Elder brother's garrison

"Brother, I regret it..." the short man said in a frightened voice.

"It's alright." The tall man seemed to smile, then continued calmly, "Generally speaking, if you act on your own and Aunt Mei and the others find out, they'll definitely chop off one of your fingers. But the quality of what you caught this time was really good. Aunt Mei isn't that difficult to talk to. If you catch something good, she'll reward you."

"Brother! You caught it!" The short man immediately became ingratiating upon hearing this.

"Forget it, I have no intention of stealing your credit." The tall man glanced at the short man. "I will tell Aunt Mei everything you have to say, and I won't interfere as to whether she rewards or punishes you after hearing it."

"Brother, thank you, brother..."

"You don't need to thank me." The tall man withdrew his gaze and said leisurely, "Originally, I only went out to explore this mission because you are from Shenzhen and could help me find a map and avoid some detours. I didn't expect you to be so useful. This is what you deserve... As for where you end up, I won't ask. You just need to know who helped you."

"Brother, from now on you're my real brother!" The short man burst into tears.

"Keep your voice down." The tall man frowned.

"Yes, yes!" The short man immediately covered his mouth.

"The handcuffs are showing..." the tall man said again.

"Yes Yes……"

The short man immediately put his hands back in the haystack, then swallowed hard and nervously continued to speak.

"Brother... speaking of which... what's going on with this little girl this time? Why do you all seem to care about her so much..."

"...Don't you want to live anymore?"

The tall man gave the short man a cold glance, and even though the short man was wearing an eye mask, he could clearly feel the chill in him.

The short man immediately shuddered, his face covered in sweat.

"Brother, I...I...I just asked casually, I was wrong, I won't ask anymore, I'll shut up right now..." The short man immediately lowered his head.

"..." The tall man looked away, and the oxcart fell silent again.

Inside the sack, Xiaobai heard the conversation outside and closed its eyes in peace.

……

The oxcart traveled a long distance.

The oxcart left the small county town and headed into the wilderness.

Xiao Bai felt fine, but the jolt caused Miao Yan, who was unconscious inside the sack, to turn quite pale.

Just as Xiaobai was pondering whether to give the oxcart a rest, her commander's network of reconnaissance finally revealed a small village on the road ahead of the oxcart.

Upon seeing the small village, the tall man in the car finally reached out and patted the short man on the shoulder.

"The blindfold is off, and the handcuffs have come off by themselves," the tall man reminded him.

"Brother, have we arrived?"

"open."

"Okay, okay!" The short man quickly took off his blindfold and took out the key from his pocket to unlock his wrist.

The oxcart traveled all the way to the entrance of the small village.

Several muscular men with tanned skin, dressed in hemp clothing and straw hats, sat on the walls and steps at the entrance of the village. When they saw the oxcart approaching, they immediately got up, climbed down from the walls, and surrounded the oxcart.

"Brother Le! He's back!"

The young man surrounded the oxcart and shouted at the tall man.

"You're back." The tall man nodded to the young men around him.

“Hey! Brother Le, we know you’re reliable when you’re out on business, but there are village rules…”

"I know, go ahead and check."

"Brother Le is reliable!"

The young men immediately climbed onto the oxcart, picked up the haystacks on it, searched through them, and finally found the only burlap sack on the cart.

The young men untied the rope at the top of the sack, and Xiaobai closed his eyes before the sack was opened.

After the sack was opened, the young men saw two girls inside. They immediately looked puzzled and turned to look at the tall man.

"Brother Le, why are there two?"

"If I find something of high quality on the road, I bring it back."

"Brother Le, this isn't right..."

"I'm taking them to see Aunt Mei next. Do you want to come along?"

"Oh! What are you saying!"

Upon hearing the tall man finish speaking, the young men immediately chuckled, closed the sack, and jumped off the oxcart.

"Brother Le has a good eye; this new girl is truly exceptional!"

"So beautiful! She's the prettiest girl we've ever seen!"

"..."

The tall man ignored the young men around him, cracked the cow's rump with his cattle whip, and the old cow pulled the cart into the small village.

The old ox entered the village, quietly making its way in.

Inside the sack, Xiaobai continued to survey her surroundings using the Admiral's Network—the place she was in seemed to be a small village with only about a hundred people. However, although it was called a village, the buildings here were not too backward. At least there were small villas and such around. The people on the village road were dressed in relatively modern clothes, although not too flashy. At the end of the village road, there was a large building that looked like a primary school.

However... this so-called school was indeed built at a much higher elevation, and it was surrounded by iron netting covered with spikes. Xiaobai could also see villagers guarding the area around the school.

As Xiaobai probed, the oxcart came to a complete stop amidst the mooing of an old ox.

Xiao Bai sensed that the tall man had stopped the oxcart next to the school, then jumped off the cart and onto the cart frame.

dong dong!

Footsteps approached the sack, and then the sack where Xiaobai was was lifted up and the opening of the sack was opened.

"It's time to wake up."

The tall man shook the sack and spoke to the two people inside.

Perhaps because the hypnotic effects had indeed worn off, as the man shook her, Miao Yan's eyebrows began to tremble and her eyes slightly opened.

When Xiaobai saw that Miao Yan had woken up, she opened her eyes as well, just like Miao Yan.

"Come out when you're awake."

The man said something to the two girls in the sack, then threw the sack back to the ground.

Boom!

The fall jolted Miao Yan awake. She immediately frowned, clutching her arms and thighs, showing signs of pain.

Xiao Bai quickly grabbed Miao Yan's arms and legs and helped her up from the sack.

