Chapter 17 Chapter Seventeen

Todd stopped the carriage and watched the men walking towards him with bated breath. He knew that these men were O'Henry's subordinates.The downside of looking like him is that people recognize him and remember him. But when they saw him and started punching and grinning playfully, Todd knew they were unsuspecting.That was good, for there were three women hidden in his carriage, lying under a mountain of flowers. "What are you carrying?" one of the men asked, bending over with a smile when he saw Todd. "Flowers for the heir of the Mei family," Todd said happily. "Is there anything better than sending flowers to court a woman? She will be his tonight!"

Aya, who was hiding under the burlap, was very surprised, because she had never heard Todd speak in such a tone.Todd was naturally serious and sometimes took responsibility too seriously, but now he spoke in a tone that seemed to expect people to laugh at his words. O'Henry's men did laugh. "You'd better grow those flowers back!" said one of them. "The heirs don't need them." "Ah, then," said Todd. "I can adapt these flowers to my wedding." That statement made everyone laugh like it was the funniest thing they had ever heard.In the carriage, Aya could feel Pei Ling lying beside her tense all over, her hands clenched into fists.

"Maybe you can marry an heir," said one of them. "As long as you can find her." "Oh?" Todd said as if the words meant nothing to him. "Did she hide? Or did her father come to fetch her?" Only Aya could hear the fear in Todd's voice when he mentioned Mayboken. "She ran away," one of them said. "Draw a way to escape! If you see her, ask her to draw a door to come in!" At the end of the speech, all the people laughed so hard that they couldn't speak anymore, and they waved for Todd to drive the carriage through. Ten minutes later, Todd parked the wagon under a huge oak tree, then went to the side of the wagon and scooped some water from a small bucket.

"Did you hear that?" he asked the three women in the carriage. Xiao Qiu lifted the burlap and jumped out of the carriage. "I'm going to find her." "No!" said Todd, feeling that the girl was his responsibility until Jamin was rescued. "I know every rabbit hole here, and maybe I can find the authentic exit. If the heir gets lost, she won't know how to go." "I can't let—" Pei Ling pushed away the flowers in her bosom and sat up. "She knows every shepherd boy and cattle raiser here. Whenever a stranger appears, everyone will pay attention to her. Xiao Qiu must go find her."

Aya also sat up. "You said we didn't need her. Oh, Todd, don't let Fran wander the fields alone, you know she won't be able to take care of herself." "That's where you're wrong." Todd said with a frown, but he knew what they said made sense. "Please." Pei Ling said softly, which made Todd nod. Xiao Qiu ran towards Ou's house without waiting for Todd to speak. Todd watched Aya and Pei Ling as he scooped up water for them.With Aya's excellent painting skills, she has turned herself and Pei Ling into haggard old women.But Todd told Pei Ling that, in his opinion, her flawless beauty could not be detracted from it.

As for Xiao Qiu, Todd said that there is no need to make any disguise for her.What more camouflage does her boyish look need? "Should we dress her up as a girl?" Todd said in a rare malicious tone. "But no, Aya, even you don't have the talent to dress her up as a girl," So now he's happy to get rid of Joe, because her disobedience is a real pain in the ass, and his plan requires cooperation. It was quite dark when they reached O'Henry's house.Even though he was worried about Fu Lan, he was very happy to see the Ou family in chaos.How did Fu Lan be selected from the stone room in the tower?

Todd soon finds out that Fran has not been found, and Jamin is still locked in the dungeon, refusing to sign any papers.He swore again that he would kill Xiaoqiu when it was all over, because O. Henry told him that kidnapping the Mei family heir to force Jemin to marry Pei Ling to him was all "the idea of ​​that weird little girl in the Meng family".After meeting Pei Ling, Todd refused to believe that she knew what Xiao Qiu was doing. Todd knew that Nott had sent someone to guard the gate to prevent anyone who looked a little bit like the Meng family woman from entering.Knott said he would never let the Amazons of the Meng family come to rescue their brother, so every woman who came in was inspected.

But no one would pay attention to Todd and his cart of flowers, even if they saw it, they would laugh. "It's too ridiculous for him to play the clown, and everyone has already identified him as this role." Pei Ling whispered to Aya.The latter fully agrees. After they entered the yard, Todd stopped the carriage, pulled O. Henry to the side of the carriage, and expressed his willingness to help find Fu Lan.Women love flowers, don't they?If he sprinkled flowers all over the ground, Fu Lan would definitely be attracted back.Those flowers were bait, couldn't Henry see it?

