Chronicle of the 70s
Chapter 117 - 114 Bowing at Midnight

Chapter 117: 114 Bowing at Midnight

Relatives?

The two were stunned, and Qin Xi, who had been tending the stove outside, also came in with a puzzled frown, wondering from where Grandpa Li could possibly have relatives?

Mr. Li was also full of confusion, pondering where his relatives would come from. Could it be an old comrade came to visit him?

Li Xianglu put down the radio she was holding, walked over to help Mr. Li untie his apron, and while wiping off the flour from his body with a smile, she said, "Grandpa, don’t worry, let’s go out and see first, maybe they really are relatives."

Listening to his granddaughter’s relaxed tone, Mr. Li shook his head and headed out, wearing the hat hanging by the door.

Li Xianglu, curious, wanted to go out too, but Qin Xi frowned and took a hat and cotton gloves from the room for her to put on before pulling her outside.

Qin Zhen had already run down to Lower Ridge to watch the commotion.

Mr. Li didn’t go far; he just stood at the doorstep watching the group of people hustling upwards.

There were six adults, a man and a woman in the front holding a child, followed by two middle-aged men and women at the sides, and at the very back, two young men carrying things. Their attire was quite decent, free of patches, with the women wearing red triangular scarves.

Li Xianglu stood next to Mr. Li, looking down, and suddenly realized something was amiss, those two in the middle looked very familiar.

Mr. Li’s eyesight wasn’t good, so he could only make out their general attire.

However, Li Xianglu recognized them as they ascended Erdaoliang, exclaiming in surprise, "Grandpa, it’s Aunt Qi and Uncle Xie!"

Mr. Li turned his head in confusion, which Aunt Qi?

By this time, Qin Xi had also come out, smiling as he explained, "They’re the Xie couple we met on the train on our way to Shanghai."

Mr. Li suddenly remembered, yes, they had talked about staying in touch after the trip, but their belongings were too precious to travel back by train so they drove instead, and he had forgotten about it. How did they find this place though?

Could it be just to visit a friend they met on the train? Mr. Li found it hard to believe.

Yet, Li Xianglu had already reached the slope, calling out, "Aunt Qi, Uncle Xie, why are you here?"

Qi Minjun was taken aback, staring at the little girl dressed like a bear before recognizing the bright, sparkling black eyes and exclaimed joyfully, "Xiangxiang!"

Li Xianglu hurriedly approached, chuckling, "Aunt Qi, it really is you! I couldn’t believe it. I thought it looked like you from the ridge and ran down, and here you are!"

Listening to the delight in the young girl’s voice, Qi Minjun was also overjoyed, turning to the others and saying, "What a coincidence, this is a little friend of mine, we just happened to meet here."

The others, aside from Xie Feiyang, nodded and greeted faintly.

Xie Feiyang smiled and said, "Who would have thought we’d be so fated with this young girl!"

Qi Minjun smiled back, "Indeed!" then quickly asked, "We’re accompanying friends looking for someone. Do you know where Li Huai Ren’s house is?"

Li Xianglu was stunned for a moment, realizing that these people were the relatives Qin Zhen had mentioned earlier, she initially thought they were two separate groups. She blinked her lively eyes and smiled, saying, "Aunt Qi, you came to find Grandpa, right? You forgot—my Grandpa is Li Huai Ren!"

Beside her, Xie Feiyang suddenly slapped his forehead with an exclamation, "Ouch! Look at my memory, how could I forget! Uncle Li even mentioned his name at that time, no wonder I felt the contact list looked familiar, oh, this memory!"

Beside them, Qi Minjun also remembered, "Yes, the second day we got on the bus, Mr. Li mentioned this girl. She bravely rescued a child who was kidnapped by traffickers on a long-distance bus, and that child is from this family right here!"

It was simply, there could be no coincidence more fortuitous than this!

Qi Minjun whispered to the couple, and then patted Li Xianglu, saying, "This is that young girl!"

The couple, initially indifferent, now had their faces light up with gratitude.

Li Xianglu, seeing more and more people around, decisively said, "Aunt Qi, Uncle Xie, let’s go to our house. We have hot tea at home!"

Qi Minjun was very pleased with the child’s suggestion and nodded, saying, "Good, let’s go and bother you a bit."

With that, everyone boarded the vehicle, and Mr. Li moved back to the front door. Seeing everyone arriving, he came out to greet them. Xie Feiyang hurried forward to shake hands but did not introduce the people behind him; the group then entered the eastern cave dwelling.

Li Xianglu went to the kitchen, took out a large pack of black tea given by Grandpa Lan, as Qin Xi had already started boiling water with a large pot.

Li Xianglu rinsed the tea leaves with the warm water from the thermos and put them into a porcelain pot used for drinking water in the summer.

Qin Xi said, "Those people must be the family of the kidnapped child, they seem to be of high status."

Li Xianglu nodded, agreeing, "Yes, indeed, they are quite haughty."

Qin Xi, knowing the girl was clever, helped pour the boiling water into the large teapot, saying, "Be careful with it." He then assisted her in carrying six bowls inside.

By this time, laughter was already emerging from the eastern cave dwelling. The young man gratefully said, "Thank you, Mr. Li, for your righteous help. My child could be safe!" The young man looked to be in his late twenties, his eyes slightly reddened with emotion. The woman beside him had teary eyes.

Li Xianglu entered, seeing everyone on the kang (traditional heated bed), while two other young men sat on the edge; she smiled, saying, "We don’t have good tea leaves at home, but it’s hot tea, drink some to warm up." She then generously poured tea water and, together with Qin Xi, placed them on the table and made a welcoming gesture.

The young man’s eyes lit up, nodding, asked, "Was it this young girl who spotted the traffickers?"

Mr. Li quickly introduced, "Xiangxiang, Qin Xi, come over here." He pointed to the two and said, "This girl is my granddaughter, Li Xianglu, and the boy is my friend’s son, Qin Xi. Yes, it was my granddaughter who noticed it, and Qin Xi helped to restrain the person."

As soon as these words were spoken, the couple immediately stood up, got off the kang, and bowed deeply to the two. Li Xianglu was stunned for a moment, hurriedly stepped forward, and grabbed the young woman, saying, "Don’t do that, sister. Who wouldn’t lend a hand in such a situation? Besides, I just devised a way to expose those people and didn’t do much."

The woman, however, gratefully said, "You don’t know, our child was missing for a full fourteen days. We searched everywhere and couldn’t find him; I was almost collapsing. Who knew that we then received a call from the provincial police, saying that the child was found! I was so excited I almost went crazy!"

Li Xianglu and Qin Xi helped everyone up onto the kang again, and the two sat at the edge.

The man smiled and said, "Let us introduce ourselves again, I am Lu Xun; this is my wife Xi Yunmei. We were actually down here for an inspection, but couldn’t bear to leave our child behind. Unfortunately, he fell ill and was with a security officer in the hospital getting injections, when he was unexpectedly taken away. We searched for over ten days with no news."

ps: Saving manuscript, will add more updates later.

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