The two little buns saw this and raised their small heads, bursting into laughter.
"Hahaha, this is hilarious, oh my..."
The large green caterpillar was almost crawling onto the man's neck before he noticed.
He never expected such a big man to be afraid of caterpillars.
What a waste of all his martial arts skills.
"See, I didn't lie to you!" Xiao Xi said with a sweet smile.
The man threw the caterpillar into the water with a dejected expression, feeling very depressed...
How embarrassing!
To scream in front of children, did he look very funny just now!
"Don't talk, sit properly!" the man snorted.
Xiao Xi giggled for a while longer before surveying the terrain around the river valley.
The riverbank was lined with crooked willows, and occasionally a few roe deer could be seen drinking at the river.
The river ahead was straight, but there was no sign of smoke or human activity.
This meant there should be no villages nearby.
"Big brother, when are you planning to reach the shore?" Xiao Xi asked.
She felt a little anxious.
Having been missing for so long, her family must be worried sick...
Especially her parents, they were already prone to worrying at their age, and they had been caught in a heavy rain in the mountains. If they fell ill, it would be terrible.
The man glanced back at Xiao Xi and said faintly, "When there is no danger, we will reach the shore!"
It seemed he had no intention of getting off the boat for now.
Xiao Jinheng frowned slightly upon hearing this, "How can you be sure there's no danger on shore? And if this river has no end, do you plan to just drift along forever?"
The man quickly scanned the banks and curved his lips, "I can tell if there's danger just by looking..."
His hearing was extremely sharp; he could detect the slightest disturbance on the shore.
"I'm hungry!" Xiao Xi stretched out her little legs and began searching for food in her space.
There was nothing on this little broken boat, and fishing was out of the question, as they had no fishing rods...
Even if they had a fishing rod, the boat was moving so fast that the fish wouldn't bite.
The man fumbled in his embrace. Damn, he had eaten all the roast duck and dried pork.
He was wondering if he should go ashore and hunt some wild game.
He didn't want these two little buns to starve...
Unexpectedly, Xiao Xi directly pulled out three large cantaloupes from her satchel, "Here, have something to eat!"
The man was stunned.
He had been curious for a long time about what kind of divine object this little girl's satchel was.
She had previously pulled out three large apples, and now she had produced three cantaloupes...
This little bag was too capacious!
"Aren't you eating?" Xiao Xi asked tenderly.
These were picked from the melon patch in her space.
They were large and fresh, enough to fill their stomachs.
Actually, Xiao Xi had wanted to take out rabbits, but she couldn't start a fire on the boat, nor did she have any wood...
"Thank you, little sister. When we reach the shore, we'll find a restaurant and have a good meal, my treat!"
The man took the cantaloupe, split it in half with his palm, and took a big bite, "Mmm! It's quite sweet!"
Xiao Xi pouted. Of course, it was sweet. The melons she grew were always plump and sweet, never enough to eat...
Xiao Jinheng ate more elegantly. After a morning of exertion, he was also hungry.
"I don't want a big meal!" Xiao Jinheng's expression was a little melancholic. "I just want to get back to Dashui Village quickly, even if it's just to send a letter, so they don't worry..."
He was worried about Uncle Yun and Madam Gu.
Although he and the village child had escaped danger, it was still uncertain when they would return to the village.
The man finished the cantaloupe in a few bites and picked up the bamboo pole again, "Don't worry, when we safely reach the shore, I'll take you back to the village!"
What child wouldn't miss home?
He understood the feelings of these two little buns...
By the dock, a group of people carrying curved knives rushed over.
"Boss, he seems to have escaped by boat. Should we continue the pursuit?" a man in black asked.
The leader frowned and looked at the river in the distance for a moment, "We've chased him this far, we absolutely cannot give up. That guy stole the master's blueprints. If we don't catch him, we'll die when we go back..."
"But the current here is rapid, and we don't have a boat. How can we chase him?"
The leader touched the hilt of his saber and pondered for a moment, "Notify the other brothers to set up ambushes on both sides of the river. Keep an eye on that kid. We want him alive, or his corpse!"
"Yes!"
At the same time, at the county yamen of Heyang County.
Prefect Chen paced back and forth in his office with his hands behind his back...
"Alas, it's over, it's all over!" Prefect Chen sighed, wishing he could die.
Advisor Zuo leaned in to persuade him, "Your Lordship, worrying is useless. Why don't you eat something first, and then we can think of a solution!"
Ever since the Prefect returned from Dashui Village, he had been neglecting his meals, not even eating his favorite roasted lamb chops...
Prefect Chen glared at him, "Eat, eat, eat! What time is it, and you're still talking about eating? As my advisor, can't you distinguish between what's important and what's not?"
Advisor Zuo: "..."
What's the use of scolding me? It wasn't me who lost the little prince and Sweet Baby.
"I'm out of ideas. I can only write to Prefect Qin. If we delay any longer, we'll be waiting to collect the little prince's corpse!"
Prefect Chen finished speaking, walked to his desk, picked up the paper and pen, and wrote a letter.
"I hope Prefect Qin can send officials as soon as possible. Even if they have to turn Camel Peak Mountain upside down, they must find the little prince..."
Advisor Zuo's expression became anxious upon hearing this, "My, my Lord, if you write this letter, it will alert the imperial court!"
The Prefect had always cherished his official position. If he were to be dismissed, he would have to return to his hometown to farm.
And Prefect's wife was such a delicate person, unable to lift anything. In that case, wouldn't she divorce Prefect Chen?
"Let it be alerted. This is a matter of life and death, and we cannot conceal it any longer!"
Prefect Chen finished writing the letter, put it in an envelope, and handed it to Advisor Zuo, "Go, send someone clever to immediately deliver this letter to the Prefect's mansion in Shuo'an City!"
"Yes, alright!" Advisor Zuo responded, took the letter, and went out.
Kong Xingzhuo returned to Dashui Village with two secret guards...
As soon as they entered the courtyard, the Yun family greeted them.
"Young Master Kong, is there no news at all?" Old Man Yun asked anxiously.
Kong Xingzhuo breathed a sigh of relief, "I found them!"
"Ah?" The entire Yun family was overjoyed and looked towards the main entrance.
"Where are they?"
Kong Xingzhuo lowered his head, "They were captured by human traffickers again!"
The Yun family: "..."