Chapter 308

Chapter 308

Danger Approaches Unseen

The Zheng family wanted to leave, but fear held them back, leaving them indecisive and at a stalemate. Finally, Zheng Jie's outburst and the decision to draw lots put an end to the arguing.

"Be careful!" Zheng Jie warned Zheng Jun. "If anything seems off, turn back immediately!"

Zheng Jun nodded.

This wasn't about ego. Their mission now determined whether the Zheng family could survive—nothing was more important than that.

Zheng Jie also feared that if both his children were together, disaster might strike. He told Zhou Ling to take their daughter and leave first, while their son stayed with him, leaving at least some hope intact.

Zhou Ling was reluctant, but if she refused, the others would too. So she bit back her objections and repeatedly reminded her son to stay close to Zheng Jun.

Given what had happened earlier, Zhou Ling had no faith in Zheng Jie. She even took the time to privately instruct the next group of Zheng family members set to leave, asking them to look after her son...

As they lingered in reluctant farewells, Zheng Jie counted the guards assigned to protect them and equipped them with the best weapons—even Zhou Ling was armed.

"Protect the children. Wait for us there!" Zheng Jie told Zhou Ling as they departed.

Zhou Ling nodded.

She was in too deep now—there was no jumping off. She could only follow fate's course.

"Hurry up, or it’ll be dawn soon!" Zheng Jun urged. The group, still sobbing quietly, followed him one by one, disappearing from Zheng Jie’s sight...

Only when they were gone did Zheng Jie take a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down before turning to reassure those who remained.

"We’ll leave once we confirm they’ve made it safely. Pack your things and wait here!" Zheng Jie instructed.

The others exchanged glances but didn’t object.

Zheng Jie looked at his pouting older son, and his mind flashed to Xiao Bao’s smiling face—his heart grew heavier.

If Xiao Bao were with Liu Jinzhi, he wouldn’t worry. But the thought of Xiao Bao’s unknown whereabouts gnawed at him...

"Dad!" His big hand on the boy's head gave the child a sense of security. He looked up at his father and asked, "When are we going to find Mom?"

"Soon. Stay with your big brothers for now. Dad has things to take care of, but I’ll take you to Mom later, okay?"

"Okay!"

The child, aware that his father had another son, had learned to keep his distance. Zheng Jie couldn't worry about that now. He ordered everyone to pack and prepare to leave at any moment, while also sending scouts to track Lu Hang’s movements.

He had desperately wanted to capture Lin Nannan, but the woman had disappeared completely. He didn’t know how his people had failed to monitor an entire group.

This was his mistake—he'd underestimated them, assuming that since they lived nearby, he could monitor their movements at any time. But they had already acted long before he realized.

...

Zheng Jun led the group, hurrying toward their destination, eager to leave this place and escape living in constant fear.

But halfway there, he realized something was off—they were being followed.

It was only after the backup team had fallen behind that he noticed the anomaly.

Figuring Lu Hang’s men had struck, his stomach dropped. This would be a fight to the death—no quarter would be given.

No one knew who fired the first shot, but all hell broke loose instantly.

The enemy remained hidden, revealing nothing, while Zheng Jun’s group—with children among them—fell into chaos. The children screamed and scattered, throwing Zheng Jun’s plans into disarray.

Zhou Ling paid no mind to the others, holding onto her daughter for dear life.