Chapter 126
"Sister-in-law, shall we return together?" As the figures of Gu Jinchen riding a tall horse alongside Hu Jun gradually disappeared from sight, Luo Ge finally turned her head and said to Wang Sister-In-Law and the others.
"Ai, all right."
Seeing that the child had now been found and the sky had grown dark, Wang Sister-In-Law nodded in agreement.
Wang Big Brother knew how to drive, so he could help drive them back.
The horse carriage they seized from the human traffickers was originally meant to be handed over to the County Magistrate, but the old County Magistrate declined to take it.
"You have done a great service by capturing the criminals and rescuing the Crown Prince! These are things you have obtained through your own abilities, so take them back with you. There will be a reward on another day, which you rightfully deserve - do not refuse."
Those were the words of the old County Magistrate. Seeing this, Luo Ge did not say anything further.
Just as before, they tied the human traffickers' horse carriage to the back of their own carriage and pulled it back. Before leaving, they also bid farewell to the Princess Consort of Nanyang.
"...Yes, be extra cautious on the way back." Seeing them about to leave, the Princess Consort hesitated but ultimately nodded and reminded them.
"Thank you, Princess Consort, for your reminder."
"Goodbye, younger brother." Before leaving, Older Baby, Second Baby, and Tie Dan also waved their hands and made the 'bye-bye' gesture towards the Little Crown Prince in the Princess Consort's arms.
The Little Crown Prince was only five years old at the time, a bit younger than Older Baby and Second Baby.
The Little Crown Prince hesitated for a moment, then stretched out his hand to wave back at them.
"Goodbye, elder brothers," he said softly from the Princess Consort's arms.
...............
When the group returned to the village, they found that the villagers had not yet rested and were gathered at the village entrance with torches, waiting for them.
"Wang Da, how was it? Did you find the child?" The village chief called out as soon as he saw Wang Big Brother driving the carriage.
Everyone in the village knew about Tie Dan's abduction.
Although there were two different surnames in the village and some internal conflicts, at this moment when facing an external threat, everyone was united.
Once they learned the news, everyone spontaneously joined in the search.
But when night fell and they had searched the entire village and nearby mountain villages without success, they could not help but feel distressed at being unable to find the child.
When they heard that the Wang family had gone to report to the officials, everyone waited here for news.
Seeing everyone gathered here, Wang Big Brother could not help but be moved, and seeing the worried looks on his fellow villagers' faces, he quickly nodded.
"We found him, we found him. The human traffickers ran into Second Son when they were trying to escape, and the little rascal was fortunately rescued and brought back."
As Wang Big Brother spoke, Wang Sister-In-Law, Luo Ge, and the others also emerged from the carriage behind him.
Recalling how the villagers had helped in the exhausting search today, Aunt Zhang quickly pulled Tie Dan to the front.
"You little rascal, all the uncles and aunties in the village were so worried about you today. Hurry up and thank them."
Upon hearing this, Tie Dan obediently bowed to everyone, "Uncles and aunties, thank you for your concern for me."
The villagers were relieved to see Tie Dan return safely. After all, no matter what, he was a child from their own village who had grown up before their eyes.
How could they bear to watch him be harmed by those inhuman beasts?
"Ai, ai, it's good that the good child is back, it's good that he's back."
The village chief nodded repeatedly, letting out a long sigh of relief.
With the child found, everyone was at ease. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, they all bid farewell and left one by one.
Luo Ge took the two little ones and returned to the end of the village with the Wang family. Just as everyone was about to get off the carriage and part ways to go back to their respective homes, Wang Sister-In-Law and Wang Big Brother, along with Tie Dan, suddenly knelt down before Luo Ge. Before Luo Ge could react, that little rascal Tie Dan had already kowtowed several times with a loud thud.
"I, Yun Yan, thank Aunt Gu and Uncle Gu for saving my life!"
Even Old Master Wang and Aunt Zhang bowed to Luo Ge. If not for the fact that Old Master Wang and Father Gu were good friends, and their ages meant they could not act in such a way, they would have certainly knelt down to express their gratitude as well.
Luo Ge snapped out of her daze and quickly helped them up, saying, "Old Master Wang, Aunt, Sister-in-law, what are you doing? It was a small deed, there's no need for this."
But Wang Sister-In-Law shook her head, refusing to get up, tears already streaming down her face.
"No, Sister-in-law, you don't understand. If it weren't for you today, the consequences would have been disastrous."
"If we had lost the child, I would not have been able to go on living."
Aunt Zhang also spoke through her sobs, "If something had happened to this child today, our family would have been ruined. Second Son's wife, you saved our entire family."
Their words rang true. They and the Wang clan of the same surname in the village had all observed the traditional mourning period. Now, Tie Dan was the only remaining descendant of this branch of the Wang family.
If something had truly happened to Tie Dan, not to mention how his parents Wang Sister-In-Law and her husband would have felt, Old Master Wang would certainly have been unable to forgive himself.
How could this family have continued on, living each day in anguish as the remainder of their lives?
Listening to their words, Luo Ge did not know how to respond for a moment. She turned to look at Tie Dan, whose eyes were also reddened, and sighed.
Once again, she helped Wang Sister-In-Law and the others up, saying, "Sister-in-law, you're being too polite. Haven't you seen how we treat Yun Yan, as if he were no different from Older Baby and Second Baby?
We regard him as our own child. If something happened to our own child, how could we possibly not help?"
Hearing this, Wang Sister-In-Law was stunned for a moment, but she did stand up with Luo Ge's help.
Choking back a sob, she quickly wiped away her tears and pulled Tie Dan over.
"Sister-in-law is kind-hearted. We will remember this favor in our hearts."
"Wang Yun Yan, listen carefully to your mother. From now on, Uncle Gu and Aunt Gu will be like your own parents reborn.
In the future, you must treat them with the same respect as you would your father and me, as if they were your birth parents. If you disobey, you will not have a good end."
Luo Ge's words were clear to them. They did not ask for repayment, but the Wang family could not forget this kindness.
They were only ashamed that none in their generation of the Wang family had any achievements. Sister-in-law had little education and could only help out a bit with daily quarrels and fights, but was otherwise of little use.
Fortunately, Tie Dan showed some promise. With this vow today, when he achieved success in the future, he would be able to repay this kindness.
Tie Dan was Wang Sister-In-Law's own flesh and blood, so having her own child make such a serious vow about treating others as parents was certainly heartbreaking. But it also represented their sincerity.
In fact, since ancient times, there have been many cases where such kindness was repaid by adopting the benefactor as a godfather or godmother. However, the Wang family was well aware of the gap between their two families.
They did not take advantage of the Luo Ge family by means of adoption, but instead chose this approach: If Tie Dan becomes successful in the future, he can then repay this kindness to the benefactors.
Of course, if Tie Dan proves to be unworthy and fails to achieve success, then this vow still represents their determination to repay the kindness with all their efforts.
Upon hearing Wang Sister-In-Law say this, Aunt Zhang, Old Master Wang, and Wang Big Brother were momentarily stunned, but then their expressions showed wholehearted agreement.
"Yes, Mother, I've remembered," Tie Dan replied without hesitation, making this vow.
Seeing this, Luo Ge sighed but said nothing more, simply patting Tie Dan's head.
"Sister-in-law is always like this," he remarked softly, looking at Wang Sister-In-Law.
Hearing this, Wang Sister-In-Law smiled through her tear-stained face.
The others present also smiled upon witnessing this scene.