Su Qing shouted "Sister!" and rushed towards Ju Mu'er. Ju Mu'er heard the shout and knew something was wrong, but before she could react, several burly men had already quickly reached her side. The leader grabbed Ju Mu'er and laughed loudly, "Look at this young lady, I've got my eye on her. It's the New Year, time to find a wife to take home and warm the bed."
Several people nearby were terrified and quickly hid, with young women running away as fast as they could. Several burly men laughed loudly, pushing and shoving Ju Mu'er, and physically assaulting her. Ju Mu'er was so frightened that her face turned deathly pale and her whole body stiffened.
Su Qing had already reached them when she suddenly turned and changed direction, running towards the crowd while shouting, "Brother Chen, help! Someone help me!"
As she was shouting, a carriage sped by, heading to pick up the burly men.
The burly men grabbed Ju Mu'er, who was struggling and crying for help, and tried to drag her onto the carriage. At this moment, Guard Chen arrived. He leaped up, drew his sword, and stabbed at the leader of the burly men who was holding Ju Mu'er.
The burly men moved in perfect unison; three of them turned and charged at Guard Chen, brandishing their swords. Another guard from the Long family arrived, attempting to cut the reins between the carriage and the horses, but was also stopped by two burly men raising their swords.
Su Qing screamed loudly and charged towards Ju Mu'er again. Hearing the sound, Ju Mu'er panicked and shouted, "Qing'er, run! Don't come any closer! Run!"
Before she could finish her sentence, the burly man at the head of the group flung her onto the carriage. Ju Mu'er's head hit the carriage floor, and her chin was poked by her own bamboo cane. She couldn't see, and she could only hear the chaos around her, so she didn't dare to struggle and just held onto her bamboo cane tightly. She heard Su Qing shout to let go, heard her screams, and heard the sounds of fighting and shouting.
A burly man shouted, "This little girl seems to like us. Let's just grab her too, one more is always good." Ju Mu'er was both surprised and suspicious, afraid that it was as she thought. Then someone slammed heavily on her, confirming her guess.
Ju Mu'er exclaimed in surprise: "Qing'er?"
Su Qing hugged her tightly: "Sister."
"I told you to run, I told you to run, you know that?" Ju Mu'er was panicked, confused, and anxious. She couldn't do anything; her blindness was a burden.
The carriage beneath them began to move. Ju Mu'er heard Guard Chen shout, followed by the arrogant laughter of several burly men. Su Qing's voice trembled: "Brother Chen, Brother Chen has fallen."
She collapsed? Ju Mu'er felt as if all the blood in her body had gone cold.
The carriage sped along, and the burly man at the head jumped onto it and closed the door. The other burly men mounted their horses and escorted the carriage away, shouting, "We're getting married for the New Year!"
In full view of everyone, they kidnapped the person and drove away.
Blind girl Ju Mu'er is in trouble again!
Master Long's fiancée was robbed outside Fuling Temple!
During the Lunar New Year, bandits came out to rob people!
One piece of news after another quickly spread from outside the city into the city.
Long Er rushed back to the Long residence. The two guards he had sent to the house were covered in blood, and a doctor was trying to save them. Old Man Ju was crying and sniffling, his hands and feet were trembling, and he couldn't even speak.
When he saw Long Er return, he rushed over, gripping Long Er's hand tightly, his lips trembling as he couldn't utter a single word for a long time. Long Er had already heard the gist of what had happened on his way back, and now he had no mood or time to comfort the old man. He pressed Old Man Ju down into a chair and said, "You sit down, I'll handle it."
Old Man Ju was in tears, nodding repeatedly.
When the two guards were brought back, the head steward had already asked them questions. Now that Long Er had returned, he hurriedly stepped forward and explained the situation in detail. Long Er, with a frosty expression, went to check on the injuries of the two guards, then turned to Li Ke and asked, "Have all the men been called?"
"Everyone is here. Eight have already been sent out to gather information. As for the others, we'll wait for Second Master's instructions."
