Husband, Let Me Touch Your Abs - Chapter 102

Chapter 102

 

The two of them followed his pointing finger and saw the plump woman holding sugar figurines, squatting and speaking to two young children.

 

Their faces turned pale in an instant, and they ran toward Zhao Beichuan and Lu Yao!

 

“Why are you running over here so suddenly?”

 

Seeing their pale faces, Lu Yao reached out to pull them over. “Are you cold from playing? How about we head home first?”

 

Xiaonian pursed her lips, shook her head, and whispered, “Sister-in-law, we just saw the woman who tried to abduct us!”

 

Lu Yao immediately looked up. “Where is she?”

 

“Over there!”

 

Zhao Beichuan followed their direction. Lu Yao comforted the two children, saying, “You two stay here with my mother. Your big brother and I will go take a look!”

 

The two children nodded nervously, not daring to wander around with so many people around.

 

Xiaochun followed them, trying to find the woman. He had vivid memories of Aunt Lan; when he was sold to the human trader, he suffered greatly at her hands.

 

“She was right here a moment ago! I saw her holding two sugar figurines, trying to coax the children,” Xiaochun said while scratching his head and looking around.

 

The crowd was overwhelming as townsfolk came out to enjoy the festivities. It was so packed that within moments, the woman was out of sight.

 

Zhao Beichuan, being tall, spotted a plump woman leading two children into a distant alley. He lifted Xiaochun. “Look, is that her?”

 

“Yes, that’s her!”

 

Zhao Beichuan patted Xiaochun’s head. “Go back to Xiaonian and head home quickly. Your sister-in-law and I will follow to check things out.”

 

In the distance, Aunt Lan was holding the hand of a five or six-year-old child while carrying a three-year-old in her arms, heading toward an alley.

 

The older child sensed they were walking too far and stopped. “I don’t want the candy anymore; I want to find my mother.”

 

The woman grabbed his hand tightly. “Let’s go get candy first, and then I’ll take you back to your mother.”

 

“I don’t want to! You’re hurting me! Let go of me!” the child cried loudly.

 

Aunt Lan slapped the child across the face. “Shut up! Cry again, and I’ll feed you to the wolves!”

 

The boy widened his eyes in fear, not understanding how the kind lady from before had turned so cruel.

 

The child in her arms also began wailing in terror, wetting herself in the process.

 

Aunt Lan, furious, pinched the child’s bottom harshly. “You filthy brat! How dare you pee on me? Just wait until we get back!”

 

“Mom… Mom…” The two children sobbed loudly.

 

Some passersby noticed and paused to look.

 

Aunt Lan immediately put on a friendly face. “Kids these days, always so playful. We were just about to head home for dinner.”

 

The bystanders smiled, shook their heads, and moved on.

 

Meanwhile, on a nearby bridge, two women and several maidservants were frantically shouting, “Young Master! Miss!”

 

“Have you seen my young master and young miss? This tall!” One woman gestured at her waistline, but passersby shook their heads. With so many people around, how could they spot the children?

 

They were all servants of the Qu family. That morning, their mistress had ordered them to take the children out for some fun. But while they were engrossed in watching street performances, the children went missing!

 

After searching in vain, they ran back to report the terrible news to their master.

 

The Qu family was the largest escort agency in Pingzhou. The old patriarch, Qu Changma, had retired, leaving the business in the hands of his eldest son, Qu Tian, a close friend of Lord Cao. The missing children were the youngest son and daughter of Qu Tian’s second wife.

 

When the news reached the Qu family, Qu Tian wasn’t home. He had been invited to Lord Cao’s house for Yuanxiao celebrations.

 

At the feast, a servant hurried in and whispered something into Qu Tian’s ear, causing him to leap to his feet. “Damn it! Who dares to touch my children in Pingzhou?! They must have a death wish!”

 

Lord Cao was startled. “What happened?”

 

“My youngest son and daughter were taken while out with their nanny!”

 

“What?!” Everyone at the table set down their chopsticks and began asking where the children had gone missing.

 

The feast abruptly ended. Each guest sent servants to gather men to search for the children, vowing not to stop until every corner of Pingzhou was turned upside down.

