Chapter 108

When the old lady returned home, Jiao Ba and Jiao Lao Yezi had already come back, and both of them were not in good spirits.

After confirming that the male infant at the bridge was not Xiao Pihai, the father and son went to find a few more people, then went to the hospital to comfort Yaohong, and only now returned. With empty stomachs, the father and son hadn't eaten breakfast yet, and Jiao Ma was busy in the kitchen.

The old lady originally wanted to talk about Zheng Tan, but upon seeing Jiao Lao Yezi she still first asked about the child's matter; after learning the situation she just let out a long sigh, and at this moment she really didn't know what to say.

From the moment the old lady entered the door, Xiao Youzi hurriedly ran out and then kept staring at the door, not seeing the cat's figure. But the adults were talking, so she couldn't interject.

Jiao Yuan held the remote and switched a few channels, having no mood to watch TV, lying on the sofa preparing to sleep. When Jiao Yuan was about to fall asleep, Xiao Youzi poked him and said, "Brother, Hei Tan hasn't come back."

Jiao Yuan jerked awake, all sleepiness gone, looked around and indeed didn't see his black cat's figure.

"Grandma, where is Hei Tan?" Jiao Yuan asked.

The old lady slapped her thigh, and when she mentioned the child she almost forgot this matter, hurriedly recounting what had just happened outside.

"Hei Tan ran away?!" Jiao Yuan jumped off the sofa, somewhat unable to believe it.

"Hei Tan wouldn't run around randomly!" Xiao Youzi also said.

Blocking the two children who were about to go out, Jiao Ba asked the old lady, "You said at that time, who was Hei Tan constantly looking at?"

The old lady, face full of guilt, thought for a moment and said, "A person who went to the convenience store to buy something."

Jiao Ba asked a few more questions, and the old lady, recalling, answered them one by one.

Jiao Ba went back to his room to make a phone call for a while. After coming out, he told Jiao Yuan and Xiao Youzi to stay obediently at home.

"What's going on?" Jiao Lao Yezi called out to Jiao Ba; the old man was very curious, and if Jiao Ba didn't finish explaining the matter, he would feel uneasy.

"I asked already; after the middle-aged woman who abducted Maomao left the amusement park, she walked past the parking spot where my car was parked, so she should have passed by my car. Moreover, according to nearby witnesses, the person who picked up the child on a motorcycle was also in that vicinity. At that time, Hei Tan was staying in the car. It must have seen something! I'll go to the convenience store first to inquire about the situation."

The "Maomao" that Jiao Ba referred to is the nickname of Xiao Pihai. Being able to obtain a bit of useful information, Jiao Ba renewed his spirits, picked up his phone, and went out.

Regardless of how Jiao Ba's side and the police investigation were going, Zheng Tan, who was staying inside the tricycle, felt a bit impulsive. Not yet fully certain, he just jumped right in. Now there's no turning back, and he doesn't know where this vehicle will go.

Until the vehicle drove to the suburban area, there were still some civilian houses here. However, these houses didn't look shabby; they were all two- or three-story small buildings.

The tricycle traveled along a dirt and gravel road, went inside, and stopped in front of a house. After the tricycle driver stopped the vehicle, he didn't even glance at the interior seats, directly took out the key, opened the door, and entered the building.

Zheng Tan looked through the gap in the window curtain at the surroundings, saw that there were hardly any people around, lifted the curtain and jumped out, coming to a tree behind which he hid. The area had lots of weeds, very suitable for concealment.

Zheng Tan looked at the two-story small building faced with white ceramic tiles in front of him; it was no different from the surrounding civilian houses, having no particular features. However, the doors and windows were tightly shut, and the second-floor windows were still one-way vision glass, making it impossible from the outside to see what was inside.

Zheng Tan hid in the weeds behind the tree and waited a while; finally he simply found a tree, jumped up, and lay on a branch, observing the condition of the small building through the gaps between leaves.

The surroundings were very quiet; there weren't many residents here, occasionally seeing a few people strolling outside. While Zheng Tan observed that small building, he also learned from the conversations of some passersby that the area was undergoing urban construction, those with fields had received considerable compensation and were preparing to move out; some spent all day outside looking for housing, while others decided to relocate elsewhere. This is also why there aren't many people around.

When Zheng Tan was feeling somewhat drowsy, the second-floor window of that small building was pulled open, and a middle-aged woman was holding a basin of water, splashing it outward.

That's that person!

Zheng Tan's spirit was shaken; he felt that this trip was indeed worthwhile.

After the middle-aged woman finished splashing the water outward, she pulled the window shut again. Zheng Tan walked around this two-story small building and indeed found it hard to find an entry point. The building had no backyard, couldn't climb over the wall, the first-floor windows were all tightly closed, and the only two windows that were open were fitted with anti-theft nets, which Zheng Tan couldn't squeeze through.

In that case, the only way in was through the second floor.

If he had a phone, it would be better to directly send an anonymous text to Jiao Ba; unfortunately, there was no phone to be found nearby, and Zheng Tan couldn't speak on the phone, nor could he tell anyone the address.

Better to do it himself; at least he needed to confirm whether Xiao Pihai was still here.

