Chapter 56: The Case of the Missing Sister (1) Sister, I’ll go get you some candy…

This idea of ​​finding her sister was not the first time that came into Sang Luo's mind. In fact, she had thought about finding her sister countless times as she grew up. Later, she decided to become a criminal police officer in order to find her sister.

When my sister went missing, my parents reported the case to the police immediately, but unfortunately there were too few clues at the time. The police couldn’t find any trace of my sister, so they had to let the case go. The case became an unsolved case.

After years of hard work, Sang Luo finally became a criminal police officer. She was finally able to access the case files and search for her sister's whereabouts on her own.

When he first started working, Sang Luo was not familiar with the surrounding environment, so he did not dare to act rashly. Now that the time is ripe, Sang Luo decided to start investigating the case of Sang Ruo's disappearance in Houtu Village fifteen years ago.

After work that day, everyone in the three teams left the office. Sang Luo walked out of the office door, turned around and walked into the archive room. She found her sister's file according to the year. She held her breath, opened her sister's file, and a photo came into her eyes.

This is a group photo of their family of four, and also the only group photo they have. In the photo, mom and dad are standing side by side, and she and her sister are sitting at their feet. The two little people have happy smiles on their faces. This should have been a testimony to their happiness, but now it has been sandwiched in the file of the missing case.

This photo was taken when they were both six years old. Sang Luo remembered it very clearly. That day was their sixth birthday. Xiaoyu brought over a few photos and said that this was called a photo album and could only be taken by photo studios in the city.

The two little girls immediately became jealous and cried and shouted that they wanted to take pictures. Their mother hit their buttocks with a rolling pin, but the two little girls still refused to give in and insisted on taking pictures. In the end, they cried until late at night. Their parents couldn't persuade them anymore and agreed to take them to take pictures the next day. Then the two girls went to bed obediently.

The next day, my parents kept their promise and they really brought a donkey cart. The whole family changed into clean clothes, rode the donkey cart to the city, and took this photo.

On the way back, my mother kept complaining that it cost a lot of money to take this photo and that the two sisters were just wasting money. Unexpectedly, this photo would later become the only souvenir of my sister in the world.

Sang Luo's eyes were slightly red. She quickly turned the page and read the information at the back. The incident recorded by the police was similar to what Sang Luo remembered. The police searched for a long time but failed to find any useful clues.

The crime scene was in the countryside, and there could be no surveillance nearby. There were no signs of damage to the door of the house, and no signs of climbing over the wall around the courtyard. So it was not that someone broke into the house and kidnapped my sister, but that my sister took the initiative to walk out of the house and then got lost.

There is only one dirt road in the village, and there are a lot of people coming and going every day. My sister's footprints had long been covered up. The crime happened in the afternoon, and most of the villagers were asleep at this time. There were no witnesses, and no one knew who Sang Ruo went with or where she went.

After reading the file, Sang Luo sorted out the current situation in his mind. There was no surveillance video, no shoe prints or fingerprints found, and no eyewitnesses. It was simply impossible to start the investigation. No wonder the police gave up on this case that year.

After the incident, the police investigated several nearby villages overnight, but found no trace of my sister in the village. Later, the police conducted repeated investigations and confirmed that my sister had not been abducted to a nearby village.

The police investigation ended here that year. Sang Luo closed the file and carefully put it back.

There were very few clues in this case, almost none. Sang Luo's heart couldn't help but become heavy. It seemed impossible to find his sister under such conditions.

Perhaps you can rely on a dictionary for hints?

This thought flashed through Sang Luo's mind, and Sang Luo immediately shook his head. Those who could convey information through dictionaries were all dead. How could his sister possibly communicate with him using a dictionary?

Sang Luo walked back home with a heavy heart. As expected, Ruan Yu was standing at the door again. His door was half-open and a faint fragrance wafted out from inside.

"You came back so late, did you work overtime again today?" Ruan Yu said distressedly, "I made some old hen soup, drink it while it's hot."

Sang Luo waved her hand and wanted to refuse, but Ruan Yu kept her there with one sentence:

"I also want to hear you talk about Sang Ruo's case. I'll sort it out with you, and maybe we can find some clues."

Hearing this, Sang Luo stopped and turned to walk towards the door opposite. Ruan Yu opened the door with a smile, placed two sets of bowls and chopsticks on the dining table, then walked into the kitchen and brought out a pot of hot old hen soup.

"I just bought this chicken at the market today, and I made it specially for you. I think you should drink some soup to replenish your body after working overtime every day."

As he spoke, Ruan Yu took the initiative to serve Sang Luo a bowl of soup.

Sang Luo's hand unconsciously picked up the spoon. The chicken soup was too hot, so she had to blow on it. Ruan Yu sat down and talked about Sang Ruo again. At his urging, Sang Luo began to tell the details of her sister's disappearance:

"We were seven years old that year and both went to primary school in the village. We were in the first grade and had just started learning to write. Ruoruo was smarter than me and she learned to write very quickly. The teacher often praised her and said that she would definitely be able to go to university in the future. To reward her, the teacher also gave her a dictionary."

