Looking around to ensure no one was there, Tong Huaqiong couldn’t help but scold Liu Yueer, "Now you know how to cry, huh? Why are you crying? Do you even have the face to cry? You are the child’s mother, where did you go last night? Don’t you know there were a lot of people tonight? You yourself didn’t care about your son’s safety, and now you’re blaming others."

"Crying, all you know is crying, does it help?"

After scolding, Tong Huaqiong lowered her voice, "Listen carefully, Liu Yueer, we now have clues about the children, and everyone is trying to save them. The kidnappers mistakenly think Yaozu is the young master of the Nie family and are extorting the Nie family. Your sister is trying to stall them. If you cause such a big commotion and the kidnappers find out you’re Yaozu’s mother, think about what they’ll do when they realize they got the wrong target."

Hearing this, Liu Yueer continued to cry but dared not make a scene.

Her heart clenched, deeply regretting her negligence of watching over her son while shopping.

Though Tong Huaqiong appeared calm, hatred for the kidnappers raged inside her.

"Grandma, isn’t this the longevity lock my mother gave to Xiao Long?" Nie Xiaofeng picked up Xiao Long’s longevity lock at the town exit and, unable to find anyone, went back to ask Tong Huaqiong for advice.

Tong Huaqiong held the longevity lock, her eyes dark and unclear. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Xiao Long, a clever child, dropped the longevity lock at the town exit as a signal to everyone that they were brought back to town by the kidnappers.

Tong Huaqiong lifted her steps, now certain that the kidnappers had mistaken identities and she shouldn’t stay where the child went missing; she needed to search personally.

As she walked, she suddenly stepped on something.

Hearing a familiar groan, she paused.

Immediately arriving, Gu Taohua pulled the person up.

"Hey, isn’t this Old Lady Luo?" Tong Huaqiong looked surprised.

Gu Taohua was about to toss Old Lady Luo aside.

During the lantern festival every year, people got knocked over, and it seemed Old Lady Luo was one of them. Tong Huaqiong had no fondness for her, as she blocked the road, hindering her search for the child.

Unexpectedly, Old Lady Luo clung to Tong Huaqiong’s leg tightly, making muffled ooh-aah sounds.

Tong Huaqiong was greatly amazed.

Looking down, she saw Old Lady Luo’s mouth was gagged, and she pulled the cloth out.

Old Lady Luo took a relieved breath, wailing, "Widow Tong, my grandson and your grandchildren were taken by the kidnappers, you must save them."

Tong Huaqiong frowned.

Old Lady Luo continued, "I’m telling the truth; I was knocked out by those two kidnappers."

Old Lady Luo didn’t regret encouraging the kidnappers to abduct the Gu family’s children; she only regretted rashly taking Chun Wang to find them.

Who would have thought the kidnappers were so merciless.

She should have been more cautious.

Tong Huaqiong hurriedly asked, "What are the characteristics of those two kidnappers? Quickly tell us everything you know."

Old Lady Luo said, "One’s fat, and one’s skinny; they tied up my Chun Wang and stuffed him in a carriage... Widow Tong, please save my Chun Wang... My family can’t be without heirs... boohoo..."

"Widow Tong, I beg you, I beg you on my knees."

Old Lady Luo wept incoherently.

"Are there any other children?" Tong Huaqiong asked.

Old Lady Luo cried, "No, boohoo... Please save my Chun Wang quickly."

Tong Huaqiong asked, "How do you know there are no other children?"

She wondered how Old Lady Luo could be so certain it was only the four Gu children and her Chun Wang.

But Tong Huaqiong didn’t have time to ponder; finding the children was crucial.

"Do you know where the carriage headed?" Tong Huaqiong asked.

Old Lady Luo racked her brain, vaguely recalling seeing the carriage heading west, so she pointed westward.

Fearing Old Lady Luo might play tricks, Tong Huaqiong had Gu Taohua grab her as they searched.

Anxious to find Chun Wang, Old Lady Luo followed, sobbing all the way toward the west of the town with Tong Huaqiong.

While Tong Huaqiong rushed to find people, the Nie family woman returned home, relaying Tong Huaqiong’s instructions to Gu Baishuang.

Gu Baishuang understood immediately, and she performed a play to cooperate with Tong Huaqiong from afar.

In the courtyard, Gu Baishuang wailed and shouted about raising silver to ransom the children and selling shops and porcelain to gather the money.

All to confuse the hidden kidnappers into believing that Man Er, Xiao Long, and Yaozu were truly Nie family children.

This way, Tong Huaqiong would have enough time to save them.

The two stepsons’ wives, Mrs. Zhang and the grandson, heard the news and stayed hidden inside, not coming out.

They mistakenly thought Gu Baishuang had gone mad over the abduction of nieces and nephews.

The two stepsons’ wives were rather schadenfreude, feeling that Widow Tong had changed sides, taking their mother-in-law as her own daughter. With her natal family backing her, their mother-in-law started acting more like a mother-in-law towards them after returning from Qinghe Bay on the second day.

They hoped for Tong Huaqiong’s misfortune.

Hearing Gu Baishuang’s intention to gather silver to ransom the children was unacceptable—the silver belonged to the Nie family.

What was Nie’s was theirs in these two households.

Why should it go to ransom Gu’s children?

The thought occurred to both daughter-in-laws; they stepped out to observe Gu Baishuang’s madness, then gathered in the main house to plan how to notify their father-in-law and husband, out feasting, and stop Gu Baishuang from raising silver.

Gu Baishuang’s acting was so convincing that Skinny, hidden in the shadows, watched for a while, then retreated back to the hideout, a sly smile on the corner of his mouth.

Fatty had already taken advantage of the cooking opportunity to mix anaesthetic into the food; an unsuspecting Mrs. Jiang collapsed immediately after a few bites.

After she fell, in front of Man Er and the other children, Fatty tied her up and tossed her into the courtyard.

It was likely she wouldn’t survive the night.

Yaozu and Duo Er shrank closer to Man Er and Xiao Long in fear.

"Sister Man Er, what happened to her?" Duo Er whispered.

Man Er didn’t understand exactly; Xiao Long said, "Poisoned."

Such scenes he had seen many of in the palace.

Yaozu was terrified, "Will they poison us too?"

Chun Wang lay on the ground beside them, and now that Mrs. Jiang was poisoned, Yaozu feared they might be next.

Xiao Long said, "No."

Taking advantage of the absence of both kidnappers in the room, Man Er distributed the chili water in her hand to Xiao Long, Yaozu, and Duo Er.

"When they’re not paying attention, we’ll spray it in their eyes and then make our escape," Man Er whispered.

The door squeaked open; Fatty returned, rubbing his hands together, cursing Mrs. Jiang, "Stupid fat woman, you dared to block our fortune. Serves you right to freeze to death here."

Under the dim light of the lantern, Fatty narrowed his eyes at the children, seeing them as piles of gold.

After today, he and Skinny would be rich.

"What are you looking at? Keep looking, and I’ll gouge your eyes out," Fatty shouted viciously.

Xiao Long’s eyes unsettled him—they brimmed with scorn, disdain, and anger but were devoid of fear.

Fatty diverted his gaze; they were just kids.

Once the money was in hand, they wouldn’t return these children anyway.

Sell them to Yangzhou or Shengjing for another fortune.