The car now had two more passengers, but for Jiang Ning, it didn’t make much of a difference.
Even though she had already learned the brothers’ home address from the System long ago, outwardly, Jiang Ning still asked them to guide the way.
Li Hao and Li Mai sat in the back seat, staring out of the car window at the familiar scenery that kept moving backward; both their hearts felt heavy.
From Jiang Ning’s appearance until now, bringing them home, everything felt like a dream, surreal.
They had merely spent some money impulsively online, following a trend to buy some troll services, and Jiang Ning actually found them in person because of this?
The two brothers were deeply remorseful inside, full of regret.
They didn’t want Jiang Ning to go to their home and couldn’t stop her, they could only hope that Jiang Ning would drive slower, that the road would become longer...
The white sedan traveled along the rural road.
Li Family Village was small, with only a few dozen households in total.
Not to mention most of the young people had gone out to work or study, leaving only some children and the elderly at home.
Li Family Village seldom saw vehicles from outside, so when a brand-new white sedan appeared in the village, many elderly people who heard the commotion poked their heads out.
Sitting in the driving seat was someone nobody recognized, but those two brothers sitting in the back seat were well known!
"Hey, isn’t that the Li Hao and Li Mai brothers? How come those lads are sitting in the car?"
"Shouldn’t these lads be at school at this hour? Why have they come back so early?"
"Who’s driving? Their relative?"
"... Don’t know, looks quite unfamiliar, don’t recognize them."
Everyone murmured quietly, and when they saw Jiang Ning’s car slowly stopping by the roadside, several neighbors who liked to watch the excitement curiously gathered around.
Some even asked the brothers in the car, "Haozi, how come you’re back at this hour? Who drove you guys back?"
Li Hao and Li Mai, the brothers, were now bowing their heads, tightly gripping their hands, not daring to face the crowd.
Then, the driver’s and front passenger’s doors were opened from the inside, and Jiang Ning and Qi Xingzhou stepped out of the car, attracting everyone’s attention.
When they saw the appearance of the two, the crowd was immediately startled!
Those two youngsters were truly good-looking!
All those years living off the land, they had never seen such striking appearances.
Today, not only did they see it, but they stumbled upon two at once!
They originally thought that Little Mei, Old Man Wang’s daughter, who returned last year from the city for the New Year’s with her attire looking quite like a city person, but upon seeing these two individuals, that dazzling sensation truly made them understand what "eye-catching" meant.
The elderlies didn’t know what was meant by both looks and charisma, only that these two youngsters really stood out, clearly city folk at a glance.
Since when did the Li family have such connections?
The elder who just spoke to the brothers, with somewhat cloudy eyes that couldn’t stop sizing up Jiang Ning and Qi Xingzhou, asked, "Who are you two? Who are you looking for?"
Jiang Ning slightly bowed her head and met his gaze, "We are here to find the guardian of these two brothers, their parents, grandparents—any will do."
The inquiring Old Man Zhang seemed to catch on: "Don’t tell me these two got into some kind of trouble outside!"
The brothers, who were slowly descending from the car with heads down, shivered involuntarily at these words, looking every bit the part of guilt-ridden mischief-makers.
Seeing the brothers’ reaction, the crowd felt even more that Old Man Zhang was right.
The brothers had been mischievous since childhood; perhaps they indeed did something bad outside, and now the other party had come looking for them in person!
"No, it’s just a little matter," Jiang Ning denied.
She looked at the sparse row of houses by the roadside and asked the siblings, "Which one is your home?"
As the rural road was narrow, to facilitate a turnaround when leaving later, Jiang Ning had not driven the car all the way into the deepest part of the village.
Before the brothers could respond, someone by the side pointed and said enthusiastically, "That red brick and tile house right at the front, that’s the one!"
"Some people said, "Let’s go, I’ll take you there.""
"At this hour, Li Zhiguo and his wife are probably not at home."
"I think I just saw them carrying hoes out."
"Let’s head to their house first... The visitors came by car, surely they must know where the Zhiguo’s house is?"
