The pain in his teeth woke Liang Zhe from his dream of running wildly on a rainy night.
His back alveolar swelling was accompanied by a dull pain at the base of his ears. He got up from the floor, swallowed two painkillers, took a few anti-inflammatories, picked up a glass of cold water on the bedside table and drank it all in one go. Then he looked at the cup. It was clean, as if it had been cleaned. Broken memories came to mind, and he remembered that his sister seemed to have helped him back home last night, and her sister must have poured the glass of water.
He picked up his wife's cell phone and sent a text: Are you there?
After waiting anxiously for five minutes, my wife replied: Yes.
He took a long breath and said to the air: "Are you asleep too?"
My wife sent a text: I don’t know. I often fall into a state of unconsciousness these days, as if I’m asleep, but I don’t think it’s sleep, it’s more like a state of confusion, but the problem shouldn’t be Da, don’t worry. Even if I don’t reply immediately, if I am among the AirDrop contacts, it means I am by your side. Even if not, don’t worry. Maybe I will appear after a while, just like last night. On your way back, I was obviously by your side, but you were not among the airdropped contacts.
Liang Zhe felt that this was not a good sign, but he and his wife were separated by Yin and Yang, so he could not help much. He charged his wife's mobile phone and said, "Let's go to that cave today. I think there must be clues in it."
The wife sent a text: I am with you.
Then another text: Remember to have breakfast.
Liang Zhe smiled. He found that he felt a little more relaxed. Since he linked up with his wife's yin and yang, he has made great progress in finding yang and yang. Although his friendship with Pang Yi was completely broken, the facts proved that it was just his wishful thinking. Pang Yi no longer regarded him as a friend, and Yangyang's life was not as important as their little privacy.
Liang Zhe walked out of the bedroom and said as he walked, "Okay, I'll eat right now."
He hadn't had breakfast for a long time and couldn't even remember what breakfast tasted like. There was no breakfast reserved at home. He could only go to a stall to buy fried dough sticks and soy milk after going out, and squatted on the roadside as if he had completed a mission. After eating hastily, he went to the hardware store to buy some hammers and awls, and then headed to the mountains.
He parked the car in Lao Yang's yard at the foot of the mountain.
The waning old Yang was lying on the rocking chair at the door of the house. His gray hair shone dazzlingly in the sun, and his hazy eyes were full of traces of the passage of time. Old Yang smiled at Liang Zhe, as if he knew he was coming.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, Liang Zhe climbed to the top of the mountain with his backpack and equipment bag. About 500 meters to the right of the grove, there was the pit where the police originally determined that Yangyang had fallen. It was Pang Jinjin who pushed Yangyang down. At this place, the surface of the pit has been filled with stone bricks and soil. The surrounding area is covered with a layer of steel mesh and a warning sign is placed side by side. After years of exposure to wind and sun, the words on the warning sign have long been mottled, faded and distorted. Fell down in the grass.
Liang Zhe knocked a few times with a shovel. The pit was very solid, and a faint hollow sound could be heard. He went down the slope, passed through a patch of grass, and came to the entrance of the cave. The entrance was blocked by stones, and a layer of cement was painted on the surface. He climbed to the top of the pit, cut a gap with an iron awl, and kicked out the The stone got in through the gap.
Five years ago, he had searched this cave many times and knew it very well. He knew that the total length of the cave was about one hundred meters, and that there was a section in the middle that was so low that one had to lie down to get through. Going forward is the exit, which is a steep slope, a small cliff, leading to the jungle-covered back mountain.
Five years have passed, and the layout of the cave has not changed at all, except for the addition of some damp plants such as pothos moss. The familiar environment reminded him of the scene where everyone came in and out looking for Yangyang five years ago. The damp smell reminded him of Yangyang's favorite set of ocean toys before he disappeared, and Yangyang brought them to the mountain. , after Yangyang disappeared, he kept the set of toys. There were ten kinds of sea creatures in total, but one blue turtle was missing. He always suspected that the blue turtle was carried by Yangyang and disappeared with Yangyang. .
He took a deep breath, suppressed his emotions, and returned his attention to the cave.
"We already dug this place over five years ago." Liang Zhe muttered to himself as he walked in. "Everyone suspected that Yangyang fell from the small cliff on the other side. That's why the woods became Focus on search targets.”
Liang Zhe took a look at the airdrop. His wife was among the contacts, but she didn't send a text.
