"In short, time is of the essence, we need to find that Old Liu as soon as possible!"
I slammed the laptop shut, too lazy to explain any further to them.
Anyway, they wouldn't understand, so it's like casting pearls before swine.
Zhao Jianguo's eyes burned with rage: "I'll go with you. I'm going to kill that bastard with my own hands!"
I nodded. After all, it was related to his father, so it was only natural for him to go.
Luo Tianhe didn't speak, but looked at Director Wang, who was trembling on the ground, with a cold gaze.
“Director Wang,” I knelt down in front of him, my voice not loud, but with a strong sense of pressure, “Where exactly is Lao Liu’s hometown? Canglonggou, Beishan County, which village? Which household? It’s not too much to ask you to show me the way, is it?”
Director Wang shuddered, raised his pale face, and looked away: "I, I really don't know the specifics. Canglonggou is a very remote place. I only heard him mention it once. I really don't know anything. This matter has nothing to do with me. I'm just an official in charge. I don't know anything. Please don't drag me into this!"
He was rambling incoherently, looking like he was about to wet himself in fear. Li Huai curled his lip, somewhat disdainful of his pathetic appearance.
Luo Tianhe, however, wasn't going to tolerate him. He scoffed, grabbed him, dragged him in front of the monitor, and pointed to the hand sticking out of the freezer, its fingernails still stained with dark red dirt:
"You don't know? You fucking tell me you don't know? Look closely, this happened in the funeral home you manage! Old Liu is your subordinate, he did this kind of shady stuff, and you say you don't know? He's dishonest, families have complained about him before, and you, as the director, didn't say a word, you even helped him cover it up, and now you're telling me you don't know?"
Director Wang was gripped painfully by Luo Tianhe's iron-like hand. He struggled a few times but couldn't break free. Looking at the bizarre and terrifying scene on the screen, his mental defenses completely collapsed, and he began to wail.
"I... I just took a little bribe from him. He said it was just some cheap burial items, and I thought it was no big deal. Those things are useless to the dead anyway, and it would be a waste to burn them to ashes, so I turned a blind eye. I really didn't know he was doing this. If I had known, I wouldn't have dared to do it even if you gave me ten lives!"
"Benefits? What benefits? How much?" I pressed.
“Every time he succeeded, he would give me 30%, sometimes in cash, sometimes in gold rings, jade pendants or something, which added up to about 300,000 yuan.” Director Wang’s voice grew softer and softer.
"You made our whole family live in fear for money, and almost ruined our family," Zhao Jianguo said, his anger rising. He rushed forward to hit him, but Li Huai stopped him.
“Director Wang,” I forced down my disgust, knowing this wasn’t the time to dwell on this, “I’m giving you a chance to redeem yourself. Take us to Canglonggou to find Lao Liu. If you cooperate and help us stop him, we can put in a good word for you with Captain Zhang afterwards.”
"Don't think you're just doing Old Liu a favor. To put it bluntly, this is the crime of desecrating a corpse! You'll at least spend a few years in jail, and you even took so much money. You're going to get what's coming to you!"
Upon hearing this, Fatty Wang swallowed hard, a look of terror flashing in his eyes.
I paused, my gaze sweeping across the cold, dark corner of the monitoring room:
"Actually, it's not a big deal. After all, it won't cost you your life. But do you think Lao Liu will let you, the one who knows the truth, go? Won't he try to kill you to cover it up? Besides, I see that your forehead is dark and you're surrounded by yin energy. Have you been feeling cold on your back lately, waking up in the middle of the night, and your luck and health are getting worse and worse?"
Director Wang's face turned ashen instantly; my last sentence clearly struck a nerve with him!
He has indeed been having trouble sleeping and eating lately, has been having nightmares, and has even fallen ill for no apparent reason.
And most importantly, if he were Lao Liu, he wouldn't choose to let himself, the one who knew the truth, go unpunished.
"I... I'll lead the way for you." Finally, Director Wang stammered out these words, "But please, afterward, put in a good word for me with Captain Zhang. And Master Chen, you have to save me and get rid of this bad luck on me!"
"Enough with the nonsense, let's talk after it's done!" Luo Tianhe finally loosened his collar and clapped his hands in disgust.
Without further ado, we set off immediately. Luo Tianhe drove his van, while I sat in the passenger seat continuing to study my notebook and that sinister red puppet.
The three of them sat in the back row. Li Huai and Zhao Jianguo kept an eye on Director Wang to prevent him from causing any more trouble.
The car quickly drove out of the city and plunged into the vast mountains of the north.
The sky grew increasingly gloomy, and the road gradually changed from asphalt to cement, and then to a bumpy, uneven dirt road, making for a very bumpy ride.
The navigation system had long lost signal, so we could only rely on Director Wang's vague directions and the occasional inquiries from scattered villagers.
"Go, go to the left fork in the road." Arriving at a crossroads, Director Wang gave directions somewhat hesitantly.
"Are you sure? This road looks like it hasn't been used in ages, it's overgrown with weeds." Luo Tianhe frowned, somewhat skeptical of his words.
"It should be this way. Old Liu once got drunk and said that to get back to their Burial Dragon Gully, you have to take the most secluded path, a path so narrow that even rabbits can't poop there," Director Wang said, wiping away his cold sweat. His tone was quite sincere, so he probably wasn't lying to us.
After all, he was in the car, and if he couldn't find his way, his fate was predictable.
Hearing this, Luo Tianhe no longer hesitated and drove towards the two paths.
The van struggled along the rugged path, the dense woods on both sides obscuring everything inside.
The branches kept scraping against the car body, leaving white marks, but luckily it was a Wuling Hongguang, so it didn't hurt too much.
"This place feels really uncomfortable." Li Huai clung to the car window, looking out with some unease.
"Nonsense, how could it be comfortable! This Burial Dragon Gully doesn't sound like a good place at all," I said with a snort.
After all, most Chinese people refer to themselves as descendants of the dragon, believing that the blood of the dragon flows in their veins.
The name of this place, Burial Dragon Gully, speaks volumes.
After driving for another hour or so, it was completely dark, and the headlights could barely illuminate a small area ahead.
And we finally saw a few dim lights. It was a small village nestled on the mountainside. The houses were old mud bricks or stone buildings, mostly dilapidated and uninhabited.
At the entrance of the village stands a crooked wooden pole with a wooden board riddled with wormholes hanging from it. By the light, one can barely make out the three mottled and decayed characters of Canglonggou.
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