The man's words stunned me: "What do you mean there's no way out? If you can't leave here, how did you get in?"
"Come with me."
The man did not answer my question; he simply carried the lantern and continued walking forward.
Led by these people, we continued walking along the cave for a while, and then we saw light ahead.
There is a sinkhole in these mountains.
Looking up from the top, the mountaintop resembles a volcano crater with a huge hole through which one can see the bright moon and starry sky.
Under the moonlight, there was a small village nestled inside the mountains, with many houses built of wood and stone scattered about, and lights still on in some of the rooms.
Faintly, one could hear the sound of opera singing, the melody somewhat similar to Yunnan opera. The mournful tunes intertwined with the dark environment, giving one a chilling feeling.
Song Laosan glanced at the bright moon overhead, looking surprised: "We've been struggling inside for so long, and it's still not dawn outside?"
I turned my gaze to the man in front of me: "Excuse me... sir, where are we?"
"Our village."
The man continued to lead the way: "There are clean clothes and herbs inside. Go in and change your clothes first, and I'll explain everything to you slowly."
This small village, located below a sinkhole, is not large, but it is well-planned, with the houses clustered together and many crops planted around it.
"Brother Liu, you're back!"
When the villagers saw the group return, they all came to greet them. Some of them saw me and Song Laosan and took a few steps back in fright. Others mustered their courage and asked, "Are they from outside?"
The man nodded: "Yes, the same as the other two."
"The other two? There are other people here?"
I immediately became interested: "When did those two people arrive here? Where are they?"
The reason I was so excited was because I felt that the two people the man mentioned were very likely Manjing and Monkey, who had gotten lost from me.
Since these people were able to find me and Song Laosan, if Monkey and Manjing were alive, there would naturally be a chance that they would also find them.
The man didn't answer my question, but led us into the village: "I won't answer your questions until I'm sure you pose no threat to the village. Come with me."
After hearing the man's answer, I glanced at the surrounding villages and knew that I could only get the information by cooperating with him, so I obediently followed behind him.
The man led us into the village and into a stone house.
The room was simply decorated. In the center was a table made of stones and slabs, on which sat an oil lamp carved from a stone into the shape of a bowl. The small flame provided dim lighting for the room.
"Wenru, you're back!"
The woman in the room saw the man enter and quickly came to greet him: "How was it? Did you have a good catch today?"
The man sighed: "No, the river over there hasn't warmed up yet, there's nothing in it!"
"You didn't catch any fish?"
The woman sighed, "This year, the village's grain production has decreased significantly. Without extra grain, we're afraid we won't be able to make ends meet."
The woman was talking to the man when she suddenly noticed me and Song Laosan behind us. She asked with some surprise, "Wenru, who are these two...?"
"Outsiders, just like the previous two."
The man paused for a moment: "They crossed the river and were injured. Find them two sets of clean clothes, and after they change, I'll take them to see my uncle."
"Okay, okay!"
After listening to the man's explanation, the woman quickly went to a room in the back and brought out two bowls of water: "The temperature of the cold water river is too low. If you catch a cold, it will be a big problem. Drink some water to warm yourself up. I will go and find you some clean clothes."
"Oh, thank you, sister-in-law!"
I took the bowl from the woman's hand, and after feeling its warmth, my heart finally settled down.
The fact that these people are drinking hot water shows that they are not human spirits.
Old Song realized this too, and holding a bowl of hot water, he smiled at me, as if he was glad to have survived the ordeal.
Before we could even finish our bowl of water, the woman came out with two sets of clothes: "Brothers, conditions here are tough, and these are the only two sets of clothes we have left. Please make do with them for now."
"Oh, thank you..."
I heard what the woman said and reached out to take the clothes, but stopped halfway through.
The two sets of clothes the woman was carrying were very worn and covered with patches.
What surprised me was not the wear and tear on the clothes, but their style.
One of the two garments was an old-fashioned long gown, while the other was surprisingly a Kuomintang American-style military uniform.
The uniforms of the National Revolutionary Army underwent several changes over the decades. Before the War of Resistance against Japan, they were gray with a small collar, similar to the Zhongshan suit. During the War of Resistance, the uniforms became even more chaotic.
Until the later stages of the War of Resistance against Japan, the National Revolutionary Army began to replace its equipment with American equipment, starting with the Expeditionary Force and the Chinese Expeditionary Force in India. These units were known as "American-equipped divisions". Before and after the end of the war, up to October 1946, a total of 40 army divisions and 50,000 traffic police units were equipped and trained. These units were basically all wearing American military uniforms.
At this moment, the woman suddenly took out clothes from the Republican era, which really startled me.
Seeing that I didn't take the clothes, the man frowned and asked, "What's wrong? Do you think our clothes are dirty?"
"No."
I snapped out of my daze and took the burial shroud from my hands: "Where are we going to change our clothes?"
The woman pointed inside: "That's the bedroom. Go in and change!"
Song Laosan and I took the clothes and went to the room inside.
This place is called a bedroom, but it's actually just some dry grass spread on the floor. There are no blankets, and the pillows are just bundles of straw.
Old Song examined the military uniform carefully, then turned it over and pointed to a hole inside, saying to me, "A bullet in the chest, right in the heart area, means the owner of this uniform is dead! Tell me, what exactly happened in this village, and where did they get this uniform?"
I've been thinking about this too, and when I heard Song Laosan's question, I guessed, "Do you think these people might also be a secluded village like Ping'an Village, or even one of Ping'an Villages? Miao Xiaoxian's village, wasn't it a place where people went into seclusion after Liberation? Judging from the timeline, the people in this village probably came here around that time as well. If they really never left this village, you can imagine how scarce their resources were. It's understandable that these clothes have been passed down from generation to generation."
"I hope your guess is correct."
Old Song shrugged: "Let's change our clothes. I reckon we'll get the truth once we meet one of the village's elders."
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