Chapter 29 Fireworks: Setting off fireworks is good, it wards off evil spirits!
Liang Jiushan has done a great job this time.
Because he was fluent in various local dialects, he quickly located Xiao Yong's home in Liuyang City. After the Yancheng police contacted Liuyang by phone, they soon received news.
Xiao Yong's parents have been found!
The father, Hu Jianguo, the mother, Yang Cuifen, and the younger sister, Hu Li, ran a grocery store called Jianguo Grocery Store in Dayao Town, which also sold fireworks and firecrackers.
After their son went missing, the couple had been trying to find Hu Yong.
Because a red Happiness 250 motorcycle had appeared on the day she went missing, Yang Cuifen would chase after it whenever she saw it to find out what was going on. Once, she fell while chasing the motorcycle, which resulted in her losing hearing in her left ear.
The couple dared not leave the grocery store, always feeling that their son would come looking for them one day.
They plastered missing person notices all over the walls and utility poles in town, gave one to every out-of-towner who came to town to buy fireworks, and even gritted their teeth and installed the town's third private telephone in 1989.
Hu Jianguo received 23 false tip calls, each time going with high hopes only to return disappointed.
Yang Cuifen repeatedly cursed those who spread false information to swindle money: "You short-lived devils! You've fooled a woman who lost her child; may your family line die out!"
Hu Jianguo almost cried when he received the call from the Yanshi police.
He immediately dialed the Jinwu Road Police Station. As soon as he heard Xiaoyong's voice on the other end of the line, Hu Jianguo shouted, "Yong boy, do you remember Daddy teaching you how to set off 'sky rockets'? Come back, Daddy left you a box of them..."
Yang Cuifen snatched the phone, crying and shouting, "My son, come back quickly! I'm keeping your favorite White Rabbit milk candy for you, and I'll make you new clothes every year."
Hearing the familiar voices on the other end of the phone, Xiao Yong's childhood memories were all awakened, and he cried out in a piercing voice, "Grandpa and Mom, come quickly! The kidnapper is wicked, I'm so scared..."
Hu Jianguo and Yang Cuifen had already learned of their son's terrible condition from the police. Hearing his heart-wrenching cries again, their hearts ached as if they were being fried in oil. These human traffickers who deserve to be shot are truly vicious! They actually cut off their son's feet!
Hu Jianguo shouted into the phone, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid! Your parents are coming to pick you up right away. Even if the sky falls, don't panic. As long as you're alive, that's all that matters. Your parents have been looking for you every day. It'll be good if you come back!"
Jiang Ling listened from the side, her heart trembling.
Family reunion is usually a joyous occasion. But with Xiaoyong having lost both legs, his parents will likely be devastated at the sight of him.
Loving children is human nature.
How could parents bear to see their children suffer like that? They would probably rather lose their own limbs in exchange for their children's lifelong peace, health, and happiness.
Liang Jiushan had been coming frequently these past few days. When he saw Jiang Ling with her lips pursed and her face cold, but with a faint glimmer in her eyes, he knew that she was saddened by Xiao Yong's suffering.
Liang Jiushan is sensitive and sharp-tongued. He is kind to those who are kind to him, but he will fight back to the death if anyone bullies him.
Others might perceive Jiang Ling as strong and composed, but Liang Jiushan, having received her care and having spent considerable time with her, sensed her inner softness and kindness.
Liang Jiushan reached out and quietly tugged at Jiang Ling's sleeve, whispering, "Sister Ling, it's alright. Xiao Yong's parents said that being injured isn't a big deal, as long as he's alive. Luckily you saved Xiao Yong, otherwise his parents would have been devastated. This is a good thing, a happy thing, you should be happy."
Jiang Ling never expected to be comforted by such a young boy.
She turned to look at Liang Jiushan and slapped away his hand that was tugging at her clothes: "Don't touch me."
Although it was meant as a reprimand, Liang Jiushan knew that Jiang Ling was very tolerant of his own people. He smiled and obediently withdrew his hand: "Okay, I'll listen to you."
Liang Jiushan's interruption eased Jiang Ling's heavy heart considerably.
Yes, she has changed Xiaoyong's fate and reunited him with his parents; she has done the best she could.
As for the suffering Xiaoyong endured and the pain of being separated from his family, let the human traffickers bear it.