While Zheng Tan wandered around that two-story small building, he didn't hear any child's crying, nor could he hear any human conversation.

Originally he wanted to wait until night, but Zheng Tan also heard from Jiao Ba and the others that every extra minute meant extra danger; it was better to act early.

After estimating the height of the second floor, the front was faced with white ceramic tiles, while the sides and rear of the small building had no tile facing, the wall surface was rough and uneven; if one really wanted to climb, it was possible.

The window on the side of the second floor was tightly shut, but at the back there was one window that was open, just an ordinary window. When the surroundings were empty, Zheng Tan first tested on the wall surface, confirming that his claws could use the rough, uneven surface to climb upward, and then he began his action.

Zheng Tan felt that he was now like Spider-Man, walking along the wall surface; however, if the wall were a bit smoother, the difficulty would be greater.

Arriving at the open window at the back, Zheng Tan listened to the interior sounds, confirmed that there was no one around the window, and then climbed in through that small open window.

This place resembled a storage room, with several cardboard boxes placed inside; it seemed no one had cleaned it for a while, and a layer of dust lay on the boxes.

The room door was closed, but fortunately the door lock seemed broken, merely latched; Zheng Tan could hook it with his claw and open a gap.

Carefully squeezing out through the door gap, Zheng Tan listened and heard no movement from people around; he came to the front room, which wasn't large, containing only a bed with a few pieces of clothing belonging to the middle-aged woman on it, and he also didn't see any baby supplies.

Strange.

Where is the person?

The tricycle driver had entered, and that middle-aged woman was certainly inside as well, but why was there no movement?

After searching around, there was a room on the second floor that was closed, shut tightly; Zheng Tan put his ear to the door and only then faintly heard a bit of sound.

There were soundproofing facilities inside.

Feeling the vibrations approaching, Zheng Tan hurriedly darted under the bed in the front room; the next moment, the tightly closed door swung open. Zheng Tan heard voices from inside—a female voice and two male voices.

The female voice surely belonged to that middle‑aged woman; the males, one was the tricycle driver, the other sounded a bit older.

Zheng Tan heard them talking about 'big cargo', 'small cargo', and so on, as well as the matter of treating illness.

The middle‑aged woman was complaining about something, and the three of them were arguing a bit.

After listening for a while, Zheng Tan finally realized that the so‑called 'big cargo' actually meant boys, and 'small cargo' meant girls; this was probably slang, but hearing people compared to goods made him feel very uncomfortable. Are human lives really so cheap?

They originally had three children in their possession—two boys and one girl—but a boy who had been brought in from elsewhere fell ill, and they were unwilling to treat him, not only because of the cost but also because they didn't want the hassle that might expose them, so they simply threw that boy off the big bridge. Zheng Tan guessed that this was likely the infant that Jiao Ba and Jiao Lao Yezi had rushed to see around four in the morning.

And there was also a girl who seemed to have been given an overdose of sleeping pills, her reactions sluggish; she was probably mentally impaired.

Zheng Tan thought of those who shoot dogs with tranquilizer guns, ignoring that different dogs tolerate different doses, just firing away—many dogs die outright. For humans, the risk is also great, especially for children. A little carelessness can endanger a life; even if the child survives, the brain's development and intellect may suffer serious damage. How much more so for such a tiny infant.

These three people were arguing precisely about these two matters.

The older‑sounding man said he had already contacted someone to pick up the goods, but two mishaps had occurred in succession because the other two weren't paying attention.

Zheng Tan didn't know how they contacted the buyer, but a male infant fetched thirty thousand, a female infant ten thousand; the man said that was a rare high price, yet the deal fell through, leaving only one male infant. Otherwise they could have earned another forty thousand.

Forty thousand for two lives—and they were merely children who couldn't even speak.

Zheng Tan felt that these bastards were truly not human.

However, Zheng Tan also felt relieved that the remaining male infant was likely the 'Maomao' little rascal that Jiao Ba and the others were anxiously searching for—the 'very well‑looking male infant brought in yesterday' mentioned by the old man indeed matched Maomao.

Now that we've found the place and the person, how should we get in touch with Jiao Ba and the others?

Zheng Tan worries.

That room had just been shut, the middle-aged woman and the tricycle driver came out, while the old man remained inside, not knowing what he was doing—perhaps contacting the buyer, perhaps haggling over the price.

After the tricycle driver had a cigarette and went downstairs, the middle-aged woman entered the room, opened the drawer, took out a box; Zheng Tan listened to the sound, which sounded like jewelry or something similar.

After a while, once the middle-aged woman had left and also gone downstairs, Zheng Tan listened to the surroundings, came out from under the bed, and took another look at the room's arrangement.

Dealing with three people alone would probably be a bit of a struggle, and moreover, these three people are clearly not good sorts.

He rummaged through the drawer and also the small bag hanging nearby, Zheng Tan found a box of medicine.

He shook his whiskers, and Zheng Tan narrowed his eyes.

Weight-loss pills?

He glanced at the teapot placed on the side, and Zheng Tan produced the medicine.

First, I'll cause you some trouble! (To be continued...)