Chapter 60 Inquiry

"Going to buy more goods again, Yan Zi?"

"Well, the store is out of apples and pears. I'll go get some."

"You are the only one who can do this, going to buy goods at three or four in the morning every day."

"If you go too late, the good ones will be gone. I'm referring to repeat customers. We can't sell them what they left over, right?"

Guo Yan greeted the neighbors as she rode along the way. When she arrived at the destination, she stopped her bike and neatly moved the apple pear off the back seat.

After putting the things at the door, she first removed the board window, then opened the door and brought out several kinds of fruits one by one.

I was picking out the not-so-fresh items, ready to sell them at a low price later, when a pair of women's high-top leather shoes stopped in front of me.

Guo Yan asked casually, "Do you want to buy apples, pears, bananas, or apples and pears? Soy sauce, vinegar, and soybean paste, go in."

"Give me a pound of apples and pears. I don't want apples or pears." The person's voice was crisp, but what he said sounded like he was looking for trouble.

The neighbor frowned and was about to say something when Guo Yan raised her head and asked in surprise, "Qiao Qiao?"

"Yeah." Lin Qiao smiled and nodded. "I heard that you rented a house here to sell things. Your business is pretty good."

"What kind of business is there? I just saw a lot of people passing by the street, so I came here to try to sell something. It just so happens that this family felt that the house on the street was too noisy, so they moved away." Guo Yan immediately bent over and took out a few oranges from the box and handed them to Lin Qiao, "Forget about apples and pears, and I have to peel them. I'll give you this."

After handing it over, he saw the tall and handsome young man behind Lin Qiao and the jeep parked not far away. He raised his eyebrows and asked, "Is this your lover?"

Lin Qiao nodded and introduced the two people, "This is my husband Ji Duo, and this is my neighbor and childhood friend Guo Yan."

"Hello." Ji Duo nodded and greeted Guo Yan politely.

"Hello." Guo Yan looked him up and down, and actually showed a relieved expression, and said to Lin Qiao: "Fortunately, you are quite young."

This is obviously because he sees Ji Duo as someone of high rank and with a car, and he's afraid that Lin Qiao will marry someone much older than herself.

Lin Qiao couldn't help but glanced at the man with a smile, then said to Guo Yan: "Are you busy? If not, I want to talk to you."

No one expected that things would take such an unexpected turn and there would be new clues. After she hung up the phone that day, she talked to Ji Duo and Ji Duo decided to come here in person.

It happened to be Sunday, so they took half a day off on Saturday. In fact, they arrived last night, but no one disturbed them and they stayed in a hotel for one night.

Guo Yan also knew that the couple had to go to work and would not come back for nothing. "Come in and talk." She sorted out the things on the floor and said, "This is a bit messy."

Lin Qiao had heard from Liu Yulan before that not long after she came back last time, Guo Yan started to buy fruits in bulk and sell them in the town.

At first, it was just a roadside store. Later, as I had some money and repeat customers, and the weather got colder, I simply rented a house on the street and started selling soy sauce, vinegar, and locally produced beer and liquor. In fact, it was just the prototype of a small store, but it seemed to be doing quite well.

There were indeed a lot of things inside, but they were cleaned up very neatly. Lin Qiao and Ji Duo were taken to the warm kang.

Guo Yan was about to pour some water, but Lin Qiao stopped her, "Why are you so troublesome to tell me? I just remembered that my aunt is from Southern Province, so I came to ask."

Liu Yulan's parents were not from the local area, so Lin Qiao followed Guo Yan and called her aunt. Guo Yan understood immediately, "Yes, she is from Southern Province, from Linshan, Southern Province."

Lin Qiao was not particularly familiar with that area and turned to look at Ji Duo.

"It's not too far, about 370 miles." Ji Duo was obviously very familiar with the area and immediately gave the exact number.

Lin Qiao said to Guo Yan, "My wife's friend's sister got lost in Southern Province. I heard that my aunt was also there at the time. I wanted to ask her if she knew anything."

"Then we have to ask around." As soon as she said she was looking for someone, Guo Yan stopped pouring water. "My aunt just went to work at this time. I'll take you to the vegetable cellar to find her."

