Xin Ying's tone was very cold and hard. Kong Anqing realized something was wrong, so she threw her luggage into the living room and hurriedly ran to the villa where Xin Ying was staying in the resort.
Xin Ying had already gotten into the car, and as soon as Kong Anqing got in, she started the car and drove away.
“It’s several hundred kilometers from here to where Leyao’s medical team is providing assistance. We’ll take turns driving without resting along the way to get there as quickly as possible.”
"OK!"
The car sped away from the resort like a shooting star. Although Xin Ying didn't say what happened, Kong Anqing realized from her tense expression that Lin Leyao had probably encountered something.
Xin Ying remained silent throughout the journey, and Kong Anqing dared not utter a sound either. The two switched seats midway and continued driving, finally arriving at their destination four and a half hours later.
By this time, it was already bright daylight, and the rain that had been falling for several days had stopped.
After the rain, the sky cleared, the air was crisp, and the climate was pleasant. The surrounding trees and shrubs were lush and vibrant, giving the town a distinctly spring-like feel. Unfortunately, the people in the town had no heart to appreciate the scenery.
The mudslide occurred on the mountain, and only a few households at the foot of the mountain were affected. Rescue workers have completed the rescue and resettlement of these affected people, but no one knows the situation on the mountain.
Xin Wenwen didn't sleep all night, and didn't even have time to wash up. She spent the whole night desperately contacting rescue workers to inquire about the situation of the residents on the mountain.
She had received a call in advance and was already waiting at the entrance of the town. When she saw Xin Ying's car driving up in the distance, she immediately went to greet it.
"Auntie!" Xin Wenwen called out to Xin Ying from the window.
Xin Ying, sitting in the passenger seat, suddenly opened her eyes, her eyes bloodshot and staring straight at her.
Xin Wenwen took a step back in fright. That look reminded her of the time when her aunt was sick and hospitalized when she was a child. At that time, her aunt's personality had changed drastically. Every day, she would lie or sit on the hospital bed without saying a word, just staring straight at others without moving.
At that time, she was very afraid to visit her aunt in the hospital. Every time she went to the hospital and saw her aunt looking at her like that, she felt scared.
When she was little, Xin Wenwen always followed her aunt around and played. But later, she started to be afraid of her aunt because of this look in her eyes, and this fear has not disappeared to this day.
Xin Ying hadn't slept on the way here. She blinked her dry eyes, pushed open the door, and got out of the car.
Xin Ying asked Xin Wenwen to take her to see the mountain where Lin Leyao was, while Kong Anqing was assigned to communicate with the rescue team.
Walking at the foot of the mountain, we could already see that several houses had been crushed by a large amount of mud and rubble. Buildings made of cement and concrete were so vulnerable in the face of mudslides, let alone human beings made of flesh and blood.
Among the disaster-stricken families at the foot of the mountain, an elderly person tragically passed away. The elderly person's family members were wailing outside the cordon, lamenting the injustice of fate and how their elderly relative had suffered such a disaster before even beginning to enjoy life.
The cries of the victims' families were incessant, and Xin Ying stood amidst the rubble, gazing straight at the mountaintop.
Xin Wenwen stood behind her, watching her usually elegant and dignified aunt now covered in mud and water, her shoes were covered in thick mud, her neat and meticulous coat was now wrinkled, and even her usually upright back was now trembling slightly.
Xin Wenwen's eyes involuntarily stung.
Xin Wenwen couldn't help but step forward to comfort her: "Auntie, don't worry too much. They sent a drone up the mountain to check. The houses on the mountaintop were not damaged, and the people inside should be fine."
"What if she happens to be somewhere else? There are so many unexpected things in the world. If things had gone according to plan, she would have already gone down the mountain yesterday like those TV station staff, instead of still staying on the mountain."
Seeing her so pessimistic, Xin Wenwen called out in a daze, "Auntie..."
Xin Ying stepped down from the pile of stones, and her body suddenly swayed as if she was about to fall. Xin Wenwen quickly reached out to support her.
Xin Wenwen said, "Auntie, why don't you go and rest for a while?"
