28 "The premise is that you never leave without saying goodbye again"

The girl is Maixiang’s childhood friend. She has a dark and thin face and is not tall.

She looks like a student, but she is very skilled in coaxing and holding children.

Tao Wanjia calmed down and asked, "Do you know where she was buried?"

The moment the girl burst into tears, countless possibilities flashed through her mind. Tao Wanju advised herself to stay calm. Whether it was the sixth sense of an investigative reporter or a person who should first refrain from speculation, but in the few seconds before the facts and conjectures came into view, Tao Wanju felt uneasy.

"She's not here."

The girl had a nasal voice and her hands were shaking.

"Her uncle sold her for 100,000 yuan to arrange a ghost marriage. I don't know where she was buried."

She heard the news of being married to a man in a neighboring village the next day. When she rushed back, the funeral had already taken place. She had been staying at her parents' house these days just to find out what was going on. Even if she couldn't help, she didn't want to just let it go.

Even if their lives are worthless and no one values ​​them, they should not become exploitable commodities after death. This is so unfair.

The girl tried her best to remain calm and told Tao Wanji everything she knew after he revealed that he was Mai Xiang's neighbor.

Maixiang has no relatives. After her adoptive grandmother passed away, she was entrusted to her son and daughter-in-law. But in fact, Maixiang has never received a single day of care in this family. Instead, she has been taking on all the farm work and housework since she was seven or eight years old.

Finally, he couldn't bear it anymore and took a desperate gamble to escape from here.

Tao Wanjia felt angry but also powerless. At that moment, she wanted to go back to that house to argue with someone, but her reason made her calm down quickly.

The reason why bad habits such as "ghost marriage" have been difficult to control from ancient times to the present is not only because of people's deep-rooted stereotypes, but also because there are gaps in the law that are difficult to make rigid provisions. Because of the blind spots, some people will take advantage of this loophole, and the participants in the buying and selling links have no relevant legal support to sanction, so that the bad habits have been difficult to eliminate for many years, and even gave birth to this kind of market.

Those who treat lives as "commodities" should be punished, but before that, we need to find sufficiently strong evidence.

"Don't worry, I will find her."

Tao Wanji raised her hand to wipe away the tears from the corners of the girl's eyes. The child in her arms was already sleeping peacefully. Her tender white face was slightly reddened by the cold wind. She tucked in the blanket wrapped around her body and took a deep breath.

She was determined to give Maixiang freedom and fairness. She didn't deserve such an ending, and the loss of life should not become a tool to be traded at will.

Returning to the car, the boy looked at Tao Wanjia expectantly, "Did they tell you?"

She was about to speak when He Yu beside her covered her hand and signaled with his eyes.

She knew what he meant. The news was too shocking. He had already suffered enough from losing his girlfriend, and he shouldn't be further stimulated. But Tao Wanjia felt that he should know, so after a moment's hesitation, she spoke the truth regardless of the obstruction.

The boy was furious after hearing this, veins on his forehead bulged, and he opened the car door angrily and was about to leave.

Tao Wanjia quickly ran over and grabbed the man. He exerted force with his hands, and the wound on his abdomen hurt so much that he almost fainted.

"You can't go now!" She gritted her teeth and took a breath, warning the impulsive boy in a deep voice, "If you fall out, you won't be able to find Maixiang. Listen to me and calm down."

After much persuasion, I persuaded them to go back to the car. Before I could even get comfortable in my seat, I saw a strange middle-aged woman walking out of the door of that house. She was wearing a shiny new Chinese-style coat and got into the car slowly with a shoulder bag.

Tao Wanjia's gaze paused. The boy had already recognized the face. "I think I've seen her at the funeral."

"Follow him."

He Yu reacted quickly and Xiao Zhang turned around and followed.

As the sun set in the west, the car drove from the desolate mountain road to the bustling town market, and finally stopped in front of a funeral supplies store.

Tao Wanjia got out of the car, lifted the heavy door curtain and entered the house.

"It's closed. If you want to buy something, wait until tomorrow."

The woman didn't even look at her, but leaned over the paint-chipped counter, counting money.

