When Xing Zhaozhao and Gao Qingshan arrived at the Public Security Brigade, a large crowd of onlookers had already gathered. They finally managed to squeeze to the entrance, only to find that someone was guarding it and they couldn't just go in.
Xing Zhaozhao tried going over to the security guard at the gate and asked, "Hello, I'd like to go in and find someone..."
The security guards, probably fed up with people trying to sneak in under the pretense of finding someone, were getting impatient: "No, the team is handling a major case right now, no one is allowed in."
Gao Qingshan was in a hurry to go in and find Fu Lan. Undeterred, he continued to explain to the security team members, "We really are here to find someone. She was captured by those mountain people and taken to the mountains yesterday. We just want to confirm whether she has been safely rescued. Can't you make an exception?"
The security guard impatiently pushed Gao Qingshan aside: "I said you can't come in, and I mean you can't. Why are you making so many noises? Get out of here right now, or I'll arrest you and lock you up."
Gao Qingshan's eyes lit up: "Then arrest me and take me in." All he wanted to do now was go in and find Fu Lan. He didn't care how he got in, as long as he could get in.
"..." The security guard stared at Gao Qingshan in disbelief. He had been with the security brigade for so long and had never heard of such an outrageous request. Was he an idiot?
Xing Zhaozhao couldn't help but roll her eyes at Gao Qingshan. What nonsense was this silly boy spouting? Did he think he could just walk into the Public Security Brigade like that? And if he went in like that, he'd be branded with a stain on his record for no reason. She was really afraid that if Captain Gao found out, he'd come after her directly.
Xing Zhaozhao elbowed Gao Qingshan away, then smiled apologetically at the security guard and said, "Sorry, he was confused in his haste. Since we can't go in, we won't go in. But can I ask you about someone?"
The security guard's expression softened slightly, and he asked, "Who are you? If I know, I'll tell you; if I don't, there's nothing I can do."
“It’s okay if you don’t know,” Xing Zhaozhao said with a smile. “Her name is Fu Lan. I think you should have heard of her. She just went missing yesterday. Her family even reported her missing to the police station.”
The security guards had indeed heard of her. They quickly looked Xing Zhaozhao up and down and asked, "Who are you? What is your relationship with Fu Lan? Fu Lan's relatives came to the security brigade yesterday and are already inside."
“My surname is Xing, and I am a friend of Fu Lan,” Xing Zhaozhao said.
The security guard's eyes lit up, and he asked, "You wouldn't happen to be Comrade Xing Zhaozhao, would you?"
Xing Zhaozhao looked at the security guard with a surprised expression: "How did you know?"
The security guard smiled and said, "You should have said you were Comrade Xing earlier. Ling Xiao had already given the word that if you wanted to come, we would have let you in directly." After saying that, he let you in right away.
Xing Zhaozhao was still a little dazed when she went in. She only knew that Ling Xiao was the head of the black market, but she didn't expect him to have such a big influence in the public security brigade.
Behind them came the disgruntled voices of some onlookers: "Why can she go in but we can't? Did you take some bribes from her?"
"Get lost." The security guard cursed rudely. "They caught a mountain villager who had sneaked down the mountain and his accomplice yesterday. They're the heroes who helped us solve this big case. Are you one of them?"
The onlookers didn't believe it: "Her? A skinny old woman? Could she catch those vicious mountain people and his accomplices? Do you believe that? I certainly don't."
"How about I call her over and we show her off?" the security guard said irritably. "Those two guys who were brought to the security brigade yesterday were beaten to a pulp; even their own mothers probably wouldn't recognize them..."
The onlookers immediately lost their nerve: "Let's just forget about it then. A good man doesn't fight with a woman."
Xing Zhaozhao: "..." Tch, making the story of courage sound so refined and otherworldly.
Knowing the reason for their release, Xing Zhaozhao felt much more at ease. After asking around, she took Gao Qingshan and went straight to the reception office of the Public Security Brigade, where the people rescued from the mountains were currently being housed.
The atmosphere in the room was somewhat oppressive. The rescued people were of all ages, and their expressions were almost all numb and bewildered, which made one's heart ache.
Xing Zhaozhao couldn't help but think of the other side of the gate. If those mountain people hadn't been wiped out, fifty years would have passed, and she didn't know how many more innocent people would have been trapped there. She didn't even dare to think about it.
"Xiao Lan?!" Gao Qingshan exclaimed excitedly when he saw Fu Lan.
Xing Zhaozhao collected her thoughts and turned to look. She immediately saw Fu Lan. Fu Lan's mental state didn't seem very good, but compared to the others, she was already doing well. She was also the only one with family members by her side.
Grandma Fu and Fu Hong stood on either side of Fu Lan, holding her hands tightly, wiping away tears and talking to each other.
Fu Lan remained listless and uninterested until she heard Gao Qingshan's call. She suddenly looked up, her eyes immediately brightened, and tears welled up in her eyes.
"Sister Xing!" Fu Lan called out, forcefully shaking off Grandma Fu and Fu Hong's hands, and limped towards Xing Zhaozhao.
"Be careful." Xing Zhaozhao quickly hugged the person.
Fu Lan hugged Xing Zhaozhao tightly and burst into tears, crying so hard it was heartbreaking, as if she wanted to vent all her grievances at once.
Xing Zhaozhao's eyes also reddened, and she hugged her gently, comforting her, "It's alright, don't be afraid, Sister Xing is here..."
Fu Lan's emotions seemed to affect the others as well. Low sobs slowly began, and the crying soon joined together, taking a long time to subside.
Grandma Fu and Fu Hong received Fu Lan, who had been rescued, immediately and talked to her a lot, but Fu Lan didn't react at all. Now that they saw Fu Lan finally venting her emotions, Fu Hong's eyes were red, but her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, was finally at ease. Grandma Fu, on the other hand, didn't say anything, but there was always a hint of resentment and dissatisfaction in her eyes when she looked at Xing Zhaozhao.
Xing Zhaozhao noticed this and ignored her. It was time to teach this old lady a lesson. She shouldn't think she could get away with it by pretending to be doing what's best for the child.
Seeing that Fu Lan's emotions had gradually calmed down, Xing Zhaozhao carefully asked her about what had happened.
It turned out that not long after Fu Lan ran away in a fit of pique, she was tied up by Yao Xiaozhuang, who had been following them, and taken to the mountain. Yao Xiaozhuang probably really liked her, because he didn't use much force when tying her up. She took advantage of his rest time to sneak away, but because she was unfamiliar with the road, she slipped into a deep ditch, twisted her ankle, and couldn't climb out. She thought she was going to starve to death there.
It wasn't until midnight that she heard someone coming into the mountains. At first, she thought it was Yao Xiaozhuang calling for someone to find her, so she didn't dare to say anything. It wasn't until dawn, when the soldiers finished clearing out the mountain people and went back, that she heard something was wrong and immediately called for help, which is how she was rescued.
Xing Zhaozhao's heart tightened as she listened. So, was Xiao Lan from the previous life still lying in that deep ditch, waiting for someone to find her?
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