Xu Xinghe's eyes lit up immediately, and she leaned forward, "Where exactly in the city does this old black man live? Does he frequent any places, or has a fixed place to stay?"

Sun Huzi didn't answer immediately. Instead, he took the cigarette out of his mouth, frowned, and squatted on the ground with a worried look on his face, rubbing the dust off the ground with the tip of his shoe.

After a long while, he pulled over a stool with a missing leg, propped up with bricks, and said, "Comrade Xu, please sit down and talk."

He casually sat down on the threshold of the house, legs apart, elbows on his knees, a typical slacker's posture, nonchalant and carefree. "I'm telling you this purely out of consideration for the kindness you showed me by bringing my mother frostbite cream in the winter."

He stroked the stubble on his chin, his tone unusually serious, "But I advise you not to go. That old black man is no pushover. Even if he knows you're a military dependent, he won't be afraid at all. He might even think you're putting on airs because of Commander Jiang's status and deliberately make things difficult for you."

He paused, then lowered his voice and added, "Besides, Commander Jiang has arrested a lot of people in their underworld before. These people hate him to the core and are afraid that one day the investigation will come back to them. If you go to him under the pretense of investigating Commander Jiang, you'll be lucky if he doesn't kick you out, let alone give you any information."

Xu Xinghe bit her lip. She knew it would be difficult, but she had to give it a try.

She pulled out a few ten-yuan bills from her pocket and handed them over, saying, "Brother Tiger, I know there are risks, but I have to go. Take this money as a thank you for troubling you."

Sun Huzi's eyes lit up when he saw the money, but he immediately pushed it away, his face flushed. "Comrade Xu, you're looking down on me! I may be a scoundrel, but I'm not heartless! You helped my family, so it's only right that I tell you the news. How could I take your money?"

He scratched his head, glanced warily at the door again, and lowered his voice once more, "Fine, I'll tell you where he is. But you have to promise me that no matter what, you can't say I told you! If anything happens to you and the military comes knocking, I can't take the blame."

"Don't worry!" Xu Xinghe immediately patted her chest and assured him, "I will absolutely not tell anyone that you told me. This is something only heaven, earth, you, and I know, and there will absolutely be no third person who knows!"

Hearing this, Sun Huzi finally made up his mind. "Fine, I'll tell you. Lao Hei doesn't usually move around much. He either stays at the old tavern at the south end of the city. Don't be fooled by the fact that it's a place for drinking; it's actually where he plays cards. Or he goes to the scrap yard in town. That place is also watched over by his men, and ordinary people don't dare to go near it."

Xu Xinghe memorized the address, immediately stood up to say goodbye, "Thanks, Brother Hu, I'm leaving now."

"I'll see you to the gate." Sun Huzi stood up and, still worried, added as they reached the gate, "Comrade Xu, I still advise you not to go. None of Lao Hei's men are good people. You're so attractive, who knows what dirty tricks they might pull."

These days, if a girl is too beautiful, she's more likely to get into trouble when she's out and about.

Xu Xinghe smiled brightly at him, her eyes curving into crescents, "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing, nothing will happen."

The smile was so bright it was dazzling. Sun Huzi was stunned for a moment before he reacted. He quickly turned around and slammed the door shut. Leaning against the door, he touched his burning face.

"Damn, she's so beautiful..." It's just a pity that a girl like that is not someone he can even think about.

Sun Huzi took out a cigarette, put it in his mouth, lit it with a match, took a deep drag, then put on his worn-out cotton shoes, tucked the cigarette case into his pocket, and walked out.

It's better to go play cards. Once you sit at the card table, you won't have time to think about Xu Xinghe, and you won't have to worry about whether something will really happen to her.

He's just someone who drifts through life; there's no need for him to worry about an outsider and create unnecessary trouble for himself.

...

After writing down the address, Xu Xinghe didn't waste a moment and turned to rush to the village entrance.

Just then, Grandpa Wang from Hongxing Village was driving his oxcart to town to pick up goods, and there were several aunties on the cart who were going to buy needles and thread and soy sauce.

Xu Xinghe nimbly jumped onto the oxcart, and as soon as she was settled, several aunties took things out of their cloth bags and stuffed them into her hands.

