Traveling Through Those Years Of Farming (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 9

“Don’t gather here just to watch the excitement. Make way, make way!”

When Lin Zhong arrives, the crime scene is already surrounded by a crowd. People in this era have too few entertainment options, and as soon as word spreads that a body has been found in the park, everyone rushes over to see what’s going on.

Thankfully, the green uniforms of the police still have some deterrent effect on the crowd, or else they might cross the cordon and contaminate the crime scene.

However, the scene isn’t well protected. Between the time the body is first discovered and the police arrive, the surrounding ground is trampled by curious onlookers, and no usable footprints can be collected.

“Isn’t this Liu Er?” Lin Zhong says, putting on gloves and turning the body over.

Someone in the crowd gasps, as though they recognize the victim. Lin Zhong gives a quick glance to his subordinates and motions for them to take the person who spoke over to the cordon.

“You know the victim?” Lin Zhong asks, pointing at the body before quickly turning his head.

The sight of the body is so grotesque that even an experienced officer like him struggles to keep his composure.

The victim is curled up on the ground, face down with his back arched. As Lin Zhong turns the body over, the gruesome injuries are exposed. His lower body is soaked in blood, especially around the crotch, where his clothes are violently torn open. His legs are mangled, and even worse, his face is savagely mutilated—his upper and lower jaws are broken and torn apart. The corners of his mouth are ripped from his face to his ears, and something that should be at his groin is now stuffed in his mouth. The men present gasp at the horrifying sight.

Lin Zhong immediately deduces that the murderer and the victim have a personal grudge. Initially, he suspects a crime of passion—perhaps a dispute over a woman escalated, and the murderer vented his rage in this horrifying manner. He rules out the possibility of a woman being involved, as there are no binding wounds on the body, and generally, women lack the physical strength to carry out such brutal revenge on a young man.

“I know him,” the man who entered the cordon says. “He lives in Building 4 of the textile factory’s family compound. His name’s Liu Ming, but everyone calls him Liu Er. This kid’s no good. His mother got him a job at the textile factory, but he stole waste cloth from there and sold it. When the factory found out, his parents had to kneel before the director to beg for forgiveness. They paid compensation, and because his parents were old employees, the factory let it slide. But after that, he could never keep a job.” The man continues, “After losing his job, he lived off his parents’ pension. He was always irresponsible. His parents tried to find him a wife, but he wasn’t serious about it. I heard he groped a girl during a blind date and got beaten up by her family. Anyway, he was no good. Oh, and he seemed to hang out with the Wang kid… What’s his name again? Wang Youyou, that’s it. I heard that Wang Youyou died a few days ago. Officer, how did Wang Youyou die?”

The mention of Wang Youyou immediately triggers something in Lin Zhong’s mind, but unfortunately, there isn’t enough time to pursue the lead.

“Xiao Ding, go notify the family of the deceased. Xiao Ding! Xiao Ding!” Lin Zhong shouts repeatedly, but when no one answers, he turns to look at his subordinate in frustration.

Xiao Ding, the young officer, is staring at the face of the deceased with a puzzled expression. It takes him a moment to snap out of it after Lin Zhong’s repeated calls.

“Deputy Captain, do you think his eyes look familiar?” Xiao Ding leans closer to Lin Zhong’s ear and whispers, his voice shaky. “Look at his eyes… they’re bulging, just like Wang Youyou’s.”

Whether it’s the proximity of his face or his breath, Lin Zhong can’t tell, but something about it sends a chill down his spine. A shiver runs from the base of his neck to the back of his head, making his hair stand on end.

Both victims have bloodshot eyes, as if they’ve seen something horrifying before they die. Xiao Ding feels uneasy. He recalls that Wang Youyou’s body only shows signs of biting his tongue and no other injuries. There’s no trace of a second person at the scene, so the cause of death is ruled as sudden illness. But now, with the connection between the two cases, Xiao Ding wonders if Wang Youyou’s death really was due to a sudden illness.

What had both of them seen?

“Shh…” Xiao Ding’s voice falters as he grows increasingly uncomfortable.

Lin Zhong swallows hard and glances around. Fortunately, no one else has heard Xiao Ding’s words.

