Chapter 1741: Conflicting Opinions
The short-haired woman and the bald burly man exchanged a glance, then pulled Xu Huo along to find a place to stay. Only after entering did they dump out all the fragmented information they had gathered.
Then came the playback time.
Xu Huo first singled out the personnel who might have been involved in the aircraft accident—specifically, those most likely to have reactivated the two technicians. Next, he focused on individuals connected to Suo Lan's father's death and the blind old lady incident, carefully reviewing everything from their life experiences to their family situations.
These were just summaries of information, with no clear leads, so he could only note them down for now.
By dawn, after finishing this massive amount of data, he rubbed his tired eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.
The short-haired woman and the bald man also looked somewhat fatigued. The bald man said, "I really can't figure out the connection between the mining disaster and the painting. Could it be that the 'Ember Maiden' really isn't a painting?"
These past few days, they had been stuck in this line of thought, because the relevant information was too scarce. They only knew that everyone was searching for the painting, but what if the instance was playing tricks, and the "Ember Maiden" wasn't a painting at all?
"What did you feel after learning the truth about the mining disaster?" Xu Huo suddenly asked.
"Of course, I wanted to kill someone," the short-haired woman said bluntly. "Those inhuman bastards should have been wiped out long ago. Letting them live a hundred years of comfortable lives was way too merciful!"
The bald man thought for a moment and said, "It's hard to believe. I never imagined that a district government would kill people for money like this, especially in District 019. Their lenient welfare policies for ordinary people didn't start yesterday. It's utterly absurd."
Xu Huo then displayed the data he had found—the officially announced death toll from the mining accidents versus the actual death toll, along with clips of mine collapses.
The more the two watched, the tighter their expressions became, and their fists clenched harder—yes, this was the normal human reaction. Even though the events were over a hundred years old, seeing these numbers and materials still evoked grief. These weren't just a string of digits; they were real, living people displayed before their eyes.
If outsiders felt this way, what must Suo Lan, a native of District 019, have thought? Especially since her father, her family, her friends, and the neighbors who cared for her had all been harmed by this. And this was a joint operation between the government, which the people had always trusted and supported, and the mining conglomerate that had brought wealth to everyone. Hatred, anger, and disappointment must have dominated her feelings.
But from the moment Suo Lan started painting, she had never shown these emotions. She seemed more like someone who believed in the innate goodness of human nature and had inner peace.
"She might not necessarily know the truth," the short-haired woman said. "Even though her father's tragedy and the blind old lady's family tragedy might have been man-made, she might not have known. Maybe the blind old lady didn't know either, otherwise how could she have retired in Dingding Flower Town and kept receiving government care?"
"If what you're saying is true, then this has nothing to do with the 'Ember Maiden,'" Xu Huo said.
From Suo Lan's growth environment, he had speculated that her sudden change at age twenty might have been triggered by the misfortunes of those around her. Most of those people were connected to the mining disaster. Tracing back to where her father died, he had moved from Tiantianle Mine to Hailisi Mine, extracted part of the mining disaster's truth from the "Dwelling of the Dead" instance, then verified it with former Tiantianle employees, finally concluding that the District 019 government and the mining conglomerate had jointly caused the mining disasters to obtain human bone gems in exchange for money.
After going around in such a big circle and returning to Suo Lan, if there was no connection, then these days of effort were not only wasted but also meant he had gone in the wrong direction.
"I don't have any better leads either..." The short-haired woman only raised the point without deeper thoughts.
Of course, Xu Huo was more inclined to believe that the painting was related to the mining accident. But the mining disaster involved too wide a scope. The people of District 019 were both victims and beneficiaries, and there had been revenge against those who knew the truth. Coupled with the long passage of time, it was inherently difficult to draw a clear line between right and wrong.
The emotions reflected in Suo Lan's paintings were contrary to normal people. Perhaps something else had happened in between. During her growth, District 019 had gradually emerged from its economic crisis. At this stage, there were both man-made accidents and retaliation from those involved. Xu Huo didn't know what turning point had caused her mindset to change. She seemed to love District 019 deeply rather than harbor hatred for a part of its people.
Previously, Xu Huo had believed that Suo Lan's paintings reflected her sense of mission. This feeling hadn't changed, but for now, there were no clues to trace the specific reason for her sudden change in state.
"If her father really died in an accident, Suo Lan might not have that much hatred for the District 019 government and the mining conglomerate," the bald man said at this point. "In this matter, ordinary people don't have much confidence to condemn the government or demand accountability, because they are direct beneficiaries, generation after generation. To put it bluntly, Suo Lan herself and her descendants are also beneficiaries."
"Moreover, consider those mining conglomerate employees and government personnel involved. Were they all truly monsters who killed without blinking? Most were just doing a job, weren't they? Besides, their original intention was to maintain District 019. If the economy collapsed, it's hard to say what District 019 would have become. The worst outcome might have been becoming a vassal of another district. It's hard to imagine what kind of life the entire district's people would have had then."
"Besides, didn't these people face retaliation? The people of District 019 aren't fools. I'm sure quite a few families were destroyed."
"Perhaps after learning the full story, Suo Lan's feelings toward them were very complicated. Her sudden change at age twenty might indeed have been when she learned the truth. By then, the peak of man-made mining disasters had passed, and her life had become more comfortable and stable due to District 019's rapid development."
"Nonsense!" the short-haired woman snapped angrily. "What beneficiaries? Did they ever ask those beneficiaries if they wanted to live on money built from human lives?"
"And what's this about 'forced participation' and 'carrying a heavy burden'? As if they were doing good deeds. If they really had that sacrificial spirit, why didn't they wash themselves clean and jump into the mine? What's the point of deceiving those who didn't know?"
"Those who died silently—many of them had no families, right? They also knew to pick on the weak. Did they ask the deceased for their opinions?"
"Oh, so they're the ones bleeding and sweating, while everyone else just reaps the benefits? And they call it 'sacrifice'? Bullshit!"
"If Suo Lan knew all this and still lived for a hundred years as if nothing happened, then she's no good either. 'Ember Maiden,' paintings—all of it is crap!"
The bald man was speechless.
Their words gave Xu Huo some inspiration. He reopened the message collection terminal. "Find out if anyone in the District 019 government and Tiantianle Group members experienced a major upheaval when Suo Lan was twenty. Focus on those connected to her social network, as well as the big shots who have always been in the decision-making layer."
(Chapter End)