Before Wen Ruan could process this shock, Song Yan continued, "The twenty-three girls who were willing to be brought back are still at the guesthouse. The newspaper has been out for a day, and no one has come to pick them up yet."
“How could that be… Is the news reported too early? Haven’t their families seen it yet? Let’s wait a few more days…” Wen Ruan said, her voice trembling with emotion, trying to salvage the situation.
She felt as if her throat was blocked, and for some reason, her heart felt as if it were being enveloped by waves of water, constantly being squeezed, making it hard to breathe.
"It wasn't their fault at all..."
Song Yan could tell that Wen Ruan seemed a little unable to accept it, but there was nothing else he could do but patiently comfort her, saying, "Let's wait a few more days, maybe their family hasn't had a chance to see them yet."
"What if no one comes in the end?" Wen Ruan looked up, her eyes widening, afraid that the tears welling up in her eyes might accidentally fall.
"The police said they would have to wait a week. If no family members still come to claim them... they'll see if they can send someone to take them home one by one... In short, it depends on their own opinion..." Song Yan couldn't come up with a final solution either.
Wen Ruan knew that at this time, population movement and household registration systems were strictly managed, unlike in modern times when people could move around freely...
Wen Ruan felt a pang of sadness upon hearing this. She had always been a very empathetic person. In modern times, when reading a novel or watching a TV series, she would cry her eyes out if she encountered a touching scene or a tragedy.
Besides... this isn't a novel or a movie, it's a true story... it's about vibrant young girls suddenly encountering hardship, their lives, once full of hope, being destroyed into ruins by scumbags.
Song Yan hugged Wen Ruan tightly, offering silent comfort. He also felt heartbroken for the girls, but he knew there was no particularly good solution right now. At this moment, all they could do was wait...
......
This matter caused quite a stir, and even Song's mother, who was usually oblivious to worldly affairs and even somewhat detached from reality, heard about it and paid close attention.
During those days, whenever Wen Ruan went out, she would sometimes hear people on the street discussing this matter. There were two groups of people: one group, like her, felt great sympathy for the victims and felt sorry for them; the other group... frequently made such comments...
"If they don't go out, everything will be fine..."
"It must be because they're so young, their minds aren't on the right things, they're just thinking about dressing themselves up every day, otherwise why don't human traffickers kidnap other people..."
Whenever Wen Ruan heard such arguments, she would grit her teeth in anger, wishing she could tear their mouths apart. What she couldn't understand the most was that there were even women who said such things, and Wen Ruan felt a chill in her heart.
In order to get the latest news about this matter, Wen Ruan often went to the compound during the day, hoping to get even a little bit of information from Song's mother, even though Song's father was not there.
Unfortunately, this matter may have involved a wide range of people, and Mr. Song has remained tight-lipped about the case itself, never mentioning it at home. However, Mrs. Song has learned some information about the poor girls...
As of now, a week has passed, and out of the twenty-three girls, only eight sets of parents have come to take them home...
That means there are still fifteen girls left, and none of them have family members to look for them...
Wen Ruan asked, "What about the rest of them? Should we send them home?"
"From what your father said, the higher-ups might want to delay for another week. If no one comes to claim them, they will send someone to take them home based on the girls' memories..." Song's mother sighed and shook her head.
"But... will they be okay in the future...?" Wen Ruan murmured.
All she received was silence from Song's mother.
When Wen Ruan returned home that evening, she told Song Yan the news she had received from Song's mother during the day.
Song Yan already knew about this news, because he was the one who took the initiative to report it, and he was also specially approved to participate in the investigation. It can be said that he was very clear about all the progress of this matter, except for the most crucial information.
Watching Wen Ruan's constant worry for those girls, Song Yan felt a mixture of anxiety and pride. He was proud that the woman he loved was kind, righteous, and responsible; yet he was also worried because he knew the outcome of this matter wouldn't be good, and he feared that excessive worry would harm her health...
After thinking for a moment, she said, "Ruan Ruan, those are things that happened later, but the girls who are still around are in a very bad mood, especially after some of them were picked up by their families... Some of them even tried to..."
Although Song Yan didn't say what they wanted to do... she understood... Perhaps they felt abandoned by their families. After all, they had finally escaped from a hellish place, hoping to return to their former lives and get everything back on track, but reality dealt them a heavy blow...
“There are a limited number of female police officers in the bureau, and we’re a bit short-handed. Would you be willing to help out, to counsel them, or just keep them company?” Song Yan felt he needed to find something for Wen Ruan to do; he could understand her excessive focus on this matter.
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