Eighties Sweetheart Wife
Chapter 393 What is the truth?

Chapter 393: Chapter 393 What is the truth?

Even after thirty years, Old Mr. Gu still remembered it all too clearly.

It was as if it had happened yesterday.

He continued, "We entered the valley and, sure enough, got stuck in a mud pit. Our soldiers all got out to push the vehicles, one by one, moving forward. It looked like we would be out of the low-lying land in another ten minutes or so.

But what we didn’t expect was a group of ragged villagers suddenly rushing down from the mountain.

Among them were the elderly, women, and children, some yelling that the carts were full of food, urging to go and snatch it."

It was 1950, and our Dragon Kingdom had just been established, a time when much was left to be restored; many places weren’t completely reclaimed yet.

We fired warning shots to no avail. Over three hundred people charged towards us, including a child of about five who, hearing there was food, ran too fast, fell, and never got back up.

His mother held the body of her child and wailed in grief. Seeing this, others became even more ferocious and charged at us.

We had no choice but to open fire because two of our soldiers were beaten to death by the oncoming villagers."

At this point, tears were welling up in Old Mr. Gu’s eyes.

His voice hoarse, he said, "It was then that Murong Feng suddenly turned his gun on me. One bullet hit my shoulder, another hit my right leg. He was actually aiming for my head, but I dodged quickly. Right after, I returned fire, and a bullet hit him right between the eyebrows..."

Gu Huai’an was genuinely shocked this time.

He stared intently at Old Mr. Gu.

Old Mr. Gu pointed to his shoulder and leg, saying nonchalantly, "There are still shrapnel pieces in there, strange. It used to hurt when I was young, but not anymore.

I never told you guys, and very few people know, because we couldn’t talk about this operation. The subsequent investigation found out that, aside from a few local agents who led the charge, the other two hundred or so were refugees, poor folk who were begging their way back home."

Old Mr. Gu’s voice choked, his eyes bloodshot as he hastily wiped his face, erasing the tears.

"... Although the remaining villagers were deterred and didn’t dare to charge anymore, suddenly there was a loud boom, and a flash flood erupted, sending muddy water pouring down..."

At this point, Old Mr. Gu’s gaze was filled with pain.

Gu Huai’an extended his hand, hesitated for a moment, but then gently patted the back of his grandfather’s hand.

Old Mr. Gu said, "In the end, we only managed to rescue three hundred and eighty thousand taels of gold and seven boxes of antiques; the rest was nowhere to be found."

Gu Huai’an asked, "What do you mean ’nowhere to be found’?"

Old Mr. Gu replied, "We searched all over downstream and the surrounding areas, to no avail. Out of the three hundred plus villagers, a little over a hundred survived. Seven of the local agents who incited the trouble died, three were captured, and two fled to an island.

Murong Feng was a traitor; he had colluded with the people of Country X long ago. Hai City had already been reclaimed, and it was only a matter of time before the warehouse was discovered, making it impossible for them to transport everything back.

So, he pretended to betray them by providing information, but in fact, he had already conspired with them, waiting to hijack us midway and then, disguised as our men, take a detour to the seaport.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to ship the goods out.

We never expected that a flood would come rushing in, scattering those who were lying in ambush. They themselves didn’t know whether they were dead or alive.

I didn’t die, nor did I go to the hospital. Stubbornly, I was determined to find the remaining four hundred and twenty thousand taels of gold and the five boxes of antiques."

However, after searching for an entire month, within a hundred miles, we might as well have dug three feet into the ground without a single clue.

Eventually, we had no choice but to retreat back to Beidu. The case became a secret, a secret not to be disclosed lightly to others.

Murong Feng died, and your Grandpa Qian was injured. He took the initiative to tell the leadership that everyone had unanimously agreed to follow the original route because the village was unfamiliar and not safe. Hence, we did not choose to detour, and both of us requested to be disciplined.

It was later that I heard Murong Feng failed his mission and exposed his identity, so his entire family was silenced..."

"Now, I don’t even know why they want to restart the investigation, but it’s good this way. If it really clarifies everything, I would die with no regrets."

Gu Huai’an frowned: "Grandpa, are you sure it was Murong Feng who shot at you?"

Old Mr. Gu: "Yes, the black muzzle of the gun was about the distance of two trucks away from me. I saw it very clearly. I was also shocked at that time, and my reaction was a bit delayed. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have hit me."

Gu Huai’an thought for a moment: "Doesn’t Murong Feng have any descendants? If he was prepared to collude with the enemy, why didn’t he send his family away? Who is advocating to reopen the investigation this time? Is it related to the Murong family? Why did Murong Feng insist on the same route as Grandpa Qian back then? That village you passed by, did you investigate it?"

Although Old Mr. Gu was asked so many questions, he still looked at Gu Huai’an with a look of admiration.

He then answered his questions one by one.

According to the local agent, he was the commander of this operation. His first target was me, the second was Old Qian. I blocked a shot, and it hit my leg. However, there was also the local agent who raised his weapon.

As a result, your Grandpa Qian’s leg was also injured, and it aches unbearably whenever the weather turns cold and damp.

As for not relocating the family, Murong Feng probably didn’t expect that I wouldn’t die and Old Qian would just be injured.

Murong Feng has descendants, presently in Xiangjiang. They simply go by Murong. In a few days, they’re coming to Beidu. She sent materials and a letter requesting an investigation, and the person in charge of this is your Grandpa Chu."

"Didn’t you go back to the nearby area to check again? Could it have been washed into the crevices of the canyon or buried in the mud by a flood?"

Old Mr. Gu: "We checked, every year we did. The local leader of the work was your fourth uncle, and when he retired, your second elder cousin took over."

Old Mr. Gu sighed: "Four hundred and twenty thousand taels of gold and five crates of antiques still show no trace. At that time, Han City was semi-liberated, with a very complex array of forces at play, including bandits lurking around.

Indeed, there were questionable points. But what are those doubts? To say I wronged Murong Feng... yet there’s still a bullet in my body that can’t be removed, and I don’t know if after falling asleep tonight, I’ll be able to see tomorrow’s sun."

Gu Huai’an felt deeply uncomfortable. He patted his grandfather’s hand, pondered for a moment, and said, "Grandpa Qian... haven’t you ever doubted him?"

"There was Grandpa Qian’s nephew in the team, the posthumous son of his elder brother, the only son. At the time he was twenty years old. Because he didn’t retaliate immediately, he was also torn apart by those refugees, hit in the head with a rock... Later, he was left mentally incapacitated, knowing nothing, and after lying in bed for ten years, he also left this world... Grandpa Qian also resents me, but I took a bullet for him. Anyway, whether or not he resents me, it’s just like that."

As he said this, Old Mr. Gu’s expression still carried an indescribable pain.

"Grandpa, have you ever thought that the village could be more dangerous than the valley?"

"I have thought about it, but the village was washed away by the flood. Even if there was any clue, it’s impossible to find now, after all, that was in 1950."

At this point, Old Mr. Gu paused, then said, "Huai’an, you should know your grandfather’s character. Even after Grandpa Qian took responsibility, I still went to report the truth to the leadership. The leadership said that as the overall commander, insisting on the original path was not a problem.

The unfamiliar village, the sudden appearance of a herding boy, these were all dangerous uncertainties. The leadership even consoled me, perhaps the village would have been more dangerous, maybe we would have been annihilated."

Old Mr. Gu smiled bitterly: "But no matter what, I still owe your Grandpa Qian..."