Liang Jiushan could tell that Jiang Ling was in a better mood, so he seized the opportunity and said, "Sister Ling, I helped you this time, could you give me a small reward?"
Jiang Ling nodded slightly: "Okay, what reward do you want?"
Liang Jiushan immediately perked up: "Didn't you say you were going to send Shen Xiaomei to an orphanage? Take me with you!"
Xiao Yong was picked up by his parents.
On the day Hu Jianguo and Yang Cuifen came to the police station to pick up Xiaoyong, they arrived in a small pickup truck. They brought not only new clothes for Xiaoyong, but also a large bag of milk candy, a pack of firecrackers, and ten boxes of fireworks.
Even though they were mentally prepared, when they saw Xiaoyong, whose legs had been cut off and who could only walk in a wheelchair, Hu Jianguo and Yang Cuifen were still so heartbroken that they could hardly breathe and held their son, tears streaming down their faces.
Yang Cuifen cried and cursed, "Heaven has punished these human traffickers! Why did they have to harm my child? God, may lightning strike them all dead!"
Hu Jianguo steadied himself, picked up his son from the wheelchair and took a few steps: "Son, don't be afraid, your grandpa is here. Don't be afraid of anything. Go wherever you want to go, I'll carry you and push you there."
Xiao Yong hugged his father's neck tightly and began to shed tears.
He was crying and laughing at the same time.
Finally, his parents came to pick him up. Wearing the new cotton-padded jacket that his mother had made by hand, he felt like the happiest person in the world.
That evening, Hu Jianguo took out the ten boxes of fireworks from the back of his pickup truck and lit the fuse.
Boom! Boom!
Brilliant fireworks exploded in the sky above the police station.
One after another, huge flowers bloomed, their golden petals shimmering with emerald hues, a breathtaking sight.
Ten boxes of fireworks were set off for a full twenty minutes, turning half the sky above Jinwu Road into a smoky gray. The lingering smell of gunpowder attracted countless passersby to stop and watch.
After the fireworks ended, the police officers at the police station were all speechless with admiration.
"It's so beautiful!"
"It feels like Chinese New Year."
"The fireworks in Liuyang are indeed beautiful."
When the surrounding residents saw the fireworks being set off in front of the police station, they curiously gathered around and chattered, asking, "What's the occasion? Setting off so many fireworks must have cost a lot of money!"
Hu Jianguo pushed Xiaoyong out and shouted at the top of his lungs, "The police from Jinwu Road Police Station helped us find our son who was abducted four years ago. I'm so happy!"
Yang Cuifen wiped away her tears and said loudly, "Officer Jiang and Officer Li saved my child, and the police officers at the police station helped us take care of him. They are our family's saviors. We don't have anything to give, but the people of Liuyang are good at making fireworks, so we brought them to show everyone!"
The crowd applauded and gave them a thumbs up.
"Setting off firecrackers is good; it wards off evil spirits! Everything will go smoothly from now on."
"These fireworks were specially brought from Liuyang! We're in for a treat. Congratulations! Congratulations on finding your child."
“The police officers at the police station are all good people. Last time, Officer Wei even helped us apply for social assistance, which helped us through a difficult time.”
Everyone was praising the police officers at Jinwu Road Police Station for their responsible work and serious attitude, calling them good police officers in the jurisdiction.
Director Yao beamed, holding his enamel mug filled with strong tea in one hand and waving to everyone with the other: "Thank you, thank you all for recognizing our work. This is what we should do."
Xiao Yong turned his head to look at Jiang Ling, who was standing to the side.
The moment the fireworks burst open, he saw Jiang Ling's amazed gaze and her radiant smile.
Xiao Yong reached out his hand to Jiang Ling.
Jiang Ling walked up to him, bent down, and asked, "What's wrong?"
Xiao Yong whispered, "Auntie, thank you!" He already knew that Jiang Ling was not Xiao Wei's aunt, but in Xiao Yong's heart, Jiang Ling was a "god" who saved him from dire straits.
Jiang Ling smiled and rubbed his head.
Xiao Yong's future will be as bright and beautiful as these fireworks.
--
Over the weekend, Jiang Ling and Liang Jiushan took Shen Xiaomei to the Yan City Welfare Home.
