"Whoever loses, eats shit?"
Li Rui wore a faint smile, looking as if he had me cornered.
My heart was pounding like fifteen buckets drawing water from a well. Could this kid have precognitive abilities, knowing I'd found Fang Huixin's daughter?
But then I dismissed the thought. Even if they knew I was looking for Fang Huixin, they wouldn't necessarily know what I intended to do. Moreover, Li Rui agreed to my two conditions without a second thought. Either Fang Yuan wasn't in Xiangyanggou, or he was supremely confident about the location of the hidden corpse.
However, with the words already spoken, there was no turning back. Besides, with Bai Ling'er, who had already found Fang Yuan, as my trump card, how could I possibly lose?
"Deal!"
Seeing me agree, Li Rui gave a disdainful laugh. "I hope you didn't have breakfast this morning."
I retorted, "Likewise."
"Aunt Fang, as you can see, I can't leave or make calls right now. I'll have to trouble you to arrange our travel arrangements for later."
Fang Huixin frowned, covered her mouth with her hand, and nodded before leaving. She was clearly disgusted by our bet.
After Fang Huixin left, the four of us were left staring at each other in the living room. I couldn't just sit here and wait with them. I had to go back and fetch Bai Ling'er. Bai Ling'er was still fast asleep when I arrived this morning, so I hadn't called it.
Seeing Li Rui's confident demeanor, I suspected there might be some complications. I'd call Bai Ling'er to scout ahead and prevent them from playing any tricks. After all, the stakes of this bet were so high; without Bai Ling'er's help, I was sure to be the one eating "shit."
"Brother Zhang, you watch them here. I'll go back and get some gear. I'll be back shortly."
Zhang Dabiao understood what I meant and immediately said, "Go ahead! I'll make sure to keep an eye on them and prevent them from pulling any stunts."
Just as I stood up to leave, Li Jian called out to me. His old face was stretched long; if a donkey stood beside him, one might mistake them for brothers.
"Where are you going?"
I had no patience for Li Jian. This old guy was always meddling, telling me to do this and that, which had kept me stuck in this wretched place until now.
I replied irritably, "Didn't you hear? Is your ear plugged with donkey hair?"
"You..." I had struck a nerve. I doubted anyone dared to speak to him like this.
Li Rui, on the other hand, shook his head. "That won't do. Since you demand that we can't leave your sight, then you can't leave ours either. Who knows if you'll go out to make a call or pull some stunt?"
Looking at Li Rui's smirking face, I really wanted to punch him. It was mainly because this kid looked too much like a pretty boy, making me feel utterly ashamed in comparison.
"Can you have some shame? I'm an outsider on your turf, what could I possibly do? If I could do anything, would I have waited until now? Why are you acting like an idiot?"
Despite my curses, Li Rui maintained his smile, as if the insults were directed at someone else.
"The bet was agreed upon by both parties, so both parties must abide by it. We cannot leave your sight, and likewise, you cannot leave ours. Otherwise, how can fairness be demonstrated?"
Li Jian, having just recovered his breath, also said sternly, "Rui'er is right. Rules cannot be made for one party only. You should also abide by this rule, otherwise, the rule is void."
Seeing the old man and the young man ganging up on me, I really wanted to spit some mouthwash in their faces. In my eighteen years of life, I had seen shameless people, but never anyone as shameless as them, suspecting me of pulling tricks on their territory.
Seeing their resolute attitude, I had no choice but to give up. I could only hope that Bai Ling'er would come looking for me if we didn't return for too long.
Half an hour later, Fang Huixin walked in from outside.
"The car is ready. We can depart."
I subconsciously blurted out, "So soon!"
Seeing Li Jian and Li Rui looking at me with strange expressions, I snorted, "What I mean is, the sooner we see you eat shit, the better. I'm afraid you won't be hungry and won't enjoy it."
"Ugh..." Fang Huixin gagged. "Don't say those two words in front of me, or don't blame me for being impolite."
I chuckled awkwardly, having forgotten she was a woman. Shrugging, I indicated I wouldn't say it again and walked out with Zhang Dabiao.
Zhang Dabiao seized the opportunity to ask, "What are you thinking? Without that little earthworm, do you have confidence you can find her?"
I gave a wry smile and shook my head. "No confidence. For now, I can only take it one step at a time. I just hope Bai Ling'er realizes we're not home and comes out to find us..."
Zhang Dabiao: "..."
Fang Huixin had arranged two cars, a sedan and a minivan, both Mercedes-Benz. I didn't know the models, but their exteriors clearly indicated they were expensive.
Li Rui opened the minivan door and gestured for us to get in. I didn't hesitate and jumped in, followed closely by Zhang Dabiao, then Li Jian. Li Rui closed the door, and the car began to move slowly.
I sat in the back, constantly murmuring Bai Ling'er's name in my mind, hoping it could sense my call. But it seemed I was overthinking.
Although Fifth Prince had mentioned a telepathic connection between Bai Ling'er and me, this connection gradually weakened over time. By the time the car stopped at the entrance of Xiangyanggou village, Bai Ling'er was nowhere to be seen. It seemed my efforts were in vain.
As I got out of the car, I noticed that the car hadn't driven into the village but had stopped at the entrance.
"Why aren't we driving in?" I asked, confused.
Li Rui gave a mocking laugh. "Drive where? We don't know where Fang Yuan is."
My face flushed red from Li Rui's retort. I quickly walked into the village. As I passed the sedan, Fang Huixin rolled down her window.
"I'll give you one hour. If you can't find my daughter by then, you know the consequences. Make good use of this opportunity."
I glanced back at the convoy of cars following Fang Huixin's car and could only nod dejectedly, indicating I understood.
Looking at the somewhat dilapidated village before me, I almost suspected I had traveled back to the late Qing Dynasty or early Republican era.
The village gate was constructed with two wooden posts as thick as a thigh, with a wooden plaque hanging above, bearing the words "Xiangyanggou." The color had faded beyond recognition.
Although Xiangyanggou was only about ten miles from Molu Village, the two villages were worlds apart. Molu Village looked like a small town, with all sorts of entertainment and amenities; if you could think of it, you could find it there.
Xiangyanggou, on the other hand, appeared ramshackle. Not far from the village entrance, there were two houses with thatched roofs. I even doubted if they would leak during rain.
The villagers were clearly unaccustomed to our sudden arrival. The few houses near the road stopped their work upon seeing our group, turned, and went inside.
Li Rui, with his hands in his pockets, slowly followed behind. "I advise you to give up on the idea of escaping. Just come back with me obediently. Don't worry, I'll have someone make the shit look presentable, so it won't be as disgusting when you eat it."
Zhang Dabiao couldn't stand it and chimed in, "Kid, I hope you won't renege when you lose later. Otherwise, I don't mind feeding it to you myself."
Li Rui snorted and put some distance between us.
I rolled my eyes at Li Rui and said nothing, instead surveying the village layout.
By my estimation, the village had only about thirty-odd households. A small river, about half a meter wide, ran through the village, indicating that the village was built around this river.
Finding which household had hidden Fang Yuan among these families would require some effort.
Zhang Dabiao was a man of action. After fending off Li Rui, he started going door-to-door, preparing to inquire if any strangers had visited or if any strange incidents had occurred.
However, before Zhang Dabiao could get close, the doors were shut and locked, and the residents turned and went inside, even drawing the curtains.
This left Zhang Dabiao with his hand raised in mid-air, helplessly scratching the back of his head to alleviate his awkwardness.
"Brother, I'm out of ideas. I can't help you with this. This time, it's all up to you."