Guo Yan's aunt was working part-time in the vegetable cellar. Guo Yan asked a neighbor to help her look after the store and rushed over with the two of them. The neighbor was picking up the cabbages to be put into the cellar with a knife. When he saw Lin Qiao, he did not stop working, "Qiaoqiao is back." After he finished picking up the vegetables on hand, he took a leave and went to the side with them.

Guo Yan told Ji Duo why she and Ji Duo were there. The other party looked at them, and his eyes instantly revealed complexity, even a little wariness.

Lin Qiao caught it and looked at Ji Duo calmly.

Ji Duo happened to be looking at her, but his expression was not clear. He just took out the photo of Shaozhen and said, "Hello, aunt. This is Shaozhen, the younger sister of my friend Gu Shaoping. She was just over eight years old when she went missing. She was wearing a floral top, blue cloth pants, a pair of pigtails, and a red hairband..."

This information seemed to be engraved in his mind. Even after more than ten years, he could still accurately describe every detail.

The more Aunt Guo Yan listened, the more complicated her expression became, but she pursed her lips and said nothing.

Ji Duo was not in a hurry. "We heard that you were in your hometown at that time. We wanted to ask if you saw or heard anything about my friend..."

The man paused, and his voice suddenly dropped. "Something went wrong while he was looking for his sister. His parents passed away a long time ago, and now he only has a grandfather left.

I have been looking for her for more than ten years. If you know any clues, please tell me. The elder and I will be very grateful. "

He didn't ask about Yue Hua, but only talked about Gu Shaoping and Gu Lao. It was obvious that he wanted to play the emotional card, but he was also afraid that there was a one in ten thousand chance that it was not the case, and he would be rude to the other party by saying it out loud.

But this trick was obviously effective. Guo Yan's aunt immediately showed a knot on her face, and Guo Yan was also touched, "Is there still no clue after all these years?"

"Yes." Ji Duo's eyes were heavy, "But they are all fake. I accompanied that elder to the border a few months ago. He fell ill after returning and is still in the hospital."

This is a very skillful way of saying it. It is clear that the reason why Mr. Gu went to the hospital this time was because he was angry with his nephew and his wife...

Lin Qiao glanced at the man without saying anything. Guo Yan was already worried about Gu Lao, "Aunt, please help them think about whether they have heard anything. This is too difficult."

Being stared at by three pairs of eyes, one deep, one clear, and one urging, Aunt Guo Yan finally gritted her teeth and asked the foreman for half a day off.

After asking her to take off the sleeves she wore when working, he said to Guo Yan, "You go back to the store first. I'll take Qiao Qiao and his wife out to talk."

This obviously meant he knew something, and Guo Yan was a little curious, but she didn't remember what happened back then, and couldn't think of anything else. In the end, she went back to the store as she was told.

Guo Yan's aunt took the two of them back home.

The house was not big. I shared three rooms with others, and only occupied one and a half rooms in the east. However, it was enough for a small family. After entering the house, there was silence for a long time. Then, Aunt Guo Yan took out a locked small box from the cabinet of the desk next to the kang, and took out a flower basket carved from peach pits.

"Take a look." She held the thing in her hand and rubbed it, as if she was reluctant to give it away, before handing it to Ji Duo.

Ji Duo recognized it at a glance, "This is what Shaozhen wears on her right wrist."

Because the item was only tied with a red rope and was small, it could be easily lost, so they did not use it as evidence when looking for someone.

Seeing Lin Qiao looking over, he pointed to the two uneven marks on it and said, "Shaoping carved it when he was a kid. He broke more than a dozen of them, and this is the only one that can be used."

Gu Shaozhen was a posthumous child. Her father died in an accident before she was born, and her mother had a difficult delivery, leaving only the brother and sister and their grandfather to depend on each other. At that time, the old man was only in his fifties and held a high position, so he was not always available to take care of her. Gu Shaoping took on the responsibility of being a big brother and prepared everything for his sister.

Because he had to take care of his younger sister since she was young, Gu Shaoping was more considerate and gentle than anyone else. When he went out to play when she was young, he would drag Shaozhen with him in a small basket.

Ji Duo showed a rare nostalgic look in his eyes. After reading it, he handed the things back to Aunt Guo Yan and said, "Thank you for telling me this."

