Chapter Twenty-Five: The Other Side of the County Town

When Shen Zhiyi mentioned that she was going to the county town today, Tang Huaya hesitated to speak. Aunt Zhao saw through the situation and specially called back Old Man Tang, asking them to go to the county town together.

She initially wanted to refuse, but considering what Fudo had said, she agreed to the proposal just in case.

The three of them boarded the oxcart to the county town, but it was obvious that Old Man Tang was not very comfortable, holding his stomach with both hands as if he was hiding something.

Shen Zhiyi and Tang Huaya exchanged a glance, clearly both guessing what it was.

Noticing their gaze, Old Man Tang smiled at them.

Upon arriving in the county town, Shen Zhiyi and Tang Huaya consciously stood on either side of Old Man Tang, taking precautions as they walked along the main road, and thus did not encounter any pickpockets.

As soon as Shen Zhiyi saw the signboard of Huichun Medical Clinic, a familiar face came out anxiously. Old Man Tang immediately stepped forward and shouted, "Sun Gouzi, what happened!"

“Brother Lao Han, you…” Sun Gouzi’s eyes were red, as if he hadn’t slept all night. He couldn’t help but choke up when he saw the person he trusted. “San Ni’s injuries still need to be healed.”

"Let's raise her then!" Old Tang said hastily, taking Sun Gouzi's hand and silently handing over the one and a half taels of silver he was holding in his palm. "Everyone is thinking about their niece, Sanni! What hurdle can't we overcome!"

"Ah, I understand." The worry in Sun Gouzi's eyes gradually faded.

"I won't go in." Old Man Tang thought of something and pushed Tang Huaya and Shen Zhiyi over. "They're worried about Sanni. Let them go and see her."

Sun Gouzi raised his sleeve to wipe away the tears that were about to fall, and tried to say with a smile, "Sanni will definitely be very happy to see you!"

"Uncle Gouzi, now that Sister Sanni is back, we should be happy! Her injuries will heal eventually!" Tang Huaya comforted her.

Sun Gouzi nodded in agreement.

Old Man Tang stood guard outside the clinic. Shen Zhiyi and Tang Huaya followed Sun Gouzi to the back of the clinic, where they saw Sanni's mother, Aunt Chen, carrying a basin of water.

"Honey, is Sanni awake? Huaya and Zhiyi have come to see her," Sun Gouzi asked softly.

"Just woke up," Aunt Chen said slowly.

Shen Zhiyi looked around but didn't see the village chief, so she couldn't help but ask, "Where did Grandpa Village Chief go?"

"Judging by the time, the village chief should be back in the village by now," Sun Gouzi chimed in.

"Looks like we didn't run into her," Shen Zhiyi replied. Then she and Tang Huaya went into the house and saw Sun Sanni lying inside. Her face was even paler than yesterday, but she was in much better condition.

"Zhiyi, Huaya, you're here," Sun Sanni said softly.

"Sister Sanni..." Tang Huaya's eyes reddened first, and she called out softly.

“Hey, why are you still crying? You’re a grown woman now.” Sun Sanni said helplessly, looking at Shen Zhiyi, who was calmer than the other side. “Zhiyi, you should talk to her quickly.”

"You must have suffered a lot," Shen Zhiyi said calmly. The more she pretended to be nonchalant, the more significant the ordeal she must have been through.

Sun Sanni couldn't help but close her eyes, those images seemed to flash through her mind again and again, she pursed her lips tightly, and squeezed out four words as if from between her teeth: "It's all in the past."

"That would be best," Shen Zhiyi said.

"What are you talking about? I don't understand. Didn't Sister Sanni come back? All the bad things are over now," Tang Huaya said quickly, looking around.

Shen Zhiyi emphasized, "Yes, everything is moving in a positive direction; the future looks incredibly promising!"

At the same time, she winked at Tang Huaya.

"Yes, the village has cleared land and planted chili peppers! If it were before, I wouldn't have imagined that eighty coins could only buy a pound of chili peppers. The county magistrate especially likes our village's chili peppers! Not to mention the local gentry, restaurants..." Tang Huaya recounted the changes in the village, and her visibly cheerful demeanor was enough to show that she was also changing.

With Chen Zhiyi's insightful guidance, all the changes in the village were presented in a storytelling style reminiscent of Tang Huaya.

Sun Sanni remained silent, listening quietly, lost in thought.

This was the best way Shen Zhiyi could think of to persuade her, because she knew that Sanni was smart, kind, sensible and capable. If she said too much that she was trying to persuade her, Sanni would fall into the dead end of thinking, "Are you saying this on purpose to put my mind at ease?"

It seems that kind people are always worried about becoming a burden to others.

She hoped that Sun Sanni would think more and observe more, instead of dwelling on painful memories and ultimately driving herself to her doom.

"After listening to us talk for so long, are you sleepy, Sister Sanni?" Tang Huaya asked softly.

Sun Sanni, who had closed her eyes, suddenly opened them and wanted to speak. Shen Zhiyi replied, "She must be sleepy. Aunt Chen said that drinking herbal medicine makes one sleepy. This is what happens when the medicine takes effect."

"Then, Sister Sanni, you should get some rest! Zhiyi and I will be leaving now, we'll come see you again next time!" After Tang Huaya finished speaking, she quietly left with Shen Zhiyi, while Sun Sanni had already fallen asleep.