"It's like trapping mice with cheese." Henry exclaimed. "That's right," Todd replied. "Don't tell your brother about this plan, though, or he'll find an heir first and take all the credit." "Yes," said Henry. "Nott thinks he's the only smart guy in the village." "So, where are the flowers going to be scattered?" Todd asked, and Aya felt that O'Henry's mind was blank. "How about spreading it in the dungeon?" Todd suggested. "She'll go to the prisoner first, won't she?" "Yeah, of course," Henry leaned forward and whispered to Todd, "don't let my brother see you, because he won't let anyone go down there, not even me."

"Then why don't you tell him that this is your home, not his; and that she is your heir, and tell him never to interfere in your life again? After all, you are the smart one to kidnap the Mei family heir arrive." "But that would make Nott very angry." "Yes, when he loses his temper, I can go and scatter flowers in the dungeon. Are you afraid of your brother?" "Well, maybe... No! I'm not afraid of him. Go and scatter flowers in the dungeon, no big deal!" "That's it!" Todd waited for Henry to walk away before opening a corner of the burlap, and said, "It's safe now, you can come out."

"You are the smartest person I have ever met," she said when Tao De helped Pei Ling get off the carriage. "Both Xiao Qiu and I owe you a favor—ouch!" "I'm sorry," Aya said. "I slipped. I think we shouldn't waste time chatting here, let's do it!" Twenty minutes later, Todd, Aya and Pei Ling—with Henry's permission—slowly walked down the stairs leading to the dungeon.Because of the chaos in Ou's house after Fulan escaped, no one noticed that Aya was holding Pei Ling's hand, guiding her across the worn stone slabs, or avoiding piles of garbage. "Disgusting!" Aya said in disgust, but Todd's eyes silenced her.When they passed the kitchen, they had to stop, and when Todd made some clown moves to please the kitchen assistants, Pei Ling and Aya's hand wringed so painfully.Neither of them liked that Todd had to vilify himself in this way. Out of the kitchen, Todd led them through a maze of stone corridors.This place looked like O. Henry's storage room, full of wooden barrels, wooden boxes and rusty farm tools, and Pei Ling sometimes tripped over.Although there are occasional torches on the iron frames on the walls, most of the place is completely dark. At last they came to a small room.Compared with the dark cellar just now, it looks brightly lit here.The heavy oak door of the room was open, and the three of them walked in without a word.Three of the walls in the room were huge damp stone walls, and the fourth was nothing but dark tunnels that seemed to extend endlessly. At the front of the tunnel there was a table, a chair, and a guard sitting alone, fast asleep with his chin resting on his chest. Aya was relieved to see the guard sleeping with his head down, the key hanging on the wall above his head.If Todd is able to remove the key without waking up the guards, the first level is passed. "What's wrong?" Pei Ling asked anxiously. Aya hissed her to be quiet, fearing her voice would wake the guards.Todd lay on the ground and crept quietly to get the key.Aya gasped sharply when the keys clicked harshly. "What's wrong?" Pei Ling asked again, causing Todd to turn his head and frown. Aya pulled Pei Ling's hand angrily, signaling her to keep quiet, but when she saw Pei Ling opened her mouth to speak again, she whispered, "The guard is asleep." Pei Ling said in a normal voice—the voice from the door into the dark tunnel sounded like artillery fire—“There is no one here, only us.” For a moment, Aya thought the fear racing through her might kill her instantly.She watched the guard anxiously, but he was still fast asleep. Pei Ling spoke again angrily: "Let me tell you, there is no one else here." That remark made Todd pause, his hand on the key, and he glanced back at the guard.The man didn't move, his chest didn't even rise and fall when he breathed.Todd reached out slowly and tentatively to touch the man's shoulder.His body was warm, but he didn't respond to Todd's touch, so Todd put his fingertips on the man's neck. But when Todd touched the man again, his face began to fall forward, and Aya jumped with a loud bang as his forehead hit the table. When Todd pushed the man back against the wall, he found a small knife wound on his chest - he must have died immediately. "Jermin!" Aya dropped the flower and rushed into the dark tunnel without thinking. Todd took down the torch on the wall, grabbed Pei Ling's hand and followed as quickly as possible, but the ground was dangerously slippery. The cell where Jemin was held was empty, save for a pile of blood-stained clothes that showed he had been there. "Where is he?" Aya demanded, as if Pei Ling and Todd would know the answer.But even if they knew the answer, Aya rushed out of the cell and plunged into the dark tunnel without