 

Aunt Lan, unaware of whose children she had abducted, was thrilled by their fair looks. She had quickly lured them into the alley with a few sweet words.

 

Not far ahead was the back door of the human trader’s den. Dragging the two children along, she cursed under her breath and entered.

 

“Quick, shave their heads and put them in plain clothes. That brat pissed on me!”

 

“Yes, ma’am.”

 

While changing the children’s clothes, a servant noticed the gold lock pendants around their necks, each engraved with the character “Qu.”

 

Had Aunt Lan changed their clothes herself, she would have realized who the children were. But the servant, unable to read, quietly pocketed the gold locks.

 

By this time, Zhao Beichuan and Lu Yao had tracked the footprints to the back door of the trader’s den. The snow marks ended there, indicating the woman had entered with the children.

 

Zhao Beichuan wanted to rush in, but Lu Yao pulled him back. “We don’t know what’s inside yet. Don’t take unnecessary risks. Now that we know who the abductor is, we’ll find another chance to capture her and teach her a lesson.”

 

“Alright.”

 

They returned the way they came. When passing the bridge, they noticed the street performers were gone, and the crowd had thinned significantly.

 

Lu Yao worried about the children and hurried home. Zhao Beichuan stayed behind to ask around about missing children.

 

The Qu family, meanwhile, was frantic. The nannies and maids who had lost the children were punished, and the children’s stepmother fainted multiple times from crying.

 

Qu Tian, red-eyed with fury, mobilized every man in the escort agency, determined to find his children that day.

 

Lord Cao also summoned men from the underworld to investigate discreetly, fearing that revealing the family’s identity might provoke the abductors into harming the children.

 

By coincidence, Huang Yazi, among the helpers, encountered Zhao Beichuan.

 

“What brings you here, Shopkeeper Zhao?”

 

“My spouse and I were out strolling and noticed a woman suspiciously leading two children away. I came to ask if anyone has reported missing children.”

 

Huang Yazi clapped his hands. “Brother, you’ve done a great service today! Come with me to Lord Cao’s house. He’s gathered us to search for two missing kids.”

 

Hearing this, Zhao Beichuan followed him immediately.

 

Lord Cao didn’t expect news so soon and sent men to notify the Qu family.

 

“Where are the children now?”

 

Zhao Beichuan wasn’t familiar with the main entrance of the trader’s den, and the alley was too convoluted to explain clearly.

 

Lord Cao grabbed his cloak. “Brother Zhao, come with me!”

 

It was already dusk as Lord Cao, Zhao Beichuan, and others set out in haste. On the way, they met Qu Tian and his men.

 

Without exchanging pleasantries, they headed directly to the location Zhao Beichuan had described.

 

…

 

In the traffickers’ den, the two children from the Qu family had already had their heads shaved. The boy wore old clothes, and the girl wore a tattered cotton jacket. The two huddled together, shivering.

 

Aunt Lan, after changing her clothes and taking a bath, had gone to sleep and hadn’t woken up yet.

 

Several workers in the den were slacking off, sitting together and gambling with dice.

 

Suddenly, a loud bang came from the back door, startling everyone.

 

Someone got up and walked toward the back. As soon as they opened the door, their neck was grabbed tightly. “Where are the two children you abducted today?!”

 

“Th-th-there… over there.”

 

Qu Tian spotted the bald-headed children in the corner, and a surge of fury shot to his head. He kicked the man out. “Close the doors! Not even an ant is allowed to leave today!”

 

“Yes!” The guards from the escort agency shut both the front and back doors of the den.

 

Qu Tian approached to pick up the children, but they were so terrified they couldn’t even speak, screaming as they kept retreating.

 

“Nan’nan, Rui’er, it’s your father! I’ve come to save you.”

 

Master Cao felt deeply distressed watching this. How could good children suffer so much just from going out once?

 

Zhao Beichuan, seeing them, was reminded of his younger siblings, and his hatred for these traffickers deepened.

 

Not long after, Aunt Lan was dragged out of her room. She looked around in terror at the crowd inside. “This—this is a misunderstanding… Shopkeeper Qu, please listen to me—ah!”

 

Before she could finish speaking, Qu Tian slapped her hard across the face, sending blood spurting from her nose and mouth, and even knocking out her molars.

