NOS Chapter 31
by VolareAi Hua was one of the few college students of that era, thanks to his mother, Ai Xiuhong, a brave woman who came all the way from the capital to support Za Mu Er and settled down there.
Now over seventy years old, Ai Xiuhong sat on the sofa, her demeanor still faintly showing the wisdom and intelligence of her younger days. She smiled at the two of them, “I didn’t expect that after so many years, someone would still remember my son.”
This was a woman living alone. Her husband died in an underground operation when she was just pregnant. For more than fifty years since then, Ai Xiuhong never remarried. Thirty-three years ago, after losing her only son, Ai Hua, she had been living in widowhood ever since.
However, no matter how bumpy the experience, it couldn’t change the fact that Ai Xiuhong was a cheerful and kind old lady. She brought Yu Chunming and Na Fei the tea she had brewed herself, and despite their protests, she offered a large plate of fruit.
“Besides my few students who stayed in Za Mu Er to work, no one usually comes to see me. Don’t be polite,” Ai Xiuhong said amiably.
Yu Chunming took the tea and asked casually, “Are they students from the Linchang (Forest Farm) children’s school?”
“Yes, I used to be a math teacher there,” Ai Xiuhong replied.
Yu Chunming remembered that she had taught his class, but that was more than twenty years ago. At that time, Ai Xiuhong was no longer young, and her face always carried a faint sadness.
Na Fei interjected, “The Linchang children’s school is now renamed Za Mu Er Experimental Primary School. I think the teaching building is quite beautiful.”
Ai Xiuhong smiled, “It’s quite beautiful, but unfortunately, there are not many students. How many school-age children are there in Za Mu Er now in a year? People are almost gone.”
“Then why don’t you think about… going back to your hometown?” Na Fei asked, “Za Mu Er is so cold. It’s inconvenient for you to live here alone.”
Ai Xiuhong still smiled faintly. She replied, “I’m used to it. I’ve been in Za Mu Er for fifty or sixty years. Besides… what if Ai Hua comes back and can’t find me?”
These words left Yu Chunming and Na Fei in silence.
Ai Hua was a victim of the 9.24 fire, or, more accurately, he should be a missing person. Thirty-three years ago, the rescue workers and the police who cleared the scene never found his body from beginning to end.
“Some people said they saw him jump into the river, but the fire brigade searched the water for three days and three nights, but they couldn’t find him. If they didn’t find him, that means he’s not dead. If he’s not dead, he will come back sooner or later.” Ai Xiuhong’s expression was very calm as she said, “I know, he must not be dead.”
Yu Chunming’s hand on his lap curled slightly.
“You say that the Ning Nie Li Qi River is so close to the border, and the river didn’t freeze in September. He might have been washed to the other side and rescued by people in the opposite village. These are all possibilities,” Ai Xiuhong said softly, with no sadness on her face. “So, I can’t leave. I have to wait for him to come back here.”
Na Fei sighed softly and said, “Auntie, we came to see you not only to ask about Ai Hua, but also to inquire about a person named Qian Guowei. It is said that… more than thirty years ago, he was a good friend of Ai Hua.”
“Qian Guowei?” Ai Xiuhong looked blank for a moment. “I have to think about this carefully.”
Ai Hua had been dead for thirty-three years, and Qian Guowei had also been dead for thirty-three years. It was not easy to find a firsthand witness who knew both of them at the same time. Yu Chunming spent the whole night flipping through the list sent by Guan Yao before he found the most likely insider.
But Ai Xiuhong was now over seventy years old. She was old and frail, her memory was declining, and she didn’t seem to be very mentally sound. Could such an old lady still remember her son and her son’s friend?
“It seems like there is such a person,” Ai Xiuhong said slowly. “I’ll go find Ai Hua’s diary and flip through it for you.”
The old lady kept her son’s belongings very well. These yellowed papers had no folded corners, and the handwriting was clear and the pages were neat.
Yu Chunming took it and looked at it twice before handing it to Na Fei to read. Na Fei flipped it open and called out after only scanning two lines, “Hey, Qian Guowei’s name is there.”
“Where?” Yu Chunming also stretched his head to look.
Na Fei pointed, “August 19th, this entry, the second line mentions Qian Guowei.”
“August 19th…” Yu Chunming wrote down the date in his notebook. He asked casually, “What happened that day?”
Na Fei continued to read, “‘August 19th, sunny. Last night, Qian Guowei got two tickets for the art troupe. He said Xiao Min is back and will perform on stage tonight. If I am willing to accompany him, he can give me one. But Xu Wenlin intervened and forced me to go to He Cheng with the workshop director for a meeting. God, I haven’t seen Xiao Min for so long since we parted in Songlan. Will my dear skylark forgive me?’ There’s also September 3rd, ‘September 3rd, temperature drop, it rained. It’s been too cold these two days. Xiao Min is sick. Qian Guowei took me and Xu Wen to visit her. Damn it, Xiao Min didn’t want to see Qian Guowei at all, but he insisted on joining in the fun. He has no tact at all.'”
After reading these two letters, Na Fei raised her head, “Auntie, who is this Xiao Min?”
