Chapter 192 Back Mountain
"So, the villagers were scared when they saw us last night because they were afraid that we would discover the crimes committed by Sanniu and Baogen?" Zhou Jin asked.
“Not all!”
Qin Yi said: "Based on the reactions of the villagers, some of them already knew about the crimes committed by Sanniu and Baogen, such as Village Chief Ge and Shanzhu, and the witch who offered the pen as an offering to help Baogen atone for his sins."
"Some of them are completely unaware. They are just afraid of being implicated because they saw Sanniu and Baogen stealing wild boar meat and being punished. Otherwise, we would not have been able to find out this information in the village. In this village, the belief in ghosts and gods is still deeply rooted in people's hearts."
"Yes!"
Su Tong answered beside him:
"Jingmei may not know what Baogen did, otherwise she wouldn't show us the notebook. Mencius' theory of human nature is based on facts and makes sense. Otherwise, if the whole village is shielding a criminal, it would be too terrible!"
Several people turned their eyes to Su Tong at the same time, some were surprised, some were puzzled, and some were curious...
However, after a moment, they silently looked away and no one said a word.
Zhou Jin wanted to speak, but he looked around, stammered twice, and then closed his mouth firmly.
I just muttered to myself: "Who is Mencius? What is the theory of human nature? My sister is amazing! I have to study hard when I go back!"
Su Tong was still thinking, not paying attention to the words he blurted out.
She frowned and continued:
"It's just that Baogen and Sanniu's mother's words can't be used as evidence at the moment. The only evidence that can link Baogen, Sanniu, and Yu Fengzhi and Yang Huilin is the notebook and pen. But according to what Baogen said to Jingmei, 'I took them from a backpack I found', so there's no way to prove that they have met Yu Fengzhi."
"Are the 'Auntie Feng' mentioned by Mao Ya the same person as Yu Fengzhi? We still can't prove it. What did Sanniu and Baogen see or do to the two comrades? We also have no way of knowing."
After finding out here, it seems like we have returned to the beginning. Mao Ya and Hu Zi, the only ones who might know something, may still be hidden by the villagers.
"Boss Zhou, Doctor Alan, are you there?"
Aunt Ge's voice came from outside.
Qin Yi winked at everyone, and everyone stood up and walked out of the house.
Aunt Ge was carrying a basket in her hand, looking at the people coming out one after another, "Oh! Are they all here?"
As she spoke, she grabbed a handful of dry pickled vegetables from the basket and said:
"I came here to ask if Mr. Zhou is used to eating this kind of pickled cabbage. The villagers pickle it themselves and stew it with some bacon. It's so delicious!"
"I'm used to it! I'm used to it!"
Lin Li took over the conversation with a playful smile:
"Auntie! Stew more! We'll eat here tonight too! We'll take advantage of our boss!"
Aunt Ge smiled and said, "Sour cabbage is cheap, eat as much as you want! Bacon is very precious!"
"Look at what you're saying! Is it possible that our boss owes you money?"
"That's fine! Since you said so, I'll make more! This kind of dried pickled cabbage needs to be soaked in advance, otherwise it won't taste good!"
Aunt Ge turned around and left happily.
"Auntie Ge!"
Su Tong stopped her and asked, "Is Maoya here? I want to play with her!"
"Mao Ya! She followed her cousin and brother Hu Zi to go to cure all diseases! She went to her aunt's place in Wangjiacha! She left at noon, otherwise she would not be there by night."
"'Get rid of all diseases?' Shouldn't it be on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month? Today is only the twelfth day?" Su Tong said.
Walking away all diseases is a traditional custom in the north. People usually walk out of their homes on the 15th day of the lunar month to get rid of all diseases and pray for good health. I didn’t expect that this old mountain village also has this custom.
"We can leave before or after the 15th, it's not that particular! I'm going to pickle the sauerkraut now, but I have to soak it for a while, otherwise it won't be able to soak well!"
After saying this, Aunt Ge left happily.
There was no clue at the moment, so Lin Li and his companions dispersed.
Su Tong and Qin Yi returned to the room. Qin Yi took the teapot warming on the kang, refilled her cup with tea, and said:
"Don't worry too much. If the two comrades really met with an accident in Wushanao, we will definitely seek justice for them. It's just a matter of time."
Su Tong nodded, holding the teacup, but he couldn't help but think of Mao Ya's words.
If it weren't for Mao Ya's abrupt words, they wouldn't have conducted such investigations and suspicions.
"What exactly does Mao Ya mean? What did they see in the back mountain?" Su Tong couldn't figure it out.
"Mao Ya is not even eight years old yet. She hasn't learned the adults' tricks yet, and she won't lie to me when we first met. She said I'm just as pretty as Auntie Feng!"
Su Tong looked down at her "trendy" clothes and her newly permed hair. In this era, this was already a very fashionable and eye-catching look.
For a child of Mao Ya's age, "good-looking" probably refers more to the way she dresses and looks.
"If Auntie Feng is so eye-catching, even if she is not Yu Fengzhi, but just a passerby, no one else in the village noticed her. Isn't that strange?"
"Moreover, Mao Ya met Auntie Feng in the back hills, which are cemeteries. Even if a child could go there to play accidentally, why would Auntie Feng go there?
If Mao Ya was lying, why did she and Hu Zi go out in the afternoon? Was it a coincidence, or did the villagers notice something..."
Qin Yi stared at Su Tong, curled his lips slightly, then raised his wrist to look at his watch and said:
"I guess you won't be able to sleep even if I ask you to rest. We still have time, let's go to the back mountain!"
There is only one way to get to the back mountain, and since Lin Li has been there once, Qin Yi asked him to go along.
Sure enough, as soon as we entered the back mountain, we saw large areas of graves. It was winter, and the scenery was desolate with dead grass everywhere.
Perhaps because it was not long after the Chinese New Year, there were still traces of burning paper money in front of many tombs. A faint path meandered among them, which must have been created by descendants' years of worship.
There are many shrubs growing around the cemetery, and many branches have dried fruits hanging on them. Perhaps this is what attracts the children here.
Under Lin Li's guidance, they reached the end in less than twenty minutes.
There is a cliff on one side, and you can see trees and weeds growing at the bottom of the cliff in the distance.
On the other side was a tall broken wall, like a mountain top that had collapsed in half, with a large area of exposed soil and rocks from a distance. The broken wall was semicircular, half surrounding the cemetery.
In other words, the terrain here has three sides: a broken wall on one side, a cliff on one side, and the path you walk up on the other side. Both sides of the path are gentle slopes. Most of the new graves are in this area, and it may be that there is no more space inside.
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