"Closing so early? What time will it open tomorrow?"

Tao Wanji asked calmly, looking around the narrow, dimly lit room.

The area is not large and does not face the sun. The last bit of setting sun outside the window breaks through the glass and shines on the layers of gold ingots, paper money and red paper wedding characters piled on the ground.

Her guess became more certain, so she aimed the camera of her mobile phone in her front pocket and turned and left after the woman answered the exact time.

When they got back to the car, the store was also locked. Tao Wanjia wanted to instruct Xiao Zhang to catch up with the car again, but found that only He Yu was left in the car.

"Where are they?"

"I still want to follow her. She should be the introducer."

Tao Wanji looked at him in confusion. He Yu had taken out a bottle of medicine from somewhere, opened a cotton swab and looked at her.

"Have you forgotten that you are still a patient?"

"Open your clothes and let me see."

There was anger and worry in his words. Only then did he seem to understand a little of her past work. However, every report she had done over the years had been far more dangerous than this one. He Yu felt a mixture of emotions, and seeing her trying to show off even with cold sweat on her forehead, he couldn't calm down any more.

Seeing that she didn't move, he simply moved in front of her and raised his hand to unbutton her coat.

Tao Wanjia didn't want to make him worry, so he deliberately dodged and said, "It's broad daylight, I can do it myself."

He Yu was speechless for a moment, then laughed at her anger. He turned away, looked out the window, and explained to her.

"When you first entered, I asked Xiao Zhang to rent a local car. He will let me know if anything happens."

It would be a bit awkward for the four of them to gather together, so it would be best to act separately. Although the store is locked, someone still needs to keep an eye on it.

Tao Wanjia applied a layer of medicine in a few strokes, and turned around while enduring the itchiness and severe pain at the edge of the wound.

"I didn't expect you to have the talent for investigation. Mr. He, would you consider switching careers and joining me?"

She raised her lips and smiled, originally trying to hide the corners of her mouth twitching due to pain, but he saw through it at a glance.

I leaned over and pulled open her clothes to check, and found that the wound had become inflamed.

He Yu's face was gloomy. He moved from the back seat to the driver's seat to start the car, and said urgently, "You have to go back to Rongcheng."

The edges of her wound haven't healed properly, and now it seems to be even worse.

"no!"

Tao Wanjia stopped him righteously, "I'm fine, I'll be fine in a few days. Now that Mai Xiang's matter has finally shown some signs, I won't go back until I find her myself."

He Yu was very stubborn and stared into her eyes without blinking.

"This isn't a matter of course! If this scar isn't treated properly, it will recur. Every bad weather day for the next few years will be like a thorn moving back and forth in this piece of flesh. It will itch and hurt, and it's impossible to ignore."

Tao Wanji noticed that he was abnormal, and his heart felt like it was being gripped by something. He pulled his hand over and gently stroked the raised skin.

"He Yu, I promise you that I will go back after I find Mai Xiang."

It was a rare occasion for her to have such a moment. He Yu felt a warmth in his chest and agreed to whatever she said.

After arguing for a while, it was already dark. Tao Wanjia dragged him out of the car and found a restaurant nearby.

After the two of them had a quick meal, she took He Yu to the hotel across the street.

The aunt at the front desk was dozing in front of the fireplace in her down jacket. When she heard the door open, she looked up impatiently, stood up and flipped through a crumpled booklet on the table.

"There's only one room left, the one at the end of the corridor. The rent is eighty, the deposit is one hundred."

Tao Wanjia handed over his ID card when paying, but the front desk clerk didn't even register his information. He just threw a key over the counter and went back to sleep.

The two walked through the narrow and dark corridor, and He Yu stopped at the door.

"You should have a good rest first, and call me if you need anything."

Tao Wanjia opened the door with her back to him, "Aren't you staying?"

"I, I'll go keep an eye on the car."

He Yu looked away and still didn't understand why she suddenly booked a room.

His thoughts were as chaotic as his heartbeat. He didn't know if it was because of the touch of her palm or something else, but his brain was in uncontrollable chaos, and he thought of the damp hotel in Qiayang at an inappropriate time.

