The Shen sisters knew nothing about the hidden conflict in Sister-in-law Niu’s family, which was stirred up by them.
The sisters ambled back to the courtyard from the small Western-style buildings in the front row.
It was already dark. Tian Jing told the sisters to rest early so they could have enough energy for the hot spring valley the next day.
Naturally, Tian Jing accompanied them to the hot spring valley the following day.
Although there were no tourists yet, preparations for opening were underway, so meals were not a problem.
Therefore, they only needed to bring their change of clothes.
The Shen sisters had visited quite a few scenic spots, but they were still captivated by the scenery along the way.
In their eyes, the scenery along the route could be described with two words: real, and dangerous.
The cable car was undergoing maintenance, and all preparations on the mountain were transported by cable car. It was still possible for Tian Jing and the others to hitch a ride.
After visiting the attractions one by one, it was already afternoon.
There were two restaurants midway up the mountain. These two restaurants were not ready, and only cleaning was being done.
The Shen sisters were so engrossed in sightseeing and taking photos that they didn’t feel hungry at all.
They booked two rooms in a guesthouse that was ready for business. After washing up, they went downstairs for dinner.
It was already evening when they ate. The sunset in the west had dyed half the sky red.
Shen Jianfang, who had experienced basking in the sun and drinking porridge by the wall at breakfast, held her bowl and found a spot to watch the sunset.
Shen Jianfang pointed to the Eagle Beak rock platform to the east: "That's the best viewing spot."
Tian Jing nodded: "Jianrong is right. That's Yuan Feng's Yuan Family Private Kitchen."
"What a shame," Shen Jianrong sighed, regretting not being able to taste authentic Yuan family cuisine.
Tian Jing said she should be able to catch it next time she came.
Shen Jianfang asked her younger sister to bring her next time.
Shen Jianrong shook her head: "I definitely won't bring you next time. If it weren't for the need to guard the renovation of the two villas, Ziyu would definitely have come with me."
Shen Jianfang did not give up: "I'll drive."
Shen Jianrong pointed her finger from her elder sister's head to her feet: "With your size, you'll take up the space of at least dozens of crates of eggs."
Shen Jianfang reached out and swatted her younger sister's finger away: "You're the one who's big."
The sisters bickered and laughed as they ate from their bowls.
After dinner, the sisters climbed onto the rock platform of the Eagle Beak and admired the scenery from various angles.
It was late into the night. After appreciating the starry sky to their heart's content, Tian Jing urged the sisters down from the Eagle Beak.
The next morning, they visited all the small attractions in the hot spring valley, and then it was time to soak in the hot springs.
After lunch, Shen Jianrong did not want to go to the cave yet because she knew that going to the cave meant drifting back to the foot of the mountain.
Tian Jing said they could play for another day, but she felt bad about delaying Tian Jing’s time:
"Forget it. To leave with lingering thoughts is the most memorable. We'll come to Kushan Mountain again next time."
They tidied up their belongings and checked out. Tian Jing put the belongings of the three of them into a large plastic bag.
They had to carry their things down themselves, as there were no people or vehicles to transport tourist luggage yet.
Ouyang Meihua was waiting in her pickup truck at the parking lot of Wuligou to pick them up.
The Shen sisters' joy had not subsided. Seeing Ouyang Meihua, they expressed their happiness to her.
When the pickup truck drove onto the bridge, the security guards at the bridge carefully checked the people in the car before letting them enter the village.
"What's wrong?" Shen Jianrong asked Ouyang Meihua. "Did something happen in the village?"
Ouyang Meihua turned the steering wheel, and the car stopped in an open space next to the village committee building.
"Lin Wan and Lin Man are missing. All the cash from Lin Er'lai's room is also gone."
"Ah?"
"Ah?"
Both Shen sisters let out a gasp.
Tian Jing had already expected this.
In the past, when the sisters were young, they could only wait under Lin Er'lai for them to grow up.
Now that Lin Wan Niang had come out, and the sisters had someone to rely on, how could they not be restless?
"Where are Old Yu and his wife?"
"Lin Er'lai has reported it to the police," Ouyang Meihua sighed. "Old Yu and his wife have been taken in for questioning."
"Although Old Yu doesn't live in the same room as Lin Er'lai, he is still the person who enters and leaves Lin Er'lai's room the most."
Tian Jing didn't believe that the movements of Lin Wan and Lin Man could completely avoid Old Yu and his wife: "Old Yu and his wife may not be innocent."
