Special Forces Medic

Chapter 952 921: Taken Hostage

Miao Family Village is located halfway up the mountain, surrounded by misty clouds, appearing like a fairyland at first glance. As soon as Miao Shaoqing returned to the village, he was immediately surrounded by people. This was much larger in scale compared to the village back then. Although the memories were blurry, some people's impressions remained. Clearly, their impressions of him were deep, tinged with hostility.

"What did you do to them? The hatred from the entire village is almost reaching the sky." Yelu Shou looked around at the people staring at them. Although Miao Shaoqing was there and nothing drastic would happen, being constantly watched like this was unsettling. "I'm not trying to scare you, but if looks could kill, we would be dead by now, no matter how capable we are."

"You still have the mood to joke!" Xiao Lin didn't need Yelu Shou to tell him; he could feel the strange hostility as well. "There's a strong murderous aura here."

"Are you Xiao Lin?" A woman carrying a bamboo basket, with a child inside, looked adorable sleeping.

"I am!"

"Please come with me, the village wants to see you." The village woman held the bamboo basket with one hand; Yelu Shou followed Xiao Lin. "Sorry, the village chief didn't say you could come in."

"I must follow him!" Yelu Shou stood his ground in front of a two-story bamboo building, not knowing when a group of muscular men surrounded him, all staring fiercely.

"Wait here for me; nothing will happen." Xiao Lin glanced around and quietly reassured Yelu Shou, but the latter still seemed unwilling to back down.

"Stay here." Xiao Lin lowered his voice, gave Yelu Shou a look, and followed the village woman up the bamboo building, while the muscular men retreated a few steps, watching Yelu Shou's every move from a distance.

The village woman lifted the curtain, allowing Xiao Lin to enter a bright room. Handmade carpets covered the wooden floor, and the simple furniture was crafted with rustic charm.

A man in his forties, close to fifty, was sitting at a small round table, smoking a water pipe, barefoot with a blue headscarf. When Xiao Lin entered, he didn't greet him but signaled him to sit down with a nod.

"I know you; you're the one who took Shaoqing and the others from our village before and saved a few of us. But they all died after you irresponsibly left. Those scientists or doctors you mentioned only treated us as test subjects, eventually forcing us to leave our homes. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't be hiding in this mountain valley; don't you think you're quite guilty?"

"Then what do you want me to do? Life for a life? I only have one life." Xiao Lin smiled faintly, not focusing on the main issue: how they knew he was here.

"You have only one life, but it's very valuable." The village chief blew out a puff of smoke toward Xiao Lin.

"The smoke contains a lot of rosemary, but this plant doesn't affect me. You lured us here to find Master Miao." Xiao Lin waved his hand, dispersing the smoke, still sitting there calmly. "Where is Master Miao? If Miao Shaoqing is someone you brought back to deal with me, I'll be very angry."

"It seems the information was correct. Hehehe!" The village chief suddenly let out a cold laugh. "We also want to know where Master Miao went. We'll notify you once we find him. Before then, you stay put; otherwise, I can't guarantee what might happen to Miao Shaoqing."

"Having food, drinks, and entertainment, it's the best vacation time, and I appreciate the village chief's arrangement. I'm willing to cooperate."

"That's good; it's more helpful for the upcoming transaction if everyone gets along peacefully." The village chief laughed heartily.

"However, Xiao Lin is curious, how much ransom does the village chief intend to ask?"

"About one million should do."

"One million is too little; it should be at least tens of millions to ensure you all eat and drink for life and buy many houses in the city below."

The village chief suddenly glared, pointing fiercely at Xiao Lin's nose. "Are you playing with me? You're just a small doctor."

"It seems the village chief's information isn't accurate; even a million feels too little." Xiao Lin brushed off the village chief's hand, stood up, walked to the window, and gazed outside. "Since I've agreed to cooperate, I'll naturally get you the money. But I want to meet the person backing you; the village chief alone isn't qualified to contact the person paying the ransom."

"Are you tired of living? Do you know where you are? Get him!" Xiao Lin's high and mighty attitude angered the village chief, who shouted, and two muscular men rushed in. "Catch him for me."