This was the first time Xiaobai and the conscious Miao Yan had a proper eye contact. As Xiaobai helped her up, Miao Yan kept staring into his eyes, her expression shifting between calm and turmoil.

Xiao Bai turned his back to the two men and smiled at Miao Yan.

Miao Yan looked confused and bewildered, but a hidden hope seemed to flicker in her eyes as she lowered her head, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Xiao Bai patted Miao Yan on the shoulder and followed her out of the sack.

When Xiaobai and Miaoyan stepped out of the sack, the tall man beside them looked at them, giving Xiaobai a rather surprised look.

The bumpy ride had left Miao Yan in a terrible state; her clothes and hair were disheveled, and her face was ashen and bluish.

On the other hand, Xiaobai looked as if she had just woken up on a velvet bed. She still had rosy lips and white teeth, a rosy complexion, and her hair was still smooth and shiny, as if she had never suffered any torment.

Chapter 3696 Aunt Mei

"Brother, look, this is top-quality, right..." The short man saw the tall man staring at Xiaobai, so he quickly moved closer to the tall man and whispered.

"..."

The tall man gave the short man a cold look.

For some reason, this glance made the short man feel a little guilty, and he couldn't help but lower his head.

Fortunately, the tall man didn't say anything, but turned around and walked towards the school, speaking to the short man.

“Take them with you, and slap whoever cries.”

"Yes, obey!"

The short man spoke immediately, then came to Xiaobai and Miaoyan.

Upon seeing the short man approach, Miao Yan initially flinched and instinctively backed away.

But the short man looked at Xiaobai and Miaoyan awkwardly, rubbed his hands together, and coughed.

"You two, stick close to me!"

After the short man finished speaking, he stood still to the side.

Miao Yan stared blankly at the short man's relaxed demeanor, then glanced sideways at Xiao Bai.

Xiao Bai lowered her head slightly and tugged at Miao Yan's wrist.

"Let's go."

Xiao Bai whispered to Miao Yan.

Xiao Bai's words reached Miao Yan's ears, and a strange sense of security welled up within her. Miao Yan felt a strange energy enter her body along with Xiao Bai's words, shining and heating up, slowly burning within her.

Miao Yan nodded subconsciously, took Xiao Bai's hand, and followed her off the oxcart, catching up with the short man.

The tall man was in front, the short man was behind, and Xiaobai and Miaoyan were sandwiched between the two men as the four of them walked towards the school.

Miao Yan didn't seem to be here for the first time. As the four of them got closer to the school, Miao Yan's face grew increasingly ashen and desperate. Xiao Bai could even clearly feel the trembling in her hands.

Xiao Bai glanced at Miao Yan and slightly increased the intensity of the mental energy he was channeling into her, trying his best to soothe her emotions.

There were guards at the school gate. When they saw the tall man, they let him through. However, everyone's curious eyes were also on Xiaobai.

Xiao Bai endured the gazes of those around him before walking into the school.

The so-called school was indeed completely empty inside, with no classrooms or even anyone who looked like a teacher.

The layout here is more like a factory or an orphanage than a school... There aren't many people walking around, mostly cold-blooded adult men. In the open space of the school, Xiaobai also saw more children who looked a lot like Miao Yan. These children were carrying buckets about their own size and various cleaning tools to clean the ground. Even though the ground was already very clean, these children kept working under the supervision of others. Their movements were slow and sluggish, and they staggered as if they were exhausting all their strength with every step. Everyone looked pale, tired and thin.

When Xiaobai entered the school, the children would occasionally look up and gaze in his direction.

Xiao Bai clearly sensed that the children's eyes were filled with a deep sense of despair and numbness.

That look in your eyes seems so familiar, but then again, it doesn't quite feel that way...

Xiao Bai thought to herself and glanced at Miao Yan.

Oh……

Xiao Bai seemed to be deep in thought.

"Stop looking around." The tall man didn't turn around, but he seemed to have noticed Xiaobai looking around, and he said as he walked.

"Yes, don't look!"

The short man quickly agreed, looking at Xiaobai with a pleading look in his eyes.

Xiaobai nodded, looked away, and lowered her head.

Anyway, Xiaobai doesn't need eyes to see her surroundings; she can still see them by releasing the Admiral's Network.

As Xiaobai and his three companions walked towards the innermost room of the school, another group of people slowly emerged from both sides of their path, blocking their way.

"Hey, isn't this Brother Le?"

The group blocking Xiaobai and his companions was led by a middle-aged man wearing glasses. He gently pushed up his glasses, his eyes fixed on the group with a smile that was also unusually sharp.

"Xu An, we want to see Aunt Mei," the tall man said expressionlessly.

"Have you completed the task Aunt Mei gave you?" The middle-aged man named Xu An looked behind the tall man. He first looked at Miao Yan, then suddenly laughed, "Oh ho, the treatment methods in Shenzhen are indeed quite good. They were soaked in the aura of the deep sea and still managed to survive."

Upon hearing this, Miao Yan trembled uncontrollably and took a few steps back.

Whether it was Xiaobai's imagination or not, Miao Yan had a noticeable special reaction when she heard the name "Aunt Mei," and her body trembled violently.

Xu An glanced to the side and saw Xiao Bai.

The moment Xu An saw Xiao Bai, his brows furrowed and his gaze turned cold.

"Gao Le, you didn't earn extra money while Aunt Mei was assigning you tasks, did you?" Xu An stared at the tall man as if he were a dead man. "Who gave you the authority to create unnecessary trouble?"