eurekapd Chapter 153 Being Targeted
Chapter 153 Being Targeted
The boy's eyes lit up. He had only thought about stealing some food because of the large number of people, but he hadn't realized that they also used a lot of water. He could use the water in the cave to exchange for food with them.
He glanced at Granny Su but didn't speak directly.
Grandma Su held her two young children in her arms and looked at Meng Fuqing and his companion with a wary expression. Ever since that incident, she had never dared to have any contact with outsiders.
Not daring to anger the two, she stammered, "Other places may lack water, but our village is only a three-day drive from the Canglan River. We also have well water in the village. Isn't that enough for you?"
Meng Fuqing shook his head, "The water outside is too polluted; the water here is much cleaner."
In the dim firelight, she could see a clear stream flowing slowly along the cave wall, eventually disappearing into the strange rocks.
It's simply the perfect place to store water.
Grandma Su's voice trembled slightly, "Do you want to drive us away or... kill us?"
She knew that the drought across the Canglan River had become so severe that people were resorting to cannibalism, and the cave they were guarding had undoubtedly become a treasure.
That's why they hid in a cave with a few children, rarely daring to see the light of day.
Who knew that no matter how much they hid, they couldn't escape this day.
The boy knew that he might have lured the two people here. His mind raced, and he tried his best to remain calm, saying, "The cave is our territory. If you want water, you can have it, but you'll have to exchange it for food."
After saying that, he swallowed hard and stared intently at Meng Fuqing and Xie Jin with a nervous expression.
To everyone's surprise, Meng Fuqing smiled faintly and said, "You don't need to be so nervous. We are not bandits, so why would we drive people away or kill them for no reason?"
Exchanging grain for water is not impossible, but we can decide how to do it.
Grandma Su and the boy never expected such an answer. They looked at the two of them with surprise and doubt, unable to tell whether the little girl was telling the truth or not.
Meng Fuqing believed that she had acted in a fairly upright manner, and that she had only taken what she was entitled to take from those she had taken from along the way.
She looked at the boy and continued, "You should know how many of us there are. If we wanted to drive you away or kill you, we wouldn't have just sent two people."
It must be said that Meng Fuqing's smiling demeanor was extremely deceptive, and his speech was also very organized. The scales in the hearts of Granny Su and the boy gradually tilted towards believing Meng Fuqing.
"Are you really going to exchange food for water with us?" the boy asked again, uncertainly.
"Besides water, is there anything else on you that we should worry about?" Meng Fuqing asked in return.
Grandma Su and the boy exchanged a silent glance.
Grandma Su stood up shakily, and the young man quickly helped her up. The old woman and the young man walked up to Meng Fuqing and Xie Jin.
"As long as you two can give us a way to survive, you can use the water in the cave however you like," said Granny Su.
After she finished speaking, she pulled the boy to kneel down in front of the two of them, and the other children behind them followed suit and knelt down as well.
Meng Fuqing: "No need, we'll just take what we need."
After the two stood up, Xie Jin asked them, "May I ask, is there an exit above the cave?"
He could roughly determine the location of the cave as he walked, but when he looked up, he couldn't see the exit.
The tunnel is too narrow and looks dangerous, making it difficult to transport the water out smoothly. An exit above would be much easier.
The boy changed his previous guarded attitude and pointed to a spot.
"Climb up from here to reach the cave entrance. The weeds above are very thick, but we've covered it a bit with branches and haven't been discovered yet. The entrance is a bit narrow, but it should be enough to carry water."
As he spoke, he walked to the bottom of the cave entrance and skillfully climbed up, wanting Meng Fuqing and the other person to see the size of the cave entrance.
Meng Fuqing heard an unusual noise coming from the ground at that moment. She was about to call out to warn them, but it was too late.
Just as the boy, who had reached the cave entrance, was about to push the branches aside, a large hand pulled him up.
A stern shout rang out above everyone's heads, "You brat! We finally caught you!"
Before the cry for help could even be heard, the boy's figure disappeared at the cave entrance.
"Xiao Ye!" Grandma Su shouted in alarm. The children, who had been very quiet, also got up anxiously and ran to the bottom of the cave entrance, calling out "Brother" repeatedly.
Xie Jin extinguished the torch and, with Meng Fuqing's tacit understanding, went around to the back of a strange rock to conceal themselves.
A voice came from above, "A litter of cubs? One look is enough; no need to send anyone down."
The man then said to the cave entrance, "Don't panic, don't panic, after you finish eating him it will be your turn."
His voice carried a smile, as if he were some kind of ruthless demon who would devour people without blinking an eye.
Grandma Su and the children were terrified when they heard this.
A torch was extended into the cave from above, and then a human face appeared at the entrance.
The big man's eyes darted around, and he saw an old woman and several children, but strange rocks blocked his view of the cave.
He felt these people posed no threat and, not wanting to bother with them any longer, retreated.
Voices came from above, and Meng Fuqing caught the conversation between the man and the boy amidst the noise of the cave.
A man joked, "...I was wondering why you disappeared so suddenly. Turns out you were a little mouse hiding underground?"
The boy begged for mercy in a humble voice.
The man asked, "Is there water in the cave?"
The boy didn't speak, but the man said in a sinister tone, "My men have seen everything. Still not telling the truth? Believe me or not, I'll boil you in the water from the cave."
The boy begged for mercy again.
The man spoke again, "A big fat sheep has come to this place today, do you recognize him?"
"No, I don't recognize him. I was just passing by." The boy's words became indistinct.
"If you scatter this into the village well, I will spare your life and the people in the cave..."
The boy neither agreed nor disagreed, but the man seemed to get angry, and a cry of pain came from above.
Just then, an eight or nine-year-old girl climbed up the rocks and started to crawl towards the cave entrance, comforting Grandma Su as she went.
"Grandma, don't worry, I won't let anything happen to my brother..."
She hadn't climbed far when Grandma Su pulled her down. "Grandma is an adult, you are children. This is something an adult should handle. Grandma will go..."
Seeing this, Meng Fuqing whispered to Xie Jin, "These people have their eyes on us. I'll disguise myself as someone from the cave and go up to find out how many people they have and what their background is. You go back and make the arrangements."
“Meng Fuqing!” Xie Jin disagreed, “You know they have quite a few people.”
"Those people couldn't even find the entrance to the cave beforehand, so they obviously didn't know who was hiding in the cave. I'll be fine."
After thinking for a moment, Meng Fuqing added, "Don't worry."
Those people have already noticed their convoy and are plotting to kill them. The enemy is in the open while we are in the shadows. We can take this opportunity to find out about these people and make it easier to deal with them.
Xie Jin looked down at her, knowing that she wouldn't easily change her mind once she made a decision. After a moment of silence, he said, "I will take your place."
Meng Fuqing remained silent, rubbed some ash from the cave wall onto his face and neck, and turned to walk towards the cave entrance.
"I don't mean to discourage you, but you're really not cut out for this. You should go back now, and remember to send someone to secretly keep watch outside the village."
Xie Jin didn't fit in at all in this place; she could still fool people if she pretended.
The two spoke very softly, so much so that Grandma Su couldn't hear them at all.
"Grandma, I'm going up to check on things." Meng Fuqing said and climbed towards the cave entrance.
Grandma Su stared in surprise, a pang of guilt rising in her heart. Just moments before, she had thought the people who had captured Xiao Ye were in cahoots with Meng Fuqing.