Long Er nodded and turned to Steward Tie: "Go to the government office and report this matter. Also, find out if there has been any activity by mountain bandits recently. Report back all the information they have recorded. In addition, have the government office send people to search the area where bandits have been active in the past."
The railway manager agreed. Long Er then asked, "Has the third brother returned?"
"I'm back." It was Feng Wu who answered: "My husband heard about this and went out to find out information from his friends."
Long Er nodded again, and as he walked out, he instructed Li Ke: "Leave two groups on standby, and send the rest out. The Ding and Yun families should send people to keep an eye on things. We must find Mu'er today."
Li Ke agreed, and everyone in the room quickly went about their business. Long Er, however, didn't look back, went straight out, mounted his horse, and galloped towards Fuling Temple.
The area outside Fuling Temple was now deserted and desolate. Everyone was afraid of being robbed if they lingered any longer, so they hurriedly returned home. When Long Er arrived there, he saw bloodstains on the ground and knew that he had arrived at the place where Guard Chen and his men had fought with someone, which was also the place where Ju Mu'er had been kidnapped.
Long Er dismounted and walked around the area. Two spies from the Long family saw their master and quickly came over to greet him. They had received the news and gone to investigate first, so they told Long Er everything they had found out.
According to eyewitnesses, the robbers emerged from the woods on the other side. They only uttered vulgarities about finding wives, without calling each other by name or mentioning any location, and didn't seem to have a specific target. After abducting the woman, they were quickly escaped with a carriage and horses. Two scouts searched the route described by the eyewitnesses but found nothing useful.
Upon hearing this, Long Er remained silent for a long time with a sullen face.
What kind of thugs would be so stupid as to run to the entrance of a crowded temple to rob people? Are they afraid people won't know?
Although he liked his Mu'er, to be honest, she was only of average appearance, her strengths lying in her refined manner and intelligence. With so many young women and wives coming to Fuling Temple seeking good fortune, he simply didn't believe those bandits would only notice his Mu'er at a glance.
Moreover, Mu'er was holding a blind man's bamboo cane, which was quite conspicuous. Long Er had never heard of bandits targeting blind people when they were kidnapping; that would be too much trouble.
Furthermore, while his two guards weren't as exceptionally skilled as Li Ke, they were indeed well-trained and quite capable. These bandits, able to injure two guards so badly, were clearly no ordinary individuals. But with such skill, why did they choose to kidnap his Mu'er instead of robbing other girls or other valuables?
Long Er's expression grew increasingly grim as he thought about it. He instructed his scouts to continue the investigation, saying that other personnel had been dispatched and they should follow this route as quickly as possible. If they found anything, they were to return to the manor and report back.
The scout agreed. Long Er mounted his horse and rode off towards the residence of Ding Sheng, the Minister of Justice.
The wind was biting cold all the way, and this day was exceptionally cold. Long Er whipped his horse hard to gallop faster, but it felt as if he had whipped his own heart, so painful that he couldn't breathe.
Ju Mu'er's displeased frown and pursed lips, her sly smile after successfully teasing him, and her seemingly proud yet submissive demeanor... all these scenes flashed through Long Er's mind.
Long Er's face was as cold as ice, but his heart was burning with rage. He wanted to cut those who had kidnapped and bullied her into pieces and feed them to the dogs.
Ding Sheng was surprised by Long Er's arrival, but Long Er had no time for pretense and politeness this time. He said directly, "My fiancée was kidnapped by bandits outside Fuling Temple today. I've come to ask Miss Ding a few questions."
Ding Sheng knew this was no small matter. He also knew that his daughter had hit Ju Mu'er in the street a few days ago and made threats. So he hurriedly sent someone to the backyard to call Ding Yanshan out. Then he prepared tea, politely invited Long Er to sit down, inquired about what had happened, and promised that he would also mobilize his men to help with the search.
At this moment, Ding Yanshan came out. Facing Long Er, she no longer showed the usual joy, but instead appeared somewhat uneasy. She looked at Ding Sheng, then at Long Er, and asked, "Second Master, what brings you here?"