Ouyang Meihua nodded: "Everyone thinks so."
"But the police didn't find anything in the couple's room either."
"Now we can only wait for the results of the police investigation."
Shen Jianrong was surprised: "Lin Wan and Lin Man haven't been caught yet?"
"No," Ouyang Meihua shook her head. "When they were discovered missing, it was already past nine o'clock this morning."
"No one knows when they left. There were no traces found at the village entrance or in front of the mountain scenic area gate."
"The police brought police dogs, but the dogs lost their scent by the Ku River."
"They had help, and someone to pick them up," Shen Jianrong said with certainty. "They probably used the Ku River to swim or boat away."
"Alright, alright," Shen Jianfang nudged her younger sister, motioning for her to get out of the car. "Solving the case is the police's job. Don't jump to conclusions."
After the three of them got out of the car, Ouyang Meihua drove the car back to her own house at the west end of the village.
Then she went to the nursery to pick some vegetables and help out with cooking in the courtyard.
Li Min also left the nursery. She was going back to see Lin Hua'er.
Lin Wan and Lin Man had run off with the money, which had angered Lin Hua'er greatly.
She and Xiao Fu comforted her for a long time before she calmed down.
Lin Duo'er found Li Liguo in the greenhouse: "Uncle Li."
Li Liguo came out of the greenhouse: "Do you need something?"
Lin Duo'er nodded: "I just wanted to ask, is the outside world really that attractive?"
Li Liguo shook his head repeatedly: "Those who only have dreams but no skills can only work as waiters or dishwashers outside."
"Earning three to four hundred yuan a month, and after deducting rent and food expenses, if you can save two hundred yuan, that's already a thrifty person."
"Li Li's college classmates earn more, about one thousand seven hundred and eighty yuan a month."
"Zhi Cheng only graduated from high school and can only earn a little over a thousand yuan."
Only a few hundred yuan?
Lin Duo'er's restless heart settled down.
She didn't have to worry about anything at home, and she earned over two thousand yuan a month.
At the end of the year, she would also receive a dividend of thirty thousand yuan, averaging four to five thousand yuan a month, which was more than what college students earned.
Even if she went out and earned money, wouldn't she still have to return to Kushan Mountain? So why bother going out and causing trouble?
"Thank you, Uncle Li. I understand."
Lin Duo'er returned to the greenhouse she was responsible for and diligently watered the vegetable seedlings.
Li Liguo shook his head and sighed. He thought that with Lin Wan's incident, the hearts of the young women and young wives in the village had become unstable.
...
Shen Jianrong, Shen Jianfang, and Ouyang Meihua sat in the yard, shelling peas.
The sun was already setting in the west, and the temperature in the yard was just right.
The three of them talked about Lin Wan and Lin Man running away while they shelled peas.
"Sister-in-law Ouyang, haven't you ever thought about going out to see the world?"
Ouyang Meihua glanced at the kitchen and lowered her voice: "Do you think my heart is restless? Impossible!"
"Not to mention that at my age, waiting to welcome my daughter-in-law and hold my grandson, I've passed the dream-making stage."
"Even in the first lunar month, when I took my mother-in-law to Kyoto, I was so shocked by the family business my sister-in-law had built up without anyone knowing, that I didn't want to go to Kyoto anymore."
"I had been there a few times before, and I thought that dilapidated courtyard in the broken alley was part of my sister-in-law's property in Kyoto."
"But reality told me that my assumptions were correct. That dilapidated courtyard in the broken alley was indeed my sister-in-law's. But that was just the tip of the iceberg."
"My brother Ouyang Lei took me to see all the territories of Jingyuan Company, and I only had one thought."
Shen Jianrong asked: "What thought?"
"Go home. I want to go home," Ouyang Meihua's voice grew even lower:
"Back home, my sister-in-law is still my sister-in-law. In Kyoto, my sister-in-law is a vastly powerful boss, and I suddenly couldn't find her original demeanor."
"After returning, I slept soundly under the covers and told myself that the prosperity in Kyoto was just false. Captain Tian here, who I've known for over twenty years, is my true sister-in-law."
"This way, I could put myself in the right mindset and interact with my sister-in-law with my original attitude. Otherwise, I would have been infuriated because I was made to feel utterly insignificant!"
"Hehehe," Shen Jianrong chuckled lightly: "Your ability to cope with pressure is too poor."