Chapter 83: Gu Jiaqi's Hesitation

  Indeed.

  That sorrowful Lu Haocen, seemed like a stranger as if they had never met before. The heart-wrenching tears, should be for the girl in his memories, right?

  What kind of girl would that little girl named Xiaoxiao be? What heart-wrenching things had happened between them before?

  She let out a sigh and came back to her senses, handing the clean cloth to Lu Haichen, saying softly: "Here, take it and wipe your face."

  Lu Haocen took the cloth strip, his eyes unconsciously looking at Bai Xiaoya's clothes. Her T-shirt had a large piece torn off from the left shoulder, revealing her thin scapula. It must have been because of his high fever that she had forcefully ripped it off. Female Chen got it.

  "No matter what... thank you." Lu Haochen said softly, wiping his face gently with a cloth.

  Bai Xueya didn't respond, sitting on the ground and taking off her shoes and socks, stretching her white feet into the icy river water. The soft sensation rubbed against her skin, and her tired body was thoroughly relaxed in an instant.

  Looking at her being mischievous like a kid, Lu Haochen curved his lips into a smile, leaning against the tree trunk on one side, gazing at her from afar and chuckled: "I didn't expect you to have such a feminine side."

  Bai Xueya turned around, her gentle eyes filled with murderous intent in an instant.

  Is Lu Haochen a big fool? Does this sentence mean that she wasn't a girl before?

  "What's wrong with your nerves?" She snorted, tilting her mouth and giving him a dirty look, "Hasn't Miss always been a lady since childhood?!"

  Looking at Bai Xueya's serious appearance, Lu Haochen burst out laughing. After a moment, he cleared his throat and leaned lazily against the tree, with a mischievous glint in his eye, saying: "Oh? So you used to be a girl? Ah, looking so ugly, it's really hard for me to see that..."

  Bai Xueya's face suddenly turned darker than coal.

  She glared at Lu Haichen with wide eyes, shouting loudly: "Lu Haichen, you big idiot! Did I, your aunt, exhaust myself to rescue you from the God of Death's hands? You actually repay kindness with ingratitude? If only I had known earlier, I would have thrown you into the river to feed the fish while you were sleeping!"

  After finishing speaking, she turned her head around, huffing and puffing, and sulked with her arms crossed.

  Lu Haochen crooked his mouth, and a few more points of complacency were added to his smile. He had long known that Bai Xueya would have such a reaction, but seeing her angry face with his own eyes still made him want to curl up the corners of his mouth.

  He moved his body closer to Bai Xueya and patted her shoulder.

  "Hello?"

  "Go away?" Bai Xueya angrily shook off his hand.

  "What's going on?" Lu Haochen continued to persist.

  "Are you telling me to scram? Keep away from Miss?" Bai Xiaoya turned around with wide eyes.

  "Hey, I'm talking about ugly eight..."

  "——Lu Haocen? Who are you calling ugly?!" Bai Xiaoya's mouth was agape, glaring at Lu Haocen with a fierce attitude. This guy, not only did he make her angry, but he also had the nerve to call her "ugly" when apologizing? How insincere!

  "Was it you who did wrong and should apologize to me? How can you call me ugly?" Bai Xiaoya rebuked him sternly for his impolite behavior.

  At the words, Lu Haochen tilted his head, sizing her up with an odd gaze that made Bai Xiaya's hair stand on end. Just as she was about to explode in anger, he suddenly spoke in a light tone:

  "I'm telling you, if your stinky feet are always soaking in water, then we won't need to drink water later?"

  “……”

  Bai Xue Ya really wanted to throw a brick over there.

  However, due to the sparse population here and no bricks available, and this foul-mouthed, annoying big fool being a serious patient, she endured again and again, finally swallowing her anger deep down, planning to settle the score ruthlessly after autumn.

  The morning gradually brightens. Through the lingering fog, sunlight penetrates the forest and casts a warm glow, covering the quiet earth with a layer of golden yellow.

  Bai Xueya's eyes were sorrowfully staring at the black screen of her phone that had been smashed, questioning the quality of the branded phone while getting angry to the point of almost throwing it away with force.

  "Alas..." She let out a sigh, gritted her teeth, and reluctantly stuffed the phone back into her pocket. Then she leaned in close to Lu Haocen, blinking at the bright screen of his phone, with sparkling stars shining in her eyes.

  "Quick? Try making a call quickly?" If you can get through on the phone, tell them your current location and believe that the rescue team will arrive soon.

  Lu Haochen glanced at her sideways, his eyes full of disdain as he handed the phone in front of her and said lightly, "Want to call? You call?"

  Rely on it? This neurosis?

  Bai Xiaoyan rolled her eyes and said, "What's with you? Are you going to hit me?"

  After taking the phone and dialing a string of numbers, in the process of waiting for Bai Xueya to pick up with full expectation, the receiver rang out a busy tone "du du du"...

  "How could this be?" She was like a deflated balloon after her hopes were shattered, her mouth agape and on the verge of tears.

  "No signal?" Lu Haochen replied with disdain.

  Bai Xiaoyu was on the verge of tears, but instead glared at him with a fierce gaze and said harshly: "You damn idiot? No signal and you still want me to call?"

  "It's you who wants to fight, not me..."

  Looking at Lu Haichen's smug and complacent appearance, Bai Xiaya was so angry that her teeth itched. She vowed that if they were lucky enough to find the path back to the camp, she would secretly run back alone first and leave this guy in the forest to spend his old age in solitude.