The welfare home is located at the foot of Qingluo Mountain in the northern suburbs of the old city, about 12 kilometers from the city center. Before liberation, it was a church orphanage, and in 1952 it was converted into a state-run welfare home. Far from the city, backed by mountains, and facing a sewage river, the living environment was not very good.
There's only one suburban bus route, number 12, that goes there once a day, with three trips a day. Because of the inconvenient transportation, Jiang Ling was assigned back to Yanshi after graduating from police academy, and only returned to the welfare home once during that time.
Shen Xiaomei did not tell the police where her parents and hometown were, but the first thing Shen Sanzhuang confessed was Shen Xiaomei's background.
Shen Xiaomei is from Heishigou Village in western Hunan Province. There is only one winding dirt road leading to the outside world, and there is no water or electricity.
Shen Xiaomei's father, Shen Dafu, was an alcoholic who had been drinking heavily for years. His left leg was crippled by a wild boar bite. In 1987, he took Xiaomei to the town market and sold her for 80 yuan, plus two bottles of liquor. He also signed a voluntary adoption agreement and pressed his red fingerprint on it.
When the police contacted Shen Dafu, he drunkenly said, "I don't want this daughter. Whoever wants to raise her can raise her. If you want to send her back, that's fine too. I'll sell her again to buy more alcohol. It's worth it."
In such situations, even the police are in a difficult position.
Shen Xiaomei is only 11 years old and cannot live independently. After consulting with Shen Xiaomei, it was decided to send her to the Yanshi Welfare Home.
That's why Jiang Ling had this errand to run today.
After getting off the bus, Jiang Ling walked once again along the cinder road leading to the welfare home, feeling fortunate that it was a sunny day.
She had walked this road countless times during her school days, and it always became muddy and difficult to walk on rainy days, leaving her shoes and trousers covered in mud.
This time, however, besides Shen Xiaomei, she also had Liang Jiushan by her side, who kept chattering away.
"Sister Ling, you went to elementary and middle school in the north of the city, right? You must have walked this road often before. Did you have any classmates with you?"
"Ugh, this road is so bumpy and hard to walk on, and that stinky ditch next to it is really smelly!"
"Sister Ling, you must have suffered a lot in the past. It's okay, I'll protect you when I become a policeman."
Jiang Ling was left speechless, both amused and exasperated by his words.
Liang Jiushan, this underling, is really noisy, but Jiang Ling doesn't dislike him.
Although she was already strong enough to live a full life and didn't need such comfort, she still felt a little warm when she heard someone say that they would "protect" her.
Shen Xiaomei listened silently to Liang Jiushan's words.
There was someone talking non-stop beside her, their voice clear and full of youthful energy, which made Shen Xiaomei, who was afraid of the unfamiliar environment, feel a little more at ease.
Upon arriving at the welfare home, the wooden sign hanging next to the iron gate was peeling. The white-haired Director Jiang and Teacher Huang, who had taught Jiang Ling to read and write, stood at the gate, smiling as they watched the three people approach.
Jiang Ling didn't think going back to the orphanage was a happy thing.
The pain of being abandoned, the bitterness of being ignored, and the hurt of being treated coldly by the caregivers accumulated in her heart day by day, making it hard for her to breathe. She desperately wanted to escape and leave this place.
However, she also had reasons to come back.
These two people in front of her are the reason why Jiang Ling returned to the orphanage.
Ms. Li is a Chinese language teacher. After her husband and son died in a car accident, she volunteered at a welfare home, teaching the children to read and write. She discovered Jiang Ling's learning talent, persisted in sending her to school, and encouraged her to attend high school and go to university.
Dean Jiang was also Jiang Ling's benefactor.
She is very busy. She has to take care of the food, drink, toileting and other needs of more than 80 children in the welfare home, as well as the salaries of five caregivers. She also has to manage the children's fights and squabbles over resources, and the adoptions of kind-hearted families. She is getting old and her energy is waning, so she simply cannot take care of the children's mental health.
However, Dean Jiang attaches great importance to the children's studies.
She sends any child who is able and willing to study to Beicheng Primary School and Beicheng Middle School. As for university, she helps the children apply for poverty subsidies and student loans.