"If I were Yang Yang, what would I do if I fell from the pit?" Liang Zhe came to the pit, turned on the flashlight, stood on tiptoe, and pulled apart the maidenhair fern on the stone wall, and could vaguely see the cement seal. Looking at the traces of stone bricks, he simulated Yangyang's reaction in his mind after falling down, "The height here is less than two meters. Yangyang did not fall directly, but grabbed the edge and fell. It will not be too severe." He was seriously injured. He should have called for help immediately after landing. The pit was not blocked and people outside could hear it, but why didn't he call for help?"
Liang Zhe took another look at the airdrop, but his wife still didn't send a text.
He raised his voice and asked loudly: "Honey, what do you think?"
The lingering sound echoed in the cave, as if there were many people talking at the same time.
After a while, my wife sent a text: Let's start looking for it from where Yangyang fell. We didn't find any clues back then, but maybe we will now. Let's look for it first and think of a solution as we go.
"Okay." Liang Zhe squatted down, "I always feel that there is Yangyang's breath here, can you feel it?"
My wife sent a text: It would be dangerous for me to feel it.
He heard that his wife was joking and couldn't help but smile: "That's true."
Liang Zhe lay on the ground and started searching right below the hole. He first groped with his hands and then dug with a small shovel. Whatever he found, he collected it first and finally cleaned and inspected it. While he was searching, he was chatting with his wife. Time passed quickly, and the sun set in a blink of an eye. He climbed up to the entrance of the cave and looked out through the gap. The sunset filled the sky with the afterglow. He lay on the stone wall with his pillow on his head. Sunset took a nap for a while, then returned to the cave to continue searching.
After nine o'clock in the evening, the entire cave was searched, and nothing of value was found. He sat in front of the steep slope at the other end, staring at the dark dense forest in a daze for a while, then returned to the entrance and took the bag from his backpack. I took out bread and white wine. After eating and drinking, I wanted to continue searching, but I didn't know where to start. He stared blankly at the dark cave, feeling at a loss. He realized that although this kind of search was physically easier than digging in the woods, it was more mentally draining because there was no goal or direction.
He was all too familiar with this feeling and hated it.
My wife sent a text: Today is almost over, let’s go to Lao Yang’s place to take a nap.
He shook his head stubbornly: "Just sleep here, otherwise you have to climb up tomorrow."
My wife sent a text: Then drink less alcohol. Even if you find something useful, you won’t know it when you are drunk.
A gust of cool wind blew from the entrance of the cave, and Liang Zhe shivered. Accompanying the shiver was a sense of anxiety and anger that had been dormant for a long time. He thought of all the times in the past five years when he had been running around like a headless fly. In the panic years, every time he found a little bit of hope, he went to confirm it without stopping, only to find that it was an elusive phantom. It was often at this moment that it hit him the hardest. He was more afraid of hope than setbacks.
Because hope usually turns into disappointment.
The accumulation of disappointments over and over again will make a person completely changed, just like he is now.
He silently unscrewed the wine bottle and took a big sip of wine. His body became warm and his consciousness became blurry. He had a premonition that he would not find anything in this cave. Maybe this is not a premonition, but reality itself, but he just doesn't want to admit it. In the past five years, he has traveled all over the mountains and rivers in the north and south. Unexpectedly, after searching and searching, he returned to the original cave. This gave him the illusion that the past five years no longer existed, and today was that night five years ago. Same. Others saw him as a lunatic in searching for children all over the world, but he was the only one who knew how exhausted he was inside. Five years, nearly two thousand days and nights of suffering and waiting, why didn't he want to stop and rest, and start a new life like a normal person? But every time he had this thought, his son's smiling face would shine. In his mind, he knew that once he stopped, it would mean that his son had left this world forever.
As long as he doesn't give up, his son will always live.
He took another sip of wine, looked into the depths of the cave with dreamy eyes, and vaguely saw a ball of light. He stood up and walked towards the ball of light. His wife sent a text, but he didn't read it. He walked slowly closer. , and found that it was a firefly. The light emitted by the firefly in the dark night was as bright as a searchlight, flying up and down around him.
He sat on the floor with a sad smile on his face and gradually closed his eyes.
The early morning sunlight shone in through the cracks in the cave, illuminating his huddled body. He opened his eyes and found that he had arrived at the corner of the cave at some point, with the light blue backpack blocking his chest. On Father's Day two years ago, his son bought him a holiday gift with his New Year's money. He carried it wherever he went. The backpack was thick and warm, and it protected him from the cold night. He took out his wife's mobile phone and found that his wife I sent him several texts last night, all reminding him to go down the mountain to Lao Yang's place to rest. The last one was at 11pm.
He shook his groggy head and sent a text to his wife: Are you there?
After a few minutes, my wife replied: I know you are tired, but you shouldn't have drank so much last night.
