Ni Jingxi turned to look at him. He had his usual sunny smile, but he was noticeably darker and thinner than he had been in China, and he looked much more composed.
This place is indeed a great training ground for people.
Lin Qinglang saw her looking at him and smiled smugly: "Don't you think I've changed a lot?"
Ni Jingxi remained silent.
Lin Qinglang continued, "I went back to China once before, and when my dad saw me, he didn't even recognize me. He said I didn't look like his son anymore."
Although Lin Qinglang felt that the old man was exaggerating, he was actually quite happy inside.
After his mother passed away, he harbored deep resentment towards his father. However, after going abroad, he truly became indifferent to life and death, seeing so many people struggling to make ends meet every day, sometimes even losing their lives at any moment.
I was deeply moved.
So much so that his resentment towards the old man lessened considerably after he returned to China. They were both still alive and could still see each other, which was better than anything else.
Hearing what he said, Ni Jingxi finally smiled and said, "Congratulations."
“I’ve been trying to find out about your father, but you know these foreigners are all face-blind, they can’t tell us apart at all.” Lin Qinglang sighed helplessly.
Although Ni Jingxi and Lin Qinglang were familiar with each other, they cooperated very well.
Moreover, she has now started to learn photography, and sometimes when there are no photographers, she just grabs her camera and rushes forward herself.
Nothing much happened for the past month, and it wasn't until Ni Jingxi was about to return to Israel that she realized she hadn't properly explored Beirut yet. So, before leaving, she decided to go out and wander around, especially since there was some kind of festival going on, and the market was particularly lively.
Knowing her idea, Lin Qinglang immediately said, "Let's go together."
"It's okay, you need to organize your photos, I can do it myself." Ni Jingxi smiled, but lent him his car.
However, Lin Qinglang was still worried and insisted on coming along.
There's not much to see in the malls here. After all, it can't compare to those big cities in China. It even feels less like a third-tier county town than a capital city in China.
However, its appeal lies in its exotic charm.
Ni Jingxi strolled around, especially looking at the items in the secondhand market.
"Do you think this Russian nesting doll is worth buying?" Ni Jingxi was about to look up and ask Lin Qinglang beside her when she saw a local little boy staring longingly at what she was holding.
The little boy was only four or five years old, but his big, bright eyes were incredibly cute.
People from the Middle East sometimes look more like porcelain dolls, especially young boys and girls, particularly their dark eyes, which sparkle with a pure and innocent light.
"Do you like it?" Ni Jingxi wasn't sure if he could understand English, but she pointed to the matryoshka doll with her hand.
Surprisingly, the little boy understood her gesture and nodded.
Ni Jingxi handed him the doll and said with a smile, "Here, it's for you."
The boy's parents, who were picking out secondhand items at a nearby stall, noticed what was happening and quickly came over to pull their child away. However, the little boy had already taken the nesting doll from Ni Jingxi's hands.
His father scolded him severely, and although Ni Jingxi couldn't understand what he was saying, he could still guess what it meant.
It's probably a reprimand for him taking things from a stranger.
However, the little boy was only four or five years old and didn't usually have any toys. He was really reluctant to return what he had just received to Ni Jingxi. It was Ni Jingxi who spoke up and said that it was a gift from her to him.
She could only communicate with the other person through gestures.
Fortunately, Lin Qinglang's return finally eased the awkward situation where they couldn't communicate at all.
He could speak a few words of the local language, so he was able to convey Ni Jingxi's meaning to the other party.
Finally, the little boy and his family bowed deeply to Ni Jingxi to express their gratitude.
After this little incident, Ni Jingxi continued to stroll forward, occasionally encountering things she wanted to photograph, but she would always ask the other party for their opinion.
It's lively yet peaceful here; even though life isn't wealthy, everyone has a smile on their face.
The silence was shattered by screams coming from afar.
Ni Jingxi looked over and saw what appeared to be a commotion at the end of the street. The commotion grew louder and louder, and people at the other end of the street were frantically running towards them.
Ni Jingxi immediately realized that something big was about to happen.
Everyone was running away frantically, and the crowd was rushing towards them. Ni Jingxi carefully held her camera, trying to avoid being knocked to the ground by the crowd.
At this point, she and Lin Qinglang had been completely separated.
By the time she reached the front, she only had time to see the last scene: a local man rushed forward the instant the second rioter got off the car.
Then a huge explosion was heard.
Ni Jingxi instinctively fell backward and closed her eyes. But as she lay on the ground, the terrifying scene from a second ago was already imprinted in her mind.
This is hell on earth.
When she opened her eyes, there was chaos around her; there had been two explosions. The first time, the rioters rushed into the crowd and successfully triggered the explosion.
The second time, the rioter tried to use the same trick again, but a man rushed at him and successfully tackled him to the ground. In the end, he and the rioter were blown to pieces together.