When Guo Yan's aunt heard this, she burst into tears. "I wanted to keep it to myself, but her family is like this. I raised her, so I can't let her grandfather turn a blind eye to her, can I?"

In fact, if she insisted that she didn't know, it would take Ji Duo and Lin Qiao a lot of effort to investigate, and they might not be able to find out anything at all.

Guo Yan's aunt was obviously a soft-hearted person, otherwise she wouldn't have raised her to this age, let her study, and sent her to college.

"Take it and show it to the old lady." She wiped her face and did not take it. She sat down on the edge of the kang. "I met Xiaohua on my way back from my hometown. It was probably in July. I received a telegram saying that my old lady was seriously ill and asked me to come back. I didn't want to come back at that time..."

She had just lost her child to a high fever.

The situation outside was not peaceful, and the hospital was full of inexperienced young people. No one knew how to save him, so he died in her arms.

The couple had only this one daughter, and she felt like the sky had fallen. But her mother-in-law was seriously ill, so she had to go back.

"This person is so unlucky that even drinking cold water gets stuck in his teeth. The bus broke down before it even reached its destination and no matter how it was repaired, it couldn't be fixed. The driver saw that the station was not far away and simply asked us to walk there by ourselves. The more I thought about it, the more upset I felt. I cried as I walked and accidentally took the wrong lane, which is how I found Xiaohua."

The child must have fallen from the mountain. His clothes and pants were torn, one of his shoes was missing, and there was a bloody wound on his head.

"At first I thought she was dead, the blood on her head was half dried, but when I touched her, I found she was still breathing, and she was carried to the town."

It was hard enough for a woman to walk on a mountain road, and she had to carry an eight or nine-year-old child on her back. When she arrived in the town, she couldn't find a reliable doctor, so she had to go to a local doctor who used herbal medicine to treat her.

"I waited in the town for two days and asked around to see if anyone had lost a child. But I didn't find her. When she woke up, she didn't know anything. I was afraid my mother-in-law couldn't wait any longer, so I brought her back. Fortunately, she looked a lot like my child, so we adopted her as our own."

She paused, frowned and asked Ji Duo, "The child was lost, didn't you look for her? I saw bruises on her body."

If no one was looking for it and it had injuries on its body, she would not have thought that someone had thrown it away on purpose and would have taken it back.

Unexpectedly, after hearing this, the young man next to Lin Qiao became angry and asked, "Are you sure she was still bruised?"

Guo Yan's aunt, who is in her 40s or 50s, actually stuttered, "Yes, there are. They are all inside her clothes. I saw them when I was helping her change her clothes."

Lin Qiao knew why the man did this. Before Old Gu, Gu Shaoping and Bao Shaozhen could help, the pinching injury was obviously caused by someone else.

She patted the man's hand soothingly. This time, he shook her hand without waiting for her to take it back. He calmed down his emotions with the soft warmth of her hand. "She was missing a few days ago. Her brother had an accident in the mountains. Her grandfather was seriously ill and was sent there for labor reform."

After hearing this, Guo Yan's aunt understood. The Gu family had encountered many misfortunes and Mr. Gu was in a bad situation. She probably didn't have the energy to find someone at that time. She couldn't help but sigh.

Who among the three people present couldn't help but sigh at this breath? Shaozhen was lucky to have met a kind person. What if he didn't meet one at all or met a bad person?

In silence, Aunt Guo Yan looked at Ji Duo, then at Lin Qiao, and opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something but stopped herself.

"Just say whatever you want to say." Lin Qiao saw through it and said sincerely, "We and that elder are very grateful that you are willing to tell us this today."

Ji Duo's emotions also completely calmed down. "If you have anything to say to her grandfather, I can also help you convey it."

These words clearly hit the nail on the head of Guo Yan's aunt. She smiled, but it was a very forced smile. "You also know that we have been raising Xiaohua as our own daughter all these years."

Lin Qiao understood what she said. She didn't really want Shaozhen to recognize her ancestry, at least not now.

As expected, Guo Yan's aunt immediately said, "We have not told her about this. We only have this one daughter. Do you think we can... can we wait a little longer?" Then she hurriedly explained, "It's not that I don't want her grandfather to recognize her, it's just that this matter is sudden, and we have to be prepared."

