TSWPF -Chapter 119 Missing

Late at night, the rain that had stopped for two days began to fall again—this time even heavier and more violent than before.

Li Qingling, who had been sleeping soundly, suddenly snapped awake. She reached up to wipe the cold sweat from her forehead and let out a soft breath.

She had had a nightmare.

In her dream, their home had been buried by a mudslide rushing down from the mountain. She was the only one who escaped; all the children were trapped beneath it.

Fortunately, it was only a dream…

She patted her chest and lay back down. Only then did she hear the sound of rain outside—the loud patter as it slammed against the roof, as if it were about to smash straight through the tiles.

Her heart lurched again.

She quickly got up and walked to the window, pushing it open just a crack. Instantly, heavy rain splashed inside.

She hurriedly shut the window. Without caring that her clothes were now wet, she turned, opened the bedroom door, and rushed out.

The scene from her dream made her heart race uncontrollably.

“Brother Zhimou, get up—quick!” She ran to Liu Zhimou’s door and pounded on it hard.

A moment later, the door opened. Seeing Li Qingling’s panicked face, Liu Zhimou was startled. “What’s wrong? What happened?” He had never seen her this flustered before.

“There’s no time to explain. Let’s wake the children and leave first,” she said, grabbing his hand and pulling him toward the children’s room.

The children liked sleeping together, which saved precious time.

As soon as Li Qingling reached their bedside, she shook them urgently, calling out their names.

Li Qingfeng and the others woke groggily. Seeing Li Qingling and Liu Zhimou, they asked sleepily what was going on.

“Come with me—now!” she shouted, scooping up the two little ones who were still half-asleep. Liu Zhimou stepped in and took Li Qingning from her arms.

Startled by her shout, Li Qingfeng and the others jolted awake, jumped down from the bed, and ran after her.

While Li Qingling was waking the children, Ah Huang and Ah Bai heard the commotion and ran out as well.

Seeing them, she shouted loudly, “Ah Huang, Ah Bai—follow us!” Holding Liu Zhirou in her arms, she broke into a run.

Better safe than sorry.

The last time their house collapsed under the weight of heavy snow, she had felt the same ominous dread. This time, she dared not take it lightly.

Seeing how panicked Li Qingling was, Liu Zhimou and the others grew tense as well and started running with her.

There was only one thought in Li Qingling’s mind: run—run as fast as possible.

It wasn’t until she burst out of the house and was drenched by the rain that she realized she had forgotten to grab the rain capes.

She glanced down at Liu Zhirou in her arms, clenched her teeth, pushed open the courtyard gate, and kept running.

At that moment, a thunderous boom echoed from the mountain.

Li Qingling turned her head and saw the earth on the mountainside surging downward like a demonic wave.

“Run—run!” she screamed, eyes wide, clutching Liu Zhirou tightly as she sprinted with all her strength.

They were fast—but the mudslide was faster.

In an instant, it came roaring down.

Li Qingling felt an irresistible force shove her forward. As she was flung away, she wrapped both arms tightly around Liu Zhirou, trying desperately to shield her.

She slammed into the ground with a muffled groan. Her head spun, and it took a long moment before she regained her senses.

The first thing she did was look down at Liu Zhirou. Seeing the child staring blankly, her heart clenched. “Rourou, what’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

Liu Zhirou mechanically lifted her head to look at Li Qingling. A moment later, she burst into tears.

She wrapped her arms tightly around Li Qingling’s neck, her small body trembling. The terrifying scene had truly frightened her.

“It’s all right, it’s all right…” Knowing she was just scared, Li Qingling endured the pain in her own body and gently soothed her.

“Brother…”

Hearing Liu Zhirou call out to Liu Zhimou through sobs, Li Qingling’s mind suddenly snapped back into clarity. Panic surged again. She hurriedly struggled to her feet.

What about the others?

She turned and saw Liu Zhimou holding Li Qingning, who was unconscious. Her voice trembled as she asked, “Brother Zhimou—where are the others? Did they make it out?”

Dragging his injured leg, Liu Zhimou slowly walked over. “Don’t be afraid. I’ll go look for them.” He set Liu Zhirou down and handed Li Qingning to Li Qingling.

“Qingning, she—”

“She’s fine. She just fainted.” He gently hugged the trembling Li Qingling. “You wait here. I’ll go search for them.”

Li Qingling shook her head. “No—we’ll look together.”

But the night was pitch-black, and finding people would be difficult.

They had been able to run so quickly earlier only because they were familiar with the terrain. Now, everything had been buried by mud and debris. They didn’t know where was where anymore—or whether the others had been thrown clear… or—

No. No.

Li Qingling violently shook her head, banishing the terrible thoughts.