Long Er asked directly, "Mu'er was kidnapped, did you do it?"
Ding Yanshan was stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening and exclaimed in surprise with her mouth wide open, "How could it be me? I had no idea this happened."
Ding Sheng briefly explained the situation from the side, and then said, "Since Shan'er has nothing to do with this matter, it's good that you've made it clear."
Ding Yanshan shouted, "Of course it has nothing to do with me. How could I have any contact with bandits, let alone order them to do such a thing?"
Long Er sneered: "Miss Ding is too modest. That day, you hired two thugs to grope Mu'er on the street and had people throw dirty water on her. A few days ago, you even did it yourself, acting all high and mighty. Didn't you tell her to wait and see that day? Why are you making yourself sound so incompetent now?"
Ding Yanshan was deeply hurt by the sarcasm in his words. She stood up abruptly, her face flushed red, and shouted, "Those were just small pranks, but I would never kidnap or kill someone. I don't know any bandits or thugs. The hooligans that day were servants from my household in disguise. I didn't have anyone kidnap that bitch. If I had such a cruel heart, why would I go through all the trouble of kidnapping her? I would have just killed her..."
"Shan'er!" Ding Sheng shouted, cutting off Ding Yanshan's reckless words.
Ding Yanshan suddenly shut her mouth, bit her lip, and dared not look at Long Er again. She just stiffened her neck and said, "In short, I dare to swear, I'll swear any oath I want, I didn't do this, I don't know anything."
Long Er stared coldly at her, then took two steps closer and spat out five words through gritted teeth: "You're the bitch!"
Ding Yanshan trembled violently, turned to look at Long Er, her eyes quickly reddened, and tears welled up. Ding Sheng was greatly displeased with Long Er's words and was about to reprimand him when Long Er spoke first: "Don't let me find out that this matter is related to anyone in your Ding family."
The look of disgust in his eyes made Ding Yanshan unable to hold back any longer. She shouted, "You've gone too far!" After shouting, she reached for the teacup on the table and threw it at Long Er.
Tea splashed onto Long Er's chest, but he didn't move, only staring coldly at her. Then he lowered his head, brushed the tea leaves off his clothes, coldly uttered a sentence, and turned to leave.
He said, "I don't like every girl who spills tea on me."
This chapter has also been revised; it simply moved up the chapters that follow.
The next chapter will contain the new content updated today.
35 people searched for clues in various places.
The carriage sped forward, shaking violently.
Ju Mu'er and Su Qing hugged each other tightly, huddled in the corner of the car, barely daring to breathe. Because there was another man sitting in the car.
The ringleader of the robbers sat opposite them. His face was covered in a beard, obscuring his features, but his thick eyebrows and glaring eyes gave him a fierce look. He held a dagger in his hand, threatening the two girls to remain silent. Ju Mu'er and Su Qing dared not utter a sound the entire time.
The carriage wasn't large, and it felt quite cramped with two girls and a burly man crammed inside. The bandit leader's sinister eyes, lewd posture, and occasional disgusting words terrified the two girls, making them tremble.
Su Qing held Ju Mu'er in her arms, using her back to shield Ju Mu'er from the robber's gaze. Ju Mu'er seized the opportunity to secretly write on Su Qing's palm: "Remember the way."
Su Qing tried to calm herself down. She reached out and squeezed Ju Mu'er's hand to show that she understood.
The carriage was simple, with gaps between the panels. Su Qing, holding Ju Mu'er, could clearly see outside the carriage.
Su Qing watched intently; she needed to know where they had been taken. If they were lucky, they might find a chance to escape.
The car traveled for about half an hour, making several turns, before finally reaching the top of the mountain.
The mountain path was rugged, and the carriage could go no further than halfway there. The bandit leader rudely pushed open the carriage door and then reached out to drag Su Qing out of the carriage.
Su Qing and Ju Mu'er screamed in unison, pulling at each other and refusing to let go. In the end, they were both dragged down and thrown to the ground.