The memory suddenly flashed back, and Sang Luo remembered that the psychic dictionary on the desk was the dictionary that the teacher gave to his sister as a reward.

"That dictionary is so beautiful. I've never seen anything like it before. I wanted Ruoruo to give it to me, but she disagreed. We had a big fight over it, and then we were in a cold war for two weeks. Finally, Ruoruo took the initiative to ask me to make peace. She said that we could use the dictionary together and that it belonged to both of us. Only then did I agree to make peace with her. Just like that, we now have a shared dictionary."

Sang Luo said, his expression gradually becoming sad: "Less than half a year after this incident, Ruoruo disappeared."

"That day, my mother was at home with us while my father went out to farm. My mother made lunch and we had a quick bite. Then she cleared the table and Ruoruo and I started playing with origami. The teacher had just taught us how to fold paper cranes. Ruoruo and I were competing to see who could fold faster. We sat on the kang and folded paper. Just as I was about to succeed, my mother suddenly came into the room and asked us to take a nap."

"Of course I didn't want to, but I didn't dare to disobey mom, so Ruoruo and I took the folded paper into the bed. Mom lay down next to us and soon began to snore. Ruoruo and I folded the paper in the bed. In the end, I won, and Ruoruo agreed to do my homework for a week."

"We put the paper cranes on the bedside, and Ruoruo told me a ghost story. She said..."

Sang Luo tried hard to recall, and those memories that should have been forgotten suddenly became clear again:

"She said that there was a mountain in the past, and in the mountain there was a village. In the village there was a weasel. The weasel ate other people's chickens. One day a farmer got angry and made a trap to catch the weasel. He twisted the weasel's neck hard, and when the weasel died, it kept looking at the farmer with hatred."

"After the weasel died, the farmer's chickens continued to decrease. The farmer was very curious, so he squatted in the chicken coop in the middle of the night. As a result, he saw his 80-year-old mother tiptoe out, quickly grabbed a chicken, and bit the chicken's throat. It turned out that the ghost of the weasel possessed the old lady. The farmer was scared out of his wits, and noticed the farmer in the chicken coop. The old lady's eyes lit up, stretched out her hand and walked towards him..."

At this point, Sang Luo's eyes welled up with tears: "This story was made up by Ruoruo. Ruoruo is really smart. If she had insisted on going to school, she would have graduated from college by now. I don't know what she is doing now."

Ruan Yu didn't say anything, but just looked at her quietly, and handed her a piece of paper to wipe her tears when the time came.

Sang Luo wiped her tears and got back to the point: "We told stories for a while, and then I fell asleep. When I fell asleep, Ruoruo was still twisting and turning in the bed. I could probably feel that she was not asleep. When I woke up, the house was in a mess."

"The police came, and the whole village, young and old, came. Ruoruo was missing. Mom squatted on the ground crying, and Dad kept scolding her. I heard from the adults that Ruoruo sneaked out while we were asleep. I don't know who took her away."

Sang Luo paused and continued, "She left a note on the table, the contents of which I still remember to this day—"

[Sister, I'll get you some candy]

There is also a little girl with a grin behind the word "sugar", which is the simplest way to draw a stickman.

"拿" and "糖" are too complicated, so my sister used pinyin.

Sang Luo rubbed his temples: "I still don't understand what this sentence means. In that era, supplies were scarce. Where did she go to get candy for me? I know this sentence is related to her disappearance, but I just can't figure it out."

Ruan Yu reminded: "Don't think about it, drink the soup first, otherwise it will get cold soon."

Sang Luo picked up the spoon and tasted the chicken soup in the bowl. It was indeed very fragrant. There was golden chicken oil floating on the surface of the soup, and some green onions dotted on it. After drinking it, he immediately felt warm all over.

After drinking a few sips of soup, Sang Luo continued, "Later, the whole village went out to help our family look for her. The police also came many times, but no matter how hard they looked, there was no news of Ruoruo. I thought many times about where Ruoruo would be now and what she would look like. In the end, I only had one thought -"

Sang Luo closed her eyes, a tear falling from the corner of her eye: "No matter what she looks like, as long as she is alive, as long as she is alive..."

Sang Luo could no longer control her emotions and burst into tears. This was the first time she cried since coming into this world.

Ruan Yu moved closer, gently held her head in his arms, let her forehead rest on his chest, and comforted her gently but firmly: "Ruoruo must be alive, definitely!"

After Sang Luo's emotions calmed down a little, Ruan Yu changed the subject:

"How are your parents now? I haven't visited them yet. Actually, if we talk about repaying a favor, they are the ones I should thank the most."

Sang Luo shook his head: "No need, they are divorced and now they each have their own families, you don't need to visit them."

"Divorce..." Ruan Yu seemed to understand something, "Is it because of your sister?"

