A live stream that dramatically transformed a depressed schoolgirl shocked netizens across the count

Gu Qingshang held back the red card, refusing to touch the right to refuse to answer that had been on the table.

The fire in the charcoal stove fell into the ashes, and white steam billowed from the spout of the copper kettle.

Su Niannian leaned back in the wicker chair, a walnut kernel between her teeth. Bai Weiwei held half a deck of cards, her gaze fixed on Gu Qingshang's face.

Gu Qingshang placed the cards face down on the table.

"I'm not afraid of He Wenzhou, nor am I afraid of the financial problems in the Gu family. I was prepared for the marriage contract to fall into my lap."

She placed the rough pottery cup back on the stone table, the bottom of the cup making a soft scraping sound.

"I'm afraid that after three months, there will still be no news of Cheng Shouzhou."

The wind outside the courtyard blew through the bamboo fence, and the wick of the kerosene lamp veered towards the wall.

"Grandpa's illness won't wait for anyone."

Gu Qingshang looked down at the roasted rice in the tea soup.

"Those people from the Gu family will also tell me the results, that leaving the Gu family was a mistake, refusing the marriage was a mistake, and even looking up medical records from ten years ago was a mistake."

She looked up.

"They'll say, 'I made this trip and left nothing behind.'"

A few lines of blank space appeared in the scrolling live stream comments.

Chen Lang didn't reply, but picked up the copper kettle and poured her half a cup of hot tea.

The tea soup stirred the roasted rice at the bottom of the cup, and a few grains floated to the surface.

Gu Qingshang stared at the steam rising from the rim of the cup and unlocked his phone.

"Ten years ago, my grandfather's illness was stable for a period of time. The team that treated him at that time left a supplementary record, which mentioned a doctor who was hired from outside the hospital."

She pulled up a yellowed medical record photo and pushed it to the center of the table.

There are three words written in the bottom right corner of the photo.

Cheng Shouzhuo.

"After leaving the Gu family, I visited three of their old sites, looked for the nurses who were on duty back then, and also asked the herbal medicine suppliers who provided medicine to the hospital."

"Everyone mentioned this name, but the trail went cold towards the end."

Gu Qingshang zoomed in on the photo.

"Since then, no one has been able to contact him."

Su Niannian chewed the walnut kernels and slapped her palm on the table.

"Using patients and marriage contracts to bind people, these people really know how to pick their targets."

She dragged her phone in front of her and stared at the words on the medical record.

"What else can we investigate? Place names, drug names, places he's been—pick them all out."

Ye Xingyu got up and went into the main room.

When she returned, she was carrying a hardcover notebook with the pen cap removed.

She turned to a blank page and wrote down Cheng Shouzhuo's name.

"Age range, accent, commonly used prescriptions, and date of last medical practice are organized into columns."

"Check the information against the form when you go out to ask people, so as not to miss any information."

Gu Qingshang looked at the columns on the paper and nodded.

Shen Qingci took the phone and zoomed in on each page of the medical record.

"Medical records from ten years ago can be used to create a timeline."

She looked up at Gu Qingshang.

"Did the Gu family have any new projects, asset changes, or records of charity work, procurement, or real estate transactions related to the Cangshan area during that period?"

Gu Qingshang stopped placing his hand on the rim of the cup.

"have."

"My grandfather once halted a mountain health and wellness project, and the project team was disbanded."

Shen Qingci sent the photos of the medical records to her mobile phone.

"If the timing of the project's suspension and Cheng Shou-chou's disappearance coincides, then one thing is missing in between."

"I broke down the time, prescription, and location information and then compared them with the project data. I prioritized investigating overlapping clues."

Chen Lang leaned back in the wicker chair, his gaze sweeping over her phone.

A few days ago, Shen Qingci was still used to waiting for others to arrange her next steps.

When the matter was presented to her tonight, she had already drawn her own first line.

Bai Weiwei raised her hand and patted her forehead, her braid swinging over her shoulder.

"The day after tomorrow is the day of the Three Spirits."

Su Niannian looked up: "What activity?"

"A traditional festival of the Bai ethnic group."

Bai Weiwei placed the playing cards on the table.

"People from nearby villages will come, and elderly people who have been away for many years will return home early. The old doctors who practiced medicine near Cangshan ten years ago may not have been heard of by the older people in the village."

Gu Qingshang sat up straighter.

Will elderly people returning to their hometowns go?

"meeting."

Bai Weiwei lowered her head and counted the days.

"My grandmother used to say that during the three days of the 'Rao Sanling' festival, you could find out who was returning from out of town and who had a new baby by sitting at the village entrance for a whole morning."

"Those elderly people have visited many villages and have a good memory for people."

She gestured with her chin toward the medical record photo.

"It doesn't matter if no one knows Cheng Shou-chou. As long as someone has seen his prescriptions or knows which clinics he has treated, the line can be continued."

Gu Qingshang's hand stopped at the rim of the cup.

She stared at Bai Weiwei for a long time before speaking.

"Would you like to take me with you?"

"I'll take you, and I'll take everyone with me."

Bai Weiwei smiled and pulled Shen Qingci in.

"I promised Qingci I would take her dancing. Let's celebrate the holiday first, and ask around when we meet a suitable elderly person. Let's not block people's way with missing person posters."

Su Niannian was the first to raise her hand.

"I'll go too. I'll keep the elderly company and keep the conversation flowing."

Ye Xingyu lowered her head and wrote down "Rao San Ling", "Returning Elderly", and "Old Doctor of Cangshan".

"I'll compress the documents into one page tomorrow and print several copies."

"If two people mention the same statement, mark it immediately."

Shen Qingci returned the phone to Gu Qingshang.

"I'll create the timeline first."

