A pungent odor filled the air, and thick smoke continued to rise...

Lin Ziyan kept riding forward, then suddenly braked with a "screech".

“Ayan, what…” The chubby girl suddenly stopped as well.

The location of the raging fire wasn't their seafood market, but rather that "old-established seafood market"?

The crackling sound of burning wood...

"Let's go take a look." Lin Ziyan looked at the firelight across the way with suspicion and rode her bicycle forward.

When the two stopped at the entrance of the seafood market at the port, Ah Jian was wringing out water from his clothes.

The smoke dissipated, but the pungent smell still lingered in the air.

"Thanks to the water pipes we laid out in advance, otherwise we definitely wouldn't be able to put out the fire yet," A-Jian said hurriedly.

His face was blackened by the smoke, and he was soaked and looked very disheveled.

The restaurants near the entrance are still open and unaffected.

Aunt Wang ran out, cracking open a handful of sunflower seeds.

"Why aren't they putting out the fire on the other side?" she asked.

The fire had just started when the market manager pulled the hose and extinguished it in no time.

Aunt Wang thought it was just a small flame and didn't take it seriously.

“They…”, the chubby girl’s eyes widened, her anger growing stronger.

Ah Jian was still shaken. If they hadn't prepared in advance, their market would have been engulfed by the fire.

Lin Ziyan did not breathe a sigh of relief; on the contrary, she felt that it was too unusual for two markets to catch fire at the same time.

"Ah Yan, with such a big fire, won't it all burn down?" Aunt Wang asked, munching on sunflower seeds and watching the spectacle.

She had almost finished her business today and was planning to close early, but then the fire happened and a lot more customers came in.

At this time in the past, the market would already be partially closed.

The town's fire brigade arrived too late; they could only watch helplessly.

The fire burned for several hours before it was extinguished.

The next morning, when the villagers gathered around to look, only the frame of the market remained; it had been completely burned down.

The newly set-up food stall was burned to the ground.

The fire department sent people in to check, but nothing was left.

"Ayan, let's go buy some more water pipes..." the chubby girl said, rubbing her eyes as she slept poorly all night.

They all went home that night, leaving only a few workers to take turns keeping watch.

Lin Ziyan arrived early in the morning and her heart skipped a beat when she saw the horrific scene of the opposite building burned to a frame.

She had a feeling that the other party was after her market.

"careful!"

Before Lin Ziyan could react, a stone whizzed past her.

She barely managed to avoid it by having her wrist pulled.

Lu Yunshen released her and quickly turned around to grab the man who had thrown the stone.

"It must have been you who did it, otherwise how could our market have caught fire!" the man shouted after being caught.

The others had tears in their eyes and clenched their fists.

"Bullshit! You're just making things up without any proof. Do you have any evidence?"

"Our market caught fire last night too, who knows who set it on fire!" Fatty Sister rushed forward and cursed.

The police arrived at that moment.

Lin Ziyan glanced at the men, wondering why Boss Liang hadn't shown up yet.

"It's her. They're definitely jealous of how many marketing people we have..."

They continued shouting.

More and more people gathered around, and the sounds of discussion continued.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Everyone knows the seafood market at the port is even more crowded."

"I guess he was provoked."

"I heard that this market was a fundraising scheme, and that Boss Liang ran away with the money."

Lin Ziyan understood. No wonder Boss Liang hadn't shown up even after such a big incident.

The police inquired about the situation and eventually cordoned off the market, which had been reduced to ruins.

The agitated men were taken away.

"Did your market catch fire last night too?" Lu Yunshen asked, frowning.

Lin Ziyan nodded, "When we built the market, I took fire prevention measures early on, otherwise our market would only have a framework left now..."

...

Two days later,

The police investigation concluded that it was arson, but they could not find a suspect.

Lin Ziyan had already guessed this would be the outcome, so she wasn't surprised.

"Ayan, should we continue to send people to patrol?" the chubby girl asked worriedly.

Now she's even more afraid that the villagers who rented that market stall will come to the market and cause trouble.

The survey results are out, and many people are dissatisfied.

"Clang!"

The doorway was hit by a stone.

Lin Ziyan's brow twitched, and she strode out, but saw no one.

Only then did she realize Boss Liang's purpose: to use someone else to do his dirty work?

Since no results can be found, the villagers assume it was them who did it...

Did you manage to ask it?

"Was that market really built with funds raised by the villagers?" A chill spread through Lin Ziyan's eyes.

The chubby girl nodded, "That's right, that Boss Liang didn't put in any money at all, but instead collected a lot of deposits from the stall owners."

Lin Ziyan sat on the stone stool by the door and pretended not to see the few people who popped their heads out.

If that's the case, then it's very likely that Boss Liang was the one who set the fire.

But she had no grudge against Boss Liang.

"This Boss Liang is a big liar!" the chubby girl shouted.

She also saw a few villagers huddled in the corner, and these words were meant for them.

The two sat by the door for a short while,

The village party secretary arrived with several police officers.

A group of villagers, who had come to watch the commotion, followed behind, and the whole group walked toward the Lin family's house.

"Ayan, these police officers want to know something." Secretary Qin winked at her.

He came along because he was afraid they would suffer losses.

"Comrade Lin Ziyan, we'd like to inquire about Boss Liang. Do you have any grudges against him?" the team leader asked.

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