Whispers in the Aftermath

After walking a bit further, Qin An suddenly stopped, standing perfectly still.

“An, what’s wrong?” Tongtong walked up to him and tugged at his sleeve.

Qin An made a shushing gesture at her.

Tongtong looked at him, puzzled.

After a moment, Qin An pressed his ear to the ground. After listening carefully, he picked up Tongtong and walked to the left.

Tongtong watched Qin An with a curious expression.

As he walked, Qin An said, “If I’m not mistaken, we might have found a hot spring.”

“Really?” Tongtong looked at him with surprise. She knew Qin An would never lie to her, so there was no doubt in her voice.

As a young girl, cleanliness was second nature to her. She had wanted to bathe in the cold river, but Qin An firmly refused, afraid that she might get a fever again after just recovering from a serious illness. But if there was a hot spring, all problems would be solved. Yet how could there be a hot spring here?

Qin An said nothing more, and Tongtong quietly nestled in his arms. He continued walking in one direction, his pace noticeably faster than before.

After another ten minutes or so, Qin An noticed the terrain was slightly higher, as if they were walking in the mountains.

When Qin An pushed aside a clump of weeds taller than a person, he finally saw the so-called water source. It was a hot spring about ten meters across, with steam rising continuously. The sound he had heard was the bubbling from the bottom of the spring.

Qin An quickly ran to the edge, scooped up some water, and tasted it. Not bad. Though it had a slight sulfur smell, it should be drinkable. But to bathe in water this hot would be like boiling oneself alive.

Removing the large leaves that had covered Tongtong to prevent mosquito bites, he scooped some hot water and wiped the little girl’s slightly dirty face.

“An, it feels like a dream,” Tongtong said innocently.

Qin An couldn’t help but laugh. “It is a bit luxurious. From camping in the wild to a survival story, and now a hot spring trip with all-you-can-eat game. This camping trip is really worth it.”

The little girl didn’t fully understand, so she just stared at him with wide round eyes.

If there was one hot spring, there should be others nearby. Qin An took Tongtong to find one with a suitable temperature for bathing. After so many days without a shower, even he, who wasn’t particularly particular about cleanliness, felt uncomfortable all over, let alone Tongtong with her delicate skin. But the little girl was so well-behaved and sensible that she hadn’t complained at all.

After circling around a few times, he indeed saw a bathable hot spring. He saw it rather than sensed it because there were a few monkeys soaking in it. Monkeys are regular visitors to hot springs.

Although it seemed a bit unreasonable to chase away the original inhabitants enjoying the hot water, Qin An scared off those “relatives” to avoid frightening Tongtong.

Precisely because she was still so young, Qin An simply treated her like a little sister, keeping things purely innocent as they washed away the dirt of the past few days.

As Qin An helped wash the little girl’s hair, she happily splashed and played.

Seeing two red marks on her arm where weeds had cut her, Qin An felt a pang of heartache. Tongtong had probably never suffered like this before in her life. Not only did she have a serious illness, but she also had to drink that horribly bitter Chinese medicine.

Thinking of this, he touched her little face with a trace of guilt.

The little girl stared at him without blinking.

By the campfire Qin An had just lit, Tongtong was happily eating a grilled chicken wing. Qin An, looking ravenous, stared at a wooden cage beside her containing a rabbit with little stars spinning around its head. Wasn’t that the delirious “Mad Hatter”?

Qin An had set a simple trap, just to try his luck. He didn’t expect to actually catch that stupid rabbit. But before he could transport it to the execution ground, Tongtong had hijacked it.

For a taste of game, Qin An used his special skills, ambushing a pheasant in the woods. It took half an hour of chasing to turn that pheasant into a meal.

If the killers from Dover knew he was using Dover’s assassin techniques just to kill a chicken, they would probably find it either hilarious or pathetic.

I wonder if there’s a grinning Cheshire Cat around here? But it’s better not to have the chilling White Queen and her vengeful sister the Queen of Hearts. Those two are terrifying.

Tongtong was still playing with her “Mad Hatter,” and had given it a name: “Little White.”

Qin An was now back at the campfire. Black smoke rose lazily. He stared idly at the blue sky when suddenly a sound of wind cutting through the air came, mixed with some strange noises.

