Chapter 187 Aunt Feng
Aunt Ge and Qin Yi walked over from the backyard one after another while talking, and then Aunt Ge pulled Mao Ya over.
"Alright! Maoya! Go pick some beans at the door and let your uncle and aunt catch up on their sleep."
After entering the room, Su Tong looked at Qin Yi, "What do you think of these two dates..."
Qin Yi said, "Jing Mei remembers the dates of October 1st and 15th very clearly. She can tell the time of things that happened two or three months ago, but she is hesitant to answer what happened. These two dates happen to be the beginning and end of the Ghost Festival here. Baogen's illness should be related to the Ghost Festival, but it is inconvenient to tell us."
Su Tong nodded, "I originally thought that they wanted to conceal these feudal superstitions, but as Aunt Ge said, we are not county staff, we are just passing by, what can they hide from us?"
Qin Yi said: "You take a rest first, I'll go around the village."
Su Tong had just finished breakfast and was not feeling sleepy. He said:
"I'll go with you!"
The winter in the mountains is even colder. From afar you can see unmelted snow in the valley, with dots of white.
Last night's accommodation was arranged nearby, so not long after leaving Aunt Ge's house, we arrived at the empty space where the bonfire was lit last night.
There are several earthen houses at the back of the site. When you get closer, you can see a small plaque hanging there with the words "Wusha'ao Village Committee" written on it.
The handwriting is not very beautiful. It was written with a brush. There are traces of fading and then tracing. It looks like it is quite old.
The door was not locked, only latched, so Qin Yi and Su Tong pushed the door open and walked in.
The furnishings inside are simple, with a cabinet, a table and a chair.
The table was empty, with a thin layer of dust on it.
There were some books in the cabinet, including Chairman Mao's Quotations and various legal education books, both new and old. There were not many of them, and they should have been carried in bit by bit by the comrades from the county.
In addition, there are several large notebooks, which record various information about Wushanao.
Qin Yi flipped through the pages casually, then pointed to one of the notebooks and said:
"Comrades in Jiangping County have made a lot of efforts for Wushanao!"
Su Tong leaned over and saw that the notebook was filled with records. These were detailed records of the work done by the staff every time they went into the mountains to Wushan'ao, similar to a work log.
The format is to write the time first, which year and month, how many people went to the village, what work was done, and then the staff member's signature.
Although only a few lines were recorded each time, some were separated by three months, and some were separated by almost a year, the content involved legal education, political education, and even short-term literacy classes, etc. It can be seen that the county has never given up on this village in the valley.
Su Tong took the notebook and flipped through it carefully. Probably because the time span was too long, the notebooks had been replaced. The first few pages were obviously torn from the old notebook and pasted on this one. Some of the handwriting was blurred, but fortunately the content should be there because the years were continuous.
Su Tong flipped through it several times and couldn't help but exclaimed "Huh".
Qin Yi turned his head, "What?"
Su Tong said, "Just now Mao Ya said that Aunt Feng gave her milk candy. I thought it was a comrade from the county, but I didn't see a name with the word Feng in these signatures."
"What did Maoya say?"
"Well! According to what she said, it should be a female comrade who is about my age. If she is not a comrade from the county, then she must be someone passing by the village like us..." Su Tong said and put the notebook back to its original place.
Qin Yi was originally looking through other books in the cabinet, but suddenly he paused. When he looked up, there seemed to be waves of ink rolling in his deep eyes.
Su Tong realized something was wrong and turned to look at Qin Yi.
"Yu Fengzhi, female, 22 years old, and Yang Huilin, male, 27 years old, disappeared on their way to Wushanao in May 1975..." Qin Yi said word by word.
Su Tong immediately reacted, "Are they the two staff members who disappeared from the county two years ago?"
Qin Yi nodded. "I remember the record in the file was that the two disappeared on their way to Wushan'ao. If the Aunt Feng who gave Maoya the candy was Yu Fengzhi, it would prove that the two had been to Wushan'ao. This case... I'm afraid there is another hidden story."
Somehow Su Tong thought of the pen on the altar.
"Yesterday I saw a fountain pen on the altar. It was not placed randomly, but placed in the middle on a plate like other offerings. I felt very strange yesterday, and now when I think about it, I feel more and more uneasy."
"Putting pens on the altar?"
The two looked at each other and saw solemnity in each other's eyes.
Although they are just two unrelated pieces of information, once they are connected, they are enough to stir up huge waves in people's hearts.
After all, whatever secrets there are in Baogen or Wushanao have nothing to do with them. They will help if they can, and won’t force anyone who can’t help. However, if it involves missing government workers, they can’t just sit back and watch.
Qin Yi's eyes were gloomy, and there seemed to be a storm coming.
"Since we have suspicions, we should check it out to be assured. Anyway, we have time today, so let's split up and confirm whether the speculation is true."
Su Tong nodded.
——————
The mountain people don't seem to have much important work to do in winter.
Aunt Ge was sitting in the yard, twisting a bunch of dried plants, either palm or hemp, into ropes. Mao Ya was still sitting on the steps picking beans.
Perhaps it was because Qin Yi was so generous, when she saw Su Tong coming in from outside, Aunt Ge greeted him warmly.
Su Tong sat down and chatted with Aunt Ge for a while. He also praised Mao Ya for being sensible and able to help adults with work.
Aunt Ge's words were full of disdain, only to find out that Mao Ya was actually almost eight years old, but had been thin and weak since childhood, so she could only do odd jobs. Other children could go up the mountain to collect firewood and cut grass for the cows at the age of eight.
Mao Ya seemed to be accustomed to these complaints and didn't care much. She just glanced at Su Tong timidly from time to time and didn't say anything.
Su Tong leaned over and touched Mao Ya's head, smiling:
"Maoya is great too! When she grows up, she will be just like the others! Auntie Lan still has some mints, come get some from her later."
After saying that, he got up and went back to the house.
Sure enough, after a while, Mao Ya was hanging around her door.
Su Tong called Mao Ya into the house. Aunt Ge glanced over here and said nothing.
The mint candies of that era were white and came in small blocks. They could be broken into small cubes and tasted sweet and cool in the mouth. There was no child who didn't like them.
The milk candy was the first one Peng Hui bought for Su Tong, and she brought some with her when she set out to replenish her energy.
Su Tong didn't buy the mint food herself. Qiu Yu stuffed it into her bag before she left. She liked it, so she bought a lot of it for Su Tong. It came in handy now.
Mao Ya took the plate of mints given by Su Tong and looked at it over and over again, not knowing whether she was reluctant to eat it or didn't know where to start.
Su Tong took it and broke off a small piece for her and put it into her mouth. She was reluctant to bite it and just sucked it. The coolness of the mint spread in her mouth, making her eyes bright and she seemed to feel very fresh.
"Mao Ya, this is mint candy. Has Aunt Feng given it to you?" Su Tong asked casually.
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