Chapter 174 Entrustment
Lao Qi looked at the iron box and breathed a sigh of relief. He sat on the ground and took a breath for a while before signaling to Lao Lin:
"Lao Lin, go ahead!"
Lao Lin nodded, and looked around again, his expression cautious and nervous. It seemed that after he made sure that there was no unnecessary movement, he found a mound and motioned Su Tong to sit down with him, and said:
"Girl, I'll make it short..."
"You know, there were originally four of us who were sent to Yunshan Village. In addition to Lao Qi and me, there was Lao Liang and Lao Chen. Lao Liang fought all his life, against the Japanese and the Americans, but in the end... he died of illness in Yunshan Village. Lao Chen... was a traditional Chinese medicine doctor. In order to save Lao Liang, he performed surgery on him under inadequate conditions. Unfortunately, he got infected and died with him."
Lao Lin's voice was low and hoarse, and with deep regret, he stroked the iron box.
"Their life's work is in this iron box! Lao Qi and I are trying to survive because we are afraid... afraid that we... will be gone, and no one will know the existence of these things. They are priceless treasures! One day, our country will need them!"
Lao Qi laughed quietly at the side, with endless ridicule and sadness:
"Those people shouted slogans every day, smashed, burned, looted, criticized and paraded people in the streets, and turned the country that the older generation had won with their blood and lives into a mess. Lao Liang and Lao Chen lived a glorious life, but they were criticized and died in this mountain valley by a group of ignorant people. It's unfair!"
"Lao Qi!" Lao Lin scolded softly.
Lao Qi wiped his eyes, got up and said:
"Ah! I just saw this box and felt a little...emotional!"
Lao Lin sighed and said:
"Girl! Let me tell you something today. I am a physicist and Lao Qi teaches chemistry. We have put a lot of effort into preserving our research results and notes from our work and put them together in this box.
In the early years, they tried every possible way to find these things, using threats, inducements, soft tactics, and hard tactics. We gritted our teeth and held on, not daring to give up! We were afraid! We were afraid that these things would be lost, afraid that they would fall into the hands of enemy agents, and afraid that they would be destroyed by those ignorant people. We endured all these years in fear... just... because we were afraid that these things would have nowhere to go!"
Lao Lin wiped his eyes with his hand, "Alright! We will hand these things over to you today! We will feel relieved after handing them over to you! As for...what do you want to do with them in the future..."
"It's up to you how you deal with it!"
Lao Qi took over the conversation and said:
"Girl! Lao Lin and I don't know how long we can hold out. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't be alive today... You are a capable person. Don't come back if you have the chance to go out. This place is not suitable for you! No matter where you go, you must pay attention to safety and take good care of yourself! Now that I have handed this thing over to you, we will have no regrets!"
Su Tong felt that his chest was filled with great shock and grief, and his throat was blocked...
During the time she spent with the two old men, they all had a tacit understanding not to pry into each other's secrets, but when something happened, they would fight for each other.
Although they are usually taciturn, they are still sharp. During dinner, Shitou asked excitedly if he could go to the provincial capital to visit her, saying that he had never been to the provincial capital. Qiuyu was also envious and wished she could go with Shitou. Only the two old men thought more and chose to give the box to her.
They were afraid that the night would be long and dreams would be many, and that when Su Tong was not around, if something went wrong one day... they wouldn't even have the chance to entrust him.
This iron box represents the life's work and hope of these four elderly people.
This is a trust more important than life.
Su Tong suppressed the emotions in his heart and said:
"It will be fine! Everything will be fine! Trust me! It won't be long before you see the light of day!"
She grabbed Lao Lin and Lao Qi's hands one by one and said slowly and clearly:
"Our country is still young, so it will make mistakes, but it will correct them soon and vindicate you! Let's guard this box together and wait for it to see the light of day again! For the benefit of the people! Believe me! These achievements will not be buried! The hard work of Lao Liang and Lao Chen will not be erased."
The two old men stared at her blankly, tears glistening in their eyes, as if they were yearning or missing her...
After a while, Lao Lin said:
"Girl! Can we... can we still wait until that day?"
Su Tong calmed down, stood up and helped the two old men up one by one, "If I say I can, I can! Your current task is to live well! Wait for the day when you can bring this box back with your own hands!"
It is not advisable to stay here for long.
Su Tong took the hoe from Lao Qi and said:
"Since I know the existence of this box, I have the responsibility to protect it. It's no longer safe to dig it up here. We have to move to another place."
It was already very late when Su Tong and the two old men returned.
Before turning off the lights, she saw Lin Li still circling in the yard.
After thinking for a while, he came out and asked in a low voice: "Why aren't you sleeping yet?"
Lin Li looked a little embarrassed, "I..."
"Did you just follow them? Did you see everything?"
Lin Li nodded hesitantly.
The three of them had been out together for quite a while just now. Although they were trying to avoid people, it was impossible for Lin Li not to know about it.
Even for Su Tong's safety, he would follow.
"Then just pretend you didn't see it! Go back to sleep!"
Su Tong said something, turned around and walked into the house.
"Can……"
"What do you mean? This has nothing to do with your mission! If you dare to leak a single word, I'll get you—"
Su Tong turned around and made an exaggerated gesture of wiping his neck.
Lin Li was about to say something with a bitter face, but Su Tong then crossed his arms and looked at him sideways and said:
"Look, you keep saying you want to be my little brother! But you can't do such a small thing! Okay, don't worry about it, I will tell Comrade Qin about this."
Lin Li immediately breathed a sigh of relief and smiled exaggeratedly:
"That's good! I'm going to bed! Sister! Boss! You should go to bed early too!"
"By the way, why haven't I seen Comrade Qin these days?"
Lin Li hesitated for a moment and said, "The boss rushed back to Beijing for urgent business."
He vaguely knew that the boss had returned because of Su Tong's joining the action team, but he was not sure and didn't know how to say it.
Su Tong really intended to tell Qin Yi that although the box was moved to a more hidden place, it was not safe to hide such an important thing in the open wilderness.
If Qin Yi could help, the box would have a safer place to go.
When Su Tong had this idea, she didn't even consider whether it was appropriate to find Qin Yi. She subconsciously felt that Qin Yi would not refuse.
However, it has been three days since she received the notice, and she still hasn't seen Qin Yi. She is about to leave tomorrow, and she doesn't know if it will be too late to get this done.
Su Tong blew out the light while thinking.
——————
But this night is destined to be a restless night.
Around two or three in the morning, there was a knock on the door of Su Tong's small courtyard.
Qiu Yu stood outside the door with red eyes:
"Sister, grandma is gone!"
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