On a helicopter, someone was vaguely waving to him.

The helicopter lowered a long rope ladder. Qin An carried Tongtong on his back, telling her to hold tight around his waist like a koala.

Little White burrowed into Tongtong’s chest, clutching her clothes tightly. When the strong wind blew, it was so scared it tucked its head into her clothes and dared not come out.

Qin An grabbed the rope ladder with one hand and supported Tongtong’s bottom with the other. Sometimes a mischievous guest of wind would swing the whole ladder like a bell. Qin An held on tightly, not daring to let go. The friction tore open his newly healed wounds, making him grimace in pain.

The helicopter slowly moved away, the ladder retracting. Once Qin An was safely inside the somewhat unsteady helicopter, he gently set Tongtong down.

And so the kidnapper incident came to an end. The helicopter was a search team sent by the Tong family. To Qin An’s surprise, two men on board were holding sniper rifles—professional special forces or mercenaries. He couldn’t help but marvel at the Tong family’s strength; they were no pushovers.

The two special forces soldiers did give Qin An a few extra glances, but ultimately didn’t act suspiciously.

Qin An wasn’t worried about these people. Although this turn of events seemed too lucky, such luck wasn’t impossible. Plus, it had been raining heavily, and the dense jungle made survival believable. In fact, even if there were discrepancies, his identity as a child was enough to dispel any suspicion.

The only flaw was that too many people had died. That many deaths would only make sense in a large gang fight or a terrorist attack.

The only ones who knew who had killed them were Chen Yang and that foolish woman, Tong Tong.

Chen Yang was easy. If he dared to show his face, the Tong family would make sure he died a miserable death. If worse came to worst, he could just take a sniper rifle and finish him off later.

As for Tong Tong, she might find him strange, but she wouldn’t suspect him. What could an elementary school student do? And she belonged to the prestigious Tong family, while he was just an ordinary person. They would naturally have no further connection.

This new life was so precious that Qin An hoped to embrace it with the purest state of mind. Not that he was averse to killing, but he didn’t want to leave any unusual hidden dangers. Having been an assassin, he understood the necessity of every bit of caution.

When the helicopter landed, Huang Jiajun ran over from a distance. Her eyes were slightly swollen, and her cherry-like mouth opened and closed. She seemed to want to say something but held back, her cheeks reddening.

Finally, with a serious face, she asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, class monitor, I’m fine!” Qin An grinned brightly.

Huang Jiajun stammered, hesitating again, and finally squeezed out a few words like pulling teeth: “That’s good.”

Then she ran away, her face red as a persimmon, leaving Qin An stunned. But Tongtong seemed to have been glaring at Huang Jiajun for a long time, until her eyes hurt. For the first time, she felt that Sister Huang, who usually cared for her, might take away something that belonged to her.

Tong Tong was still explaining the situation to the police when a middle-aged man with black hair streaked with gray roared angrily, “I knew that little bastard was no good! If you hadn’t stopped me, I would have shot him dead long ago. Did he think he could escape everything by running to the southwest? Don’t let me see you set foot on this land!”

He actually punched a hole in the brand new BMW. That single punch probably cost tens of thousands of yuan. Qin An clicked his tongue in amazement. These people from the provincial capital were really wealthy!

“Alright, Dad, see? I’m fine. Tongtong is fine too. Don’t be angry anymore. It’s bad for your health.” Tong Tong tugged at Tong Fu’s arm, soothing him.

“Hmph! If my precious Tongtong had been hurt, I would have dragged him out of the ground and beaten him to death!” Tong Fu seemed still furious. But what really upset him was that his precious granddaughter hadn’t come to comfort him despite his anger.

He glanced sideways and saw Tongtong and Qin An, who was holding her sleeve.

“Kid, come here.”

Qin An pointed at himself, confused. “Me?”

“Don’t play dumb. Who else but you?”

Qin An leisurely walked over, dragging the little tag-along.

“Kid, I heard you saved my granddaughter. How should I thank you? How about I award you ‘Virtuous Youth’ and throw a commendation ceremony with a TV interview?”

