finally! ! !
Her fingertips hooked onto the sleeve of the old man's cotton-padded coat!
It was a success!
A surge of immense joy and hope welled up within me.
The next step is to bring the person back.
She slowly and gently pulled the old man toward her.
The distance between them grew closer and closer... closer and closer... almost only an arm's length apart, then suddenly—
"Snap—!"
A sharp, chilling cracking sound suddenly rang out!
The already fragile, crooked pine branch, which was bearing the full weight, could no longer hold on and snapped in two!
Zhou Qiqi instinctively hugged the old man tightly, but the next second, she felt a weight in her hand!
A tremendous, irresistible downward force suddenly spread!
The scarf around her waist tightened to its limit instantly, constricting her flesh sharply.
A sharp pain struck, causing her vision to go black, and a feeling of suffocation instantly gripped her!
He was violently pulled off the cliff by this terrifying force, and was about to fall!
Fortunately, the two old tree stumps and the knot she had desperately tied withstood the terrifying impact!
She and the unconscious old man were suspended on a steep cliff, held together by a lifeline made of scarf and clothing. They swung precariously back and forth in the air, knocking down countless rocks before crashing into the bottomless darkness.
Zhou Qiqi was so frightened that her heart almost stopped!
Her survival instinct drove her to desperately pounce on the cold cliff face with her feet, trying to find any place she could grab onto.
In the struggle, her toes finally touched a small, slightly protruding earthen platform, about half a meter wide.
Shen Huaichuan's report stated that it was essential to plan ahead for how to ensure one's own safety should unexpected events occur during the rescue.
So before rescuing the person, she climbed to a higher point to take a look, found this platform, and chose to rescue the person from this angle.
I never expected it to come in so handy. Thank goodness...
But now was not the time to celebrate. She quickly stepped onto the platform, even though it was very narrow and could barely accommodate two people.
Especially when the elderly person is completely unaware.
She had to pull the old man hard to maintain his balance.
But at least there was a very weak point of support, which greatly reduced the suffocating tension in my waist and abdomen.
She clung tightly to the old man's collar with one hand, while her other hand struggled to grip the cold, rough cracks in the cliff face. She remained frozen in that position, in an extremely painful, contorted, and dangerous posture.
We dared not relax for a moment.
Time passed slowly, and she was unable to change her posture or even look at her watch.
All she knew was that the sun had long since set and night had fallen, and the cold mountain winds were like knives, mercilessly cutting into her body.
My bare fingers quickly became numb from the cold, almost losing all feeling.
My waist was in excruciating pain from the rope, as if it was about to be strangled.
The legs that were stepping on that tiny platform began to tremble uncontrollably, every muscle twitching uncontrollably.
Her strength was rapidly waning, and her body temperature was dropping sharply.
My consciousness gradually began to become somewhat blurred.
The scene before my eyes began to spin and turn black.
All I could hear was my own heavy heartbeat, the wind, and the sounds of the wind.
Every second, she didn't know how she managed to hold on; her body's various reactions were telling her to let go and give up that heavy burden.
A thought suddenly flashed through my mind, tinged with a bitter regret.
Perhaps she shouldn't have been so reckless in choosing to save people, then she wouldn't have ended up in such a dangerous situation.
What if... what if she and the old man both...
This ending was something she couldn't believe.
"No!"
This thought only lasted for a moment before she ruthlessly extinguished it!
She doesn't consider herself a great philanthropist, much less a saint.
But to watch helplessly as a living, breathing person, a relative of her friend, falls into the abyss before her very eyes, when she clearly had the opportunity to reach out...
She can't do it!
She really can't do it!
If she really stood by and did nothing, then this scene would likely become a lifelong nightmare for her, a guilt she could never shake off.
Thinking about how hard her life was in her past life, she would always buy something from elderly people selling things at their stalls.
Her conscience wouldn't allow her to stand by and watch someone die!
"No...I absolutely can't let go...Hold on...Hold on..."
She bit her already chapped lower lip hard, using the sharp pain to keep herself as alert as possible, the taste of blood filling her mouth.
My mind was a jumbled mess, countless faces flashing through my mind: Sister Cuixiang... Yingying... Sister Damei...
In the very end, the image lingered on Zhouzhou's face and Shen Huaichuan's face.
Tears mingled with cold sweat as she murmured to herself, her voice so faint it was almost swallowed by the wind, yet filled with a deep, poignant longing:
“Zhouzhou…my Zhouzhou is still waiting for me to come home. The treatment plan from the foreign experts will be sent back to China soon. I have to speak up for the little girl…”
"And Shen Huaichuan... Shen Huaichuan... I really want to... really want to see you again... I want to tell you, I might, probably, maybe..."
"I don't just desire your body, I...I...I also want you as a person, I...I love you..."
"I want you to be my...my lover for life. Yes, you are my love..."
Her tears flowed like a burst dam, and her heart ached with bitterness.
It was only in this life-or-death moment that she saw herself clearly.
That heart, wounded and tightly closed by her family of origin, was somehow gradually repaired and warmed by that silent and resolute man, with his tolerance, his responsibility, and his clumsy yet burning love.
Facing her lover and marriage, she seemed to no longer resist or fear...
She longed to see him every morning when she woke up, longed for his loving gaze, longed to walk with him through countless springs, summers, autumns, and winters, and to have so many futures together...
Unfortunately, I can never say these words to him.
All these beautiful hopes are now impossible...
Her eyelids felt as heavy as lead, and the arm gripping the old man's collar was so weak it was almost numb. She felt as if the darkness of despair was about to engulf her completely...
Just then—
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