Chapter 179: Chapter 132: Mr. Cheng Investigates
Beijing Military District Courtyard. These past two days, many people in the courtyard knew that Old Mrs. Cheng from the Cheng Family wasn’t feeling well and was rushed to the hospital that night. Cheng Siyu, the youngest son of the Cheng Family, hurriedly returned to Beijing with his wife from the CD Military District. Cheng Ruzhu, the daughter of the Cheng Family, stayed by the bedside day and night, never leaving the hospital.
Several households discussed and decided to send representatives to visit the hospital. Seeing Old Mrs. Cheng on the hospital bed with a rosy complexion, though looking a bit haggard with a worried expression, they heard from the doctor that her health was fine and cheered repeatedly, relieved that her health was okay.
Old Mrs. Cheng was generous, always willing to help others, and never judged people by their status or rank. She often helped soldiers and military wives solve their problems. Every household in the courtyard was willing to seek her help whenever they had issues or just wanted to chat.
The old lady had a high level of education and was very understanding. When rural military wives came to her, unable to read letters or reply, she would consider their plight. She would take them into her study, close the door, and patiently solve their problems one by one, never spreading the word outside.
She had a kind heart; if she saw any children whose parents weren’t around, she would take them to her home to eat and sleep, regardless of whether she knew them. She would also leave a note on the door, reminding that the child was resting at the Cheng Family courtyard. If a military wife was in confinement and had no family to care for her, she would personally go over and instruct them carefully.
The old lady was also never one to gossip. When hearing rumors, she would advise everyone to stay out of it, and she herself never spoke ill of anyone. To the military wives, such an elder was akin to family. Everyone was overjoyed to hear she was in good health.
Mr. Cheng was busy during the day with investigation, returning to the hospital in the evening to talk to the old lady about the progress. He spent three consecutive days investigating everywhere for information about Zhou Xiaozheng’s mother, Mrs. Zhou, and finally had some leads.
In the end, he found the military hospital where Mrs. Zhou had initially worked. But due to the passage of time, the military hospital had undergone several mergers after Jiefang, and was now a health clinic. The colleagues Mrs. Zhou had back then either passed away due to war or chaos, retired, or had left the hospital, replaced by new staff. The detailed records from then were no longer available. To find proof of whether Zhou Xiaozheng was born in that hospital, after considerable effort, Mr. Cheng finally found a surviving old nurse.
Mr. Cheng got the nurse’s address, eagerly taking gifts to visit her. Finally meeting the 80-year-old lady, who was hard of hearing but mentally sharp, after laborious communication, she mentioned that when she left the military hospital to work at the general hospital, Mrs. Zhou had just given birth to a daughter. They had no contact afterward, and their relationship was merely nodding acquaintances at best. The old lady tried her best to recall the past but eventually shook her head, leaving Mr. Cheng disappointed.
Returning to the hospital room that night, Old Mrs. Cheng sighed in disappointment upon seeing her husband’s face. "Continue to investigate; don’t lose hope yet. At least we have a target now. Sister and brother-in-law will bless us to find the child."
Mr. Cheng, exhausted, rubbed his temples. "If there’s truly no other way, we can only look for retired or resigned doctors. The original batch of people in Beijing are no longer around. Many have retired to their hometowns, and we don’t even know if they’re still alive."
Old Mrs. Cheng looked at her husband with guilt. "You’re getting old too, and you’ve been exhausted these days. Perhaps we should let the eldest take over?"
"No, involving him in a hurry would mean starting all over again, and there’s no time to waste. Besides, I’m not comfortable with spreading rumors if things aren’t clear. This matter must have the child’s consent first. I have a feeling Zhou Xiaozheng is definitely that child. If there’s no further trace, I plan to personally go to the Northeast and find Zhou Xiaozheng’s parents."
"Does Zhou Xiaozheng have a few days off this time? Do you know how long he plans to stay in the Northeast?"
