Chapter 126: Chapter 125 Searching (Part 2)

He stood up and walked over to Nanrong Wanqing, slightly lifting the hem of her clothes. As expected, all the wounds had turned pale and needed to be dealt with as soon as possible. As for the wound on her inner thigh, he knew without looking that it wouldn’t be much better.

"You rest first. I’ll go find something."

Because he was afraid those people would catch up, Ling Chen didn’t dare to go too far. He wandered nearby, found some herbs, and then returned to Nanrong Wanqing’s side.

Having applied the herbs on Nanrong Wanqing’s waist wound, she took care of the wound on her thigh by herself.

He did want to help but figured Nanrong Wanqing probably wouldn’t allow it.

After treating Nanrong Wanqing’s wounds, Ling Chen sat with his back to her and asked her to apply the herbs to his own wounds.

"Where are we now?" Listening to the birdsong around, Nanrong Wanqing asked.

Ling Chen looked up at the dense and knotted branches above and shook his head, "I’m not sure. By my estimation, we should be thirty or forty kilometers away from the city district. Later, we can follow the river, and maybe we’ll find a way out."

"I’m sorry, I got you into this."

"Enough with the apologies. If you really feel sorry for me, don’t forget to give me a raise when we get back."

Nanrong Wanqing said irritably, "What time is it now, and you’re still thinking about money."

"Nonsense, I don’t have a car, a house, or savings. How can I get married without earning more money."

"What kind of wife are you looking for?"

"First of all, she must have a good personality, be gentle, and considerate."

"What about looks?"

"That’s secondary. As long as she’s passable. But of course, if she’s as beautiful as you, I wouldn’t mind. Who wouldn’t want their wife to be beautiful?" Ling Chen grinned.

"Men are always greedy. The saying is true."

Ling Chen protested, "How am I being greedy?"

Nanrong Wanqing said indifferently, "You men always have this and that requirement for women. Have you ever thought about yourselves? I think a truly good man wouldn’t mind so much, but be more accommodating. Only with mutual tolerance can life be harmonious. Marriage is not dating; marriage is for a lifetime. If you can’t be tolerant and considerate of each other, even if two people come together, they won’t last long and will eventually part ways."

"Is that so?" Ling Chen looked at her in surprise, "I didn’t expect you to have such insight into marriage, but…" His eyes shifted, and he suddenly laughed.

Seeing the inexplicable smile on his face, Nanrong Wanqing couldn’t help but ask, "What are you laughing at?"

"I’m thinking about what you would be like when you get married. You’re so assertive; whoever marries you would be overwhelmed by you."

"You don’t know me; how can you know that I’m what you describe?" Her chin dropped, and her beautiful eyes fluttered, "Actually… No matter how assertive a woman is, she still needs a man to rely on. The reason I’m so assertive is not for myself, but because the Nanrong family needs someone assertive."

Although it was just a simple statement, Ling Chen could feel her bitterness and helplessness.

He smiled slightly, then changed the subject, "You just asked me what kind of wife I’m looking for. What about you? What kind of man are you looking for?"

Nanrong Wanqing pondered for a while, yearningly saying, "I hope he is responsible and can shoulder the responsibilities of a family."

"That’s all?"

"Mhm."

Ling Chen touched his nose embarrassingly and grinned, "Why do I feel like you’re describing me?"

Hearing this, Nanrong Wanqing’s face flushed, and she said annoyed, "What a narcissist you are."

"Alright, alright, no more joking. That guy… oh right, Zhu Hong, is he your ideal choice?"

"If it were five years ago, I would’ve said ‘yes,’ but now…" She turned her head, looking at the lush leaves, with a complex look in her eyes.

With the conversation having reached this point, Ling Chen understood and prudently stopped the topic.

Night came, and the dense forest seemed to be shrouded in a layer of mysterious veil. The crescent moon was like a hook, and the dim moonlight spilled like mercury, casting dappled spots of light throughout the woods.

In a large tent temporarily set up in the suburbs, Tang Yuan was using a walkie-talkie to contact and coordinate with various search and rescue teams.

This was a temporary command center established by the police, with all search and rescue teams being coordinated from here.

Putting down the walkie-talkie, Tang Yuan looked at the map on the table and casually picked up a red marker, drawing a cross on the map.

He divided the area of over thirty kilometers into more than twenty regions, checking them one by one. After a day’s work, they had cleared half of the areas.

"Officer Xia, what is this green area?" Tang Yuan pointed to the map and asked.

"That whole area is a forest; next to it is a national 4A scenic area. The forest connects to the scenic area and hasn’t been developed due to its large size. Why, do you suspect Ling Chen and company went into the forest?"

"I’ve known Ling Chen for so long; I know him very well. In this situation, he would certainly try to contact us. But it’s been nearly twenty-four hours, and we haven’t heard anything. I believe their situation might be very dangerous."

"What do you mean?"

"No matter who kidnapped Miss Nanrong, now that Miss Nanrong is missing, they definitely won’t miss any opportunity. While we are searching, I bet they are also looking for Miss Nanrong’s whereabouts. And they might be closer to the target than us. Ling Chen dares not contact us actively; he is probably afraid of exposing their location. If it’s as I suspect, that they are being chased, Ling Chen would definitely take Miss Nanrong and hide in this forest."

Xia Mutong frowned slightly and said, "The area of this forest is so large; our manpower is not enough to launch a comprehensive search operation. And we can’t abandon our search efforts in other areas just because of your guess."

"Do you police have any more people?"

Xia Mutong shook his head, "We’ve already brought over everyone we could, including dozens of people from the fire department. Additionally, it’s now night, and it’s difficult to carry out a search operation in that forest; we can only wait until daylight."

"We don’t have that much time to waste."

While talking, a male police officer hurried into the tent.

"Captain Xia, something happened outside."

"What happened?"

"I can’t explain it; you’d better go out and see for yourself."

Tang Yuan and Xia Mutong exchanged a glance, and then they quickly walked out of the tent.

Immediately, they saw more than a dozen large buses parked at the side of the road, filled with people.