Chapter 76
A full day and night passed with no word from Lin Tu.
Everyone at the shelter had turned out to search, frantic with worry. It wasn't until the second night that word finally came from the Rebel Army. Lin Tu had assisted the lieutenant colonel in capturing four Government Army spies, earning a promotion to Sergeant First Class and the title of Honored Soldier.
Word spread through the Rebel Army ranks in no time, and quite a few people made a special trip to the shelter to see who this legend was. What they saw was a procession of Rebel Army soldiers, each carrying something—thick bundles of timber, sacks of potatoes, turnips, and onions, a bag of flour, a stack of quilts and padded coats, and last but not least, a whole smoked horse leg—all marched through the shelter's gate.
Rumor had it these were the rewards the Rebel Army had sent over after Lin Tu's promotion.
"What a lucky break," a few young men in white headbands muttered through gritted teeth as they packed their things. They were peripheral members of the Rebel Army, without a single military merit to their names, not even a proper badge. They'd thrown their weight around on the strength of a white headband, and a couple of days ago had even hurled insults at Shi Duoluo. Now they were terrified of retaliation.
"Hurry up, grab your stuff and get out of here!"
"Yeah, yeah—once they get their act together, we're done for!"
The residents near the shelter breathed a collective sigh of relief as they watched the men leave. Everyone was just an ordinary person trying to get by. Those thugs had stirred up trouble left and right, making life unbearable for everyone around. They'd long since earned the people's resentment.
Their departure was practically a reason to celebrate, worthy of setting off firecrackers.
Inside the shelter, the group that had been worrying over Lin Tu finally relaxed.
"She's on a secret mission and won't be back for a long time," said the Rebel Army officer in charge, setting the assortment of goods on the ground. "This smoked horse leg was pulled straight from our stores—it's precious, so you'd better keep a close eye on it. Don't say we didn't deliver."
The smoked horse leg stood nearly as tall as Daixi's own leg and was thicker than it, giving off a rich, smoky aroma that made one's mouth water. It supposedly had been aged for a long time, yet showed no sign of spoilage—just dry and firm, enough to last a long while.
It wasn't just Bu Daixi; everyone's eyes nearly popped out staring at that horse leg.
"Did she leave any message?" Abel pulled back the hands of a few kids who were itching to touch it, as David asked.
The horse leg was tempting, but their companion's safety mattered more. They wouldn't touch a bite of it until they knew for certain Lin Tu was safe.
"She did," the Rebel Army soldier said, jerking his chin toward the bundle of timber. "She said that while she's away, you should use these logs to patch up the holes in the walls. There's more than enough, so no worries. By the time you're done, she should be back."
Only then did the group finally relax.
The need to patch the holes in the shelter's walls was something only their own people knew about. The fact that this Rebel Army soldier had brought timber of just the right length and quantity was proof enough that Lin Tu had personally arranged it, and they were merely acting on her behalf.
"Please tell her not to worry—we'll get it done."
"Tell her to take care of herself too!"
"Please thank her for us, and tell her we're waiting for her to come back..."
The Rebel Army soldier promised to pass along the messages, and David personally saw him off. When David returned, he found the group gathered around the pile of supplies, poking and prodding at everything. Bu Daixi had even pinched a bit of ash off the smoked horse leg's skin and was trying to stuff it in her mouth, only to be scolded by Abel, with his own son Little David chiming in agreement.
David didn't know whether to laugh or cry. After a long moment, he let out a sigh and went into Shi Duoluo's room.
Grandma Shi Duoluo was old, and with both her sons missing and the sudden flare-up of fighting days earlier, she'd been shaken badly. She'd taken ill, and when the Rebel Army had arrived just now, she hadn't even been able to get out of bed.
"Good child, how did things go?" Shi Duoluo asked in a hoarse voice.
"No problems, it's just..." David hesitated, then nodded. "But is this really the right path? Maybe there's another way, one that doesn't force a fight to the death. Miss Lin is capable—if only she were here, we could ask her advice. Unfortunately, after that day we parted ways, we haven't been able to find her again."
This matter was too weighty for David to decide on his own, and he desperately wanted to find someone reliable to talk it over with. He'd just asked those Rebel Army soldiers, but they said they couldn't find her either.
"Little Lin is a good child," Shi Duoluo said. Though she'd been lying in bed, her hearing remained sharp, and she'd caught every word of what happened outside. "Don't drag her into these matters, or we'll bring trouble on her head. It's a good thing she's not home."
She coughed violently, the sound like a broken bellows on the verge of giving out.
"If anything goes wrong, just push it all onto this old bones of mine. My husband passed away early, and I failed to look after his two sons. If you get the chance, help Rui Si out for me. But don't force yourself—you're good children too."
These words sounded like a deathbed testament. She could feel her end approaching.
"Aunt Doro..." David knelt by her bedside, his head buried in the edge of the mattress, sobbing uncontrollably.
Once, at his most desperate moment, Doro had saved him and looked after him with great care. He truly regarded her as an elder and a family member. He couldn't bear the thought of Shi Duoluo actually leaving this world—it would be like a knife slashing across his chest, and the world would lose another good person.
Why? Why was heaven so unfair! Treating the good and the wicked alike!
"The deed to this house is under my mattress. If I pass, hide it away, and when little Lin comes back, give it to her. She's the only one who can hold all this together." Duoluo sighed softly, sensing the breath of death in her own lungs. "Good child, don't be sad. This home is in your hands from now on."
"Grandma Doro! Grandma Doro!" Cheerful shouts came from outside the door, the children's voices.
"Come in, quick—grandma's been feeling bored!" Shi Duoluo said with a smile.
David wiped his tears and hurried out of the room, out of the shelter. For some reason, a gut feeling told David that Lin Tu would find a way—he had to find her.