When I woke up, I found myself back in Ah Gui’s room, with Yun Cai taking care of me on one side. It was very noisy outside, and that’s what had woken me up. I wasn’t injured; I was just physically exhausted, so after this sleep, I was mostly fine. I sat up, and when Yun Cai saw me, she immediately handed me some water and went outside to call for someone. Soon, Panzi came in and asked how I was feeling.

I didn’t see my second uncle and didn’t answer his question. Instead, I immediately asked about Fatty and the others. Panzi told me that they had been taken to the hospital as soon as possible, but there was still no news. He reassured me that if they weren’t dead, then they wouldn’t die; if, unfortunately, they had passed away, there was nothing to be done about it. I felt slightly relieved to hear that they were sent to the hospital; at least there was still hope.

Then I asked what was going on. He spoke mysteriously and didn’t say anything, only that my second uncle didn’t want him to discuss these matters with me and that he was still by the lake. He would tell me everything in person when he returned and advised me to rest more. After saying this, he went out, seemingly very busy outside.

Several tall buildings near Ah Gui’s house had been taken over by my second uncle. I saw many of my second uncle’s acquaintances—over twenty former associates of my third uncle. Remembering the scene by the lake earlier, I estimated that several hundred people had come this time. Ah Gui had long since emerged from his breakdown and was busy coordinating everything, but when I asked him about the situation, he didn’t know anything.

I had no choice but to comply and rested at Ah Gui’s house for two days. After my body had somewhat recovered, my second uncle finally returned from the lakeside. Along with him were quite a few people, including several cousins from Changsha, some of whom had been associated with my third uncle. They were all prominent figures in our family.

I wondered what was going on. Why had the Wu family members all come here? I didn’t dare to ask because my second uncle and those relatives didn’t look well. After some pleasantries, I noticed that they were all looking at me strangely. My second uncle looked unwell, and after some commotion, the relatives dispersed. He looked at me, put his arm around my shoulder, and asked if I was feeling okay.

I nodded and said I was fine, then quietly asked him what was going on. He looked at me, sighed, and patted my shoulder, signaling for me to follow him for a walk. We walked to the creek by the village, and he didn’t say anything the whole way until we reached the burned-down old house. Then he said, “I’ve seen your email.”

I already felt that this might be related to that email, so I looked at him, waiting for him to continue. He paused and then asked, “Do you believe the contents of what you wrote in the letter?”

“How should I put it? I want to not believe it, but I also can’t afford not to believe it, because I can’t think of any other possibilities,” I replied. “Having been with my third uncle for so long, did you notice anything unusual?”

My second uncle lit a cigarette, looked at me, and frowned without speaking.

I said, “This is what others have said; my third uncle hasn’t denied it in person, so I can’t say I don’t have doubts.”

My second uncle continued to look at me, finishing the cigarette in a few puffs. After a pause, he suddenly said, “You don’t need to doubt anymore; I’ll tell you, this is indeed true.”

“Is it really?” I asked. “How can you be so sure?”

He slowly replied, “We’ve known about this matter for a long time.”

I stood there, unable to believe my ears.
My second uncle continued, “Xiao Xie, some things are not as simple as you think, but many things are also not as complicated as you think.”
“If you knew, how did you let this happen?” I asked.
He stood silently for a moment, then gestured for me to keep walking, casually handing me something.
I took it and saw that it was a photograph. “What is this?”
“Before I burned down that house, I kept one. I thought it would be more appropriate to show it to you now than back then,” he said.
I was stunned, momentarily at a loss for words. A house? Burned down? No way! I immediately asked, “Second Uncle, did you do that?”
I wanted to say more, but he waved his hand, urging me to look at the photograph. “Let’s not mention those things.”
It was a very ordinary black-and-white photo, a group picture. Upon closer inspection, it featured a stranger, a middle-aged man, talking to Wen Jin, with other members of the archaeological team in the background. The middle-aged man was not someone I had seen in previous photographs. He was very pale and very thin, but I felt he looked somewhat familiar.
“This is the photo that Chu Guangtou wanted you to see,” my second uncle said. “I kept the one that best illustrates the issue, thinking that if we ultimately couldn’t resolve this, physical evidence would speak louder than my words.”
“Is this it?” I couldn’t understand. “What’s wrong with this photo?”
“Don’t you recognize this person?” he asked, pointing to the stranger.
I stared at the pale, thin man and suddenly remembered who he was. I couldn’t help but exclaim, “How could it be him? He’s not…”
This person had no direct connection to our story, but he was not insignificant either. If he appeared in the same photo as Wen Jin’s team, then the status of this archaeological team was not what I had imagined.
We continued walking, and my second uncle said, “I can’t tell you the details, but I can tell you a story. Xiao Xie, sometimes, some things are just a story, merely a story. Do you want to hear it?”