DF Chapter 30

Chapter 30 Mother

The next day, Song Ji’an arrived at the entrance of Sheng Jia’s neighborhood very early to wait, and Sheng Jia also left home earlier than usual.

After the two got into the car, Auntie Liu immediately started driving towards the ultramarathon venue.

“You might be a little tired today, but the most important thing is to pay attention to safety.” As she spoke, Auntie Liu handed Sheng Jia a bag, “This is a carbon fiber stab-proof vest, Sheng Jia, put it on first.”

“This was specially prepared for us by my mother, it can resist knife and axe attacks,” Song Ji’an said while helping Sheng Jia put it on in the car, “Especially the heart has special protection.”

This stab-proof vest is not as thick and heavy as those seen on the internet, but very light and thin, just a thin piece. It is basically invisible when worn inside.

Sheng Jia did not decline, and after the two quickly helped her put it on, they sat down and listened to Auntie Liu continue speaking.

“Teacher Liu called last night to say that the plan has changed, you all know, right?”

Because Sheng Jia didn’t have Sheng Huaiying’s contact information, Teacher Liu directly called Sheng Jia and roughly told her the situation, obtaining Sheng Jia’s consent.

However, the specific details couldn’t be explained clearly on the phone. Auntie Liu went to the criminal police team overnight after receiving the call last night and only came back this morning. She happened to be coming to pick up Sheng Jia, so she prepared to inform the two of the detailed situation at the same time.

“Teacher Liu told me that if I am willing, she hopes to lure the people following me into the mountains today.” Sheng Jia replied, “The group from Class Six that they suspected a few days ago already has concrete evidence that they are the murderers of Hua Mei, and yesterday they targeted new targets, which are Song Ji’an and me.”

“Yes, that’s right,” Auntie Liu nodded, “They are very organized and have a plan, even splitting into two groups to follow you, for an unknown purpose.”

“This morning, Teacher Liu and the others have already launched an arrest operation, capturing the group that was replaced yesterday during their shift change. The other group should now be partly at the marathon venue and partly tailing us.”

Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an glanced back unnoticeably when they heard this, and sure enough, they saw three men riding motorcycles far behind their car.

“There must be something hidden in that mountain, or some stronghold of theirs. Under Teacher Liu and their observation over the past week, this group of people has frequently entered the mountain.” Auntie Liu continued to explain, “This time, they are probably going to do something during the marathon race. Teacher Liu hopes that you will take the initiative to enter the mountain. They have already ambushed in the mountain and put up signal jammers to facilitate catching them all in one fell swoop and prevent them from reporting.”

After saying that, she took out a drawing with the location where they could enter the mountain marked on it, “This matter is very urgent, and the arrangement was not communicated with you in advance, so you can only rely on your own efforts to remember the map well.”

“Won’t it make them suspicious if we suddenly go into the mountains?” Sheng Jia couldn’t help but ask.

“No, they have a third tracking target, which is Hua Mei, and the group tracking Hua Mei was caught yesterday.” Auntie Liu shook her head, “Teacher Liu and the others will use this information gap to disguise themselves as that group and use Hua Mei’s phone to fabricate text messages to lure you over. This strategy was already told to the people behind this morning by Teacher Liu and the others disguised as accomplices.”

“So, as long as you receive a call, you can pretend to go into the mountains.”

Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an pursed their lips, indicating that they understood.

On the way, the two reviewed the route map again. It was not difficult. The entrance to the mountain was a straight road to the top. When the two arrived at the marathon venue, many people had already arrived. The students of Jingjiang No. 1 High School consciously looked for acquaintances. The teacher in charge of this event was Vice-Principal Qi Zhiyuan. She brought students from the logistics department early to distribute bottled water and energy-replenishing candies along the way.

Xu Lijing and the others didn’t arrive late either. Seeing Auntie Liu’s car, they quickly waved to them.

Auntie Liu glanced through the rearview mirror at the trackers who had already disappeared into the crowd, turned her head and patted Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an’s shoulders, and solemnly instructed again, “Be careful.”

No matter how comprehensive Teacher Liu’s plan was, and Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an were just going through the motions, she still faintly felt a sense of unease and worry, and couldn’t help but repeatedly tell them.

“Don’t worry,” Song Ji’an waved to Auntie Liu, took Sheng Jia’s hand and smiled as she joined Xu Lijing and the others.

“You guys are too slow,” Xu Lijing complained, “We’ve been here for almost half an hour.”

“There was a traffic jam on the road,” Song Ji’an explained, “Sheng Jia and I got up at six thirty.”

