Suddenly, the living room was silent.
The script in which the wife catches her husband cheating with a mistress is really too melodramatic, but it is actually a relatively common occurrence both in movies and TV shows and in real life... Although people feel a little embarrassed when they first hear about this kind of privacy, they don't deliberately avoid anything. They sincerely sigh in their hearts that every family has its own problems.
It’s just that this person named “Song Yan” is a photographer…
You have to know that in real life, female photographers are rare, and very few women are willing to engage in this profession.
Everyone present was from the entertainment industry, and their expressions suddenly became subtle.
After a long while, someone suddenly stuttered, "Um, can I ask, is Song Yan a man or a woman?"
Others: “…”
Although it may sound a bit gossipy, I have to say that this is a good question!
Yilan's expression at this moment was so ugly that it could not be described. Her brows were tightly furrowed, and there was unconcealable hatred in her eyes, as if she had witnessed some heinous crime with her own eyes, which made her extremely hateful.
When everyone saw that she avoided answering, they understood after observing her expression.
...
...
Song Yan is a man.
If it is a woman, a normal person would at most express disgust, aversion or even hatred, but usually would not have such an expression as if one's world views have been shattered and one's faith has collapsed.
Recalling a certain secret local custom, everyone in the program crew couldn't help but observe a three-second silence for Boss Lu.
Zhao Yi thought to himself, it was definitely a miracle that Boss Lu was able to survive!
But then I thought, Boss Lu obviously married Yilan by fraud, which is really unethical. Such a person would definitely be despised by everyone in the outside world. No wonder a college graduate from a prestigious university would hide in a small place like Dian County...
Although Zhao Yi knew that he was immoral and had the audacity to expose other people's privacy, the atmosphere was visibly awkward. He couldn't continue to expose other people's scars, so he had to scratch his head and forcefully come up with a topic: "Um, why didn't you see the baby?"
Since she was found to be pregnant half a year ago, and seeing Yilan's light and graceful appearance, she should have given birth a long time ago. Maybe the two did not divorce because of the existence of the child, and every new mother would surely feel happy when mentioning her child... right?
It has to be said that although Zhao Yi has not made any achievements in his job as a director, he is indeed first-rate in his imagination.
"What baby? Where is the baby?" Yilan just came to her senses when she heard this question and was stunned for a moment.
Zhao Yi was surprised and said: "Didn't you just say that you--" found out you were pregnant half a year ago?
However, before he could ask, Yilan had already reacted. Her eyes suddenly turned red, and soon, she covered her mouth and started crying.
Everyone in the program team: “……………………”
Zhao Yi was dumbfounded. He actually asked someone to cry? ? ?
Because he couldn't understand Mandarin, Sang Tai had been playing games on his mobile phone against the wall, pretending to be invisible. When he looked up, he happened to see his sister crying. Without asking why, he just thought that Zhao Yi was bullying his sister. He immediately became furious and rushed towards Zhao Yi with a broom!
Sang Tai: "I'm tired of this bastard!!!"
Zhao Yi: “???”
Everyone: “!!!”
The boy swung the meter-long broom vigorously, and it was about to hit Director Zhao's head. The young assistant was stunned, and his body reflexively blocked his leader: "What are you doing?!"
The others also came to their senses and stood up to stop Sang Tai:
"Calm down! Calm down!"
"Anger is harmful to the body, we gentlemen use our mouths instead of our fists!"
"What's wrong? Why are you so irritable all of a sudden?"
"Fuck, this guy is full of muscles, too strong, I can't hold him back--"
Suddenly, a bunch of human-shaped pendants appeared on Sang Tai's body, making him unable to move. He couldn't understand what everyone was saying. The boy struggled several times but to no avail. He was so angry that smoke came out of his head. With a red face and thick neck, he cursed in half-baked Mandarin: "You bastards! You bully my sister! Get out! Get out!"
Zhao Yi pushed out of the encirclement with a confused look on his face. He rushed out swiftly and begged for mercy: "Okay, okay, let's go out. You put down your weapon first!"
