Book 2: Chapter 2: Mute Village

Book 2: Chapter 2: Mute Village

After the heavy rain in Myanmar, the humidity was staggering and the road was very muddy, but Black Glasses knew that he should be thankful there was a road at all.

This heavy rain meant that the rainy season was coming soon, and it may continue to rain nonstop in the upcoming month. The sun was very bright as it shone through the dense forest canopy and made little rainbows everywhere. He knew that he could see it because there was something wrong with his eyes.

The driver was a thirteen-year-old girl who was chewing on something as she drove. She probably doesnt have a driver's license, Black Glasses thought to himself. The little girl didn't seem to like him very much and hardly looked at him.

The vehicle was an off-road pickup truck that belonged to his godson, a Sichuanese native. After Chen Pi Ah Si disappeared, this guy came to Myanmar to do business. Black Glasses didnt know what he sold, but this guys business was prosperous and he made a lot of money. This time, if it werent for him, Black Glasses wouldn't have been able to enter this place.

Although the little girl had dark skin, she was surprisingly beautiful. Black Glasses leaned back in the passenger seat with his arms crossed over his chest and looked at her a few more times. Was she his godsons daughter? But wouldn't that make her his god-granddaughter? If this god-granddaughter of his looked like this, hed have to keep an eye on her. In another five or six years, she might be old enough for Su Wan. Well, Su Wan was a good boy, but a girl that looked like this wouldnt be easy to handle. The little girl noticed Black Glasses looking at her and spit a mouthful of phlegm out the window before rolling her eyes at him.

Black Glasses ignored her and looked out the window. The place he was headed to was a very special village that was located deep in the dense forests of Myanmar. It used to be a place where the local armed guerrillas fought. This village was very strange, because all of the villagers were mute.

There was a very strange legend in this village. It was said that the villagers could understand the sounds of the thunder. In order to prevent the secrets of heaven from leaking out, all of the village children would suddenly become mute after hearing thunder for the first time. It was different from the strange legends you would usually hear in ordinary small villages. This village had a large population, but it was true that everyone was mute, which was very unusual. It would be reasonable to say that there should at least be some exceptions, but there werent any. In fact, there wasnt a single exception at all!

Black Glasses just so happened to be short of money, and the Wu familys Uncle Two was anxiously looking into this matter. Moreover, Black Glasses had a godson here and he was just starting to miss the days when he would hang out in Southeast Asia, so he decided to come.

Although the villagers were mute, they were very tough and almost everyone carried a gun. His godson thought for a long time and eventually decided to have the thirteen-year-old girl take him there, saying that there was nothing she couldnt handle. If that was the case, then this little girl shouldnt be his god-granddaughter; otherwise, she wouldnt be acting so arrogantly in the local area. Black Glasses touched his chin and saw the little girl roll her eyes again. Feeling a little frustrated, he decided to concentrate on thinking about the village.

Thunder, the secrets of heaven, becoming mute, and Wu Xies investigation all seemed to be connected somehow. But Wu Xie was in Fujian, and this was Myanmar. Was listening to thunder a universal thing? Did different people everywhere discover and form different cultures around it? If this was the case, then Wu Erbai should increase the price by another twenty percent.

The truck came to an abrupt stop, which almost caused Black Glasses to hit the windshield. When he recovered, he found that there was a suspension bridge in front of him.

This suspension bridge was hidden among the extremely lush tropical foliage. If not for the fact that his eyes were very sensitive in the dark, it wouldve been very difficult to see.

Mute Village was on the other side of this suspension bridge.

There was probably a mountain gap under the bridge, so if the little girl hadnt braked in time, they wouldve rushed down into it. No one would be staging any rescue efforts here, and the car would definitely be useless once it fell down.

Everyone in the square immediately turned their heads and looked at the two of them at the same time. Black Glasses stood up and said to the woman below, "Apologize quickly. Otherwise, itll be a diplomatic incident."

But the woman got up, fled into the alley between the buildings, and disappeared. Black Glasses stared for a moment, and then noticed several mature men with automatic rifles in their hands start to rush over.

Black Glasses, naturally understanding what this meant, jumped to the thatched roof of another diaojiao, leaped to the ground, and then ran after the girl. He was very fast, so after listening for the girl's footsteps, he was able to follow her route and catch up.

He didnt know anything about the village at all, so if he wanted to escape, it would certainly be better to follow her. After turning a corner, he saw the girl rush into a diaojiao. Black Glasses accelerated and followed her in, but as soon as he did, he saw a big shirtless guy shaving his beard. The woman flew up to the second floor of the diaojiao, leaving Black Glasses and the big guy to stare at each other.

Black Glasses suddenly felt a little confused. At this time, the big guy silently pulled a nearby T-shirt to his chest and covered his chest hair. "Dude, whats going on?" The big guy was also a Chinese and spoke in the Nanjing dialect. "Are you also a tourist? But the rainy season is coming. You wont be able to get out next month. Did your tour guide trick you?

"The woman just now seems to be in trouble." Black Glasses pointed to the second floor. "I have something to discuss with her." He started to walk to the second floor, but the big guy suddenly dropped his T-shirt to the ground and stood in front of the stairs. "My sister is causing trouble? You say youre looking for her because shes in trouble, but I think youre the one causing trouble. As he spoke, he grabbed Black Glasses by the collar.

Black Glasses flicked the guys belly button, causing him to let go with a bashful "ah!". Black Glasses wanted to continue up to the second floor immediately, but at this time, he saw the light outside the window flicker out of the corner of his eye. He grabbed the big guy and rolled to the side.

Almost at the same time, a few local youths rushed into the house and started firing.

The sound of AK47s going off was very loud and powerful, and the place where they had just been standing was quickly turned to dust. After they were done shooting, a young man in the front immediately fired his gun at the ceiling until all of his bullets were spent.

The floor and ceiling of the diaojiao were made up of wooden pillars and boards, which were now riddled with holes. Black Glasses heard a cry come from upstairs, and thought to himself, its over. Theres no way she survived that.

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TN Notes:

(1) Diajiao are basically stilted buildings in Miao villages. Because they are built with joints instead of nails, nearly the entire building can be disassembled to be moved, or to recycle its materials into new structures. Pics and info here.

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This is kind of Season 1 Episode 6 26:08-32:52 and Episode 7 8:29-20:17 and 41:10-42:20. Viki link here if you're not an iQiyi VIP member.