Chapter 313 - Chapter 313 Chapter 313 Unconscious
Chapter 313: Chapter 313: Unconscious Chapter 313: Chapter 313: Unconscious Moments later, Zhong Niangyao saw Zhao Xuanlang lying on the bed, seemingly asleep, and her brow furrowed involuntarily. She raised her hand and began calculating.
Mr. Zhao and Mrs. Zhao, who stood nearby, watched Zhong Niangyao’s actions with faces full of anxiety, but they dared not make a sound for fear of disturbing her.
After quite a while, Zhong Niangyao finally lowered her hand and looked at Mr. and Mrs. Zhao, then directly asked, “Has he been to a place near water these past two days?”
Mr. and Mrs. Zhao paused for a moment, and finally, Mrs. Zhao spoke, “We aren’t sure, but Xiao Lang stayed at home all summer and didn’t go out. It was only yesterday that a friend invited him to go hiking, so he went out. He seemed fine when he came home last night, but today we couldn’t wake him up no matter what.”
Zhong Niangyao frowned, “Even before the holidays, I could tell that Zhao Xuanlang was facing a crisis recently related to water. I had already warned him. It appears he didn’t listen to me, and that’s why this has happened.”
“What, that little brat,” Mr. Zhao burst out in anger, “He went behind my back. When he wakes up, I’m going to have to beat him.”
Initially, Mr. and Mrs. Zhao were very worried, but now, seeing Zhong Niangyao’s arrival, they slowly let go of their hanging hearts. Probably it was because of their trust in Zhong Niangyao, knowing that Zhao Xuanlang wouldn’t be in danger with her here.
“He has lost his soul,” Zhong Niangyao said calmly, “To retrieve his soul, we need to first find out exactly where he went yesterday.”
“I’ll call right now.”
After saying this, Mrs. Zhao made a call. After some inquiries, she came back somewhat urgently and said, “Niangyao, I just asked the friends who went hiking with Xiao Lang yesterday. They went to West Mountain in the suburbs of Beijing. When they passed a pond in the mountain, they saw a child who had fallen into the water, and Xiao Lang saved the child.”
“Other than that, nothing else happened.”
After thinking for a moment, Zhong Niangyao said, “Find one of the friends who went with Zhao Xuanlang yesterday and have him take us to that pond! If I’m not mistaken, Zhao Xuanlang’s lost soul should be there.”
“I’ll arrange it right away.”
After speaking, Mr. Zhao quickly found someone, and a group of people took the still-unconscious Zhao Xuanlang to West Mountain and arrived at a pond in the mountains.
The surrounding locust trees were dense, shading the sunlight. The surface of the pond reflected dappled sunlight through the shade, yet it brought a startling chill.
The pond was very clear, and one could easily see to the bottom, the surface of the water very serene. Yet such tranquility only heightened the unease.
Mrs. Zhao couldn’t help but rub her arms, puzzled, “Why do I feel somewhat cold standing here?”
It was only early autumn, and although a bit cool, it shouldn’t be this chilly–it was like it was already the beginning of winter.
“It really is pretty strange.”
The one who came to lead the way was a friend of Zhao Xuanlang named Liu Zihang, also a student at Tenglong Academy. Just yesterday, he and a few classmates had come here to hike, and he was shocked to hear that Zhao Xuanlang was now unconscious, completely unable to believe it.
When he had arrived here today, he was even more shocked to find Zhong Niangyao here.
Those few close friends knew that Zhao Xuanlang had acknowledged Zhong Niangyao as some sort of boss. They had teased Zhao Xuanlang about this a few times before, but each time Zhao Xuanlang had snapped back at them.
Ultimately, they were friends who had played together for many years, and they didn’t really want to lose Zhao Xuanlang as a friend, so they didn’t bring up the main issue again.
But today, when they came to the Zhao Family’s house, they were surprised to see Zhong Niangyao. What shocked him the most was the respectful and almost reverent attitude Mr. and Mrs. Zhao displayed towards Zhong Niangyao.
He hadn’t figured out what was going on when he was asked to lead them to the place where Zhao Xuanlang had entered the water yesterday.
“What is strange?” Zhong Niangyao turned her head to look at Liu Zihang, “Is something different from yesterday?”
Although he did not understand why Zhong Niangyao asked this, Liu Zihang scratched his head, somewhat puzzled, and said, “Yesterday when we came here, it felt very comfortable. If we hadn’t encountered that drowning child, we might have rested here. But today, it feels like the temperature suddenly dropped, and–”
This place gave him a very uncomfortable feeling.
“How did you come across that drowning child yesterday?” Zhong Niangyao asked directly, “Tell me everything that happened in detail, without any omissions.”
Liu Zihang felt somewhat uneasy with the sudden interrogation-like questioning because Zhong Niangyao’s tone was like a superior speaking to a subordinate.
“Zihang, please tell us everything,” Mrs. Zhao also spoke, “Now you must tell us everything, so we have a chance to save Xiao Lang. Otherwise, Xiao Lang will continue to be unconscious.”
Seeing Mrs. Zhao’s anxious demeanor, although not knowing what was going on, Liu Zihang dared not withhold any information, so he related what had happened the day before.