“You’re talking about Xiao Min,” Ai Xiuhong replied, “She was the most beautiful girl in the art troupe back then. Ai Hua seemed to like her very much.”
“I see…” Na Fei didn’t ask any more questions.
Ai Xiuhong continued, “She’s still in Za Mu Er now. It seems like… she lives near the Linchang Staff Family Compound.”
“Linchang Staff Family Compound?” Na Fei was stunned. “Isn’t Guan Yao also there?”
As she spoke, she turned to look at Yu Chunming, but at this moment, Yu Chunming’s originally normal complexion suddenly turned extremely ugly.
Who was Xiao Min? He knew it all too well.
The “skylark” of the art troupe, the famous beauty of the entire One Zero Three Forest Farm, who else could it be but Jiang Min, who lived opposite Guan Yao?
Yu Chunming’s head suddenly throbbed.
“However, even if you go ask her, she probably won’t be able to explain the things back then very clearly,” Ai Xiuhong was kind and not an old lady who would gossip behind people’s backs. She said kindly, “If you have anything you want to ask, just ask me.”
Na Fei smiled and closed the diary. “Auntie, Ai Hua… didn’t get married back then, did he?”
“No, he didn’t,” Ai Xiuhong sighed, “The unit introduced him to several people, but he wasn’t satisfied with any of them. He either thought they had low cultural levels or thought they weren’t good-looking. As time went by, it dragged on to the end. I know, he must not have been able to let go of that Xiao Min, so he found so many excuses. Alas, it’s such a pity…”
“Since he didn’t get married, did he usually live at home or in the unit’s dormitory?” Na Fei asked again.
“He usually stayed in the unit’s dormitory and occasionally went home,” Ai Xiuhong said, “I just remember that he hadn’t been home for three weeks before that fire. First, he told me he was going on a business trip to Changlian, and then he said the unit had a lot of tasks. In the end, I really missed him, so I wrapped some dumplings and prepared to go to the factory to see him. As a result, that noon, I searched the entire factory area, but I couldn’t find Ai Hua’s shadow. By the time it was evening, the fire had started.”
These words made Na Fei sigh.
Ai Xiuhong’s expression was still okay. She shook her head with a smile, “Maybe, that’s fate.”
“Fate” can always be used to explain everything, like Guan Yao, who often heard his grandmother comfort him with “fate” in the past.
“It’s all fate. If it weren’t for fate, how could your parents and uncle have died?” These words always lingered in Guan Yao’s ears.
But Guan Yao didn’t believe in fate, especially when he saw Li Ying again and again, he didn’t believe in fate even more.
——If it weren’t for Li Ying, how could Guan Qiang, Xiao Liwen, and Guan Xing have abandoned him and Guan Na and left with the fire?
In his opinion, fate was always an excuse used by the weak to persuade themselves.
“Master, why do you have panda eyes? Didn’t you sleep well last night?” When the car drove onto the highway, Meng Changqing asked with concern.
Guan Yao didn’t answer.
Meng Changqing continued to ask, “Master, is it because… you’re going to see Li Ying today?”
Hearing this, the person who had been staring out of the window slowly turned his head.
“You know everything?” he asked softly.
Meng Changqing hesitated for a moment, “I heard people in the station mention it.”
Guan Yao took a deep breath, leaned back on the seat back, and closed his eyes, “They always say it’s all in the past, but when I think about that matter, I can’t get over it. For so many years, I can’t help but think, if Li Ying hadn’t started that fire, what would our family… be like?”
What would it be like? No one knew. After all, there was no “if” in the past. And Guan Yao, a person who lived in the countless frameworks he set for himself, couldn’t really blame or hate Li Ying.
He knew that Li Ying, as an employee of the No. 2 Timber Factory, a subordinate unit of the Forest Farm, had also been a miserable person.
Back then, thanks to his father’s connections, Li Ying entered the old unit, had a secure job, and began to be responsible for guarding the warehouse. This person didn’t have any great skills, only brute strength.
However, a secure job couldn’t feed Li Ying’s family. His father was paralyzed in bed, his mother had suffered from mental illness for many years, his wife was disabled, and his daughter had also inherited her mother’s illness. His son, Li Qie, was still considered strong, but he had just come of age during the fire and hadn’t worked yet. In other words, more than thirty years ago, the entire Li family relied on Li Ying alone to support them.
Until that fire.
The fire caused Li Ying’s family to be separated, his family to be destroyed, and his wife and children to die. After being released from prison, he moved away from Za Mu Er City and lived alone in this desolate mountain village.
What else could Guan Yao say? Perhaps, he could only learn from his grandmother and say, “That’s all fate.”
“Pay attention to the road.” Seeing that Meng Changqing was distracted, Guan Yao sighed wearily, “If you take me into the ditch again, our family will really be gone.”
“Bah, bah, bah,” Meng Changqing immediately perked up, “Master, don’t say unlucky things.”
The two of them had now driven into the mountains. Low ridges submerged the edge of the city, sending the cold air that was coming towards them into the car.
