Chapter 18 18 Not really, it’s just his wishful thinking
After the sun completely jumped out of the horizon, the entire campsite became busy, packing up everything noisily yet quietly.
Everyone seemed to be being chased by something and was rushing down the mountain, moving much faster than when they were setting up camp yesterday.
Guan Xia and Pang Le also moved quickly. They divided the work and worked together to pack all the things into bags and stuff them into backpacks.
After confirming that everything in the tent had been packed up, Dong Yuncheng and Shi Lu began to pack up the tent.
Guan Xia followed and put the broken nails and other things into the bag one by one, making sure that nothing was missed and they could be used next time.
After packing up the tent, Shi Lu walked to the corner to make a phone call. Pang Le, who had disappeared for a while, reappeared with two instant noodles in his hand. He trotted over and handed them to the two of them, "I exchanged the tea eggs for hot water. I just made them. You can eat first." After saying that, he ran away again.
Guan Xia and Dong Yuncheng looked at each other, and tacitly found a place where there was no one and sheltered from the wind to start eating.
They both had instant noodles of the same flavor. Just when they were halfway through their meal, Shi Lu came over after finishing his phone call, his face even uglier than last night.
Guan Xia had already guessed something without him saying anything.
Sure enough, Shi Lu said, "The rescue team has been searching all night and still hasn't found it."
Guan Xia subconsciously looked towards the Niujiao Peak across the street, and felt his heart sink.
If there had been a glimmer of hope last night, the definite outcome was now foreseeable.
It rained for half the night and we were deep in the mountains. Even an adult would have been likely to suffer from hypothermia, let alone such a weak child.
"Don't worry about us, you should pay more attention to your safety."
Shi Lu nodded, turned around and looked around. Not seeing the person he was looking for, he turned back to Guan Xia and asked, "Where's Pang Le?"
Guan Xia was about to speak when she saw Pang Le jogging back with two more instant noodles.
"Eat quickly," Pang Le stuffed one into Shi Lu's hand, "I just looked around and everyone has almost finished packing. I guess we'll be leaving soon, so hurry up."
Shi Lu wanted to say something, but Pang Le was already squatting next to Guan Xia and eating quickly in a very ungraceful manner. He could only swallow his words back. After thinking for a while, he walked over and squatted next to Pang Le and started eating.
This was the most anxious meal Guan Xia had ever eaten. In order to have enough energy to go down the mountain, he drank up all the soup and even ate two pieces of chocolate.
Dong Yuncheng ate faster than Guan Xia. He walked to where the backpack was and picked up the plastic bag containing the garbage. He also stuffed a few candies into Guan Xia's pocket.
"Try it," Dong Yuncheng casually took the instant noodle bucket from Guan Xia's hand and threw it into the trash bag, saying with a smile, "I bought this from a treasure shop I found online. It's not too sweet and has a strong fruity flavor."
Guan Xia peeled one and put it in her mouth as she was told. It was indeed much less sweet than the one Pang Le gave her, and not easy to get sick of.
Glancing at Pang Le beside her, Guan Xia lowered her voice and commented, "It's delicious."
Dong Yuncheng's smile grew a little wider, and he took out another handful from his pocket and put it in Guan Xia's palm.
Guan Xia quickly put it away.
After a quick meal, the people in the camp had indeed packed up and were ready to set off as Pang Le had said.
Putting on his backpack, Guan Xia observed that there were not many people going down the mountain directly, only three or four. The others were all going to participate in the search and rescue, including the tall Song Yi who was always full of energy and whose ponytail would flutter as she walked.
Looking at their solemn yet somewhat excited expressions, Guan Xia suddenly felt guilty and couldn't help but look at Pang Le, "You really don't want to go? Actually, I can do it. Look, there are quite a few people coming down the mountain. I promise you that I will get home safely."
Guan Xia wanted to swear to the heavens.
Pang Le glared at Guan Xia and said, "I don't want to lose my temper so early in the morning. You'd better use your brain before you speak."
Guan Xia immediately became intimidated and stopped talking. She could see that Pang Le was a little angry.
The group walked together for a few hundred meters, climbed back to the top of the mountain, and then separated.
Shi Lu patted Dong Yuncheng's shoulder heavily, whispered a few words, told Pang Le to call him when he got back, and then went to meet up with the people who were going to participate in the rescue, and walked towards another road without looking back.
Guan Xia and the others watched the group of people until they could no longer see their figures, and then they looked away.
"Let's go, let's go down the mountain too." Pang Le adjusted Guan Xia's backpack strap and walked in front to lead the way.
Dong Yuncheng still walked behind Guan Xia as he did when he came.
It is said that going up a mountain is easier than going down, and Guan Xia really experienced it this time.
Although the rain last night was not heavy, it still soaked the soil thoroughly after falling for half the night, and people had to walk very carefully to maintain their balance.
Guan Xia tried his best to make every step steady, but he still fell several times on the way down the mountain. There were several steep slopes where he completely slid down. When they finally got down the mountain, everyone, including Pang Le, was in a mess.
The first thing Guan Xia did when she stood on flat ground was to take out some wet wipes and use them to wipe her face and hands.