They must have escaped. They had to have escaped.

“All right. We’ll search together,” Liu Zhimou said. Seeing her state, he didn’t dare leave her alone with two small children anyway.

He bent down and picked up Liu Zhirou, then took Li Qingling’s hand, feeling their way forward. “Xiaofeng, Xiaoyan, Dahe—where are you? If you hear us, answer!”

Li Qingling took a deep breath, forcing herself to steady her nerves, and shouted as well, “Ah Huang, Ah Bai—are you there? Bark if you hear us!”

They called out for a long time, but there was no response.

Their hearts sank.

Had something really happened to them?

“Brother Zhimou… what do we do? Did they not make it out?” Li Qingling trembled all over—whether from the cold rain or sheer terror, she couldn’t tell.

Liu Zhimou knew this couldn’t go on. The rain was too heavy. Even adults couldn’t endure it for long, let alone the children.

“Qingling, the girls aren’t as strong as we are. If they keep getting drenched, they’ll get sick. Let’s take them to Village Head Grandpa’s place first, then come back to look for the boys.”

Only then did Li Qingling realize this, guilt flashing across her face as she nodded.

In a crisis like this, she had lost her composure and overlooked such an important thing.

Liu Zhimou gripped her hand firmly and led her carefully toward the village head’s house.

The path was dark and slippery. Carrying the two children, they trudged for a long time before finally arriving.

Liu Zhimou released Li Qingling’s hand, stepped forward, and knocked hard on the door, calling out.

After nearly a quarter of an hour, a voice finally came from inside. “Who is it?”

Recognizing the voice of the village head’s eldest son, Liu Zhimou called out, “Uncle Li, it’s me—Zhimou.”

Hearing his voice, the village head’s eldest son hurried to open the door. When he saw the soaked group, he was startled. “Why are you all out in this rain without even wearing rain capes? Come in—quickly, come in!”

Liu Zhimou and Li Qingling carried the children inside. The village head had also awakened and came out.

Seeing their state, he was shocked. “What… what happened?”

Wiping the rainwater from his face, Liu Zhimou forced a bitter smile. “Village Head Grandpa, Niutou Mountain collapsed. If we hadn’t run fast, we would’ve been buried.” His expression grew even more pained. “Please help us look after the two girls. Qingling and I need to go look for the boys…”

At this point, the village head was truly stunned. He had never imagined that Niutou Mountain would collapse.

“Son! Hurry—call your wife out to look after the children. We’re going to help search for people!”

The village head’s eldest son snapped out of it, nodded repeatedly, and ran back inside, shouting for his wife to get up.

Liu Zhimou was deeply grateful for the village head’s help. He and Li Qingling bowed to him. “Thank you, Village Head Grandpa.”

More hands meant more strength. He would not refuse the help.

The eldest daughter-in-law hurried out, alarmed by the news. “Oh dear, give the children to me. Wearing wet clothes like this will make them sick.”

She took Liu Zhirou from Liu Zhimou, then turned to Li Qingling. “Qingling, bring Qingning inside with me. Let’s change their clothes.”

Li Qingling answered and followed her in.

After the clothes were changed, Li Qingning slowly opened her big eyes. The moment she saw Li Qingling, she burst into tears.

Hearing her cry, Liu Zhirou couldn’t help crying as well.

Li Qingling pulled both children into her arms, eyes red as she comforted them. “Sister’s here. Don’t be afraid.”

After a while, thinking of Li Qingfeng and the others whose fate was still unknown, she hardened her heart. Gently pushing the girls away, she said, “Sister is going to find your brothers. You stay here with Auntie and be good, okay?”

As soon as they heard she was leaving, the two little ones clung to her and refused to let go.

“Don’t you want to find your brothers?” Li Qingling said sternly. “Listen to me. Stay here and be good. As soon as I find them, I’ll come back. All right?”

Normally, she would patiently coax them. But now there was no time—the boys’ situation was unknown. She had to find them as soon as possible.

“All right…” Though frightened, the two children nodded obediently.

“Good.” Li Qingling pressed her lips together and stroked their heads. Turning to the village head’s daughter-in-law, she said, “Auntie, they were soaked in the rain for a long time. Could you please boil some ginger tea for them?”

“Of course. I’ll do it right away.”

“Thank you, Auntie.” Li Qingling thanked her, then steeled herself and turned to leave quickly.

Outside, she nodded to Liu Zhimou. “Let’s go.”

Until she saw the boys with her own eyes, her heart would not settle.

The village head woke all the adults in his household and sent his eldest son to call the villagers to help search.

This act of kindness filled Liu Zhimou and Li Qingling with deep gratitude, and they thanked the village head again and again.