"If the Gu family's project information is incomplete, I will supplement it from the public records."

Bai Weiwei picked up her teacup and touched the rim of Gu Qingshang's cup to the rim.

"I'll lead the way the day after tomorrow. There will be many people, so don't get separated."

Gu Qingshang glanced at the people around the table, and his lips moved slightly.

When she got up, she knocked the teacup askew, and the chair legs brushed against the muddy floor.

Su Niannian held the bottom of the cup.

"Stop."

Gu Qingshang turned to look at her.

"I want to say thank you."

"I'll thank you again once I find the person."

Su Niannian pushed the cup back in front of her.

"Treat us to a meal then. The menu is mine, and I'll fight anyone who tries to stop me."

"I want my share too."

Bai Weiwei pressed Gu Qingshang back into the rattan chair.

"There are many people circling the three spirits; whoever falls behind will have to treat the whole courtyard to fresh flower cakes."

Ye Xingyu added a note at the end of the notebook.

"Chen Lang counts too."

Chen Lang raised an eyebrow: "I can get on the punishment list even while I'm sitting down?"

"Your car is fast."

Su Niannian crossed her arms.

"Run faster, focus on prevention."

Bai Weiwei laughed first, and Ye Xingyu lowered her head, her pen tip drawing a small crooked line on the paper.

The copper kettle was lifted again, and hot tea was poured into the cup in front of Gu Qingshang.

The aroma of walnuts and roasted rice rose to the tabletop along with the steam.

Bai Weiwei raised her cup and looked at her through the lantern.

"Let's try one first."

Gu Qingshang asked, "What are we celebrating?"

"Celebrating the day after tomorrow when we'll have a place to investigate clues."

Bai Weiwei placed the cup in the center of the table.

"Cheng Shouzhou hasn't been found yet, and three months haven't even passed. Nobody should rush to conclusions about this matter."

Su Niannian picked up her teacup and touched it to the other side.

"And that meal. I didn't look at the prices when I ordered."

Ye Xingyu closed the notebook and handed over the cup.

"The clues will be given to you tomorrow."

Shen Qingci's cup fell to the center of the table.

"We'll start working on the timeline tomorrow morning."

Several rough earthenware cups clinked together, and tea splashed onto the stone table, trickling down the seams.

Gu Qingshang gripped the cup, his throat bobbing twice.

She took a sip of tea and responded after a moment.

"it is good."

The live stream comments covered the light screen again.

[One person leads the way, one visits sites, one investigates projects, and one organizes documents; this group is really getting to work.]

[Mr. Gu, don't rush back home yet; there are still more than eighty days left in three months.]

[Can the route around Sanling and the old doctor of Cangshan really lead to Cheng Shouzhou?]

Gu Qingshang recorded everyone's assigned tasks into his phone.

Ye Xingyu's notebook lay open beside her teacup; Shen Qingci had already created a timeline document. Bai Weiwei pulled up a list of several nearby villages, while Su Niannian, holding a spatula, pressed for details about which villages had the most elderly people.

Chen Lang leaned back in the rattan chair and went through the arrangements for the others.

With more people involved, clues will come faster and are more likely to alert those hiding behind them.

"You can check."

He bent his fingers and tapped them twice on the table.

The talking stopped.

"Verify everything before taking any action."

Chen Lang looked at the list of villages on the table.

"Finding someone is not the same as taking a tourist trip. Don't pester the elderly with questions, and don't shout the name Cheng Shouzhou so the whole village can hear it."

Gu Qingshang nodded.

"First organize the information, then conduct field visits. Each message should be checked at least twice."

Ye Xingyu reopened the notebook and wrote eight characters at the bottom of the page.

Clues are categorized and verified a second time.

Bai Weiwei put away the village list and shuffled the old playing cards twice more.

"Seeking medical help doesn't count as a game turn, continue."

Su Niannian immediately sat up straight.

"Bai Weiwei, you've held this position for so long, and now you're saying it doesn't count?"

"I set the rules."

"You call this a village rule?"

"Landlord privileges".

Ye Xingyu held the teacup, her shoulders bobbing with laughter.

Shen Qingci lowered her head, but couldn't suppress the corners of her mouth.

Chen Lang pushed the deck of cards back in front of Bai Weiwei.

"Landlord, deal the cards."

Bai Weiwei pressed down on the top card.

Two knocks came from outside the courtyard gate.

thump.

thump.

The force was not strong, and the interval between the two sounds was almost the same.

The laughter in the courtyard stopped.

Bai Weiwei turned towards the door, her hand still pressing down on the cards.

Villagers would visit each other at night, and a simple call through the bamboo fence would bring them in; very few people would stand outside the door and knock so politely.

Chen Lang turned his head to the side and placed the spade card on the edge of the table.

There were no car lights outside the bamboo fence.

An old man with a hunched back stood on the muddy road, his head wrapped in a cloth, his shoulders covered with dust from his journey through the night.

She leaned on a wooden cane, with a blue cloth bundle at her feet.

The wooden staff tapped the stone steps.

Bai Weiwei stared at the wooden cane, a crease appearing on the playing card beneath her palm.

The person outside did not push the door open.

She raised her hand to adjust the cloth, and the silver bracelet on her wrist touched the handle of the cane, making two sounds.

Chen Lang glanced at the grass seeds stuck to her shoes, then looked at the village road leading to the northern foot of Cangshan Mountain.

Gu Qingshang put down his teacup.

Ye Xingyu closed her notebook.

Su Niannian picked up the spatula from under the table and placed it beside her legs.

The old man spoke through the bamboo fence.

The accent from the northern foothills of Cangshan Mountain passed through the courtyard gate.

"The lights are still on, and the courtyard is quite lively."