On this day, a cry for help was heard downstairs, and Qiao Qingqing put down her book and went out to see.
"It seems like something happened to a child." Qiao Songzhi leaned out of the escape window and listened to the noise downstairs.
"There must be a child crawling into the tunnel. I'll go down and take a look." Shao Shengan came down from the balcony, smelling of wood. He had just been chopping wood on the terrace.
"I'll go with you, Mom. You take good care of my brother."
The couple went downstairs together and met Chen Binggang and others on the seventh floor who were also going downstairs to check.
"It feels like something happened to a child. I said those passages should be blocked, otherwise it would be terrible if a child crawled in." Chen Binggang muttered.
"The entrances to the tunnels in our building are all blocked. I usually tell my children not to go out to play, and I will definitely beat them up if I find out. So they don't dare to go out. From the noise, it seems that something happened in other buildings. It's so cold, how dare the children go there? Aren't they afraid of the cold?" Wang Jiale rubbed his hands, and asked Shao Shengan with a smile if he had chopped wood, as his body was covered with sawdust.
"Yeah." Shao Shengan nodded and asked Wang Jiale if he had gone out to look for wood recently, and if they could go together next time. Qiao Qingqing had stored a lot of fuel supplies in the space, but they had not been used much yet. The wood she had picked up during the flood and the wood her neighbors had sent her in exchange for supplies had not been used up. After the big drop in temperature, in order to cover up their tracks, Qiao Qingqing's family would occasionally pretend to go out to look for wood, but they would only pick up a little to make it look like they were going out to look for wood.
Wang Jiale agreed and said they would go find it together next time, but he was a little worried: "The charcoal sent by the supply ship is too little and not enough. We still have to find wood ourselves. We have chopped up all the furniture and burned it, but it is still cold. I am now hoping that it will rain wood from the sky!"
As they were talking, they came downstairs and followed the sound.
There were already some people gathered at the scene of the accident. Qiao Qingqing asked around and found out that a child had indeed entered an abandoned house and couldn't get out.
"Dig quickly! Oh my daughter, my daughter!"
"Don't worry, the tools are here!"
The crying young woman looked familiar. Qiao Qingqing recognized her as the mother of a pair of twins, a boy and a girl, from the building next door.
"How could you leave your sister in there? That's your sister, wuwuwu..."
There was a boy of about six or seven years old next to the woman. He was also in a panic, with pale lips and a pitiful look.
"Okay, don't talk about him anymore. Junjun is still young." The neighbors comforted him.
The floors of the community that were flooded were dug up one after another in the days when there was a shortage of charcoal fire. The furniture inside was taken out and used as firewood. The building where Qiao Qingqing lived was no exception. At that time, Qiao Qingqing did not participate because she thought it was too dangerous.
It was a big project, very arduous. At present, the progress of each building in the community is similar, digging to the fourth or fifth floor. Even so, the passage is winding and deep enough, and it is very dangerous to enter without tools. It seems that the child of this family went in to play, and the passage collapsed, and there was a little girl inside.
"Let's help with the tools too." Shao Shengan asked Qiao Qingqing.
"Yes. Go get it." Qiao Qingqing nodded. She didn't know if this happened in her previous life. Except for necessary outings, she always stayed at home. There were often crying, calls for help and shouting during natural disasters. The joys and sorrows of human beings often penetrated Qiao Qingqing's ears through the gaps in the sealed doors and windows. She heard it, but didn't dare to get close. She just hid in her shell. So even if she was reborn, she didn't fully understand what happened in this community.
While waiting for Shao Shengan, the child's father finally rushed downstairs with a shovel, and neighbors who had returned home to get tools also rushed over one after another, and seven or eight people dug together. Unfortunately, the ice was too hard, so the digging was not fast.
"I'm here. You stand aside and I'll do the digging." Shao Shengan rolled up his sleeves and joined the digging team.
"How could it collapse? Isn't this damn ice usually rock solid?"
"I think it's retribution. This family was disrespectful to the old lady and hid her at home after she died..."
"Shh, stop talking..."
Qiao Qingqing's feet were cold from standing there. She took a few steps to get rid of the numbness in her feet, still paying attention to the situation in the passage.
After about 40 minutes of digging, the passage was finally dug through. The child's father took the lead and tied a rope around his waist to slide in. After more than ten minutes, the rope was pulled, and the people above hurriedly pulled the rope. Judging from the expression of the person pulling the rope, the other end of the rope had gained weight. The child's mother stared with surprise, watching the rope being pulled out inch by inch in anticipation -
It’s out!
The residents couldn't help cheering.
"Meimei is not breathing!" The child's mother stumbled over and started shouting as soon as she felt the girl's breath.
“There was still something there just now.” The child’s father touched it in disbelief and fell to the ground.
"Artificial respiration, rescue immediately."
"Send him to the hospital!"
“The hospital is too far away!”
Qiao Qingqing walked over: "Let me take a look."
After a quick check, she shook her head, stood up and walked out.
