The supplies were quickly moved, and Professor Oliver and his team, along with the team's commander, went to a meeting with the remaining local official organizations to discuss what actions to take next.
Wen Ruan wasn't assigned any other tasks, so after telling Oliver in advance, she planned to wander around the area.
Exhausted from the long journey, Andy had already settled into their assigned spot to rest early, leaving Wen Ruan alone.
Wen Ruan walked slowly along the street, whose original appearance was no longer recognizable.
The streets were deserted, as if the figures Wen Ruan had seen before getting out of the car were just her imagination.
She carefully examined her surroundings, gradually stopping in front of a pile of rubble, her foot poking on a large, hard wooden sign.
Wen Ruan looked down at her feet and seemed to see some writing. So she squatted down and gently brushed away the dust with her hand, revealing the words "Rosali 3rd Primary School".
Wen Ruan was stunned for a moment, as if she realized something. She looked up at the ruins in front of her, and a tear suddenly welled up for no apparent reason.
She found it difficult to describe her current emotions; it seemed like everything was instinctive, an uncontrollable reaction...
"How are you?"
Wen Ruan heard a voice behind her; it was the little boy!
He was hiding behind a wall, peeking out and whispering a question to Wen Ruan, his eyes filled with worry.
Wen Ruan wiped away her tears with her sleeve, trying her best to control her complicated emotions and expression. She forced a gentle smile, raised her hand, and beckoned the little boy to come over.
But the little boy did not lower his guard because of Wen Ruan's series of actions. He shrank back and hid behind the wall.
After only a few seconds, he quietly peeked out again, secretly observing Wen Ruan.
Wen Ruan didn't mind. She reached into her pocket, pulled out a chocolate candy, squatted down, looked in the direction of the little boy, placed the candy in her palm, and gestured for him to come and take it.
The little boy's eyes seemed to light up suddenly, and his expression became more vivid. It was as if he had gone through an extremely complicated struggle inside before finally timidly stepping forward and reaching out his hand for the candy that Wen Ruan offered him.
The little boy carefully grabbed the candy while observing Wen Ruan's expression.
After finally getting the candy, he didn't say a word, but suddenly ran off into the distance, leaving Wen Ruan staring blankly at his back.
I stared blankly at the little boy's back for a long time, until he turned a corner and disappeared.
But Wen Ruan didn't care. She carefully examined the place in front of her, which used to be a school, and moved forward step by step, struggling through the rubble and broken walls.
If it weren't for the sign, Wen Ruan would have found it hard to believe that the land beneath her feet used to be a school.
There used to be so many innocent and happy children there, learning, playing, and having fun.
But all of this changed with the onset of war.
Wen Ruan couldn't help but wonder if there were any bodies buried beneath these ruins...
Feeling a pang of fear, I stopped abruptly, turned back step by step, walked back to the spot, and stared at it for a long time.
The sun was about to set completely, and the afterglow of the sunset shone on Wen Ruan, but she could not feel any warmth.
Turning around, I prepared to walk back to the camp...
"Are you leaving?" The little boy returned and asked anxiously when he saw that Wen Ruan seemed to be leaving.
Wen Ruan turned around and looked at the little boy's somewhat anxious expression, finding it amusing: "Aren't you afraid of me?"
“I’m not afraid of you. You look just like Sister Jiang Yan. You’re a good person.” The little boy was very firm, and there was no longer any fear in his eyes when he looked at Wen Ruan.
Wen Ruan didn't know who the little boy's "Sister Jiang Yan" was, but based on the name and his words, she could roughly guess that she was probably an Asian, or even Chinese, just like Wen Ruan.
She couldn't help but recall that the commander had once said that besides them, there was also a group of scholars who had been in the area for half a year. Wen Ruan suspected that Jiang Yan was one of them.
"May I have your name?"
The little boy hesitated for a moment, as if he was thinking about something, and after a while he seemed to suddenly remember: "Leo! My name is Leo!" Then he gave a genuine smile.
"Hello, Little Leo, I'm Wen Ruan."
"Wen...Ruan!" Little Leo imitated Wen Ruan's pronunciation, slowly enunciating each word in his clumsy Chinese.
"Why did you run away when you saw me?" Wen Ruan asked, recalling Little Leo's actions.
"No, I'm not afraid of you. You're a good person, I know. Your eyes are different from theirs. Besides, you look a lot like Sister Jiang Yan. I know you won't hurt me..." Little Leo hurriedly explained, as if afraid of causing Wen Ruan to misunderstand.
When Wen Ruan heard the word "they," her heart skipped a beat, as if she really wanted to know who the little boy was talking about.
“I just went to give candy to my sister. She has never seen candy since she was born.”
"Then you are truly a wonderful older brother," Wen Ruan praised.
"Where are your mom and dad?" Wen Ruan recalled seeing many figures earlier, but now there was no one there, only the little boy.
The little boy's initial cheerfulness vanished instantly. He lowered his head and shook it blankly, saying, "I don't know..."
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