Hibiskus als Gemälde

Kapitel 108

“I heard that class enemies let them escape…” one of the women replied.

"Class enemies? Why let the savages escape?" Song Diweng was even more confused.

It was lunchtime, and the villagers gradually returned to their homes, leaving only the old man in the wooden house.

Under Master Xufeng's repeated questioning, the old man finally revealed the details of the group of guests who had stayed there three days ago.

Master Xufeng understood immediately. Shen Caihua had described the situation inside the secret chamber of "Guanzhong Earth Navel". The so-called "Shennongjia Wild Man" was just those eight kappa. Therefore, it was not hard to understand why the Hakka nanny and others rescued them.

After the meal, Master Xufeng and Song Diweng bid farewell to the old Tujia man and resolutely followed him into the Shennongjia primeval forest.

Chapter 164

To avoid being discovered by anyone, the Hakka grandmothers and their group traveled by night and hid during the day. More than half a month later, on a clear night, they finally arrived at the Nmai River in northern Myanmar.

When they passed by the shore of Dongting Lake, the old man and his wife could no longer recognize their hometown. In the past, Dongting Lake, which was 800 li long, was the largest lake in the Central Plains, with a boundless lake surface of 15,000 square kilometers. Since the Southern Song Dynasty, successive dynasties have reclaimed land from the lake, especially after the large-scale reclamation after liberation, leaving only 2,800 square kilometers of natural water surface.

"Is this our hometown?" The Kappa brothers looked at the crisscrossing dikes and scattered villages, the tractors belching black smoke and the roaring cars, and asked in disappointment. This was completely different from the vast and boundless watery land that their Kappa father had described for many years.

The old man with the kappa stood there, tears streaming down his face, speechless with astonishment.

Jia Shiming said calmly, "Time flies, and the world changes. After all, sixteen or seventeen hundred years have passed, so the changes are naturally significant."

Seeing the heartbroken kappa, the Hakka grandmother didn't know what to do.

Finally, Shen Caihua persuaded him, "Kappa Dad, why don't you come with us to the Nmai River? There are primeval forests and lots of water there, and no bad people will harm you."

"Yes, Master." Old Man Kappa agreed, and then led his whole family to continue south.

A few days ago, they illegally crossed the border from Yunnan and ventured into the vast, dense rainforests of northern Myanmar. After trekking through the rainforest for several days, they finally arrived at the banks of the vast and mysterious N'Mai Hka River.

That night, the moonlight was hazy, and clusters of tall bamboo trees lined both banks. A light mist floated on the river, and the sound of flowing water filled the air. Everything seemed so natural, ethereal, and tranquil.

"We've finally arrived at Enmai River," the Hakka woman said wistfully.

The kappa cheered, and although their vocal cords could not produce sound, everyone could feel their joy.

Shen Caihua silently immersed the suction tube into the river water on the bank, murmuring, "Suction tube, I've finally brought you home..."

The suction cup limply unfolded its belly, tears welling up in its round eyes, staring motionlessly at its little master.

“Go, Siphon, this is where you should live,” Shen Caihua said softly.

After a long while, the sucker blinked at Chen Caihua, then slowly began to swim. It looked back at its little master one last time, reluctant to leave, before slowly sinking into the water and disappearing. In a moment, the ripple on the river surface gradually disappeared...

"Wah..." Shen Caihua finally couldn't hold back and burst into tears.

"It's...it's just too...touching," Dudu said sadly.

Nizi silently walked up to Shen Caihua, staring blankly at his face. The sound of his crying seemed familiar, as if she had heard it somewhere long ago, a long, long time ago...

Xiong Dahai came over to comfort Caihua and said, "Young master, didn't you want the suction tube to return to Enmaihejiang, which is why we came all this way? Once its body recovers, you can still meet again."

Shen Caihua slowly stopped sobbing and just stared silently at the river.

"Master, we will live in this river from now on. Please rest assured, we will take care of the suction tube," the old kappa said respectfully in his mind.

Shen Cai raised his sorrowful eyes, nodded, and said in his mind, "You may leave..."

"Master, will you come to see us again in the future?" the old man with the kappa asked reluctantly.

