Reborn as a Superpower Girl in the 80s
Chapter 251 There is a Thief

Chapter 251: Chapter 251 There is a Thief

Actually, it wasn’t too late now, just after nine o’clock. The main reason was that people didn’t have much to do for entertainment, and they were reluctant to use lamps because they were afraid of wasting kerosene. So most people tended to go to bed early.

Upon arriving at the health center, they knocked on the door. Doctor Gao stayed there in the evenings, just in case there was an emergency. Besides, Doctor Gao’s sons had all married, and there was a shortage of living space at home.

This arrangement served to kill two birds with one stone.

Luo Qiao guessed that Grandpa Lin might have acute appendicitis. Doctor Gao, clad in his clothes, opened the door and upon seeing them asked, "What’s happened?"

Old Lady Lin quickly described her husband’s condition. Doctor Gao immediately examined him while asking questions, and then said, "We must hurry to the health center. It seems to be acute appendicitis. We can’t delay any longer."

Doctor Gao said to Luo Qiao, "Luo Qiao, go to the brigade’s yard and bring the handcart here. Er Lengzi is staying in the outbuilding there; just let him know."

Old Lady Lin said, "It’s so late at night. I’ll go with Luo Qiao."

Only then did Doctor Gao slap his forehead and say, "Oh dear, I was being thoughtless."

When they pushed the cart out from the brigade office, Luo Qiao said to Old Lady Lin, "Grandma Lin, you pull the handcart to the health center first. I’ll go call for some help."

Thinking the incident needed authoritative witnesses, Luo Qiao hurried to Brigade Leader Gao Jiefang’s house. As Luo Qiao knocked on the door, a voice inside asked, "Who is it?"

Luo Qiao replied, "Auntie Gao, it’s me, Luo Qiao."

Auntie Gao, thinking Luo Qiao had encountered trouble, quickly came out to open the gate, "Luo Qiao, what’s wrong?"

She examined Luo Qiao up and down and, seeing Luo Qiao was all right, she felt relieved.

Luo Qiao said, "Auntie Gao, I’m fine. It’s Grandpa Lin from the east side. He’s fallen ill. Doctor Gao says we have to get him to the health center, so I’ve come to inform the brigade leader."

Qiao Lianlian shouted into the house, "Dad, you’d better go check it out quickly. We don’t want anything else to happen."

Brigade Leader Gao Jiefang then hurried out of his house. By the time he arrived at the health center, Old Man Lin was already sweating profusely from pain and his complexion was ashen. They quickly pushed the cart to get him to the commune health center.

The duty doctor said surgery was needed. Since everyone had rushed out without bringing any money, Luo Qiao offered, "I’ll front the cost."

Old Lady Lin, with tears in her eyes, expressed her gratitude, "Thank you so much, my girl."

Luo Qiao patted her hand, "As long as he’s all right." Then she turned and went to make the payment.

Gao Jiefang had originally suggested that if it really came down to it, they could charge it to the village’s account and settle it later. But now that Luo Qiao had brought money, it was best to pay upfront and avoid indebtedness, although he did feel a bit embarrassed.

After everything was settled, and they had placed the patient in a hospital room and knew he was out of danger, they left Old Lady Lin to keep watch and the others returned to the village together.

By the time they reached the village, it was past two in the morning. The brigade leader and Doctor Gao, concerned for Luo Qiao’s safety, insisted on escorting her to her house. But upon seeing the wide-open courtyard gate, Luo Qiao exclaimed, "There’s been a thief."

The brigade leader and Doctor Gao exchanged glances, told Luo Qiao to stay back, and they entered the courtyard first. Seeing the door to the house was also wide open, they proceeded inside. Luo Qiao followed, switched on the flashlight she carried and, as she had guessed, they had been burgled.

Even the bedding from Luo Qiao’s kang bed was stolen, and the enamel washbasin in the room hadn’t been spared.

Half a bag of coarse grain that had been stored in the kitchen was also gone. Luo Qiao mused that the burglars sure had talent, thinking of taking everything in the courtyard as a dowry.

Indeed, that is what the thieves had in mind. Since the items belonged to Luo Qiao, and now she was ’theirs’, there was no reason to leave the belongings behind. They saw it as part of the dowry; otherwise, they would have felt cheated out of two hundred yuan.

Luo Qiao said to the brigade leader, "It looks like we’ll have to report this to the public security. This is all I have, and it’s just too much of a bullying."

So the brigade leader did not return home. Instead, he went to the commune police station to report the theft overnight. Initially, he hadn’t wanted to involve the police and thought of investigating house-to-house at dawn, but Luo Qiao convinced him that such brazenness was likely not the work of villagers.

If too much time passed, the trail might go cold. Gao Jiefang now had a severe headache; it wasn’t enough to deal with the health center, he had to involve the police station as well. The village truly couldn’t catch a moment of peace.