Shi Dazhuang said to Yang Lijuan, "Tell me everything about how you abducted her. Be brave and don't be afraid."
Yang Lijuan said, "Two years ago, in Shenzhou, I met her just after leaving a shopping mall. She said she came to the city to visit relatives, got lost, and had no money for food. I felt sorry for her, so I took her to eat. Later, I don't know what method she used, but she drugged me. When I woke up, I was on a train. I knew something might have happened to me, but I was completely dizzy and couldn't speak properly. I managed to shout for help, and the people next to me heard me and came to ask. She said I was her daughter and that I had a mental illness, and then no one paid any attention to me. She must have drugged me. I remember she kept giving me water the whole way, and every time I drank water, I became confused. I don't remember how I got to Kuaziba at all. When I was fully awake, I was already... already... already in Letuolie's bed."
Yang Lijuan burst into tears as she recalled that experience.
Meng Yan said, " Medicine Granny, do you have anything else to say? I'm officially informing you now that you're under arrest."
The Medicine Granny remained calm, her eyes still closed, and said, "M. hetushu. com. com Oh, that was two years ago. Chief Meng, you seemed to have said you wouldn't hold grudges against an old woman for things from the past."
Meng Yan snorted and pointed at Xiaoqin, who had changed into farm clothes, saying, "What about this one?"
The Medicine Granny, without even looking up, said, "This is a madwoman."
Yang Lijuan said, "She wasn't crazy before; she was driven insane by that bastard Han Laizi!"
The Medicine Granny said, "This has nothing to do with me!"
Yang Lijuan said, "You're the one who abducted her and sold her to Han Laizi. Xiaoqin told me that herself."
The Medicine Granny said, "Tell her to say it again."
"You..." Yang Lijuan knew that Xiaoqin was acting crazy at the moment and probably didn't recognize anyone.
Meng Yan angrily retorted, "You Medicine Granny, do you think that God will really not care if you do something so heinous?"
"If God doesn't care, we will!" Shi Dazhuang added.
The Medicine Granny was not angry; she always wore a smile and had a kind expression.
She opened her eyes, looked at Meng Yan, and said, "This old woman hasn't done anything immoral. This old woman is helping the villagers solve their problems. If you don't believe me, go and ask around. Which villager doesn't say that this old woman is a good person? Which village hasn't had a life saved by this old woman?"
She then pointed at Yang Lijuan and said, "Look at this girl, so fair and chubby, the villagers treat her so well! As for this Madman..." She glanced at Xiaoqin, "I don't know her."
She insisted that she didn't know him, and Meng Yan had no choice but to have someone bring Han Laizi's family Han Bo along.
As soon as Han Bo entered, he cried out, "Chief! Chief, I'm innocent! It was Han Laizi who did this, it has nothing to do with me!"
"Still trying to deny it!" Meng Yan pointed at Yang Lijuan and said, "She came to Mangdian to report to the police, didn't you stop her?"
Han Bo lowered his head. "She's already given birth! We're all from the same village, we should try to persuade her not to leave!"
Meng Yan retorted, "You call this persuasion? You're an accomplice!"
Han Bo immediately knelt down. "I didn't!"
Han Laizi lowered his head, his eyes darting around. Seeing Han Bo kneel down, he also knelt down and said, "I and the other books are all honest and law-abiding people!"
Meng Yan sneered, "An honest and upright man like you could ruin a young virgin like this? Save that for the judge!"
Hearing that they were going to court, Han Laizi became truly frightened and cried out to the Medicine Granny, " Granny Medicine, you must save us! You brought these people here, and I paid you!"
The Medicine Granny turned around and said to Han Laizi, "Have you thought this through? Did I sell this madwoman to you?"
When she asked the question, her face was still so kind and her voice so gentle, just like a great-grandmother asking her grandson if the candy was delicious.
For no apparent reason, Han Laizi felt a sudden chill, his heart pounded with panic, his vision blurred, and his mind went blank. He kowtowed repeatedly, saying, "I didn't say that! I didn't say that! This madwoman wasn't sold to me by Granny Medicine; I found her myself in the mountains."
The Medicine Granny nodded and then asked Han Bo, "You're practically a policeman yourself. Tell me, have you ever seen me sell women to the villagers?"
Han Bo looked at the Medicine Granny's face, his whole body tensed, and he lowered his head, saying, "No, I didn't see anything."
The Medicine Granny stood up, smiled, and walked up to Yang Lijuan. She looked her up and down and said, "Young lady, speak from your conscience. Tell me, has anyone mistreated you all these years?"
Yang Lijuan suddenly thought of her own child, and felt a pang of sadness. She said, "I haven't mistreated him..."
Before she could say anything else, the Medicine Granny asked again, "Tell me again, did I force you to marry into this mountain family?"
Yang Lijuan thought carefully, but couldn't seem to remember anything. Her mind was filled with thoughts of her child, wondering if the baby was hungry, if it was crying, and whether that idiot Letuolie had fed the baby. Oh dear, without her, the baby wouldn't have milk, and people in the mountains don't buy formula. What would the baby eat?
As she thought about it, she unconsciously answered the Medicine Granny's question, "No, you didn't force me, it was my own choice."
The Medicine Granny nodded in satisfaction, then walked over to the simple-minded Xiaoqin, shook her head, and said, "Although you are a madwoman, the Bodhisattva has shown his power and will surely let you prove my innocence. Tell me, did I abduct you?"
Xiaoqin first looked at the Medicine Granny with curiosity, but after she finished asking the question, she shook her head vigorously, muttering, "No!"
The Medicine Granny's smile widened, and she made a delicate gesture with her fingers, as if a bodhisattva had appeared before her. She walked back to her seat and said to Meng Yan, " Chief Meng, may I leave now?"
Meng Yan was momentarily confused, wondering if he had made a mistake, or if he had wrongly accused this kind-hearted Medicine Granny.
The sunlight outside shone on the glass window and reflected into the room. Some of the light shone directly on the Medicine Granny's face, turning it into a rainbow of colors.
Bathed in rainbow-like light, the Medicine Granny's face appeared increasingly kind and sacred.
Meng Yan felt that something was wrong, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Should he let the Medicine Granny go back first? He hesitated.
A voice said, "Let her go back. She is the Medicine Granny of Mangdian, a reincarnated living Bodhisattva!"
Another voice said, "The law is impartial! She's a human trafficker and deserves to be punished by law!"
The voice that came earlier said, "Law and reason are not separate from human sentiment! Your mission is to protect the peace and tranquility of the local people. If you try to Medicine Granny, the people will not agree!"
Just as he was confused, a large hand reached out from the side and grabbed his arm tightly. A sharp pain shot through his arm, and Meng Yan shivered.
He shook his head vigorously, gently bit the tip of his tongue, and his mind instantly cleared.
Although he didn't understand what had just happened, his years of experience in drug enforcement made him alert. How much did this resemble a hallucination after smoking opium?
" Captain Shi!" He glanced gratefully at Shi Dazhuang beside him, his back already soaked with cold sweat.
Shi Dazhuang shook his head at him, indicating that he didn't need to say anything more. Then, looking at Han Bo, Han Laizi, Yang Lijuan, and Xiaoqin, whose expressions were numb and whose eyes were empty, he said to Qingmu:
" Teacher Qingmu, it looks like you've met your match today!"