After Qi Yihan settled the matters in the company, the two of them went to Jiangnan with Butler Yang.
Butler Yangâs hometown still had many buildings from the last century, such as alleys, flowers, and ancient bridges.
It was the rainy season in Jiangnan. Qi Yihan held an umbrella with one hand and held Tang Liâs shoulder with the other. The two of them walked on the bridge and looked at the boats passing by in the river. In the eyes of others, the two of them looked like a painting.
âI didnât expect Butler Yangâs hometown to be so beautiful.â Tang Li craned her neck to look at the boat under the bridge, but Qi Yihan pulled her back.
âDonât stick your head out. Your hair will get wet later.â
Tang Li tilted her head and smiled at him. âI want to take a boat.â
Qi Yihan looked around and found a place to take the boat and brought her there.
There were not many people walking around on a rainy day. Occasionally, one or two people would pass by in a hurry.
There were even fewer people at the tourist dock. The two of them bought two tickets at the tourist center beside the dock and boarded the ship.
The two of them stood on the boat with an umbrella and looked at the scenery around them, feeling the peace and quiet of the water village in Jiangnan.
At noon, Butler Yang called and the two of them walked back.
Butler Yang had many relatives here, and he also had a house of his own. His house had always been taken care of by his uncleâs family.
The two of them walked into the courtyard. Butler Yang was washing his hands with the water press. When he saw them enter, he said, âItâs almost lunchtime.â
Tang Li asked, âHave you finished visiting your relatives?â
After the three of them arrived, Butler Yang went to inform his relatives. It was not appropriate for Tang Li and Qi Yihan to go with him, so the two of them looked around.
âYes, I did.â Butler Yang poured away the water and filled up the basin again.
The two of them walked over and washed their hands before walking into the living room.
Butler Yang asked as he walked, âIt just so happens that my Third Uncleâs birthday is the day after tomorrow. Iâm going over to help tonight. Do you want to come over for dinner tonight?â
Tang Li and Qi Yihan looked at each other. Qi Yihan asked, âIs it ok for us to go?â
âYes,â Butler Yang said. âMy Third Uncle used to treat me very well. When my sister and I were young, he liked us the most. He knows a lot about what happened to my sister back then.â
âThen letâs go and talk to him,â Tang Li said. âMaybe he will have some clues about your lost sister. As long as we find some clues about your sister, we can find her exact location.â
Butler Yang nodded. He thought so too.
At night, Tang Li and Qi Yihan followed Butler Yang to his uncleâs house.
The people on this street all had the surname Yang. There was also a Yang family ancestral hall on the street.
The eldersâ birthday banquet here usually lasted for three days. Before the birthday banquet officially started, relatives would come over to help.
The moment they arrived, they were treated like VIPs because everyone knew who Qi Yihan was.
The three of them sat in front of Third Uncle and talked.
Butler Yangâs third uncle was already 90 years old, but he looked pretty healthy. When he saw Butler Yang, he held his hand and asked questions. His eyes were filled with tears as he kept saying that Butler Yang was an unfortunate child and wanted him to get married.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Butler Yang chatted with him for a while before turning the topic to his sister.
Third Uncle sighed and said, âIf Yingying didnât get lost back then, she would be a grown girl now. Junhui (Butler Yangâs name is Yang Junhui) wouldnât have to leave his hometown to look for her.â
Butler Yang sighed as well, his tone filled with self-blame. âItâs a pity that I still canât find Yingying despite having tried all I can. Iâm not a good brother.â
âItâs not your fault.â Third Uncle frowned and said, âYou were still a child at that time. If you want to blame someone, blame the human traffickers.â
Tang Li looked at Third Uncle and asked, âWas Brother Yangâs sister taken away by human traffickers? I thought she got lost.â
âShe must have been taken away by a human trafficker.â Third Uncle said firmly. âThere were many human traffickers in that time.â
Tang Li nodded. âThatâs possible.â
Then, she asked, âIâve heard Brother Yang mention his sister before. Third Uncle, can you tell me how Brother Yangâs sister disappeared?â
When Tang Li brought this up, he recalled and told her,
âAt that time, Junhuiâs parents went to town to buy something, so they brought Junhui and Yingying with them. That day was the town fair, and there were many people attending the fair. At that time, Junhuiâs parents were trying on clothes for Junhui, but in the blink of an eye, Yingying disappeared. We mobilized everyone in the village, but we still couldnât find her.â
After saying this, he said to Butler Yang, âItâs really not your fault.â
Butler Yang shook his head. âIf I didnât want that dress, my sister wouldnât have gone missing.â
âYou were only six or seven years old at that time. What did you know?â
Even if Third Uncle said so, Butler Yang still blamed himself. âAfter that, Dad and Mom got into an accident while looking for Sister. If I didnât want that dress at that time, Sister wouldnât have gone missing and Dad and Mom wouldnât have gotten into an accident.â
Third Uncle shook his head and sighed again.
Tang Li looked at the two of them and asked, âThird Uncle, I heard from Brother Yang that the house he used to live in suddenly caught fire, and everything related to his sister was gone, right?â
âThatâs right.â
Tang Li nodded and asked, âBrother Yang said that you liked him and his sister the most. Do you still have Yingyingâs stuff?â
âNo.â Third Uncle shook his head. âAt that time, Junhuiâs mother was deranged because of losing her daughter. Whenever she saw anything related to Yingying, she would go crazy, so we got rid of everything related to Yingying.â
âI see.â Tang Li asked a few more questions before stopping.
Soon, the other men came over to talk to Butler Yang and Qi Yihan.
After leaving Third Uncleâs house, the three of them were on the way back to Butler Yangâs house. Tang Li suddenly said to Butler Yang, âYour Third Uncleâs lifespan is about to end.â
Butler Yang was shocked and asked, âHow is that possible? He still looks so healthy.â
However, after saying this, he covered his eyes with his hands and his voice was choked with emotions. âHow long does Third Uncle have?â
âTill the day after tomorrow,â Tang Li said. âItâs not easy for an old man to live to 90 years old and still be so healthy. If you want him to leave happily, you can keep it a secret.â
Butler Yang suppressed the pain in his heart and nodded.
Tang Li added, âLetâs go to your previous house tomorrow morning.â