48 Hours a Day

“Of course not, you idiot, she is only 12 years old. Do you want your head to be on the gallows? Put your gun away and come down,” the sheriff said, a tinge of urgency clouding his voice.

“Yes, sheriff.” Relieved, Jonathan hurriedly climbed down.

Zhang Heng, however, did not remove the knife away from the sheriff’s neck.

“Give them your gun,” said the sheriff.

At the order, Jonathan handed the rifle to Wendy. “Are you satisfied now?” the sheriff asked coldly.

Zhang Heng nodded, “But you may not be happy with what I will do next.”

The sheriff figured what Zhang Heng would do. The expression on his face changed instantly. “I dare you?”

However, as soon as the lawman finished speaking, Zhang Heng pulled the trigger, and the sheriff saw his beloved white horse fall in a pool of blood. “Sorry, I had to make sure you won’t come after us. After all, I don’t really want to go to the police station for coffee.” Zhang Heng did not stop there, proceeding to eliminate Jonathan’s horse.

The sheriff looked extremely agonized. “Why didn’t you kill your old horse and ride my good horse then?!”

“Because... this is how I think?” After the brutal murder of two poor hardworking animals, Zhang Heng frisked the sheriff and Jonathan. After making sure that they were not in danger, he finally put away his revolver.

He first picked up the revolver that he dropped on the ground and then took the rifle from Wendy.

When Wendy saw Zhang Heng stretching out his hand at her, she reluctantly returned the revolver.

“Can you give me the sheriff’s rifle?” Wendy asked in a low voice.

“No, I don’t want to be shot in the back by my ally,” said Zhang Heng said. “You have never learned to shoot. Now would you want a gun?”

“I have seen my father hunting, I know how to use one... and I just subdued a deputy sheriff.”

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“He won’t be a deputy after this.”

Undoubtedly, the sheriff was unhappy that his deputy had been knocked down by a girl who had just turned twelve.

“You should not blame him, sheriff. It’s not his fault. He just picked the wrong opponent.”

Wendy looked like a victor. She then said to Zhang Heng eagerly, “The kid named Joseph has a horse too. Shall we go back and kill it?”

“There’s no need for that. They wouldn’t dare come after us with only one horse. Am I right, Sheriff?” Zhang Heng said.

“I will avenge my horse, kid,” the sheriff warned. “I may not be able to take you to court, but that’s not the only way I can deal with you.”

“Is that right? Remember, I can take you to court,” Zhang Heng said.

“Either that or you tell me what secrets are between you and the child’s father. If you do that, I will give you a gun to protect yourself. It’s a long walk back to Glen Town.”

“It’s for your own good. You should’ve listened to me and taken this kid home,” the sheriff growled. “They won’t hurt Matthew, but they will hurt you both!”

“They, who are they?” Zhang Heng asked. “I can only tell you so much.” The sheriff kept mum after that, making it clear that he wanted to utter nothing more. “I hate people who can’t finish their sentences,” Wendy frowned.

“Me too, but he has undeniably revealed some useful information. At least we now know that your father’s disappearance is related to a group of people. And they obviously know each other. Your father went to see them, and he probably voluntarily followed them as well. This group of people is dangerous. He is right. You probably shouldn’t have gone looking for your father in the first place.”

“You can’t be 100% sure,” snorted Wendy.

“Yes.”

“This could also mean that my father might still be in danger. And you also said that he’s probably with a group of not so nice people. They are going to do whatever they want.” “Maybe,” replied Zhang Heng, silently admitting that Wendy’s guess wasn’t unreasonable. “I want to find my father then,” Wendy firmly insisted, then asked Zhang Heng, “Are you scared?”

“I haven’t felt fear in a long time.”

“Then are you going to use this as an opportunity to ask for more pay?”

“No, now, I have my reasons to keep investigating this matter. Whether you pay me or not, I will not give up on this case,” Zhang Heng shook his head.

“Why?”

It wasn’t easy to explain to Wendy about his main quest. He might have just gotten a clue relating to the lucky horseshoe. It appeared that Wendy’s mission was now tied to his main quest.

“I’m bored, and I want something interesting to do.”

“I can’t return home now, so I can help you,” Wendy said.

“I doubt it.”

Despite that, Zhang Heng couldn’t deny that Wendy came in handy. Although her combat skills were negligible, Zhang Heng had never seen Matthew before. Bringing her around would make him much easier to locate. Not to mention how the relationship between Wendy and Matthew may neutralize some of the threats.

On another note, Wendy might also cause him unnecessary trouble. The good thing was that she was way more mature when compared to her similarly-aged counterparts. She had the most stubborn temperament Zhang Heng had ever seen.

Though the two hadn’t spent a long time together, her ability to “cause trouble” had given Zhang Heng a headache.

However, Zhang Heng did not force Wendy to go back. He was different from the sheriff, knowing very well that even if Wendy were sent home by force, she would definitely find a way to come after him again. It was better to make her stay by his side. At least, he could keep an eye on her. So Zhang Heng said nothing about it. “Let’s go. We have wasted enough time. Time to continue our journey.”

After that, he handed his empty revolver to the sheriff. While the sheriff was looking at him in a hostile manner, Zhang Heng took out a box of bullets and threw it at the rock wall.

“You are welcome.”

He then mounted Radish that was still eating some grass. The old horse had no idea that it had almost gotten killed thanks to Zhang Heng’s inadequate riding skills. Seeing Zhang Heng clamped its abdomen with his legs, Radish stopped eating the grass reluctantly, glanced at the green grass in front of it once more time, and set off on the journey.

And Wendy followed Zhang Heng obediently with Lightning

“Tell me about your father again,” asked Zhang Heng without turning around. His eyes darted around the tall rock walls on both sides, making sure that there were no more ugly surprises. “Okay, Mr. Zhang Heng.”