Ji Duo was silent for only a moment, then he looked directly at Guo Yan's aunt and said, "I'll tell him. No matter what, thank you for today and for all these years."

This sentence made Guo Yan's aunt's eyes sparkle again, "I didn't raise her just to be thanked. Without her, I don't know how we would have lived these years."

With a child by their side, even if they still miss the one who is gone, at least they have a purpose in life. No matter how hard work they do during the day, there are always people who happily call them daddy or mommy, who massage their legs, or who show them their report cards and say they got first place in the exam again...

After leaving Guo Yan's aunt's house, Lin Qiao noticed that Ji Duo had been holding her hand since just now.

Ji Duo also noticed it, his expression froze for a moment, then he relaxed as usual, "Let's go buy some fruit from Guo Yan."

The car was still parked there, so they had to go back no matter what. Guo Yan was the one who helped them find the person, so it was reasonable for them to tell Guo Yan about it.

Now that they had found the person, they were able to relax. Led by Lin Qiao, the two of them took a shortcut to Guo Yan's store.

Passing by the town middle school, Ji Duo paused. Lin Qiao noticed his gaze and thought for a moment before saying, "Sister Yue Hua was admitted from here. The school also has her honor roll. Do you want to go and take a look?"

"Are you studying here too?" Ji Duo asked, but this was the question.

This surprised Lin Qiao for a moment, "I studied here."

She really didn't think about it in this way. After all, she was not her original self. She had already graduated when she traveled through time. Ji Duo didn't seem like the kind of person who would ask these questions before.

But the man asked. Not only did he ask, he also walked towards the school gate across the street.

She followed him, as there was no school on Sunday, so she said hello to the security guard and said that she was a former graduate and wanted to visit her alma mater.

Look, the master let two people in.

Compared to the middle school where Lin Qiao teaches now, the town middle school is much smaller. It is all bungalows. There are only four classes in each grade of high school, including arts and science. The class number is hung on a wooden sign at the door. The desks and chairs are uneven. The chalk box on the desk is still piled with chalk stubs that have been used for a short time but are still reluctant to be thrown away.

Ji Duo suddenly wanted to see how Lin Qiao used to teach, and how she looked at the podium. "When will you give public classes again?"

It was another unexpected question. Lin Qiao turned her head and found that the man was looking at her without blinking. There seemed to be something more in his eyes when he lowered his eyes.

But before she could see clearly, there was a flash of light before her eyes, and snowflakes actually fell.

Lin Qiao's gaze shifted. "It's snowing?" She stretched out her white little hand to catch the snow. "This should be the first snow of the year, right?"

"It probably hasn't rained in Yandu this year." Ji Duo's eyes were still on her face.

Lin Qiao raised his head and looked at the sky. Perhaps a stone in his heart fell to the ground. The corners of his eyes raised, and the light in his eyes was brighter and more sparkling than the snowflakes in the sky.

Ji Duo just stared at her quietly until she had seen enough, turned around and said to him, "Let's go back, our clothes will get wet soon." Then he whispered "Yeah."

Even so, when I returned to Guo Yan's store, there was still some white hair on my head.

Ji Duo went to the car and got a towel for Lin Qiao. The two of them wiped themselves as they went in. Guo Yan was helping someone get soy sauce and took the time to ask, "How's it going?"

"It's good news." Auntie-in-law didn't want to talk about it for the time being, so Lin Qiao didn't mention it. "I also want to thank you and Auntie for your help."

"What's this?" Guo Yan closed the soy sauce barrel, collected the money, and looked at her and Ji Duo. "You're not in a hurry to leave this time, are you? I'll arrange lunch for you two."

"The old man is still waiting over there." Lin Qiao felt helpless.

Although Mr. Gu didn't know they were coming here, let alone knowing about Yue Hua's matter, it was already confirmed, so it was better to go back and tell him earlier so that he could be completely relieved.

"That's right. We've been looking for it for so many years." Guo Yan nodded to show her understanding. "Then I'll pack some fruit for you to eat on the way."

This girl was just like that, straightforward and generous. Lin Qiao was about to refuse, but the man next to her whispered to her and asked for a large stack of bundts, "How many do you have left? We want them all."

"You want all of them?" Guo Yan was stunned. "Why do you want so much fruit?"