“No, no, uncle, you’re too kind. I saved your granddaughter because I truly like her, not expecting any reward.”

“Good kid. China is in need of virtuous youth like you! But really, no certificate, no recognition?”

The wrinkles on Tong Fu’s forehead noticeably relaxed. So calling him “uncle” was paying off.

“Good, good, good,” Tong Fu said three “goods” in a row, slapping Qin An’s shoulder so hard that Qin An winced in pain. It seemed he wouldn’t stop until Qin An’s bones were crushed.

“Grandpa!”

Tongtong called out angrily.

“Hey—Tongtong, come over and let Grandpa see if you’re hurt anywhere.” Tong Fu immediately stopped his “affection” for Qin An and opened his arms to Tongtong.

“Hmph, I don’t like Grandpa. I’m going to find Grandma.”

Tongtong turned around and went straight into the arms of her beloved grandmother, leaving Tong Fu dumbfounded.

Tong Fu gave Qin An a sinister smile. Qin An felt like he was being targeted by a tiger.

Kid, trying to win over my most precious granddaughter? Don’t even think about it.

So Tong Fu began another round of “affection” for Qin An. The police chief was also scolded harshly by this Lord Tong from the provincial capital: “So many dangerous elements crossed the border and you didn’t notice at all? If my precious granddaughter had been hurt, selling your entire family wouldn’t be enough to pay for it.”

The police chief’s head was almost touching the floor. Truly, higher-ups can crush you. This Lord Tong not only came from the provincial capital but was also said to have connections in the central government. How could a small local police chief afford to offend him? In his view, not being executed by Lord Tong was already a huge favor. Even being fired would be a minor issue.

After washing up at a hotel near the airport, changing into clean clothes, and having a bowl of three-delicacy noodles, the group was sent home in the Tong family’s car. Tong Tong sat in the back seat, wearing a white and green sporty outfit with her hair tied in a ponytail, looking fresh and athletic. She didn’t seem like a mature, charming married woman, but more like an unmarried maiden.

In the back seat, Tong Tong chattered to Huang Jiajun about the past few days’ experiences, sighing in amazement at her and her daughter’s good fortune. But more than that, she spoke of her hatred for Chen Yang and herself, and endless regret.

Huang Jiajun listened, startled, feeling like her heart might jump out of her mouth. She never expected Qin An had gone through so much. Even when a kidnapper pointed a gun at him, he remained unfazed. Even her genius brother would probably not have managed that.

The driver first dropped Huang Jiajun at the Huang family’s large villa—surrounded by mountains on three sides and water on one side, a delicate Western-style house with an open-air hot spring. It seemed the Huang family was quite wealthy.

And the alleys where Qin An lived were only a few hundred meters from the Huang villa. From here, one could see those low-rise buildings. Such was the gap between rich and poor!

As the two were about to get off, Tong Tong smiled and said, “Well then, goodbye.”

“Goodbye, Aunt Tong Tong.” Huang Jiajun called out playfully.

Tong Tong grabbed Huang Jiajun’s ear and rubbed her temple fiercely. “Little girl, call me Sister Tong Tong, or I won’t let you go today.”

Huang Jiajun struggled for a while, then finally begged for mercy and called out “Sister Tong Tong,” making Tong Tong overjoyed. The smile she had been hiding for so long finally reappeared.

Unconsciously, two cute dimples appeared on Huang Jiajun’s face. She seemed to be smiling more and more now, because of someone.

Qin An just nodded, thinking to himself, Goodbye forever.

As soon as Qin An got out of the car and walked to the corner, Tong Tong poked her head out of the window and said, “Wait.”

Tong Tong opened the door and ran towards Qin An.

Qin An said impatiently, “What is it?”

Tong Tong whispered a few words in Qin An’s ear. Qin An’s face changed dramatically. This was the first time in his assassin career that he was so panicked.

Tong Tong giggled a few times, then gently kissed Qin An on the cheek, leaving a faint pink kiss mark.

But they didn’t know that Huang Jiajun had seen everything. And from her angle, it looked as if they were kissing on the lips.

Huang Jiajun rubbed her eyes hard, but nothing changed. She leaned against the wall, sat down on the smooth marble, and looked at the sky with a sense of loss.