NCCnovel Chapter 204 Pawn Shop No. 8
Chapter 204 Pawn Shop No. 8
"Hmph! What are you still dawdling about? If you don't hand over the jade pendant, I'll chop your old bones into minced meat!"
The black-clothed leader had a fierce look in his eyes. The jade pendant was the key evidence to find Murong Linger's biological parents, and he was determined to get it.
Old Lady Deng trembled, then fell to her knees and begged for mercy: "Master, spare my life! It's not that I'm unwilling to hand it over, it's actually that jade pendant... I've already pawned it!"
She felt extremely regretful. If she had known that this would lead to her death, she would have starved to death rather than touch the jade pendant.
"You became a clerk?" The black-clothed leader frowned and raised his voice suddenly. "Where did you become a clerk?"
"Pawnshop No. 18." Old Mrs. Deng shrank back timidly, her neck almost shrinking into her collar, her voice as weak as a mosquito's hum.
"You crazy woman who doesn't know how to live or die! How dare you pawn the jade pendant?"
A henchman beside the black-clad leader yelled, "Where is the pawnshop? Tell me!" As he spoke, he raised the shining knife in his hand.
Old Lady Deng was so frightened that tears streamed down her face. "My dear hero! I really don't know! I only know that the pawnshop is in a small alley on the east side of the city. I'm too old to remember the exact location!"
The black-clad leader snorted coldly, "Old man, you dare to play tricks? I will make you wish you were dead! Brothers, search! Search carefully! If you can't find the pawn ticket, this old man is useless!"
Upon hearing this, Old Lady Deng collapsed to the ground in despair. Suddenly, as if remembering something, she struggled to her feet and said, "Sir, although I don't remember the location of the pawnshop, I remember that the owner was a one-eyed man, known as 'One-Eyed Li'. He might know the whereabouts of the jade pendant."
The leader in black pondered for a moment and waved his hand: "Let's go! Go to the east of the city! If you dare to lie to me, I will take your life even if you go to the ends of the earth!" After that, a group of people took Old Lady Deng and ran towards the east of the city, leaving only dust raised along the way.
The crowd took Old Lady Deng and hurried to the east of the city. After searching through the intricate alleys, they finally found a hidden pawnshop.
The leader in black kicked open the door of the pawnshop. The light in the pawnshop was dim. Behind the counter, a one-eyed man with a stern face was wiping the abacus in his hand. Seeing this scene, he was not in a hurry.
"Are you 'One-eyed Li'?" The black-clad leader stepped forward and slammed his knife on the counter.
"It's me. What's the purpose of mobilizing so many troops?" One-eyed Li raised his eyes and asked calmly.
"This old woman has pawned a jade pendant with you. Hand it over immediately!" the minion shouted loudly.
One-eyed Li smiled softly: "Once the pawned item is in my pawn shop, there is no way I can just hand it over. Besides, the jade pendant has already been bought by a customer."
The black-clad leader's face darkened. "Bought it? Who bought it?"
One-Eyed Li shrugged. "You can be anonymous when you pawn things with me. The customer was masked. I only know that he was generous, and I don't know anything else."
When Mrs. Deng heard this, her face turned pale and she began to cry again: "Sir, I really didn't know! I thought I was just pawning it for some money, I didn't expect it to be like this."
A trace of murderous intent flashed in the eyes of the black-clad leader, and he glared at Old Lady Deng: "You old bitch, you've ruined my plans!"
Old Mrs. Deng was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground and kept begging for mercy.
The black-clad leader suppressed his rage and turned to One-Eyed Li, saying, "Do you still remember the buyer's characteristics? If you dare to conceal even a single clue, I will slaughter your pawnshop."
One-Eyed Li pondered for a moment and then slowly said, "The man was wearing a black robe, was tall, and spoke with an accent like someone from another place. He also seemed to have a unique jade pendant around his waist, but I only took a quick glance and can't be sure."
The leader in black thought to himself that the clue was too vague, but he had no choice but to continue investigating.
The black-clad leader was filled with annoyance. He glared at Old Lady Deng viciously, thinking about his master's command, which could not be missed: after properly dealing with the Murong family, he must retrieve the jade pendant and return it to Miss Murong as soon as possible.
The jade pendant is Miss Murong's personal belonging and is of great importance. There must be no mistakes.
As a result, no one in the Murong family, young or old, was spared. They were all tied up tightly with hemp ropes and dragged away like lambs to be slaughtered and sold as slaves.
The scene was so miserable, with cries and pleas for mercy all mixed together, but the black-clad men's knives flashed coldly, and no one dared to resist.
……
On the other hand, Murong Ling'er was thinking about finding an opportunity to go back to Old Lady Deng to retrieve the other jade pendant, but she didn't know that Old Lady Deng and her family had already been sold into slavery like a candle in the wind. In this chaotic world, they were resold like goods and now disappeared without a trace.
"Miss Murong, if you encounter any difficulties, I am willing to help you. Please feel free to ask me, I will never refuse."
Seeing that Murong Ling'er remained silent for a long time, Chu Lingfeng couldn't help but break the silence and made this solemn promise.
Murong Ling'er heard this and looked up at him, her brows slightly furrowed. After a moment's thought, she said softly, "Thank you for your kindness, Master Chu. Ling'er appreciates it."
Her tone was polite yet distant, as if a veil was separating the two of them.
When Chu Lingfeng saw this, the light in his eyes dimmed instantly, as if a star had fallen. He lowered his head silently and said no more.
Murong Chen snuggled up to Murong Ling'er obediently. The little guy was very smart. He noticed that his mother was in a bad mood, so he shut up obediently. The atmosphere in the carriage instantly became as cold and depressing as condensed frost.
Fortunately, the dullness did not last long, and the mountain leading to the outside world was already standing before our eyes.
When they looked up, they saw that the thousand-foot cliff was like the bloody mouth of a giant beast, bottomless, and they gasped in shock.
Chifeng turned his head sharply, as if stung by a scorpion, and looked at Tang Muyang. He asked with wide eyes, "The way out you said is to climb this deadly cliff?"
Tang Muyang looked calm and nodded slightly. "Indeed, there are only two ways for our Tang family to leave this place. One is to go through the mysterious and unpredictable Misty Forest, and the other is to cross this terrifying thousand-foot cliff."
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a burst of inhalation sounds all around, like a group of toads croaking.
Seeing everyone staring at him as if they had seen a ghost, Tang Muyang couldn't help but laugh. He quickly explained, "Actually, there's no need to climb to the top of this cliff. There's a cave halfway up the mountain. That's the secret passage leading to the outside world."
When everyone heard this, they breathed a sigh of relief and thought that if they really had to climb to the top of the cliff, they might as well turn around and take the path along the river. Even if their legs were crippled, it was better than being smashed into a meat pie.
When Tang Muyang led everyone to the ladder built with the combined efforts of the entire clan, a grateful smile instantly blossomed on Chifeng's face. That smile was as bright as a flower blooming in spring. He turned to Tang Muyang and bowed, saying with a smile: "Brother Tang, I cannot thank you enough for your kindness. You really saved my life!"