This was surely fate!
When Su Ziyu produced women's clothing and proceeded to apply makeup to Li Qianfan's face, he uttered this thought in secret.
Li Qianfan, disguised as a woman, would be captured by the monks. This presented an opportunity to ascertain the size of their group and the location of their stronghold.
As for how this could be accomplished without startling Ziyu, or even allowing her to earn merit (by rescuing abducted women) and assist Ning Xiaolan in solving the case, Li Qianfan trusted Li Chenyang to make the necessary arrangements.
Li Qianfan had only two things to do.
One.
He hoped the monks' plan to lure men into attacking women would not be seen through by Ziyu.
Two.
He needed Su Ziyu to disguise herself as a man, impersonating him.
The first matter was beyond Li Qianfan's control.
But the second…
"Little beauty, if you don't transform into a handsome young man, don't even think about me carrying you!"
Li Qianfan's demand for Su Ziyu to switch to male attire and pretend to be a man was utterly resolute.
There was no room for negotiation.
If Su Ziyu refused, he would immediately pack up and descend the mountain.
Or perhaps call Mother Lan and complain about being bullied!
"Ten, nine, eight."
Li Qianfan began to count down.
Su Ziyu, whose expression shifted unpredictably but who was secretly stifling laughter, mimicked him. Only as his countdown neared its end did she slowly raise her hands in surrender.
Li Qianfan's "beauty" instantly bloomed. He sat cross-legged, opened the makeup box, picked up a brow pencil, and drew a small mustache on Su Ziyu's lips with swift strokes.
It was too fast.
Su Ziyu hadn't even reacted.
"Never mind, he is my little husband."
"It is my responsibility and obligation to make my little husband happy."
"My face is his anyway, he can draw whatever he wants."
"If he draws it badly—"
"I'll break his legs!"
Su Ziyu thought this as she closed her eyes, allowing Li Qianfan to paint freely on her impossibly smooth skin.
"Alright, open your eyes."
Li Qianfan put down the brow pencil, gazing at the handsome young man in women's clothing before him with immense pride.
The disguise art he learned from his grandmother had finally found its use.
Su Ziyu slowly opened her eyes and picked up the makeup box, her gaze turning sinister as she looked into the small mirror.
If she saw a grotesque face reflected back…
Little Green Mountain Scenic Area might truly witness a homicide.
But when she saw the face in the mirror, her eyes froze.
She even involuntarily exclaimed, "Ah!"
What did she see?
In the small mirror of the makeup box, she saw Li Qianfan's face!
Li Qianfan had used only a brow pencil, lipstick, and eyeshadow to transform her face into his own.
Old Su would likely see this and immediately ask, "My dear son-in-law, when are you going to bring me that herbal medicine you promised would last half an hour?"
"This… you drew this?"
Su Ziyu stared blankly for a full ten seconds before stammering, "You drew this?"
"Indeed."
Li Qianfan looked up at the sky, his eyes filled with pride.
Su Ziyu blurted out, "If our hospital goes bankrupt, we could open a beauty salon."
"Don't worry, with your discerning eye for your husband, our hospital will only grow larger."
Li Qianfan said with great confidence, "It will never go bankrupt. Quick, go change into my clothes."
Using the pretense of hurrying Su Ziyu to change, Li Qianfan openly patted her behind.
Then, a punch flew towards him—
"What kind of wife resorts to violence immediately after her husband pats her behind?"
Li Qianfan, covering his left eye, said resentfully, and picked up the makeup box again.
He had to apply makeup to himself.
Not only to conceal the panda eyes from the blow, but also to make himself look like Su Ziyu!
This was no problem for Li Qianfan.
In just seven or eight minutes, Su Heida's delicate face appeared in the mirror.
He tried to make his gaze colder.
Mm.
Su Heida had that kind of look!
"Beauty, shall we sleep together tonight?" Li Qianfan growled at the beauty in the mirror, then looked up towards the woods.
A girl changing clothes was so tedious.
Had she encountered a snake, or fallen into a pit?
Why were the monks still not making a move?
Li Qianfan opened a packet of small biscuits, crushed them, and secretly hid them in his shoes and pant legs (the milky white crumbs would serve as a trail of clues). After finishing, he was too bored and could only examine the "Su Ziyu" in the mirror again.
The afternoon sun was noticeably weaker than at noon.
But the wind had picked up.
"Why isn't Ziyu out yet?"
As Li Qianfan raised his hand to tuck a strand of hair behind his ear, he suddenly heard!
"Help!"
A woman's voice suddenly came from the southern valley, "Is anyone there? Help me, quickly!"
"Luring the tiger away from its den? Heh. Those fools, so this is their trick to draw me away from Ziyu."
Upon hearing the cry for help, Li Qianfan instinctively turned around and understood.
What would a young couple be doing on the mountain, whispering sweet nothings, suddenly hear someone crying for help from the valley?
The boy would immediately go down to investigate, but due to the dangerous terrain, he would ask the girl to wait where she was (a high probability).
Once the boy had cautiously descended into the valley, someone would leap out and abduct the girl!
This method was simple.
But the simpler the method, the more effective it often was.
"Who is calling for help?"
"Brother Su," now dressed, emerged from the woods.
"Help! My daughter has fainted. Sob, sob, help!"
The woman's cry became even more desperate.
Upon hearing this, Su Ziyu dropped the clothes in her hands into Li Qianfan's embrace and said urgently, "Wait here, don't wander off. I'll go down and see!"
Li Qianfan quickly said, "Let me go."
"Wait here, be careful of snakes."
Su Ziyu said without looking back, using the tangled branches to rush towards the slope leading down to the valley.
"Little husband, be careful!"
Li Qianfan called out in a "delicate" voice.
Su Ziyu waved without looking back and quickly disappeared from Li Qianfan's sight.
"These fools, using my wife's chivalry to get me abducted. Damned."
Li Qianfan smiled coldly, took out his phone, and quickly typed out a message.
Ding.
Li Chenyang replied, "I am approaching Madam quickly and will ensure her safety."
The woman luring the tiger away from its den would not be in danger.
Su Ziyu was not an ordinary girl, and with Li Chenyang's covert protection, she would surely be safe.
The one who was not safe was—
As Li Qianfan turned off his phone, leaned on a tree with his left hand, and gazed down at the valley, a hand suddenly reached from behind, holding clear tape, and accurately plastered it over his mouth.
Li Qianfan feigned "great surprise," making muffled sounds, and frantically raised his hand, only for his vision to go black.
He was put into a sack.
Immediately after, he was slung over someone's shoulder.
From the three skilled movements of taping his mouth, stuffing him into a sack, and hoisting him onto a shoulder, Li Qianfan could deduce that the perpetrator was an experienced hand.
"Go!"
Li Qianfan heard a low command and then felt his legs being tightly gripped by two hands as he was moved swiftly.
On a tree, a hundred paces away.
Seeing Li Qianfan being carried away, Li Chenyang pursed his lips coldly, jumped down from the three-meter-high branch, and swiftly infiltrated towards the source of the distressed calls, using the dense trees for cover.