Disaster Apocalypse: Farming, Family, and My Hidden Secret Space-Chapter 119. Being tracked

The young man selling the dogs felt heartbroken when the price per dog suddenly dropped by three coins, and he quickly picked one up to show the man in front of him.

"Brother, twenty-five coins is a bit too little. These really are good dogs. Just look at their size and bones; with the right training, they’re perfect for hunting in the mountains. Your family would never have to worry about meat again, and you definitely won’t lose out. I wouldn’t sell them if my family could sustain so many. Besides, you don’t seem to be short on money, so why not add a bit more? After all, times are tough for everyone," the young man said, smiling.

At three coins each, five would be over a dozen coins, enough to buy a few pounds of coarse grain, feeding a family for several days.

"Because times are tough, young man, I haven’t lowered the price excessively. Twenty-five coins for a puppy is already quite a lot. It’s just that my child really likes them; otherwise, you’d see no one would spend so much on a few puppies, especially when they’re just five coins each everywhere in our countryside."

"Brother, I believe what you’re saying, but my dogs are of a breed that definitely isn’t your ordinary countryside type. These are hunting dogs, ones that would dare to fight wolves, so naturally, they are pricier for a reason."

"That’s one way to put it, but when you say these are hunting dogs, who knows if they truly are?"

"Brother, you seem like a person of knowledge. I trust you can tell by looking at their heads, teeth, bones, and stature. Which family’s mongrel could grow this big and strong? They’re undoubtedly hunting dogs, so rest assured. Wouldn’t you add a little more?"

The young man’s talk was all flowery, ultimately aimed at selling for a higher price.

On Hua Chengtian’s side, he was certainly looking to pay less, and after some back and forth bargaining, they both compromised. The agreed price was twenty-six coins per dog, satisfying both seller and buyer.

Throughout the transaction, Hua Jin’s attention was on the puppies, just waiting to pay and leave with them. Knowing how doting her father was, she wasn’t worried about him not buying them.

As the price was set and Hua Jin was about to pay, Hua Chengtian took out his small silver pieces first.

This was his daughter’s first time showing such a fondness for something, and as a father, he couldn’t let her pay. Despite not currently having as much money as his daughter!

Thankfully, knowing his daughter’s insistence on buying things, the child’s mother had prepared plenty of small silver pieces for him to use.

Moreover, today his daughter wasn’t buying everything she saw, so who knows how much silver he might still have left in his pockets?

"Thank you, Dad," Hua Jin said, her smile radiant as a flower, thoroughly enjoying being doted on.

Hua Jin didn’t mind the smell of the puppies, hugging the basket to her chest as she walked and watched them. With the puppies, she was no longer interested in the nearby stalls and just wanted to hurry back to the inn to bond with them. She even complained about her father’s slow walking with a shout.

Hua Chengtian helplessly shook his head. The dogs had just been bought, yet it seemed he, as a father, was already being sidelined.

Still, he quickened his pace to follow his daughter.

With such an adorable daughter, Hua Chengtian dared not stray far from her.

The father and daughter, one focusing entirely on the puppies in her arms, the other on his child, failed to notice the shadows secretly trailing them.

Back at the inn, they went straight to their room, and worried about the puppies, neither father nor daughter went out for dinner. They had it brought up by a staff member and ordered ten more pounds of the inn’s signature dish, saucy beef, to be stored by Hua Jin in her space.

Last time they brought back the saucy beef, the family loved it, especially grandpa.

If they hadn’t come, it wouldn’t matter; but since they were here and the store had some, they were sure to buy more. Unfortunately, ten pounds was the maximum, as the shopkeeper had to rely on the saucy beef to attract customers.

Even then, ten pounds of beef was no small amount. A whole bowlful would last them for two months if rationed carefully.

After dinner, Hua Jin played with the puppies. Maybe because they were still young and had siblings for company, the unfamiliar environment didn’t scare them at all. They remained lively, playing games of chase and hide-and-seek with their new owner in the room.

It was rare to see his daughter so spirited, with an excited, rosy face. Hua Chengtian suddenly felt buying more puppies had been a good idea.

Though still puppies, they gradually tired after such a long playtime. After drinking some water, they began to doze. Hua Jin put them one by one back into the basket, which had become a high-end version lined with soft straw and a cushion.

The little ones seemed satisfied, settling inside as they snuggled against each other, quickly falling asleep.

By this time, the sky had turned completely dark. After spending the day outside and playing with the puppies for a while, Hua Jin also felt a bit sleepy.

She greeted her father, who was laying outside on the platform. Quickly washing up, Hua Jin went to sleep faster than the puppies.

She had no idea that there were people outside the inn who stayed up all night, just waiting to make a move after they left the city.

"Brother Li, this little girl is indeed delicate, but the man with her seems difficult to provoke. Are we really going to make a move? We might fail miserably instead, and it’s so cold out here in the dead of night. How about we go back and discuss it again?"

A man with a sharp face, shivering from the cold, tightened his clothes and spoke to a burly man in the corner. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

"Discuss what? There’s no time for discussion. Our deadline from the top is up. If we don’t find the last girl, it won’t just be the cold to worry about." The burly man’s eyes glared at the inn, his voice eerily menacing, chilling the already cold sharp-faced man even more.

The burly man’s words sent a shiver down the sharp-faced man’s spine; whether from cold or fear, his body quivered.

They really were out of time—the day to deliver was less than two days away, and this time, their client had particularly high demands.

The girl couldn’t be too old or too young; she needed fair skin and delicate features, not easy to find.

Children from poor families practically helped with chores from the moment they learned to walk. Very few had fair skin, and even if some did, they were mostly plain looking, not meeting the client’s standards.

As for girls from wealthy families, they wouldn’t dare to touch them. With money, anything could be found, but risking it wasn’t worth it for them.

In over half a month, they had found only four targets, none of whom matched today’s little girl. No wonder Li was braving the cold to stake out the inn.

It was too hard to find girls meeting the criteria, and even occasionally finding one was troublesome due to family accompaniment, making it hard to make a move—just like today.

Li Brother especially went back to arrange things, letting other brothers be on standby, ready to repeat their tricks tomorrow to create chaos and abduct the little girl.

Most importantly, they had taken the deposit money; if they couldn’t deliver satisfactory goods, they’d have to pay double the silver.