The Midnight Owl

"What did you say?" Chi Zhuolin stopped and asked back.

Kuang Jinxin was startled, and hurriedly said honestly, "I smell oranges."

Chi Zhuolin was stunned, then smiled: "The nose is really good."

Kuang Jinxin didn't understand: "Huh?"

Wu Sheng and Xu Wang were also in the fog.

Chi Zhuolin bent his eyebrows, with intimacy and teasing: "My younger brother likes to drink orange soda the most, and I can't drink enough by myself, so I have to share it with my good friends, and in the end, I killed all my good friends."

Three partners: "..."

Didn't you say that your brother has no friends?Where is my good friend again?And what a fragile friend, you can't even drink soda...

"It's the flowers and plants in this yard," Chi Zhuolin turned his head, looked at the withered garden, and said with a smile, "I have to use soda to water the flowers, and I used all the soda that I was too precious to drink to water the garden." , you also saw it..."

The three listened, not knowing whether to believe it or not.

How many sodas do you have to store to kill the flowers in the entire yard?

But if this is true, how sad would Chi Yingxue be when she was a child who really regarded these flowers and plants as friends?

"He's just so stubborn, so stubborn, no one can persuade him, and when it's irreparable, he hides himself and cries..."

Chi Zhuolin was still talking, scolding his younger brother, he seemed to be very handy.

But at this moment, in his stupidity and sweetness, he finally picked up a little of the earthly air of an ordinary brother - pampering and bullying him at the same time is the main theme of the brother in the world.

Dark clouds suddenly covered the last ray of moonlight.

In an instant, the entire garden and verandah became dark together, as if they were suddenly covered with a thick black cloth!

The three of them stagnated for breath, and before they had time to defend themselves, they felt their bodies crooked and leaned to the side!

After taking two staggered steps, Xu Wang bumped into the railing of the veranda. He immediately stretched out his hand to hold on to the railing, but found that the whole veranda was shaking!

The verandah under your feet seems to be a boat in a stormy sea!

At this moment, a deep, almost cold voice came from nowhere——

"Chi - Zhuo - Lin -"

The voice was slow and majestic, and it made people feel oppressed and had difficulty breathing.

However, apart from calling out his name, there was no second sound.

As the last lingering sound dissipated, the moon revealed a ray of light again, and the outline of the veranda garden slowly reappeared in the vision of the three of them.

The veranda tilted, as if the foundation suddenly sank, and the originally level ground became higher on one side and lower on the other. When people stood on it, their bodies would tilt to one side.

But they had no time to take care of this, because Chi Zhuolin had an apologetic expression on his face, and there was still anxiety in his eyes.

"Sorry, I can't show you the way. My younger brother lives in the West Wing. You can see him after passing the garden and entering the inner courtyard." He spoke very fast, as if something was too late, "I have to go back It's school!"

Xu Wang: "Back to school?"

"Actually, I sneaked back." He tidied his hair a little shyly, and put the helmet back on. "My dad has already found out. I must go back before he catches me, or I will be beaten again..."

dad?

The three partners looked at each other in blank dismay. Could it be that the oppressive voice in the darkness just now was the father of the Chi brothers?

"Oh yes," he paused suddenly, and took out a pen and a piece of white paper as if by magic, "Please help me bring this letter to my brother."

After brushing a few strokes, before the three of them could read it clearly, he finished writing the letter and handed it over directly.

Wu Sheng received it, Xu Wang and Kuang Jinxin read it together, and finally understood why he wrote so fast.

There is no text on the paper, just four sets of numbers——12077-34036-58009-80024

The moment Xu Wang saw the number clearly, he grabbed Chi Zhuolin's wrist almost reflexively: "Where is the mother?"

Chi Zhuolin, who was about to turn around and leave, was surprised by this pull and question: "Do you know this is a password? My brother even told you about this?!"

Xu Wang: "No, it's not all Xiaoxue said..."

When Chi Yingxue helped break the secret letter, he did say that he and his brother always played like this when they were young, but the person who really caused his psychological shadow of "seeing the password and immediately finding the mother parent"...

Xu Wang squinted at Wu Sheng.

Wu Sheng silently raised his head to look at the moonlight—although, he could barely see a trace of it.

"Mother, my younger brother has already memorized memorization by heart. If you give him this letter, he will understand it." After quickly explaining, Chi Zhuolin didn't dare to delay any more, just climbed over the railing, trotted and disappeared into the garden deep.

"Hey, wait a minute..."

Xu Wang wanted to chase after him, but he always felt that the clue of the mission would be cut off like this, and he was a little unwilling.Although Chi Zhuolin said that Chi Yingxue was in the west wing, but with such a big house and such a long veranda, who knows where to go around.

But before his feet moved, the feeling of being watched appeared again, just behind his back, like a thin needle, pricking it from time to time, it didn't hurt, but it couldn't be ignored.

He turned his head again, only to find that Wu Sheng was looking back just like him.

Kuang Jinxin was at a loss, and also turned around in a daze. Behind him, the long corridor he had just walked was hidden in the mist, so he couldn't see where he came from.

In the interlacing of night and white mist, the eyes of the three partners slowly settled on a pillar.

The colonnade was about ten meters away from them. It was bright red, and even though it was shrouded in night and fog, it was still too strong to ignore.And behind that pillar, faintly, there is a thin and small black figure.