“That’s true,” Xu Lijing glanced at Sheng Jia’s eye area and silently complained, “Sheng Jia is like she doesn’t need to sleep, going to bed at twelve o’clock at night and waking up at six in the morning, and she doesn’t even have dark circles under her eyes. She’s really full of energy.”

Sheng Jia was already warming up. She stretched her body while saying, “At this age, you can’t sleep anyway.”

She was telling the truth. People who use their brains more have more energy. Sheng Jia had only needed to sleep six and a half hours every day since she was sixteen. Now she has even more energy, and she wakes up on time after sleeping a full six hours every day.

Xu Lijing belongs to the smart but lazy type. She feels like she’s letting her vacation down if she doesn’t sleep for ten hours. Coming to run the marathon today was the earliest she had woken up during her vacation this year.

As the group chatted, the opening ceremony began soon. Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an stood in the crowd, waiting for the starting gun to fire.

Soon, a flock of beautiful white doves flew over their heads, and the starting gun and whistle sounded at the same time. The crowd gathered at the starting line ran forward.

Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an were together. They didn’t accelerate at the beginning. When they agreed to Teacher Liu’s request, winning or losing this competition was no longer the most important thing. Their most important thing was to conserve their energy, be alert to incoming calls on their phones at all times, and pay attention to the terrain.

The several boys who had been following them were completely out of sight, because they had been wearing masks in the car from beginning to end, so the two didn’t know who they were, but the feeling of being watched lingered.

Even now, Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an still couldn’t understand the reason why the other party was following them.

Retaliation? Then why only target them and not Xia Qingzhao and the others?

Teacher Liu didn’t say much, and Auntie Liu didn’t say much either. The two didn’t have time to ask.

Soon, as they entered the highway to the entrance of the mountain, Song Ji’an and Sheng Jia became more vigilant. They were about to reach the marked entrance of the mountain.

That was the weakest point in this heavily guarded area. There were no guards on the entire twenty-meter road.

Sheng Jia’s phone suddenly buzzed in her pocket. Sheng Jia’s eyes narrowed slightly, and she immediately answered. Sure enough, a strange number appeared on it.

“Sheng Jia, save me, they’re here again. I’ve been tied into the mountain again. They, they seem to want to bury me alive…”

“How could this be?” Sheng Jia showed a look of horror. She lowered her voice and said to the other side of the phone, “Why were you taken back in?? Where are you now?”

“I don’t know, I don’t know. I took advantage of the internet and sent you a location. Please help me call the police, hurry—ah!”

The call ended there.

Sheng Jia showed a hesitant look on her face. Song Ji’an, who was running beside her, heard the voice coming from the microphone and frowned, “Should we call the police first?”

As soon as she finished speaking, the phone rang. The other end was a man’s voice that had been altered, “If you don’t want Hua Mei to die here, you better not call the police and immediately enter the mountain from the small road next to you, otherwise we can’t guarantee that she won’t be missing arms or legs.”

“What exactly do you want?” Song Ji’an said to the other party in an annoyed voice, lowering her voice, “Kidnapping and robbery are against the law!”

“We don’t have any needs for Hua Mei, but the two of you must come in. If you come in, we will release her and guarantee that we won’t do anything to her. Now, let the girl next to you put down her phone. We can see.”

The two looked at each other, and Sheng Jia put her phone on the ground.

“Very good, come in from the entrance of the mountain next to you.”

This road was in a very forward position. At this moment, the large marathon team had already walked forward, and gradually only Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an were left.

A look of entanglement and hesitation appeared on their faces.

But soon, Hua Mei’s screams and cries of pain came from the other end of the phone.

“Don’t do this, we’ll do it!” Song Ji’an said quickly.

After saying that, the two had no room to think and ran quickly towards the mountain.

Soon, messy footsteps sounded behind them, as if they were cats catching mice. The people behind deliberately stepped heavily on the ground, and occasionally made a few vicious laughs.

Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an ran into the mountain regardless, and soon reached the end. Three boys showed their figures behind them.

There was no impression of them, and their appearance was not special, but the malice in their eyes was too obvious.

They laughed and giggled, looking like hoodlums, and said in their mouths, “It seems that the brains of those who study are nothing more than that. They were easily deceived into coming in.”

The phone in Sheng Jia’s hand vibrated. This was the code they had agreed upon with Auntie Liu, representing that they were ready and ready to arrest the three at any time.

She patted Song Ji’an’s back to signal.

Song Ji’an understood and looked at the few people with a smile, “We’re not sure if the brains of those of us who study are good, but your brains must not be very good, otherwise how could you be so easily deceived into coming in?”