Sang Tai was so quick that he was about to throw a broom at his back. The assistant was terrified. He had just accidentally touched a broom, and the handle was made of pure wood and weighed several kilograms. If it hit someone, wouldn't it hurt? !
He quickly stopped him, and while lowering his voice to urge Director Zhao to run faster, he shouted at the top of his voice:
“Beating people is against the law!!!”
…
An hour later, Zhao Yi was sitting in the reception hall of a nearby homestay, and with lingering fear, he sent Jing Cheng the information they had found out about Yilan's family.
Although he didn't know why Taoist Xiao Jing asked them to investigate Boss Lu, Zhao Yi had a vague feeling that they might run into a tough guy again this time.
Fortunately, Dian County is a small place, but it is well-informed. If something happens to one family, the whole county will know about it.
The proprietress of this B&B is in her forties and a bit out of shape, a typical middle-aged woman. She loves gossip and knows the dynamics of each family very well. She is also keen on sharing. When she heard that the program crew came to inquire about Tingxi Pavilion, she immediately became excited and told them everything she knew.
The relationship between Boss Lu and Yilan is no secret in Dian County.
What's more, the Yilan family is considered a wealthy family in Dian County - it's like the outside world, when ordinary people face rich and powerful local tyrants, even though they have nothing to do with them, they still can't help but pay attention to their every move, and then like to gossip about their private lives in private.
"So Yilan had a miscarriage due to shock half a year ago?" The young assistant rubbed his lower back with a grin. There was a bruise there. He was trying to block the broom for his leader just now, but got stabbed instead. It would probably take ten days or half a month to heal. He thought he had to consider himself unlucky, but Zhao Yi said that this was considered a work injury and he could get more compensation when he returns. The young assistant was quite happy, thinking that a blessing in disguise may come from a misfortune.
Zhao Yi sighed: "I guess so. No wonder Yilan cried like that. Losing a child for such a reason would probably be a lifelong psychological trauma for a woman."
Zhao Yi was originally angry that Sang Tai had no manners and had agreed to cooperate with their interview but he actually resorted to violence. Now that he knew the reason, he began to regret it. It was because he did not listen clearly in advance and was rude to others. He could not blame the other person's brother for beating them out.
The proprietress of the B&B has probably read too many romance novels, so her train of thought is very strange: "That's right, the third man named Song Yan is not a pushover either. Not only did he cause Yilan to have a miscarriage, but he also shamelessly stayed here. Relying on the fact that he and Boss Lu are old classmates, he eats and lives at his place every day. Who doesn't know that Tingxi Pavilion belongs to Yilan? Isn't he just eating at someone else's wife in disguise? He thought he was the white moonlight, but he didn't know that in Boss Lu's heart he was just a drop of mosquito blood! Isn't it? In the end, he ate and drank for free for half a year and got nothing, and was kicked out by Boss Lu."
Zhao Yi was a little absent-minded and asked casually, "When did you leave?"
The proprietress spat out melon seed shells and said nonchalantly, "Just a month ago, his inn caught fire and two people died. The police and reporters came every day to investigate. Boss Lu must have been annoyed and drove them away. Anyway, I never saw him again."
"I heard that the two who died were also homosexuals. In my opinion, what our ancestors said was right. Two men being together is against human ethics and a big taboo. They will be punished by heaven! If my son gets together with a man in the future, I will break his legs long ago without the wrath of heaven!"
“…”
Everyone present was speechless after hearing this. This village (Dian County is just a village in everyone's eyes) is really vicious. If they can't stand gays, then just don't stand them. Why curse them?
But they did not dare to refute. The shadow cast by Bijia Village on them was too deep. If there was any human sacrifice in this "village", they would not have a second life.
Zhao Yi didn't listen carefully to what she said later. When he heard the first part, a thought flashed through his mind, and he thought, "Are you sure he was driven away?"
Seeing his serious expression, the lady boss hesitated and said, "This... I'm not sure. Originally, they said he was missing and they never found him. He didn't have any family or friends, so the matter was left unresolved. Later, Boss Lu told everyone that Song Yan was a travel photographer and might have gone abroad to work."