He edited a text, wanted to explain it, deleted it, opened his mouth, and said nothing.
My wife sent a text: You should eat normally and rest normally so that you can search longer. Otherwise, you will fall down before you find your son. I was really afraid that you wouldn't wake up last night because the cave was so stuffy.
He frowned slightly and whispered: "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
Then he got up, randomly found an area, lay down on the ground, and started searching. He didn't know what he was looking for, and he didn't know if he had already searched here before. He dug at the soil as if to vent his anger, and blood flowed from his fingernails.
My wife sent a text: Don’t be like this, go out and bask in the sun first, and let’s find a solution together.
He lowered his head and said, "I'm thinking, don't disturb me."
My wife sent a text: Do you think I talk too much?
He suddenly raised his voice: "You gave up, you know, you gave up."
My wife sent a text: What do you mean?
He raised his head and looked a little excited: "You didn't go out to search for the last year. You must have thought that your son was dead. Then you abandoned your son and left all the troubles to me. It was you who gave up first. I Didn’t give up.”
My wife sent a text: You still blame me.
He stopped what he was doing: "You said it again, you said it when you were alive, and you said it after you died."
The wife sent a text: It was you who asked Yangyang to leave the tent in the first place. He was having a good time in the tent.
He hammered the ground hard: "I have to go to work, you should be watching him!"
My wife immediately sent a text: I was going to have a video conference, and the signal was poor on the mountain.
He shook his head: "You always have a reason, okay, stop talking, it's pointless."
My wife sent a text: Then you can look for it here, I’m going back.
His mouth moved but he didn't speak. He lay on the ground and continued to search. After a while, he found that there was no wife among the contacts sent by airdrop. He felt a pain in his heart and increased his rummaging strength. On the wet soil There were traces of blood left, squirming along with the earthworms. He checked his phone every once in a while. After more than an hour, he still didn't see his wife. He shouted into the cave, and the echoes came to his ears over and over again. It was empty. And in Loneliness, he felt a pain in his arm, and a small insect was biting on his arm. He shook the insect away, got up and crawled out of the cave.
"Meng Xiaoyao!" He stood on the stone and shouted, "Meng Xiaoyao!"
The phone is not ringing and there is no wife in the contacts.
He became a little anxious. He jumped off the stone and ran into the grass, shouting as he ran: "Meng Xiaoyao——"
The phone dinged, unusually clear.
My wife sent a text: Stop shouting. Your shouting reminds me of the scene where I shouted Yangyang five years ago, and I feel flustered.
There was excitement and joy in his heart: "You didn't leave?"
My wife sent a text: How could I leave? It was just a moment of anger.
Liang Zhe smiled: "That's great. I thought you were really gone. It scared me to death."
My wife sent a text: If you were really worried, you wouldn’t have waited more than an hour to come out.
Liang Zhe cupped his hands and made an apology: "It's my fault."
My wife sent a text: What does it mean that you are wrong? It means you are wrong.
Soon, my wife sent another text: But I was also at fault. We were both responsible for what happened back then, so let’s stop blaming each other. I can’t die again to apologize. Besides, I didn’t commit suicide because I wanted revenge. You, or deliberately let you live in pain and guilt, I really can't live anymore, I want to free myself.
Liang Zhe took a deep breath. He knew that he had just made a mistake. In fact, he was not angry at his wife, but at himself. He was angry at the lack of results in his search and at the hope that his hope had turned into disappointment again. He said: "Let's not do it again." We quarreled, we have had enough quarrels in the past few years, but I didn’t expect that we would have to quarrel even after death.”
My wife sent a text: Stop arguing. You didn’t come out just now. I was quite worried. I couldn’t help but want to go in. Don’t be disappointed. I have been looking for you for so many years. This time is not enough.
Liang Zhe smiled silently, and the midday sun shone on his face, making his haggard cheeks turn a little rosy. He sat on a stone to bask in the sun, and his wife sat next to him from a distance, and they bask in the sun side by side. At this moment, he felt a sense of peace that he had not seen for a long time. He wished he could continue to bask in the sun like this, with the sun never setting, his wife and children by his side, and his family reunited and safe. He would have no desires or desires in this life.
A cell phone rang, bringing his thoughts back to reality.
Deng Zhongquan called and asked where he was and said he wanted to talk to him about something.
He remembered that five years ago, after He Ranran discovered the pit, Deng Zhongquan was the first to get into it. In the past five years, his suspicion of Deng Zhongquan has never disappeared, but he has never found evidence. He told Deng Zhongquan that he would go back in the afternoon, and they arranged to meet at the tea garden. After hanging up the phone, he took his wife and hurried down the mountain.
