Starting with taking in female college students

Chapter 58 Rescue

People tend to overthink when they have free time.

Chen Rang was in a daze for a while before he suddenly came to his senses. He shook his head, smiled self-deprecatingly, and decided to go out for a walk.

He didn't go far, but came to the path at the end of the alley and quietly watched a riverbed sloping down the slope. The riverbed was covered with dense aquatic plants, which obstructed the flow of water and made it meander.

Two streetlights here are broken, so the visibility isn't great. However, the lights on both banks reflecting on the water create a shimmering effect, which has its own unique charm.

At that moment, he felt lonely.

Even though the clinic has many cats and is always lively, there are still too few people around to talk to.

Humans are social creatures. Especially when feeling tired or lonely, they want to find someone to have a good chat with. Over beer and barbecue, they can vent their frustrations without restraint.

However, after he chose to return to Sarawak and parted ways with his classmates and friends from his school in Chu City, he had not yet been able to rebuild his friendships there, making it difficult for him to find someone he could confide in.

"Why!"

With a sigh, Chen Rang somewhat regretted returning home to inherit the family business.

What's so good about being a veterinarian? Even though you're well-off, your social circle is narrow, and you have to stay in the shop every day and can't wander around freely.

"Meow~"

A sound suddenly came from not far away.

Chen Rang turned his head and saw a cat, whose color he couldn't tell, crouching in the gap between the railing and the ground. Its body was pressed against the railing, its limbs curled up and motionless, while its head was peering towards the river.

"What are you doing squatting there? Looking down like that, aren't you afraid of falling?"

Chen Rang asked, speechless.

Meow~

The cat seemed to understand Chen Rang's words, glancing back at him with some difficulty before turning away again. Then, as if realizing something, it suddenly turned its head back to stare at Chen Rang, its eyes unblinking, seemingly lost in thought.

Chen Rang was too lazy to pay attention to it.

It was just a stray cat, after all; I had no recollection of it whatsoever. As long as it didn't try to kill itself by jumping into the river, I didn't care where it wanted to sit!

He continued to stare blankly at the river.

But who would have thought that the stray cat would be unhappy about it?

It seemed that this place was its territory, and it was perfectly content to be enjoying its cat life here when suddenly a human appeared right in front of it, standing there motionless. What was going on?

So the cat painstakingly crawled out of the gap, stood up straight, glared at Chen Rang, bared its teeth, and howled loudly.

"Awoo~"

"What the hell!"

Chen Rang glared at it irritably, but the creature was completely unafraid and continued to howl impatiently. It slowly backed away while howling, quickly stopping at the steps leading down to the river.

It shut its mouth and continued to stare intently at Chen Rang, its eyes filled with contempt and provocation.

"You're just a cat, how dare you look down on me?"

Chen Rang laughed in anger.

He didn't expect an answer, but at least his previous depressed mood had quickly disappeared.

It has to be admitted that cats always manage to bring people some unique and novel experiences. This cat in front of me is quite bold; isn't it afraid of getting beaten up?

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a small black and white creature. Its fur was almost entirely black, but its belly and four feet were pure white, making it quite distinctive.

According to ancient accounts, this type of cat has a beautiful name: "Dark Clouds Covering Snow".

"Gurgle~"

The cat kept staring at Chen Rang, growling defiantly, but occasionally glancing down at the steps below—its escape route. After a while, it finally lost interest, let out another loud howl, and quickly leaped into the shadows of the steps.

"They ran away already?"

Chen Rang was somewhat disappointed because he had never actually seen a cat with a particularly standard cloud cover over a snowy sky.

Unfortunately, the creature's color was almost a natural camouflage, and after it ran away, Chen Rang searched for a long time but couldn't find it again, which made him somewhat regretful.

Just then, he vaguely heard a soft cough.

"Ahem~"

The sound was really very soft.

If it weren't for the absolute silence around them, without even the clatter of wheels, this sound would have been easily overlooked. The reality was that the riverbank was so quiet that Chen Rang could hear every single sound clearly.