After saying that, she pointed behind a few people.

They belatedly realized that something was wrong and immediately turned around to run, but the plainclothes police lurking in the woods had already pounced out, pressed them down and took away all their communication tools.

“Brother Dao!! Brother Dao!!”

Someone immediately shouted on the ground.

Before everyone could react, the ground under Song Ji’an and Sheng Jia’s feet loosened a bit.

Sheng Jia subconsciously pulled Song Ji’an aside, and as soon as the two left that place, two people sprang out of the dirt.

Teacher Liu, who had been lurking next to her, said quickly, “The ones under the ground have also come out, come on!”

Last night, they had thoroughly searched this place, and even used the latest ultraviolet and thermal imaging, only to find that there was a mystery hidden under this piece of land. There was soil on top, but a road was dug out underneath.

Teacher Liu sent people to block the possible exit of the road under the ground, and the two people in this road had their communication completely cut off, and they waited anxiously for a night. Now that the other group had also been caught, they had completely lost hope.

The person called Brother Dao decided to fight to the death with another younger brother.

Their targets were Sheng Jia and Song Ji’an, who were the closest.

“Grab the students as hostages!” After saying that, the two held knives and burst out with great power, slashing towards Song Ji’an. Sheng Jia, who was closest to Song Ji’an, subconsciously pounced on the other side.

But another figure was faster than her and hugged Song Ji’an and rolled to the side.

The knife that fell on them was immediately deflected by Teacher Liu, and another man was about to come over again. This time his target was aimed at Sheng Jia.

Song Ji’an, who had recovered, quickly screamed and ran towards Sheng Jia. The woman next to her reacted faster this time, simply hugged the two children and rolled to the other side again. In the blink of an eye, the man was subdued by the people brought by Teacher Liu.

Sheng Jia lay in the woman’s arms, and her eyes were rarely dazed.

Because she heard Song Ji’an’s very weak voice, “Mom.”

The person who rushed out to save them was Song Ningqiu.

The warmth quickly disappeared from Sheng Jia’s body.

Song Ningqiu, who always looked calm and unchanged on television and magazines, was now a little embarrassed, and her face was full of worry. She helped Song Ji’an, who was kneeling on the ground, and quickly asked, “An’an, are you injured anywhere?”

As she spoke, she carefully looked at Song Ji’an up and down. Auntie Liu and Auntie Zhou, who came with her, couldn’t care about anything and quickly surrounded her, pulling Song Ji’an, who had not yet recovered, to check urgently.

From childhood to adulthood, they had taken care of Song Ji’an with great care, and she had never even broken a bit of her skin.

Song Ji’an belatedly recovered. Her elbows, arms, and thighs were all scratched, and they were burning with pain at the moment. But when she saw Song Ningqiu’s anxious face, she subconsciously put her hand behind her. Although she was still frightened, she still said with a smile, “Mom? Why are you here?”

Her eyes were bright and full of surprise and joy. She subconsciously arched into Song Ningqiu’s arms, “You didn’t even tell me when you came, are you going to give me a surprise?”

Song Ningqiu quickly pulled her out of her arms, “Don’t make trouble, let Mom see you. How could I really let you face such a dangerous thing alone?”

She had rushed over overnight last night and decided to let her go up the mountain together after negotiating with Teacher Liu. After all, she brought the most cutting-edge detection team, which could provide great help to Teacher Liu and them.

She walked out as soon as the people who had been following Song Ji’an and Sheng Jia were caught, but the situation changed too quickly, and Song Ji’an didn’t see her.

But out of the nature of protecting her child and the fact that she had already walked to Song Ji’an’s side, she was able to react quickly.

Of course, even if she didn’t make it in time, Teacher Liu wouldn’t let the two children suffer great harm. All the backup plans had been prepared here.

Song Ji’an stood obediently in place and let her look at her, but her eyes were completely unwilling to tear away from her.

When Auntie Liu and Auntie Zhou saw her appearance, they quickly raised her hand, and Auntie Zhou felt distressed, “Her arms and legs are injured in large areas. If you don’t take good care of them, you may have scars in the future.”

Auntie Liu held her elbow and moved it, and asked very professionally, “Does it hurt? Does it hurt this way? Can you still move your wrist?”

“Yes, I can do everything.” Song Ji’an replied, “I’m really fine.”

After saying that, she was patted on the waist by Song Ningqiu, not lightly or heavily. Her mother glared at her, “Let Auntie Liu check you carefully, don’t think it’s too much trouble.”