“Go and notify the family of the deceased,” he instructs the young officer, before turning his attention to searching for clues with the other policemen. As for the body, it is wrapped and prepared to be transported back to the police station for further examination.

“Brother, Liu Er is dead too,” the one who spoke sounds nervous.

In a dimly lit shed, three young men sit together. When Wang Youyou dies, they don’t get too concerned, as the police say it’s due to a sudden illness. But now Liu Er is dead, and the rumors surrounding his death—especially how brutal it is—make the young men, who have their own secrets, uneasy.

“What are you afraid of?” the man at the head of the group says dismissively. He has a fierce look, with a shaved head and a scar above his right eyebrow that gives him a cruel edge. “Liu Er wasn’t a clean man. He likes to mess around with young wives and often sneaks into people’s yards to spy on women bathing. Maybe he slept with someone’s wife and was caught by her husband. That’s why he ends up dead in the park—someone must have cut off his… well, you know.”

“There are no ghosts in this world,” the man continues, trying to reassure the others. “The death of two people in a row is just a coincidence.” His words seem to comfort the two other men, who nod.

“Just be careful. Don’t make a mistake and drag the rest of us down.” The man with the crew cut glares at the others, intimidating them into silence.

The three don’t notice that, while they speak in secret, a blood-red eye watches them through the small hole in the door lock.

“Bao, what do you want to eat? Mom and Dad will buy it for you when they go to the city at noon.” The next morning, Sheng Wukun rides his bicycle to drop his daughter off at school.

“No, there’s still plenty of pork at home. I want braised pork tonight.”

Seeing that her parents haven’t mentioned her “third eye,” Sheng Baobao decides to play dumb. In truth, it isn’t such a bad thing to be free of mystical burdens. Since her parents decide to leave their old lives behind and open a small store, Sheng Baobao is content to live a simple, yet happy life with them.

“Alright, I’ll tell your mother to make a big pot of braised pork for our Baobao.” Sheng Wukun agrees, smiling.

The braised pork his wife makes is truly delicious. Perhaps it’s because they suffered from hunger and cold when they were younger, but the couple are especially willing to spend money on food and clothing.

Braised pork is Hua Yingpo’s specialty. She starts by cutting the best pork belly into pieces, blanching them to remove any blood and unpleasant odors, adding rice wine and ginger. Then, she heats a little oil in the pot, adding rock sugar to create a syrup. Once the sugar melts and begins to bubble, she stir-fries the pork belly until it has a rich brown color. After that, she adds soy sauce and more rice wine, along with enough water to cover the pork. Once the water boils, she throws in star anise, cinnamon, and bay leaves, covers the pot, and lets it simmer on low heat for an hour and a half. Finally, she turns up the heat to thicken the sauce.

The result is a rich, glossy dish of braised pork—tender and sweet, the flavors infused with the seasonings. Even an elderly person without teeth can easily bite into it, and the sauce is so delicious that even women with small appetites can easily eat two bowls of rice topped with it.

To balance out the richness, a plate of crisp pickled vegetables and a bowl of sweet soup is the perfect accompaniment—it’s as if the dish is completed by adding wings to a tiger.

Sheng Wukun thinks about the rock sugar at home. It seems to be running low. If they make the braised pork without it, the flavor will be lacking. As the couple are going to the county town to look at houses that day, they plan to pick up some ingredients and seasonings that are running low.

He drops his daughter off at school, hands her schoolbag to her, watches her skip into the classroom, and then leaves with a sense of peace.

Jiang Runzhu observes Sheng Baobao, who is happily running into the classroom. She thinks to herself, This world is not the same as I remember.

The previous day, the Yu family visited the Hua family to express their gratitude, and Jiang Runzhu goes with them. When she sees the Yu couple, a vague memory resurfaces.

In her previous life, the Yu family’s son died young. Since her own family wasn’t very close to theirs, Jiang Runzhu doesn’t remember them until now.

What she does recall is how the elderly Yu couple’s health deteriorates rapidly after losing their son. Her parents often speak sympathetically about them, which causes them to pay more attention to their own son.