"Hey, Shaoqing is just below; do you want me to call for help?" Xiao Lin cleverly dodged the men's attacks, jumping to the other side. "I see Shaoqing holds quite a position here; did you become the village chief because Shaoqing left? Could Master Miao's disappearance be related to you? If I reveal this here, will those below still listen to you?"

"They won't believe you."

"Oh, really? Want to try? Whether they believe me or not doesn't matter. The key is whether Shaoqing believes me."

"You all step back!" The village chief waved his hand and took a puff from his water pipe.

"That's right, you're just after money, while I want to know who the mastermind is. If I don't see that person, you won't get the money. I can promise you that two hundred percent. Moreover, you can't possibly confine me." With a whoosh, Xiao Lin hooked onto the wooden frame of a window, causing the propped open window to slam shut.

"What do you intend to do?" The village chief raised his head to look at Xiao Lin, suddenly feeling that this person was terrifying, the shadow behind him growing immense like a monster.

"Much better now, it was too bright just now, a bit dazzling." Xiao Lin sat cross-legged opposite the village chief. "I think this place is pretty good. How about leaving this room for me and my friend? It's also convenient for you to monitor us, right? Shouldn't be worried about us escaping, huh!"

"Not here!" The village chief quickly waved his hand. "I'll find you another place. This place is absolutely out of the question."

"Ah, like that, it's fine then, but I don't have much time."

"Someone, take Mr. Xiao to their accommodation."

Yelv Shou saw Xiao Lin come down, and the two were taken to the adjacent main building, handed over to an elderly woman. Upon inquiry, he learned that her two sons also died from the virus, now surviving on the village's aid. The woman spoke little, spending most of her time sitting on the ground floor platform weaving baskets. She didn't bother much about the two new additions. By noon, the able-bodied men in the village had set off in groups to another mountain to find food, while women and children stayed home to do farm work, the elderly weaving bamboo baskets or doing laundry, mending and patching.

"Looks like we'll be staying here for a while." Xiao Lin stretched lazily towards the mountain in front, then leaned against the railing. "The building the village chief lives in has issues. Find a time to check it out."

"Who do you think it is this time? Doesn't seem like Mu Rongyun's doing." Yelv Shou lit a cigarette and handed it to Xiao Lin. "Such heavy menace, clearly not bothering to disguise it. These people here, they all seem a little odd."

"Probably not Mu Rongyun. But what puzzles me is how Miao Shaoqing's appearance defies logic." Xiao Lin took a drag, passed it to Yelv Shou's mouth, not knowing how long they'll stay, conserving the cigarettes.

"You still believe what he said?"

"I know there are many doubts. Killing Nu Ba was indeed because he was a traitor. But you're worried he might have leaked our whereabouts, could be Nu Ba as long as he knew we were coming here."

"That's not the issue!"

"There's a traitor among your dark forces. This isn't news. What's so strange about that?"

"It's the source of the info. I reckon this time it might be an insider." Xiao Lin had never meddled in Yelv Shou's ways of doing things, if he's saying so, then there's an issue.

"Mm, regardless, don't kill the innocent. As for Miao Shaoqing, I'll handle him. I still have confidence in him." Yelv Shou wasn't as optimistic, feeling the hostility in this Miao Family Village is thick as fog. Apart from him and Xiao Lin, Miao Shaoqing couldn't have missed it. But since returning to the village, they hadn't seen him again, and his return didn't cause any alarm, almost as if it was known from the start he'd be back. Meanwhile, the village chief's goal is to detain them as hostages to ransom money. This...

"Let's go, have a look around. Absurd explanations and excuses are hiding a conspiracy. Why is everyone here so agitated, their hatred for us apparent, yet they leave us amongst these unarmed women, children, and the elderly? Are they truly scared of us?"

"They're afraid of someone else?" Yelv Shou roughly grasped Xiao Lin's meaning. The village chief was lying, the whole village's animosity targeted towards those behind them, with them as the mediums of the unrest.

"Once we understand, enjoy the vacation. Our great dark upper handler, finding the exit path is your duty. Gathering intel is your role. Uncovering those hiding among us, isn't that a display of your skills!"

"So what will you do? While I handle all the work, what about you?"

"I'm the crucial hostage, potentially worth a lot of money, the money master, of course, enjoying food and drinks." Xiao Lin chuckled, curled his toes, and Yelv Shou already headed in the direction his toes pointed. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, welcome to qidian.com to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation.)