Chapter 526: Saving People (Part 1)

At that point in her dream, Su Li jolted awake.

Dawn was breaking. She stared at the ceiling in the gray light, her expression unreadable.

There were always so many news reports about human trafficking and its victims, with new stories surfacing every so often.

In her past life, while searching for Little Tang Mo, Su Li had seen far too many such news stories, so she hadn’t recalled this specific one at first.

But tonight, while looking at a map, she had seen the city where Taoyuan Village was located—a place renamed because its beautiful scenery resembled the ’peach blossom spring’ paradise from a poet’s work. That’s why she had suddenly remembered it in her dream.

That news story had attracted widespread attention due to its unique location and the actions of the Taoyuan Village residents, so Su Li had noticed it too.

Su Li carefully recalled the news story. When she saw the report in her past life, it was undoubtedly several years later than the current time.

Su Li couldn’t clearly remember who had escaped from there, but she did remember the words the reporters used at the time.

They described Taoyuan Village as ’a place you’d never imagine,’ which overlapped with what Beard had previously boasted.

Su Li sat up, her mind racing.

The place known as Taoyuan Village was coincidentally located in the city neighboring the one where Little Tang Mo and the others had escaped.

Taoyuan Village was truly beautiful. By a stroke of luck, it closely resembled the ’peach blossom spring’ paradise from the poem, as if it had been tailor-made to match it.

At that time, the tourism industry was just taking off, and a travel boom was sweeping the nation. After this place was discovered, it immediately garnered attention and became a popular tourist destination.

Everyone who visited Taoyuan Village was full of praise.

Transportation was inconvenient. It was a remote mountain village, surrounded by mountains and isolated from the outside world. To get there, one had to undertake a strenuous hike.

But those who went all felt it was worth it, because the place was exceptionally beautiful and the people were remarkably sincere. Many tourists wanted to return for a second or third time, saying they loved the simple, honest folk. Some young women even said they wanted to marry a local and settle down there.

Just as more and more tourists began to visit, the news broke.

According to the testimony of the person who escaped, once they regained lucidity, most of the wives in that village had been bought. Behind the facade of the so-called simple villagers lay bloody crimes.

Isolation had bred not only simplicity, but also sin.

They didn’t murder or commit arson, nor were they evil in every conceivable way. They simply committed one particular crime as if it were the most natural thing in the world—trafficking women.

No one knew when this practice had started, but even the oldest elders in the village said it was something that had been done for generations.

With poor access and a hard life dependent on their fields, no matter how beautiful the village was, most women were unwilling to marry into such hardship. Thus, to continue their family lines, they had to resort to this.

And so, it became an accepted practice.

Whether on the surface or deep down, they remained simple people. They were even hardworking and kind. And yet, they trafficked women.

Not just one or two of them, but the entire village!

A truth this shocking was why the story had caused such a sensation back then.

The subsequent investigation revealed that, aside from people traveling in groups, several young women who had visited alone or without male companions had gone missing.

It was just that most of those young women were orphans with no family or friends, so no one had been looking for them.

As Su Li recalled the details of the news story, her arms broke out in goosebumps.

She suspected Miao Zhi had been sold to that very place!

Su Li got up, washed her face in record time, and then contacted the police chief she had parted ways with just a short while ago.

When the chief heard Su Li’s request and learned that the location was in a neighboring city where he knew some old colleagues, he agreed without a second thought.

"Since you have a suspicion, I’ll have them find a way to check it out."

"Thank you, Chief. They have cellars built specifically to lock up women, so please tell your men to be extremely careful. They can’t risk tipping them off."

"Alright, I’ll make that clear to them."

"Chief, I’ll head over as fast as I can, too."

Su Li hung up the phone and turned to find Little Tang Mo standing in the doorway.

"Mom, did you find out where Sister Miao Zhi is?"

"I have a place in mind," Su Li confirmed with a nod.

’Based on my memories from my past life,’ she thought, ’even if Miao Zhi isn’t there, the crimes in that place need to be exposed sooner rather than later. Besides, the woman who eventually escapes is probably still trapped there right now.’

’Even if Miao Zhi isn’t there, we can still rescue other victims and prevent future crimes.’

With that in mind, Su Li immediately called Wu Sheng and told him her suspicions.

She couldn’t explain everything clearly since it involved her past life, but Wu Sheng trusted her and didn’t press for details. When he heard that Su Li was even willing to miss the start of the school semester to go, he didn’t argue.

He had been busy for some time but happened to have the next two days off, so he unhesitatingly agreed to go with her.

Even though Su Li said it might not be Miao Zhi they find, Little Tang Mo insisted on going along. Her warnings about the danger failed to persuade him.

"The police officers will protect us. The chief will definitely send officers with us."

Little Tang Mo’s logic was remarkably clear, leaving Su Li with no choice but to take him along.

Two days later, a travel-worn Su Li, along with the police officers Little Tang Mo had mentioned, rendezvoused with the local police. Posing as government workers from the town sent to survey land and register the population, they set out for Taoyuan Village.

The police had sent men to investigate previously but had found nothing out of the ordinary.

Upon entering, they saw only simple, hardworking people in an ordinary, impoverished mountain village. The sounds of chickens and dogs filled the air, painting a picture of tranquility and everyday life.

The officers scoured the village but found nothing unusual, nor did they discover any cellars.

It was impossible to imagine that such unspeakable evil could be hiding beneath the tranquil and beautiful facade of Taoyuan Village.

The officers who had investigated before didn’t quite understand why Su Li’s group insisted on going, but they still dutifully briefed them on the village’s situation.

"...There are only forty households in total, and every family is incredibly welcoming. In fact, the village chief’s son is getting married tomorrow."

There was still no proper road to Taoyuan Village, making it impossible to reach in a single day. Travelers had to stay overnight in a village along the way and would only arrive on the second day.

There was no time to waste. Su Li’s group glanced at the sun overhead and set off at once.

Since Little Tang Mo was small and they needed something to carry their luggage, they ended up bringing a small donkey along.

The little donkey carried everyone’s belongings, their work equipment, and Little Tang Mo himself.

This wasn’t Little Tang Mo’s first time riding a donkey; he had ridden one before with Wu Sheng on a trip back to Wu Family Village, so he was quite comfortable. He even made sure to let the donkey rest periodically during the journey.

After two full days of walking, by which time Su Li’s feet were covered in blisters, they finally reached Taoyuan Village at dusk.

Taoyuan Village was exceptionally bustling that day. The village chief was hosting a wedding banquet for his son, after all.

When Su Li and her group arrived, the feast was in full swing, and the entire village was gathered at the chief’s house.