Chapter 186: Unknown Place
Zhou Anran lost consciousness mainly because of two things. Her head was slammed against something hard, and the other...
Where is she?!
Her heart was gripped by panic when she saw the vast expanse of green land. No matter where she looked, she couldn’t find a way to exit that place.
In the distance, there was some kind of river and waterfall, with the water quality the clearest and cleanest she had seen for a while.
She continued to walk around, and no matter how long she walked, everything around was enveloped in green. After a while, she felt thirsty and couldn’t help but go to the waterfall.
Her heart hesitated for a bit before she scooped a handful of water into her hands and drank it.
In an instant, a cool sensation spread all over her body, and she felt refreshed. Her tiredness was gone, and she felt very energetic.
The water reminded her of something her daughter had mentioned before...
Miraculous spring water!
Her heart palpitated when she thought of it, finding it ridiculous, but... it was the only explanation she could make at this moment.
Zhou Anran was still uncertain, so she scooped up a handful of more water and drank it again. Perhaps, the effect earlier was her imagination, so she wanted to try again.
And then, the same comfortable feeling coursed through her entire veins, incredibly relaxing.
"Is this really Little Ya’s miraculous spring water?" she muttered in disbelief.
She couldn’t help but grab the water pouch on her waist and began to fill it until it was full. Although she didn’t know what kind of place she had wandered into, she should still take advantage of it.
After she was done, she got up and began to wander for a way out again.
She suspected that after falling out from the carriage, she had fallen into some kind of underground place.
However... she bit her lip hard, not realizing it was bleeding. Where is her youngest daughter?!
Before she lost consciousness and woke up in this place, she was sure she had hugged her youngest daughter tightly in her arms.
"Little Ya?" She shouted. "Where are you, Little Ya?"
***
In another place, the Zhou and Xiao family finally solved the bandits, all thanks to Xiao Yuanwei’s reinforcements.
They were currently still trying to fix their broken carriage, while the women were taking care of the unconscious Zhou Anran.
Xiao Fenghao was fiddling with some wooden planks and ropes. A few of Xiao Yuanwei’s guards were accompanying him.
"Mother’s brain went through some kind of shock, and there was a small injury." Xiao Jingran explained after he took a look at Zhou Anran’s condition. "She should be fine and wake up soon."
Xiao Yuxi was gripping her eldest brother’s arm tightly. "Really?"
Her gaze settled on the unconscious Xiao Qingya.
"How about Little Ya?"
He immediately replied, "Little Ya is in the same condition. It is expected that she will also wake up soon, but... since she is still too young, it might take a while longer."
Zhou Wenzhi was listening to his eldest grandson’s explanation quietly. He let out a sigh, glancing at the guards from Xiao Yuanwei’s side who were busy taking care of the bandits littering the grounds.
They were tying them with ropes, waiting for the local authorities to come.
The disobedient bandits ended up losing their lives if they resisted in the slightest, so every one of them became obedient and didn’t dare to put up struggles anymore.
"It’s going to be noon soon," Zhou Wenzhi said. "Let’s cook something. Your mother and little sister will be hungry when they wake up later."
Xiao Jingran had given some medicine to both of them, wrapping the injury in their heads. While he continued to examine their recovery progress, Zhou Shuran and Xiao Yuxi went to make a fireplace.
At this moment, Su Wan suddenly came out of the carriage, followed by her maidservants and several guards.
She immediately ordered the guards. "Go help them to make a fire."
"Yes... Miss." They quickly did as commanded.
With that, Zhou Shuran and Xiao Yuxi’s job was snatched by the guards.
They didn’t want to stick around by doing nothing, so they got up and prepared to find more firewood.
However, Su Wan pulled them back. "You two must have been frightened and tired, take some rest..."
She took a deep breath, her voice filled with worries. "How is Sister Anran and Little Ya?"
"Eldest Brother is taking care of them," Xiao Yuxi muttered. "They only suffered some shock and will wake up soon."
Her eyes tinged with bewilderment when she saw the look in Su Wan’s face. She vaguely sensed that something had changed, but she didn’t know what it was...
Su Wan heaved a sigh of relief when she heard that.
Only Heavens know how shocked she was when her imperial brother suddenly told her they were going back to the Capital. All because she had said to him that Zhou Anran and her family were also heading there!
Her suspicion about their relationship naturally deepened.
She had believed that Zhou Anran was really her sister-in-law. When she saw Xiao Yuxi, now there seemed to be some kind of filter... she realized that this young girl vaguely had some of her imperial brother’s facial features.
Her heart also naturally softened for Xiao Yuxi.
She glanced at the quiet young girl, wondering whether she would recognize him as her father or not...
Alas, Xiao Yuanwei was currently wearing a mask. Even when she told him to open his mask, he just stayed silent and acted as though he hadn’t heard her.
In the distance, Xiao Yuanwei was ordering his guards to interrogate some bandits while he questioned some himself.
Su Wan suddenly leaned over to Xiao Yuxi and called out, "Yuxi, do you see that man over there?"
Her hand pointed to Xiao Yuanwei.
Xiao Yuxi snapped out of her daze and looked over, nodding.
"Do you not find him familiar?" Su Wan asked with a flash of mischief in her eyes.