waiting for their answer.She was sure that it was impossible for Jamin to go upstairs, because it was a dead end, and his only possible way of escape was to enter the tunnel. Todd held Pei Ling tightly with one hand, held the torch high with the other, and chased Aya as fast as he could, catching her just in time before she was about to run into a painted corridor. "We can't be apart," he said, looking into Aya's horrified face. "We have to be together, you—" "He's dead!" The voice from the entrance of the tunnel interrupted Todd. "Go get the torches, I'm going to find him!" Then they heard someone shout, "Look! There's a light!" Without thinking, Todd immediately threw the torch into the puddle on the ground, and they plunged into the darkness.Absolute, utter darkness. When Todd and Aya hesitated how to go, Pei Ling walked forward. "Come with me." She wished she could say that sentence a few more times.Now she leads the way, and the others seem helpless. She soon discovered that the tunnel was dirty and unused for a long time. It was full of dangers, and there were several times when the floor collapsed or the ceiling collapsed. "Be careful," Pei Ling said in a low voice. "There's a pothole here." "How did you judge?" Todd asked while holding her hand, Wen Ya followed behind him. "This place is not as dangerous as my house. My two elder brothers often drop swords or daggers, and Xiao Qiu thinks it is easier to move the furniture than go around it, so I have to be on guard at all times." Although she was in danger, Pei Ling endured I couldn't help feeling a sense of purpose in this new responsibility, because at this moment she was no longer a burden to the family, but someone who was needed. She paused, sniffing the air. "What are you doing?" Aya asked impatiently. "Where's Jamie?" "I'm smelling the sun," Pei Ling replied mysteriously. "This way." Todd had to pull Aya away because he was worried that Aya would start asking Pei Ling again; her curiosity often outweighed her fear. Aya looked back from time to time to see if any of O'Henry's men were coming after him with torches, but she saw nothing.After walking for about thirty minutes, Pei Ling suddenly yelled, "Wait a minute!" They came to a larger place, which was big enough for Aya to spread her arms without touching anything. "Someone has been here." "Jamin?" Aya asked breathlessly. "I can't tell, but I feel like someone has been here." "You can smell it?" Aya marveled, and the way she spoke made Todd and Pei Ling laugh. At this time, a person jumped out from the shadows and held a knife to Todd's throat. "If you dare to speak out, you will die." A hoarse voice sounded in Todd's ear. "Jiemin!" Pei Ling and Aya shouted at the same time, and then Aya opened her arms and rushed towards him. "Oh my God!" Jemin gasped in surprise, and was a little displeased, but then pulled Aya into his arms and hugged her deeply. "Jammin, my love," Aya whispered. "I would die without you. Are you okay? Did they hurt you?" "No, they— ouch! Well, maybe a little!" He nuzzled Aya's neck. "Will you nurse me back to health?" "I'll do everything in my power to make you want to live," Aya said choked out, and fell silent as they continued to kiss each other, the darkness protecting their privacy. Todd and Pei Ling who stood a few feet away had mixed feelings.Todd and Aya had been the center of each other's lives for many years, but now he sensed that their friendship had changed forever.Pei Ling also felt how much her brother loved this woman who suddenly broke into their lives, and now she knew that Aya had done nothing to seduce her brother—except to love him wholeheartedly and selflessly.When Aya said she would give her life to save her brother, she didn't pay much attention, but now she could feel Aya's concern and need for him. Although Pei Ling was very pleased that there was someone who loved her brother so deeply, but at the same time, a huge wave of loneliness swept over her.Jemin was her best friend and the only man who didn't care that she was blind. When Pei Ling was surrounded by a sense of loss, Todd quietly held her hand, leaned over and kissed her on the lips. "As long as I have breath, you will never be alone." He said, as if he had read her mind. "Okay, little witch, let me go and tell me why you're here. It's you, Todd! How could you bring her here? O'Henry's men are bent on getting money from the Mei family, and you let Ai elegant--" "And me." Pei Ling said softly. "We need her," Aya said, trying to calm Jemin's rising anger. "She can see what we can't." "It's bad enough that you endangered my wife's life, and you brought me blind—my sister in." He corrected himself. "Todd, I want you to take responsibility for this. You shouldn't have brought a woman into this, especially not—" "Keep talking!" Pei Ling yelled. "He shouldn't have brought your useless, blind sister in. That's what you were trying to say, wasn't