"That... uh, Cousin Ji, Dabao isn't missing. He's at the Hu family's place."
Ji Huan wanted to snap him out of it.
Seeing that she didn't believe him, Ji Mingfang grew anxious.
"It's true. About four hours ago, I was coming down the mountain with Daya and Erya, heading home along this road, when we ran into two strange men dragging and carrying a child toward the village entrance. The kid was struggling the whole time, but his mouth was covered. I felt something was wrong, so I shouted..."
The two men already looked like they had a guilty conscience, and Ji Mingfang's shout distracted them.
The child in their arms saw his chance. He bit down hard on the fleshy part of the hand covering his mouth. As the man yelped in pain and let go, the child broke free and ran back.
Ji Mingfang had seen Dabao once before, and Daya and Erya knew him too.
The last time they met on the mountain, Ji Xuelan had even told the two girls that he was their aunt's younger brother.