"Yes..." Shen Caicai replied, wiping his nose with his sleeve.

"Master, we're off then." After saying this, the old man Kappa led his kappa and jumped into the Eunmae River one after another with a "plop, plop".

The last one was Kappa Lao Liu. It stiffened its neck, stared blankly at Ni Zi, and then slowly sank into the water. After a while, the surface of the water returned to calm.

The Hakka woman turned around and coldly said to Jia Shiming, "Master Jia, the matter of the suction tube is settled. Now we should talk about Momo."

Jia Shiming chuckled and said, "Nizi won't go with you; she's going to find her mother."

"Where exactly is her mother?" The Hakka nanny stared sharply at Jia Shiming.

“Maybe in Myitkyina, sometimes in Mandalay, in short, she does business in the Golden Triangle area, we need to find her slowly,” Jia Shiming replied calmly.

The Hakka woman asked suspiciously, "Doing business? What kind of business would lead you to abandon your own daughter?"

“Drugs,” Jia Shiming stammered, trying to evade the question. “The old ancestor doesn’t know where his daughter is. Six years ago, when Momo was still a baby, she was kidnapped by Mengla Chaweng Bing.”

Upon hearing this, Ni Zi quickly ran over, grabbed Jia Shiming's clothes, and asked anxiously, "Master, where is Myitkyina? Where is Mandalay? Where is the Golden Triangle?"

“Mo Mo’s mother…is dead.” On the riverbank, Shen Caihua suddenly murmured to himself, his eyes staring blankly ahead.

“Talent? What did you say?” the Hakka old woman asked in surprise.

"Mo Mo's mother is dead..." Shen Caihua mumbled incoherently, a strange scene flashing through his mind: deep in the rainforest, a withered old tree, its bare trunk covered with clusters of bright orange-red flame flowers, incredibly beautiful; beneath the tree sat a woman with her breasts exposed, her two dull eyes staring blankly at the sky, a trace of dried blood at the corner of her mouth...

Upon hearing this, Jia Shiming was greatly surprised and hurriedly shouted, "What nonsense are you talking about!"

Shen Caihua was still trying hard to recall, the images in his mind coming in fragments... The woman's breasts drooped lifelessly, and on her dark, plump skin, a word was crookedly written in blood... What word was it? His head began to throb with pain, and the image disappeared.

The Hakka woman reached out and touched Chen Caihua's forehead, asking with concern, "Caihua, what's wrong?"

Chen Cai finally came to his senses and asked blankly, "Master, did I say something?"

“You said that Mo Mo’s mother died,” the Hakka nanny told him.

"You're talking nonsense! My mother won't die!" Nizi walked up to Shen Caihua and shouted loudly, her eyes filled with resentment.

Shen Caihua seemed not to hear, his expression blank, muttering to himself, "Who could that woman be?"

"Which woman?" the Hakka old woman asked, puzzled.

"Under a tree bursting with fiery red blossoms sat a dead woman, dark-skinned and fat, her eyes fixed on me, the blood at the corner of her mouth dried, and a red character written in blood on her chest..."

"What word?" The Hakka woman immediately became alert.

Shen Caicai stretched out his finger and drew the character "人" (person) on the mud, but he couldn't remember the rest.

At this moment, Jia Shiming was already on edge, secretly gathering his inner energy. If absolutely necessary, he was prepared to fight to the death.

"I really can't remember," Shen Caihua said, shaking his head helplessly.

Upon hearing this, Jia Shiming finally felt relieved. He thought to himself, "Back then, when I struck the old ancestor's Tanzhong acupoint with a palm, she should have died instantly. Could it be that she wrote down my name before she died? Jia Shiming, you're supposed to be a seasoned veteran, yet you're so careless... It seems that Shen Caihua might remember this at any time. 'Of the thirty-six stratagems, running away is the best.' It would be best to find an opportunity to slip away with Nizi."

"Believe it or not, this humble Taoist is now taking Nizi to find her mother," Jia Shiming said, shrugging his shoulders with an indifferent expression.

The Hakka woman looked at Shen Caihua with a questioning gaze.