it?" "I neither said that nor meant it. Neither of you should be here." "We're here to save you, you ungrateful bastard!" Aya said. "And let me tell you, Pei Ling is not blind here, she can smell the sun." Jemin hesitated for a moment, then he smiled. "Well, I can't speak to you, let's go!" But to his surprise, no one followed him.He turned around and said, "They'll catch up soon, so I have to find the exit quickly." Aya put her hands on her hips—even though she knew Jemin couldn't see her in that position. "Pei Ling sees it better than you, so we're going with 'her'." At that moment, Pei Ling decided to love her sister-in-law.No one ever said that Pei Ling could do better than others.Although she is blind, she is also a member of the Meng family, and her self-esteem has been built up. "Come on, this way!" she ordered, heading in the opposite direction that Jemin had just walked. After walking through what seemed to be miles of tunnels in the dark, Aya thought she could "smell" the sun too.They stopped midway when they encountered a falling roof.Todd and Jemin worked together to clear the road, without letting the women help. "Jaming was seriously injured, but he didn't want us to know," Pei Ling said in a low voice, taking a sip of the water they each carried. "He's bleeding, I can smell it." Aya took a deep breath. "That's right, I felt it when I met him just now. Are you sure we're heading in the direction of the exit?" "yes, I--" "Pei Ling," Aya said suddenly. "Even at night, can you smell the sun?" Pei Ling smiled. "I don't really smell the sun, but the effect it has on the land. It makes everything grow; I smell the plants and the fresh air, and it's so obvious to me how to go, don't you Can't tell the difference?" "There's nothing you can do. Can you find your way home?" "Of course. My older brother Ed used to leave me in the woods a few miles from home and tell me to find my way home. He said if a dog could do it, I should. The first time he put When I was out in the field, I thought I'd just sit there and wait for someone to come find me; if no one found me, I'd be dead, but then I remembered we had strawberries for dinner." "Don't tell me you found your way home because you smelled them?" Pei Ling laughed, causing Jemin and Todd to turn their heads, but neither of them would say why Pei Ling was laughing. "No, I stumbled my way home, but I trusted my instincts." When Aya was about to ask the next question, Jemin indicated that the obstacle had been cleared and he could move on. An hour later, they encountered a tangle of roots. "Here we are," Pei Ling said. "Cut it open and we'll be out in no time." Pei Ling was right, and a moment later, Jemin turned to them and said, "I see daylight." While the other three were jumping for joy, Pei Ling was secretly sad.She almost wished they could stay in the tunnel, because once out into the sun she wouldn't have to lead the way; she would be a burden to the family again. Using the dagger hidden in his boot that the guards hadn't found, Jemin pushed away the long-covered seal with great effort, and climbed into the woods not far from O'Henry's house.As soon as he poked his head out, he saw a figure flash by. "Quiet!" he ordered, and the others remained motionless in the tunnel. He stooped and ran swiftly through the forest, the thick pine leaves on the ground making his steps soundless.After so many hours in the tunnel in total darkness, the morning glare blinded him and sometimes he had to temporarily close his eyes, but he knew he did see a figure flash by, and he was trying to catch up to it. people. He rushed forward and grabbed the opponent, but then he found that the person under him was a child.He felt very lucky, because it saved him the energy of fighting with adults. "Hi, brother," Xiao Qiu said happily, raising his head. "Are you rolling around in the pigsty again?" Jemin let go of Xiao Qiu with a sigh of relief, then sat up and rubbed his eyes.He hadn't eaten for several days, and he had spent the whole night groping in the tunnels, and his strength was exhausted. "Let's go," he said. "Go get the others out." He stood up in pain, and saw the sack on Xiao Qiu's shoulder. "That's not food, is it?" "Two chickens, four pieces of strawberry pie, and some carrots!" Xiao Qiu patted the sack with a smile, making the chicken in the bag coo. "Born?" Jemin asked, raising his eyebrows. "Fresh." Xiao Qiu corrected him, not wanting him to see her sadness.Not only was Jemin dirty, but he was covered in bruises. "Who taught you to steal?" He glanced at the sack. "Hope you didn't put chicken and pie together." "Ah, if there's no chicken, then pie..." She took a look at Jemin and decided it was better not to joke. "Where are Pei Ling and the other two?" Jemin didn't answer; he just turned and walked towards the exit of the tunnel. "Let's go!" was the only thing he said to Xiao Qiu, so Xiao Qiu followed him.