Returning from the abyss

Chapter 767 Old News
Before leaving Zhiyu Town, Lu Ning contacted Mao Yizheng according to the contact information given by Cui Fu, and she was connected to a woman in charge of the agency. Lu Ning chatted for a while and asked about the price of the painting and the conditions of the interview , I made a reservation to meet in two days, and this matter can't be speeded up.

Following her, she followed the company name on Tian Qiuxian's contract to find her in the urban area.This is a company that specializes in providing babysitting services, mainly for families with the elderly and children, and the scale is not very large.Lu Ning quickly found their address.

There was a lady in her 40s at the front desk. Lu Ning chatted with the other party for a while, and soon got to the point.

"May I ask if you have a nanny named Tian Qiuxian here?"

"You said Xiaotian, she is here with us, she is a very patient child. If you want to hire her... Let me see, oops, unfortunately, she is not available recently." The front desk clicked the computer twice, Showing a somewhat exaggerated expression.

"Aren't you free? Is there any work?"

"That's not true. She asked for leave. Her sister was seriously ill and needed to go back to take care of her, so she had to ask us for leave. The time is not sure, why don't you think about others?"

"Maybe the time is right? Are you so casual in granting leave?"

"Babysitters, they all come to work as soon as they pass the qualifications. We are not that kind of big company. It is not bad for such a small place to do business well." The front desk said with a little embarrassment, "Of course, the rules also work. Just make money, if you don’t work, you don’t get paid. Oda knows this, if he can’t leave, of course he won’t leave.”

"Then where is her home?" Lu Ning gently supported the position of her temple.

"I can't just say this kind of personal privacy, you...you..."

The gaze at the front desk became much more dazed.

"I'm a client, aren't I? The nanny I want to name has a problem at home. If I can solve it for her sooner, I can get her to work sooner. It's good for you and her."

"You are right."

Lu Ning sighed secretly. The psychological suggestion ability of Requiem Song is not as strong as the main ability. At most, it makes the opponent's psychological defense a little weaker. It is not difficult to break the reason.

"She is from this province and lives in Wuyun Township. Here is her address and contact information..." The front desk tore out a piece of paper and wrote it down, "We also hope that Xiaotian will come back soon, she is our most important person here. One of the good nanny..."

"Thank you." Lu Ning took the note from the bewildered receptionist, turned around and walked out of the company.

Wuyun Township is another journey.Unlike Zhiyu Town, which has mountain views, Wuyun Township is just an ordinary rural town with sparse buildings, and even the road is still a loess road.When Lu Ning landed outside Wuyun Township, a large cloud of dust was even raised.

The environment here is not very good, there is a lot of rubbish on the ground, and things like cans and beverage bottles that have been embedded in the soil have almost become part of the road.The criss-crossing ruts run over here one after another, and the expressions of people passing by on the road are also dull, looking lifeless.

Lu Ning frowned and walked for a while. Wuyun Township didn't even have the freshness of the countryside, and the whole place was lifeless.Finally, she couldn't help but stopped and asked the owner of a commissary.

"This place... a day is a day." The boss replied without emotion while looking for something.

"Did something happen?"

"It's nothing, it's just that people in the village have been dying recently, and the health center is full. It's not a kind of disease, everyone commits their own crimes. Besides, it's almost Chinese New Year, and the young people who went out to work basically didn't get any letters back. , Maybe I won’t come back. Every household is not going well this year, how can they have the strength to live normally?” The boss took out a bottle of drink and a pack of instant noodles and put them on the counter, “Even my business is lost. You Look at my shelf."

There is only one relatively empty shop in the small shop, which sells cigarettes.

"Smoke... the profit is not bad, right?"

"It's not that the sales are too high. I don't even want to buy any more. The years are in recession. Everyone tightens their belts to live. Cigarettes and alcohol can't be sold at all. Some farmers will buy these cheap foods."

"Hey, life is not easy." Lu Ning agreed, and handed 20 yuan to the boss, "Just give me some change, boss, I'll ask you for someone."

