?"

Several people entered the supply store, and Xiaochun stood in front of them to buy steamed buns.

"Captain Xing, come stand here." He pointed outside, "You can't see the alley across the street from here."

Xing Yong turned his head sharply, but a beam blocked his view, so he couldn't see anything.

For a moment, he looked at the old lady behind him.

"Auntie, is that how you saw it?"

The old woman shuddered. She looked into Xing Yong's dark eyes and said, "I... I noticed she wasn't there and went to the door, but she was nowhere to be seen."

Xing Yong forgot about Niu Qiaobao, "What did the people around us say that I just recorded?"

"Officer, the note says they heard an old woman shout, 'Jingjing, what are you doing running into the alley?' It doesn't specify when she shouted it."

Xing Yong glanced at the shop assistants watching from the sidelines. "Who was here when the old lady bought the steamed buns?"

"I'm here, officer."

A woman wearing a white hat shouted, "I remember that old lady was buying things here. I was getting steamed buns for other people. Right, she was standing right here shouting!"

"Then when we got to the door, we did see the little girl who was with her run into the box."

"So, everyone else only saw the child when they got to the door, so why did this grandma know her granddaughter had run into the alley just by standing here?"

[Ding~ Basic logical reasoning proficiency +10]

Instantly, all the chatter in the supply store vanished, and for a moment the air felt suffocating, as if all the oxygen had been sucked out.

Ruan Xiaochun's question startled the old lady. "I saw it when I walked here. I'm not making this up. What do you, a child, know?"

"Whose is yours? What's it to you?"

Xing Yong picked up Xiao Chun, who had almost been attacked by the old lady, and stared at her coldly. "Niu Qiaobao, take her back and ask her some questions."

Anyone could see with the naked eye that there was something wrong with this so-called grandmother who claimed to have lost her child.

The old lady panicked. "Hongxia, Dajun, believe me, I really didn't lie."

Jiang Hongxia looked somewhat embarrassed. "Captain Xing, isn't it a bit too much to listen to a child..."

"Red Glow".

The child's father grabbed Jiang Hongxia's arm, scrutinizing the old woman with his eyes, "Mom, how exactly did you see Jingjing was gone?"

The child's mother, who had been standing to the side, suddenly broke down, rushing forward and grabbing the old woman's collar, "Mom, did you lose Jingjing?"

"What nonsense are you talking about? When did I lose Jingjing? Those policemen are useless and blame me for not being able to find her. Mom really didn't."

"That's enough! We'll find out soon enough whether it's true or not." Niu Qiaobao quickly pulled the old lady along. "Come back with us and we'll find out when we interrogate her."

The old lady turned pale and collapsed to the ground.

"I don't want to go to the police station. The police can't catch anyone, so they're wrongly accusing an old woman like me!"

"Um, that..." A young woman peered out from the doorway. "I bought steamed buns with her that day. My shoelace came undone, so I squatted down to tie it."

The girl bit her lower lip. "That day I was standing here, and this old lady was holding a child's hand. I heard her tell the child that she saw her mother at the entrance of the alley across the street and asked her to go check if it was her..."

The girl's words caused a stir, and the people around her clicked their tongues as they looked at the old woman sitting on the ground.

"You can know a person's face but not their heart. Did this old lady deliberately throw the little girl away?"

"My goodness, she's at least my own granddaughter! This isn't a grandmother, she's a human trafficker!"

Each word was like a knife stabbing into the Jiang family.

The child's mother had reached her limit and was shaking the old woman like a madwoman.

"Where did you take Jingjing? Where did you take my daughter?"