"We found a black box at Ye Weijunās home, and thereās a yellowed letter inside with your name on it," the policeman said, handing the letter to Lin Guozhi.
The contents, yellowed with age, stirred up a flood of memories. Wasnāt this the letter he wrote to Nannan before he left years ago?
"How did this letter end up in their house?"
"We really donāt know," the policeman shook his head.
Liang Hongmei took the letter and glanced at it. Back then, her Guozhi hadnāt abandoned her, nor had he died. Though he didnāt say what he was going to do, every line hinted at her waiting for him at home, living well. He even explicitly mentioned that there were three hundred dollars enclosed.
Clearly, her man hadnāt abandoned him. Clearly, they knew how important this letter was to their family, yet these heartless people hid it away. They even embezzled the life-saving money Guozhi had given them.
Lin Yinghui and Lin Wan, upon seeing the letter, were so furious they wanted to dig Ye Weijun out of his grave and flog his corpse.
Liang Hongmeiās eyes reddened instantly. No one could understand her current feelings; no one knew how much emotional comfort and support for their family this letter could have brought. She hated but now didnāt even know how to hate anymore.
"Officer, can I see Qiu Hualan?"
"This..." The policeman frowned, considering that this was indeed related to a case, and although Qiu Hualan was a serious offender, the case was nearly closed. People could now be visited.
"Iāll go back and arrange it, you can visit in the afternoon."
"Alright, thank you."
After seeing off the policeman, Liang Hongmei cried in Lin Guozhiās arms, venting the hardships of over a decade.
The two children also wore solemn expressions, stepping aside to give their parents some space.
Lin Wan returned to her room and lay on the bed, recalling memories from her childhood. She must have been only three or four years old when Dad wrote the letter. Ye Qing was just one or two. This couldnāt have anything to do with her.
At that time, Lin Wan had little memory. She couldnāt figure out what the Ye Family hid their letters for.
Lin Wan didnāt know, but Lin Yinghui had some recollection. Because at that time, he was already five or six years old. The village kids all loved to play wildly together.
Back then, Ye Rong was a year younger than him, always running after them, his hands perpetually full of candy or snacks.
Sometimes you could even see his hands greasy, and the village kids all said that his family ate meat every day.
In those years, Ye Rong ate better than the average child, though his family wasnāt wealthy.
His dad hadnāt started hitting his mom yet, but he did have a drinking problem back then. Secretly drinking during work, and after drinking, heād fall asleep right in the field.
He never earned more work points than even a frail woman.
When he couldnāt earn work points, they got less grain, and they barely had enough to eat. Where did they get money for candy, snacks, and even meat?
After lunch, Dad took Mom to the county detention center. Dad didnāt let them go, saying it would only cause more unhappiness, urging them to rest at home while he accompanied Mom to ask Qiu Hualan about the situation.
When Liang Hongmei saw Qiu Hualan at the detention center, she looked expressionless, full of sorrow. She was like a kite with a broken string, seeming devoid of all hope. Looking at her, one couldnāt help but feel a bit of sympathy.
Who would have thought that such a woman would do something so heinous?
When Qiu Hualan heard someone wanted to see her, she initially thought it was her own family.
To her surprise, it was Liang Hongmei.
"You... youāre looking for me?" Qiu Hualan was at a loss seeing the well-dressed Liang Hongmei.
Liang Hongmei didnāt respond to her, silently placing the letter in front of her.
Qiu Hualan was all too familiar with this letter. After all these years, she hadnāt expected them to find it.
This... was this a confrontation? Qiu Hualan panicked, her originally dazed face suddenly startled, "Hongmei... I, I didnāt mean to back then. I just... just didnāt want you to see this letter, thatās all."
"Ha, so you admit that you hid this letter? Why did you hide my letter?"
"I... I originally didnāt know. It was... that day I went to the village chiefās house to borrow something, saw it accidentally, and in a moment of weakness took it. I..."
"A moment of weakness? I think you did it on purpose, hiding my letter intentionally. I guess you must have been jealous of me then. You got involved with an educated youth who abandoned you, while the one I found was devoted to us. You couldnāt stand others having it better, so if you were unhappy, everyone else had to be miserable too, right? Qiu Hualan, I used to feel a bit sorry for you, sympathized with you. But now it seems, beneath your honest facade, thereās wickedness. None of the Ye Family are good people. Iāve just realized your daughter isnāt like Ye Weijun at all; sheās really like you, her mother, a belly full of deceit, doing dirty deeds behind the scenes."