Police academy is tuition-free, provides meal tickets, and regularly distributes clothes and shoes, so it basically costs very little. However, girls inevitably have some expenses for hygiene products, and fortunately, there is a poverty subsidy, which allows Jiang Ling to focus on her studies.
Without the support of Dean Jiang and Teacher Li, Jiang Ling would not have been able to become a police officer.
Recalling the past, Jiang Ling quickly stepped forward: "Dean Jiang, Teacher Li, why are you waiting at the door? It's windy and cold outside."
Dean Jiang looked at Jiang Ling as she approached, his eyes filled with satisfaction: "Xiao Ling, you've grown up."
With a broad smile, Teacher Li said, "It's true, they've grown taller and a bit heavier." Having lost her only son, Teacher Li nearly contemplated suicide. If she hadn't come to this orphanage, she would have had no motivation or courage to live. Over the years at the orphanage, she has genuinely treated the children as her own.
Jiang Ling pushed Shen Xiaomei in front of Dean Jiang: "This is the child."
Dean Jiang patted Shen Xiaomei's head gently and said, "Stay here with us. Although the conditions aren't great, it's a warm and stable home."
Shen Xiaomei was very nervous.
Through the iron gate, she saw a spacious courtyard, a two-story brick building, and a single-story house. A national flag was planted in the courtyard, and there was also a vegetable garden where radishes and cabbages were grown.
Is this her future home?
So big, so beautiful, so wonderful!
Shen Xiaomei stammered, "Will I be able to get enough to eat here?"
Dean Jiang smiled and said, "We may not have meat at every meal, but we can eat our fill."
How could Shen Xiaomei dare to ask for meat at every meal? Xie Jiayan said that she had to starve herself to the bone in order to beg for money, so she was never full. Every night, her stomach burned with hunger, and she felt so nauseous that she wanted to vomit, but nothing came out. She was truly terrified of this feeling.
Shen Xiaomei was delighted, but still a little worried: "If I don't behave, will they sell me?"
At this, both Dean Jiang and Teacher Li felt a pang of heartache in their eyes.
Dean Jiang already knew about Shen Xiaomei's ordeal over the phone. When they met, he saw that one of her ears had been torn off, the scars on her earlobe were uneven, she only had three fingers on one hand, and she was so thin that she was almost unrecognizable. All that was left on her face was her unusually large eyes. He couldn't help but sigh.
"Child, don't be afraid. The welfare home was built with government funding and is subject to government supervision. Someone will come to inspect our work in a while. You were sent here by the Municipal Public Security Bureau and are already on file. No one would dare to sell you."
Although Shen Xiaomei didn't understand what "establishing a file" meant, it didn't prevent her from understanding the meaning of the sentence.
In other words, she is a person under the government's jurisdiction, a person with status, and no one dares to sell her.
With her heart finally at ease, Shen Xiaomei smiled.
Being able to eat her fill, having a bed to sleep in, and no one selling her anymore—for Shen Xiaomei, this was paradise.
With Xiaomei, Xiaoyong, and Xiaowei all settled, Jiang Ling finally felt at ease.
While she was chatting with Teacher Li and Dean Jiang, Liang Jiushan was running around the welfare home, chatting with this person and exchanging a few casual words with that person, quite like a fish in water.
A moment later, Liang Jiushan rushed in and asked Director Jiang bluntly, "When my sister Ling was sent to the orphanage, did she leave any evidence, like a jade pendant, a sachet, or a note? Or, could we find any clues on her clothes? I need to find a way to help her find her biological parents so I can confront them and yell at them for giving birth to her and then abandoning her!"
Jiang Ling felt as if something was stuck in her throat, a sour and astringent feeling lingering in her heart.
Having searched for her several times in her past life without any success, she subconsciously believed that she had been deliberately abandoned by her parents. Therefore, she would back down when faced with difficulties and refuse to investigate further.
Unexpectedly, in this life, Liang Jiushan saw through her thoughts in a single sentence.
Although he was young and impetuous, he was braver and more straightforward than I was.
Liang Jiushan glanced at Jiang Ling's expression and quickly changed his tone: "Of course, it's also possible that your parents have passed away, or that they don't know you exist, which is why they haven't come looking for you. Like in the movies, maybe some bad guys deliberately took you away, causing you to be separated from your parents?"
Jiang Ling had considered countless possibilities in her previous life.