“Okay.” Song Ji’an was glared at like this and immediately became as obedient as a little quail.

Sheng Jia slowly got up from the ground. She had already been squeezed out of the crowd. She looked at Song Ningqiu in a daze and took two steps forward subconsciously, but stopped again.

It was like a basin of cold water was poured on her head, causing her to break away from that short, warm embrace just now.

She stared at the four people in front of her like an outsider.

Their center was Song Ji’an, who was surrounded tightly by them. Words of concern were spoken from their mouths, and Song Ji’an had long been used to it. She smiled and enjoyed such a crowd.

And Sheng Jia.

And Sheng Jia was just an outsider.

At this moment, no one would notice her.

The few people who were still clamoring just now were now tightly covered up. Liu Qing, who had solved a major problem, finally breathed a sigh of relief. She turned to look at Sheng Jia, probably feeling that the girl who was ignored was too pitiful, so she walked over and said softly, “The wound needs to be bandaged.”

Sheng Jia also had a scratch on her elbows and arms. The scarlet blood was mixed with the mountain dirt and dust, making it look particularly hideous. It was caused by being knocked to the ground twice just now.

“It’s okay,” Sheng Jia said in a low voice, “I still have to finish the marathon.”

Cooperating with Teacher Liu and them was just a small task.

Probably no one thought that the Hua Mei who was robbed at the beginning was not just one group of people, but another group. The two men who left the team in the morning exercise team were the masterminds of this matter, and they almost contacted the Yunnan side.

Fortunately, Teacher Liu and they chose to go up the mountain a day in advance to prepare and discovered these two people, otherwise their lurking for this period of time was likely to be in vain.

These two men were a little more agile than they thought. At the last fight, they could immediately choose students as targets, attempting to directly capture Song Ji’an and Sheng Jia as hostages.

Sheng Jia’s game was not over, and she might still be able to get into the top fifty if she returned now.

“In this condition, go to the medical point to bandage it first.”

Teacher Liu knew countless people and was particularly sensitive to emotions. She noticed Sheng Jia’s restlessness at the moment and rarely grabbed Sheng Jia’s shoulder forcefully, instructing the auxiliary police next to her to take Sheng Jia down to bandage her.

Sheng Jia did not resist.

There was no expression on her face. She followed the auxiliary police down, leaving the voices of Song Ji’an and the others behind.

In fact, she was also a little dazed now. A kind of emotion that she herself couldn’t describe was sweeping over, causing her brain to briefly lose the ability to think.

She didn’t know how long it had passed before Song Ji’an was finally released after Auntie Liu checked her all over and confirmed that there was only a little scratch.

Song Ji’an breathed a sigh of relief and suddenly remembered Sheng Jia. She quickly looked to the side, but found that Sheng Jia was long gone.

“Teacher Liu, where is Sheng Jia?” she asked subconsciously.

“I asked Xiao Li from our team to send her to the medical point.” Teacher Liu replied, taking time out from her busy schedule.

“Sheng Jia? Is that the little girl just now?” Song Ningqiu asked when she heard this.

After confirming that Song Ji’an was okay, she returned to normal, her face calm. She seemed to remember the girl who wanted to save Song Ji’an just now and was then hugged by her.

“Yes, she is my best friend.” Song Ji’an replied, “Oh, I was too excited to see my mother just now and forgot about her.”

After Song Ji’an said that, she pulled Song Ningqiu and was about to walk down the mountain, “Let’s go find her quickly, I don’t know how badly she’s injured.”

Song Ningqiu was dragged by her helplessly, said hello to Teacher Liu, and then walked down.

“Why have you become more lively after not seeing you for a while?”

“Really?” Song Ji’an asked with a smile, “It’s probably because the new school makes me very happy. Happiness from the bottom of my heart.”

But when they arrived at the medical point at the foot of the mountain, they were told that Sheng Jia had already left.

Song Ji’an was a little dazed when she was bandaged. She sent a message to Sheng Jia on her phone, but she didn’t receive a reply for a long time.

She was thinking about whether Sheng Jia was angry because she was too excited to see her mother and almost forgot about Sheng Jia, letting her leave alone.

Song Ningqiu waited calmly beside her daughter. When she saw a glimmer of hope in her eyes, she smiled and hugged her, “Mom rarely comes here today, why don’t you take Mom around? Your friend might have something to do now and can’t reply to you in time?”

Song Ji’an came back to her senses and left a few more messages for Sheng Jia before hugging Song Ningqiu’s arm. The two got into the car that Auntie Liu had parked at the foot of the mountain and drove towards the city center.