Chapter 2216
As soon as those words came out, even Lu Zhiwei, the head of the household, couldn’t keep his stance steady.
Climbing down a cliff was already an incredibly difficult thing, and now they still had to go down into a deep pool? Don’t even talk about hope of survival—there was barely even hope of finding a body.
Hearing this, Zhao Li collapsed straight onto the ground, completely losing all hope.
Jiaojiao couldn’t hold back her tears either; they just kept spilling out, and she clung to the now‑reacting Zhao Li, the two of them sobbing together.
At this point, there was no one in the Lu Family who could really take charge anymore. Ruan Jianguo wiped his eyes, his bloodshot gaze blazing as he rasped, "Search! Even if we have to drain that whole pool flat, we have to find him!"
Ruan Hao had already taken out his phone and started making calls.
In winter, dawn comes late; it wasn’t until after seven in the morning that the sun barely poked out, the night slowly receding as dawn arrived.
But in this moment, the darkness in many people’s hearts could no longer be dispersed.
The professional diving team arrived after eight in the morning, when daylight was already bright.
Watching the rescuers go down again, Jiaojiao knew how slim the hope was, but still forced herself to choke back the surging emotions and kept waiting.
From eight in the morning to noon.
No news.
From noon to four or five in the afternoon.
Still no news.
Before the sky went dark again, Zhao Li, who had been sitting in a daze inside the tent, suddenly got up and walked out. Seeing this, Jiaojiao immediately stood up and chased after her.
Zhao Li walked up to Lu Zhiwei and squatted down in front of him.
Lu Zhiwei lifted his head and looked at her.
They had been searching for twenty‑four hours, and the couple hadn’t closed their eyes for those same twenty‑four hours. Their eyes were bloodshot to a frightening degree.
Zhao Li reached out and gripped Lu Zhiwei’s hand. Her lips moved; when she finally spoke, her voice was hoarse to the point of breaking, as if her throat had been ground raw.
She said, "Zhiwei, have everyone pull out. Let Xiaojie and Xiaoxi come back."
"Mom!" Lu Zishu, standing on the other side, screamed in disbelief, staring at Zhao Li, his eyes so red it seemed they could bleed.
Hearing him call her "Mom," Zhao Li’s shoulders trembled once. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and said again, "Zhiwei, have everyone come back. Stop searching."
"I don’t agree! I don’t agree! Mom! They haven’t found my brother yet!" Lu Zishu shouted hysterically, throwing himself to her side and clutching her wrist. "Mom, you can’t do this. What about my brother! He’s still waiting for us to find him!"
Zhao Li opened her eyes, but she didn’t look at him; she only looked at Lu Zhiwei.
Lu Zhiwei also closed his eyes for a moment, tears slipping from the corners.
He understood what Zhao Li meant: their son couldn’t be found. There was a cliff and a deep pool—never mind the hope of survival, even retrieving a body would be hard. Since it was something completely hopeless, there was no need to risk other people’s lives along with his, especially Ruan Jie and Duan Xi. If anything happened to them too, how would they ever face the Ruan Family?
Even though making this decision felt like having his heart gouged out, Lu Zhiwei still agreed. He lifted his head and said to Ruan Hao and Ruan Jianguo beside him, "Big Brother Ruan, Xiaohao, have everyone pull out."
Ruan Jianguo exchanged a look with Ruan Hao, then stepped forward and said, "Zhiwei, maybe we should still..."
"Big Brother Ruan, there’s no point in senseless sacrifice now. Let them all come back. I believe...Azheng will understand."