She only vaguely remembers that the Yu family’s son died in a car accident. The driver, poor and destitute, died in the same accident, and the Yu family received no compensation.

Unexpectedly, the boy from the Yu family in this world is still alive and well. According to him, he survived by sheer luck, thanks to an amulet given by Hua Yingpo.

Jiang Runzhu doesn’t believe that the two liars could possess such powerful magic, but she can’t ignore the fact that something has changed in this life, and it seems to revolve around Hua Yingpo’s family.

“Baobao, what delicious food did your mother make for you today?”

As soon as Sheng Baobao sits down, her chubby classmate from the neighboring desk, You Xiaomi, approaches eagerly. Her round eyes can’t help but stare at the lunchbox Sheng Baobao is carrying.

Except for students whose homes are very close to the school, most children bring lunchboxes to school. In this era, school cafeterias generally only offer services to heat up lunchboxes.

Sheng Baobao’s deskmate, You Xiaomi, is one of the top students in the class. It is no surprise—her figure is evidence enough of the good life she leads.

You Xiaomi’s father works as a seaman and often travels abroad, so their home is always stocked with fresh snacks that can’t be found locally. Her mother works at a department store, taking advantage of her position to buy high-quality goods ahead of others.

Family planning has been strictly enforced in the past two years, and the You family only has one child, so You Xiaomi is given priority when it comes to anything good. As a result, her lunch is often abundant. Unfortunately, You Xiaomi’s mother isn’t much of a cook, and many of the best ingredients turn out unappetizing after her attempts in the kitchen.

After a while, You Xiaomi grows tired of her mother’s cooking and starts preferring the canned foods her father brings back from his trips.

For instance, today her lunchbox contains thick slices of sausage brought from Russia and the Soviet Union by her father, along with two boiled eggs and some cabbage, simply blanched in water.

“Let me show you.” Sheng Baobao opens her lunchbox with a proud expression, eager to share it with her deskmate.

The lunchbox Hua Yingpo prepares for her daughter is double-layered. The bottom layer holds rice and vegetables, while the top is filled with meat.

Hua Yingpo fries five sunny eggs for Sheng Baobao, using plenty of oil until the edges become crispy. After frying, she adds soy sauce, chili peppers, rock sugar, and other seasonings, cooking everything thoroughly to infuse the eggs with a unique flavor.

Since the family has a big, fat pig at home, Sheng Baobao’s lunch today includes half a sliced braised pig ear and some pork cheeks. The red oil oozing from them makes the dish look absolutely mouthwatering.

These days, it isn’t popular to reduce salt or sugar for a healthier meal. Thick oil and rich sauces are the real key to a satisfying dish.

When her deskmates see the rich variety in Sheng Baobao’s lunch, they nearly drool.

“Baobao, let’s have lunch together at noon, okay?” You Xiaomi hooks her arm through Sheng Baobao’s, her eyes sparkling as if she will pout and complain if Sheng Baobao refuses.

“Okay.” Sheng Baobao readily agrees.

In fact, her mother always prepares an abundance of food for her, hoping she will share it with her classmates.

Since Sheng Baobao started school earlier than most of the others, Hua Yingpo worries about her daughter being bullied. To prevent this, she makes sure to pack plenty of delicious food every day, hoping to win over her daughter’s classmates.

You Xiaomi has always been generous. She often shares the rare chocolates her father brings back with Sheng Baobao. The two little girls have developed a good friendship.

“Baobao, you’re so nice.” You Xiaomi beams, hugging Sheng Baobao and rubbing her affectionately.

“Hey, Jiang Runzhu seems to be looking at you.” You Xiaomi suddenly stops and whispers, “She hasn’t been to school for a while. She seems different from before.”

Sheng Baobao follows her gaze and sees that Jiang Runzhu has noticed their interaction and quickly turns away.

Strange?

Sheng Baobao squints slightly.

Her eyes seem to have a peculiar quality, as if she can see something else—something that doesn’t belong. From Jiang Runzhu’s body, a shadowy aura seems to swirl, as though it is the image of Jiang Runzhu when she is older, but it can’t quite merge or integrate properly.