Back To The 80s-Chapter 570 - 562: Kidnapping II_1
When Lu Zhanguo arrived at Cangnan Mountain at a blistering pace, it was not yet midday. He drove around the edge of the mountain until the road ended, where he spotted a tricycle motorcycle. This sight reassured him. Now, he had to find Mo Wang before nightfall. In this vast mountain, if the criminals had abandoned the child, he could freeze to death overnight.
Lu Zhanguo got out of his car and circled the tricycle motorcycle. He was convinced that the motorcycle that had suddenly appeared in this area must have something to do with Mo Wang. Following the footprints leading up the mountain, he believed he could find Mo Wang.
But Lu Zhanguo’s assumptions were too simple. Half of Cangnan Mountain was barren, and the other half was a pine forest. The pine forest grew from halfway up the mountain and above, while everything below that point was covered in pure white snow.
He had thought there would only be one set of footprints leading up the mountain, but upon closer inspection, there were five or six. If he started following each trial, he feared he wouldn’t find anyone before dark, and Lu Zhanguo’s heart began to race.
The snow on the mountain was so deep that it came up to an adult’s thighs. Basically, you had to wade through it, making it impossible to identify what the footprints look like.
Lu Zhanguo closed his eyes, forced himself to calm down, and carefully observed each path trampled out in the snow.
He would walk a dozen meters, circle back, and observe the next one. He was confident that Mo Wang would remember his words and leave some clues behind.
On the third path, Lu Zhanguo had only walked five or six meters when he saw several black sunflower seeds scattered on the white snow. A few more steps ahead, there were a few more seeds. He was overjoyed, made his way through the snow, and started to run.
After running more than three hundred meters, his heart was in his throat. Mo Wang’s little red cotton shoes were quietly lying on the snow. Wen Xiuqing had made a pair of these red velvet shoes for Mo Wang and Xiaopang, saying that wearing red shoes was not only festive but also warded off evil. At that time, Gu Xiaobei had jokingly said that Mo Wang, wearing these little red shoes, looked like a little girl.
Lu Zhanguo didn’t have time to think. He quickly picked up the cotton shoes, stuffed them into his pocket, and started sprinting forward.
As he neared the midpoint of the mountain where there were no obstructions, Lu Zhanguo became cautious. He lifted his gun, looked around through the scope of his sniper rifle, and spotted what seemed to be smoke rising in the deeper part of the mountain forest. On this windless, clear winter day, the wisps of smoke were slightly slanting upward.
Lu Zhanguo’s eyes stung, and his heart ached as he ran towards the direction of the smoke.
On the mountain, a wooden cabin served as a ranger’s temporary rest place.
Duo Ji kicked open the door, finding Mo Wang crouching in front of the stove, stuffing firewood into it. He rushed over, kicking Mo Wang into the corner, and shouted ferociously, "What are you doing?"
Mo Wang felt like his back was on fire, and his eyes, which had already run dry, suddenly filled with tears. But his dad had said that a real man couldn’t cry, so Mo Wang bit his lip hard, not making a sound.
When Duo Ji saw the wheat straw and dry branches burning fiercely in the stove, he regretted his earlier decision. He should have tied up the child’s hands before leaving. He ran outside, scooped up two handfuls of snow, and stuffed them into the stove to extinguish the fire. If anyone discovered them because of this, they would be in big trouble.
As the fire in the stove slowly faded, Duo Ji turned back to glare at Mo Wang, who was huddled in the corner. He said in a threatening voice, "Were you trying to signal someone? Don’t be so naive. No one would think you’re here."
Remembering his father’s words, Mo Wang decided that keeping the enemy’s guard down was the best strategy when facing a more powerful opponent. Blinking away the tears, he drew his bare feet closer to him. His socks were missing, and his feet were pitifully cold. He said, "Uncle, I’m cold!"
