A puff of smoke was exhaled.

The cloud of smoke lingered on the uncle’s face, making him appear deeply storied at this moment.

His heart seemed to return to the past, and his gaze grew much more weathered.

“In the early years, people who went to the Pearl River Delta to work were all after gold. They always felt that the place was paved with gold, and in fact, it was true. Many people got rich overnight, but even more people accomplished nothing.”

“There were even a lot of people who never came back after they left. Some were harmed and thrown directly into the sea, while others died in a foreign land with no one to collect their bodies.”

“But speaking of that place you mentioned, it’s not that it killed a lot of people, the main thing was people were afraid when they ran into ID checks. Over time, that place was like it could swallow people.”

Listening, Chen Xiao followed along, “That means a lot of people who went to work ended up dying in a foreign land back then.”

“Many people vanished, even now, there are many whose whereabouts are unknown. Nothing was well-organized back then, and many people were just lost in confusion.”

After finishing, the old uncle instinctively flicked the cigarette butt from his hand into the river.

Chen Xiao couldn’t help but take out another cigarette. The old uncle’s eyes lit up, and he smiled in surprise, “This cigarette isn’t cheap, why are you so generous!”

“Well, cigarettes are meant to be smoked, and whoever smokes them isn’t the same.”

Hearing Chen Xiao say this, the uncle unceremoniously took another one and lit it, and Chen Xiao naturally continued to ask:

“So, uncle, back then, were there many people from this area who went to sea?”

“Not many, but not few. At the time, those who wanted to make money or had aspirations wanted to venture out, after all, this place was as poor as it could get back then.”

“Do you have any particularly memorable impressions of those who went out to sea?”

Chen Xiao did not ask directly if he knew Wan De, instead, he proceeded gradually.

“Oh, yes, there was Niu the Fourth from Niu Village, who went the same year as me. And a couple of childhood playmates from my village, they all went out with me, but their outcomes were the same. They hardly made a dime and spent all their time hiding from temporary residence checks outside!”

Listening to the uncle’s cursing words, Chen Xiao couldn’t help but break into laughter.

But what Chen Xiao didn’t expect was, the uncle suddenly raised his eyebrows and said, “Although we didn’t make money, to be honest, we’ve seen a lot of the world. I see you’re a good kid, why don’t we chat a bit, I’ll tell you about the girls I’ve seen in the big city, they’re really skilled in all the eighteen professions…”

“Uncle, stop!” Chen Xiao quickly interrupted.

The uncle looked disdainful, “Come on, what are you pretending for, we’re all men here, don’t act all innocent!”

“My wife is here!” Chen Xiao lowered his voice, and the uncle immediately nodded knowingly.

Chen Xiao quickly changed the subject, “Are there any other people who left a deep impression on you?”

“Let me think, there were some people who were doing quite well back then. Oh right, there’s someone from our place who’s still running a big hotel in that area. I think his last name is Xu, Xu Zaisen, he’s very rich!”

Hearing the name mentioned by the uncle, Chen Xiao felt a bit disappointed.

His intention was not to inquire about who’s doing well or who’s doing poorly.

So after thinking for a bit, he didn’t beat around the bush and asked, “Have you heard of Wan De from Wanzhuang? He left after Qingming Festival in ’91.”

“I know Wanzhuang, I also left Dongzhou after Qingming Festival in ’91, but I’ve never heard of Wan De, how… was he very successful?”

“You don’t know this! He has also been living far from home for a long time, and runs a super big club there. Let me tell you, everything you can imagine is just a small snack, the main draw is the 360 tricks that really get to the heart. I’ve heard that as long as folks from Dongzhou visit, everyone can stay there for a night for free, with all food and entertainment taken care of by the club!”

“Hiss… how come I’ve never heard of it!” The uncle slapped his thigh, holding his heart in regret.

Chen Xiao left it at that.

Thinking about it, he decided to put the cigarette in his pocket after all.

He thought Old Chen probably only brought this one pack of cigarettes out.

Returning to the side of Old Chen and Lin Xi, Chen Xiao returned the cigarette to Old Chen.

“Why didn’t you give it all to him? What did he say?” Old Chen eagerly asked.

Chen Xiao replied, “He and Uncle Wan De left Dongzhou around the same time, but he probably doesn’t know Uncle Wan De.”

Old Chen was a bit disappointed, but not deeply troubled.

No news for so many years, how could fishing lead to meeting someone who knows him?

How can there be such coincidences in the world!

Old Chen adjusted his mindset and continued fishing.

Perhaps because he was more relaxed, Old Chen’s performance improved significantly, catching more and more fish.

In the afternoon, unexpectedly, Zhang Xian called Chen Xiao.

As soon as the call connected, Zhang Xian asked, “I heard something happened on your end, how could it be such a coincidence?”

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiao naturally understood the source of Zhang Xian’s mention of coincidence.

“I’m more surprised than you. This morning he and his son came to our house to apologize, and who would have thought that just two or three hours later, he was gone.”

Zhang Xian also lamented, “Some things in this world really catch people off guard, but have you checked the scene, or are the county bureau people handling it?”

“Xiaoxi and I both checked; Chen Yuan’s death was indeed accidental, but it can also be considered a worker’s negligence. As for the skull found in the stone lion, that’s what’s truly surprising.”

“It’s because of that skull that I learned about this. The county bureau over there has already requested assistance from the city bureau here, asking the city unit to help with the testing.”

Chen Xiao suddenly realized why Zhang Xian had such quick information.

The Lanshan County Bureau in 2006 indeed did not possess such testing capabilities.

“So how long will it take to get the data?” Chen Xiao asked.

“It’ll be a few days; you know, even in our city, not every unit has the capability and personnel to do such technical work.”

“Hmm, but you’ve reminded me of something. I should tell Captain Li from the county bureau to look for missing person archives since ’91. After all, a living person disappearing could have been reported.”

“Hopefully, the area around your place was particularly isolated in the ’90s, unlike now.”

Chen Xiao understood Zhang Xian’s point, that checking the archives was merely an attempt driven by a glimmer of hope.

But while talking with Zhang Xian, Chen Xiao suddenly noticed the uncle who had been fishing not far away suddenly approaching with a dark expression.

Chen Xiao was very curious, not knowing what had suddenly happened with the uncle.

Could it be that disturbing the uncle earlier caused his fishing efficiency to drop significantly, so now he came to make trouble?

“Alright, Captain Zhang, I have a little something here, let’s talk later.”

“Alright, if you need any help, call me anytime.”

Chen Xiao didn’t say much and put down the phone, the fishing uncle finally reached Chen Xiao.

With a dark face, he angrily said, “Kid, you’re not being fair, you lied to me!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep