The shadows of the trees beside her passed by her eyes quickly. She didn't know how long she was dragged along, until Xie Mingchi took her to hide in a hidden cave. The bushes blocked her view and she crouched in a dark corner.

She ran too fast, and Hua Shi opened her mouth and breathed in big gulps. She could clearly hear the sound of her own breathing and the violent beating of her chest.

Hua Shi glared: "Hmm..."

A big hand suddenly reached out from behind and covered her open mouth.

“Boom, boom, boom!”

The violently pounding heartbeat was like a drum, hammering against her throat.

Time passed by minute by minute...

A strong and tough chest was pressed against her from behind, her mouth was covered tightly, and her neck was loosely circled by a firm arm.

Hua Shi closed her eyes tightly.

The feeling of suffocation spread from the soles of my feet to my head, and tears of rationality flowed down from the corners of my eyes.

She felt like she was suffocating to death...

“Huff, huff, huff…!”

The pair of rough hands covering her mouth suddenly loosened, and Hua Shi took in the fresh air in big gulps like a fish dying of dehydration.

His weak legs suddenly lost the strength to support him and he fell softly to the ground.

"Ashi?!"

A strong hand suddenly grabbed her limp arm and easily supported her.

"It's okay. It seems to have flown far away. Ah Shi? Are you okay?"

Xie Mingchi bent down, and a low voice came from his ear.

Hua Shi half-knelt on the ground, one of his hands being pulled, and said weakly, "Huh... It's okay."

After finally catching his breath, Hua Shi held his trembling legs, stood up with difficulty, and raised his hand to wipe the remaining tears from the corners of his eyes.

She realized it belatedly and said thank you weakly, "…Thank you, thank you?"

Xie Mingchi, "You're welcome."

His voice sounded a little muffled from behind her ear. Hua Shi subconsciously shrank her shoulders and broke free from his hand that was still tightly holding hers.

She was slow to react, but gradually realized that the entrance of the cave where they were hiding was too small. The narrow and crowded space made their bodies almost pressed together.

His hard muscles pressed tightly against her back...

Hua Shi blinked and regained consciousness, "Let's go out first..."

The distance was so close that she could clearly smell his scent and the hot body temperature of another person coming from her arm.

In the darkness, Xie Mingchi's face was tense as he nodded hesitantly, "Uh."

Hua Shi breathed a sigh of relief, and was the first to push aside the weeds that blocked his view. He bent down and crawled out.

In the empty snow forest, there was nothing but claw marks left on the ground...

Xie Mingchi followed closely, his eyes fixed on her.

When Hua Shi turned around, she met his dark eyes.

Being so close, Hanashi could even clearly see her own reflection in his pupils.

Such a focused gaze made Hanashi feel a little uncomfortable...

She coughed lightly, looked into his dark eyes and asked, "Why are you here?"

Hua Shi subconsciously didn't want to think about the embarrassing scene just now, and unconsciously ignored the awkward emotion that arose in her heart...

When meeting Hua Shi's clear eyes, Xie Mingchi looked straight ahead, but when his gaze fell on the red corners of her eyes, he was stunned for a moment.

Her eyes were round and moist, a light amber color, clearer than the mountain lakes reflecting the blue sky...

Xie Mingchi came back to his senses, thought about what she had just asked, and replied without hesitation, "I'm here to find someone."

"Looking for someone?" Hua Shi was puzzled. "Who went into the mountains with you and got lost by accident?"

Xie Mingchi shook his head, "No,"

He didn't know what he was thinking about, but his brows furrowed, and a hint of disgust spread across his eyes. "He's Aunt Suhua's son. He should be twelve years old now."

He lowered his eyelashes, suppressed the disgust in his eyes, and simply said this sentence without going into details.

Hearing this, Hua Shi also frowned, "Why would a twelve-year-old child run into the mountains? Do you need me to help you look for it?"

After witnessing the thrilling and dangerous scene just now, Hua Shi's heart began to lift.

In a sense, this was her first time encountering such a ferocious beast in the mountains and forests? ...a bird of prey.

Xie Mingchi shook his head. "Let's not look for it today. I'll take you down the mountain. It's very dangerous there."

Hua Shi: "Why don't we look for him today? But if the child stays in the mountains, wouldn't it be even more dangerous after dark? How about we go back to the village and ask someone to help us look for him..."

Before she finished speaking, Xie Mingchi shook his head again.

He looked into her eyes with his dark eyes and whispered, "No need. Aunt Suhua's son has been missing for five years. There is no need to rush."

Hua Shi was stunned.

Lost for five years?

Hua Shi was a little confused, "Then...?"

Xie Mingchi was obviously in deep thought for a moment before he said, "I've been looking for him for two years. He's still alive. I found where he lives in the mountains, but he's very alert. He seemed to have noticed someone was looking for him, so he started hiding."

He looked serious and solemn when he spoke.

Hua Shi was stunned when he heard this.

He was lost in the mountains five years ago. That means the child was only seven years old when he was lost, and has been there ever since... ?

How does a seven-year-old child survive in the dangerous mountains?

She had only been in the mountains a few times when she encountered all sorts of ferocious beasts. If it weren't for the spring, she would have been dragged away by the beasts and eaten until not even a bone was left...

This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!