Animal Detective

Chapter 364: Chapter 300: When It Rains, It Pours

Coming down the mountain, Shen Xin glanced to the west.

In the darkness of night, the endless mountain peaks crouched on the Earth like great beasts. As far as the eye could see, there was only the faint twinkling of stars in the sky.

They returned with Zhou Er’feng.

Upon seeing his wife, Xu Erleng went up and gave her an earful.

Zhou Er’feng hid behind Guo Jin, still muttering the name "Er Feng."

Guo Jin stopped him, chiding, "Alright, that’s enough. I told you a long time ago to buy a three-wheeler. It’d be easier for you to get to the villages, and you could bring Er Feng with you to keep her from getting lost."

Xu Erleng mumbled that it was easy for him to say; he barely made any money, and it was a struggle just to put food on the table.

Only then did he offer a round of thanks.

Guo Jin pointed at Tian Kui. "If you’re going to thank anyone, thank Tian Kui. Do you have any idea where she ran off to? Up the mountain! If it wasn’t for Tian Kui, you wouldn’t have found her in a hundred years."

Xu Erleng was shocked and gave his wife another earful.

Then he clicked his tongue in amazement, remarking on how incredible police dogs were.

"What do you expect? It’s a police dog, after all."

Guo Jin’s face beamed with pride.

Tian Kui held its head high, its posture seeming to say, ’A small matter like this is hardly worth mentioning.’

After seeing Xu Erleng and his wife off, the remaining group was about to head back when Shen Xin stopped Guo Jin. He pointed toward the road to the west. "Guo Suo, it’s pitch-black out here without a single streetlight. Li Shi is heading back all alone. Do you think he’ll be alright?"

The kid’s only fourteen; he’s still so young.

’I don’t know how far away his home is,’ Shen Xin thought, ’but even if it’s close, it’s easy for something to go wrong in this darkness.’

Guo Jin hesitated. He probably knew that Li Shi did this often, but since Shen Xin had brought it up, he said, "Alright, I’ll follow him on the motorcycle in a bit to check."

The other officers’ shifts had ended long ago. Aside from the person on duty, he was the only one who could go.

Shen Xin said, "Guo Suo, I’ll go with you."

’It’s dangerous to go alone. An extra person means an extra pair of eyes.’

Besides, he was the one who had raised the issue.

"That won’t do. You’ve all been running around all day. Go on back and get some rest. I’ve already arranged your rooms," Guo Jin quickly refused.

Shen Xin said it was fine. Back in Nanjiang, the nightlife was just getting started at eight in the evening.

Even though Ningshan didn’t have much of a nightlife, he wouldn’t be able to fall asleep this early anyway.

Sun Yongjie also chimed in, offering to go along.

But that was even more out of the question; he was on duty that night.

"Guo Suo, just let me go. We’re all family here, aren’t we? You’re not really going to treat me like a guest, are you?" Shen Xin finally said, trying to persuade him.

Shen Xin knew the hardships they faced: a tiny station responsible for a huge area, constantly on the move with too few officers.

If it weren’t so dark out and Li Shi weren’t so young, Shen Xin wouldn’t have even mentioned it.

Those words seemed to strike a chord with Guo Jin. He chuckled. "You’re right. We are all family here."

Shen Xin had brought Tian Kui over, so Nanjiang was like Tian Kui’s family home.

With that settled, the group returned to the police station.

Those whose shifts were over left for the day, and He Wen Yu returned to his hotel to edit his videos.

Guo Jin mounted the station’s motorcycle and set off with Shen Xin.

As they chatted on the road, Shen Xin was surprised to learn that Li Shi lived in Baijia Village, which was over twenty kilometers from town.

That was an hour and a half ride by bicycle.

"And he still rides back home?" Shen Xin asked, astonished.

The wind was loud, so Guo Jin had to shout. "He has no choice! His grandmother’s legs are bad; she can barely take care of herself."

"And his little sister, Li Yao, she’s only seven, right? Just started elementary school. She has to help take care of their grandmother. Li Shi worries about them, so he’s always rushing back home."

"That’s why I say, the kid looks like a punk, but deep down, he’s not bad at all."

Shen Xin nodded. If that was the case, then Li Shi was certainly shouldering a lot of responsibility.

Shen Xin noticed something and asked curiously, "His name is Li Shi, and his sister’s is Li Yao. Do their names combine to form ’Shiyao’?"