  Summer camp site.

  Zhang Li put on her training uniform and quickly walked out of the tent, with Wang Xiyuan closely following behind her like a shadow.

  Look at the watch, it's almost time for training. Zhang Li picked up the whistle on her chest and blew it hard.

  "Hmm—"

  A sharp sound pierced the sky, breaking the quiet and silent morning. In the thicket, the sleeping birds were suddenly awakened, "fluttering" flapping their wings to fly into the sky.

  Two minutes later, everyone stood in a few rows waiting for training.

  Jin yawned and rubbed his eyes, feeling somewhat tired. Although it was only the second day, he had never suffered before and could no longer bear the physical pressure, starting to feel sore all over and exhausted.

  Luckily he usually participates in basketball club activities, if it were old Lu who doesn't like sports...

  Jin raised the corner of his lips and turned his head to look subconsciously in the direction where Lu Haochen was standing. However, among the chattering group of girls, there was only one tall and slender figure missing.

  That's strange...

  What about Old Lu?

  He looked around in surprise and soon discovered another serious problem -

  What's Bai Xiaoyu doing?

  What's going on? The two of them are actually skipping work at the same time?!

  Just as Zhang Li was about to take attendance, Jin Zaiyan thought for a moment and quickly raised his hand, calling out: "Teacher Zhang?"

  "What's wrong?"

  "Seems like... uh, I left something in the tent and need to go get it?" After some thought, Jin Yanyan came up with this unconvincing excuse.

  "We are training, what is needed?" Zhang Li raised an eyebrow and directly pointed out the loophole in Jin's excuse.

  "Ah, it's... I left my wallet in the tent and forgot to pick it up..." Jin Zaiyan scratched his hair, smiling apologetically.

  When he saw Zhang Li nod, a huge stone in Jin Zaiyan's heart fell to the ground, and he let out a sigh of relief. He nodded at Zhang Li and rushed towards Lu Haichen's tent.

  With a "swish" sound, it was lifted up, and inside there were only three neatly made beds, with no one in sight.

  That's strange...

  Lao Lu is not in the tent, where will he go?

  He dialed Lu Haochen's phone number while sprinting towards Bai Xiaya's tent, disregarding the female dormitory's avoidance issue, and directly lifted the door curtain.

  Inside, it's still empty and desolate.

  Only Sun Yuyang and Gu Jiaqi's quilt was neatly stacked, while Bai Xiaoya's was still spread out flat. It seemed that she had not returned after going to sleep last night.

  He "swished" down the curtain, perked up his ears to listen to the sounds coming from the receiver, until a familiar female voice came through, and he finally realized the severity of the situation.

  "I'm sorry, the number you have dialed is not in service..."

  Not in service area?

  Jin repeated these words in a daze, and suddenly a bad premonition arose in his heart, as if... something unexpected was about to happen?

  His body trembled with fear, he gritted his teeth secretly, and after careful consideration, he finally rushed to the assembly ground.

  Lu Haochen and Bai Xiaya collectively missing?

  As soon as this remark came out, a flurry of discussions immediately erupted from the crowd.

  "Hey, what's going on? Two people disappeared at the same time, could it be that some kind of monster has appeared?" passerby A speculated.

  "What? I know? It must be the Qilin divine beast that took them away? Ate them?" said passerby B with a terrified expression.

  "Really? I heard that the divine beast in the Hundred Miles Forest also eats humans?" Passerby C chimed in.

  "Isn't it? It feels like two people playing hide and seek together." Passerby Ding raised doubts.

  "Hehe, I think you're using summer camp as an excuse to run away together?" The onlooker Wu smiled with ill intentions...

  The reason for this disappearance has been speculated from suspense to romance, and then from romance to gossip, but ultimately failed to reach a consistent conclusion.

  Looking at the chaotic scene in front of her, Zhang Li only felt a severe headache. She frowned and clapped her hands loudly, shouting: "Alright, alright? Everyone be quiet?"

  Startled by Zhang Li's rebuke, the murmurs gradually subsided, but unease and suspicion still lingered over the entire scene.

  "Teacher Zhang, look... what should we do?" Wang Xicai looked at Zhang Li with a hesitant expression, biting her lip in confusion.

  Zhang Li rubbed her forehead in a headache, didn't expect to encounter such a thorny problem the next day. The trainees were all rational high school students who had signed a guarantee letter and generally would not leave without permission. Even if they got lost, according to the road conditions nearby, they should be able to find their way back to the camp.

  According to Jin Zaiyan's speculation, Lu Haocen and Bai Xiaya seemed to have gone missing last night...

  One night, they couldn't find their way back to camp. So, there was only one reason - they had encountered trouble that they couldn't get out of.

  With a worried look on her face, she let out a soft sigh and turned to Gu Jiaqi beside her, asking in a low voice, "Jiaqi, didn't Xiaoya come back last night?"

  Gu Jiaqi's body trembled, facing Zhang Li's question, she seemed a bit at a loss. After a long time, she turned her head to look at Sun Yuyang with a gloomy face, and her heart "thudded" once, as if she had been severely struck.

  Because she suddenly remembered what Sun Yuyang said to her last night -

  "A person should take care of themselves first when they are outside, in case they get dragged into some messy situation, it's not good..."

  After a long time, she slowly lowered her head, biting her lip and replied in a low voice: "I... I don't know."