"Give it away." Before she could finish her sentence, "That's too much," Ji Duo had already put down the money and went out to call Xiao Fang to come over and help move.

The row of fruit boxes in front of Guo Yan's door were all emptied in a short while. She wanted to give her a discount, but the couple had already got into the car and drove out.

"Your friend is quite rich and generous." The neighbors were amazed.

Guo Yan held those big group notes and didn't know what to say, "Why are all of you like Lin Wei, just trying to give me money?"

Lin Qiao could understand why the man did this. He was simply grateful, but he felt that a simple thank you was too superficial and had no weight.

Sure enough, not long after the car drove out, he asked Xiao Fang to turn around and unloaded a whole box at the door of Guo Yan's aunt's house. Then he asked her, "Which village is our mother's home in?"

This time, we were able to find the person thanks to Liu Yulan's careful work and her concern. She also asked around for Lin Qiao afterwards, otherwise they might have missed him. Lin Qiao gave the address, and Xiao Fang had been there several times and still remembered it. The couple went to Yang's house again and unloaded a large box at Yang's house.

Liu Yulan was confused, especially Ji Duo, who looked difficult to get close to, but he called her mom as soon as he came in and started moving things without hesitation.

Lin Qiao held her hand again, "Mom, you've been a big help this time." She felt relieved, "Are you guys making any progress on that?"

"Well, we came here specially to tell you so that you can rest assured."

After sending the child off, the couple did not stay at Yang's house for long. They got in the car and set off immediately. They rushed back to Yandu before it got dark in the afternoon and went straight to the Military General Hospital.

Gu Lao is in good condition. He is still energetic and reads the newspaper while wearing his reading glasses. He met two people and said that he will be discharged from the hospital next week.

Ji Duo handed the fruits he brought to Sister Du and said, "Wash a few more. My driver Xiao Fang is waiting downstairs."

This was obviously an attempt to get the person out. Sister Du might not understand, but Mr. Gu could definitely hear it. As soon as the person left, he whispered, "What's the matter?"

Ji Duo said nothing, but took out the flower basket carved from a peach pit and a photo of Yue Hua in recent years that he had asked his aunt-in-law for.

Gu Lao's eyes were fixed on it at that moment. His hands, covered with age spots, trembled for a long time before he picked up the peach pit and the photo and asked in a hoarse voice, "Where did you find it?"

"In Lin Qiao's hometown."

Ji Duo briefly explained how Lin Qiao found out that he looked familiar, how he contacted his family, and how the two of them rushed over to confirm it.

Mr. Gu listened quietly, his hands holding the things never stopped shaking. After a while, he asked, "How has Shaozhen been these years?"

"She's doing fine," Lin Qiao said. "She's the only child of her adoptive parents, and they love her like a treasure. She was admitted to university last year and is studying in Yandu."

"That's good, that's good." Mr. Gu said it twice in a row, and he couldn't help but close his eyes, "Can I...can I see her?"

What kind of mood would make you ask so carefully "Can I meet her?" after finding someone?

Lin Qiao held the old man's hand and felt reluctant to tell him what Uncle Guo Yan had said.

Ji Duo had known Gu Lao for a long time and knew that he could bear it. "Do you want to take her back now, or just take a look at her from a distance?"

"She was raised as my daughter, so I'm afraid she's not ready for me to recognize her now?" The old man stroked the photo, "If I can look at her from a distance and know that she's doing well, I'll die with peace of mind."

"Then I'll think of a way." Lin Qiao said, "I'll just say that I just came back from my hometown, and my aunt asked me to bring her some apples and pears."

When Sister Du came back, Mr. Gu had already put on his coat and hat. "Xiaoduo and Xiaoqiao are here. They said they want to take me downstairs for a walk."

Every time he saw these young people, Mr. Gu was in a good mood, and Sister Du did not doubt, "Then you should wear more."

After going downstairs, several people got into Ji Duo's car and headed straight for the university where Yue Hua was studying.

The car stopped at the school gate. Ji Duo got out first. Just as he was about to turn around to help the old man, he suddenly heard a familiar voice from the store next door, "I sold this liquid soap to you. You are not not making money. Why do you deliberately put it in the corner and block it with other buckets?"

He was beaten up at that time.

Doesn't Ozawa have salespeople? Why are you selling liquid soap here yourself?