Chapter 283: To Nianzishan Village
Qingshan County Public Security Bureau!
Long Zhanjun never expected that his first stop after arriving at the Qing Shan County bus station would be the Public Security Bureau.
Fortunately, the police officers here were quite decent. Seeing that he had apprehended the thief and brought him in, they immediately stepped in to help and commended his actions.
Just as Long Zhanjun thought his mission was complete, several uniformed police officers suddenly emerged from the hallway behind him.
The one in the lead, who looked like a supervisor, strode over to him and asked with a smile, “Comrade, are you the hero who caught the thief?”
“I wouldn’t call myself a hero, but I did catch that wimp!”
“Hmm, what’s your name? From your accent, you don’t seem to be from around here.”
“Hmm, Long Zhanjun. I’m from Qin Province!”
“I’m the captain of the Qing Shan County Criminal Investigation Division. My name is Li Gang—‘Li’ as in ‘Muzi,’ and ‘Gang’ as in ‘steel.’ Thank you very much for catching the thief!”
“It’s nothing—it’s just my duty!”
Li Gang looked at Long Zhanjun’s upright posture and asked immediately, “Comrade, are you a soldier?”
“I used to be, but I’ve since retired!”
“That’s quite a coincidence—I’m a veteran too!” Li Gang said with a smile.
Long Zhanjun had actually already figured it out. From Li Gang’s gait and the way he spoke, he had easily deduced that he had served in the military.
He smiled and said, “Comrade Captain, I’ve handed the thief over to your people. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way!”
“Alright, thanks again. If you ever run into any trouble in Qing Shan County, you can come straight to the county bureau and find me!” Li Gang said.
“Alright!”
Just as Long Zhanjun was about to leave, something suddenly occurred to him, and he asked immediately, “By the way, Captain Li, can I ask you about something?”
“What is it?”
“I was wondering how far the Hongqi Commune is from here?”
“That depends on which village you’re going to. If you’re heading to the commune headquarters, it’s about 8 kilometers from the county seat…”
“I’m going to Nianzishan Village!”
“Nianzi Mountain Village?”
Upon hearing the name, Li Gang couldn’t help but give Long Zhanjun a once-over. It suddenly occurred to him that Li Yi’s new wife was from Qin Province—could she be here to look for them?
He asked tentatively, “Comrade, are you visiting family in Nianzishan Village, or are you there on business?”
“I’m looking for someone!”
“Who are you looking for?”
Perhaps fearing Long Zhanjun might misunderstand, Li Gang immediately explained, “To be honest, I have quite a few friends in Nianzishan Village. If you give me a name, I might know them!”
“Li Yi!” Long Zhanjun said.
Upon hearing those two words, Li Gang burst out laughing. “So you really are looking for that kid! I knew it—who else would go all the way out to that godforsaken place called Nianzishan Village?”
Long Zhanjun had now caught on and asked, “Captain Li, do you know Comrade Li Yi?”
“I know him all too well!”
Then he added, “But you’ve really come at the wrong time—he shouldn’t be home right now!”
“Not home?”
“Right. He went to Beijing a while back. He even stopped by my place before he left. He probably hasn’t come back yet!”
Hearing this, Long Zhanjun immediately frowned.
He had come here specifically to find Li Yi. Now that Li Yi wasn’t here, what was he supposed to do?
“Captain Li, do you know when he’ll be back, or do you know his address in the capital?” Long Zhanjun asked again.
“I really don’t know about that, but he didn’t bring his wife with him to Beijing this time. Maybe asking his wife would help you find out his address there!” Li Gang said.
“That’s a good idea. I’ll head over to his place right now!”
“Let me drive you there. It’s already 4:30. By the time you get to the village, it’ll be dark!” Li Gang said.
“I can’t possibly accept that!”
“Haha, Li Yi and I are close friends. Since you’re his friend, you’re my friend too. No need to be so polite!”
With that, Li Gang immediately instructed the deputy captain to interrogate the thief right away to see if it was a gang operation.
As for himself, he led Long Zhanjun straight into the courtyard and headed toward the small jeep!
…….
Nianzi Mountain Village. The Li Family Ancestral Home!
Tang Xue and Li Na had just returned from the livestock shed and were drinking water inside the house.
Although their pretty faces were rosy from the cold, they were in high spirits.
Lately, their older brother-in-law had been leading a caravan to the pastures every few days, and each time he returned, he brought back a large number of cattle and sheep.
Over the course of several trips, they had already purchased more than 800 lambs and over 300 calves.
They heard another batch had arrived today, so Li Na took Tang Xue over to take a look.
Over at the livestock shed, they saw the batch of lambs and calves. Most of them were just a month old, or one or two months old; each one was tiny and adorable, utterly charming.
According to her brother-in-law, these lambs and calves were all off-season livestock; such young animals usually struggle to survive the long, cold winters in the pasturelands.
If they didn’t buy these little ones, it would be a miracle if even twenty percent of them survived.
That’s why their trip deep into the pastures was so warmly welcomed by the herders, and they were able to buy the animals at exceptionally low prices.
As many veteran herders put it, the money didn’t matter—as long as they could give these lambs and calves a chance at survival.
Hearing this, both Tang Xue and Li Na felt incredibly happy.
This initiative not only helped the villagers and the herders but also saved so many lambs and calves—truly killing three birds with one stone.
“Third Sister, those little lambs are so cute. Do you think we could take one home to raise?” Tang Xue asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
“I’d love to, but Mom and Dad might not be too keen on the idea!”
“Why not? Can’t the two of us take care of it?” Tang Xue suggested.
“Haha, normally it wouldn’t be a problem, but look at you right now—with a belly that big, who would dare let you touch these little ones!” Li Na said.
“It shouldn’t be a problem. I’m not going to hold it…”
Before she could finish, Li Na cut her off: “Lambs are livestock, after all. They move around. If one trips you or something, that would be a huge problem!”
“If anything were to happen to you, knowing Xiao Yi’s temperament, he’d tear this house down!”
“It wouldn’t come to that!” Tang Xue said, sounding a bit unsure.
She hadn’t realized just how much Li Yi cared for her before, but over the past few days, she’d truly come to understand the depth of his love for her.
Not to mention the tall brick house at the east end of the village and the stereo system everyone in the village envied—or the fact that he’d given her two thousand yuan even before she’d officially married into the family, just to make her feel more secure here.
More importantly, he kept her in his thoughts at all times—he clearly valued her more than his own life.
“If you don’t believe me, why don’t you try it when my parents come back?”
Tang Xue immediately shook her head and said, “Better not…”
Just as they were speaking, a sudden rumbling sound came from outside, followed by a jeep pulling up in front of the gate.
Seeing the car outside, Tang Xue’s eyes lit up, and she said excitedly, “Sister Na, there’s a car—has he come back?”
With that, she didn’t even bother to put on warm clothes and hurried out the door!
Li Na was startled and quickly grabbed the clothes from the bed before following her out!
…….