Mr. Cheng nodded, "I’ve asked. Just in a few days, the military district has a plane going to the Northeast while Zhou Xiaozheng is still there. Whether we find anything or not, we must make this trip unless we’re 100% sure Zhou Xiaozheng isn’t the child. But after reviewing Zhou Xiaozheng’s youth records, the more I look, the more puzzled I become. A child like that couldn’t have been raised in an ordinary family, it’s likely due to good genes. Yet, looking at Zhou Jianren and his wife’s wisdom, they couldn’t have nurtured such a Zhou Xiaozheng.
Furthermore, I found Fang Fei from the Fang family and indirectly learned about Zhou Xiaozheng’s daughter, Zhou Jiao. It is said that this girl doesn’t resemble a rural girl at all, looks quite like Gu Ruyi from the Lin Family, and is very clever and manipulative, extremely talented. She can face a crowd of over a thousand people without changing her expression, remaining calm and composed, speaking with more authority than Gu Ruyi. I thought of the eldest sister and what Old Lin said about her possibly having photographic memory, which would definitely be hereditary. That girl, like her uncle, knew the Three Character Classic and Thousand Character Classic by the age of three, and by eight, she had mastered her grandmother’s skills, including medicine and embroidery. Is that possible for ordinary people?"
Old Mrs. Cheng hurriedly tried to get up, "I think I’m fine, I should go home and pack. We shouldn’t hesitate anymore. I’ll directly ask Zhou Jianren if he remembers how to write ’Ren’. These days, I’ve been recalling my sister’s tone of voice, surely she placed the child with the Zhou Family. It couldn’t have been the Gu Family; the child is the legitimate heir. If she went to the Gu Family, she would have been devoured. I didn’t know the ancestral land of the Zhou Family was in the Northeast, but the brother-in-law must have mentioned it. The eldest sister entrusted the child to the patriarch which was best for the child after all. The Zhou Family’s prestige relied on that branch. As for handing the child to Zhou Jianren, perhaps there was a problem with the patriarch. We should go to the Northeast directly to find the patriarch of the Zhou Family; there should be records. My sister always had backup plans, considering every contingency, unexpected or not."
Mr. Cheng gently pressed her down, "You should lie down first. I’ll ask the doctor if it’s suitable for you to travel, and prepare to take a doctor along. There is still time before the military flight takes off. What you said is very possible. I’ll continue to investigate just in case."
"That’s good too. Ah, you’ve really put in a lot of effort these two days. Once this matter is resolved, we truly have no regrets."
Early the next morning, Mr. Cheng got up, packed, waited for the children to come over to handle the discharge procedures, and took his wife home. He then continued his investigation, seeking retired or resigned doctors. However, most of these people were elderly and had returned to their hometowns to retire. The only doctor from the same department as Mrs. Zhou when she was young had retired in the South, and it was impossible to immediately travel south. He could only entrust reliable confidants to go south, meet the elderly gentleman, and see if he could recall whether Mrs. Zhou ever carried a third pregnancy and where the third child was born, among other details.
He was scrambling with everything, worried about his wife and anxiously seeking informants everywhere. Seeing no news from the South and being reminded by his wife, he suddenly realized that he might be able to meet Zhou Xiaozheng. He could arrange a face-to-face talk with Zhou Xiaozheng.
Mr. Cheng recollected himself, put down his current tasks, inquired at the military district and learned he returned home yesterday. Mr. Cheng couldn’t wait till the end of the workday and rushed to the residential compound, found Lin Lishan’s old house, only to find the doors closed. Neighbors said Zhou Xiaozheng and his wife only hurriedly stopped by to make a few appearances and then left. They hadn’t been home since last night, probably went to the Lin Family.
Mr. Cheng suddenly realized he’d been too busy to focus on hospital matters to follow up on courtyard happenings these past few days.
Xiao Chen drove him to the military district courtyard to rush to the Lin Family, but it was another disappointment. Mrs. Lin said Zhou Xiaozheng was in a hurry to return to see his daughter, and the couple took the midnight train last night.
Mr. Cheng was helpless; it was already afternoon and too late to catch up. He could only wait for news from the South and try additional avenues to see if there were other informants.