Chapter 162: Chapter 160: Geng’s Story

Although Lu Xiao didn’t know why Su Tang said that, he still nodded in agreement.

Geng wasn’t in the county town anymore. He had moved to a more distant place and was now working as a car mechanic.

Business was booming.

When he saw Su Tang and Lu Xiao arrive, he smiled. “Sister-in-law, what can I do for you?”

“Brother Geng, I’m sorry to have to trouble you again.”

Su Tang said apologetically, placing the things she had brought on the table.

“I’ve actually come for a reason. I was hoping you could help me investigate someone.”

“Investigate someone?”

Geng wiped his grease-stained hands and straightened up from his toolbox, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

“Who do you want me to look into, Sister-in-law?”

Su Tang clasped her hands and spoke slowly.

“A man named Zhou Rui.”

She did her best to keep her tone even.

“He’s probably in his twenties or thirties. He looks something like this… I can’t remember clearly. Oh, right, he’s in Xiangjiang now. He left from around here.”

Geng frowned, watching Su Tang’s gestures.

Su Tang was describing him based on the photograph from that drastically altered book she had read.

Even though the photo wasn’t clear, she always had a sense of familiarity.

’Maybe I know this person.’

“Rui… That name sounds a bit familiar.”

“Quite a few people have gone to Xiangjiang from here, but do you know Mu Tianrui?”

Su Tang’s heart suddenly began to race, and Lu Xiao’s gaze sharpened instantly.

“He’s pretty tall and has fair skin, not like us manual laborers. He has a crescent-shaped scar on his left wrist.”

“A while ago, Grandpa Mu came here to buy parts and mentioned that Mu Tianrui is doing well in Xiangjiang now, said he’s some kind of big-shot leader.”

“Besides, to get to Xiangjiang from here, you need to have some money on hand. The Mu Family isn’t short on cash, and Mu Tianrui’s name also has ’Rui’ in it.”

Su Tang froze. It was too similar. The description was a near-perfect match for the one in the book.

’Mu Tianrui is Zhou Rui. He’s the male lead.’

After leaving Geng’s place, Su Tang was distracted the entire time.

She didn’t say anything, but Lu Xiao had a vague feeling that this was not good news.

“What are you thinking about so seriously?”

Hearing Lu Xiao’s voice, Su Tang snapped back to reality and shook her head.

“I just never expected that my original suspicions were all true.”

But Mu Tianrui himself seemed so gentle. And when they first met, Su Tang hadn’t thought there was anything special about him at all.

“Don’t overthink it. No matter how capable he is, he’s still just one man.”

Lu Xiao refused to believe that any man was without weakness, or that any man couldn’t be beaten.

He wasn’t even afraid of the dead, so how could he be afraid of a living man?

“You’re right. Since we’ve already reported this to the higher-ups, they’ll surely use other resources.”

Some things were far beyond their capabilities.

Let the professionals handle the professional work.

“By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask, how does Geng know so much?”

She only knew that Geng and Lu Xiao had a bond forged through life-and-death situations, and that he knew people from all walks of life.

But the scope of his knowledge was just too vast, wasn’t it?

Lu Xiao’s tone grew heavier.

“After he was discharged from the army, he joined a transport team. He traveled all over the country and followed quite a few merchant caravans along the borders.”

“Things weren’t like they are now. The roads weren’t safe. You had to deal with checkpoints, watch out for highwaymen, and stay on good terms with the local bosses. Over time, he got to know people from every walk of life and developed a near-photographic memory.”

“Later, the transport team disbanded, and he came back to the county town. He just wanted to live a quiet life, but he couldn’t stop the people he used to know from constantly seeking his help. Some wanted to inquire about suppliers, others wanted him to help find connections. Eventually, he became a sort of information hub.”

Su Tang had a sudden realization. No wonder Geng was able to dig up so much on Mu Tianrui; it was because of his past.

“A few years ago, Geng stood up for a friend and got set up. His leg was injured, and he can’t walk long distances anymore.”

“He’s pretty philosophical about it, though. Says fixing cars doesn’t take much brainpower, and just tightening screws is good enough.”

But everyone knew that running a booming repair shop in the rough-and-tumble suburbs couldn’t be done just by tightening screws.

Who would dare take on that kind of work without some real skill?

“Actually, he could have gone somewhere else. The reason he stayed here is because of the woman he was supposed to marry.”

“Back when he was a soldier, there was no word from him for several years. The girl thought he had died and was forced to marry someone else.”

Lu Xiao’s voice grew softer, tinged with melancholy.

“The girl married into a bad family. Her husband was a gambler who squandered their entire savings in less than two years and would resort to violence at the drop of a hat. When Geng came back and found out, he went to find her, his eyes bloodshot, wanting to take her away.

But by then, the girl already had a child and couldn’t bear to leave. She just told him not to worry about her and to live his own life.”

Su Tang’s heart ached listening to the story. “What happened then?”

“After that, Geng stayed here. He said that way, he could still help if she ever needed anything.”

“He doesn’t bother her often, just occasionally has someone send some food and supplies for the child. Last year, the gambler got drunk, fell into the river, and drowned. The girl could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

I went to see Geng a while back and saw a sewing machine in his shop. He said the girl wanted to do some sewing to supplement her income, so he got it ready for her.”

She never thought a rough man like Geng could have such a tender side.

“He’s certainly devoted.”

Lu Xiao hummed in agreement, reaching out to smooth her wind-tousled bangs. “He always says that debts must be repaid, bit by bit. People of our generation, we’re stubborn like that.”

Once you’ve decided on something, it’s for life.

Not even a team of wild horses could drag you away from it.

Geng loved that girl his entire life.

He always blamed himself. If only he had been able to come back then, maybe… she wouldn’t have had to get married.

“Life is unpredictable. Who could have known?”

Su Tang said with a sigh. Lu Xiao hummed in response.

“We haven’t been to the county town in a while, and we’re short on everything at home. Want to go take a look?”

Since they were already here, they might as well look around.

Su Tang nodded. It would be a good distraction, and maybe it would lift her spirits.

Besides, there were supply shortages in the Northwest right now.

The recent flood had brought noticeable changes to their lives.

It would be wonderful if the supply and marketing cooperative had something they needed.

The two entered the cooperative, but the shelves were sparse and didn’t hold much.

Su Tang looked at the items, feeling bored.

Anything useful had been snapped up long ago.

Naturally, the two of them came away empty-handed.

It was true that nowadays, you couldn’t buy good things even if you had the money.

However, just as they were about to get back, they saw Wang Xinxin holding Chen Zhengnian’s hand by their front door.

They were too far away to hear what Wang Xinxin was saying, but after Chen Zhengnian lowered his head and said something, Wang Xinxin looked a little upset.

“Wang Xinxin!”

Just as Lu Xiao was about to shout, Su Tang quickly covered his mouth.

“What are you doing?”

“Her! Didn’t you see her?”

“So what if I saw her? It’s natural for people to get married. Now, shut up!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep