ebookland Chapter 19 Rescue (1)
Chapter 19 Rescue (1)
The county government office of Qingyuan County.
"Still haven't found it?" Magistrate Ji asked one of the yamen runners.
"Sir, not yet," the yamen runner replied, bowing to Magistrate Ji.
Magistrate Ji waved for the yamen runners to leave.
"Master, has Ah Xun been found yet?" It was the pretty woman who had followed Magistrate Ji on the street. At this moment, she was no longer the pretty woman she once was; her eyes were lifeless, her face was haggard, and she came in from outside with hurried steps.
Magistrate Ji quickly helped the woman up, remaining silent.
"Master!" The woman tugged at Magistrate Ji's clothes, tears welling in her eyes, and called out softly.
“Ah Xiu, we will find them,” Magistrate Ji said to the woman. “I have already sent people to guard the entrances and exits and conduct a thorough search. I have also reported to the prefectural government. Children have also gone missing in other counties, and Lord Fang has arranged for the surrounding counties to search together.”
"Did you tell my father?" the woman asked.
Magistrate Ji shook his head: "My father-in-law is quite old. I didn't send anyone to tell him about this, but I have arranged for someone to send the message back to the capital."
The woman didn't speak, but silently shed tears. Magistrate Ji carefully wiped away her tears.
A servant rushed in from outside: "Reporting to your Excellency, Master Lin requests an audience."
"Tell him to wait a moment, I will be there shortly."
"Yes."
After the servants left, Magistrate Ji said, "Madam, please go back to your room and rest. I will definitely find Ah Xun."
The woman took back the handkerchief that Magistrate Ji had used to wipe his tears, wiped them away, nodded, and the maidservant beside her stepped forward to help her walk outside.
As Magistrate Ji watched the woman leave, he straightened his clothes and walked out of the house.
"Magistrate Ji." Lin Zhong bowed respectfully upon seeing Magistrate Ji. "Magistrate Ji, Zi Ping is lost."
Magistrate Ji asked in surprise, "Ziping is gone too? What happened? Tell me in detail."
"After we parted ways with Magistrate Ji, we headed to the place where the iron flower was being made. But then an unexpected incident occurred. The crowd surged and separated Ziping from us. We had agreed to meet at Lin's Spice Shop, but Ziping never showed up. We searched along the street and only found the pumpkin lantern that Ziping had been holding before he was separated from us," Lin Zhong told Magistrate Ji in detail.
Magistrate Ji asked in confusion, "How do you know that lantern belongs to Ziping?"
“I asked the lantern stall owner, and the lanterns were made by the stall owner’s son. Each lantern was numbered. Ziping’s lantern was number eight, and the one I found at the west street entrance was also number eight,” Lin Zhongping explained after calming down.
After a long silence, Magistrate Ji said, "To be honest, my son, Ah Xun, is also missing."
“This…” Lin Zhong looked at Magistrate Ji with great surprise.
“I have already reported to the prefectural government. Children have also gone missing in other counties, and we have arranged for people to search in those counties. We have also arranged for people to search several key roads in our county, but there are still no results,” Magistrate Ji told Lin Zhong.
Lin Zhong pursed his lips: "Qingyang covers an area of about 50,000 mu. Finding one or two people is like finding a needle in a haystack. When did you seal off the city, sir?"
"A curfew will be imposed at 9 PM," Lord Ji replied.
Lin Zhong said in a deep voice, "Ziping got separated at 7 PM and there is a curfew at 9 PM. Four hours have passed, and the villains may not have moved yet."
"I will arrange for people to conduct a search in the city," said Magistrate Ji.
Lin Zhong smiled wryly: "We can still investigate in the city, but if it's in the mountains, then..."
"No matter what, we cannot give up. Ah Xun and Zi Ping are still waiting for us!" Magistrate Ji replied firmly.
Lin Zhong nodded: "Yes, then I will continue to send more people into the mountains to search."
Magistrate Ji nodded and bowed to Lin Zhong, saying, "Thank you very much, Master Lin."
“Magistrate Ji, there’s no need for that. Lin Zhong will do his utmost! Farewell.” Lin Zhong quickly helped Magistrate Ji up and made a solemn promise.
Lin Zhong walked out of the county government office. Steward Tao and Granny Liao were already waiting outside. They rushed to greet him when they saw him come out.
Granny Liao said, "Master..."
"Let's talk about it when we get back," Lin Zhong interrupted Granny Liao and walked towards the carriage.
Steward Tao and Granny Liao exchanged a glance before getting into the carriage with Lin Zhong.
The study in the Lin family mansion.
"Master, has it arrived?" Butler Tao asked Lin Zhong.
Lin Zhong shook his head: "Magistrate Ji's child has also gone missing, and children have also gone missing in other counties."
Granny Liao hurriedly asked, "Where is the young master?"
"They must have encountered a kidnapper like the other children," Lin Zhong said slowly, rubbing his temples.
Butler Tao and Granny Liao breathed a sigh of relief.
"Magistrate Ji has already arranged for people to conduct searches at intersections and throughout the city, but there are no results yet," Lin Zhong said to Steward Tao and Granny Liao.
Granny Liao pondered for a moment: "With over ten thousand households in the city, how long would it take to search them all? Master, should we contact that official to help us find the young master?"
"If we contact that official, and military forces are involved, wouldn't we be exposed?" Butler Tao frowned and said, "Wouldn't all our efforts over the past few years be wasted?"
The candle wick crackled and popped, and the room fell silent as Lin Zhong paced back and forth with his hands behind his back.
“After dawn, Qingyu will follow Xunfengdie to search the city. If they can’t find him in the city, we’ll discuss it further. Tao Xian will arrange for people to search in the surrounding mountains. The important thing is to find Ziping as soon as possible.” Lin Zhong said while adjusting the lamp wick, “We don’t need to contact that official for now.”
After a long silence, Lin Zhong said again, "Magistrate Ji's child has also gone missing. Keep an eye on the situation at the county government office. If there is still no news of Ziping within three days, contact that official and we will begin the relocation."
“Master…” Granny Liao suddenly looked at Lin Zhong, “What about Ziping?”
Butler Tao smiled wryly: "Currently, the Lin family is already under a lot of scrutiny because of our eunuch status. If others find out about Ziping's identity, do we have the ability to take him away?"
Lin Zhong said, "Perhaps the situation isn't so bad. The Ji family also has connections in the military, so they probably won't stand idly by while Young Master Ji goes missing. Although some suspect the Lin family, there's no concrete evidence. We're not the only ones who have left the palace in recent years; we're all under surveillance by various families in the capital. If we don't panic, we're safe for now. The most important thing now is Ziping; we must find him at all costs."
Butler Tao and Granny Liao bowed and said yes, then bowed to Lin Zhong and took their leave. Silence fell again in the room. Lin Zhong sat down at his desk, spread out his pen and ink, pondered for a while, and then began to write.