Chapter 56

Chapter 56

Three days later, Chen Qingyan finally returned from the estate, accompanied by Chen Qingsong and Chen Qinghuai.

Liang Boqing shooed the three of them away, saying he wanted some peace and quiet for a few days, which was his way of giving the children a break.

It was the first time Chen Qingsong had been away from his mother for so long. When he entered the courtyard and saw his sister and mother, his eyes welled up with tears. Being a bit older and more aware of saving face, he turned and hid behind Chen Qinghuai, too embarrassed to come out.

Once inside, Wang Ying brought out the shaved ice he had prepared earlier. It was made that morning—ice taken from the experimental field, crushed and drizzled with honey, then topped with diced fruit. The cool, refreshing treat was quite tasty.

The weather was hot, and the children eagerly dug into their bowls while Li Shi watched with a loving expression on her face.

After two months apart, her younger son seemed to have grown a bit taller and put on some weight, though he was also noticeably tanned.

"Why isn’t Master Liang here? With all of you gone, is it alright to leave him alone at the estate?"

Chen Qingyan replied, "The teacher didn’t want to travel back and forth in this heat, so he stayed at the estate with Uncle Chen."

Li Shi gestured for Chen Qingsong and Chen Qinghuai to sit beside her. "Your father sent a letter. They’ve settled in Shanzhou, so don’t worry."

Chen Qinghuai nodded. In truth, he had long grown accustomed to life away from home while studying. Back in Laizhou, he had traveled extensively with his teacher, returning home only occasionally.

He knew his parents had high hopes for him, and he had lived up to their expectations, learning a great deal from Old Master Liang.

When it came to poetry and rhythm, he was the most talented among the three children. Even at a young age, he had written many poems, some of which Liang Boqing found astonishingly impressive.

Meanwhile, Chen Qingyan and Wang Ying had been inseparable since reuniting. They held hands so tightly that their palms grew sweaty, yet neither was willing to let go.

Chen Rong said, "You must be tired and hot from the journey. Go back and take a bath to freshen up. We’ll make dumplings for lunch."

"Alright."

Everyone returned to their respective courtyards. Chen Qingyan walked with such energy that he swept Wang Ying into his arms as soon as they entered their room.

"Be careful."

"I missed you so much. Seeing you for just an hour each day in the experimental field wasn’t enough."

"Me too."

They clung to each other for a long time, until they were both drenched in sweat. Then they went to the bathhouse to shower together. Since Wang Ying was pregnant, they couldn’t be intimate, so they settled for comforting each other with their hands.

Chen Qingyan gently touched Wang Ying’s belly. "I feel like you’ve gained a little weight."

Wang Ying leaned against his shoulder, still recovering from the lingering sensations, and said lazily, "How could I not? Mother has Aunt Chen make all kinds of delicious food for me every day, and it’s all my favorites. With no work to do, I’ve become lazy."

"If you’re really bored, why not come back to the estate with me?"

"Let’s wait a bit longer. Lin Qiu’s wedding is coming up soon. I’ll stay and help out at home."

"That’s fine. Third Aunt might not be able to manage everything on her own. Please help her as much as you can."

"Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he has a grand wedding."

After their bath, the two returned to their bedroom to nap. It was too hot to cuddle, so Chen Qingyan brought a large block of ice from the experimental field and placed it in a wooden basin to cool the room.

Wang Ying felt an indescribable sense of security in his arms and slept until almost dusk.

With the rare opportunity for the whole family to gather, Wang Ying had the servants bring out the barbecue grill in the evening, and everyone gathered in the courtyard to roast lamb.

Wang Ying, being pregnant, couldn’t handle greasy food and only ate some grilled vegetables. The children, however, had hearty appetites and devoured more than half a lamb.

After dinner, they sat in the courtyard to cool off and discussed Lin Qiu’s wedding.

With just over three months until the wedding, part of the dowry had already been prepared, and the rest would be selected gradually over the coming months.

When Chen Rong got married, her parents had provided a generous dowry. Over the years, much of it had been spent supporting the Lin family. The remainder was divided into two parts: one for Lin Qiu’s dowry and the other for their younger son’s future wedding.

Li Shi had also prepared many things for Lin Qiu—four bolts of fine cloth and six sets of eight-catty bedding filled with new cotton, enough to last a lifetime.

Wang Ying opted for practicality, contributing twenty strings of cash as a wedding gift. Nothing was more useful than money, he believed, as daily expenses were inevitable, and having cash on hand provided security.

Lin Qiu was no longer as shy as before. Sitting nearby, he listened to the discussion with a happy smile on his face.

Lin Sui nudged his shoulder and whispered, "Brother, it’s so nice at Auntie’s house."

Yes, it was truly wonderful here!

*

Chen Qingyan and the others stayed at home for only three days before returning to the estate. The shop had run out of ice pops, and too many people were asking when they would be back in stock.

Every day of delay meant losing over a string of cash, which pained Wang Ying deeply, so he urged Chen Qingyan to return quickly.

After they left, the household returned to its usual routine. During the day, the three children went to the shop to sell ice pops, while Wang Ying occasionally brought them meals.

Today was no different. The three children went to the shop in the morning, while Wang Ying slept in a bit later. After breakfast, he watered the vegetable garden, picked a tender young cucumber, and nibbled on it as he headed to the shop.

On the way, he ran into the cherry-selling woman again and bought some cherries from her.

Just as he was paying, the woman suddenly screamed. Wang Ying looked up in confusion, but before he could react, a sharp pain struck the back of his head, and everything went black as he lost consciousness.

