Chapter 113: Gone Missing
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Gong Xu saw that Ma Dagguang had gone down without any movement, so he also wanted to follow.
Ma Ping’an stopped him and said, “Let me go down!”
After speaking, he also went down with the lantern. He did see someone—Ma Dagguang, standing there dumbfounded.
Ma Ping’an was anxious at that moment, grabbed Ma Dagguang, and roared, “Where is he?! I’m asking you, where is he?!”
The people upstairs heard the commotion and all came down. Gong Xu’s eyes were red, and he rushed forward to fight Ma Dagguang.
Ma Dagguang’s lips trembled as he said, “He was right here! I even brought them food before dark yesterday.”
“Where?” Gong Xu asked through gritted teeth.
“Your young master… was originally… right there…” Ma Dagguang pointed to the wooden cage by the wall.
Now the door of the wooden cage was still not open, but a piece of wood had been sawed off, just wide enough for a small child to crawl out.
The one next to it was the same.
Gong Changan was missing, his book boy was missing, and the Lu Yaba father and son who guarded them were also missing.
“Second Master Gong, it looks like your young master escaped from this cage. As for whether he escaped successfully in the end, I don’t know,” an officer said after walking forward to take a look.
“He’s just a child, where could he have gone? Those two are also gone, I really hope they didn’t…” Gong Xu couldn’t finish.
“Master, let’s think on the bright side,” Ma Ping’an quickly appeased him. “Those two were just guards; they wouldn’t dare to kill them.”
Ma Dagguang, listening from the side, couldn’t help but feel guilty.
In fact, he had already instructed the Lu Yaba father and son to silence anyone if they were discovered.
He did this to protect himself. The Lu Yaba father and son were mute and illiterate, so interrogating them was like interrogating two pieces of wood.
But if Gong Changan and Heming were still alive, they would definitely reveal him, as they had met him.
Moreover, that person had never told him to leave any living witnesses.
However, these words could not be spoken now, no matter what.
“Let’s search around here first. Perhaps they are hiding somewhere,” the officer said. “Guard the front and back doors and allow no one to enter or leave.”
The crowd had no choice but to search Xuanmiao Temple inside and out.
But until dawn, they still hadn’t found Gong Changan and the others.
Shortly after the city gates opened, an ox cart coming from outside the city slowly headed towards the east of the city, selling vegetables.
Along the way, people couldn’t help but look curiously at the cart, because the vegetable market was in the west.
On the vegetable cart sat an old couple, dressed in coarse cloth clothes, people who had worked hard for years.
There was also a little boy about seven or eight years old, and sitting next to him was a gloomy-looking person, older than him, but not much more than ten years old.
These two people were dirty, but their clothing was clearly much better than that of the old couple.
The ox cart moved extremely slowly, but it eventually arrived in front of Ru Yang Bo Mansion.
At this time, the servant responsible for sweeping the front door was sweeping the ground with his head down, not paying attention at all.
When the ox cart stopped, he straightened up and said, “Didn’t you see me sweeping? How come…”
Before he finished speaking, he saw Gong Changan sitting on the cart.
He immediately rubbed his eyes, slapped himself, and then asked, “Is that Fourth Young Master?”
Gong Changan smiled and said, “Of course it’s me. Please help Heming down.”
The servant threw his broom aside and rushed forward, intending to lift Gong Changan off the cart. But Gong Changan didn’t need his help and lightly jumped off the cart himself.
At this moment, Old Huang also came out from the gate. Seeing Gong Changan, he was so shocked that he almost fell to the ground.
“Fourth Young Master is back! Fourth Young Master is back!” Old Huang shouted at the top of his lungs. “Those with fast legs, hurry inside and report!”
When the people in the mansion heard that Gong Changan was back, they were both surprised and delighted.
By the time Zhang Ma rushed over, disregarding everything, the crowd had already surrounded Gong Changan.
“My little ancestor! You’re finally back!” Zhang Ma pushed through the crowd, hugged Gong Changan, and wailed.
“Zhang Ma, don’t cry. I’m fine,” Gong Changan said, wiping her tears as he comforted her.
“Heaven has blessed us, heaven has blessed us! Who saved you?” Zhang Ma quickly asked.
“We escaped by ourselves, but we hitched a ride on a vegetable farmer’s cart when we returned to the city. We must thank them properly.”
“That’s natural, that’s natural. I’ll go out and invite them in now!” Zhang Ma said as she walked out, and at this moment, Old Huang had already led the old couple who grew vegetables inside.
It was the first time these two people had entered such a grand mansion, and they were very reserved, not knowing where to look, and even how to walk.
“My two benefactors, thank you so much! Please come and sit in our guest room.” Zhang Ma ordered someone to prepare tea and dim sum while personally ushering the two into the reception room.
Meanwhile, Gong Changan had already run to Wen Mingqian’s room and threw himself into his mother’s arms.
“Let me see if you’re injured anywhere!” Wen Mingqian anxiously looked her son over from head to toe, and only after confirming he was unharmed did she embrace him tightly again. “Heavens! My child, you’re finally back!”
Sang Er, standing by, was also so happy that tears streamed down her face.
“Mother, Elder Sister Sang Er, please don’t cry. I’m back safe and sound, aren’t I?” Gong Changan said. “You must have been worried sick!”
“You still say that! Not to mention Madam was worried, even I wished I could pray to all the gods and Buddhas. I even offered incense this morning, vowing before the Bodhisattva that I would do anything if you could return safely,” Sang Er said.
“Then now that I’m back, are you willing to marry me?” Gong Changan’s eyes lit up immediately upon hearing this.
“Stop talking nonsense,” Sang Er glared at him. “I’ll have them prepare bathwater for you. Wash up properly, change into new clothes, and get rid of the bad luck!”
“Don’t rush me to bathe. I haven’t eaten anything for days. If I soak in water, I might get even more dizzy,” Gong Changan said with a pained expression. “I only ate a melon on the farmer’s cart, but it was just to quench my thirst, not to fill my stomach.”
“Oh dear, I was so happy I got confused,” Sang Er immediately blamed herself. “I’ll get you some dim sum first, and then have Zhang Ma make you a meal.”
“Also, Heming’s hand is injured. Please invite a doctor to examine him,” Gong Changan did not forget his book boy. “And get him something to eat first.”
“Heming has suffered. Although a severed finger cannot be regrown, we will compensate him well in other ways,” Wen Mingqian said.
She also said, “Since you escaped on your own, the Master and the authorities probably don’t know yet! Someone should be sent to inform them. However, I don’t know where they are now, so we’ll just have to report it to the authorities.”
After Gong Changan had eaten and drunk his fill, he then told Wen Mingqian in detail how he had escaped.
