The Li brothers searched every corner of the village but couldn't find him.

Grandma Lin sat at her front door, rubbing her aching thighs.

The village party secretary led a group of people carrying torches into the old house.

They found Big Fatty sleeping in the haystack, but they still couldn't find Granny Li.

Grandma Lan wiped away the tears that had welled up in her eyes, feeling only sorrow in her heart.

The village children were still playing on the various paths, and everything seemed normal, with no change.

The basketball court lights were on, but the light was swallowed by the darkness.

Lin Ziyan stood on the terrace of their new house, looking towards the center of the village.

Mu Fang and Lu Qiuying were talking about the small commodities market.

"Would you be interested in starting a small commodity company?" Lu Qiuying gently swirled her wine glass.

Mu Fang shook her head, "I'm too busy right now, so I've sold all my contacts to former business partners."

She used to import goods from abroad, but now she's selling them instead.

"When I report the daily shipment volume to Beijing, they think I made a mistake in the data."

"Explosive growth, it's too... terrifying..." Lu Qiuying couldn't help but chuckle as she thought of Minister Hai's reaction after reading the report.

"I thought you added a few extra zeros," Fang Jie said, raising an eyebrow.

Lin Ziyan turned to look at the two of them and said calmly, "We haven't reached the peak export volume yet, it's still early."

Currently, the market is only targeting overseas markets, but in the future, these small commodities will be sold throughout the country.

Where there is demand, there will be business.

Currently, not many countries know about this wholesale market, and it is far from reaching its true boom period in later generations.

Lu Qiuying's eyes flashed. "What do you think the highest possible export volume could be?"

Fangjie was also curious, and asked with her eyes.

Lin Ziyan casually mentioned a number.

Lu Qiuying blinked, almost choking on the wine.

Fangjie wasn't much better off; she just couldn't believe it.

"This is just a conservative estimate; it might even exceed the number I just mentioned," Lin Ziyan admitted.

The three clinked their glasses and each took a small sip of wine.

Lu Qiuying's heart pounded; she felt drunk even though she hadn't drunk much.

If such a shipment volume can be achieved, the port's throughput will soon reach the top tier.

That's the throughput of Germany's largest port for two years.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

"..."

Fireworks lit up the sky above the village, one house after another.

A beam of fire shot straight into the sky, then burst into countless bright lights in the dark night sky.

Fireworks in the village continued non-stop until late into the night.

The entire village was once again shrouded in darkness, with the crowing of roosters echoing throughout.

In the village's cornfields,

Several dark figures waited until the fireworks stopped before walking out from inside to the main road at the village entrance.

"Boss, what should we do with the old woman's body inside?"

"What can you do? You want to dig a hole and bury him?"

"Hurry, it looks like someone is coming out of the village."

After they finished speaking, they ran back into the cornfield.

The ones who came out with flashlights were the Li brothers; they had waited until the fireworks in the village had all stopped before coming out.

None of them dared to sleep, and they actually slept soundly until the next day as if nothing had happened when their mother couldn't be found.

They'll live their lives being talked about behind their backs by the villagers, and they won't be able to hold their heads up high.

"Let's go check out the cornfield." Li Liu felt goosebumps all over his body.

After searching the house and finding their eldest son, his wife cried uncontrollably, as if she wanted to release all the tears she had been holding back for so long.

If her eldest son were to die, his wife might lose all will to live.

Li Liu touched his face and walked towards the cornfield.

The others felt uneasy, but also thought his suggestion was reliable.

We've searched every corner of the village, except for the cornfields outside the village.

The group mustered their courage and shone the light into the cornfield, where they could vaguely make out several dark figures.

Li Liu stopped in his tracks. "Is someone over there?"

The eldest son of the Li family felt his heart pounding and wanted to turn back to the village, but his younger brothers held him back.

"Aren't you going to look for your mother anymore?"

"Are we six afraid of them?" Li Liu spoke first, narrowing his eyes.

Thinking of his youngest son who had died in the cornfield, he immediately ran over.

The others exchanged glances and reluctantly followed.

They ran faster and faster, but stopped when they reached the cornfield.

The group of people were panting heavily and dared not go forward.

A faint smell of blood could be detected in the air.

The smell of rotting straw was so strong it made my stomach churn.

Moonlight poured down on the cornfield, making it as bright as day; one could see clearly even without a flashlight.

Li Liu placed his hands on his knees and looked into the cornfield, his pupils dilating instantly.

He saw his mother lying half-reclined.

Li Liu was so frightened that he backed away and collapsed onto the straw.

“Inside…” he pointed in a direction, his finger trembling.

In the moonlight, his face was frighteningly pale.

The wind howled all around, like the wailing of ghosts and wolves.

Thinking of something, Li Liu suddenly got up, turned on his flashlight, and shone it onto the main road, where he saw two tall, dark figures and two short figures.

“They’re over there…” he suddenly shouted.

The sudden, abrupt sound rose sharply above the silent cornfield.

The group of people on the main road quickly got into a speeding van and disappeared into the night.

…

Even after daybreak, the sound of firecrackers could still be heard from the ancestral hall.

The Li brothers went to invite the village secretary early in the morning, and then called the police.

Secretary Qin looked grave. He had encountered such a thing on the first day of the new year, and his brows were furrowed, unable to relax.

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