Chapter 712: Chapter 610: Go to the Mountain to Search for People
Shi Qing suppressed his anger, knowing the seriousness of the situation. The most urgent thing now was to find Shi Xiaohua before nightfall.
After hanging up the phone, Shi Qing immediately called the police station in Hetian Town to request their assistance.
Then, Shi Qing didn’t sit idle; he quickly organized villagers, gathered tools, and mobilized the entire village workforce to search the mountains.
Hetian Town is an hour and a half drive from here, even if they speed up, it would still take more than an hour.
During this hour, the people of Sanwan Village couldn’t just wait helplessly; they had to search while awaiting support.
The commotion in the village couldn’t go unnoticed by the program crew and the guests.
When everyone gathered and heard that Shi Xiaohua was missing, deep concern filled their hearts.
Shi Xiaohua had a lively personality and had interacted often with the guests recently, leaving an impression of a playful and adorable girl.
“Are they heading into the mountains to search?” Zhu Rui looked at the villagers heading toward the mountains not far away.
Sanwan Village is already small, with many young people working outside, leaving mostly older residents at home.
Watching their figures heading up the mountain, the guests felt somewhat uneasy.
“I’ll go help them! I’ll go search with them!” Yuan Xingyao suddenly stood up.
He didn’t wait for Shen Zha’s response or consult other guests.
He strode out directly.
Actually, not just Yuan Xingyao, Zhu Rui and others also wanted to step forward to help but had inexplicable concerns. Seeing someone take the lead, Zhu Rui and Xue Lin stood up simultaneously:
“Yuan Xingyao, wait for me, I’m coming too!”
With the three of them, other staff from the program crew also approached Shen Zha: “Director Shen, we want to help search for the child too.”
They had signed contracts with the program crew, and all twenty-one days in Sanwan Village were workdays. Any other activities required leave from Shen Zha.
“You all can go.” Shen Zha was moved, and after thinking for a moment, he went along with everyone.
Ji He had already stood up to follow when Xue Lin and Zhu Rui said they would help find the child.
In the blink of an eye, only Chen Yunlu and Hao Meng were left standing there.
Hao Meng looked hesitant: “Everyone’s gone to help, Sister Yunlu, why don’t we go too?”
Chen Yunlu looked at the increasingly dim sky outside without replying immediately.
It had been raining in Sanwan Village, and although it cleared up briefly today, there was no sign of bright sunshine.
Moreover, as she looked up at the sky now, large dark clouds were gathering from several directions. It was uncertain whether the clouds looked gloomy because it was getting dark or if they were genuinely dark clouds…
Chen Yunlu hesitated but decided: “Let’s go and see.”
As long as they didn’t go deep into the mountains, with so many people around, nothing should happen.
If everyone went except for the two of them, it would seem rather indifferent.
“Okay!” Hao Meng was conflicted but stopped hesitating after hearing Chen Yunlu’s decision.
The two held hands and ran toward the others, chasing after Shen Zha and the group.
Shi Qing was gathering villagers, and seeing the program crew and guests voluntarily come to help, he was deeply moved: “Thank you all, but it’s getting late, and you’re unfamiliar with these mountains, so it’s better not to.”
From observation during this time, he noticed that these young city dwellers didn’t appear to have great physical strength.
Moreover, given today’s dim weather, heading into the mountains to find someone posed higher risks.
Shi Qing was touched by their willingness to help while also fearing possible accidents in the mountains.
“I’ll stay with your villagers and won’t wander around, don’t worry!” Yuan Xingyao patted Shi Qing’s shoulder reassuringly.
“Yes. In case anything happens, we can assist.” Zhu Rui also chimed in.
“Finding the child is crucial.” Shen Zha glanced at the sky, urging them with a serious expression: “It’s definitely going to rain tonight, don’t delay.”
Shi Qing was also concerned about this.
He noticed earlier than Shen Zha and others that the current time and weather were unfavorable.
If it rained tonight, for a nine-year-old like Shi Xiaohua alone in the mountains… it was unimaginable what could happen.
“Alright, then I won’t say more. Finding her is crucial now. If you get tired or can’t keep up physically, don’t force it—prioritize your safety. Anyway, thank you for your help.” After speaking, Shi Qing went ahead to instruct other villagers.
The group quickly walked toward the mountains.
Yuan Xingyao, Xue Lin, Zhu Rui, and other young men, with better physical strength, led the front of the team.
Although the place where Shi Xiaohua was picking mushrooms was deeper in the mountains, once inside, they started shouting her name. She was already nine; what if she came out of the mountains alone?
They held onto a thread of hope.
Gao Sheng shouted one call after another.
Hao Meng and Chen Yunlu didn’t have great stamina, and the muddy mountain paths were challenging. After walking a while, they were panting heavily.
Such mountain paths were also challenging for the slightly overweight Shen Zha.
He walked with Hao Meng and Chen Yunlu, panting: “We shouldn’t chase them too hard; let’s move up a bit and then stop to wait for them. We’ll see if there’s anything else we can do.”
He knew his physical limits well, leading like Yuan Xingyao was clearly not feasible.
He could only provide support halfway.
Or wait halfway to see if luck would favor them by encountering Shi Xiaohua.
Hao Meng and Chen Yunlu nodded, agreeing with Shen Zha.
Suddenly, Hao Meng had a moment of insight; she looked up sharply, searching the people ahead: “Where’s Jiang Ning? It seems Jiang Ning isn’t here?!”
“That’s right, haven’t seen him, it seems.”