Chapter 43 The Greatest Tragedy in the World

It took about five minutes to walk.

Yang Yumei stopped in front of a low, single-story house.

The exterior walls of the house were dilapidated, with bricks peeling off at the corners to reveal the grayish-black cement underneath. The iron gate at the entrance was rusty, and the paint on the doorknob had been worn away to the point of being almost invisible.

She took a key out of her pocket, inserted it into the lock, and turned it with a harsh metallic scraping sound.

The room was pitch black. Yang Yumei fumbled for the light switch and turned it on. The dim light illuminated the simple living room.

"Come in."

Bai Xiao and Xu Zhi entered the house and quickly scanned the room.

The room was small, with a few children's certificates of merit on the wall, some miscellaneous items piled up in the corner, and old but neatly arranged furniture. A faint musty smell permeated the air.

"The house is a bit messy, please don't mind."

Yang Yumei quickly wiped the stool and placed it in front of the two of them. The wooden stool surface had been worn smooth by the years and was even somewhat shiny.

Bai Xiao and Xu Zhi sat down respectively.

Yang Yumei turned and went to the kitchen to pour water.

Just then, a childish voice suddenly came from the inner room: "Mom, are we having guests?"

A little girl, about ten years old, peeked out, her eyes still sleepy, looking at the two strangers in the living room. Her hair was a little messy, but her eyes showed curiosity and wariness.

Yang Yumei poked her head out from the kitchen and said softly, "Xinxin, have you finished your homework? Go back to your room and sleep. You have school tomorrow."

Her tone was gentle, but the little girl did not immediately retreat back to the room. Instead, she stared straight at Bai Xiao and Xu Zhi.

"Are they police officers?" The little girl's voice was clear and crisp, with a touch of childlike earnestness and a hint of wariness and curiosity in her eyes.

Xu Zhi smiled slightly and looked at the little girl with gentle eyes: "Little friend, we are indeed police officers, but you don't need to worry, we're not here to catch bad guys."

"Then can you arrest my dad? My dad is a bad person, I don't want to see him," the little girl said earnestly, biting her lip.

Yang Yumei's expression changed slightly. She quickly walked over, gently took the little girl's hand, and pulled her into the room: "Don't talk nonsense, go to sleep, Mom will be here in a little while."

Bai Xiao and Xu Zhi exchanged a glance, both seeing surprise in each other's eyes.

At this moment, Yang Yumei brought out two glasses of water from the kitchen and carefully handed them over, while she stood aside, nervously twisting her hands together: "I'm sorry, the child is still young and doesn't understand."

"It's nothing." Bai Xiao smiled, took the cup and took a sip. The cup was an old-fashioned glass with fine cracks on the rim.

"Please sit down, don't stand. We're just here to get a feel for the situation; there's no need for formalities."

Yang Yumei nodded, slowly sat down, and the wooden stool made a creaking sound. His fingers curled slightly on his knees, then relaxed.

Bai Xiao looked at Xu Zhi, signaling him to start first.

Xu Zhi took out a notebook and pen and began to ask, "Did you know that your husband had an accident?"

Yang Yumei shook her head: "I don't know... He rarely comes home, and sometimes I don't see him for several days."

Xu Zhi's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, his pen making notes in his notebook, before he continued, "Could you be more specific? When was the last time you saw him?"

Her eyelashes fluttered, her gaze falling on the water glass on the table, its contents casting a faint glow: "It must have been last Sunday... He drank that night and came home very late. He wanted money from me, but I didn't give it to him, so he smashed things in the house, and..."

She suddenly stopped talking at this point.

My breathing became rapid.

Bai Xiao's eyes flickered slightly, noticing that she was losing control of her emotions.

He didn't interrupt, but waited quietly.

Yang Yumei subconsciously pressed her trembling hand and continued, "He also hit Xin Xin... I tried my best to stop him, but in the end I had no choice but to give him the money. I haven't seen him since that day."

Bai Xiao's gaze lingered on her hands, where he could clearly see several bruises that hadn't faded. He then asked, "Was your hand injured because of him?"

"Yes, I hit him before." Yang Yumei gripped the hem of her clothes tightly.

"Why didn't you call the police?" Xu Zhi asked.

Yang Yumei gave a bitter smile: "I've tried... but every time the police come, he pretends to be repentant. As soon as the police leave, he goes back to his old ways. I'm really scared... scared that he'll hurt Xinxin, so I don't dare to report it anymore."

Bai Xiao remained silent for a long time.

It is said that even an upright official finds it difficult to settle family disputes.

It is difficult to file a case for family disputes.

According to procedure, after the police arrive at the scene, they will take photos of the injuries and conduct a forensic examination. If there are no obvious injuries, they will generally mediate and provide criticism and education.

Yang Yumei's injuries were clearly caused by internal injuries, and it is highly likely that Zhao Qiangdong used a towel wrapped around his fist to hit her, which caused the current situation.

"Alright, we have a general understanding of the situation. Thank you for your cooperation."

Bai Xiao was the first to stand up, preparing to leave.

Just then, the door to the inner room was quietly pushed open a crack, and Xin Xin's small figure appeared in the doorway. She was holding a tattered teddy bear in her hands and looked timidly at Bai Xiao in the living room.

"Officer, is Dad really not coming back?"

Bai Xiao seemed to have been hit by a bullet, and froze for a few seconds.

He then squatted down, patted the other person's head, and didn't say anything.

...

The night outside was as dark as ink.

A cool night breeze swept by, and the streetlights cast a dim yellow glow, illuminating the concrete ground deep in the alley.

Bai Xiao walked ahead with steady steps, while Xu Zhi followed behind, holding a notebook in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed, as if he were pondering something.

"Master, do you think Yang Yumei is telling the truth?"

"pretty close."

"When Zhao Qiangdong came to give a statement last time, he looked quite honest. I never expected him to be like this behind the scenes. What kind of skill is it to be a bully at home?"

Bai Xiao was silent for a few seconds before slowly saying, "The greatest tragedy in the world is not the arrogance of the wicked, but the silence of the good."

Xu Zhi nodded in agreement: "Master, you're right. Good people sometimes need to have a bit of a sharp edge, otherwise it will only embolden bad people."

Bai Xiao took a cigarette out of his pocket, lit it, took a deep drag, and asked, "If Zhao Qiangdong hadn't died, would you have arrested him?"

Xu Zhi answered without hesitation: "What's the use of just interrogating this kind of demon? Even if they're locked up, they won't be there for long. When they're released, they'll just keep harming the mother and daughter. It's just a formality."

Bai Xiao suddenly turned to look at him, his eyes like a turbulent sea, unfathomable: "How do you think we can make those demons realize their mistakes?"

Xu Zhi thought for a moment and said, "Theoretically speaking, it's impossible. I've seen vicious death row inmates before. Once they're locked up, they all have one of two kinds of eyes: one is a deliberate frivolity, and the other is an indifference to life and death."

"This shows that they are not afraid of death, nor do they have any remorse. Some of them are even devoid of emotions. You might beat them up and they would even enjoy it."

After listening to Xu Zhi's words, Bai Xiao took a deep drag on his cigarette.

Then he threw the cigarette butt on the ground and stomped it out.

That's right!

The law only applies to people with feelings.

Those without emotions are called demons.

To fight the demons.

Death is far too cheap for them.