Chapter 47: Chapter 47: Silently Caring
Since Wang Dadan had targeted those old people, Hua Yusen had someone investigate him and his cousin-in-law.
Zhao Nuanyue also fell into thought. She then turned her head and, in unison with Hua Yusen, asked, "Could they be targeting those people?"
"Heh!" Hua Yusen gave a bitter laugh. "So, you guessed the same thing."
"I couldn’t figure it out. I can let Wang Dadan slide, since he wasn’t caught red-handed and those three didn’t rat him out. But Liu Lanhua? There was conclusive evidence against her, yet she still managed to escape the charges. That’s what makes this so intriguing!" Zhao Nuanyue gave Hua Yusen a meaningful look. "Besides, for someone as capable as you to be secretly protecting them, they must be incredibly important. So I’m guessing our enemies have the exact opposite goal as we do."
This was exactly what Hua Yusen had been guessing as well.
"Sigh... It looks like our mission will have to be even more clandestine from now on," Hua Yusen said, disappointed. He had been hoping to improve the living conditions for those elderly people during the New Year.
But now, things weren’t looking optimistic.
Seeing Hua Yusen’s discouragement, Zhao Nuanyue offered encouragement. "It’s all about human effort. We just have to try. By the way, have you noticed that Uncle Miao and Aunt Li don’t seem to be harsh on those people? They even seem to offer them conveniences in some places."
"Yes, it is as you say. Uncle Miao and Li Guihua have been kind to the seniors," Hua Yusen replied. "I used to think it was just their good nature, but after the incident with Wang Yuan and Li Qiong, I can see that while they may not be bad people, they aren’t completely good, either."
"Completely good?" Zhao Nuanyue shrugged and scoffed at his words. "’Completely good’ people don’t live very long. Everyone has their own motives and their own little schemes. From our perspective, maybe what they’re doing doesn’t seem right, but if we were in their shoes, we might do even worse."
Hua Yusen froze when he heard this. ’Is Zhao Nuanyue really only fifteen? How can she see things more clearly than someone like me, a man in his twenties?’
When Hua Yusen didn’t answer, Zhao Nuanyue turned her head and met his searching gaze.
"What’s wrong?" Zhao Nuanyue asked, startled. "Did I say something wrong?"
"You said nothing wrong!" Hua Yusen shook his head. "In fact, you’re absolutely right. If that’s the case, Uncle Miao and Li Guihua are clearly not in the same boat as Wang Dadan. So what is their objective?"
"I don’t know." Zhao Nuanyue shook her head. "We’ll figure it out eventually. All right, I’m going to the store to buy some things."
Before coming to Nianqiao Village, her mother, Xia Yingyu, had given her some ration coupons, and would also send more with her letters. She just hadn’t had the time to come and buy anything. This time, she wanted to see if she could find drawing paper and brushes for her brother, and then buy some soap, needles, thread, and other sundries.
Hua Yusen pulled a handful of coupons from inside his coat and handed them to Zhao Nuanyue. "See if you can buy some cotton cloth to make some undergarments for the seniors. And for other daily necessities... just see what they have and buy whatever you think will be useful."
"Okay, I will," Zhao Nuanyue agreed. Since she was already buying things, it was no extra trouble.
Zhao Nuanyue took Zhao Nuanyang into the store to shop. Though the salesclerk had a poor attitude, the quality of the goods was excellent.
Hua Yusen didn’t go inside, heading instead to a nearby scrap collection station.
After exchanging a password with the man inside, an old man let Hua Yusen enter.
"Sir, what brings you here?" Old Man Sun peeked outside to make sure no one was around before asking curiously. Hua Yusen had presented a token from *the organization*. As part of the cultural relic preservation effort, he was also a member of that organization.
"It’s nothing major. I was just hoping to find some brushes, drawing paper, paint, that sort of thing," Hua Yusen said quietly. "Mr. Sun, do you have anything like that here?"
After listening, Old Man Sun thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, we do. I’ll find some for you!"
"That won’t violate any regulations, will it?" Hua Yusen asked. "If it does, just get me something that won’t. I’m preparing it as a gift for someone. Even in a mountain village like this, there are still troublemakers."
"Oh!" Old Man Sun hesitated. After a moment of thought, he said, "Then let’s skip the paints. Use pencils instead. If the person wants to draw, they should stick to landscapes, flowers, birds, insects, and fish. They shouldn’t draw people or anything with strong symbolic meaning."
"All right, please prepare some for me," Hua Yusen said with a nod. "Thank you, Mr. Sun!"
Old Man Sun prepared two hundred sheets of drawing paper, two bundles of sketching pencils, and a second-hand drawing board for Hua Yusen. The board had been taken apart so no one would recognize it as a drawing board with a stand.
After taking the items, Hua Yusen returned to the store’s entrance.
Zhao Nuanyue was still inside shopping, but seeing that the staff were about to close up, she had to speed up. She emerged carrying two large packages.
"Let me get those." Hua Yusen reached out and took the packages from Zhao Nuanyue’s hands. He wasn’t so kind as to offer to carry the one Zhao Nuanyang was holding, however.
At this point, although Zhao Nuanyang was a "special" boy, he was already 1.8 meters tall, ate a great deal at every meal, and had grown into a young man. He had plenty of strength!
They made their way to the south side of town, where the village ox-cart was parked.
Feeling a bit hungry, Zhao Nuanyue took out a packet of peach crisps for them to share, just enough to tide them over. She hadn’t wanted to use her grain coupons on steamed buns, opting instead to buy flour to make them herself at home.
The crisps were tasty but very dry, so they all chewed slowly before swallowing.
Hua Yusen picked up two water canteens and said, "Wait here a second. I’m going to get some hot water. Eating these dry is a good way to choke."
Before Zhao Nuanyue could say a word, Hua Yusen was already gone, heading to a nearby hospital.
Zhao Nuanyue couldn’t help but scold herself. ’The hospital has a hot water supply. Why didn’t I think of that?’
When Miao Dahai came over, he only saw Zhao Nuanyue and her brother. "Why is it just the two of you? Where is Mr. Hua?"
"Mr. Hua went to get some hot water from the hospital up ahead. He’ll be back soon," Zhao Nuanyue replied. "Uncle Miao, Aunt Li, have Li Qiong and Wang Yuan left?"
"Sigh, they’re gone!" Uncle Miao heaved a long sigh of relief. They had finally sent those two troublemakers away. "Yang Guanghui’s train ticket is for three days from now. He’ll head straight back to the city after being discharged. I’ve done everything I could. I hope they can come to terms with it."
Seeing Miao Dahai’s pained expression, Li Guihua said, "Nuanyue, you have no idea how hard it is to get a train ticket. Even with an official note, we had to move heaven and earth just to finally buy three tickets. It’s a good thing you and Mr. Hua aren’t heading back to the city. We’ll remember this kindness of yours."
