381 Unexpected Calmness

July 18, 20X2 (Saturday)

Unknown Location

"Wake up!"

Chang opened his eyes wide and sat up fast as he remembered the events that happened hours ago. As he sat, Chang realized that his feet were bound together with a rope. He looked to the side and saw his little sister clutching the teddy bear on her small taunt arms. Looking around the room, he saw no one else, so who was telling him to wake up?

"Over here..." a small voice said.

Turning his neck to watch his back in surprise, Chang's wide eyes became bigger as another kid was with them, tied and beaten up. Chang could see the bruises in his arms, and the kids' face was full of dried blood. Chang could see that the kid was mixed just like him.

"Who are you?" Chang narrowed his eyes as he asked.

"I am Wei Linjun. I am Uncle Dan's nephew. They made my uncle do many bad things. My grandparents, I don't know what happened to them, but I know I shouldn't expect any more..." The unknown kid mumbled. Chang noticed how small and thin he was, but he did not comment. Realizing that his hands were untied, Chang patted his little sister awake, "Ling Ling, Wake up."

Ling Ling's one eye, the right, opened, "I am already awake even before you woke up."

Chang's left eyebrow twitched, "Why did you play pretend?"

Ling Ling giggled, "Wanted to know how you will react."

The kid on the side was in awe at the new kids that were taken. Wei Linjun had feared and had been unable to move when he was first brought to this room. These two new children behaved as if nothing terrible had happened. Curious, he asked, "Aren't you afraid that you will die?"

Chang and Ling Ling shrugged in unison after they looked at each other in the eye. They have both been in an orphanage, before that they were left in the streets to fend for themselves. Ling Ling and Chang had seen the savages and the darkness of what human beings were capable of doing. In their opinion, Dying was a respite, a time to finally rest. The only regret they have, if they die, was that they hadn't done their best to thank their adopted parents nor had they seen their siblings yet. Mei Lin and Yang, their new parents, had been the best people they meet. Not even the man that preached God could measure up to the goodness in their adopted parent's hearts.

"Do you have any idea how to escape from here?" Chang asked the unknown kid, who shook his head.

Suddenly, the door opened, and the man that shot Granduncle Zhao entered with a broad grin of amusement. Chang and Ling Ling tensed immediately, and Wei Linjun shivered in fright at the sight of the man. The Wu children knew that this man must be the most dangerous since all the people that attacked Zhao Manor deferred to this man for any big decisions.

"You both just got here, and you already want to escape? Why not play with me for a while?" The man asked.

Ling Ling lowered her head as she burrowed her face in her teddy bear, trying to act like a normal scared little child. Chang stared up at the man, inched his body closer to his little sister to cover Ling Ling from the man's sight. This was what they usually do.

David, The Fool, was taken aback as Chang continued to stare at him straight into his eyes. The child was either not scared of him or foolish, but the color of Chang's eyes reminded David of Mei Lin's eyes so much that it made his crazy heart beat erratically.

"You are not afraid..." David sat on the sofa near the door as if to guard it against them. He continued, "I don't meet a lot of people that aren't afraid of me. Why aren't you afraid of me?"

Chang snorted, "You are wrong. I am afraid of you. I am just good at hiding it."

Of all the answers that David expected, Chang's truthful words were not one of them. The foreigner blinked his eyes multiple times in surprise before his laughter filled the room. Chang rolled his eyes. His mother, Mei Lin, was much scarier when she's stubborn.

David's laughter stopped as he commented, "Your eyes are like your mother's."

"You know our mother?" Chang asked immediately. He was hoping to get some information that he can use.

The Fool did not know how to deal with Chang and did not know if he wanted to even deal with the little girl. Chang had been far too calm then he should be. Children should be panicking by now. Why is this child so calm and unaffected?!

As Chang conversed with The Fool, Ling Ling's small arms were already inching into the hidden compartment of the teddy bear, slowly turning on the small capsule-like device with a prayer that their mother and Uncle Chang Min would remember that they have given them tracking tools and spy equipment. Just as a precaution, Ling Ling made sure to swallow the tracking device as she borrowed her head in the teddy bear deeper, knowing that Uncle Doctor can take it out of her stomach if needed be. Ling Ling once swallowed bubblegum, and it just passed after a few days, so Ling Ling was comforted by that fact.