"Exactly. Shiyao," Guo Jin said. "I remember asking their father about it. He told me he named them that hoping they could one day leave Baijia Post and go to Shiyao, or some other big city."

He couldn’t help but sigh with emotion at the thought. Making a living in the mountains wasn’t easy. Anyone with skills had left, leaving behind only the very old and the very young.

Shen Xin felt the same. Ever since arriving in Ju Province, all he could see were mountains, one after another.

It wasn’t easy to make it out from the depths of these great mountains.

The search for Zhou Er’feng had delayed them. They rode on, chasing after the boy, but surprisingly, there was no sign of Li Shi.

Shen Xin scanned their surroundings, worried that Li Shi might have gotten into an accident.

The mountain road twisted and turned. A car would pass only once in a blue moon, and the road grew narrower the further they went.

They rode for nearly half an hour. After cresting a slope, the motorcycle’s headlight swept forward and illuminated a lone figure.

The person was pedaling furiously, HUFFING and PUFFING. The faint, whirring sound of a toy horn drifted toward them.

It was Li Shi, of course.

He glanced back over his shoulder and pulled over to the side of the road.

Shen Xin felt a wave of relief. In the distance, he could see specks of light dotting a ravine up ahead.

That must be Baijia Post.

’The kid’s a surprisingly fast rider,’ Shen Xin thought.

Guo Jin caught up and called out to Li Shi.

The boy stopped his bike and watched Guo Jin warily, his expression still defiant.

Guo Jin said irritably, "What are you glaring at me for? We were worried you’d get into trouble, so we came to check on you. And what are you doing out here anyway? What day is it? Is school even out for the holidays? And you’re already rushing home."

Li Shi gave his usual reply: "None of your business."

Guo Jin glared back. "Well, I’m making it my business! What are you gonna do about it, you little punk?"

Baijia Post was just ahead; they were practically on his doorstep. They might as well see him all the way home.

Guo Jin rode his motorcycle alongside the boy, lecturing him continuously.

He told him how hard his father worked to earn money, how dark and thin he’d looked the last time he’d seen him, and urged Li Shi to be more understanding and focus on his studies.

But at that age, in the throes of his rebellious phase, the words went in one ear and out the other.

"Huh? Your dad’s back? When did he get here?" In the midst of his lecture, Guo Jin was surprised to learn that Li Shi’s father, Li Xingping, had returned.

Li Shi mumbled a reply and nodded.

Guo Jin snorted. "Well, then I definitely have to pay your family a visit."

He turned to Shen Xin and explained that Li Xingping was a man of few words, but he had a short fuse and was known to hit his children.

Guo Jin figured Li Shi had rushed home because he was worried about his sister.

Li Shi kept his head down and pedaled. Soon, he turned onto a concrete village path.

Up ahead was Baijia Post.

The village was nestled at the foot of a mountain, surrounded on three sides.

The path was flanked by rice paddies, still unplanted at this time of year. At the end of the path was the village entrance, marked by a small, open clearing.

Two paths branched off to the left and right. The one on the right climbed upward.

The village itself was built in a terraced fashion, with houses arranged in rows climbing up the slope.

It wasn’t a large village, probably just a few dozen households.

A quick scan revealed few two-story buildings, a sign that the village wasn’t very prosperous.

Li Shi took the right-hand fork, continuing his ride upward.

When the slope became too steep to ride, he dismounted and started pushing his bike.

Guo Jin pointed to the winding mountain road ahead. "His family lives up there."

Shen Xin had noticed it when they first entered the area. The mountain formed a C-shaped hollow, with the village situated in the upper part of the curve.

The ridge above the "C" jutted out, and about halfway up the mountain, the terrain leveled off into a plateau.

On that flat section, Shen Xin could see lights shining.

It was only after Guo Jin explained that Shen Xin understood.

The place was called Baijia Post, he learned, because long ago it had been the site of a bandit stronghold.

The flat plateau on the mountain, extending outward, had served as the stronghold’s forward sentry post. From its commanding height, one could see the entire approach into the mountains.

Over time, a village formed around it.

Later, the county government built a road and installed power lines. However, considering the high cost of running electricity up the mountain and the general inconvenience of travel, they relocated most of the mountain’s inhabitants down to the foothills.

Still, a few families chose to remain on the mountain.

Li Xingping’s family was one of them. They had not moved down.

