"Th-thank you," Liao Che stammered. He was taken aback for a moment, then took the phone Miaomiao offered and expressed his gratitude.
Staring at the phone icon on the screen, he hesitated for a long time before slowly typing in a series of numbers.
Liao Che was a bit afraid to make the call. The words "parents" were clearly too foreign to him. He was scared.
Scared that the people in the missing - person notice were just people who looked like him, and scared that he had misremembered the phone number.
"Just make the call already," Miaomiao urged impatiently when she saw his hesitant look.
Liao Che looked up at Miaomiao. Finally, he dialed the number.
Liao Che knew nothing about his past. Making this call was ultimately meaningless. In the end, it was Wei Ziqi who proposed that they add each other on a social app so that Liao Che could take a selfie and send the photo to the other side.
Soon they received a callback.
This time, the person on the other end was clearly much more emotional. Even Wei Ziqi, who didn't have very good hearing, could hear the intermittent sobs on the phone.
Liao Che didn't know what to say throughout the call. The eager desire to see his parents and go home dissipated a lot after Tao Jing's analysis.
His master was crazy enough to throw him into the sea to feed the fish. Maybe he was also crazy enough to threaten the lives of his family.
The other side proposed to meet. When Liao Che heard this, he hung up the phone in a hurry. After that, no matter how many times they called, he refused to answer.
"What's wrong with you? Shouldn't you be happy to find your mom and dad?" Miaomiao asked, confused by his behavior.
"You're afraid of dragging your family into trouble, aren't you?" Tao Jing thought for a while and then came up with the answer.
"Yes. I don't have the ability to protect them for now. I don't even know why my master wants to kill me," Liao Che lowered his head. His hands unconsciously clenched, tightly grasping the bedsheet.
"Well, why don't you call the police? This is attempted murder. You can call the police for help and catch your master. Then you won't have anything to worry about," Wei Ziqi suggested.
"No, I can't! I can't call the police," Liao Che suddenly raised his head and vehemently objected.
"What's wrong with you? He's trying to kill you, and you still don't want to call the police. Are you still reluctant to part with some old feelings?" Cheng Ruan frowned and looked a bit disdainful of Liao Che.
"No, it's not that I'm reluctant to part with old feelings. It's just that I don't have any evidence to prove that he wanted to kill me. Without evidence, even the police can't just arrest people. If they use some means to threaten me or hurt my family during this period..."
Liao Che didn't finish his sentence. He lowered his head again, struggling.
He was just a powerless orphan. What could he use to fight against such a large sect?
"Liao Che's concerns are not completely unfounded. When we were there, we didn't see any boats. So we can't be the first witnesses or testify. Even if we call the police, the police will need time to collect evidence. If something unexpected happens during this period, it will be too late to regret," Tao Jing, who had been constantly dealing with various forces, knew the powerful families all too well.
There was always some darkness and injustice in this world.
"Come with us then. We have bodyguards who can protect you for now. When we go back from our trip, you can come back with us. My dad is very powerful. He will definitely be able to protect you and your family," Miaomiao suddenly had an idea. She always heard people say that her dad was powerful, though she didn't really know where his power lay. But since so many people said so, it must be true.
If not, she still had her second uncle, who was a policeman specialized in catching bad guys. He would surely be able to protect good people.
Liao Che slowly raised his head and stared at Miaomiao. After thinking for a while, he nodded firmly.
He knew his master's temper all too well. At that time, his master had said that he must win the competition and must not lose.
He had lost and was severely punished. And Miaomiao, who had won the competition, must have been on his master's hit - list. But now Miaomiao was standing right in front of him, alive and kicking. There must be some reason that had made his master back off and not take action against Miaomiao.
Maybe following this girl in front of him was his best and only choice.
"Okay, thank you," Liao Che sat on the bed gratefully and bowed to them repeatedly, which made Miaomiao a bit embarrassed.
At night, the doctor and nurse gave Liao Che a series of examinations. After confirming that there was nothing wrong with his body, he could be discharged from the hospital.
He had not been drowning for very long, and Miaomiao's first - aid measures had been quite timely. After a few hours of the critical period, he was fine to leave.
Miaomiao took Liao Che back to the hotel and let him stay with her.
At night, Liao Che tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep. His mind was filled with memories of his first ten - odd years.
Those who he had once thought were friends and family, his fellow apprentices and master, had all turned against him when he failed. In the end, they even wanted to kill him.
However, this young girl, whom he had only met once and even tried to trick, had risked her life to save him the moment she saw him in trouble. After learning about his situation, she had even tried every means to help him.
At a young age, Liao Che understood what it meant for people's hearts to be unpredictable on this very night.
During the following days, everything was calm. Liao Che gradually stopped being gloomy and began to smile.
"My family is urging me to go back. I have to say goodbye to you guys," Tao Jing said a bit sadly.
These days had been the happiest days since her rebirth. She was really reluctant to leave.
"Ah, are you leaving already?"
After getting along for a few days, Cheng Ruan had completely changed her opinion of Tao Jing. She also asked reluctantly.
"Yes, there's nothing I can do. My family has been urging me for several days. I have to go back," Tao Jing shrugged helplessly.
"It's okay. If you miss us, just call us. We're still good friends," Miaomiao comforted her carelessly. She casually patted Tao Jing on the shoulder, looking very buddy - like.
"Okay. If I miss you guys, I'll call you," Tao Jing was infected by Miaomiao's carefree attitude.
Yes, with such advanced communication nowadays, it wasn't like they would never see each other again after this one meeting.
"Okay, stop talking. I have to catch my flight. The time is quite tight," Tao Jing waved her hand and bid farewell to her friends.
Miaomiao waved her hand up and down like a lucky cat to say goodbye.