"The countryside was tranquil and quiet, with everyone’s daily life revolving around household chores or farmwork, offering little in the way of novelty or amusement."
"Now that two strangers had arrived, there was a spectacle not of their own making to see, and one by one, everyone eagerly led the way for Jiang Ning and Qi Xingzhou."
"On the short rural path, Jiang Ning barely needed to ask before everyone began chattering away about the family situation of the brothers Li Hao and Li Mai."
"Li Hao and Li Mai’s father was named Li Zhiguo, and their mother Chen Xiaoying. Chen Xiaoying was not in good health, and it took over a decade of seeking medical treatments after their marriage before they finally had the twins."
"The Li family’s financial situation wasn’t great, with both elderly parents succumbing to cancer, adding to the couple’s burdens rather than helping, and then passing away."
"Fortunately, Li Zhiguo and Chen Xiaoying were hardworking. They raised more than a dozen cows in the mountains and also kept a lot of chickens, often leaving the house at dawn and returning late."
"The young girl, what exactly have the brothers done?" After talking about the twins’ circumstances, one middle-aged woman cautiously inquired.
"Though they loved to watch the excitement and chat about other households while doing farmwork, they weren’t the type to kick someone when they were down."
"It had been a hard few years for the Zhiguo couple, and just as their debts were nearly cleared and life was looking up, surely nothing bad had happened again."
"Auntie, it’s nothing serious." Jiang Ning smiled. "They found someone defaming me online a while ago. I want to find out who that person is and I need to see their guardian’s phone."
"Ah-ho! So that’s it!" Aunt Wang let out a sigh of relief.
"A few elderly people nearby didn’t understand at first, but after someone explained it to them quietly, they looked at Jiang Ning and Qi Xingzhou, both with pleasant appearances, and felt a mix of shock and bewilderment."
"These young people looked so good, yet they were slandered for no reason? And by someone they didn’t even know?"
"How can people be so wicked?" someone exclaimed indignantly, leaning on a cane.
[Ha ha ha ha, exactly! How can some people be so cruel!]
[Tears of laughter, rural people are really simple, even the elder with the cane is indignant on behalf of Jiang Jiang.]
"We’re here, this is Zhiguo’s house."
"In no time at all, they reached the entrance to Li Zhiguo’s home, only to see the wooden courtyard door tightly shut, with a small wooden bar placed through the latch from the outside, indicating that no one was home."
"Haozi, your parents must have gone to check on the cattle or to feed the chickens. Go call them back," a woman told Li Hao, tapping him on the head.
"Old Man Zhang stopped her: "Why go through all that trouble, just give them a ring."
"Ah! That’s a good idea! I didn’t think of that right away!"
"Everyone watched as Old Man Zhang pulled out his senior’s mobile phone from his pocket and dialed Li Zhiguo’s number."
"Soon, the call connected."
"Old Man Zhang handed the phone to Jiang Ning, who briefly explained her connection to the brothers Li Hao, and asked if Li Zhiguo could come back home for a bit."
"Li Zhiguo couldn’t believe that his sons, often preoccupied with playing games on their phones, had actually spent money to insult someone online!"
"He immediately apologized to Jiang Ning over the phone and said he would be back soon."
"The volume on senior’s mobile phones is usually loud, almost like a built-in speakerphone, and upon hearing their father’s booming voice emanating from the phone, both Li Hao and Li Mai shuddered."
"After hanging up the phone, not only Old Man Zhang but also the other villagers who had come to watch stayed put, as if by tacit agreement."
"Everyone just stood on the doorstep of the Li family home, chatting amiably and clearly intending to see the day’s excitement through to the end."
"Until an unfriendly voice rose from behind them: "What are all of you doing here? You’re making a racket, do you know that!?"
"Everyone turned around."
"Jiang Ning also instinctively turned toward the source of the voice."
"A man in his forties or fifties, with a burly physique and a somewhat fierce look, emerged from the neighboring yard."
"The moment she saw him, Jiang Ning’s eyes darkened."
[Ding! Suspect Li Fu identified, please capture the offender promptly, Host!]