"Oh, okay, I'm a local here, and I know everything well." The boss quickly put the money into the drawer.

"Did a girl named Tian Qiuxian come back recently?"

"Hmm... the girl from Tian Er Manzi's family, right? Yes, she came back recently. She should be taking care of her younger sister in the health center. In fact, the family is lucky to be able to come back so soon. Most of them won't come back..."

Seeing that the boss was about to start talking again, Lu Ning hurriedly thanked her and walked out of the canteen.

The township health center is indeed overcrowded, and even Lu Ning can see some death. It is estimated that several people have died here.The few doctors and nurses were busy here, and the simple hospital bungalows were full of people. Two of the temporary beds had even been placed in the aisle.

Lu Ning walked over for a long time before a nurse greeted her.

"Excuse me, what can I do?" She asked in Mandarin with a touch of local dialect.

"I'm here to find someone, may I ask if Tian Qiuxian is here?"

"That room." The nurse pointed, "Be quiet, there are patients inside."

Before Lu Ning could thank her, the nurse continued to work.Helpless, Lu Ning followed the nurse's instructions and walked into the room.

There were a total of six beds in the room, and the curtains were drawn between the beds, but the narrow room was packed to the brim. Every bed was filled with occupants. The room had a strong smell of medicine, and even a smell of rancidity.Lu Ning sighed slightly, looked through the gaps in the curtains one by one, and saw Tian Qiuxian in a curtain near the window.She is still the same as in the photo of the contract, holding an apple in her hand and slowly peeling it, while a much smaller girl is lying on the bed, looking at the apple in her hand with a pale face.

Lu Ning raised the curtain, and Tian Qiuxian, who noticed the movement, turned her head and looked at Lu Ning with a puzzled face: "I'm sorry, you... did you go wrong?"

"I'm looking for Tian Qiuxian." Lu Ning laughed, "It took me a little effort, but I still found you. I have something to ask you, and of course, I will give you a good reward."

"What..." Tian Qiuxian became more vigilant, "I have nothing to tell you."

"Have you served an old man in Zhiyu Town before?" Lu Ning asked her straightforwardly.

Tian Qiuxian glanced at the girl on the bed, put the apple aside, whispered something in her ear, then got up and said to Lu Ning, "Don't disturb the patient... go out and talk."

"can."

The two walked outside the clinic, in a secluded corner, before Tian Qiuxian said, "I know that old gentleman passed away later."

"Oh? The old man passed away shortly after you left. It can be said that you were the last person to live with him. Are you not afraid?"

"Why did you find me? I don't know why he died. I just left when the contract expired." Tian Qiuxian said.

"But you are very familiar with that old man. Unfortunately, that old man has a little relationship with me. I need to know about his life."

Tian Qiuxian sighed and asked, "Then what is the reward you just mentioned?"

"I dare not boast that your sister's disease is completely cured, but it is still possible to make her better, at least it won't be so painful." Lu Ning said.

Pharmacology is very useful here, and all the drug knowledge that Lu Ning has mastered can do this. Of course, if you want professional treatment, you still have to go to a big hospital for diagnosis.

"Do you know what disease she has?"

"I haven't diagnosed yet, of course I don't know, but this place is already overcrowded. Don't you realize that there are too many people who are seriously ill recently? It's probably because there is a problem with the water and soil here. How to treat it is up to you. make a decision."

"...Okay, what do you want to ask?"

"During the last time you were with the old man, did he change or do any amazing things. By the way, the old man gave a piece of paperweight, did you engrave the words on it?"

"I carved it, and the material was provided by the old man." Tian Qiuxian admitted, "This is a craft I learned before, and the old man even praised me."

"Well, you are right. Please tell me about the old man, including whether anyone has visited him during this time."

"My husband has a regular schedule, and his body has always been healthy. Until I left, his body was still healthy. At that time, I never thought that my husband would pass away within a few days."

"Did anything special happen?"