Meng Changqing was about to turn on the air conditioner, but Guan Yao pressed it down with one hand, “It’s not cold enough to turn on the heater yet. You’re young, it’s okay to freeze a little. Save some fuel.”
Hearing this, Meng Changqing was immediately unhappy. He shouted, “Master, last time you took Officer Yu out, it wasn’t as cold as it is now, and you turned on the heater, and it was a stakeout. Why don’t you allow me to turn it on when it’s my turn?”
“What, what do you mean I turn on the heater when I take Yu Chunming out?” Guan Yao stammered subconsciously. He answered irrelevantly, “What’s wrong with you young people freezing a little? Why are you comparing this to that…”
Meng Changqing curled his lips, “Master, you’re just biased. You always pretend to hate Officer Yu, but in reality, in our station, you care about him more than anyone else.”
“What nonsense are you talking about again?” Guan Yao slapped Meng Changqing on the head. “Drive properly for me.”
Meng Changqing finally fell silent.
The road from Za Mu Er City to Qianjin Ping was not short. It would take at least three hours to drive back and forth. By the time the two of them had crossed the ridges and arrived here, it was already ten o’clock in the morning.
Qianjin Ping was a flat ridge in the mountain depression. Back when the One Zero Three Forest Farm was still thriving, many loggers were stationed here. But now, almost all the houses in the entire village were empty, leaving only a few old people and some old Forest Farm employees who were still staying here.
Guan Yao carried the retrieved wallet and walked from one end of the village to the other before he saw the self-built house where Li Ying lived.
His conditions were average, and the house was built simply, with weeds growing all around. It was already October, and it had snowed several times in the mountains, but the coal fire that he used to heat the kang hadn’t been cleaned up yet.
Guan Yao walked closer, looked at the debris piled up at the door, and casually directed Meng Changqing, “Go, tidy it up for him.”
“Why should I tidy it up?” Meng Changqing was reluctant to move.
“Isn’t helping the people your duty?” Guan Yao stood and talked without back pain, raised his leg and stepped into the house, “Uncle Li, we’re here to return your lost items.”
Guan Yao called out twice, but no one in the house responded. He couldn’t wait, so he reached out and was about to push the door inside.
“Is, is it Officer Guan from the Forest Farm?” At this time, a head poked out of a window on the side.
“Oh my, why didn’t you say anything when you were home?” Guan Yao patted the door. “Open the door first.”
Li Ying hurriedly stepped forward and welcomed Guan Yao in.
“Are you the only one at home?” Guan Yao asked.
“Yes, yes.” It wasn’t warm in the house, but Li Ying’s forehead was covered in sweat.
Seeing this, Guan Yao couldn’t help but wonder, “Why do you look like you just came out of the water? What did you do?”
Li Ying looked embarrassed, “That, the bathroom is leaking. I was fixing the water pipe inside and didn’t hear you.”
“The bathroom is leaking?” Guan Yao was about to walk inside. “Let me take a look? It’s inconvenient for you with your injured hand.”
“Oh, no, no.” Li Ying hurriedly refused, “The drain pipe is leaking, and the smell isn’t good. That… police officer, it’s better not to go.”
“Oh…” Guan Yao stretched his head and looked inside, standing still.
Li Ying propped up his hands, not knowing whether to pour water for Guan Yao or pick two apples to give him. He was flustered for a moment.
Guan Yao smiled, as if he were the master, and beckoned him to sit down, “Don’t be busy, sit down and talk.”
“Talk?” Li Ying looked a little nervous. He asked uneasily, “What do you want to talk about?”
Guan Yao replied friendly, “Didn’t we find your money? Count it yourself and see if it’s correct.”
At this moment, Li Ying immediately showed joy, “You found it?”
“We found it,” Guan Yao said, “But it wasn’t Qin Tian who stole it. It was your cloth bag that wasn’t strong and fell in front of the grain and oil store. It has nothing to do with Qin Tian.”
Li Ying smiled awkwardly, “So that’s how it is.”
“You went to his house so aggressively just because of this. If there was a misunderstanding, it wouldn’t be appropriate, would it?” Guan Yao said warmly, “Change to a better bag. Don’t always be so simple.”
Li Ying held the wallet with a smile on his face, “Yes, yes, what the police officer said is right.”
The two of them were acting friendly and peaceful. Guan Yao, pinching his nose and performing, was still thinking about how to get to the point and find out more about Li Ying’s family affairs. Suddenly, he heard a light sound coming from the bathroom that was said to be leaking.
Clatter, it seemed like something had fallen to the ground.
“Oh,” Li Ying jumped up first, “It must be the pipe I just connected that broke again. I have to take a look.”
“Want me to help you?” Guan Yao was still enthusiastic.
“No, no, police officer, you sit.” Li Ying had hurriedly walked towards the bathroom.
Just then, Meng Changqing, who was tidying up outside the door, ran in panting, carrying a heavy iron shovel in his hand, sweating profusely.
“Master, I saw something at the door. Come out and take a look,” he said.
“What is it?” Guan Yao didn’t pay much attention.
Meng Changqing pointed outside, “It looks like… a earthgun barrel.”