"Master, let's go together to help Momo find her mother," Chen Caihua pleaded.

The Hakka woman nodded slightly, then looked at Jia Shiming coldly and said, "Master Jia, lead the way."

Jia Shiming chuckled and said, "Then follow me to Mandalay. After dawn, we must first find a way to cross the Nmai River."

Xiong Dahai built a campfire, then sat alone on a blue stone submerged in the river. With a snap of his head, he stretched his neck and plunged his head into the river. He then began to tossing small fish and shrimp from his mouth onto the bank, and soon he had accumulated a large pile.

Jia Shiming skillfully skewered small fish and shrimp onto tree branches and grilled them. With a sizzling sound, the aroma of roasted fish gradually wafted out.

After everyone had filled their stomachs, they extinguished the campfire; it was nearly dawn.

As they were about to depart, Shen Caihua gazed longingly at the misty river, tears welling in his eyes, and murmured, "Suction Pump, I will definitely come back to see you..."

Just then, faint singing drifted from the lower reaches of the river...

"Oh dear..."

Sing a folk song across the horizontal row,

Waiting for my girl on the sidewalk

Having taken so many wrong turns,

But the girl's good looks are nowhere to be seen..."

Immediately afterwards, a female voice joined in, its tone extremely soft and melodious:

"Oh dear..."

Sing a folk song across the horizontal row,

The girl wanted to sing but had no talent.

I pondered it for nine days and nine nights.

I can't think of any good words or phrases...

Shen Caihua's heart suddenly stirred. The song sounded so familiar. Where had he heard it before? He frowned and tried to search his memory for the lost memories. At the same time, he looked towards the center of the river, where a wooden boat could be vaguely seen in the thin mist.

Upon seeing this, Jia Shiming was overjoyed and hurriedly shouted, "Boatman... could you take us across the river?"

The wooden boat slowly approached.

Chapter 165

In the morning light, a young man and woman stood on the wooden boat. Both were dressed in straw-yellow military uniforms and wore yellow military caps, but without collar insignia or cap badges. They had two American carbines slung across their chests.

"Are you Chinese?" the young man asked in a friendly manner.

“Yes, we came from Yunnan and want to cross the river to Mandalay,” Jia Shiming replied.

"Mandalay? What are you doing there?" the young man asked warily.

"We're looking for someone. This child's mother has been separated from her for six years. We're taking her to find her mother now," Jia Shiming replied, holding Nizi's hand.

"Lost for six years? This child is so pitiful..." the woman on the boat sighed sympathetically. "Amin, let them get on the boat and go to Mandalay quickly."

As Jia Shiming thanked them, he scooped up Nizi and leaped into the air, landing steadily on the boat. The Hakka woman helped Chen Caihua up by the back, and they both jumped onto the boat. Xiong Dahai, however, took more than ten steps back, then ran and shouted before leaping towards a boat about two zhang (approximately 6.6 meters) away on the shore, landing with a "plop" in the river…

Amin stretched out his pole and pulled the soaking wet Xiong Dahai aboard.

“Master, Dahai has accidentally slipped and fallen…” Xiong Dahai said to the Hakka nanny, his face flushed.

“You all know martial arts…” Amin said admiringly.

With Nizi in his arms, Jia Shiming smiled faintly and said, "Young man, you can start the boat now."

Amin gazed at Jia Shiming's profile, feeling a sense of déjà vu. As he rowed the boat, he continued to ponder deeply.

"Amin, what's wrong?" the woman asked with concern.

"Xiaoqin, I feel like I've seen this old man somewhere before," Amin whispered in her ear.

"How could that be? You've never been to China... But now that you mention it, he does look familiar to me." Xiaoqin looked at him in confusion.

The wooden boat drifted downstream along the Nmai River. In the early morning, the fog on the river was very thick, and everything just a few feet away was covered in white, making visibility poor.

The moment Jia Shiming jumped onto the bow of the boat, he recognized the young couple. Six years ago, at a crossroads outside Myitkyina, they had driven Hansheng in an American Jeep, and a fight almost broke out. He hoped that after so many years, they had long forgotten his face...