The person was swept away, completely disappearing into the night. You Ziming’s expression froze, and he was stunned with fear.
It was You Ziming’s classmates who snapped back to reality first, shouting loudly, "Help! Someone fell into the water, quick, help!"
After shouting, several teachers quickly ran over. After a brief inquiry, three teachers grabbed their flashlights and chased downstream along the river. The remaining teachers immediately called the police and the fire department.
But this was outside the suburbs, and it would take at least half an hour for the police and firefighters to arrive.
You Ziming’s face turned pale.
He hadn’t expected You Rong to roll into the river, nor had he expected Lin Qinghe to jump in without hesitation.
---
It was pitch black all around. In the water, Lin Qinghe could barely open her eyes and couldn’t see what was happening. Suddenly, she heard You Rong groan softly. Without thinking, he must have hit a rock or something else in the river.
Lin Qinghe: "You Rong... you... don't panic, hold onto me tightly, you absolutely must not... must not let go..."
The next second, Lin Qinghe felt You Rong hold her tightly. She was turned in a different direction, and she heard You Rong groan in pain again.
You Rong’s back of the head seemed to have hit something.
Lin Qinghe anxiously asked, "You Rong... how are you? You Rong?"
You Rong didn't respond at all. The grip that had been holding her tightly loosened, and the two were instantly swept apart by the rushing water.
Lin Qinghe was going crazy with anxiety.
Had You Rong fainted?
Lin Qinghe held her breath and swam hard towards You Rong, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him to the surface. She shouted, "You Rong... You Rong! Wake up, You Rong..."
No matter how much Lin Qinghe shouted, You Rong showed no reaction. Even with her good swimming skills, she was dragging an adult man and quickly became exhausted.
Worse still, the rushing water sound ahead was getting louder. Lin Qinghe judged that there must be a large waterfall ahead.
With no other choice, Lin Qinghe gritted her teeth and held onto You Rong with all her might.
When they were swept down, she absolutely could not be separated from You Rong. He was unconscious, and being swept down alone was too dangerous!
As expected, there was indeed a waterfall ahead. Lin Qinghe felt herself plummeting downwards, then smashing onto the water’s surface. Her right shoulder hit a rock heavily, causing her so much pain that she almost fainted.
She used her last ounce of strength to pull You Rong to the surface and, luckily, was swept by the current to a shallower area.
Lin Qinghe’s right shoulder throbbed with pain, making her entire arm almost immobile. She even felt a wound bleeding continuously.
Lin Qinghe turned her head and, by the dim moonlight, could vaguely see You Rong not far away.
Damn it!
She had to hold on!
You Rong must be seriously injured. If they weren't rescued quickly, he would die, and her mission would fail this time!
Lin Qinghe took a deep breath, gritted her teeth, and stumbled out of the water. Using her still mobile left hand to pull You Rong, she painfully dragged him to the riverbank.
After managing to pull him to dry land, Lin Qinghe stumbled and fell onto the grassy ground by the river.
After a while, she recovered her breath and immediately struggled to her feet to check on You Rong.
"You Rong, wake up, wake up..." Lin Qinghe patted You Rong's face, but he still showed no reaction.
You Rong had an injury on his right leg, which was still bleeding. There was also blood on the back of his head, likely from a collision. He was currently unconscious, and his condition was unclear.
Lin Qinghe knew there was no time to waste. She decisively bit down on the hem of her clothes and tore a strip of fabric from her chiffon top. She used it to tie the wound on You Rong's left foot. She couldn't bandage her own shoulder wound and had to leave it for now.
Lin Qinghe took a deep breath, squatted down, and pulled You Rong’s arms so he was slung over her back. Gritting her teeth, she managed to stand up.
Lin Qinghe stood up, but You Rong was tall and burly, his long legs dragging on the ground.
She didn't expect to be able to carry You Rong entirely. Being able to drag him forward like this was already her limit.
Lin Qinghe struggled to move forward in the darkness, her feet stepping on uneven, rough ground overgrown with weeds, making it almost impossible to walk.
They had been swept down. She didn't know how far they had been carried by the current or how long they had been in the water.
But she knew one thing: if others were looking for them, they would first search downstream along the river. By moving upstream, she could shorten the time it would take for others to find her and You Rong.
After walking for a while, Lin Qinghe felt her steps become heavy. The pain in her right shoulder was so severe that her entire right arm was numb.
Lin Qinghe panted, unable to walk any further. She stopped, bending slightly, and stood still to rest.
She couldn't let You Rong go, otherwise, she wouldn't have the strength to stand up with him again.
Lin Qinghe weakly cursed, "You Rong, you better hold on for me. It's not a big deal if you die, but if you drag me down and cause my mission to fail, we'll settle all our old and new scores... I won't let you off!"
After resting, Lin Qinghe dragged You Rong for a while longer, then stopped again.
Lin Qinghe’s head felt hazy. Excessive blood loss was starting to blur her vision.
She began to talk to herself, trying to stay awake.
"No way, am I going to die too? Or worse, die together with you, you annoying guy..."
Lin Qinghe continued to drag the unconscious You Rong, walking for a bit and resting, then walking again. After an unknown amount of time, Lin Qinghe was at her limit, finding it incredibly difficult to even take a single step.
Because You Rong's feet were dragging on the ground, two long marks were left behind on the ground.
Lin Qinghe's voice was barely audible as she cursed, "If we both survive this, and the progress bar doesn't increase for me, I... I... I absolutely will..."
Before Lin Qinghe could finish her sentence, a beam of flashlight light flashed ahead, accompanied by shouts calling for them.
"You Rong... Lin Qinghe... can you hear us?"
Lin Qinghe's lips moved, but the sound was too faint for even herself to hear.
The voices calling for them grew closer. Suddenly, a blinding light shone on Lin Qinghe's face, and she heard someone exclaim with joy, "I found them! They're here! Come quickly! They're here!"
Great, they finally found me and You Rong!
Lin Qinghe felt a wave of relief wash over her. This was followed by an intensification of her physical exhaustion. Her eyelids grew heavier and heavier, so heavy that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't open them. Her vision went black, and she fainted, falling heavily to the ground with You Rong.
Before losing consciousness completely, she heard a cacophony of anxious voices around her.
"Quick! Bring the stretcher, send them to the hospital immediately!"
"Hurry... hurry and send them to the hospital..."