Ni Jingxi looked around blankly. Everyone was wailing, and the ground was covered in blood...
Police and ambulances arrived quickly, and even UN peacekeeping forces arrived in time. However, the scene was too horrific, and even those who were used to seeing life and death couldn't help but feel nauseous at that moment.
Ni Jingxi's eyes were brimming with tears, but she knew she couldn't cry at this moment.
She has more important things to do.
She immediately connected to the satellite signal. She was at the scene of the terrorist attack, and it was the first time she had faced such a tragedy. So she wanted to transmit what she saw and heard to the whole world.
Let everyone know what's happening here at this moment, this second.
Perhaps because of her keen and vigilant nature as a reporter, she always brought her equipment with her when she went out, something Lin Qinglang had previously joked about.
But now she is the first reporter to arrive at the scene.
After she quickly sent the news back to China, she packed her things and just picked up her camera when she suddenly saw several dolls scattered on the ground not far away.
It was a set of Russian nesting dolls.
When Ni Jingxi looked over, she saw a little boy lying on the ground, his body and face covered in blood, looking like he was on the verge of death.
Soon a man in military uniform walked up to him, gently slinging the gun he was holding behind his back. As the soldier reached out to hug him, the boy raised his blood-soaked hand.
When the soldier's hand gently grasped the boy's small hand, Ni Jingxi raised her camera and pressed the shutter.
At that moment, tears blurred her vision.
Because she remembered the man who rushed over and embraced the terrorist to die together with him; just twenty minutes earlier, he had apologized to her shyly and embarrassedly.
But when he looked down at the little boy's satisfied smile as he held the matryoshka doll, a happy smile appeared on his face.
His child was injured in the first bombing attack.
If a second mobster rushes into the crowd, the child will certainly not survive.
So he rushed in, pinned the other man down, and died together, even if it was just to give his child a chance to survive.
At this moment, he wasn't trying to be a hero.
He was just a father, an ordinary father who loved his children.
*
Ni Jingxi eventually went to the hospital as well. She had searched everywhere for Lin Qinglang but couldn't find him, and besides, she wanted to know the child's condition. But when she arrived at the hospital, she saw that the hospital floor was full of people lying on it.
There are too many injured people; there simply aren't enough beds available.
Ni Jingxi went to look for them one by one until a relieved voice called out from behind, "Teacher."
She turned around and saw Lin Qinglang standing not far away, covered in blood. She immediately ran over and asked, "Are you injured?"
"No, just send an injured person to the hospital." Lin Qinglang shook his head. Although there was relief on his face, it was still heavy. No one would feel good in such a hell on earth.
Lin Qinglang, unaware of what she had witnessed, asked, "I'm planning to go back to the explosion site. Do you want to come with me?"
"No, thank you," Ni Jingxi said softly.
Lin Qinglang understood her feelings; after all, that scene was too tragic.
So he said, "Then you rest here for a while, and I'll come back to pick you up after I'm done filming."
Ni Jingxi nodded. She didn't go anywhere. She just sat on the steps at the hospital entrance. She didn't block anyone's way. She only took up a tiny bit of space. Even though she was 1.7 meters tall, she almost curled up into a circle.
She rested her hands on her knees and buried her head in her hands.
All the images floated through her mind, one after another, like a slideshow that never stopped.
Until she felt a hand on the top of her head, gently stroking her hair.
Ni Jingxi thought it was an illusion.
She was so tired that she didn't even want to lift her head.
But that gentle hand never left, as if it wanted to completely soothe the fear, sadness, pain, and uncontrollable trembling in her heart.
Finally, she raised her head.
When she saw the man in front of her wearing a white shirt, he looked so clean.
Ni Jingxi dared not blink. She thought this was her dream, her fantasy, and her deepest desire.
She longed for him to come and save her.
But the person in front of her gazed at her quietly, his eyes gentle and full of compassion, until his forehead gently touched hers.
"Star, I've come to take you home."
Chapter 57
Looking at Huo Shenyan, who seemed to have descended from the heavens, Ni Jingxi could no longer suppress her emotions. Even though this was a foreign country, a country she might never return to in her lifetime.
But she could feel their sadness, pain, and despair.
When that father rushed towards the terrorists, Ni Jingxi didn't know what he was thinking. Perhaps he just wanted his child to have a chance to live.
"Be careful what you say." Ni Jingxi leaned against him, clutching his shirt with both hands, struggling to keep herself from breaking down.
Just an hour ago, the market was filled with various calls and sounds of bargaining that she couldn't understand. The people here weren't wealthy, otherwise, this market filled with old, secondhand goods wouldn't be so bustling.
But the terrorists chose these same people who were struggling and trying to live their lives, and made them experience hell.