Chapter 64 If...

The visitor was none other than He Lixin's father, He Qiping, whom Zhong Wan also had to address as her uncle.

She quickly pulled Lin Yan'an up to call for help.

He Qiping nodded when he saw the two, but his eyes held a complex expression.

Upon seeing this, He Qijiang frowned and said, "What kind of look is that? The child greeted you, and you just stared at them like that?"

He sighed upon hearing this, looked at Zhong Wan, and hesitated before asking, "Wanwan, you know that your mother, Liqun, and Lixin all resigned yesterday, right?"

Zhong Wan asked, puzzled, "I know, I was the one who took my mom there."

He Qiping raised his hand to wipe his face and continued to ask, "Then... did you make the call to the police?"

"What emergency call?"

Zhong Wan frowned in confusion: "I'd like to hit her, but my mom won't let me."

He Qiping breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this: "It's good that it wasn't you."

Then she turned to look at Lin Yan'an: "You didn't call either?"

Seeing Lin Yan'an nod,

He was finally completely relieved.

“If it’s not you, then it’s easy to talk. Dajiang, come with me to the village office. If we want justice, we’ll have to settle it with my family, Lao He. Hehe.”

He Qiping sneered, turned around and walked out first.

From his few words, the others also realized the problem.

He Qijiang's smile vanished instantly, and he quickly followed.

After leaving the house, she didn't forget to remind them, "Wanwan and Yan'an, you two stay home and don't go out."

"Be trustworthy and keep a close watch on things, don't let any fools come in and cause trouble!"

He Liqun and He Lixin exchanged a glance upon hearing this, and quickly agreed.

Hearing the noise, He Qilan came out of the kitchen in confusion, looking at her older brother's hurried back: "What happened to Liqun and Lixin?"

He Liqun shrugged: "I don't know, Auntie, just don't worry about it and focus on cooking."

"I'm a little hungry, I'm just waiting for food."

He Qilan chuckled: "Fine, then I won't bother with it."

Zhong Wan walked to the door and looked over with some worry.

Feeling her gaze, He Liqun smiled and reassured her, "Don't worry, there's nothing to worry about."

"Even if the sky falls, there are still us tall people to hold it up, so you can rest assured and stay with your partner."

Upon hearing this, He Lixin put down his things, grinned, and came over, saying, "Yeah, Wanwan, if you're free, come and get me some water. I'm thirsty."

"Okay, I'll be right there."

Zhong Wan smiled and agreed, then turned around, went back into the house, found a bottle of mineral water, opened it, and delivered it over.

The gate to the courtyard was locked by someone.

The knocking on the door continued again and again, but after a while, it stopped when no one answered.

Zhong Wan didn't know if they had left.

In this family, even though she's almost thirty, she's still a child.

Lin Yan'an received the same treatment.

Pei Xingyu was even younger than the rest of the juniors.

The well-behaved children accompanied her grandfather as he watched the opera, exchanging a few words occasionally.

She was enjoying the snacks her grandma had prepared, feeling incredibly happy and content.

Until they heard that familiar, piercing siren...

Zhong Wan paused, then quickly turned her head to look.

Looking at the police cars speeding past the window one after another, I realized what was happening.

Things seem to have really gotten out of hand.

Safety supervision, public security, tax inspection, and fire protection?

She quickly put down the sunflower seeds in her hand and said hurriedly, "I'll go out and take a look."

Lin Yan'an quickly followed.

Pei Xingyu's eyes lit up when he saw this: "Great-Grandpa, you keep an eye on things first, I'll go out and take a look too."

"Hehe, go ahead, go ahead."

Great-grandfather watched him with a smile and reminded him, "Remember to hide behind the adults when you're watching the play, so you don't get accidentally hurt."

Pei Xingyu paused, turned around, and gave him a thumbs-up with a smile: "Great-Grandpa is right!"

Zhong Yang shook his head speechlessly: "Grandpa, you're so smart."

"That's right."

Great-grandfather proudly shook his head and said, "Don't you know who your grandpa is? When I was young, I carried a gun and fought against the Japanese!"

"Yes, Grandpa is amazing."

Great-grandfather smiled and waved his hand at him: "Calm down, calm down, alright, you go and take a look too."

"Keep an eye on Pei. He looks like someone who loves to join in the fun."

"Uh-huh."

Zhong Yang nodded in agreement.

When he came out, he found that his grandfather was right.

That brat Pei Xingyu has climbed onto the roof...

Zhong Yang rolled his eyes speechlessly and climbed up the ladder: "Can you see clearly?"

Pei Xingyu shook his head with some regret upon hearing this, and pointed over there: "You can see quite a few people over there."

"But it doesn't look like a mine."

Hearing this, He Lixin smiled and glanced at him, explaining, "That's the village office over there. It looks like it's just miners and their families coming to join in the fun."

As he spoke, he pointed to the other side: "The mine is over there. Do you see that building? That's it."

Where? Where?

Pei Xingyu craned his neck to look, searching high and low, and finally spotted the building.

Then what?

What about at the mine?

Seeing his puzzled look, He Lixin smiled and patted his head: "Want to see? Come on, I'll take you."

"Uh-huh."

Pei Xingyu nodded with starry eyes and quickly thanked him, "Thank you, brother... no, shouldn't I call you uncle?"

He Lixin hesitated, looking at Zhong Yang with eyes full of doubt.

Zhong Yang nodded helplessly: "My brother-in-law is his uncle, so..."

He Lixin laughed immediately upon hearing this: "It's alright, call me whatever you want, it doesn't matter."

"Let's go into the mountains."

"Let's go!"

Even the gloomy weather seemed to let through a faint sliver of sunlight.

Zhong Wan and the others drove to the mine.

Seeing the cars of those public officials parked in front of the workshop,

Looking at the workers surrounding him with their mixed expressions,

Zhong Wan pursed her lips and took a few steps forward.

Only then did they see workers in different uniforms, each with a serious expression, taking photos and collecting evidence, and sealing off the equipment.

The huge words "Safety in Production" that were on the wall yesterday are still hanging crookedly, looking particularly ironic.

Zhong Wan looked up at the black mist above the workshop, and vaguely felt that the color had faded somewhat.

I could hear their worried and confused words.

"It's fallen...it's really fallen now..."

"Retribution! It really is retribution! That son of a bitch Zhou Bapi, Old Li, you see, Zhou Bapi's retribution has come, hahaha."

"Damn it! They should have shut it down a long time ago! I told you the equipment was faulty, but nobody listened to me! Now look what happened, everyone's out of a job..."

"The mine has collapsed... what should we do?"

"What can we do? Just accept it?! This is the only mine around here that needs people like us who are over the age limit. Now we're in trouble. We either have to go out and find work or go back to farming."

"But will anyone want us if we go out?"

After a long silence and a heavy sigh,

Someone spoke up: "I hope so."

Upon hearing this, Zhong Wan turned her head to look, and saw his cloudy eyes staring intently ahead.

His voice was so ethereal, filled with uncertainty, as if he were comforting himself, or perhaps as if he were comforting someone else.

With a hoarse voice and trembling lips, he repeated, "It will happen!"

"There definitely will be!"

"Go to a construction site, collect scraps, sweep the streets—there's something for you! You won't starve!"

His body trembled, his hands clenched into fists.

The glistening tears that instantly slid down her cheeks pierced Zhong Wan's heart.

Yes, at their age, will anyone really want them? Can they really still find work?

if……

If He Qiping hadn't left his hometown...

If we could enable them to have enough to eat and wear at home,

That's fine.