Only a handful of households remained on the mountain now. But a primary school had since been built, and a concrete road now led all the way up, so living there wasn’t a huge problem.

The school had been built there to serve not only their village, but another one on the opposite side of the mountain, making it convenient for children from both sides to attend.

At this hour, the village was quiet, with almost no one out and about.

Anyone they happened to pass was familiar with Guo Jin and greeted him readily.

The winding mountain road wasn’t wide, but it was far better than a muddy track.

Seeing Li Shi struggling to push the bike, Guo Jin had him hop on the motorcycle as well. Shen Xin then grabbed the bicycle’s handlebars with one hand, steadying it as they continued up the mountain.

The first thing they saw when they reached the top was the school: a small, two-story building in a square courtyard with a flagpole.

Guo Jin mentioned that it wasn’t doing well either—only a few dozen students and three teachers remained.

Li Shi’s house was right behind the school.

Only seven families remained up here. Their houses, traditional wooden structures with black-tiled roofs, were scattered up the slope.

A light was still on at Li Shi’s house. He knocked loudly—BANG BANG—and a moment later, a little girl opened the door.

It must have been his sister, Li Yao.

She was only seven, barely over a meter tall, and dressed in a gray-blue long-sleeved shirt. Her hair was in a thick braid, and her frame was slight and frail.

Her face had the sallow complexion of malnutrition, but she was adorable. Her face lit up with joy when she saw Li Shi. She turned and shouted into the house, "Brother’s back!"

Shen Xin dismounted and took in the surrounding houses.

They all had courtyards. From this high vantage point, Shen Xin could only imagine the view during the day.

Just by pushing open the front door, you’d be greeted by a view of the boundless Earth and endless rolling mountains.

He followed Guo Jin inside and saw Li Xingping.

He was just as Guo Jin had described: dark and thin, not yet forty, but his back was already slightly stooped.

As they walked in, the father and son were already arguing.

They were speaking a local dialect, and quickly at that, but it sounded like Li Xingping was scolding Li Shi for skipping school to come home.

Li Shi’s attitude was defiant, and he talked back, causing Li Xingping’s temper to flare. The man started looking for something to hit his son with.

Guo Jin quickly stepped in to stop him, then asked Li Xingping why he had returned so suddenly.

"Don’t even ask."

Li Xingping waved the two of them further into the house.

Shen Xin noticed that the man walked with a slight limp and couldn’t seem to take full strides.

A glance around the room revealed no decent furniture, and appliances were nonexistent.

An old woman sat on a chair in the corner, talking to Li Shi. This must be his grandmother.

Seeing Guo Jin, she used her cane to help herself up and greet him.

Guo Jin quickly motioned for her to sit back down, then continued questioning Li Xingping about his situation.

He knew Li Xingping still had debts to pay off. It wasn’t a holiday or festival, so why would he suddenly return?

Li Xingping pulled over a chair and sat, his face a mask of helplessness as he explained why he was back.

He was sick.

"While I was working out of town, my hip joint was in constant pain, and my leg felt heavy. I finally couldn’t take it anymore and went to the hospital. They found I have unilateral osteonecrosis of the femoral head."

"It’s already progressed to stage three, so I need hip-preservation surgery."

"I asked about the cost. It’s fifty to eighty thousand yuan."

"I was just a factory worker, they didn’t pay for my medical or social insurance. How could I possibly afford that?"

"I had no choice but to come back here for treatment."

"At least here at home, I’m covered by the rural cooperative medical insurance."

"But unexpectedly, something went wrong with that, too."

Li Xingping pulled out his phone. "Guo Suo, this is something you guys can handle, right? I swear I told Zhang Kaiyong to help me pay the rural co-op premium first, and I’d give him the money when I got back."

"I sent him a text message, and he even replied saying he would! But now he’s telling me he never paid it. What am I supposed to do? I can’t wait until next year for treatment. If this drags on for a year... how is my family supposed to survive?"

As he spoke, he showed the text message to Guo Jin.

The Zhang Kaiyong he mentioned was the village director, who had forgotten to submit his payment when collecting the premiums for the cooperative medical insurance.

Without that coverage, the surgery couldn’t be reimbursed. Li Xingping had no way to pay for it out of his own pocket.

Under the dim, yellow lightbulb, Shen Xin looked at the family’s bare walls, at the old grandmother and the young children, and could not help but sigh.

This, he supposed, was a textbook case of "when it rains, it pours."