Finally, the sticky feeling was gone, and Guan Xia breathed a sigh of relief. "Should we drive straight back? Or should we wait for Shi Lu? They're going to participate in the rescue, so will the rescue team be responsible for sending them back after the rescue is over?"
Guan Xia had never done this kind of thing before and really didn't know the process.
"No need to wait for him," Dong Yuncheng took out the car keys from the inner pocket of his jacket. "They will go back with the rescue team's car. Did you bring clothes? Go back to the car and change. Then we'll drive straight back."
Guan Xia was about to answer that she didn't bring any, but Pang Le suddenly said, "I did."
Pang Le looked at Guan Xia and said, "I brought some for you too."
"Let's go," Dong Yuncheng said as he walked towards the parking lot, his tone a little more relaxed. "We're finally down the mountain. I really don't want to wear these wet clothes for another minute."
Men and women took turns changing clothes in the car, stuffing them into empty bags. Dong Yuncheng couldn't wait to start the car, "Let's go."
On the way back, none of the three were in the mood to talk. They were silent all the way until Dong Yuncheng drove the car to the door of Guan Xia's apartment. Pang Le finally spoke, "Don't think too much. Go back and take a hot bath. It's best to drink some Isatis root or something. Be careful of catching a cold. Call me if anything happens."
Guan Xia nodded obediently, and after thinking for a moment, she said, "That child...if there's any news about that child, give me a call, and..."
Guan Xia was interrupted by Pang Le before she could finish her words.
Pang Le pinched Guan Xia's face and said, "Don't worry, I will go and find out the information. I am also very curious about the identity of the murderer and why he would kill a child in this way."
"Go ahead," Pang Le grabbed Guan Xia's shoulders and turned her around, then gave her a gentle push. "You didn't sleep well last night and you went down the mountain so early this morning. Go back and catch up on some sleep."
Guan Xia said goodbye to Pang Le, waved to Dong Yuncheng who was standing beside her, and then walked into the corridor.
Guan Xia originally thought that she would not get any news until very late, but unexpectedly, Pang Le called her just after she took a hot shower and the takeaway she ordered had not arrived yet.
Guan Xia picked up the phone and heard Pang Le say, "I asked my ex-boyfriend and found out that the murderer is the little boy's biological father."
Guan Xia wasn't surprised, but she couldn't understand why he would kill his own child. Even a tiger wouldn't eat its own cubs, and he wanted to disguise the death as an accident. Was he trying to defraud the insurance company?
This was Guan Xia’s first reaction.
Pang Le sneered, "Because of love, it doesn't count. It's just his wishful thinking."
Guan Xia understood and was even more incredulous. "Or is it just wishful thinking?"
Pang Le couldn't help but sneer again, "Ridiculous, right? I think it's ridiculous too. Last night, that man and Shi Lu called the police one after another. The man thought it was flawless, but he didn't expect the crime process to be filmed. When he was first tortured, he kept scolding the police. Later, when he found out there was a video, he wilted and quickly confessed. He and his ex-wife have been divorced for several years and have always wanted to remarry. He has been on blind dates several times, and there are some who are willing, but he is either picky about the woman's age and appearance, or picky about divorced women with children, so they never got together. A few months ago, a young girl who had just graduated less than two years ago came to his workplace. He fell in love at first sight, but he felt that having a child would be the biggest obstacle between them. In addition, the little boy was a bit naughty and had poor academic performance. He always felt that the child would be stupid like his mother and would have no future when he grew up. It would be better to have another child with that young girl. He had already inquired about it. The girl graduated from a prestigious university. Her family was not well off, but she was very smart. He also graduated from college. No matter who the child looks like, the IQ will not be low."
Guan Xia was so angry that she laughed, "So he killed the child? Just because he had a one-sided crush on an outstanding girl, he found so many excuses to kill his own child?"
Pang Le didn't say anything, but from the rapid breathing coming from the phone, it was clear that she was as angry as Guan Xia.
After a moment of silence, Pang Le spoke again, "Song Yi's video not only apprehended the murderer, but also saved the girl."
Guan Xia was surprised, "Does that bastard have any follow-up plans?"
Pang Le: "When the police searched his home, they found a lot of secretly taken photos of that girl under the back of the bed. He had stalked her more than once and even secretly installed a camera in a birthday gift someone gave her at a company dinner."
Guan Xia was so shocked that her mind went blank and she didn't know what to say.
Pang Le cursed angrily before speaking in a deep voice, "Guan Xia, I don't know if it's my imagination, but I always feel that the frequency of crimes happening around me has increased. Although there have been cases around me since I was a child, it's never like the recent ones. This is the second case in half a month, not counting the wanted criminal. Don't you think something is amiss?"
Pang Le paused and continued, "And I always have an inexplicable premonition that maybe... this situation will continue. Do you think we ran into something while traveling? Otherwise, how could we be so unlucky? Why don't we go to the temple to pray?"
Guan Xia didn't know how to answer for a moment.
Seriously speaking, it was indeed Guan Xia's fault. Although he didn't hit anything and just activated the system, Pang Le's premonition was correct after all. This situation will indeed continue and the frequency may even become higher.
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