In the car, Jada was driving, with the little girl in the passenger seat, while Ren sat in the back next to the strange man they had picked up. Although they had guessed that the man was harmless before letting him in, they were still cautious.
At this point, Ren was pretty sure the man was not a suspect. The man, holding his face in his hands, was crying continuously, "It's all my fault. I was only on the phone for five minutes, just five minutes, and my child was gone. It's all because I was too caught up in my work."
The man wiped away his tears while speaking mournfully. Ren handed him a tissue to blow his nose, and the man continued, "I reported it to the police, but it's been two years, and there's still no news."
"I've been searching day and night for these past two years. I went from Ji Province to Chuan Province, and from there to Jiang Province, but I haven't found him."
"My child is gone, my family is broken up, and my wife blamed me so much she divorced me."
"So, I have to keep looking. I need to see him alive or find his body."
With these words, the man's head hit the car window hard, as if punishing himself.
"If I can't find him here, I'll go outside the province. Even if I die on this road and become a ghost, I still have to find my child!"
As the man recounted his ordeal, Ren didn't interrupt but listened quietly, occasionally handing him a tissue.
"Uncle, don't cry," the little girl's voice suddenly filled the car.
"When my daddy left home for five years, Yueyue never cried!" the little girl scrunched up her nose. "Uncle, how can you cry? Maybe the little brother will come back someday."
"Yueyue!" Jada driving the car couldn't help but scold her.
Seeing her mom getting angry, the little girl shrank her head and pouted.
"No, it's okay," the man waved his hand.
Although he didn't understand what the little girl meant by her father leaving home for five years, he looked at her and thought of his own missing child.
After wiping his tears and taking a few deep breaths, he tried to smile at the little girl, "Yes, uncle shouldn't cry."
He couldn't let his emotions affect the child.
"That's right!" Seeing the man's reaction, the little girl's eyes curved into crescents, and she proudly told Jada, "Daddy always said, there's no hurdle we can't get over."
"Yes, you are right," the man chuckled, which made the little girl even prouder. She even teased Jada with a raised eyebrow.
"Do you have a photo of your child?" Ren finally spoke, "Let me see it, the more people who know, the better."
"Oh, right! Here it is."
The man handed over a meticulously made flyer. Unlike other missing person flyers, everything was in color, including a high-resolution photo.
The photo showed a three or four-year-old boy in dungarees, his chubby hands in his pockets, looking quite cool.
Besides, there were specific details like what the child was wearing when he disappeared and a jade pendant with the character "Jia" on it.
Perhaps seeing the photo triggered his emotions, and the man's eyes reddened again.
But seeing the back of the little girl in the front seat, he forcefully suppressed his sorrow. Children are easily influenced by others' emotions.
He remembered how his child would cry when other kids cried.
He didn't want the innocent little girl in front to be affected by his sadness.
"Screech," the car stopped.
"We're at the gas station," Jada announced.
"Thank you, thank you!" The man quickly thanked them again and then got out of the car. Ren also got out to help him with the fuel-less motorcycle.
"Where will you search for your child next?" Ren asked as he watched the man.
"If I can't find him here, I'll go to Lan Province," the man sighed.
He knew how difficult it was to find a child in this vast world. The child was young when he disappeared, and even if someone had taken him in, he would have changed a lot by now.
"Is that so?" Ren nodded, "Keep your spirits up!"
With that, he patted the man on the shoulder and got back into the car.
The man stood there for a moment as his motorcycle was refueled, then prepared to put on his helmet. Just then, several red banknotes fell from it onto the ground.
The man looked surprised because the dropped items were a few hundred-yuan bills. He turned around, but Ren's car was already out of sight.
Picking up the money, the man was silent for a moment, tears falling again as he bowed repeatedly in the direction Ren had driven off.
There are still many good people in this world.
Meanwhile, back in the car, the mood had become somewhat somber.
Being parents themselves, they understood the desperation of the man they had just met. If they lost their child, they would probably be just like him.
"Jada, why don't we use a page in the next issue of the comic for a missing person's notice?" Despite knowing it could be troublesome, Ren couldn't help but suggest.
"Mmm," Jada nodded silently.
She knew initiating this could be problematic as it might set a precedent. If other parents seeking their children saw it, it could lead to endless requests.
But still, she agreed, driven by compassion.
Glancing at her daughter, she gripped the steering wheel tighter. No one could take her child away, not even Jesus!
Meanwhile, Ren took a photo of the missing person flyer and posted it to the social media accounts managed by his company.
Though his follower count was only in the hundreds of thousands—small compared to the vast population—it was still a help. Maybe someone among his followers could find the child.
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