Zhao Yi was a little speechless, thinking, why do you say that people were driven away? You dare to tell them without any factual basis, isn't this a rumor?
He didn't say anything, but the proprietress became nervous and said incoherently: "What? Are you here to investigate Song Yan too? I have seen him a few times, but I have never spoken to him! My son is only in junior high school, and he is not gay. This man has nothing to do with our family. Why don't you go find someone else?"
After Song Yan disappeared in the fire, the police came to question their "neighbors" many times in order to find him. The proprietress had obviously developed this into a conditioned reflex.
Zhao Yi understood what was happening after seeing this. It seemed that the "third man" named Song Yan was really missing. If he really went abroad to work, the police would be able to find his travel records, so there was no need to investigate the people here.
So he sent this message to Jingcheng as well.
The assistant asked the question that had been buried in her heart: "Boss, since everyone here believes that the gods are wrathful and homosexuals will be punished, how come Boss Lu is fine?"
Seeing that they were no longer harping on "Song Yan" and were changing the subject, the lady boss relaxed: "He was just lucky. He knew he made a mistake and turned over a new leaf. The mountain god saw it too."
"Mountain God?" The assistant was keen on the words, "Isn't he a god in heaven?"
The lady boss grabbed another handful of melon seeds and started to eat them. With a look of "you are surprised by what you have seen", she said, "Oh! There is no such thing as a god in this world! God has billions of people under his control, how can he manage everything? The mountain god is different. Our ancestors have worshipped it for generations. It is the real god, and it is very powerful!"
As she spoke, she nodded her chin at them mysteriously and said, "Look, we have one at home, too. It's right there."
When everyone heard what was said, they looked and saw that there was indeed a strange clay sculpture on the counter. At first, everyone thought it was an ordinary handicraft, but a little ugly. Now that the proprietress told them that it was the local mountain god, they couldn't help but become curious.
They took one look and thought it looked familiar, and couldn't help but look at it again and again.
After a long while, someone asked doubtfully, "Is that a... monkey?"
"What monkey?" The proprietress glared at him, "That's Xiao!"
xiao...Xiao...Mandrill?
"Mandrill???"
Everyone was shocked.
*
Jing Cheng was also stunned when he received the messages sent by Director Zhao.
Although he said he hoped Director Zhao could check Lu Keyuan's interpersonal relationships, he didn't really have much hope. But it wasn't long before Director Zhao was able to find out such a private matter for him, which was beyond Jing Cheng's expectation.
Although Qin Yan didn't say anything after reading it, the aura around him became a little colder.
"So Boss Lu is really gay?" Fu Le saw the text message sent by Director Zhao. When he saw the sentence "Yilan caught Lu Keyuan and Song Yan having a secret meeting and was frightened and had a miscarriage", he frowned in disgust. "Being a gay and cheating on marriage is simply a cancer in the gay community."
Although Fu Le is a pure straight man, there are many gays in their circle of rich second-generations in Beijing, and his brother Yan is a leader among them. He is famous for his cold and handsome appearance, and is the dream of countless men. As the other party's childhood friend, Fu Le has been harassed by people in that circle many times in the past. He was fed up with it and inevitably learned about the things in that circle. Naturally, he hates the act of "marriage fraud".
After all, Jing Cheng lived a hundred years ago. He had seen too many wealthy masters marrying virtuous wives and keeping male concubines in the backyard. As a person outside the world, he had never cared about these worldly affairs. Although he did not agree with them, he did not think there was anything wrong with them.
Seeing the expressions of the two people at this moment, he was a little surprised at first, and then he remembered that today's society is monogamous, and this behavior of cheating on someone after getting married is indeed disgusting.
Jing Cheng tapped the screen of his phone and circled the word "Song Yan": "Hmm, this person..."
Fu Le didn't know what was going on in his mind, and he became inexplicably excited: "Chengzi, what did you find?"
Qin Yan looked at him inquiringly: What’s the problem?