Duo Ji looked at Mo Wang, whose face was as white as a sheet, and his feet were as red as carrots from the cold. His heart softened – this scene reminded him of his own childhood, when he was constantly hungry and bereft of clothing. His voice softened as he reassured Mo Wang, "It’ll be okay, just hang in there. Once the sun comes up tomorrow, I’ll take you to another world. There won’t be any cold there, and you won’t have to be scared anymore."
With his eyes brimming with tears, Mo Wang looked up at Duo Ji. Suppressing the fear and terror in his heart, he held onto the hope that his father would arrive soon. His father had promised that as long as Mo Wang could light the signal fire, his father would definitely come for him.
Mo Wang had seen this bad guy, Duo Ji, two days ago. At that time, he, his sister, and his grandma were playing outside their house. Duo Ji had passed by their house several times. Wen Xiuqing was busy chatting with a neighbor at that time and didn’t pay much attention to the passerby.
This morning, when Mo Wang and Xiaopang were sledding in the snow, Mo Wang saw Duo Ji again. On alert, he pulled Xiaopang to head home.
Xiaopang was reluctant and asked to sled one more time.
While standing on top of the snow pile, Mo Wang pushed Xiaopang down the slope and looked back to see Duo Ji approaching them on his motorcycle, with another person on the back seat.
After watching Xiaopang at the bottom of the snow pile, Mo Wang quickly slid down. He remembered his father’s words about protecting his sister in dangerous situations. Xiaopang had just gotten up when Mo Wang gave her a hard push back down.
Then, Mo Wang saw a broken basket next to them, which he put over Xiaopang with all his might. He then lay as flat as he could on top of the basket, took out a whistle from his collar, and blew as hard as he could. He thought that this way, other people wouldn’t spot his sister, and his father would hear the whistle and come to their rescue.
Duo Ji rode up to them, ordered his henchman to get off the motorcycle, and the henchman lifted Mo Wang onto the motorcycle and sped away as soon as he heard the whistle.
Duo Ji carried Mo Wang up Cangnan Mountain while his henchman took off in another direction. This way, they would create two separate trails. Even if Lu Zhanguo came, they could buy some time. Plus, Duo Ji believed that Lu Zhanguo wouldn’t have guessed that they would be on Cangnan Mountain, even if he racked his brains.
Mo Wang was so scared that he couldn’t cry anymore. He bit his lip hard and continued recalling his father’s words about figuring out a solution when in trouble. His whistle was thrown away by the scary man when he got on the motorcycle. What should he do now?
Sprawled across Duo Ji’s shoulder, Mo Wang tried his best to calm down. He remembered that his grandma had given him some sunflower seeds to snack on, which he had in his pocket. Quietly, he took them out and scattered them behind Duo Ji.
Duo Ji, noticing how obedient the child was, was a bit puzzled. He took Mo Wang down, but when Mo Wang started crying loudly in fear that Duo Ji might discover the sunflower seeds he had spread, he kicked his shoes off. Duo Ji scolded him a few times and, without any further delay, continued carrying Mo Wang up the mountain.
They found a temporary resting place for rangers, and Duo Ji threw Mo Wang in there, securing the door from the outside with a wooden stick. He then went up to the top of the mountain to scout the best location to sacrifice Mo Wang to his deceased brother at sunrise.
Once Duo Ji left, Mo Wang, barefoot, ran to pull the door open. Even though he pulled with all his might, the door wouldn’t budge, and he started crying out of both fear and desperation. As he wiped his tears with the back of his hand, he looked around the cabin. His gaze landed on the stove in the corner, reminding him of his father’s story about the signal fire.
He wiped his tears and took out a small box of matches from his pocket, a tool his father had prepared for him.
After many attempts, he finally managed to light a fire.
...
Lu Zhanguo, guided by the smoke, ran all the way and found the small cabin in the woods. He cautiously hid behind a big tree and observed the cabin and its surroundings carefully.