 

Aunt Lan was so frightened that her pants instantly became wet. She realized she had messed with someone she could not afford to offend.

 

Qu Tian spat on the ground. “You dared to target my children in Pingzhou City? You’ve got guts.”

 

“Please spare me, sir! Please spare me! I was blinded by greed and didn’t know these kids were yours!” If she had known, she wouldn’t have dared even with a hundred lives!

 

“And you even shaved my children’s heads,” he growled, pulling a sharp knife from his waist and slicing at Aunt Lan’s scalp. Hair and skin fell in chunks, leaving her head covered in blood in no time.

 

“Ah! Ahhh!” Aunt Lan screamed until her eyes rolled back, and she fainted from fright.

 

Master Cao quickly ordered the children to be taken away, fearing they might fall ill from further fright.

 

“Enough, Lao Qu. Focus on the children. Tie this woman up and take her back.”

 

Qu Tian was dragged out by force. He still had Zhao Beichuan to thank for this. If he hadn’t happened upon the scene, these two children would have likely been doomed.

 

“Thank you, Brother Zhao. From now on, in Pingzhou City, if you ever need my help, just say the word. I will never refuse!”

 

Zhao Beichuan hurriedly helped him up. “Brother Qu, there’s no need to be so polite. Anyone would have helped if they had come across something like this. Besides, this is the same trafficker who abducted my younger siblings back then. Today, it was my kid who recognized her, so I followed her trail.”

 

Qu Tian kicked the person on the ground. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure she wishes for death over life!”

 

It was getting late, and Zhao Beichuan was worried about his family at home, so he took his leave in a hurry.

 

The children had been found, and the others were ready to leave as well.

 

Qu Tian cupped his hands and said, “Thank you all for helping today. I’ll treat you to a feast another day!”

 

Master Cao patted his arm. “A false alarm. It’s good the children were found. Go home quickly and check on them. Comfort your wife, too.”

 

By the time Zhao Beichuan returned home, it was already dark. He had been so busy all day that he hadn’t eaten.

 

At home, Lu Yao had already cooked the tangyuan and had been waiting for him. When he didn’t return, she grew anxious and went out to check several times.

 

Hearing the sound of the front door, Lu Yao quickly ran out. “You’re finally back! How did it go? Were the children found?”

 

Zhao Beichuan couldn’t hide his joy. “They were found. Guess whose children the trafficker abducted?”

 

Lu Yao shook his head.

 

“They were Qu’s kids from the escort agency! Shopkeeper Qu was frantic, sending people everywhere to look for them. It just so happened that I ran into Huang Yazi and told him about it. He then led me to Master Cao’s house, and we went with Shopkeeper Qu to the back door.”

 

Lu Yao tightened his grip on his hand. “Are the children alright?”

 

“They’re fine, just frightened. The trafficker is a repeat offender. When we arrived, the two kids had already been shaved and changed into different clothes. If you weren’t careful, even their own mother might not recognize them.”

 

Lu Yao clutched his chest and sighed. “Thank goodness they were found. Otherwise, Shopkeeper Qu would’ve been heartbroken.”

 

“He’s heartbroken as it is. He was so furious he scraped the scalp off that woman.”

 

Lu Yao hissed in both surprise and satisfaction. “Serves her right! People like that deserve a thousand cuts!”

 

Zhao Beichuan washed his hands. “Is there any food left at home?”

 

“Yes, I kept some tangyuan for you in the pot. Go eat it while it’s hot.”

 

He was indeed starving. Two big bowls of tangyuan were devoured in just a few bites, and he couldn’t even taste them.

 

“Eat slower. Glutinous rice is hard to digest. If you eat too much, you won’t be able to sleep tonight.”

 

Zhao Beichuan held Lu Yao’s hand and squeezed it. “Then let’s not sleep.” After spending over a month in their hometown, he’d been holding back for too long and was eager to have his way with his little spouse.

 

Lu Yao blushed and scolded him softly, “I’ll go heat some water.”

 

Zhao Beichuan quickly finished his third bowl, washed the dishes, and wasted no time pulling Lu Yao into the room.

 

Rough hands glided over smooth skin. Low mo-ans mixed with the sounds of water echoed through the night until the middle of the night.