At the same time, Ji Ruochu, a girl from the village, had already obediently settled herself on her tatami mat, while Ji Mochen held a storybook and softly narrated a bedtime story to her.
Normally, at this time, Ji Ruochu would be fully engaged in listening to the story. After all...
It was quite a miraculous thing for a grown man to read childish stories to her with such enthusiasm.
But tonight, for some unknown reason, she felt drowsy after just hearing the beginning and soon fell into a deep sleep.
She initially thought it was because she had been overly concerned these past few days, causing her to quickly fall asleep once her worries were put to rest, until...
"Sister Tingting, can you help me with this?"
A familiar voice sounded, and Ji Ruochu instantly realized what she was about to see.
"Sure, little sister." Tingting, a slender girl, smiled as she took the microphone and earpiece handed to her by her younger sister. Carefully, she accompanied her sister into the shallow stream to wash her muddy feet.
"Ruo Ruo, the task is complete. We can go back now!"
Suddenly, the voice of a young boy came from a distance, and several older children rewarded the sister, helped her put on her shoes.
After the five well-dressed children left, Tingting remembered that she still had Ruo Ruo's belongings in her pocket.
"Ruo Ruo—"
The girl immediately lifted her foot to chase after them, but unexpectedly, a pair of big hands appeared from behind and covered her mouth and nose with a white towel.
After a moment, the girl fainted on the ground.
Next, the scene shifted back to the little boy at home, looking puzzled as he faced his elderly father.
"Gone?" The little boy tilted his head. "Should I compensate, little Ruoxiao?"
The adorable voice made it impossible for anyone to get angry. The man chuckled softly, "No need, Daddy will compensate."
"Thank you, Daddy~"
But the next moment, the director's hurried figure appeared.
"We found it through the previous video tape. It was Ruo Ruo who was afraid of getting wet, so she asked Tingting to help."
The director rubbed his Mediterranean hair anxiously.
"But the problem is, that child is missing now, and her grandmother has come to the show's crew and caused a scene."
...
"Director, we found her!" a staff member quickly approached. "We located her through Bluetooth, but the location shows that she has already left the village."
"What?"
"And...we also recorded a voice message, and the situation seems grim."
The director and Ji Mochen put on their headphones and listened carefully.
"Call the police immediately."
In the next moment, the scene changed again.
A pitch-black mountain road, a speeding truck in the mountains, and...inside the carriage, a boy and a girl who looked no more than fifteen or sixteen.
At this moment, these children were discussing with excitement and longing written all over their faces.
"Did you guys see it just now? The watch on Brother Yun's hand is said to be worth tens of thousands!"
"Tens of thousands?" someone exclaimed.
"Exactly! You clearly can earn so much money by going out. Why has the village been refusing everyone to join Brother Li's group these past two years?"
"That's right. It forces us to secretly sneak out in the truck."
"It's all because of our esteemed Leader, insisting on developing the tourism industry. Wasn't it his idea that attracted this TV program crew?"
"I don't know what he's thinking. He's already old, but he refuses to retire and insists on becoming the Village Chief. Even the Village Chief is on good terms with him."
"He must be getting senile. I heard that the development in big cities is so rapid that people there can replace new clothes and shoes in the trash cans."
...
A group of children of varying ages, full of excitement and daydreams, traveled on this bumpy road, completely unaware of what awaited them ahead.
They had no idea that inside the large boxes in the corner of the carriage were over a dozen unconscious children, the youngest being only six years old and the oldest being eight.
Time slowly passed, and it was already three hours later when the truck successfully descended the mountain in the pitch-black night.
As the truck approached closer to the foot of the mountain--
"Stop the vehicle."
Suddenly, a beam of light shone upon the truck.
"A routine inspection."
The officers on duty appeared indifferent, with roadblocks already set up at their feet.
"Officer, why are you conducting a routine inspection so late at night?" the driver cautiously asked, handing over his driver's license.
"We have no choice. There was an accident a hundred meters ahead, so this section of the road is under enhanced inspection. As drivers of large vehicles, you need to be even more careful for safety."
After the officers finished their inspection, they returned the documents and nodded to their colleagues behind them. The roadblocks were then removed.
The driver quickly expressed his gratitude, thanking the officer for his hard work, and prepared to turn back.
And it was at this moment that the unexpected occurred.
Bang!
Tear gas canisters flew out from the bushes, and several dark figures emerged, disappearing into the smoke. In just a moment, the two people in the driver's seat were subdued.
In the dim light, Ji Ruochu saw it. The locked carriage was violently broken open, and more than a dozen boys and girls were instantly exposed to everyone's gaze.
Then, one wooden box after another was opened, and the unconscious children were carried out. Among them were the children Ji Ruochu had seen before, the ones who had threatened Tingting, the children who had been filmed by the TV crew from afar, and... Tingting herself.
In the final scene, Tingting gradually regained consciousness. Upon seeing the police surrounding her, she turned pale with fear. She immediately took out the recording device from her pocket and anxiously shouted, "I didn't steal anything."
At that moment, Ji Ruochu, who was watching these scenes, felt both sad and relieved. The previous mysteries were finally unraveled.
So that's how it is. So, Ji Ruochu's merit comes from here. Then, this matter should come to an end--
"Uncle, I don't want a new mom and dad. I only want my own mom and dad. Is that not allowed?"
The familiar voice of a child resounded once again.
Ji Ruochu was startled and looked up once more, only to replace that the scene in front of her had not yet concluded.
In the scene, a four-year-old child sat on the ground, desperately pleading with a phantom figure in front of them.
"Little Ruochu doesn't want this so-called merit. Little Ruochu only wants Mom and Dad, sob sob sob..."
"I want to go home!"
"My mom and dad are really sad, and so are my grandparents and great-grandparents. Little Ruo doesn't want everyone to be sad. Little Ruo wants everyone to be happy, sniffle, sniffle..."
...
The little child cried with great sadness, but the apparition remained silent until--
"Enough, since you're so determined, I'll give you a chance."
"W-What?" The little child's crying turned into hiccups.
"Your fate is sealed, unable to return, but if you can..."
"Three days. If you can replace it within three days, I'll help you. Otherwise, your tears here will be in vain."
"But... if that's the case, my mom and dad won't be my mom and dad anymore..."
The little child felt a deep reluctance.
"Then wait here. Given the circumstances, they will soon meet their end--"
"No, no!" The little child panicked, "Little Ruo will go replace it! Little Ruo won't let my mom and dad die..."
Saying so, the child stumbled and ran in a certain direction.
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