Jing Cheng touched his chin and said slowly: "I always feel that the disappearance of Song Yan should be related to Boss Lu. Unfortunately, I only know his name. There are so many people with the same name in this world, so I can't find more information. But he should not have much to do with our target this time, so our focus this time is still..."
"Is there any need to think about this?" Fu Le quickly interrupted him and expressed his own thoughts, "How can a living person suddenly disappear from the face of the earth? Maybe Boss Lu killed the person out of hatred for him and then explained that he was missing! Anyway, Song Yan has no relatives or friends with the locals and has a bad reputation. Everyone must be hoping that he will get out of here as soon as possible. Who would care whether he lives or dies?"
Jing Cheng: “…”
Qin Yan: “…”
At this point, Fu Le swallowed his saliva, his face flushed with excitement, "It just so happens that there was a fire in the inn and someone died, which attracted everyone's attention, and then he could destroy the evidence!"
Jing Cheng was amazed: "Your brain..."
Fu Le looked at him expectantly: "How about it, am I right?"
Jing Cheng gave him a thumbs up and said with an "appreciative" look on his face: "Rich imagination, full storyline, online logic, and well-reasoned!"
Fu Le's tail immediately stood up to the sky with pride and his face was full of arrogance.
"..." Qin Yan turned his head away, unable to bear to see his stupid look.
Sure enough, the next second, Jing Cheng poured cold water on him: "You also said that this is just your guess. Everything must be based on evidence."
Fu Reservoir Dogs: "...Oh."
…
After a while, Fu Le couldn't help asking, "Then how do we find evidence?"
Qin Yan glanced at him and felt that he was a little too excited: "Looking for evidence is the police's job, what does it have to do with you?"
Jing Cheng nodded and said, "That's right. If Song Yan was really killed by him, it has been more than a month. Even if there is evidence, it would not be preserved until now. We can't find it if we want to. It's better to leave it to professionals."
Fu Le looked around at the two people and felt that they were both extremely cold and indifferent. He couldn't help but ask, "This won't work, and that won't work either. So what on earth are we here for?"
Qin Yan felt that as a good brother, he should not discourage the other party's enthusiasm for investigating the case, so he reminded him: "We are here to investigate the cause of the 'God's wrath', have you forgotten?"
Fu Le: “…”
He had long forgotten about going to Java.
Fu Le said awkwardly, "What is the reason for the 'wrath of the gods'?"
Isn't it known that the cause of the fire is the fire evil spirit? Isn't it enough to change the Feng Shui?
Jing Cheng didn't answer. He was looking down at his phone. Director Zhao had just sent him another long message.
At first he was somewhat nonchalant, but as he watched, his brows gradually furrowed and his expression became increasingly uglier.
Qin Yan asked: "What's wrong?"
Fu Le also looked over curiously.
"Do you remember the mandrill ghost we saw last night?" Jing Cheng raised his head and slowly smiled. "I made a wrong judgment before. It might not be an ordinary spirit."
Qin Yan noticed his expression and his heart suddenly sank.
It was because Jing Cheng never smiled like this normally. Although the corners of his lips were raised, there was no smile in his eyes. His eyes, which were darker than those of others, were so deep and terrifying at this moment that an indescribable chill enveloped his entire body.
Even Fu Le, who was a thick-skinned man, could sense that something was wrong. He had never seen Jing Cheng show such an expression before. If he were a cat or a dog, his hair would probably stand on end. He asked at a loss, "What is that mandrill?"
It was clearly an animal, but it had a human face... Thinking back on it now, it still seems scary.
Qin Yan glanced at his phone with a surprised expression: "Mountain God?"
Jing Cheng shook his head: "It's not a mountain god, it's an evil god."
He looked at Boss Lu who was hurriedly rushing towards the pavilion where they were, and a strange look gradually appeared on his face.
Before the two asked what the "evil god" was, Jing Cheng suddenly stood up and walked towards Boss Lu.
"You guys wait here first, I'll go over and trick him."
-----
The author has something to say:
The timeline is a bit messy. The end of this chapter connects to the end of Chapter 130.
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