"Occasionally, sir, some friends will come to visit, that is, they will leave in a day or two. Sometimes no one in the town knows that someone has visited him. I remember three in total. Of course, I don't know their names. , I only know what they look like and what they wear."

"Tell me."

Tian Qiuxian hesitated for a moment before saying: "Both of them are collectors of calligraphy and painting. I heard them chatting. One is young, tall and has a somewhat naive look. The other is about 40 years old and has a mustache. , very similar to the shopkeepers of those ancient shops on TV. Both of these two people left after staying for two days, and what I heard between my husband and them were ordinary exchanges of calligraphy and painting."

"Well, what about another one?"

"It's a woman, dressed very fashionable, and she only stayed for one day. She doesn't know calligraphy and painting. After all, based on my understanding of the husband, if the person who came here is from the same class, he must have a lot to talk about. The woman seems to be here to hand over I don’t know what it is, but I only heard her urging me to keep it safe.”

"What does it look like?"

"Three 40 years old, well maintained, but you can see some wrinkles of the years. The clothes on her body are very beautiful, I don't know what brand it is, the hair should have been permed..."

Tian Qiuxian described the lady's appearance and clothes as much as possible, and Lu Ning gradually had a person's appearance in her mind, and became more and more familiar.

The mother and daughter who were stolen by thieves she met in the second-hand store before, the woman who came forward looked like this.

"Is she alone?"

"Yes, I will clean the guest room, there is no second person." Tian Qiuxian nodded with certainty, "These three guests all came alone."

"Okay. So do you have any impression of the paintings collected by the old gentleman?"

Lu Ning just asked this question casually, but Tian Qiuxian really knew it.

Perhaps it was her carving skills that won the old man's favor, and the old man also let her appreciate some paintings in his collection.But Tian Qiuxian has never seen that special painting, but has seen many collections of the old man himself.Since she has caught the eyes of the old man, she can be regarded as having some artistic talent, and now Lu Ning can still tell a thing or two when asked.

"Among those paintings, there is one that Mr. particularly likes." Tian Qiuxian said, "It's a picture of a lady, the kind of picture of a lady in ancient times, but with exquisite craftsmanship. I think it may be the old man's lover or something , he has always cherished it very much. I have only seen it two or three times. The old man said that he has obtained such a painting in his life, and he has nothing else to ask for. Now living in seclusion in this landscape and countryside, the most comfortable thing to live in .”

"Then what do you think is special about that painting?" Lu Ning asked.

"I... think it's my own illusion, but the few times I've seen it, I always feel that the painting has changed." Tian Qiuxian said hesitantly, "It's just that the colors are getting fuller and the characters are getting more vivid. It looks more like a famous painting."

Strangely, Lu Ning and Tang Ling had searched the house before, but they never saw a picture of a lady.

"That's all I know, my sister..." Tian Qiuxian looked at Lu Ning pleadingly.

"Go in, I'll check on her condition first."

Her younger sister's illness is also a bit strange, from the pulse condition, it is weak, and all the organs of the body are weak, but there is no fatal feature.If things go on like this, I'm afraid he will die due to multiple organ dysfunction.After thinking about it, Lu Ning prepared a set of medicine. Her knowledge of pharmacology could not cure this unknown weakness, but it could be delayed by supplementing.

"I can't cure this disease. When did your sister get sick?"

"Father said that it was two weeks ago. Because the villagers were sick, I didn't plan to occupy the clinic, but the situation is getting worse..." Tian Qiuxian said with her head lowered.

"I suggest turning away from here first, even if it is sent to a hospital in the urban area." Lu Ning said.

"The family doesn't have that much money, and my father won't agree."

"This is a problem in your family. I'm just making suggestions. If you need it, I can help you get in touch. This is the most help I can give you."

Tian Qiuxian bit her lip, finally nodded and said, "Okay, I'm going to give it a try, the disease has to be cured."

Lu Ning smiled.

But... two weeks ago?That time also coincided with the time when I met that woman and then died in the street, if this was the start of a whole plan...

(End of this chapter)