The burly bandits dismounted, and three of them led all the horses into the dense forest. Su Qing watched, guessing that there was somewhere in the forest where the horses were hidden.
At this moment, the carriage changed direction and headed down the mountain. The bandit leader forcefully pulled Ju Mu'er up, and Su Qing quickly got up and hugged Ju Mu'er.
The leader gave Su Qing a cold look, smiled wickedly, and released Ju Mu'er. Then he shouted loudly, "Brothers, let's go!"
Several burly men split into two groups, one in front and one behind, and sandwiched the two girls between them as they headed up the mountain.
Ju Mu'er was blind and walked slowly, often tripping over stones on the dirt road. The robbers behind her shouted and pushed her from time to time.
She bit her lip and tried to walk forward, gripping the bamboo cane tightly in her hand, afraid that she might lose it if she wasn't careful, and those bandits probably wouldn't be kind enough to let her pick it up.
Su Qing linked arms with her, carefully memorizing the route in her mind as they walked.
After walking for quite some time, the group finally reached the depths of the dense forest. The bandits pushed aside the thick undergrowth, and several bare, gray houses appeared before them.
Ju Mu'er couldn't see, but she listened intently to the sounds and tried her best to keep up with everyone. Su Qing stared at the house, almost in despair. How could those who wanted to rescue them possibly find such a secluded place?
Ju Mu'er and Su Qing were escorted into the house by the burly men. Meanwhile, Long Er was walking out of the Ding residence.
He came out, glanced discreetly at the alley across the street, and then, under the watchful eyes of the Ding family's gatekeeper and servants, mounted his horse and rode away.
Inside the Ding residence, Ding Sheng was throwing a tantrum with a dark expression, while Ding Yanshan covered her face and burst into tears.
Ding Sheng cursed loudly, "What are you crying for? You're all useless!"
"How could he slander me like that? How could I do such a thing? How could he look at me like that?" Ding Yanshan felt both sad and angry when she thought about it.
Ding Sheng was already furious at being humiliated by Long Er's intrusion, and his daughter's crying and fussing only fueled his anger. He cursed, "You're incapable of doing that, you don't have the brains, you idiots! What's the use of having you? All you do is cause me trouble."
Startled by the shout, Ding Yanshan looked up at Ding Sheng. Ding Sheng then yelled, "Go back to your room, don't bother me here."
Ding Yanshan bit her lip, no longer daring to cry loudly. Then, with a determined look, she turned around and ran back to her room with tears in her eyes.
At this moment, a servant came in and whispered to Ding Sheng, "Master Long came by himself, and he left by himself just now. He was not with anyone else."
Ding Sheng paced back and forth a few times, seemingly deep in thought, then nodded and waved for the servant to leave.
After leaving the Ding residence, Long Er went straight to the Yun residence.
At the street corner next to the Yun Mansion, two vendors were hawking their wares. Long Er glanced at them as he passed by. The vendors raised their trinkets and shouted loudly, but Long Er didn't turn his head or look at them. He simply walked straight to the entrance of the Yun Mansion.
Yun Qingxian had just received news that Ju Mu'er had been kidnapped by bandits. He was telling Ding Yanxiang that he was going out to take people to find Ju Mu'er when the gatekeeper came to report that Second Master Long had come to visit. Yun Qingxian frowned and thought for a moment before having a servant lead him in.
Long Er entered, and Yun Qingxian, without saying any other pleasantries, quickly said, "Second Master, are you here because of Miss Ju's kidnapping? I just received the news and was just about to mobilize manpower to search for her."
Long Er didn't stand on ceremony and asked directly, "Do you know her whereabouts?"
Long Er's accusatory tone startled Yun Qingxian, who immediately felt displeased and coldly replied, "We haven't had time to lead a search yet, so naturally we don't know."
Long Er asked coldly, "Any clues? Where does Lord Yun plan to search?" His sarcastic tone was truly nasty.
"Second Master Long!" Yun Qingxian's expression turned cold again: "Does Second Master Long mean he suspects I'm involved in this matter?"