Chapter 223: Worse Than Beasts
Bones? Did she really see that just now? Could it be true?
If it were, then the traffickers who were killed that day still wouldn’t have suffered enough even if they died a hundred times.
Ning Xiyue gritted her teeth, pulled a notebook from her bag, and prepared to record the situation. Suppressing the anger in her heart, she continued staring at the images in her mind.
She had to observe every corner of the cellar carefully and document all the crimes inside.
In the images, a woman holding a little baby waved her hand to fan away the stench and covered her nose:
“I say, Sister Qian, how long has it been since this place was properly cleaned? It’s so disgusting. Aren’t you afraid it’ll contaminate the food?”
The woman tending the fire clanked the fire tongs noisily. Her narrowed eyes made her appear even harsher. She glared and raised her voice, scolding without restraint:
“Why so much talking? If you have the guts not to eat the rice when it’s cooked, fine. Complaining about this and that, why don’t you go handle it yourself? You’re full of nothing but trouble.”
“You…”
“Enough, stop talking so much. Every time we meet it’s all bickering and noise. Isn’t it annoying?” the third man (Lao San) yelled angrily, irritated by the two women.
“Hurry up! Aunt Hong, take the baby down with me. Sister Qian, prepare some more sedatives for the others. After dinner, we’ll disperse with the people coming to meet us. Don’t draw the attention of the local authorities. Second Brother is still waiting for us in the provincial city.”
Ning Xiyue wrote down all the useful information in her notebook.
When Lao San shouted like that, the two women immediately went quiet, not daring to speak a word, obediently following the man’s instructions.
Sister Qian stuffed a few pieces of dry firewood into the stove and turned to make sedatives from herbs. Aunt Hong carried the little dog egg and followed Lao San into the cellar.
The tiny mosquito flew over Lao San’s head, giving Ning Xiyue an even more direct view of the scene inside.
And the view she had caught earlier with the flashlight now fell fully into her eyes.
At the entrance of the cellar, a small boy with twisted limbs, emaciated and no longer looking like a human, was crouched on the ground, a dog chain around his neck. His hollow eyes stared at a long bone chained to the opposite wall.
That bone—the white bone she had seen just now.
Damn, she wasn’t mistaken. It was a human leg bone, a femur!
Judging by the bone’s growth, the child was no more than six years old.
Monstrous! Inhuman!
No, worse than animals.
Ning Xiyue slammed the ground with a brick in anger, punching a hole in the floor.
“Host, please remain calm,” System said, patting her with his small claw to soothe her.
“I’m calm,” Ning Xiyue gritted through her teeth, continuing to watch furiously.
The little boy’s skin was all scarred, not a single patch untouched.
On the ground in front of him lay a chipped, broken bowl, inside of which was a dead cockroach.
When Lao San and Aunt Hong entered, the boy instinctively picked up the cockroach and, in a desperate act, chewed and swallowed it.
Lao San kicked three times in a venting manner—once at the bone across from him, once knocking over the boy’s bowl, and once heavily on the boy himself, leaving a footprint.
He spat thick phlegm on the child and cursed: “Disobedient little dog, get out of the way.”
The boy shrank against the wall, burying his head between his deformed legs, trembling and silent.
Seeing the boy like this made Ning Xiyue’s heart ache. Tears welled up in her eyes.
A child so small should have been growing up with the love of family, stumbling through life safely. How could he endure such inhuman torture? To be treated like a dog, tormented every day.
Ning Xiyue sniffled, her gaze freezing on Lao San. Her previously suppressed anger flared again; her knuckles cracked.
These monsters should feel the pain they’ve inflicted; even execution would be mercy.
She raised her head, looking toward the courtyard where this atrocity took place, itching to rush in and wreak havoc.
System, seeing his host’s state, worriedly patted her head to comfort her:
“Host, calm down. Let’s continue observing. Don’t act rashly. Gather more information, coordinate with the armed department, and we must catch these traffickers in one sweep. Otherwise, they’ll become even more brazen in the future.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll be calm. All traffickers deserve to die. With population management so strict, and yet they’re still so rampant—if even one gets away this time, who knows how many families and children will suffer later?”
Ning Xiyue recalled the news from her previous life—so many families ruined by traffickers, lives destroyed.
No trafficker would be spared.
“System, we still have three sign-in opportunities today. I hope we can get something useful, preferably something that will help in catching all these traffickers in one go,” she said openly. She knew System was loyal and would fulfill her wish.
The little turtle flew before her, locking eyes with her, resolute:
“Host, keep watching. We will catch them all.”
“All right.”
System had effectively agreed to her request. Ning Xiyue felt slightly relieved and continued watching the cellar.
It wasn’t just a cellar; “basement” would be a more accurate term.
The entrance was a two-meter passage. The child chained here squatted inside. Two meters further in was a right turn, leading to a more open space.
Lao San turned right, revealing a pile of children inside.
“Leave the kids here,” he said, pointing to a corner, then bent down to inspect them one by one.
In this small basement, many people were hidden.
Near the passage, straw was laid on the ground, with eight boys and five girls lying on it. They were all small children, about the size of Gou Dan, around four or five years old.
All the children had their eyes closed; none were awake. Clearly, the traffickers had sedated them to prevent noise and trouble.
Many children’s clothes were wrinkled; some were soiled with excrement. It was unclear how long they had been confined.
Only Aunt Hong had placed three children near Gou Dan whose clothes were clean, and their skin was fair. One of them was the little girl Ning Xiyue had met on the train. These three children had clearly been brought in that day, making them look different from the others.
“Lao San, look at these kids. How are we going to take them out in the afternoon? Their clothes are covered in filth. If we don’t clean them, it’ll be hard to carry them.”
Aunt Hong pinched her nose, frowning anxiously at the dirty children. She looked disgusted but continued applying medicine to their eyes.
“Sister Qian, aren’t you going to clean that pile of filth in that corner? Smells awful. These kids are filthy. This will make things so troublesome. We need them ready for this afternoon. Look at the mess now.”
Lao San was furious at her complaint. Shouting, he barked:
“Enough nonsense! Clean these kids up immediately or we’ll mess up this afternoon’s plan!”
Aunt Hong mumbled in defiance, “Why should I do it? It’s not my job.”
“If you could make medicine, I wouldn’t make you clean. If you can’t, then shut up,” Lao San glared at her, filled with anger.
Terrified, Aunt Hong dared not argue, lowering her head to clean the filthy children. Her movements were rough, as if venting all the frustration she had suffered from Lao San onto the kids.
Ning Xiyue furiously took notes. Sister Qian was the one making the medicine inside, the man was the small leader among them, likely knowing the most. Aunt Hong was handling operations outside, targeting victims. More traffickers would come in the afternoon.
After finishing her notes, Ning Xiyue saw Lao San ignore Aunt Hong’s rough handling, not stopping her. Instead, he turned toward the right, where there was a stone door.
Ning Xiyue tightened her grip on the pen. This basement was far too complex. Had they hollowed out the entire courtyard? And what could be behind that stone door?
Lao San walked toward the stone door. As he neared it, Ning Xiyue heard a strange sound.
