After ending the call with Chen Jin, I stopped what I was doing and immediately rushed to the foot of Cangshan Mountain; at that moment, the people who had gone up the mountain with Yang Sisi were discussing things over there...
After meeting with them, I did not complain, because complaining would not solve the problem. What we urgently need now is a practical and feasible rescue plan.
I don't really have much to say about this. I'm not someone who likes going up mountains, so I don't have much jungle experience. But I have to get involved, and I won't shirk my responsibility if there's anything I can do to help.
I know their leader; he's the owner of the inn where Yang Sisi is staying. We all call him Brother Qiu. He's a middle-aged man around forty years old. Besides running the inn, he also likes to sell some mountain products on WeChat Moments. He's a typical member of the mountain-dwelling community in Dali.
Ball handed me a cigarette, then said to me with a particularly apologetic tone, "Brother, I'm really sorry... I'm the team leader, I'm responsible for this!"
"Find someone; there's no point in saying all this..."
After a brief pause, I asked again, "Besides walkie-talkies, do you have any other survival equipment?"
"It was also equipped with a laser flashlight, which can send out distress signals... but the trees in the mountains are too dense, so it's hard to say whether we can find a gap to send out the signal."
"Ball Bro, tell me the truth, with our current group, how difficult is it to find her?"
Ball glanced at me, took another deep drag of his cigarette, and replied, "The walkie-talkie hasn't received a signal, which means she's already far from the area we marked out... From below, Cangshan doesn't seem like much, but once you actually go in and get lost, it's almost impossible to find your way out... because once you're inside, you have absolutely no sense of direction..."
"I know that... So what's the most efficient solution right now?"
“Find several experienced guides to join us in the area we previously demarcated, and then split up to search for her in several different directions… A person’s physical strength is limited, and even if she wanted to walk, she couldn’t possibly go beyond this area of ten kilometers… But it’s raining on Cangshan Mountain, there’s no light at all, and the terrain is steep, so it’s hard to guarantee the safety of those who go up there… The best outcome would be if she could send out a signal herself. Once we’ve determined her location and know that she’s alright, things will be much easier!”
"What's the worst that could happen?"
Ball's cheeks twitched twice before he replied, "I'm most afraid she'll faint from the fall... that would be really dangerous. First of all, if you call her, she won't respond... it's like looking for a needle in a haystack!"
Is this highly likely?
"I can't just say things like that..."
"We're just exploring possibilities, so feel free to say whatever you think."
"Uh...that's possible...Logically, it's already dark, the laser flashlight's beam should be very conspicuous, and there should be a chance to send out a signal...but I haven't seen it yet..."
After Ball finished speaking, I subconsciously looked up, and there...
The dark clouds gathered even denser... Just thinking about it makes me feel oppressed by the gloom that blots out the sun, let alone Yang Sisi who is right in the middle of it... She must be terrified right now!
I long for a ray of light to shine through the dense foliage—that is the hope of life…
She's too young; she has so much time to squander. Meanwhile, I'm still waiting to eat the nutritious meals she ordered for me tomorrow... I wish I could eat them for the rest of my life!
The more I thought about it, the sadder I became... even guilty. Why didn't I stop her when she told me about going up the mountain to pick matsutake mushrooms? ...I know she's a carefree person who likes to get into trouble, so how could I let her do something so dangerous?
I finally spoke to Ball and asked, "Did you call the police?"
"Hmm... but their efficiency isn't necessarily as high as ours... There's no professional rescue team here. In the past, when people went missing inside, it was only after the police were notified that civilian resources were mobilized to search for them in the mountains..."
"Then let's find more people with experience climbing mountains... so they don't work for nothing. I'll give each person who participates a 1,000 yuan bonus, and after I find more people, I'll give them another 1,000!"
"Brother... it's just too late now, and it's raining on the mountain... even experienced people wouldn't dare to go up there rashly... let's try to find someone. Anyone who can help at this time won't be too concerned about money."
"I'm anxious...I'm anxious, you know that!..."
I was a bit incoherent, and then I thought of Ye Zhi's painful days after the accident at sea... The more I thought about it, the more confused I became. I wished I could sprout wings and fly all the way from the foot of Cangshan Mountain to its summit...
I don't care about the wind and rain, I just want to know where Yang Sisi is and whether she is safe.
...
Just then, a very conspicuous green light shot out from the dense forest. I was the first to spot it; I was instantly overjoyed, and then I patted Ball on the shoulder and said, "Look, isn't that the signal?"
Ball looked back, but the light had already disappeared.
"I saw it, I really saw it... Did you see it?"
At that moment, there were about ten people present. I wasn't confused. When I asked the question, someone immediately chimed in, saying that they had also seen the light 'shot' out of the laser flashlight.
I said urgently, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go up and save them!"
Ball called me back, saying, "Brother, don't rush... now is not the time to go up. We can see the signal down here... but once we're in the mountains, we won't see anything at all..."
As they were talking, the light flashed again, and this time, Ball saw it too.
He continued, "Going inside to search would be a waste of time, and it wouldn't be easy to pinpoint the location..."
"Then what should we do?"
"I remember a few years ago, there was a huge fire in Cangshan."
Helicopters have participated in rescues before… I don’t know if the helicopters belonged to the forestry department or some armed unit… If you have such connections and can get a helicopter, things will be much simpler… Relying solely on manpower, it’s really difficult to pinpoint the location, and it’s very dangerous!”
"Aren't there police officers involved in the rescue...? Can they mobilize this public resource?"
Just as we were discussing this, someone in the crowd said, "During the fire two years ago, the helicopters that came to help with the rescue were all brought in from Kunming... In Dali, only the Cangshan scenic area has privately contracted sightseeing helicopters, but we don't have that connection... I think we should stick to the original plan and go in to rescue people. Although it's a last resort, we're sure they're alright now. If we spend a little more time, we'll definitely be able to find them."
At this moment, Chen Jin, who hadn't said much, whispered in my ear, "Let's find Ye Zhi... We don't have that relationship, but she might have something... At this time, don't worry about saving face, saving lives is the priority."
This time, I didn't hesitate. I took out my phone from my pocket, forgetting that Chen Jin could also talk about this, and made the call to Ye Zhi in my own name.
(End of this chapter)
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