Perhaps her parents were not locals, and after giving birth in Yan City, they had to abandon her due to special circumstances.
—If that were the case, her parents would definitely have gone back to the orphanage to look for her. Jiang Ling never left the orphanage from birth until she went to police academy at age 16, so that possibility was ruled out.
She might have been secretly taken away and abandoned at the gate of an orphanage because someone thought she was too young to be raised.
—If that were the case, her parents would definitely be searching for her. But in her previous life, Jiang Ling had searched almost all the missing persons files and found no match for her, so this possibility was ruled out.
Perhaps her parents' marriage was not honorable, and after hastily giving birth to their daughter, they felt that Jiang Ling was a "flower of sin," so they cruelly abandoned her.
—If that's the case, why is Jiang Ling even looking for them?
Perhaps her father died early or left, her mother had an accident during childbirth, and her mother's relatives did not want to raise Jiang Ling, so they abandoned her.
—If that's the case, Jiang Ling's parents are probably long gone, so what's the point of them searching for her?
Therefore, Jiang Ling's subconscious was actually resisting the search for her relatives.
Whether one's parents have passed away or one has been abandoned by them, it proves that one is an unwanted, unappreciated, and unloved child.
At such a young and innocent age, she may have longed for her parents to take her home so that the family could live happily together.
After countless searches and disappointments, Jiang Ling is no longer fixated on finding her family in this life.
But then, Liang Jiushan took the initiative to step forward.
Jiang Ling couldn't bear to refuse his kindness, so she asked Dean Jiang, "Is the baby still in swaddling clothes?"
Dean Jiang shook his head: "It's been so long, you should be gone by now, right? I only remember that you were brought in by the nursery worker Zhao Hongxia. You were a baby who had just been born a few days ago, and your umbilical cord hadn't even scabbed over yet. You were so tiny, so pitiful. It was late November, and the mornings were chilly. You were wrapped in a yellow swaddle with a red trumpet creeper pattern on it, so we named you Ling."
Teacher Li recalled, "I think I saw a swaddle blanket in the nursery before, it looks a bit like the one you described. It had faded from washing, and the color was a light yellow."
Dean Jiang thought for a moment, his eyes blank, he had no recollection at all.
Twenty years have passed, how could she possibly remember a swaddle blanket in the nursery?
Jiang Ling knew it would turn out this way.
The orphanage couldn't possibly have kept a baby in swaddling clothes from twenty years ago for that long.
Liang Jiushan persisted: "You said Sister Ling was brought in by the caregiver Zhao Hongxia, where is she? Call her over so we can ask her."
Dean Jiang said, "Zhao Hongxia? She was expelled in 1980."
Liang Jiushan was very curious: "Why was she fired?"
Dean Jiang looked at Jiang Ling with a hint of apology in his eyes: "We discovered that she was abusing the children, not only cutting back on their food, but also frequently physically punishing them in private."
Jiang Ling nodded, but remained silent.
When she was six years old, she escaped from the orphanage and was abducted by human traffickers. By chance, she was rescued by Jiang Shouxin, who then sent her back to the orphanage. She mustered up the courage to tell Director Jiang that Zhao Hongxia had abused and beaten her, and Zhao Hongxia was expelled from the orphanage.
Liang Jiushan: "Then, are there no other clues?"
Director Jiang shook his head: "November 17, 1973, is the date Xiao Ling came to the welfare home. We used this date as her birthday, but her real birth date should be earlier. The baby in the swaddling clothes was not wearing anything, just wrapped in a blanket, and her body was blue from the cold."
Liang Jiushan's face grew increasingly grim as he listened, and towards the end, he clenched his teeth in anger, making a grinding sound.
He looked at Jiang Ling cautiously, wanting to say a few words of comfort, but when he met her eyes, which were devoid of joy or anger, all the words stuck in his throat.
Countless thoughts churned in his mind:
—Oh, poor Sister Ling…
She doesn't even know her own real birthday;
She wasn't even wearing any clothes when she was sent to the orphanage;
Her parents haven't come looking for her yet, so they probably don't want her anymore.
Jiang Ling met Liang Jiushan's gaze and noticed that his glassy eyes were shimmering with tiny lights, as if he were about to cry. She reached out and gently patted his shoulder, saying, "I'm fine, go back."