Sang Luo nodded again, and many scenes suddenly emerged in his mind, all of which were scenes of his parents quarreling over the years.

After the state expropriated the land, although my parents moved to the city and lived in an apartment building, they never smiled again. Any small matter would trigger a fierce quarrel. Even if the chopsticks were not washed cleanly, my father would point at my mother's face and scold her:

"If you can't even do such a small thing, what's the use of you? The children are so unlucky to have a mother like you! It's all your fault, you unlucky star, you lost my daughter. If it weren't for you, Ruoruo would still be standing here!"

The mother would not give in and would fight back every time: "You are talking nonsense! Is the child mine alone? If the child is lost, is it my sole responsibility? What were you doing when Ruoruo got lost? Why didn't you accompany the child? If you ask me, you are the biggest culprit for the child's loss!"

My father would always say, "Of course I am working in the fields. If I don't work, what will you eat and drink? Will you just starve? I am the only one who supports a family of four. You are just taking care of a child. You can't even do this little thing well. How dare you ask me here?"

Every time she talked about this, her mother would cry and scream: "Do you think raising children is an easy thing? I take care of two children by myself, and there are so many housework to do every day. I am so tired and sleepy. Who can understand me? I just took a nap that day. Who knew that Ruoruo would get lost while I was napping? I didn't want this to happen!"

The father would say: "You are just making excuses! The children got lost because you were too sleepy! As a mother, you should watch them 24 hours a day. Why did you take a nap? You actually have the nerve to stand here now. If I were you, I would have hanged myself out of shame!"

Under the repeated verbal stimulation of my father, my mother once actually attempted to hang herself. Fortunately, she was found in time and rescued.

After this incident, my parents finally made up their minds to divorce. Neither of them wanted custody of Sang Luo, mainly because they were sad. Seeing Sang Luo would remind them of the lost Sang Ruo, so it was better not to see her and they made up their minds to start a new life.

This year Sang Luo was fifteen years old. She had completely become an unwanted child. Fortunately, she had grown up and had acquired basic life skills. Her parents also left her enough money for her to go to school. She took care of herself and was successfully admitted to university.

It was at this time that Sang Luo learned to smoke. No one taught her. After returning home at night, looking at the empty house, she was overwhelmed by sadness, so she turned and walked into the grocery store downstairs and bought her first box of cigarettes in her life.

Smoking is not a good habit, but Sang Luo always wanted to smoke a cigarette whenever she was under pressure over the years. This time she made up her mind that as long as she could find her sister, she would quit smoking completely and say goodbye to her past life.

Sang Luo did not say these things, and Ruan Yu did not ask any further questions. She just held her quietly and let her vent her emotions. After Sang Luo cried enough, Ruan Yu turned into the kitchen and served her a bowl of rice:

"Let's eat first. Man is iron and rice is steel. Only after you eat this bowl of rice well, you will have the strength to investigate the case."

Sang Luo was indeed hungry. She took a big mouthful of rice and slowly found that the more she chewed the rice in her mouth, the more delicious it became. She looked at Ruan Yu in surprise. Ruan Yu smiled proudly:

"Is it delicious? This is the rice I asked someone to buy from the Northeast, just for you. I have already thought about it. I will take care of your diet for the next three months and will definitely not disturb your work and life. Don't worry."

Sang Luo said while eating: "By the way, how did you find me? Since you haven't contacted my parents, how did you know so much information about me?"

Ruan Yu put down the chopsticks in his hand and said, "This is a long story. You don't know how hard I tried to find you. I once went to Houtu Village, but the village had been expropriated by the state and turned into a factory. Later, I asked around and finally found a few villagers. They said that your family had moved to Baiyun County, but they didn't know the exact address. The clues stopped here. Others advised me to give up, but I didn't give up."

Sang Luo blinked: "So how did you find it in the end?"

"I rented a house in Baiyun County and planned to live here for a while while I slowly inquired about your family's whereabouts," Ruan Yu said. "I found nothing in the first two months. One night when I passed by the government compound, I saw a notice posted outside the government gate. It was a public notice for the recruitment of a new batch of criminal police officers. Your name happened to be on it. Your name is so special, it shouldn't be a duplicate. I suddenly felt hopeful."

"Then I went to your workplace to inquire and found out that you lived here. It just so happened that the house opposite yours was for rent, so I rented it."

Ruan Yu narrowed her eyes and smiled, then tilted her head slightly, looking as if she was expecting praise.

"oh."

Sang Luo didn't say anything and lowered her head to continue eating. The old hen soup stewed by Ruan Yu was indeed delicious. She soaked the rice in the soup and ate two large bowls in a row.

When leaving, Sang Luo asked for money for the meal again. Ruan Yu looked angry and felt as if she had been greatly insulted:

"Sang Luo, do you treat me as an outsider?"

Seeing his reaction, Sang Luo had no choice but to take the money back. After returning home, Sang Luo simply washed up and lay down on the bed. She was still thinking about her sister.

After so many years, where should she look for clues to solve the case?