After confirming that nothing had been left behind, Jian Dan simply returned to the surface the way she came. As for the traces by the well, they couldn't be restored, and Jian Dan didn't have the time to do so.

Judging from how abandoned the yard is, I guess few people come here usually. The traces on the ground would almost disappear after a rain. After thinking about it, I decided to just leave it alone. Anyway, I was wearing shoe covers. If someone really found it, let them investigate.

While everyone's attention was focused on the fire, Jian Dan followed the path all the way to the train station, found the second place Sheng Zhiyuan had mentioned, and collected everything exactly as it was. Only then did he circle back to the main street from the back street, making a point of walking near the burning house.

It has to be said that Sheng Zhiyuan is quite capable. Almost an hour has passed since he found her, and the fire has not subsided at all. There is no smell of gasoline at the scene, and it has not spread to the surrounding neighborhood. Isn't that strange?

Even though we arrived at the main street, Jian Dan still avoided people and walked through alleys and narrow lanes. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the streets were deserted at that time.

Even the elderly and children who couldn't help stood at the alley entrance watching the excitement; for her, this place was even more convenient for her to come and go as she pleased.

It was more than an hour later when she returned to the state-run hotel. Several people stood outside the hotel, and judging from the situation, they were going to call the police if she didn't come back soon.

Sheng Shi stood obediently beside Tan Yajun. When he saw Jian Dan return, his eyes lit up at first, but when he looked behind him and didn't see the person he wanted to see, fog rolled in.

"Sister, isn't it my dad looking for you? Why hasn't he come to pick me up yet?"

The four or five-year-old child was already frightened, and after spending so much time with these strangers, he was on edge. He just couldn't hold back anymore.

Simple paused for a moment. She knew how to hit people, and she was even better at slaughtering pigs, but she was still a little hesitant to coax a child. She was still thinking about how to trick him when she saw everyone on the street rushing towards her. The group of people felt themselves retreating and had to stick close to the wall to avoid being swept away by the crowd.

What happened?

They couldn't quite make out what they were shouting, but judging from their expressions—tense, even fearful—it seemed like they were saying something indistinctly.

"People were burned to death."

"Someone was killed."

"The house collapsed."

Not knowing which statement was true, the group looked at each other with grim expressions, as if something had happened again.

"dad!"

She hadn't even wiped away her tears a moment ago, and suddenly burst into tears. Jian Dan quickly pulled the child back from the brink of being swept away by the crowd, and without caring whether she knew how or not, awkwardly hugged the child.

"It's okay, it's okay. Your dad has something to do, he'll come pick you up when he's done."

As if sensing something, the child kept reaching out towards the fire, crying out.

Jian Dan was sweating profusely in his anxiety, thinking that if that didn't work, he would resort to the old method: giving out candy.

He reached into his shirt pocket and rummaged around inside.

"Why?"

He immediately felt relieved.

"Come here, Shengshi, look at this. Look, is this your father's?"

Just before Sheng Zhiyuan left, he gave her a small wooden dog with a red string tied to it.

It's very smooth, and the marks on it clearly show that it's been played with frequently.

Shengshi grabbed the item, his eyes filled with delight, and tears welled up in his eyes.

"Sister, this is my puppy. Did my dad really give it to you?"

When she saw that the child had finally stopped crying, Jian Dan breathed a sigh of relief. In just a few minutes, she had been sweating profusely from worry. Soothing a child is no easy task.

Within minutes of receiving him, Jian Dan began to regret it, wondering if she could have raised him safely.

"Yes, yes, your father had something urgent to do and didn't have time to come back to tell you. He happened to see me, so he entrusted you to me. But he knew you wouldn't trust strangers, so here you are, he gave me this, saying that you would believe him if you saw this."

Shengshi sneered, seemingly acquiescing.

Looking around, the other educated youth all shared the same thought.

"Let's hurry up and leave."

Liu Sanye's oxcart didn't make it into the city. The group of people, not caring about their fatigue, ran and stumbled out carrying their things. Shengshi was held quietly in Jian Dan's arms, holding the small wooden carving without making a sound.

Just as they arrived, Lin Dongfang and Chen Jianguo, who had gone to gather information during the chaos, also returned, their faces somber. Chen Jianguo glanced at the child in her arms and shook his head at Jian Dan.

Jian Dan's heart sank. She looked down at the suddenly quiet child, and a wave of bitterness welled up inside her.

Without saying a word, the old man saw that everyone was there and all was alright, so he raised his whip and drove the old ox back home.

Apart from Mingzhu, the other educated youth had never faced such a thing before, and for a while they couldn't accept it, so the atmosphere remained silent the whole way.

Mingzhu had experienced it all before. After seeing what happened today, she couldn't quite describe her feelings. She felt powerless, desolate, and hopeless. Even the joy she had felt during her wedding was somewhat diminished.

Simply hold the child close, feed them water or a piece of candy, and they'll be familiar with each other in no time.

Halfway there, Shengshi had already put his earlier sadness behind him, leaning against Jian Dan and chatting about everyday things.

"Sister, am I going to your house? How many people live in your house? Do you think you don't like me?"

This child had lived a good life before, but recently he suddenly plummeted from heaven to hell. Today's public parade was not the first time. The child has become a frightened bird, and when he goes to other people's homes, he worries about whether he will be disliked or not.

To say I felt empathy wouldn't be quite right, considering we'd only known each other for a few hours. Jian Dan's initial self-perception was simply to take money and raise someone else's child.

However, this well-behaved child is indeed pleasing to the eye.

"My sister lives alone. From now on, it will be the two of us."

"Sister, don't you have a mom and dad either?"

Immediately, everyone in the car turned their attention to this.

After buying some things in the county town, Jian Dan was busy packing up, and the others were anxious to wait for her, so they didn't think about it.

As a result, apart from Lin Dongfang and his wife, no one else had mailed what they were supposed to. So they had to stop at the commune. Jian Dan and Li Yan rushed into the post office before it closed and mailed what they needed to mail.

As soon as I stepped out and stood in front of the post office, a gentle evening breeze made me shiver.

I used up too much energy at lunch, and that half-bowl of noodles has long been digested by now. I probably won't have the energy to get up and cook when I get home. I glanced at the state-run restaurant not far away...

"I need to go buy some vegetables and dry food, are you guys coming?"

Li Yan and the others had planned to have a nice lunch, but due to the chaos at lunchtime, they only had a bowl of noodles, which actually saved them money.

"Go ahead, I'll buy two too."

Several people walked by, and when the child wasn't there, they finally spoke up and asked...

"Are you really planning to raise that child?"