Chapter 46: Ji Ling Is in Trouble

Shen Yi was gone, and Ji Ling felt as though her soul had departed with him. Yet, this was no time for idle grief and sentimentality; an earthquake was imminent, and she had to guide the villagers to safety.

Wiping away her tears and taking a deep breath, Ji Ling suddenly heard a gentle voice beside her ear, "Hello, young lady, could you tell me where this is?"

Ji Ling turned around to find a slender, refined woman standing before her. The woman's features were gentle and delicate, and though there were fine lines at the corners of her eyes, they spoke only of the tenderness of time.

A fleeting sense of déjà vu washed over Ji Ling; she felt as if she had seen this woman somewhere before.

"Hello, this is Stone Creek Village. And you are?"

"I... I've forgotten my name." The woman looked somewhat flustered, uttering words that caught Ji Ling completely off guard. After a brief pause in thought, the woman continued, "I saw you just now and felt an inexplicable fondness. Young lady, may I come home with you?"

Ji Ling froze. This sounded precisely like the line a child kidnapper would use. Yet, even as she opened her mouth, the words of refusal simply refused to come out.

"Where is your family? I can call the police to help you find them."

"No, no, please don't let them know. They have no idea I came out here," the woman said, hurriedly waving her hands. Then, with a delighted and conspiratorial smile, she added, "I don't remember my name, I only know I need to come to Guma Commune, and I mustn't let anyone find out."

Ji Ling felt a headache coming on. With the woman sneaking out in such a condition, her family must be frantic with worry. But the moment Ji Ling made a move to step away, the woman panicked and grabbed her arm. "Please, please take me home with you. I want to follow you."

Ji Ling was left speechless. Given the grim circumstances, however, she could hardly leave the woman wandering outside alone. She finally agreed, "Very well. But if you come with me, you must listen to what I say, or else I won't let you stay."

"Yes, yes, I'll definitely be obedient," the woman nodded eagerly, bobbing her head like a chick pecking at rice.

"An earthquake is coming! An earthquake is coming! Everyone run!"

Suddenly, someone shouted in sheer panic. A deep, low rumbling echoed from the depths of the earth, traveling from afar to close range, and the ground began to shudder. Ji Ling's body swayed uncontrollably.

Hurrying the woman toward an open area in the distance, Ji Ling turned and sprinted back toward her house; Ji Qing was still asleep, and she had to wake him.

Clods of earth bulged upward, buckled violently, and then began to sway from side to side. Ji Ling lost all control of her balance, feeling as though she might be flung into the air at any second.

"Ji Qing! Ji Qing! Brother, get out here, Brother!" Ji Ling dodged debris raining down from the sky as she screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Watch out!" Missing her footing, Ji Ling stumbled into a nearby trench. Before she could react, a massive wooden beam from the roof came crashing down toward her. Driven by worry for Ji Ling, the woman lunged forward like a flash, pulling Ji Ling into her arms and arching her own back to take the brutal impact of the falling timber.

With a thunderous crash, the trench collapsed further. The entire structure of the roof fell squarely onto the woman, burying both Ji Ling and her beneath the earth.

How much time had passed, she did not know. In the suffocating darkness, Ji Ling slowly regained consciousness. The silence was terrifyingly deep, and Ji Ling felt as though she could hear the fluid rushing within her own skull.

The woman was slumped over Ji Ling's back, still unconscious.

Struggling to raise her head, Ji Ling called out backward into the dark, "Auntie? Auntie, wake up."

"Auntie! Auntie!"

No matter how frantically Ji Ling called, the woman gave no response.

Panic seized Ji Ling's heart. With immense effort, she wriggled her body around within the cramped, claustrophobic space.

When Ji Ling finally managed to turn and face the woman, she had never felt so utterly drained of physical strength.

The woman's eyes remained tightly shut. Trembling, Ji Ling reached out a hand to gently shake the woman's back. "Auntie, wake up. Auntie! Auntie!"

"Auntie!" Suddenly feeling a wave of warmth on her hand, Ji Ling pulled it back. Her palm was completely covered in blood. A sharp ache gripped Ji Ling's nose, and tears slid from the corners of her eyes, losing themselves in her hair.