The person who had been hiding in the shadows saw Wei Yumeng and the two children walk towards another area and immediately followed again.
The figure was clearly a man. In such a lively and cheerful place, he was the only one who seemed absent-minded, merely moving with Wei Yumeng.
As he passed by, many passersby glanced at him, but he remained unaffected.
More than half the day had passed, and Wei Yumeng could still sense the person's presence, yet no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find him.
She even deliberately led the children into crowded places, hoping to shake off the person, but it was all to no avail.
Originally, Wei Yumeng had planned to spend a pleasant weekend with the children, but now she had no mood for it and only wished to escape the current situation.
Wei Yumeng and the children came to rest in a pavilion by the lake. There were other children there as well. With so many parents around, Wei Yumeng finally felt a little more at ease.
"Madam, your children are so cute."
Other parents praised Zhan Shiqing and Zhan Jinzhi endlessly.
Perhaps because they were all parents, Wei Yumeng didn't feel any malice from these people. Instead, she quickly struck up conversations, mostly about their children.
The two children were also playing happily with the other children.
Zhan Jinzhi had been keeping an eye on Wei Yumeng. Although he hadn't said anything, it didn't mean he hadn't noticed anything.
Wei Yumeng had been worried about something from the beginning. Zhan Jinzhi even kept looking around while playing and paying attention to Zhan Shiqing's safety, as Zhan Shiqing was not like him, always appearing innocent and pure.
However, in a moment of distraction, Zhan Jinzhi saw Zhan Shiqing and the other children going further away. Feeling worried, he could only rush to follow them.
Wei Yumeng was engrossed in conversation with the other parents, but when she came to her senses, she realized both children had disappeared.
Wei Yumeng's mind went blank. Her initial reaction should have been to find the children, but because she had felt that malicious presence all along, her first thought was that the children had been taken by the person who had been following them!
"Shiqing? Jinzhi?" she called out their names with a trembling voice, but there was no response.
Yet, even so, she wouldn't give up. Knowing that what she feared might have truly happened, she still preferred to believe that she could find her children.
"Have you seen two children, a little boy and a little girl, about this tall?"
The man Wei Yumeng asked shook his head.
She didn't give up and continued searching.
But Wei Yumeng searched every place the children might have gone, yet found nothing.
How could this be? Wei Yumeng didn't know where else to look. How could she have been so careless? She knew today was unusual, yet she had done such a foolish thing.
She now blamed herself for everything.
"It's all my fault! It's all my fault!" Wei Yumeng clutched her head and squatted down.
What should she do next? What could she do?
But at that moment, a familiar voice sounded from behind her.
"Mom?"
Wei Yumeng turned around abruptly and saw Zhan Jinzhi holding Zhan Shiqing, standing unharmed behind her, looking at her with confusion.
She rushed over and hugged both children, "Where did you go? Do you know how worried Mom was?"
Because of her excessive worry, Wei Yumeng couldn't help but raise her voice.
Zhan Shiqing was startled and said softly, "Mom, I'm sorry. I just went to play with some friends over there. They said we could build sandcastles."
Zhan Shiqing's voice grew softer as she spoke, clearly realizing her mistake.
Zhan Jinzhi had only followed because he was worried. And because Zhan Jinzhi was with Zhan Shiqing, when the two children returned to the pavilion and couldn't find Wei Yumeng, they were able to find her by asking around.
Wei Yumeng took a deep breath. This short hour had already been the most terrifying experience. Although there was no real danger in the end, she couldn't stay any longer.
Even though this time it was just because the children were playing and got separated from her, what if the person who had been following them suddenly made a move? That would be a terrible thing.
Wei Yumeng looked at the two children, "Alright, it's getting late, let's go home."
Wei Yumeng's emotions were still not completely calm, and her tone was slightly stern. Although Zhan Shiqing hadn't finished playing, she didn't dare to say anything and went home with Wei Yumeng.
It wasn't until they returned home that Wei Yumeng finally felt at ease. At least she was sure that the person would not follow them home.
After what had happened, Wei Yumeng had no mood for anything else. After settling the children, she returned to her room. She kept replaying the lingering sense of malice, and the more she thought about it, the more frightened she became. She could no longer dismiss it as her imagination.
"What? You said just in these few days?"
Suddenly, a voice startled Wei Yumeng. It was coming from below her window. Someone was there!
She crept closer cautiously, afraid of being discovered by the person.
"Isn't it a bit too soon? It's not easy to coax the two children out. Alright, but you'd better be prepared for the price. This is a matter of life and death."
Wei Yumeng's mind suddenly went blank. What did that person just say? To coax the two children away? And it was a matter of life and death?
This was exactly someone plotting to take the lives of the two children.
"Okay, so this is settled..."
As the person hadn't left yet, Wei Yumeng suddenly looked out, but there was no one there. The voice had also suddenly stopped, as if nothing had happened.
She was a bit bewildered. What was going on today? There was just a voice, someone was talking, how could there be no one now?
Wei Yumeng didn't know how to explain all this, but regardless of whether it was real or an illusion, her most urgent concern was the safety of the children.
She rushed out of the room, drawing surprised glances from the maids.
"Madam, is something wrong? You seem to be in a hurry."
But Wei Yumeng didn't have the time to answer. She ran directly to the children's room, flung the door open, and saw the two children looking at her with confusion.
"Mom?" Zhan Shiqing asked with a face full of questions. She felt that her mother was being very strange today.
Zhan Jinzhi, however, looked at Wei Yumeng and said very calmly, "Mom, we're fine. I won't let anything happen to us."
Although his voice was childish, it brought Wei Yumeng some comfort.