"These two comrades want to go in to visit a friend?" Section Chief Huang looked at Ye Weiwei with a smile. "In principle, as long as it doesn't violate the regulations, they can come in to visit during visiting hours. However, something happened at the farm recently, and the higher-ups are keeping a close eye on things. I'm afraid visiting hours won't be open for a while."
Huo Xiao stepped forward to block Section Chief Huang's view. Ye Weiwei noticed that his body muscles were tense, so she quietly took his hand from behind.
"Could Section Chief Huang tell us when visitation hours will be open?"
Section Chief Huang pretended to be deep in thought, trying to pique the interest of the two men. Seeing that their expressions remained unchanged and they showed no reaction, his face darkened, and he said in a deep voice, "It depends on the policy from above. However, this situation has happened before. I estimate that it will not be relaxed until the end of the year at the earliest, and it is uncertain even after the new year."
Huo Xiao: "Okay, we understand. Thank you for letting us know."
Huo Xiao nodded to the two of them, then left with Ye Weiwei.
Seeing that the two were so uncooperative, Section Chief Huang stared at their backs with a sinister look for a long time before going back.
After Section Chief Huang left, Xiao Jiang squeezed the pack of cigarettes in his pocket and sighed.
It seems those two have offended Section Chief Huang. Hopefully, they won't come back, otherwise it won't be good for either them or the people on the farm.
Sensing that Section Chief Huang and Xiao Jiang were no longer paying attention to them, Ye Weiwei pulled Huo Xiao and changed direction, the two heading northwest.
After walking for about half an hour, Ye Weiwei finally detected a cluster of houses using her spiritual power.
The houses here are similar to those in the southeast, all equally dilapidated. Ye Weiwei found her family very easily this time.
Her parents, two older brothers, and nephew squeezed into a room of only ten square meters. The room had only one kang (a heated brick bed), covered with dry grass. There wasn't even a bed sheet. The only quilt they had for warmth was tattered, with dirty cotton and bits of dry grass showing inside.
Ye Weiwei thought she had disguised the quilts she prepared for her family well enough, but when she saw the quilts they were using, she realized that it was far from enough.
In just six months since we separated, my parents seem to have aged decades, especially my father. He is only in his fifties, but his once black hair has turned completely white. His cheeks are sunken and thin, and his back looks bent as if it has been weighed down. He has lost all the refined air I remember about him.
My mother, such a beautiful and delicate woman, had her skin dry, cracked, and sallow in just six months. Her hair, which she had always carefully styled, was now a mess. Her once well-maintained hands were now incredibly rough, covered with calluses and cuts.
The eldest brother lay half-reclined on the kang (a heated brick bed), his hair of varying lengths, with a large bald patch, and his eyes sometimes had a hopeless, vacant look, as if he had lost all vitality.
The young man sat leaning against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), his head drooping, seemingly lost in thought. Little Xingxing's eyes were swollen like peaches, and there were bruises on the corners of her mouth. She stubbornly pursed her lips, refusing to let the tears in her eyes roll down...
Ye Weiwei subconsciously gripped Huo Xiao's hand tightly, feeling as if a large hand was squeezing her heart, making it difficult to breathe.
"Weiwei, what's wrong?" Huo Xiao immediately noticed Ye Weiwei's unusual behavior and quickly asked.
Ye Weiwei closed her eyes, and when she looked at Huo Xiao again, her eyes were red with tears. "Huo Xiao, I... I feel like my family is over there, and they are not doing well, not doing well at all!"
Unable to explain her sudden outburst of emotions, she could only come up with this excuse.
Huo Xiao trusted Ye Weiwei's intuition, and his expression became more serious.
"Don't worry, I'll find a way to get in today and see my parents first."
It's just a farm wall; no matter how high it is, it can't stop him.
"We'll work together. Don't worry, I won't hold them back, and I can sense where they are."
"good."
Huo Xiao agreed, "But you must promise not to get too excited when you see them, so as not to be discovered and bring trouble upon them."
"Yes. I know."
After discussing it, the two decided not to wander around outside anymore, but to go straight back to Grandpa Zhang's house to prepare the things they would take there that evening.
When Grandpa Zhang saw the two of them return so early, he quickly asked if they had finished their business.
Huo Xiao laughed and said, "It's still a while before we can visit the farm again, but we ran into a former comrade-in-arms on this trip. I didn't expect him to be assigned to work on the farm after his discharge. We made plans to have dinner at his place, so we might be back a little late tonight."
“Then you can’t be too late. We can’t keep waiting to open the door for you,” Ma Cuihua said immediately after hearing Huo Xiao’s words.
Grandpa Zhang gave his daughter-in-law an unpleasant look. "What right do you have to interrupt a man? I'm not asking you to guard the door."
Huo Xiao smiled and said, "Then we'll trouble you, Uncle Zhang. We'll try to come back as soon as possible."
Grandpa Zhang waved his hand, "It's alright, it's fate that you and your comrade-in-arms met here."
"That's right. It's been three or four years since we last met."
Huo Xiao sighed, then spoke a few more words to Grandpa Zhang. Ye Weiwei packed her things, and the two left.
This time, the two avoided the crowds and went to the northwest side of the farm. They walked for nearly an hour before finding a secluded spot, where they put down their things and observed the terrain.
Ye Weiwei had already used her mental power to scan a location. She found two stones and placed them against the wall as a marker. "Go in from here, and you can quickly find where they live."
Huo Xiao nodded to indicate that he understood, and then taught her some tips on hiding and dodging, instructing Ye Weiwei to stay close to her.
Worried that he wouldn't be able to see the terrain in the dark, Huo Xiao secretly climbed over the wall to scout out the way, familiarizing himself with the terrain to find cover and make an escape.
Ye Weiwei used this time to visit all the people living in the northwest area of the farm, especially the neighbors on the left and right sides of her family.
Not knowing the other person's character, to prevent any accidents, she decided to give them some sleep aids while they were asleep.
Everything was planned, and all that was left was to wait for nightfall.
Neither of them had eaten lunch and were not in the mood to eat anything. Ye Weiwei took out a bag of snacks from her spatial storage, and the two of them ate some with water from their military canteens to tide them over.
As soon as it got dark, Ye Weiwei realized that no one was outside on the farm, so she couldn't wait to go inside.
Huo Xiao pulled the impatient Ye Weiwei back, "Wait a little longer, it'll be dark soon, a little longer won't make a difference."
Ye Weiwei: "I feel like we can go in now, we won't run into anyone."
Huo Xiao had no choice but to comply, "You step on me first, climb up to the top of the wall, and I'll come down to get you."
After saying that, he tightened the pack on his back and half-squatted down to gesture for Ye Weiwei to come up.
Ye Weiwei shook her head, took a few steps back, ran up, grabbed the high wall, and then jumped down with both hands.
Seeing this, Huo Xiao quickly leaped up and landed steadily inside. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Ye Weiwei was safe and sound.
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