Xin Ying waved her hand, then touched her phone in her pocket and found it was dead. She asked, "Does your family know about this?"
Xin Wenwen opened her mouth to say something, but then her phone rang. Seeing the caller ID, she immediately changed what she was going to say: "They probably know."
Xin Ying saw the note on her phone screen, and Xin Wenwen walked to the side to answer the call.
"grandfather--"
This medical aid project, spearheaded by Fashion Star magazine, has garnered significant attention due to the participation of numerous celebrities.
The news of the mudslide quickly became a trending topic.
Several minor celebrities who stayed here as volunteers posted on Weibo to let everyone know they were safe, but Lin Leyao was the only one who did not appear.
From last night until this morning, Lin Leyao finally made it to the top of the trending searches, with the search term being the news obtained by the media from local rescue workers.
#Lin Leyao has not been found yet#
#Lin Leyao suffers from mudslide#
As soon as this trending topic appeared, everyone in the Ji and Xin families learned about Lin Leyao's encounter with the mudslide. Everyone tried to call Lin Leyao and Xin Ying, but they couldn't get through. In the end, Old Master Xin called Xin Wenwen.
Xin Wenwen was on the phone with Grandpa Xin, while Xin Ying stood in the distance watching rescue workers carrying equipment in waves to clear the road up the mountain.
Xin Ying stood at the foot of the mountain with her back straight, her hands clenched tightly in her pockets, and her body trembled uncontrollably.
She used to be able to work through several all-nighters, so why is her heart hurting so much this time? She feels like she's dying.
Hearing Grandpa Xin's words, Xin Wenwen repeatedly nodded. Then, she turned to look at Xin Ying standing in the distance. Suddenly, her eyes widened, and she cried out in terror, "Auntie—!"
When Lin Leyao woke up, everything was dark. It took her a while to adjust to the situation.
There was probably no electricity on the mountain yet. Lin Leyao made out some of the furnishings in the room in the darkness. She was still at her fellow villager's house.
Lin Leyao sat up, and the movement pulled at the wound on her ankle, causing it to tear. Lin Leyao hissed in pain, and suddenly a sound came from the side.
A dark figure lunged toward the bedside. Lin Leyao turned her head sharply and met the gaze of a tiny child.
In the darkness, Lin Leyao saw a child of about four or five years old standing by the bed, tilting his head and staring at her without moving.
"Drink some water." The little girl wobbled as she handed a cup to Lin Leyao.
Lin Leyao quickly took the little girl, placed her on the bed, and asked, "Who are you?"
The little girl looked at her but didn't say anything. Just then, the bedroom door was pushed open.
Xiao Yan walked in carrying a candle, instantly illuminating most of the dark room.
Seeing the two people, one big and one small, sitting on the bed, Xiao Yan smiled and said, "You're finally awake. This is the granddaughter of another fruit farmer on the mountain. Last night, a mudslide destroyed his house, so this grandfather left the child with us for a while."
"Mudslide?" Lin Leyao's mouth dropped open in surprise.
“Yes,” Xiao Yan explained, “You had a fever last night and slept very soundly so you didn’t hear anything. There was a rumbling sound on the mountain all night, but we went back to sleep because the sound didn’t last long. In the early morning, the child’s grandfather came over and said that there had been a mudslide on the mountainside.”
"Are we alright here?"
Xiao Yan shook her head: "Grandpa, this house is in a good location, it won't be affected by mudslides. Do you still want to sleep? If you need to wash up, I'll bring your things in."
"I'll go wash up myself." With that, Lin Leyao threw back the covers and got out of bed.
Xiao Yan rushed over to help her, asking worriedly, "Are you sure your leg will hold up?"
"I can use my other leg, no problem."
After washing up, Lin Leyao didn't go back to her bedroom. Instead, she sat at the entrance of the main room, staring blankly at the scenery outside.
The rain finally stopped today. The ground in front of the house, paved with pebbles, was already half dry after only a short while.
A drop of rainwater occasionally drips from the eaves, and the trees and flowers on the nearby mountain, nourished by the rain, seem to be reborn, vibrant and beautiful.