They saw Sun Gouzi and Aunt Chen outside the door, greeted them quietly, and then left.

As soon as he stepped out of the clinic, Old Man Tang, who had been squatting next to the shop across the street, stood up and walked over.

"I have to go check on San Tou. He didn't come to the village yesterday, and I'm worried something might have happened to him," Shen Zhiyi said, glancing at the corner of the wall where she thought she saw a figure flash by, but dismissed it as her imagination.

“Let’s go together then,” Tang Huaya replied.

Old Tang nodded hurriedly from the side.

The cleanliness of the county town is gradually improving, and well-dressed young men will dismount from their carriages to walk around, but this has nothing to do with Shen Zhiyi and her companions; they just need to be careful to avoid them.

Shen Zhiyi walked to the alley where she had last come to find San Tou. Stepping on the wet ground in the dark alley, she felt an uncomfortable chill.

She arrived at the courtyard rented by San Tou and knocked on the gate, but no one answered, which deepened her bad premonition.

"Is San Tou out on business?" Tang Hua Ya couldn't help but ask.

“No, San Tou’s mother is still at home and can’t move around easily. We’ve been knocking on the door for so long and Aunt Qing hasn’t answered, so no one must be home,” Shen Zhiyi said slowly. “Why don’t we ask around the neighborhood if anyone has seen San Tou and the others?”

"Okay." Tang Huaya nodded and was about to knock on the gate of the courtyard next door when the door across the way opened first. Upon seeing them, she said in a low voice, "Oh, it's you two older sisters. Come over here quickly."

Their fear of being discovered made Shen Zhiyi and the others walk even more quietly.

After the courtyard gate closed, Zhou Damu, who had been looking tense, gradually calmed down and then told the whole story: "San Tou went to collect night soil with Cun Tou before dawn yesterday. Later, Cun Tou came to us in a hurry and said that San Tou had been kidnapped and that he didn't know where he went. He kept crying."

"Later, someone started knocking on the door of the San Tou family. We assumed they were knocking on the wrong door once or twice, but one time they actually pried open the door, dragged Aunt Qing out, and smashed everything in the house... We were afraid they would hurt Aunt Qing, so we took her in first." Zhou Damu said, his face full of worry and a sense of helplessness that he had nowhere to turn.

"Where is that crew-cut guy? Can we see him?" Shen Zhiyi asked.

“Sure!” Zhou Damu said, and immediately led them to the room next door. When he lifted the curtain, he heard an unpleasant smell and coughing sounds coming from inside. He called out, “Cut-haired guy, come out for a second.”

"They're here," someone replied quietly.

A short, thin man with a buzz cut quickly emerged from the dormitory. His eyes were swollen, but as soon as he saw Shen Zhiyi, he grabbed her clothes and said, "Sister with great abilities, please save Brother Santou!"

As he was about to kneel down, Shen Zhiyi swiftly pulled the thin, short-haired man up and said, "Instead of wasting time like this, you might as well take us to the place where the three heads disappeared."

"Okay, okay." The crew-cut man replied immediately, walking unsteadily outside. He almost fell as he passed Old Man Tang, but was caught by the person who caught him.

“Cun Tou has been so worried about San Tou that he can’t even eat,” Zhou Damu said helplessly. He crawled into the makeshift kitchen next door, took out some dusty flatbread, and shoved it into Cun Tou’s hand without saying a word.

"I can't eat," the crew-cut man muttered softly.

Old Tang reached out and picked up the crew-cut man. He weighed less than half the weight of the wheat on the cart. With a stern face, he said in a gruff voice, "You can give directions, but I won't put you down until you finish eating the cornbread."

The man with the buzz cut was too scared to speak, holding only half a cornbread in his hand.

"Let's hurry up and find clues about what happened before San Tou disappeared. Crew Head, you can give us directions while you eat. Let's not waste any time," Shen Zhiyi said as she walked out.

Tang Huaya and Old Man Tang quickly followed, and the group hurriedly left the cramped courtyard.

"This way," the crew-cut man dutifully called out in advance to give directions.

So they walked through several alleys, the route was like a maze, and it was no wonder that they deliberately chose a route that avoided the crowds.

That's why Da Tou's disappearance was like a stone sinking into the sea.

Just as Shen Zhiyi and the others were searching for clues in the alley without success, a slightly unfamiliar voice rang out at the alley entrance: "You're not looking for the child who went missing this morning, are you?"

Shen Zhiyi's eyes lit up, and she immediately felt like she was being blessed by good fortune. She asked directly, "Do you know where he is?"

She looked over and saw a slender figure leaning against the wall, seemingly trying to appear relaxed, but something just felt off about it.

Upon closer inspection, Shen Zhiyi felt a sense of unease and couldn't help but ask again, "You really know?"

"Of course! I'm a know-it-all in the county!" the man said confidently, raising his chin slightly.

If this person hadn't been a lecherous fellow who had appeared in the village and hadn't made up those stories about himself in the county town, she probably would have desperately believed that this person had clues.

At the same time, Ge Ermazi felt that his posture must have captivated the other party. He casually tossed his hair and slowly said the words he had learned: "Miss, please feel free to ask me anything. I will answer all your questions to the best of my knowledge."

"Okay, then let me ask you, who took away the child you mentioned?" Shen Zhiyi asked in a deep voice.

"Well, about this problem..." Ge Ermazi stroked his chin, glancing sideways at Shen Zhiyi with his small eyes.