He stopped in his tracks.

He wondered if he was hallucinating, because the sound seemed to be coming from beneath the riverbed.

His first reaction was that the cat was making the noise. But he quickly sensed something was wrong, because if his common sense was correct, it was clearly the sound of a human coughing.

But... how could there be anyone in the river at night?

It was too dark, so Chen Rang leaned on the railing and peered down, but he saw nothing. Even that sound was never heard again.

"Did I hear that right?"

Chen Rang hesitated.

It wasn't that he was too lazy to go down and check, but it was pitch black down there and he couldn't see the path clearly. If he accidentally stepped off the riverbank and fell, it would be no joke.

What if there's nothing below? Wouldn't it be asking for trouble if I fell and got hurt?

And even if there really are people down there, they might not necessarily need help! They might just be sitting on the riverbank enjoying the cool air.

With that thought in mind, Chen Rang decided to leave.

He stopped after taking only a few steps, still feeling uneasy. No matter how much he considered it, he couldn't guarantee that the people below truly didn't need help. What if they were in dire need of assistance? To pretend not to see them would be a breach of medical ethics!

With a sigh, Chen Rang made a firm decision and returned to the riverbank.

He glanced at the steps the cat had run down; they were dark and steep, seemingly bottomless. There were no handrails on either side, and he couldn't see what lay below.

He took out his phone, turned on the light, and carefully and slowly moved down.

Fortunately, the steps weren't actually very long, and the riverbank was only about a meter above the top. When Chen Rang carefully reached the riverbank, which was less than a meter wide, he found that it was even darker below than above. Even with his phone providing light, he could only see the dimly lit paths extending on either side, the dark weeds along the roadside, and the sharply angled precipice on the other side. If he accidentally slipped and fell, he would definitely suffer a serious head injury.

Most importantly, that sound never came again. It was as if it had all been just Chen's hallucination from beginning to end.

This made him feel a little uneasy, and the quietness around him made him want to back out.

"Meow~"

Suddenly, a clear meow rang out from not far behind.

Chen Rang quickly turned his head and shone the light back on the cat. Soon he saw a familiar black wildcat with a dark, cloud-like coat, looking at him with a disdainful gaze.

Seemingly uncomfortable with the glaring light, the cat shook its head violently twice, even swishing its tail. It scrutinized Chen Rang for a moment, then turned and began walking deeper into the river, letting out a meow as if urging him on.

"Is this guy really that intelligent?"

Chen Rang felt something was off, but he still followed the cat slowly forward.

The man and the cat walked about ten meters along the narrow river, but there was still no one in sight. Just then, the man suddenly spotted a small black object on the riverbank, and the cat suddenly turned left and darted up the slope of the adjacent embankment.

Chen Rang was startled. He quickly shone his light on the guy, but soon found a figure lying in the grass on the riverbank slope not far ahead.

The man leaned against a patch of thick weeds, his body curled up and trembling slightly. Most of his body was hidden by the grass, and he remained silent. If it weren't for a cat leading the way, Chen Rang might not have noticed him even if there was a shoe lying on the riverbank below.

"Are you alright?"

With a startled cry, Chen Rang dared not linger any longer and quickly sprinted up the slope using both hands and feet.

The slope was slightly slippery, and he struggled to climb up and take a closer look. He discovered that it was an old woman with her eyes closed and her brows furrowed.

The old woman's hair was gray, and blood trickled from her forehead, which was being covered by one hand. Her face was stained with blood and grime, and her lips were tightly pressed together. Her other hand gripped the clump of grass preventing her from sliding down, her withered fingers almost revealing the outline of her bones…

What worried Chen Rang even more was that he discovered the old man seemed to be losing consciousness.

He quickly dialed 120 and took the time to carefully check the elderly man's condition. After determining that the man's injury was only on his forehead and that there were not many bruises on his clothes and limbs, he breathed a slight sigh of relief.