Chapter 34 Someone died!
The thought made her shudder.
What if…what if the boss and his wife weren't locked up, and instead they exposed the matter? Then…who would I hire to work for me in the future? My fifteen taels of silver…
The older woman became increasingly anxious and panicked, feeling that things were out of her control. No, she had to go and see for herself what was going on!
"Sir, I'll go with you! I'll show you the way!" She went against her usual behavior and moved forward actively.
So, a group of people rushed towards Zhang Quezi's house at the entrance of the village in a mighty and murderous manner.
Before I reached the door, I smelled a strong smell of blood mixed with alcohol wafting out from the dilapidated yard.
Feng Lan's heart sank to the bottom.
At this moment, the crooked wooden door creaked and was suddenly knocked open from the inside!
A thin figure with disheveled hair and disheveled clothes stumbled out from inside.
It’s Daya!
Her face was covered with tear marks and blood stains, and her eyes were filled with extreme fear, like a frightened deer.
“Help…Help!”
She crashed into the arms of Zhao Hu, the head constable in front of her, and then, as if grabbing the last straw, she hugged his legs tightly, using all her strength to let out a heart-wrenching scream:
"Someone's dead! Someone's dead inside...someone's dead inside!"
As she cried, she suddenly turned around and pointed at the old lady behind her who looked astonished and greedy.
"It's her! It's grandma! She made me come! She made me come here... She said if I don't come, my parents will go to jail for life! She made me come!"
The whole scene froze in an instant.
The pride and calculation on the old lady Chen's face had not yet faded away before she froze there, replaced by boundless astonishment and fear.
She...what did she say?
Someone died?
Chapter 23: Bloodstained Threshold, Twisted Filial Piety
The dilapidated gate of Zhang Quezi's house seemed like the entrance to hell at this moment.
The strong smell of blood, like an invisible hand, strangled the throats of everyone present.
Daya's cries were shrill and desperate, and every word was like a hammer, hitting everyone's heart. Especially the sentence "Grandma sent me here" was like a thunderbolt, directly splitting the old lady of the Chen family to pieces.
"You... what nonsense are you talking about!" The old lady's voice suddenly became as sharp as if it had been rubbed by sandpaper. "You little bitch, you're not careful and have been fooling around with wild men. Now that something's wrong, you want to blame it on me? When did I let you come? Huh? Do you have any evidence?"
She screamed and subconsciously stepped back, trying to distance herself from the mess before her. Her guilty yet ferocious look, in the eyes of everyone, was simply an admission of guilt.
Feng Lan rushed over like a madman, hugging the trembling Daya tightly in her arms. When her hands touched her daughter's cold and trembling body and she smelled the mixed smell of blood and filth on her body, her heart felt like it was torn open alive, and the pain was so severe that she could hardly breathe.
"Daya, my Daya, don't be afraid, mom is here, mom is here..." She comforted her daughter incoherently, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.
Chen Kangbo also rushed over, his towering frame blocking his wife and daughter like an angry door god. His bloodshot eyes fixed on the old woman, no longer filled with anger, but with a cold, murderous hatred that threatened to crush her to dust. If looks could kill, the old woman would have been tortured to death a thousand times by now.
Captain Zhang Long and Zhao Hu exchanged a solemn glance. They were veterans of the underworld, and had seen it all. Even a fool could see that this was no simple "little bitch fooling around" as the old woman had described it.
"Zhao Hu, keep an eye on them! Don't let anyone get close!" Zhang Long whispered, then waved to the two yamen runners behind him, "You two, follow me in and take a look!"
"yes!"
The three yamen runners drew their swords from their waists and cautiously stepped into the courtyard that exuded an ominous atmosphere.
The yard was a mess, with wine jars lying on the ground, shattered. A sour, foul smell of wine and blood mixed together, making one sick. The door to the main house was ajar, and the bloody smell was coming from inside.
Zhang Long kicked the door open, and the scene inside the room made the three yamen runners, who were used to seeing life and death, gasp.
On the ground lay a man. It was none other than Zhang the Cripple, known to all the villagers. He lay face up, his eyes wide as bells, his face still etched with the terror and disbelief of his dying breath. A pitch-black, bone-cutting knife, its handle still trembling, clung to his chest. Blood gushed from the wound, staining the ground beneath him red, forming a thick pool.
The room was extremely sparsely furnished: a broken table, two benches, and a bed whose original color couldn't be discerned. On the table lay half a plate of leftover peanuts and a pot of cheap liquor.
All signs indicate that Zhang Quezi seemed to be drinking before his death.
"Boss, the man... is already dead." A yamen runner stepped forward to check Zhang Guizi's breath and shook his head.
Zhang Long's face was as dark as water. He carefully surveyed the scene. Aside from the deceased, no one else was in the room. There were a few messy footprints on the floor: the deceased's and a noticeably smaller, female footprint. The windows were closed, and the door was ajar from the inside. The murder weapon was on the deceased's body; it looked like a sudden struggle.
He walked out of the house and his eyes fell on a pile of firewood in the corner of the yard. Next to the pile of firewood was an axe used for chopping wood. The axe blade was clean, without any bloodstains.
Zhang Long's frown deepened. He returned to the courtyard gate. Feng Lan was holding Daya, Chen Kangbo standing guard nearby, and the Chen family's old lady was being closely watched by Zhao Hu and another yamen runner. She was still cursing and distorting the truth.
"Sir, you must investigate carefully! This girl has been a troublemaker since she was a child. She has dirty hands and a vicious mind! She must have stolen Zhang Quezi's money, was discovered, and then killed him to silence him! It has nothing to do with me!"
"Shut up!" Zhang Long shouted, scaring the old lady so much that she trembled.
His gaze fell on Daya, who was still trembling in Feng Lan's arms.
"Little girl, your name is Daya, right?" Zhang Long tried to make his voice sound gentle. "Don't be afraid. Tell me, when did you come here? What are you doing here? What exactly happened in the house?"
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