A reborn mother longs for her daughter's happiness.

Chapter 12 The Terrifying Disappearance of the Daughter

That day, Li Yuan was as busy as ever at the company. Files fell on her desk like snowflakes, and she felt like a warrior battling through a snowdrift, barely managing to escape this hectic "battlefield." Looking at the time, it was already afternoon; time to pick up her beloved daughter, Shi Qing, from school.

Li Yuan hummed a little tune, thinking of her daughter's adorable little face, her heart filled with sweetness. Little did she know, a nightmare was quietly unfolding.

She had only walked halfway when her phone suddenly rang, like a frantic little alarm clock. Li Yuan glanced at the caller ID; it was Teacher Zhang from the kindergarten. Her heart skipped a beat, and a sense of foreboding washed over her.

"Hey, Teacher Zhang, what's wrong?" Li Yuan asked anxiously.

"Li Shiqing's mother, Shiqing... Shiqing is missing! I couldn't find her after school!" Teacher Zhang's voice was filled with anxiety and panic.

Li Yuan felt a buzzing in her head, as if a swarm of bees were buzzing around inside. Panicked, she turned and ran towards the kindergarten as fast as a tornado.

When she arrived at the kindergarten, she looked around frantically, her eyes wide as saucers, but she couldn't see her daughter's small figure. She was as anxious as a cat on a hot tin roof, grabbing a passing teacher and asking, "Have you seen my daughter, Liu Shiqing?"

The teacher shook his head, and Li Yuan felt her heart breaking.

She ran to the security room and saw the security guard setting up the surveillance equipment. Breathlessly, she asked, "Sir, have you seen a little girl who looks about three years old? My daughter is missing!"

The security guard looked serious and comforted her, "Don't worry, don't worry, let's check the surveillance footage." As he spoke, his rough fingers rapidly typed on the keyboard.

A moment later, the surveillance video appeared. Li Yuan stared intently at the screen. Suddenly, she saw a person wearing a mask and hat pick up Li Shiqing, who was playing at the kindergarten gate, and then quickly leave.

"Who...who is this?" Li Yuan's voice trembled.

The security guard frowned and said, "This person looks suspicious; he's definitely up to no good."

Li Yuan stomped her feet in anger. She took out her phone and dialed 110 with her trembling fingers.

"Hey, officers! My daughter has been kidnapped! She's right at the kindergarten gate, please come quick!" Li Yuan cried out.

The police arrived at the kindergarten shortly afterward.

Li Yuan grabbed the police officers' hands and led them to the security room. Pointing to the surveillance video, she said, "Officer, this is the person who took my daughter away."

The police officers watched the video while asking the security guard some questions about the details.

Li Yuan kept muttering to herself, "What am I going to do? If anything happens to my precious daughter, how can I live?"

Suddenly, Li Yuan seemed to remember something, and she watched the video several more times. The more she watched, the more familiar the man who took her daughter seemed. Her clever little brain worked at lightning speed, and she slapped her thigh, exclaiming, "I know! That's my ex-husband, Wang Qiang! What does this bastard want?"

Upon hearing this, the police officers immediately perked up.

A police officer asked, "Are you sure it's him?"

Li Yuan nodded, gritting her teeth as she said, "It must be him. I know his walking style and his build all too well. I'd recognize him even if he were ashes. This guy is definitely trying to use my daughter to threaten me."

So the police took Li Yuan and headed towards Wang Qiang's house.

Throughout the journey, Li Yuan sat in the police car, her heart pounding like a rabbit's. She was worried about her daughter's safety and also furious at her ex-husband's behavior.

"Officers, you must get my daughter out of here! My ex-husband... he might do something crazy in a moment of madness," Li Yuan said anxiously to the police.

The police officer comforted her, saying, "Don't worry too much, we'll handle it. If it really is your ex-husband, he shouldn't hurt the child."

When they arrived at Wang Qiang's building, Li Yuan couldn't wait to rush upstairs. The police stopped her, saying, "Don't be impulsive, we have to be careful."

They quietly arrived at Wang Qiang's doorstep, and the police officers took their positions. One officer gestured for Li Yuan to knock on the door.

Li Yuan took a deep breath, pounded on the door, and shouted, "Wang Qiang, you bastard, what have you done to our daughter? Open the door now!"

There was a noise coming from inside the house, and after a while, the door opened.

Wang Qiang stood at the door and saw Li Yuan and the police; his face turned ashen.

"You...you've come here?" Wang Qiang stammered.

Li Yuan glared at him angrily and roared, "Wang Qiang, where did you hide your daughter Shi Qing? Are you crazy? How could you do such a thing?"

Wang Qiang tried to argue, "I...I don't know what you're talking about."

The police officer said sternly, "Wang Qiang, we saw you take the child away on the surveillance footage. You'd better tell us honestly, where is the child?"

Wang Qiang lowered his head, knowing he couldn't hide it anymore. He said helplessly, "Shi Qing is sleeping inside. I... I just miss her so much. As her father, can't I even see my daughter?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yuan was so angry that tears streamed down her face. She rushed into the room and saw her daughter lying peacefully in bed, fast asleep. She rushed over, hugged her daughter tightly, and burst into tears, crying, "Baby, you scared Mommy to death!"

The police gave Wang Qiang a stern lecture: "Wang Qiang, your behavior is illegal. If you want to see your child, you can do so through normal channels. How could you secretly take your child away? This will cause so much harm to the child and the child's mother!"

Wang Qiang hung his head and said, "I know I was wrong. I was confused at the time and wanted to..."

Li Yuan came out carrying her daughter and said to the police officers, "Officers, thank you so much. I don't know what I would have done without you."

The police officer smiled and said, "This is what we should do. However, you two still need to resolve your issues properly and prevent this from happening again."

Li Yuan nodded and left Wang Qiang's house with her daughter in her arms. On the way home, she was filled with mixed emotions. Looking at her daughter's adorable face, she secretly vowed to protect her daughter from now on and never let her suffer any harm again. This close call also made her realize that life is always full of unexpected twists and turns, but with courage and faith, one can always overcome adversity.

After returning home, Li Yuan sat on the sofa with her daughter in her arms and told her about what had happened that day, in a very relaxed way, as if she were telling an interesting story.

“Sweetie, you were like a little adventurer today, experiencing a great adventure. But you can’t run around like that again, okay? If Mommy can’t find you, Mommy’s heart will break into so many little pieces,” Li Yuan said to her daughter with a smile.

Li Shiqing blinked her big eyes and said, seemingly understanding but not quite, "Mom, I know. I'll wait for you at kindergarten from now on. That uncle said he would take me to find my dad, so I went with him."

Li Yuan gently pinched her daughter's nose and said, "Sweetie, if any strangers come to take you away in the future, you can't go with them, okay? Even if it's someone you know, you can't go without Mommy's or your teacher's permission, understand?"

Li Shiqing nodded obediently and said, "Okay, Mom."

Li Yuan held her daughter tightly in her arms, feeling her warmth. Today's harrowing ordeal, though frightening, had made her cherish the time with her daughter even more. She knew her daughter was the most precious treasure in her life, and she would do anything for her.