“What’s wrong?” asked Ye Shuyun when she saw the look on Lu Yi’s face. Heart tightening, she asked, “Don’t tell me it’s about your Dad and Huanhuan…”
“Relax, Mom,” assured Lu Yi, pointing at the television. “This is a live broadcast, so what we are seeing is happening there right now. Dad’s fine, but Ye Xinyu’s in danger.”
“Xinyu? What happened to him?” asked Ye Shuyun, turning around. What could have happened to that kid?
Lu Yi didn’t know how to tell her. At least Lu Jin was confirmed to be well and alive, or the news about Ye Xinyu would have been too much for her to bear. Ye Xinyu was like Ye Shuyun’s other son— she had brought him up from a young age.
He’s in Serene City too. Lu Yu shut his eyes. That was the only way to repress the stress in his heart. What was Ye Xinyu doing there? They already have enough to worry about.
He took out his phone and gave Lei Qingyi a call.
“It’s me, Qingyi. Help me check Ye Xinyu’s travel records. The kid might be in Serene City.”
“What?” Lei Qingyi’s eyes widened. “What’s he doing there? Is he out of his mind?!”
Lei Qingyi shot up from the chair. What was he doing there? Isn’t there enough trouble already? They had at last heard about Lu Jin and Yan Huan, but what about that kid?
“Oh, right, I was gonna tell you that your Dad and Yan Huan has been confirmed safe. They seem to be doing fine.”
“I know. I watched the news,” said Lu Yi. His low voice wasn’t as stressed as before now that he knew they were fine, but that place still worried him.
Lei Qingyi sighed. He had been very nervous about the Lu Family too. He didn’t dare think what might happen to Ye Shuyun and Lu Yi had something happened to Yan Huan and Lu Jin.
She will lose her husband and daughter-in-law, and him his father and his wife. The pain would be devastating.
Thank god they are fine.
Until now, Yi Ling didn’t know a thing about what happened to Yan Huan. Yi Ling was pregnant—out of consideration for the child, they forbid her from even watching the television, afraid that she might find out about Yan Huan.
Yi Ling was beyond a sister to Yan Huan, and he feared that she wouldn’t be able to handle the news. Ever since she was with child, Lei Qingyi would get worried at even a sneeze from her, afraid that it would harm the baby. If she were to know about Yan Huan…
He dared not imagine.
Like he said, thank goodness they are fine.
Still, he slammed the table hard. What was that brat Ye Xinyu doing at Serene City?
Maybe he had already left Serene City and was now enjoying his time elsewhere.
He returned to his office desk and sat down. Picking up the speaker on the table, he began on the task of inquiring about Ye Xinyu’s travel records himself.
An hour later, he sat staring at the computer still-faced and unmoving.
Ye Xinyu’s name had last appeared in an ATM record in Serene City. And the hotel he checked into was not far from Lu Yi. He was caught in the epicenter, and if that was the case, he’s most likely…
He facepalmed himself. It’s over. The kid’s most likely gone.
Lu Jin and Yan Huan’s survival was a surprise, or rather, a miracle to them, and miracles rarely come twice in a row.
He picked up the phone and hesitated for a good deal of time before calling.
“I have got news, but… it’s not the best news. Ye Xinyu is currently in Serene City, and he had been staying in a hotel close to your Dad’s,” Lei Qingyu broke off. He knew he had already gotten his point across.
It had been nearly 36 hours since the earthquake at Serene City. Normally, the first 48 hours after a quake would be the best time for rescue missions, but the heavy rain, obstructed roads, and disrupted traffic had cut off most routes to Serene City, not to mention the rain had triggered a flash flood. Worst still, the large bridge that led to Serene City had a river beneath it, and the river level always rose during this season. Now that the bridge was broken, it had cut off one of the main entrances to Serene City.
The other roads were also badly damaged, adding even more difficulty to rescue efforts.
Most of the people that got to the disaster zone had done so by helicopter, including the local rescue army, rushing to fix the roads and making sure that the supplies get over.
Yan Huan wiped her face with the back of her hand and looked up. There was another helicopter. She wondered what kind of supplies were in this one. This wasn’t a mirthful place; no matter how many they saved, the crying will drown out the laughter.
Some relished in their luck of surviving the disaster, but for others, living was all they had left. Living alone.
In the humming of the helicopter, people kept getting moved around in stretchers. Two days had passed, and it was still hell.
She marched on, joining others in the rescue effort. She wasn’t a soldier before a woman.
Her hand had suffered countless scrapes. She bled and felt pain, but none of that can compared to the pain in her heart. She knew this would happen, but there was nothing she could have done. What was she doing here? Redemption? Mitigating the damage?
But how much can she mitigate?
No matter how powerful she was, she couldn’t have saved every victim of this earthquake.
She suddenly huddled up and wept, overwhelmed by sadness and pain.
“Are you alright?” asked the reporter as he approached her again. Recently, his camera had almost solely been focusing on Yan Huan and Lu Jin. The actress, Yan Huan, had made him see the world with new eyes. Her positivity radiated and moved hearts.
“I’m fine,” said Yan Huan, looking up with red eyes from crying. She was covered in wounds big and small, wearing dirt-stained clothes that haven’t been washed in days. Yet her eyes shone bright like the surface of a clear, blue lake.