It's like a child hiding behind a pillar, because the veranda has been tilted, so the faint moonlight finally outlines his thin silhouette, but the whole person is still blocked by the pillar, like a ghost hiding in the dark.

That orange smell came again, this time even Xu Wang and Wu Sheng could smell it.

It tastes cooler and sweeter than ordinary oranges.

Chi Zhuolin said that Chi Yingxue likes to drink orange soda.

What if the smell they are smelling now is not the residue of the soil watered with soda? What if it represents another meaning...

In an instant, the hearts of the three partners were raised, hoping that the person behind the pillar was the person they were looking for, but they were afraid of rushing forward and scaring them away.

"Chi Yingxue?" Xu Wang called softly, with unprecedented tenderness.

The black shadow behind the pillar remained motionless.

Xu Wang tried to take a small step forward, very lightly.

The black figure suddenly flinched back.

"We're not moving." Kuang Jinxin held Xu Wang, calmly and gently assured, coaxing, "Xiaoxue, we're not moving, we won't hurt you..."

The black shadow swayed slightly, as if hesitating.

The veranda was suddenly very quiet, and the three partners held their breath unconsciously, watching quietly and intently.

The black figure tremblingly moved a small step to the side, exposing his shoulders and arms. The light was too dim, and he couldn't see what clothes he was wearing, but he was indeed a child, very thin.

The three of them remained motionless, as if frozen in place.

The black shadow seemed to have gained some trust, and took a small step to the side tentatively. Seeing that half of his body was about to come out, there was a very slight sound suddenly coming from the withered bushes outside the railing, as if lurking in the dark. A person accidentally stepped on the dry grass.

The three of them subconsciously turned their heads, then widened their eyes.

There is another person in the bushes!Not a child, but an adult dressed in black and wearing a black mask, who almost melted into the night!

This time he also startled the black figure behind the pillar, he turned back abruptly, and ran away!

The man in black in the bushes realized that he was exposed, so he also oiled the soles of his feet and fled to the depths of the garden!

"The troops are divided into two groups!" Wu Sheng said immediately.Any one of them may be a clue to customs clearance, and they can't afford to miss it!

"I'm going to chase the kids." Kuang Jinxin volunteered.

"Okay!" Time did not give them a chance to hesitate, Wu Sheng made a decisive decision.

In an instant, the three partners dispersed, Wu Sheng and Xu Wang climbed over the railing and jumped into the garden, while Kuang Jinxin followed along the corridor!

……

Deep in the garden.

Xu Wang and Wu Sheng got lost.They chased the man in black, plunged into the garden of weeds and dead branches, and then lost their way.

It seemed that the moment the garden surrounded them, it began to grow crazily.

They pushed aside dry branches one after another, and passed through clumps of withered flowers, but they still couldn't see the end, and the road seemed to never end.

creak.

Another flower stem folded under his feet, Xu Wang knew they were dead, no matter whether he stepped on them or not.But at the moment of the snapping sound, an unbelievable scene suddenly appeared in front of his eyes—the withered and yellow eyes became colorful, the flowers were red, the grass was green, and the trees were rainbow-like, just like in fairy tales. fantasy forest.

He blinked hard in disbelief.

The illusion disappears.

A dry garden is still a dry garden, only lifeless yellow.

creak.

The same sound of stepping on grass and trees came to Xu Wang's ears from the left.

But Wu Sheng is on the right.

The two turned their heads to the left almost at the same time, sharp and quick!

Behind the dead tree not far away, there is a figure.

They dashed over in one stride, Wu Sheng relied on the speed of flying on the grass, and reached behind the tree in a flash!

The man didn't even have time to move.

Without saying a word, Wu Sheng grabbed the man's arm!

The expected resistance didn't come, and the man just stood there, motionless, letting Wu Sheng grab him.

Xu Wang, who followed after him, first saw Wu Sheng's stunned face, and then saw the person he was holding...

Not the man in black with the mask on.

Standing behind the tree...is Chi Zhuolin.

Xu Wang opened his mouth in surprise, not knowing what to say for a moment.

It was Wu Sheng who spoke first: "Are you following us?"

Chi Zhuolin didn't respond.

Not only was there no verbal response, but even his gaze and expression did not move.

Xu Wang and Wu Sheng finally felt something was wrong.

Chi Zhuolin stood there dumbfounded, looking at the empty mid-air, as if someone had put a talisman on him.

Wu Sheng let go of his hand.

Chi Zhuolin's arms hang down weakly.

He was still wearing the equestrian uniform just now, his skin was soft, his body was hot, and he could even feel his breath when he put his hand under his nose.

But there is no response to the outside world.

Xu Wang's heart trembled, and the chill penetrated into every pore.

A cold light suddenly appeared on Chi Zhuolin's neckline.

Xu Wang and Wu Sheng's eyes were used to the darkness, but when they suddenly saw light, they were very sensitive.

Wu Sheng gave Xu Wang a look of "responsibility", then slowly raised his hand, and carefully unbuttoned Chi Zhuolin's jacket.

One.

two.

three...

Until the first few buttons of the coat and shirt were unbuttoned, revealing the boy's not-so-thick chest.

Xu Wang's eyes widened and he covered his mouth so as not to let out a scream.

On the chest of the young Chi Zhuolin, there is a cold light screen, which is embedded in the flesh, as if it is a part of the body.

But now, a warning red letter flashed on the screen - low battery.