At home, no one yet knew what had happened to Wang Ying. After selling all the ice pops, the three children closed the shop and started heading back.

On the way, they were suddenly stopped by a woman who grabbed Chen Qingyun and said, "Girl, you’re the one who bought cherries from me last time, right!"

Startled, Chen Qingyun shook off her hand and stepped back. "What do you want?"

"Oh dear, your husband has been kidnapped by a madman!"

"What?!"

The woman stammered as she recounted what had happened. Based on her description, the three children felt a chill run down their spines, and tears instantly streamed down their faces.

"Did you see where the madman took him?"

The woman shook her head. "I was too scared to follow them…"

The three immediately sprinted home. Upon arriving, they asked if Wang Ying was there.

Li Shi said, "Didn’t he go to the shop this morning?"

Chen Qingyun stamped her feet in panic, tears flowing. "It’s over! Wang Ying has been kidnapped!"

"What?!" Li Shi’s ears rang, and the world seemed to spin as she nearly collapsed.

Chen Rong was also shocked and quickly supported her sister-in-law. "Maybe it’s a misunderstanding. Hurry and send the servants to search. He might be fine."

Lin Qiu and Lin Sui dashed to the backyard, while Er Shun, Lin Zai, and the other servants went out to search. After scouring the area with no sign of Wang Ying, they reported the incident to the authorities.

By the time Huang San arrived with the constables, two hours had already passed since Wang Ying’s disappearance.

The woman selling cherries was questioned repeatedly, and it was confirmed that the kidnapper must be the mad Xiucai Zhang. The constables headed straight to Zhang’s house.

Upon arriving at the Zhang house, they found no one home. After asking the neighbors, they learned that Xiucai Zhang's parents had suddenly died a few months ago, and the neighbors helped with the funeral.

"So, is he the only one left in the family now?"

"Yes, I heard he went to the county yamen to file a complaint, but he didn't have the money to enter the yamen. When he tried to beat the grievance drum, he was beaten a few dozen blows and thrown out. After returning, he lost his mind. He doesn’t usually come home, just scrounges for food on the streets. He hasn’t been seen in a long time."

Huang San remembered what had happened earlier and realized that Xiucai Zhang had indeed gone to the county office to report the grievance.

"If you see him, let us know right away."

"Alright, understood."

Qingshui Town wasn’t large, but finding a hidden person wasn’t easy. They searched until late in the afternoon without any sign of him. As it got dark, finding him would become even harder.

The constables returned empty-handed, but the Chen family continued the search, even asking relatives and friends to pitch in. They went door to door, worried they might miss something.

Li Shi and Chen Rong waited anxiously. From the moment they received the news, they hadn’t stopped crying. "If anything happens to Wang Ying, how will I face Qing Yan..."

"Wang Ying is such a good child; nothing will happen to him. Don’t worry, he’s so smart..." Chen Rong put her hand over her mouth, unable to continue. She was just as worried inside.

No one could have imagined that such a thing would happen in broad daylight.

*

Wang Ying was awakened by the sound of a knife being sharpened.

When he opened his eyes, everything around him was completely dark. An awful stench filled his nostrils, making him gag.

He struggled to sit up but found his hands and feet tied tightly with ropes, leaving him unable to move. Instantly, he realized he had been taken.

Who had taken him?

Wang Ying considered hiding in the experimental field but quickly dismissed the idea.

Time in the experimental field passes the same, and he didn’t know if Chen Qingyan might be waiting for him there. Moreover, even if he had enough time, he could only hide there for two hours at most. What if the kidnapper was still there when he came out? Wouldn’t he just be a sitting duck?

He called out cautiously, "Help! Is anyone there?"

The sound of knife sharpening outside stopped, and creepy footsteps approached. Soon, the dry firewood blocking the entrance was moved aside, revealing none other than Xiucai Zhang, whom he’d run into on the street a few days earlier!

Wang Ying’s heart pounded with fear. "Why is it you? You’re not insane?! Help! Someone help!!"

Xiucai Zhang tilted his head and stared at him, then said hoarsely, "Don’t waste your energy. No one lives around here. I wouldn’t go mad until I saw you and Chen Qingyan dead."

Wang Ying broke into a cold sweat. He hadn’t expected Xiucai Zhang to have been pretending to be crazy all this time—it was terrifying.

Struggling to stay calm, he asked, "Why did you kidnap me?"

"Of course, to kill you. But killing you outright would be too merciful. It would be much more interesting to slice your flesh piece by piece and send it to the Chen family, so Chen Qingyan lives in fear every day!" He finished with a wicked laugh.

Wang Ying shivered hearing it. Even if Xiucai Zhang wasn’t insane, he wasn’t right in the head.

Seeing Wang Ying fall silent, Xiucai Zhang thought he had frightened him. He began sharpening his knife next to Wang Ying. "Chen Qingyan deserves to die, and so do you. And all those who looked down on me—they all deserve to die. My father deserved to die, my mother deserved to die... If I kill all of you, everything will be fine..."

"But you were the one who did wrong first..."

"I never meant to harm him."

"Then what about the cheat sheet in the brush?"

"That brush was originally prepared for myself... But during the search, I was so scared that I tossed it into Chen Qingyan’s exam basket."

"So it’s still your fault—"

Xiucai Zhang suddenly snapped, grabbing Wang Ying by the hair and shouting, "So what?! His family is so wealthy—even without the imperial exams, he could live well. I have nothing, nothing left!"

Terrified and with no other choice, Wang Ying triggered the experimental field.

A white light flashed, and he found himself lying on the familiar soil. Chen Qingyan’s shocked voice rang in his ears, "Wang Ying, what’s wrong?!"