The child's parents burst into tears, and the boy stood aside, at a loss. Then, as if he came to his senses, he also started to cry loudly.
"I don't want grandma's photo anymore, I want my sister, wuwuwu, sister, I want my sister..."
Shao Shengan grabbed Qiao Qingqing's hand and pulled her to his side. Feeling the chill on Shao Shengan's skin, Qiao Qingqing motioned for him to go home: "You need to change your clothes and go home to keep warm."
"Let's go."
Wang Jiale followed them back and whispered, "I just asked the boy why he went into the tunnel, and he said he was looking for a photo of his grandmother. What a pity, his sister is so pretty."
"You have to keep a close eye on your children too," said Shao Shengan.
"Don't worry! I'll keep an eye on them."
Such a tragedy in the community really sounded the alarm for all parents. Shao's father also sternly told Shao Shengfei not to go near those passages: "Otherwise I will beat you with a feather duster."
Shao Shengfei quickly assured: "I didn't go. I didn't go last time Fangfang asked me to go."
"Fangfang? Wang's child? No, I have to tell Aunt Wang about this. She has many children, so it's inevitable that she won't be able to take care of them all."
Qiao Songzhi went out for a while and when she turned back she heard the sound of a child being beaten downstairs.
Wang Jiale's wife cried out of pain, and Grandma Wang comforted her: "We don't usually beat our children, but this time we really should beat them. We have to make them feel scared. It's better to hurt them now than to get hurt later. Sigh."
Afterwards, the community strengthened the management of the tunnel, and Zheng Tiehui suggested digging it through as soon as possible and then blocking the passage.
“I don’t know if we will have to pay for it in the future.”
"Why bother? Everyone is doing it this way now. Besides, the furniture has been damaged by water and can no longer be used."
"Then let's dig. Once these furnitures are burned, I don't know where to find wood in the future."
"I heard that some people went to Fushan to cut down trees, secretly cutting them so as not to be discovered by the police..."
Zheng Tiehui coughed a few times to interrupt this dangerous topic. Even if they wanted to secretly cut down the trees on Fushan Mountain, they had to find a house to plan it secretly. How could they talk about it in public?
"Dig a tunnel first. This is also for the safety of the children nearby!"
Qiao Qingqing's family did not participate in digging the tunnel. Qiao Qingqing found a day with better weather to visit Yuan Xiaowen.
She hadn't visited Yuan Xiaowen for two months. On the day they were supposed to meet, her mother caught a cold and fell ill. Later, her condition worsened and she went to the hospital for treatment and was hospitalized. After her mother was discharged from the hospital, she was busy studying with Dr. Wei, and only now did she have time to visit.
Unexpectedly, Yuan Xiaowen, who was fine when they met two months ago, now lies on the bed in a emaciated state, and gets angry when she sees Qiao Qingqing. But she didn't get angry immediately, after all, she was just a friend, and Hu Yanhai was Wenwen's husband, not to mention that Hu Yanhai also had a beard and bloodshot eyes, and it was obvious that he was tired.
"What's wrong with her? I felt that she doesn't have a fever." She turned around and looked at Hu Yanhai.
How come Xiaowen's body became like this in less than two months?
All the spirit and weight I gained while recuperating at her home were gone.
"It's true that she didn't have a fever. Before that, she... later caught a cold and had a fever, but the fever went away quickly. However, after she recovered from the cold, she felt unwell and had trouble sleeping. Once she fell asleep, it was difficult for her to wake up. Even when she woke up, she was still groggy and had no appetite." Hu Yanhai looked heavy.
"I have asked at the nearby hospital and the city hospital a little further away, but they don't have any medicine."
City hospital?
Qiao Qingqing asked about the date. She was in the city hospital at that time, but unfortunately due to communication difficulties, they did not meet!
She examined Yuan Xiaowen first, but how long had she studied? She had only scratched the surface of medical skills, and she didn't dare to give Yuan Xiaowen the medicine she had.
Qiao Qingqing made up her mind: "I know an old Chinese doctor who is very skilled. I'll take her over first. She can't stay in a coma like this."
As soon as she stood up, she heard a weak call. She looked down and found that it was Yuan Xiaowen who opened her eyes.
"Wenwen, are you awake? It's me. I'm here to see you." Qiao Qingqing felt a little sad. She sat down and held her hand, gently blaming her for getting into this state. "You were fine when you were at my house. I think you should come home with me."
Yuan Xiaowen's haggard face looked even more decrepit in the dim candlelight of the bedroom. When her misty eyes looked over, Qiao Qingqing's heart couldn't help but tremble a few times.
"...Qingqing." Her eyes finally focused on Qiao Qingqing's face, and a smile appeared on the corners of her mouth. "I miss you so much. I miss my dad and my mom."
"I'm here now. Uncle and aunt must miss you too. Get well soon. We'll see each other again in the future."
Yuan Xiaowen's eyes became moist and she closed them again.
"I'll go get Dr. Wei right now!"
On the way to pick up Dr. Wei, Qiao Qingqing's heart was beating unsteadily. Shao Shengan saw that she was uneasy and comforted her with gentle words.
