The reporter donned a raincoat in the pouring rain. As he was showered by the downpour, he continued to grip his microphone tightly, risking his life to deliver the most up-to-date news that the public was dying to know. Even though reporters were irritating sometimes, they could be rather admirable when they were judged from a different perspective.
As of now, there was no sign of the rain ceasing. It had been raining for the past few days, but it was not heavy enough to call for people’s attention yet. However, following the increase of the volume of rainwater, the water level at Sea River had risen noticeably. In fact, not only the Sea River was affected, but the areas surrounding the river banks were also flooded as the water level had surpassed the warning line in many places.
As a result, the head of the National Security Department of Sea City released a notice, ordering for the closure of all schools for the day. No one was allowed to go near Sea River, and people who worked around that region were all evacuated.
Yan Huan rested on the sofa, focusing on her breathing. Then, she raised her hand to feel the chill that ran along her fingers.
I hope that the outcome of this will be better than my previous life.
In her past life, many people disregarded their safety to witness the rare centennial event, the raging Sea River. The students had attended classes as usual and the residents at the downstream area, which had a lower sea level, were not evacuated. Therefore, the citizens were put into a very dangerous situation.
All of a sudden, her mobile phone began to ring. She hurriedly picked up the call.
The first thing that traveled through the speakers was the sound of gushing water.
It was raining.
Is it raining? Yan Huan turned to watch the rain through the window. The faint background noise from the television, coupled with the pitter-patter of rain, drifted through the air.
“Huanhuan! Both of our mother-in-laws and I are at Sea River right now. I bet you don’t know how beautiful the river is as the water level has risen so much. We’ve been here since yesterday and Lei Qingyi will not stop calling me. However, we didn’t pick up his calls. We only want to watch Sea River in peace. Huanhuan, you should come over. The view is so magnificent…”
Yan Huan’s fingers quivered.
“Yiyi, where…are you?”
She could no longer think straight, unsure of her own words as she spoke.
“We’re by the Sea River, where we used to always bring Little Bean! You even said that we should buy a mansion here when we are rich in the future so we’ll be able to hang out by the beautiful riverside everyday.”
The excitement in Yi Ling’s voice was evident. On top of that, Yan Huan could hear Ye Shuyun and Madam Lei in the background, exclaiming with wonder.
“Leave…” Yan Huan gently brought her cold fingertips to her red lips. As of this moment, her lips had already begun to turn pale.
“What did you say?” Yiyi held the phone closer to her ear. However, the wind was too strong and the rain was too heavy. She failed to catch Yan Huan’s words.
“Hello, hello… Huanhuan?” she covered her other ear with her hand, “Huanhuan, what did you just say?” She tried to search for a place where the wind did not reach to return the call. Just as she was about to make the call, the phone slipped through her fingers and fell on the ground.
Within a fraction of a second, the screen shattered.
How can it break just like that? This phone is so flimsy.
Yi Ling was distressed, reasonably so as that was a newly bought phone. However, that should not be a big deal. With her current status, she could easily afford 10 phones. Therefore, she decided to not be too upset by the broken phone.
However, she was perturbed by the fact that she could not get Yan Huan to come over to the riverside. Ye Shuyun and Madam Lei had left their phones at home intentionally. That was their plan since the day they orchestrated this trip, so that the controlling men at home could not disturb their trip and mess up their itinerary.
“Quick! Look!” Ye Shuyun pointed at the intense waves. The three fearless women were never bothered about the news. They were not aware of the public warning that was issued regarding this terrifying natural phenomenon. Yet, they were enjoying the view as the water level rose.
They either had zero common sense or were full of courage.
Yan Huan closed her eyes. She forcefully suppressed her fear and trepidation when she opened her eyes. However, her heart continued to pound as large beads of cold sweat trickled down her forehead.
She raised her phone again, but her eyes misted over with anxiety and she could not see the numbers on the phone clearly.
She dialed Yi Ling’s number but it did not go through. Then, she tried to call Ye Shuyun and Madam Lei as well, but both of their phones were turned off.
That was her final attempt.
She knew clearly that her call would not make any difference as she understood Yi Ling very well. She had two high-spirited old ladies with her and she chose to bring them to the Sea River instead of many other destinations. Not only that, they had decided to play with the swamping water. Apparently, they had no idea that an unexpected flash flood or a raging fire could happen at any time.
Maybe they had had too much faith in Sea River, which was the place where they grew up.
Indeed, for the past hundreds of years, Sea River had been a peaceful place. However, behind that serenity was a history of flash floods that had occurred during the early days of the country. Had they all forgotten about the calamity?
They were either too confident in themselves, or they trusted Sea River too much.
Yan Huan tried to dial Lu Yi’s number. The call did not go through as his line was busy as well. Then, she rang Lei Qingyi and encountered the same fate. She understood that they were more preoccupied than anyone else at this moment.
However, unbeknownst to them was that the safety of their loved ones – both of their mothers and Lei Qingyi’s wife – was compromised. They did not know that the women were digging their own graves.
The casualties of the flash flood would be reported as missing people and eventually considered dead. They would be as good as dead.
She dropped her phone into her pocket and made a dash for the door. She hurriedly grabbed her car keys, put on her shoes and ran out of her house.
She only realized how heavy the rain was when she was driving. However, she failed to comprehend what the three women, a young one and two elder ones, were doing. What was so fascinating about the rain?
She stepped on the accelerator, driving at a very high speed. Due to the rain, there were very few vehicles and pedestrians on the road. Many roads were closed because of the deep puddles of water.
Yan Huan stopped her car in front of a blocked junction. At that moment, a huge drop of cold sweat fell off her forehead.
I need to find an alternative route.
To recompose herself, she bit down hard on her lower lip. She needed to feel the jarring pain in order to bring back her senses and calm herself down.
She was sweating profusely and her limbs were freezing. She almost could not feel her own temperature, her mind turning blank.
I have to act quicker.
Otherwise, it’ll be too late. Everything will be too late…
