The 1970s: Married First, Fell in Love Later-Chapter 81 - 80: What Are You Looking For?

The He Family’s peaceful days didn’t last long.

One day, Guo Jinfeng’s older brother came to find her.

He Nan happened to be out, so Guo Jinfeng snuck away to speak with Brother Guo in a quiet corner.

"Little sister, how can you be so cruel? You said you were cutting ties, and you really haven’t come back to see Mom and Dad. Dad’s sick. He won’t stop talking about you, worried you’re being bullied by your in-laws with no one to stick up for you."

Guo Jinfeng was frantic. "What’s wrong with Dad? Why haven’t you taken him to a doctor?"

Brother Guo looked troubled. "It’s not that we don’t want to take him. We just don’t have any money. We arranged a marriage for Da Wei a while back, and all our savings went to the bride price. This year’s harvest was poor, too. We probably don’t have enough grain to last until next year. Dad refuses to spend the money, so he’s just putting it off. Little sister, do you... do you have anything? I can just borrow it from you."

Guo Jinfeng felt her empty pockets.

"Brother, I don’t have any money either. He Nan manages all the family finances now. I never even see it."

Brother Guo gritted his teeth. "So he’s wary of you? What’s the point of living like this? I’m not trying to criticize you, but a man’s heart is fickle. It’s not like family. Blood is thicker than water. Mom and Dad have been worried sick about you this whole time, unable to eat or sleep. I never imagined this is how you were living with the He Family."

Tears welled up in Guo Jinfeng’s eyes, touched. "Brother."

Seeing his words had hit their mark, Brother Guo continued, "Forget it. Dad said he didn’t want to be a burden. He didn’t even want me to come see you; I came on my own. Since you don’t have any money, I’ll head back."

With that, Brother Guo strode away. Guo Jinfeng wanted to call him back, but she had no money. ’What can I do?’

After returning home, Guo Jinfeng was so restless she couldn’t sit still. After hesitating for a long time, she finally started rummaging through the cabinets, searching for where He Nan might have hidden money.

She searched all the cabinets and even under the sleeping platform mat, but found nothing.

’Where did he put it?’ Guo Jinfeng was puzzled. The house was tiny; where could He Nan possibly hide money?

"What are you looking for?" A sudden voice made Guo Jinfeng jump.

Guo Jinfeng turned to see He Nan standing in the doorway, watching her with a puzzled expression.

Guo Jinfeng’s eyes darted. "I saw a spider. I’m trying to find it before it crawls into the blankets and bites the child tonight."

He Nan glanced around. "Well, did you find it?"

Guo Jinfeng shook her head. "No. I don’t know where it went."

"Shake out the blankets before bed tonight."

Guo Jinfeng nodded.

Not long after this incident, He Ziqing’s school let out for the holidays.

Another heavy snow fell, so He Lang and the others temporarily stopped driving. With bicycles also being unusable, He Lang took a sled to work every day.

Things were similar for Xue Xingzhou. The case had been open for over half a month with no progress.

They had already passed the deadline set by their superiors, but there was nothing to be done except take the heat.

One day, while canvassing the neighborhood again, they got a lead from an older woman.

"The night before it happened, around eight or nine, I was at the mouth of the alley. I saw Liu Wenjuan dressed in rags and carrying a large, woven plastic sack. I even went up to say hello, but she just gave me a look and completely ignored me. I was so mad! What kind of person acts like that? I guess it’s my own fault for being friendly just to get the cold shoulder."

Xue Xingzhou asked, surprised, "You saw the victim dressed in rags? Was that how she normally dressed?"

The woman shook her head. "Not at all. Her husband’s a factory worker. They both usually dressed quite neatly."

Xue Xingzhou suddenly remembered something they’d been told: the victim had a younger sister who looked a lot like her. ’Could it have been her?’

Xue Xingzhou hurried back to the station to report it.

Zhang Hongjie said, "So you’re suggesting the killer might be the victim’s long-lost sister, and that she stayed over the night before the murder?"

Xue Xingzhou nodded. "Master, whether she’s the killer or not, I want to go back to Liu Wenjuan’s parents’ house and ask some more questions. I have a feeling the family is hiding something."

Zhang Hongjie nodded. "Take Xiao Liu with you. Remember to bring your weapons, and be careful."

"Understood, Master."

Xue Xingzhou and Xiao Liu returned to Liu Wenjuan’s parents’ home.

As soon as they walked in, Xue Xingzhou noticed a family portrait on the opposite wall.

It must have been taken many years ago. The couple was seated, with Mrs. Liu holding a little girl of about five or six. Standing next to Mr. Liu was another girl, around ten years old, who must have been the victim, Liu Wenjuan.

Xue Xingzhou studied the faces of the two sisters in the photograph. They did look alike, especially their eyes—they were practically identical.

Mr. Liu noticed them staring at the photo as they came in and asked with some confusion, "Is there something wrong with that picture?"

Xue Xingzhou asked, "What year did your younger daughter go missing? And how did it happen?"

Mr. Liu paused. "Does this have anything to do with the case?"

Xue Xingzhou turned to look at him. "It might."

Mr. Liu was silent for a long moment before he slowly began to tell the story.

"It was fifteen years ago, three days after we took that photo. Xiao Juan took her younger sister out shopping, but she was the only one who came back. She said she’d just looked away for a second to buy something, and when she looked back, her sister was gone. We called the police, but even after two months of searching, they never found her."

Xue Xingzhou’s eyes narrowed. "So you’re saying Liu Wenjuan was the one who lost her sister?" 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Mr. Liu hung his head. "She didn’t mean to. For a long time after, she had nightmares every night. She felt so guilty."

Xue Xingzhou asked him, "Why didn’t you and your wife have another child?"

Mr. Liu shook his head. "My wife’s health isn’t good. After our first was born, we didn’t plan on having any more. But then, when our eldest was five, we unexpectedly had our second. Giving birth to her took a toll on my wife’s body, and she couldn’t have any more children after that."

"Have you seen any strange people around here recently? Or noticed anything unusual?"

Mr. Liu thought for a moment and shook his head. "My wife and I haven’t been out much lately. In fact, she’s fallen ill and is bedridden."

Once they were outside, Xue Xingzhou said to Xiao Liu, "Find a spot and keep an eye on this family. I have a hunch that if the sister really is back, she’ll come to see her parents sooner or later."

Xiao Liu nodded.