Lin Leyao took a light sniff of the mountain air after the rain; it was refreshing and very comfortable.
At this moment, she was enjoying a peaceful time, but many people down the mountain were suffering from mudslides.
The little girl, who was brought here by her grandfather, was very well-behaved and hadn't said a word or disturbed anyone. She also moved a small stool and sat next to Lin Leyao, staring blankly at the courtyard outside.
Xiao Yan was helping her grandmother cook breakfast on a traditional earthen stove, while the old man accompanied the girl's grandfather to see the house that had been destroyed by the mudslide. Iris, worried about the two elderly people, also went along.
A long time passed, and the three who went out never returned.
The usually quiet little girl couldn't hold back any longer and kept squirming on the bench.
Suddenly, with a "thud," the little girl fell to the ground. Unable to contain her fear any longer, she burst into tears.
Lin Leyao quickly took the little girl into her arms and gently coaxed her, but it didn't work. Hearing the noise, the old lady came out of the kitchen, took the little girl into her arms, and coaxed her in her hometown dialect while walking in the yard.
Xiao Yan sat next to Lin Leyao and explained, "This child's parents passed away when she was one year old. Now she lives with her grandfather, who earns money by tending orchards. This morning, when her grandfather brought the child here, he said he needed to go home to find some money he had hidden there, as the little girl is still young and needs the money. We couldn't really advise him against going, since that money is very important to the family. To prevent anything from happening to the grandfather, our grandfather and Iris went with him."
Lin Leyao nodded and saw that the little girl who had been crying in the yard had been calmed down by the old lady.
After the house was destroyed by the mudslide, many items were not only moved from their original locations, but may even have been washed down the mountain, making it quite difficult to find the money.
Everyone knew that it would take a long time for Grandpa and the others to come back, so when it was time to eat, Grandma didn't make everyone wait any longer. She left some food for them and then let them eat.
Lin Leyao is the only person in the family who cannot move around freely. Besides her, the five-year-old girl is also not allowed to go out casually.
As Lin Leyao spent more time with the little girl, the two gradually became familiar with each other, and the little girl liked to snuggle in her arms.
Lin Leyao woke up early in the morning, and the little girl started to feel sleepy not long after finishing lunch. She took the child into the bedroom to sleep.
I slept until the afternoon, and the grandfathers, who had been gone for eight hours, still hadn't returned.
--------------------
Author's Note:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 18:41:45 on May 24, 2022 and 14:03:18 on May 25, 2022!
Thank you to the little angels who threw landmines: CM靇 2; 55157345 1;
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Ayi (50 bottles); 27102959 (5 bottles); Yunchuan (2 bottles);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 112
There was no electricity on the mountain, and with no electronic devices to pass the time, coupled with her injured ankle, Lin Leyao couldn't move around freely, so she spent most of her time sleeping.
When Lin Leyao woke up from her afternoon nap, she found that the little girl sleeping next to her was gone.
Lin Leyao got out of bed and limped out, only to find that everyone else in the room had disappeared while she was sleeping.
Hot water was boiling on the stove in the kitchen, but the person boiling the water was not there. The large room was silent, and there was no one to be seen in front of or behind the house.
Just as Lin Leyao's heart was starting to race, Xiao Yan walked over from the other end of the mountain path.
Upon seeing her appear, Lin Leyao breathed a sigh of relief and called out, "Sister Yan."
Xiao Yan was overjoyed to see her awake: "You're awake? Does your wound still hurt?"
Lin Leyao shook her head: "It doesn't hurt anymore."
Xiao Yan strode into the room and said, "Grandma and the boy from the TV station went to find Grandpa and asked me to stay and keep you company. I was feeling bored just now, so I took a walk on the mountain path by myself."
Hearing Xiao Yan's explanation, Lin Leyao nodded and asked, "How long has Grandma been gone?"
"I just left half an hour ago." Xiao Yan brought out a small stool for Lin Leyao to sit on, and then said, "I'll go get you a cup of hot water."
Lin Leyao sat obediently on a small stool by the door. Neither of them had their phones charged, so they sat by the door chatting idly.