Yu Na was just about to answer the phone when it hung up. It rang again almost immediately.
She quickly pressed the answer button.
Before she could say anything, the voice on the other end of the phone urgently shouted, "Teacher Yu, I'm Wu Hang's mom—"
"Wu Hang's mom, please tell me what's going on."
Wu Hang's mom spoke incoherently, "Teacher, did Wu Hang go to school today? He still hasn't come home!"
Yu Na's heart jumped to her throat, "He came to class today. He still hasn't gone home?"
"No, I'm out looking for him now. I've called everyone I could think of, and had to come to you as a last resort. Can you think of anyone he's close with at school?"
As she racked her brain for an answer, Yu Na replied, "Don't worry, I'll contact some students right away."
"Okay, thank you so much."
After hanging up, the horror movie she had been watching was rolling credits.
Xiao Chen turned off the TV and flipped on the lights. "What's going on?" he asked.
"A student still hasn't gone home. I need to get in touch with some others."
She texted the students who were relatively familiar with Wu Hang, but had no luck reaching them or getting any useful information.
Just then, Wu Hang's mom called back anxiously.
"Teacher Yu, any news?"
"I'm still reaching out to his classmates, but so far none of them have seen him after school let out. Here's what we'll do," Yu Na said as she hopped off the bed, "I'll go out and look around. If that doesn't work, we'll call the police. Stay calm, we'll keep in touch."
"Okay, thank you so much Teacher Yu."
After ending the call, Yu Na started getting dressed again. "I'm going to go look for the student," she told Xiao Chen.
He got up with her. "I'll come along."
Before leaving, Xiao Chen took out another down jacket from the closet and helped Yu Na put it on, zipping it up for her. "It's cold out tonight, wear this."
Seeing his thin layer, Yu Na said with concern, "Then what about you?"
"I'll be fine."
The car drove along the road. Xiao Chen asked, "He didn't have his phone on him?"
"Phones aren't allowed at school, and he didn't go home either, so his phone should still be there," Yu Na replied. She called Wu Hang's number just in case, but got no answer as expected.
Xiao Chen was experienced in this area. "Let's check internet cafes and karaoke bars first. If that doesn't work, we'll have to call the police."
Xiao Chen and Yu Na emerged from a remote bar.
The interior was lit with colorful lights amid loud music, while the exterior was dark and quiet.
Winters were extremely cold in Changwan. The piercing winds cut right to your bones. Plus it was late into the night, so there wasn't a soul around.
In the dead silence, any small sound would be amplified.
Like right now, for instance.
The bar wasn't far from the park. Xiao Chen had parked in the lot by the park gates.
As Xiao Chen and Yu Na were about to head back to the car, they suddenly heard in the distance, "Wu Hang!"
Yu Na's heart lurched. She exchanged a look with Xiao Chen before quickly heading towards the voice.
It called out again, "Wait a second!"
Yu Na also shouted Wu Hang's name loudly, "Wu Hang!"
"Teacher Yu!"
The voice was coming from the lake shore, but it wasn't Wu Hang who answered Yu Na.
It was Zhao Qin from Class 4.
Xiao Chen rushed with Yu Na to the lakeside, and indeed saw Zhao Qin's helpless figure down the steps by the water.
His voice shook with fear. "Teacher Yu, over here! Hurry!"
The two swiftly went down the steps and came up beside Zhao Qin.
"What happened?"
Zhao Qin pointed at the lake. "Wu Hang, he...he went to get something, and then..."
Following his gaze, they immediately spotted Wu Hang struggling desperately in the water.
"Wu Hang!"
Xiao Chen didn't hesitate. He took off his coat and threw it into Yu Na's hands. "Don't panic. Wait here."
With that, he dove straight into the frigid water without any hesitation.
Though the lake surface wasn't frozen over, the water was extremely cold. There were chunks of ice floating about too.
Yu Na was scared out of her wits. "Xiao Chen!" she shrieked.
