After getting the stout man's approval, the slender man immediately untied Alexander. He also cared to ask, "Does it hurt? Is there any discomfort?"
Alexander shook his head, sweetly saying, "Thank you, Uncle. I'm very happy that you care about me. I don't feel any pain at all."
The slender man handed him the bread.
"Hungry, right? Have something to eat first."
Alexander nodded obediently, sitting down beside him, delicately taking bites of the bread in his hands.
As he ate, he suddenly burst into tears.
The slender man immediately asked nervously, "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"
With his mouth full of bread, Alexander sobbed unclearly, "If, if you were my daddy, it would be great. Then I wouldn't be a child that nobody wants. Sob..."
The slender man's heart instantly softened beyond words. He felt full of sympathy for Alexander. He didn't know what to say to comfort him, so he could only gently pat his back.
Alexander kept his head down, silently eating the bread in his hands.
In a place where the two kidnappers couldn't see, his eyes slyly moved, a hint of triumph quickly flashing in his eyes.
The bread was quickly eaten.
Alexander touched his round belly, satisfied, saying, "Thank you, uncle. I'm done eating. You can tie me up again so you won't get punished because of me."
The slender man felt that he was too pitiful. He couldn't bear to tie him up again, so he said, "It's okay, just sit like this. I believe you won't run away."
A four-year-old child, how could he possibly escape right under their noses?
Alexander, joyous, said, "Thank you, uncle. If we have a chance to meet again, I will definitely repay you."
The slender man smiled, "Your survival is the greatest repayment for me."
For some unknown reason, the usually ruthless man strangely felt sympathy for this child.
He just hoped that Alexander could overcome all difficulties and live on with resilience.
Moved to tears, Alexander said, "Thank you so much, uncle!" Tears streamed down his face.
The three of them sat quietly in the warehouse for a while.
Suddenly, Alexander clutched his stomach, his small face wrinkled in pain, covered in dense beads of sweat. He moaned, "My stomach hurts so much."
The slender man was taken aback, "Stomachache?"
Alexander nodded with difficulty, "My adoptive mother has always been unkind to me, doesn't give me food, which has caused me to have many health issues."
The slender man felt even more pity for him after hearing this.
"What should we do? I can't take you to the hospital right now. Just endure a little longer; someone will come to rescue you soon."
Alexander nodded in pain, saying, "Can I take a test first?"
The slender man agreed without hesitation.
The stout man, comparatively calm, immediately pressed him down, pointing to a corner of the warehouse, "Go there and do it. There's a cardboard box; pull it over."
Just thinking about that scene made Alexander feel nauseous.
He shook his head, clutching his stomach, sitting still.
He didn't insist on going to the restroom or to the place designated by the stout man. He just sat there.
His small mouth was tightly pursed, and his face was pale without any color.
He looked extremely pitiful.
The slender man couldn't bear to watch any longer and glared at the stout man, "Enough, he's just a four-year-old child; what could possibly go wrong? I'll accompany him."
Saying that, he lifted Alexander from the ground and walked towards the outside of the warehouse.
Although the stout man still had doubts, he didn't stop them.
What his partner said made sense; what could happen to a four-year-old child?
He was worrying too much.
The slender man took Alexander to a nearby forest outside the warehouse.
The forest was a wild one, not tended by anyone.
Thick weeds covered the ground, and wild grasses were as tall as Alexander.
Tall trees towered into the sky, with dense branches and leaves that blocked the moonlight completely.
"Alright, just make do with this. You can do it here."
Alexander, clutching his stomach, looked pitifully at him, "Uncle, can you step away a little? I'm shy."
Seeing him so obedient, the slender man didn't suspect anything. He turned and walked away, creating some distance.
Alexander watched him leave, then took steps backward, increasing the distance between him and the slender man. He chose the thickest tree around, agilely climbed up like a monkey, and casually lay down on a large branch.
Mischievous and playful from a young age, he was accustomed to activities like fishing in the river and climbing trees to catch birds.
Climbing a tree was a piece of cake for him.
Even though he was only four years old and definitely lacked the physical strength of an adult man, he knew he couldn't run too far. He would surely be caught and brought back.
Rather than wasting energy running away, he decided to stay here.
The most dangerous place is also the safest.
The kidnappers would never expect him to stay put.
The slender man, with his back facing this side, waited and waited. When Alexander didn't come out for a long time, he couldn't help but ask, "Is it not done yet? Nothing major has happened, right?"
Answering him was a mysterious silence.
The man frowned uneasily and asked again, "Are you okay?"
Still, there was no response.
Suddenly, a ominous premonition surged in his heart.
He swiftly turned around and rushed back to where he was just now.
But there was no sign of Alexander.
He immediately realized that he had been fooled, and a raging flame ignited in his heart. He hurriedly ran back to the warehouse, shouting to his companion, "I've been played by that brat, he ran away..."
Seeing them gone for a while, the stout man, worried, was about to check, and he saw the slender man rushing in.
Upon hearing that Alexander had escaped, he kicked over a nearby cardboard box in frustration.
"Damn it, I said not to trust that damn kid..."
The thin man, now scared, nervously asked, "What do we do?"
The stout man glared at him impatiently, "What else can we do? Hurry up and find him..."
The slender man nodded.
The two rushed out of the warehouse, took two high beams from the van, and began searching from the small forest.
"After all, he's only four years old, with limited strength. He shouldn't be able to run far. Let's follow this road; we'll definitely catch up to him..."
However, just as they walked a short distance, they encountered Suzy, who came to 'rescue' Alexander, performing a show of deep maternal love.
Suzy immediately recognized them as Tiger's subordinates.
Seeing their anxious faces, appearing to be searching for something, she couldn't help feeling uneasy.
"What are you doing here? Where's Alexander?"
Though the kidnappers didn't recognize her, following Tiger's instructions, they quickly identified her.
"Alexander ran away..."
Hearing this, Suzy couldn't help exclaiming, "He ran away? How did you manage that? You can't even watch a four-year-old...?"
The slender man blushed, feeling embarrassed.
The stout man impatiently said, "Stop the nonsense, go find him quickly."
Helplessly, Suzy could only join in the search.
There wasn't only one path leading out from here, and they weren't sure which way Alexander might have run. They had to split up and search.
Alexander hid in the tree, not daring to make any sudden moves.
The two kidnappers and Suzy had separated not long ago when Samantha arrived by car.
***