"Sheng An, my eyelids are always twitching."
"It's not that bad. Dr. Wei will find a way."
Doctor Wei's son was worried about his mother going out, so he followed her. On the way, he and Shao Shengan took turns carrying Doctor Wei. When they entered the community, Qiao Qingqing heard the mournful crying from a distance.
The crying sound penetrated into her ears with the cold wind. Qiao Qingqing quickened her speed and rushed into the community. The closer she got, the stronger the feeling of uneasiness became. She even felt that her heart was beating so fast that it was about to jump out of her chest!
When she saw the familiar figure, her frantic heartbeat seemed to stop suddenly.
Those were the crying Yuan Xiaowen’s parents-in-law, Hu Yanhai’s relatives. Looking down, that was Hu Yanhai kneeling on the ground, with his head lowered, holding in his arms——
Yuan Xiaowen.
Qiao Qingqing stopped and couldn't move forward any further.
"Qingqing!" Shao Shengan caught up with them, and his breathing quickened when he saw the scene in front of him. He immediately hugged Qiao Qingqing and covered her eyes.
"I'm fine. Let me take another look." Qiao Qingqing pulled his hand away and stared at the blood on the ground.
The red blood soaked the brown-yellow ice surface and quickly condensed into red ice crystals in the cold winter, losing all temperature and becoming icy and dazzling.
Qiao Qingqing's tears fell.
Yuan Xiaowen jumped from the 23rd floor of the community and landed on the ice on the 10th floor. When Hu Yanhai chased her down, she was already dead and did not leave a single last word. Later, Qiao Qingqing found the suicide note in her album. After reading it, Hu Yuanhai finally screamed and cried loudly and fainted.
"Let me see." Qiao Qingqing snatched the suicide note.
After the natural disaster, Yuan Xiaowen experienced the pain of bleeding during pregnancy, keeping the fetus, miscarriage, illness, etc. As Qiao Qingqing guessed, her mental state was not very good. The days of recuperation at Qiao Qingqing's house were the most relaxing days for Yuan Xiaowen.
"...The doctor said that I can't have any more children. I heard it very clearly when I was lying on the hospital bed...I really want to have another baby with Yanhai, it will definitely be very cute, but it's gone, and I can't have any more children. I'm very sad, but I'm also happy for the baby. It's too painful for a baby to be born at this time, with nothing to eat and nothing to wear, and it's so cold, the baby must not be able to bear it. ...I often dream of a child calling me mom, how happy I am in my dreams...I feel like my body is leaking air, and the cold wind is coming in. No matter how much I put on, it's useless. I want to go home, I want my parents to hold me, it must be very warm...When will Qingqing come to see me? I want to say goodbye to her, I miss my dad, my mom, and Qingqing..."
Behind the messy handwriting, the writing began to become neat.
"I don't want to drag anyone down, I want to go home."
Qiao Qingqing held the suicide note tightly, tears streaming down her face.
"Silly Wenwen, you are not dragging anyone down. I want you to be alive."
Shao Shengan also had tears in his eyes. He held Qiao Qingqing's shoulders tightly so that she could rely on him.
Hu Yanhai fainted and woke up again. Seeing that his soul had died, Qiao Qingqing endured it again and again, but still asked: "I asked you to take her to see a psychiatrist, did you really do it?"
He seemed not to understand what Qiao Qingqing said, and his eyes were unfocused.
She asked again.
"Qingqing, don't ask Dahai. Wenwen didn't go to see that psychiatrist." Hu Yanhai's mother wiped her tears. "Yanhai mentioned it to her, but she refused to go. She started crying when he mentioned it and cried so hard that she couldn't breathe. Later, we saw that she was in good spirits and was still painting. She didn't, didn't..."
"When I asked you before, you all told me that the doctor had taken medicine and that everything would be fine..." Qiao Qingqing closed her eyes. She hated Hu Yanhai, and she also hated herself for not realizing Wenwen's concealment!
"Wenwen was very happy when you came, happier than usual. She didn't look sick at all. I thought she must be too bored and it would be great if she could go out and play. I didn't expect that the child would be gone after she went out that day—"
"Child?!" Qiao Qingqing finally couldn't control herself anymore. Her chest heaved violently and her eyes seemed to be burning with anger.
"Wenwen is pregnant again?!"
The "child" in the suicide note actually refers not only to the aborted child, but also to the second one.
The last time she came to Wenwen, Wenwen was not pregnant yet - no, maybe she was pregnant at that time, but Wenwen didn’t know it, otherwise Wenwen would definitely tell her the good news.
It's been less than half a year and Wenwen has experienced miscarriage and illness twice. No wonder her mental breakdown happened so quickly!
"She is in poor health and mental state, how could you! How dare you let her get pregnant so soon!" Qiao Qingqing was furious, her hands were shaking, "Since you let her have a child, why didn't you protect her!"
Looking at the man in front of her who had lost all hope, Qiao Qingqing felt hatred in her heart.
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