Yu Na called Wu Hang's mom and updated her on their location, telling her to hurry over.
Wu Hang's mom was also driving nearby. Upon receiving the news, she fell silent for two seconds before responding. It wasn't until Yu Na repeated herself that she snapped back to reality.
Luckily Wu Hang wasn't too far from shore, so Xiao Chen didn't have to swim far and was in no real danger. But the branch he held only extended so far, forcing him to enter the water.
After paddling forward a couple strokes, he firmly and accurately passed the end of the branch to Wu Hang. "Don't be afraid, grab the branch!"
Wu Hang forced himself to stay calm with the branch right before his eyes. Terror filled his eyes as he grabbed hold of it.
Xiao Chen let out a breath. He pulled Wu Hang towards shore.
"Xiao Chen!" Yu Na was scared witless. She ran to the water's edge, reaching out her hands to them.
Where Wu Hang fell wasn't too far out. Clutching the branch, he made it back without incident. But the shock had rattled him. He coughed a few times but seemed otherwise unharmed.
Xiao Chen asked, "Did you inform his parents?"
"I did," Yu Na fished some tissues out of her pocket. "Are you okay? You scared me to death!"
"I'm fine," Xiao Chen replied.
The two didn't dare be too intimate in front of the student. Plus there were more pressing matters at hand.
"Teacher Yu..." Wu Hang lowered his head despondently. "I'm sorry."
She dropped her usual gentle demeanor with students and erupted furiously. "Zhao Qin, didn't Teacher Sun tell you guys not to go near the lake? Wu Hang, didn't I remind you today not to gamble your life away and to steer clear of the lake, steer clear of the lake, steer clear of the lake! Wasn't that the last thing I emphasized before letting you out of class today! Why did I keep drilling this in? It's because just two days ago, a kid your age drowned after falling into the frozen lake! How many of these news stories come out every year? Don't you know better?"
"Today you fell into the river and luckily there was a brother here who could swim to save you guys. But what about tomorrow? The day after? Who's going to save you in the dead of night like this? Call the police? Rescuers? How long would they take to arrive? What would you do in the meantime! Did you ever think about that?"
Yu Na berated them in a burst of anger.
Wu Hang kept his head low. "Teacher Yu, it was my fault. I wanted to go and..." He choked up, unable to continue.
Zhao Qin also conceded, "I was wrong too, Teacher Yu."
Xiao Chen gently patted Yu Na's back in a soothing manner.
Then he asked the two, "So what exactly happened here?"
Seeing his savior was actually Big Brother Qiao Rui, Wu Hang obediently explained, "My parents had a big fight a couple days ago. My mom asked for a divorce and moved out with me. Today at lunch, my mom came here and threw her ring into the lake."
Wu Hang wiped his tears. "Teacher, Big Brother, I don't want my parents to split up. So I thought...if I could find my mom's ring back, maybe she'd rethink it. I was afraid she'd regret it. I..." He sobbed, "I'm sorry Teacher Yu, Big Brother, for causing you all this trouble. Forget the ring. Let them divorce, whatever."
Yu Na's anger dissipated a bit. She sighed, "I'm sorry, I let my emotions get the better of me just now."
Wu Hang vehemently shook his head. "No Teacher, it's my fault!"
Zhao Qin also took responsibility. "Teacher, it was because he really wanted to find the ring back that I didn't stop him. I was wrong."
Just then—
"Hang Hang!"
An anxious voice called out from behind them.
The four turned to see a rushing woman.
It was Wu Hang's mother.
Without even greeting them, Wu Hang's mother grabbed her son in a hug. She couldn't help but scold, "What are you doing here!"
Wu Hang didn't offer any explanation, only kept his head low.
His mother didn't probe further either. She quickly turned to them and bowed in gratitude.
Xiao Chen smiled politely, "No need to thank us. Hurry back to your car, take your kid to get checked out at the hospital."
