"Shui Lian, let go of Nini, it’s not too late to turn back."
Shui Lian completely ignored Political Commissioner Lin’s plea and instead fixed her gaze on Jiang Jinghuai, her lips curling into a sinister smile. "I have a question for you."
"Go ahead."
"If you could only save either your son or Nini, who would you choose?"
Jiang Jinghuai replied flatly, "You won’t get that opportunity."
"Right." Shui Lian let out a self-deprecating chuckle. "I know you want to save Nini. All of you do. None of you want to take her with and jump. Fine, you can save Nini—but you’ll have to trade your son for her."
Shui Lian’s words were like a ticking ti bomb, detonating in everyone’s hearts. Her suggestion was outrageous—trading one child for another.
Jiang Jinghuai: "Impossible."
"Then we have nothing more to discuss." Shui Lian’s hand tightened around Nini’s throat, her eyes gleaming with malice. Nini let out barely audible whimpers, like a kitten, tilting her head up as she struggled to breathe.
"Shui Lian, don’t grip so hard!" Tian Sangsang stepped forward, fear written all over her face. She stopped a few paces away, staring at Shui Lian. "Let trade myself for Nini instead of my son. Will that work?"
"I don’t want you. I only want your son." Shui Lian’s rejection was ruthless and decisive. Shaking her head, she demanded, "Jinghuai, Nini or your son—choose one."
"Stop!" Jiang Jinghuai’s eyes locked firmly on her hands, the undercurrent of his emotions surging violently beneath his calm exterior. "I agree."
"But I’ll bring my son over myself." He added.
"Deal." Shui Lian slowly loosened her grip.
What...did he just say? Tian Sangsang stared at Jiang Jinghuai in disbelief. He agreed—just like that?
"Trust , Sangsang, I’ll protect him." Jiang Jinghuai glanced at her intently, his voice low enough for just the two of them to hear. "Believe ."
Should she believe him? Could she?
His strong, dry hand briefly smoothed over her face, and in that mont, her icy heart ward, her frantic pulse calming. "I’ll trust you this one ti." This sentence was her limit. After all, she wasn’t generous enough to sacrifice her son to save soone else’s child. She was willing to sacrifice herself to save Nini, but Shui Lian wouldn’t allow that. So she trusted him—just this once. He was, after all, the child’s father. If anyone could protect him, it had to be him. Just as he said.
"Yanyan, co with Daddy." His hand carefully stroked the little boy’s head, his voice steady and calm. "Are you scared?"
ng Shuyan shook his head.
Political Commissioner Lin and the others exchanged looks, their bodies tensed and ready. The plan was simple: as soon as Jiang Jinghuai secured Nini, they would subdue Shui Lian and ensure the safety of ng Shuyan.
Jiang Jinghuai took ng Shuyan’s hand and began walking toward Shui Lian, step by step. Just as they approached her, Shui Lian suddenly clung to Nini and, in a crazed frenzy, leaped off the cliff.
None of them anticipated this. She didn’t throw Nini forward or drag Jiang Jinghuai down with her. Instead, she jumped with Nini in her arms.
Jiang Jinghuai’s dark eyes narrowed dangerously. In a flash, he released ng Shuyan’s hand and lunged forward, grabbing Shui Lian’s wrist and pulling her upward with every ounce of his strength.
At that critical mont, Shui Lian let out a chilling laugh and released Nini.
"NINI!"
Fuck!
The act of rescuing Shui Lian had already been near impossible. And now he had to free up a hand to save Nini. With both Jiang Jinghuai and Nini dangling in midair, he clung to the cliff with one hand and grasped Nini’s little hand with the other, struggling to maintain his grip.
What was Shui Lian intending to do?
The gun that appeared in her hand provided a chilling answer.
No one had expected Shui Lian to have a gun! The black handgun was steady in her grasp as she pulled the trigger. The bullet tore through the air, heading straight for—ng Shuyan.
"YANYAN!" Tian Sangsang’s anguished cry pierced the air. "WATCH OUT!"
"NINI!" "JINGHUAI!" ca the panicked shouts of Fang Tongzhou and the others.
BANG! At the sa mont Shui Lian fired, Chen Xiaobing’s gun discharged as well, its bullet piercing Shui Lian’s forehead. Blood gushed from the wound as her body tilted backward, falling like a dead leaf—light, so light—descending into the abyss below. Yet in her descent, she struck Jiang Jinghuai and Nini, the impact dragging them downward.
Jiang Jinghuai cradled Nini’s trembling body close, his voice hoarse against the rushing wind. "Don’t be scared, Nini."
The heart-wrenching wails ceased as the blood from a little white figure blurred the scene. Shui Lian was gone, but her haunting question still lingered in the air.
"If you could only save either your son or Nini, who would you choose?"
Only the wind carried the answer. For one agonizing mont, Tian Sangsang thought she knew what it would be. He chose Nini. No, perhaps he chose neither. Perhaps he had chosen faith instead.
This cruel faith—how could anyone accept it?
Political Commissioner Lin and Chen Xiaobing peered down the cliff. Shui Lian and the other two had vanished from sight. "Quick, notify the station. Full-scale rescue efforts, now!"
"Yanyan." Tian Sangsang dropped to her knees, her body trembling. The boy’s face was deathly pale, his vacant eyes shifting between the cliff’s edge and the limp form of Little Milk Tea on the ground.
"Mommy," he whispered, tears streaming silently down his small face.
**
"Uncle." On the riverbank, Nini’s face was as white as a sheet. She lightly pushed the man lying on the ground. "Uncle Jiang." The sound of the flowing river was ceaseless, while the eerie chirping of birds echoed through the desolate canyon.
Blood flowed from his chest. His clothes were wet, soaked through with crimson stains.
Jiang Jinghuai had a dream. He dreamt of many years ago—years he couldn’t quite recall—when his sister was tortured to death by border thugs. Now, his sister was calling out to him. But another woman’s voice wrenched him back to awareness. That voice was filled with despair—Yanyan was in danger!
His bloodless lips moved faintly as his eyes fluttered open. He saw the little girl he had saved. This obedient, sweet girl. Thankfully, she was safe.
"Uncle," Nini sobbed, tears streaming uncontrollably.
"Don’t cry." Jiang Jinghuai propped himself up with one hand, the searing pain spreading across his body. His gaze dropped to his chest, where a deep wound marred his skin—a tear inflicted by so sharp object subrged in the water.
He glanced briefly around his surroundings. Nini tugged on his shirt timidly, her small finger pointing toward the river. "Uncle, she—"
The clear river water was stained with blood, and on its surface floated a white figure, face down. Her hair fanned out like aquatic plants, her white dress cold and still.
It was Shui Lian. By the ti she had been shot, she was already dead. What floated above now was rely her corpse.
Jiang Jinghuai: "Ignore her." His obsidian eyes held no trace of emotion. This deranged woman.
Nini and Jiang Jinghuai didn’t remain on the riverbank for long. After three or four hours, just as his body was about to give out, they finally spotted Political Commissioner Lin, Fang Tongzhou, and a group of others dressed in camouflage and white dical coats.
"Jinghuai, Nini—thank goodness we found you!" Fang Tongzhou exhaled in relief.
A swarm of dical personnel rushed over, surrounding the pair. As chaos erupted, Jiang Jinghuai grabbed Fang Tongzhou’s hand. Fang Tongzhou looked startled, but it was Political Commissioner Lin who reacted quickly. "Yanyan and Sangsang are both safe. Focus on getting treatnt!"
Safe? Then what was that cry he had heard?
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