A pair of warm hands touched Liang Jiushan's shoulder. He looked at Jiang Ling with surprise and grinned, "Okay, Sister Ling, let's go back."
After saying goodbye to Shen Xiaomei, Liang Jiushan and Jiang Ling returned to the police station. He skipped and jumped around happily the whole way, sometimes acting like a monkey running around, sometimes like a dog barking, making quite a ruckus.
Seeing him frantically showing off his treasures like a madman, trying so hard to make her happy, Jiang Ling couldn't help but raise her hand to her forehead.
I clearly saw him at the Ninth Prison in the provincial capital; he was gloomy, depressed, and introverted. How come he's completely different now?
It's gone from one extreme to another; I really don't know if it's good or bad.
The two returned to the police station together.
As soon as Li Zhenliang saw Jiang Ling, he excitedly said, "Quick, quick, Captain Yuan just called and said the operation has begun."
Jiang Ling glanced at Liang Jiushan.
Liang Jiushan was very perceptive and knew that Jiang Ling had important business to attend to. He waved goodbye to her and went home to study.
Jiang Ling asked Li Zhenliang, "Is it confirmed?"
Li Zhenliang couldn't hide his excitement: "Yes! Captain Yuan and his team are experienced. They quickly discovered that he had a motorcycle sales point that also did motorcycle repair, and he employed seven or eight motorcyclists who frequently traveled to the countryside. Didn't Xiao Yong say last time that a red Happiness 520 motorcycle passed by his house and kidnapped him?"
It was cold outside. Jiang Ling rubbed her hands together and breathed on them: "Tch, looks like these motorcyclists are in charge of kidnapping kids."
Li Zhenliang got up and poured Jiang Ling a cup of hot tea: "Warm your hands."
Jiang Ling thanked her and took the cup. It was a new glass she had bought; it was plump and round, with thick glass, perfect for pouring hot tea to warm her hands.
Jiang Ling doesn't like strong tea, so Li Zhenliang only put a small pinch of jasmine tea in her cup. Watching the tiny jasmine flowers and tea leaves swirl together in the hot water, Jiang Ling felt quite happy.
Li Zhenliang continued, "Captain Yuan and his team have already obtained evidence that the motorcyclists abducted children. They are just waiting for an order to bring all of them to justice."
Jiang Ling: "Is there any other evidence?"
Excited, Li Zhenliang spoke quickly: "Yes. When Captain Yuan called today, you weren't there, so I went straight to the bureau for a meeting. They were planning the roundup, and it got me really fired up!"
Jiang Ling listened quietly.
"There's something fishy going on behind the scenes with Shen Tianyao's passenger transport company. It's not just about running unlicensed taxis and taking bribes. They also buy scrapped vehicles, modify them, and continue operating them. They use the scrapped buses as mobile bases, with gang members begging during the day and sleeping in the vehicles at night."
“Shen Tianyao’s phone has been tapped. We have already taken control of five locations, each with three fake couples and nine children. There are at least 50 or 60 children he has abducted to beg.”
"Oh, by the way, there's an old house in Shen Tianyao's hometown where his grandmother currently lives. The conditions aren't great. But the villagers say that Shen Tianyao drives over every now and then to bring his grandmother some food. Everyone says he's filial. When our people went to inquire, his grandmother firmly disagreed with the demolition, saying she wanted to stay in the old house for the rest of her life."
At this point, Li Zhenliang lowered his voice.
"According to Yuan's team, they secretly observed the backyard of the old house and found that nettles and dandelions were growing rapidly, forming a kind of 'green spot effect'."
Jiang Ling hummed in agreement: "The decomposition of a corpse releases a large amount of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, which significantly improves soil fertility in the short term. The surge in nitrogen will promote the rapid growth of fertilizer-loving plants, such as nettles and dandelions. It seems there's a problem with the old house's backyard."
Li Zhenliang was practically jumping for joy: "All the evidence points to Shen Tianyao! Jiang Ling, your criminal profile—its nature, scope, and characteristics—is all correct! Once Captain Yuan closes the net and wipes out Shen Tianyao's gang, do you know what will happen next?"
Before Jiang Ling could answer, Li Zhenliang said impatiently, "You've done a great service, Comrade Jiang Ling!"
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