Chapter 512: A Place Like Hell (2)
Chapter 512: A Place Like Hell (2)
When Lu Jiaguang saw Lu Jiajie, he could hardly believe his eyes. He rushed forward and grabbed Lu Jiajie's arm, intending to ask what had happened, but as soon as he touched him, he knew something was wrong.
Rolling up Lu Jiajie's sleeve, he revealed arms that resembled kindling, the blue veins clearly visible. There were also numerous scars.
Lu Jiaguang lifted his shirt, exposing a rib cage that was clearly visible through his skin. It is said that a man's tears are not easily shed, but this moment touched Lu Jiaguang, and his eyes reddened.
After a moment to compose himself, Lu Jiaguang asked, "What happened? You went to do business with the 'long-haired ones,' but after not seeing you for half a year, you've returned looking like this. What happened?"
After a brief silence, Lu Jiajie explained that Leng Wu had knocked him and his companions unconscious at a small border inn. When he woke up, he found himself in a mine. He had tried to contact his family, but to no avail, as the place was completely isolated from the outside world.
Lu Jiajie continued, "The foremen and supervisors at the mine didn't care about human life. Every day, we had to dig a certain amount of gold. If we completed the task, we would be fed, but if we didn't, we would not only be beaten but also starved. The food they gave us was hard vegetable buns as tough as rocks and strange-tasting vegetable porridge."
"People died in the mine every day, and the bodies were simply dragged out and thrown off a cliff. I was lucky because there were two people from Si Jiucheng in the mine. They knew who I was and secretly took care of me; otherwise, I wouldn't have made it until help arrived."
Lu Hongjun asked, "Why didn't you escape?"
Lu Jiajie gave a bitter smile. "There was no escape. The surrounding area was all grassland, vast and open, and the locals were on the mine's side. The second month I was there, someone tried to escape, but the locals caught them and brought them back. The mine's supervisors gathered us all to watch the punishment. They were beaten to a bloody mess and died in front of us."
In his thirty years of life, he had never imagined that such a hellish place existed, and those people seemed unconcerned about descending to the eighteen layers of hell after death.
Lu Jiajie added, "Last month, someone else planned to escape and wanted me to join them. Escape was a dead end, but staying meant I might be able to wait for Jiaxin to come and rescue me."
He could understand why people wanted to run away, as not escaping meant certain death. However, he had hope, so he didn't want to gamble on a non-existent chance of survival. Thankfully, Jiaxin and his family hadn't given up and had kept searching for him, which is why he was able to survive.
Lu Hongjun sighed, "I've heard that things are chaotic over there and that the common people are suffering terribly. I didn't realize the situation was even worse than we thought."
Lu Jiaguang said, "It's good that you're alive. By the way, did you call Jiaxin? We have her to thank for your return, and she spent a lot of money and owes a lot of favors."
There was no need to ask; it was clear that Jiajie had been sold to a remote and desolate mine, and it would have been impossible to find and rescue him without a tremendous amount of effort.
Lu Jiajie was both touched and guilty. "This time, Jiaxin spent over 200,000 green coins to save me."
Lu Hongjun was shocked into silence. "What? How much did you say?"
"Over 200,000 green coins," Lu Jiajie replied. "Those people had blood on their hands, and dealing with them was dangerous. Without a high reward, no one would take the risk."
He didn't mention that others had participated in his rescue, not wanting to worry his family further. From Leng Wu's actions, it was clear that those involved were ruthless characters. Unfortunately, he didn't have enough money, or he would have hired them to take care of the beasts who had harmed him.
Lu Jiaguang, recalling Lu Hongjun's earlier complaints about Lu Jiaxin being stingy, looked at him and said, "Jiaxin has always been generous, and this time, with Jiajie's life at stake, she definitely wouldn't hold back."
Lu Hongjun felt a bit uncomfortable being reminded of his earlier words.
Turning to Lu Jiajie, Lu Jiaguang continued, "Jiajie, once you earn money in the future, you must pay Jiaxin back for this."
The equivalent of over 200,000 green coins in RMB was nearly 800,000 yuan, and with Lu Jiajie's abilities, it would likely take him several years to earn that amount back. Lu Jiaguang didn't expect him to pay it all at once, but he had to pay it back eventually.
Lu Jiajie nodded, "I may not be able to repay the favor, but I will definitely pay Jiaxin back the money."
Looking at his clothes, Lu Jiaguang said, "Go take a shower first, change into some clean clothes, and then go get a haircut. Otherwise, you'll scare the children with your appearance."
Speaking of the children, Lu Jiaguang couldn't help but scold him, "From now on, don't do such dangerous things again. Think about your children if not for yourself. We lied to them, saying that it was difficult to make phone calls where you were. But last week, Malili went and told them that you were dead, causing them to have nightmares every night, crying out for their father. Your aunt and I felt so heartbroken hearing them."
Lu Jiajie also felt immense regret. While in the mine, he had thought of his children constantly. He wasn't worried about the house or money being taken away by the Ma family vampires, as he knew his older brother and Jiaxin would handle it. However, he knew that Ma's family, Malili, and his own parents were unreliable, and if something happened to him, his children would suffer greatly.
Wiping away his tears, he said softly, "Big brother, don't worry. There won't be a next time."
Lu Jiaguang nodded and went inside to get a set of his own clothes for Lu Jiajie, "Your sister-in-law just bought me some new underwear the other day. These will do for now, even if they don't fit perfectly. We can buy you new ones tomorrow."
"Okay," Lu Jiajie replied.
During lunch break, Qiangqiang and Xiaofeng happened to bump into Li's mother at the entrance of the alley, and they heard her say that their father had returned.
Qiangqiang and Xiaofeng ran as fast as they could towards home, calling out for their father as they searched for him. When they couldn't find him or get a response, the two children began to worry that Li's mother had deceived them. "Third Uncle, Third Uncle, where's my father? Li's grandmother said my father is back. Where is he? Where is he?"
Xiaofeng started crying directly and cried out, "Father, father, where are you? Don't you want me and my brother anymore?"
Qiangqiang's tears also fell uncontrollably. This child was usually very strong, but recently, he had been crying frequently as well. It was understandable, as no matter how sensible he was, he was still only ten years old.
Seeing them cry so sadly, Lu Hongjun's eyes turned red again.
Lu Jiaguang hugged Xiaofeng and patted Qiangqiang's head with his other hand, comforting them, "Don't cry, your father has indeed returned. He's just gone to the barber shop and will be back soon."
Qiangqiang looked up and asked, "Big Uncle, are you telling the truth? You're not tricking us, are you?"
Lu Jiaguang held back his own emotions and said, "When have I ever lied to you? If you're anxious, I'll take you to find him right now."
"Okay," the children agreed.
As they stepped out of the door, they saw Lu Jiajie walking towards them. At the barber shop, the barber mentioned that there were many lice in his hair, so he asked the barber to shave his head.
Qiangqiang and Xiaofeng rushed forward and hugged him. Qiangqiang shed tears, while Xiaofeng sobbed loudly, "Father, father, you're back. You're finally back."
Hearing this, Lu Jiajie couldn't hold back his tears any longer.
(End of Chapter)
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