"It's like this," Zhao Hengyu had already familiarized himself with this basic information.
He turned the keychain and said to Qin Ningyi, "Dao Cheng Village was named because Grandpa Nong conducted his experimental rice cultivation there, and when the rice matured, it was renamed Dao Cheng Village. Dao Lin Village, as the name suggests, is the village adjacent to Dao Cheng Village."
Zhao Hengyu couldn't help but chuckle at how casually these people named places – ripening rice meant Dao Cheng, and being next to Dao Cheng meant Dao Lin.
"This Dao Cheng Village is right next to Dao Lin Village?" Qin Ningyi's mind suddenly flashed with a notion that seemed absurd.
Zhao Hengyu nodded. "Yes."
Qin Ningyi hesitated for a moment before asking, "Have they sent people to search there?"
He knew he was extremely worried now, and even in such an absurd, seemingly unrelated matter, he didn't want to let go of any possibility.
Zhao Hengyu looked at him strangely, "Old Qin, searching for people has to follow a certain method. You didn't used to talk to us like this."
The usually calm and composed man had lost his composure for the first time.
"Let's try," Qin Ningyi sighed. He looked out at the continuous, dancing snowflakes. "Just in case?"
The weather was getting colder. He wondered if Huo Rou was cold where she was. Relying on her time in Fenghuo, her physique was a bit better than ordinary girls, so she never took care of herself. The night before she left for Taichuan City, she was still packing her things in her room wearing a camouflage short-sleeved pajama top.
He wondered if An An would sleep with her and cover her with a blanket...
Originally, he had intended to investigate the entire matter before seeing her and giving her an explanation, but he seemed to have overestimated his longing.
He missed her, very much.
Zhao Hengyu looked at Qin Ningyi's lowered gaze. The man seemed to be enveloped by the falling snow outside, exuding an aura of loneliness, intense and melancholic.
"Alright," he patted Qin Ningyi's shoulder. "I'll tell them."
"Regarding Grandma Yao, when will our people go to communicate with her?" he brought the topic back. "We must visit her directly. There are people guarding the courtyard where Grandma Yao lives, hidden in the shadows."
If there weren't guards, they could have entered and secretly investigated the situation before deciding how to approach Grandma Yao.
Qin Ningyi took out his phone and looked at the treatment plan and remaining amount of medicine sent by Shen Wuyou. It could last for another two weeks. He pondered for a moment, "In a few days."
In fact, the best approach would be for him to visit in person, as it would show more sincerity.
"What about Yizhou..." Zhao Hengyu thought about it and then told Qin Ningyi, "There's a problem, but we can't find anything."
The other party was extremely sensitive to military inquiries. As long as it was a military investigation, all suspicious factories were cleared of suspicion, appearing perfectly legitimate.
Qin Ningyi frowned. "What about Gu Yan?"
"Still investigating."
What Zhao Hengyu didn't tell him was that the secret intelligence department had investigated one of the factories before, and almost all the evidence had been gathered. Then, that factory vanished overnight.
The other party was extremely sensitive and cautious about any stirrings from the military.
After finishing speaking, Zhao Hengyu looked down at his phone. The news he was waiting for hadn't come. A hint of disappointment flickered in his eyes.
"Alright, Old Qin, I'm leaving now," he put away his phone, his expression listless. "If you plan to go to Dao Cheng Village in a few days, tell me in advance. I'll arrange a vehicle for you; transportation there is quite backward."
After Zhao Hengyu left, Xiao Konglin brought in another pile of reports.
At the end of the workday in the afternoon.
Qin Ningyi habitually stood up, picked up his bag, and walked out the door.
Xiao Konglin, holding a stack of reports and about to knock on the door, saw Qin Ningyi, dressed neatly and looking ready to leave.
"Mr. Qin?" He tightened his grip on the reports, bracing himself. "You're not leaving work this early, are you?"
Qin Ningyi looked at the items he was holding, then at the time.
Suddenly, he listlessly put down his wrist. "Bring it in."
He no longer had anyone to pick up.
Qin Ningyi turned and walked back into the office. He brushed off some imaginary dust from his clothes and casually threw his casual, dark blue jacket onto the sofa.
Xiao Konglin, following behind him, paused at the sight of him discarding things so casually.
Mr. Qin never acted so casually.
He also noticed the jacket, completely different from Qin Ningyi's usual work attire, lying on the sofa.
He remembered, this casual jacket... Miss Huo had once praised its appearance in the car.