"Big brother, are you sure this snot-nosed brat can be sold?"
"What do you know? Have you ever seen such a handsome boy?"
"No..."
"Trust me, once we finish this job, we'll go home."
Xue Xingchen woke up to hear two people muttering about how to get rid of him.
He knew he had fallen into the hands of traffickers.
He wanted to cry, but he remembered what his Empress Mother had told him: real men don't cry all the time, or they'll be laughed at.
He wiped away his tears with his small hands. He could escape, just like he had escaped from that iron cage.
He waited, stomach growling, until he heard snoring beside him.
Only then did he get up. It was still dark outside. It turned out it wasn't dark, but he had been put in a bag. He moved his body, and the opening of the bag loosened a little. He moved again, and the bag finally revealed a small opening, and light shone in from outside.
He clawed his way out. Beside him, two large men were sleeping, their snores deafening.
They never would have imagined that such a small child could climb out and even escape.
Xue Xingchen crawled out on all fours. He hadn't been walking for long, and crawling was actually faster.
Suddenly, he found he couldn't move anymore. He looked back and realized one of the big men had rolled over and was pressing on his clothes. He tugged desperately, but he was too weak to move the giant.
He was almost crying from desperation, but he thought of his Empress Mother and wiped his tears away. After a moment's thought, he endured the disgust and poked the big man's nostrils.
The big man felt an itch in his nose and couldn't help but yawn, turning over.
Xue Xingchen breathed a sigh of relief.
He looked around and found himself in a ruined temple. He crawled towards the entrance. When he finally got out of the temple, he breathed a sigh of relief.
But he didn't keep walking forward. Instead, he crouched beside a haystack.
As the sky gradually brightened, the big men woke up and saw the empty sack. One kicked the other awake.
The other man, still in a dream, woke up and angrily shouted, "Big brother, what are you doing?"
"What am I doing? The person is gone, what do you think I'm doing?"
"The person is gone? How is that possible?" He couldn't believe that such a small child, who probably couldn't even walk, could crawl away. Even if he crawled, he wouldn't have gotten far.
"Big brother, it's not too late to chase now."
Until there was no more sound from the ruined temple, Xue Xingchen poked his head out from the haystack and breathed a sigh of relief.
Only then did he stand up and walk outside. As he walked, he heard the hubbub of voices and saw a bustling street.
He stood there, unsure of where to go. Soon, someone noticed him.
"Oh, where did such a beautiful little娃娃 come from..." a woman was the first to spot him. She squatted down, her eyes filled with admiration.
Hearing the woman's words, everyone looked towards the ground. There stood a little娃娃, only reaching their knees. The娃娃 was exquisitely crafted, with delicate features. Even at this young age, one could imagine how astonishingly beautiful he would be when he grew up.
"Auntie, can you take me somewhere?" Xue Xingchen asked.
His voice was soft and endearing.
The woman stepped forward, embraced him, and asked with concern, "Where do you want to go? Tell Auntie."
"The Prefect's Mansion," Xue Xingchen said.
The woman was taken aback and asked, "Why are you going to the Prefect's Mansion?"
"To report a crime," Xue Xingchen replied.
The woman looked at him, her eyes darting around. "Alright, Auntie will take you."
Xue Xingchen breathed a sigh of relief, unaware of the fleeting shadow of malice in the woman's eyes.
Carried in the woman's arms, he walked forward. Suddenly, a gaze made him freeze. He tried to look closely, but was blocked by the crowd.
Soon, he dismissed what he had just seen. How could Xingyue be here?
She had gone to Huacheng and wouldn't be here.
But as they walked, Xue Xingchen noticed that the people around them were becoming fewer and fewer. His former tutor had told him that the government offices of Changjiu Country were located in busy commercial areas, because his Empress Mother believed it would help citizens seek justice and report crimes.
But it was clear that no one would come to such a secluded place, so this woman intended to abduct him.
"Auntie, I need to go to the restroom," Xue Xingchen said, his face flushed, his voice soft.
The woman said, "We'll be there soon, can you hold on for a bit?"
"I can't hold on, I'm about to wet myself," Xue Xingchen said with a mournful face.
The woman, not wanting him to make a fuss, put him down and said, "Go ahead!"
"Auntie, I can't pee if you're watching me like this."
The woman smiled, not expecting such a young child to be so cunning. She turned away.
Xue Xingchen took small steps and headed back the way they came.
After waiting for a while, the woman became impatient. "Are you done yet?"
There was no answer. The woman turned around and saw that no one was there. She stomped her foot in anger. Such a small child had actually tricked her!
She quickly chased after him. Xue Xingchen ran with all his might, but the woman soon caught up to him.
He was so anxious he was about to cry. He wiped away his tears, knowing he couldn't panic, he couldn't panic.
"You little brat, I finally found you..." The woman grabbed him with one hand and said angrily.
"Let me go, I don't know you, I don't know you..." Xue Xingchen kicked with his short legs, struggling.
But how could he compare to the woman?
The woman pinched him hard. "Let's see if you run now, let's see if you run."
Xue Xingchen cried out in pain, attracting the attention of passersby. "Sister, don't hit the child so hard, he's so small..."
The woman said angrily, "He's disobedient."
"I don't know him, I don't know him..." Xue Xingchen seized the opportunity to say.
"Sister, look at this child..." the woman said, pretending to sigh and shake her head.
"You still shouldn't hit the child."
The woman nodded. "You're right, sister."
Xue Xingchen bit his lower lip. No, he had to get away from this woman. He looked around and suddenly saw someone. His eyes lit up, and he shouted, "Daddy, Daddy..."
The woman was startled and said angrily, "Don't call out for your dad, he's at home."
"Daddy, I'm here!" Xue Xingchen shouted.
When the crowd heard this, they looked at the woman with some suspicion. A righteous-looking man stepped forward. "Sister, are you sure this is your child?"
"Of course, he's my child."
"This child is so handsome, you..." The man stopped speaking.
The woman was startled. Seizing the opportunity, Xue Xingchen grabbed the woman's face. The woman cried out in pain, and Xue Xingchen fell to the ground. He didn't have time to cry out in pain, and ran to grab the hem of someone's robe, shouting, "Daddy, I finally found you..."
"Young master..."
Xue Xingchen felt the incredibly handsome man looking at him and saying coldly, "You've mistaken me for someone else, haven't you?"
"You are my father," Xue Xingchen insisted.