"These are sugar pancakes my husband made yesterday. Here, have some to tide you over."

"Here are some roasted sunflower seeds; you can crack them open on the way."

Xu Xinghe accepted them one by one and chatted casually with the aunties.

The air in Northeast China is still chilly, but the warmth and hospitality of the people there make you feel cozy inside.

The weather is lovely today; Mother Nature is very kind to us, with bright sunshine and only occasional chilly breezes, all within a tolerable range. Compared to the sub-zero temperatures of the past few months, this is definitely warm.

Xu Xinghe didn't dare to eat too much. The oxcart was shaking violently, and he was afraid that the cold wind would upset his stomach, so he folded the sugar cakes and put them in his pocket, and obediently held onto the side of the cart and sat up straight.

After a bumpy ride of more than an hour, the oxcart finally arrived at the town's main street.

After the women had all gotten off the bus with their things, Xu Xinghe slowly jumped down, took out a dime, and handed it to Grandpa Wang. "Grandpa, what time does your bus leave this afternoon?"

"We have to head back by 3 o'clock, otherwise it will be dark and the road will be difficult to travel."

Grandpa Wang took the money and stuffed it into the cloth bag at his waist. "If you're leaving, come find me at the street corner at the appointed time. If you're not leaving, I won't wait for you."

"Okay, thank you for your help!"

There wasn't enough time today, so Xu Xinghe didn't go to the city. Instead, he chose to try his luck in the town first.

If we can't find Lao Hei, we can always make another trip to the city tomorrow.

Following the directions given by Sun Huzi, she quickly found the scrap metal recycling station.

When the spies carried out the bombing last year, half of the house had already been repaired. The color of the newly repaired bricks and tiles clashed with the old walls, making it look particularly awkward.

She took a deep breath and strode inside.

An old man in a cotton-padded coat was squatting in the yard sorting through recyclables. When he looked up and saw her, the iron hook in his hand clattered to the ground. He was stunned for a long time before he came to his senses.

Oh my, what a pretty girl! Is she an educated youth from the city?

The old man had never seen such a neat and tidy girl in all his years.

Her face was as white as snow, with a touch of rosy cheeks, making her look beautiful no matter how you looked at her.

"Oh, young lady, what are you looking for? A book?" The old man always had a long face when he saw others, but he smiled like a flower in front of Xu Xinghe. He also hoped that his granddaughter could grow up to be so beautiful that she would never have to worry about getting married in the future.

"Sir, I'd like to ask you something. Is that old black man in the city?"

Upon hearing this, the old man's smile instantly froze. "What do you want with Lao Hei?"

"I...I want to ask him about something."

The old man initially wanted to kick her out, but seeing how beautiful she was, with her bright, dark eyes, he couldn't bring himself to say anything harsh. "What do you want to know? Why do you insist on finding him? Young lady, you're so young and beautiful, don't do anything rash. Old Hei already has a wife, and the girl is about your age."

Xu Xinghe immediately understood that the old man had misunderstood. Her face flushed red, not from embarrassment, but from anger. "Grandpa, what are you thinking! I'm not looking for him about this. I have an important matter to ask him to help me find out where he is. Just tell me!"

As she spoke, she took out a ten-yuan note from her pocket and handed it over, saying, "This is for your hard work."

The old man stared at the money, his eyes wide. He could barely earn a few cents a day sorting through recyclables, but he felt a pang of conscience. "Then tell me first, what do you want to ask him about?"

Xu Xinghe didn't tell the truth. Jiang Linchuan's story might have spread to the village, but people in the town might not know. If she told them, some curious people might go and inquire.

“My brother was framed. He suspects that an enemy did it, but he can’t find the enemy. So he wants to ask his big brother, who has connections everywhere, for information. That’s what happened.”

The old man nodded knowingly; he'd heard of similar cases of being framed before, and felt a surge of sympathy. "Your brother's really something, sending a young woman like you out to inquire like this."

Xu Xinghe gave an awkward smile, "He's locked up right now, he can't get out."

"Old Hei is at the bathhouse on Qianjin Road at the east end of town today, but I advise you not to go. Everyone who goes in and out of that bathhouse is his man, and none of them are easy to get along with."