In the moment she was distracted, Tao Wanjia had already let go of him and walked into the house. She pulled the curtains shut, leaving a gap, and turned around after making sure she could see the store.

"I'm not here to rest. I can just see the second floor from here."

She had been sitting in the car for far too long today, and now, not only was her wound hurting, but even her waist was aching. After all, she wasn't in her early twenties anymore, and she couldn't handle a whole day of bumpy rides.

"Come in, we'll take turns watching." Tao Wanji took off his coat, raised his legs and lay down on the bed.

He Yu closed the door and saw that she was obviously tired so he didn't disturb her anymore. He took a chair and sat under the window looking outside.

Perhaps because he was by her side, or perhaps because she was extremely tired, Tao Wanjia closed her eyes unconsciously.

She had a dream. In the snowy scene, Maixiang walked up to her wearing a red sweater, but she passed by her without even looking at her.

Tao Wanjia wanted to call out to her, but she didn't stop, just kept moving forward. Balls of snow fell like rocks, and when she looked up again, the figure was gone.

As his vision went dark, Tao Wanjia suddenly woke up.

"Having a nightmare?"

He Yu sat next to her at some point and wiped her sweat with a tissue.

Although this simple room was small, it was heated very warmly. Her cheeks were rosy and she looked the most healthy she had in days.

But his eyes were empty and he seemed to be still trapped in a dream.

He gently raised his arms to hug Tao Wanji, and soothed her back.

After noticing that her breathing had calmed down, He Yu spoke softly, "Can you tell me about your past?"

There was a long period of silence between them. He wanted to know about all the times he had not participated in, but now he wanted to find a topic to make her relax.

Tao Wanjia regained consciousness and leaned her head on his shoulder. She was not one to easily confide her sorrows to others, so she deliberately teased him, not wanting the topic to be too serious.

"Do you want to ask Zhao Kuo?"

"No?"

He Yu raised his eyebrows and looked at her, with a hint of smile in his eyes, "Am I not even worthy enough to ask him now?"

"Of course."

Tao Wanjia smiled and told him what happened before. He Yu listened carefully and deliberately eased the atmosphere after he finished.

"I noticed, why do you smile so happily when you talk about Zhao Kuo?"

He raised his hand and pinched her face, "Can you at least consider whether I am okay in front of you?"

Tao Wanji hugged him back, her exhausted body leaning against him. She blinked at the words, "Jealous? It seems what Old Zhao told me is true. Do you really think of him as a rival in love?"

He Yu felt a little uncomfortable under her gaze.

"I didn't."

"I just remembered something funny." Tao Wanjia paused and continued to tell him the reason why he laughed just now.

"One time, the two of us went to investigate a factory that was illegally employing child labor. The factory was in the village. Lao Zhao was hired as an undercover agent, and I was working from the outside. We agreed to meet at the village entrance every day to collect the evidence he had photographed. In the middle of summer, a narrow river at the entrance of the village was surrounded by fields on both sides. A villager had spread a layer of manure as fertilizer, covering two large areas of land. It was dark and there were no street lights. He didn't pay attention and stepped in the manure, and walked back with his foot in mud and manure."

Tao Wanjia fell into memories, his eyes bright under the night light, and the corners of his lips became more and more curved.

"He begged me repeatedly not to tell anyone. After I got back, I used this to threaten him into bringing me breakfast every day for over a month."

To this day, this remains the only black history in Zhao Kuo's investigative career.

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but sigh, "Actually, those days were really beautiful."

Tao Wanjia doesn't like to reminisce about the past, but she really misses those days.

It is actually not easy for a person to have a period of time in his life when he is selfless and does not consider anything else but only pursues his ideals.

After a moment of silence, she thought about the dream she had just had.

"He Yu, I think——"

"Go ahead and do it. I support you." He Yu interrupted her, knowing that she would not give up easily.

"You don't even ask me what it is?"

"You kept calling out Mai Xiang in your dream, I can guess."

He held her hand and said, "I support whatever you do, but the premise is that you never leave without saying goodbye again."