Chapter Thirty-One: Night Fires Ignite the City
The car drove into the alley in Hongkou.
Suddenly, a crimson burst appeared in the distant sky, like crushed sunset mixed with spilled blood. A muffled thud followed, making the car windows vibrate and the shockwave overturned a coal stove by the roadside.
"Something's happened!"
The firelight illuminated Qiao Yuan and A Chen's faces.
"Drive!"
Ah Chen slammed on the gas pedal, and the car shot into the depths of the alley like an arrow.
The wind carried the smell of burning into Qiao Yuan's heart, making it pound like a drum.
Even from several hundred meters away from the factory, a wave of heat, carrying the smell of burning, hit us, making our cheeks ache.
Qiao Yuan pushed open the car door and ran quickly toward the factory. His long robe was lifted by the wind, and the wound on his hand burned painfully, but he was completely unaware of it.
The factory's iron gates seemed to have been cleaved open by a giant axe, with twisted steel bars piercing the night sky. Inside, flames soared, and thick smoke billowed up, carrying cotton ash. The steel frames of the looms crackled in the fire, and the indigo cloth was almost reduced to ashes.
"Jintang!" Qiao Yuan called out, but his voice was carried away by the heat wave and he couldn't even hear it himself.
Qiao Yuan rushed inside, only to be bumped headfirst into a figure!
Qiao Yuan was startled and looked closely to see that it was Chen Kan.
The person he was holding in his arms was Lin Tang!
Lin Tang's hair was singed in a few strands, her face was covered in soot, and Chen Kan's suit jacket was also covered in sparks, with veins bulging on his arms.
Qiao Yuan quickly approached, wanting to see if Lin Tang was alright.
Chen Kan pulled Lin Tang closer to his chest.
"Qiao Yuan!" Chen Kan's eyes were bloodshot, spitting as he spit on Qiao Yuan's face. His voice trembled with rage. "Are you even human? You dared to bomb a factory for the Japanese chairman's position! Did you plan to silence Lin Tang during her warehouse inspection tonight?!"
"Save her?" Chen Kan sneered. "Look at her now! If I had arrived a moment later, she would be buried in there!"
Lin Tang had fainted, but at this moment her eyelashes trembled and she slowly opened her eyes.
When she saw Qiao Yuan, a glimmer of hope for survival flashed in her eyes. But upon hearing Chen Kan's words, the light in her eyes was extinguished as if doused with ice water, leaving only deep disappointment.
"Qiao Yuan..." Her voice trembled as she tried to sit up in Chen Kan's arms, but the impact had left her weak and unable to move even a finger. She could only open her eyes and ask, tears streaming down her face, "Why are you here?"
"I'm here to save you!" Qiao Yuan said through gritted teeth.
Chen Kan sneered, "Save people? Qiao Yuan, you're probably going to watch Lin Tang and I die inside! See if that's how you explain it to the Japanese!"
Qiao Yuan's sharp gaze swept over him, but he disdained to argue with such a hypocrite. He only looked at Lin Tang and said, "Jin Tang, believe me! I really only just heard the news and rushed over here!"
Lin Tang looked at Qiao Yuan, but before she could speak, a scream came from the crowd.
Uncle Zhang rushed out of the flames, half of his body burned, his skin wrinkled like charred tree bark, and he was still clutching fragments of an explosive charge in his hand.
The moment he saw Qiao Yuan, his whole body contorted and convulsed.
"Master Qiao..." he gasped for breath, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, "I've done what you asked me to do, please don't harm my family..."
"Jintang, I didn't do it!"
At that moment, all Lin Tang saw was Uncle Zhang shaking his head, falling to the ground, pointing at Qiao Yuan, and not moving again. His eyes were wide open, filled with fear and despair.
“Uncle Zhang…” Lin Tang’s body felt as if it weighed a ton. He fell from Chen Kan’s arms, leaned down to Uncle Zhang’s side, gently closed his eyelids, and then looked up at Qiao Yuan. His lips trembled, and the disappointment in his eyes was like a tidal wave overflowing a dam.
She had witnessed firsthand how ruthless this man was, killing gods and Buddhas alike. For the sake of profit, he could mercilessly slaughter Huang Jinhu and Liang Kuan. Back then, as soon as he captured Huang Jinhu, he wanted to kill him. She had said that he had at least taken him in, so why was he so ruthless? He imprisoned him, but in the end, he still killed him! He thought he had done it discreetly, but what wall is truly impenetrable when it comes to killing?
Over the years, her feelings for this man, which she never spoke of, were repeatedly destroyed by the murders he committed. Especially after she learned the possible true cause of Bai Mu's death, her conscience could no longer allow her to live with this man.
At this moment, her face was filled with boundless pain and remorse, and she asked tearfully, "Why did you do this? Just for the chairmanship promised to you by the Japanese, you're going to kill me too?"
He suddenly felt frustrated, even desperate. "Jintang, you really don't believe me?"
Lin Tang just stared at Uncle Zhang and asked, "Uncle Zhang has no grudge against you, so why would he say he would frame you?"
"Perhaps he's been bribed!"
"Who is it?" Chen Kan immediately interrupted him. "Everyone knows the Japanese wanted this land. We went to the court and won the land over to Jintang. We had already started a factory on it! But you bunch of scoundrels, you used to cut power lines and such, but now you want to blow this place up? Yes, so many wronged souls have been added to this place. No one but you evil spirits will want to use this place!"
Chen Kan helped Lin Tang up and said fiercely, "Jin Tang, are you sure this is the kind of person you want to keep in mind? Let's go! There are still many people in this factory who need us to settle them down!"
Lin Tang looked back at the factory; the firelight was still licking the sky, turning her eyes into two pulsating pools of blood.
The wind carried scorched cotton fibers that drifted over and clung to her eyelashes, like a handful of ash.
"Explain what?" Chen Kan, supporting Lin Tang, turned and walked away. As he passed Qiao Yuan, he deliberately bumped into him hard with his shoulder. "Qiao Yuan, do you think you can fool everyone by wearing a human skin? You're nothing but a beast who will do anything for power!"
Lin Jintang's eyes flickered slightly.
"Jintang," Chen Kan's voice softened as he supported her waist and led her towards the crowd, "there are still about twenty workers waiting in the temporary shed. The police will be back soon, and we still need to deal with things here..."
Lin Tang nodded, took a step, then stopped and slowly turned her face. Her face was still smudged with soot, and tears had washed away two shallow streaks, like an old photograph that had been soaked by rain.
Qiao Yuan staggered from the impact. He looked at Lin Tang leaning against Chen Kan and saw her tears falling. Suddenly, he felt as if his heart had been branded with a red-hot iron, and the pain made it hard for him to breathe.
"Yes!" Qiao Yuan suddenly shouted, his voice cracking, "I did it! I killed Huang Jinhu, I harmed Liang Kuan, and I blew up the factory! Are you satisfied now?"
Lin Tang's body trembled. She raised her head and looked at Qiao Yuan, "Qiao Yuan, I never thought you would become like this."
Looking at her tears, Qiao Yuan suddenly felt that nothing mattered anymore. He laughed, a self-deprecating laugh, "Yes, that's just who I am. Now you know, aren't you disappointed?"
Lin Tang looked at him, then turned around. He walked forward, paused for a moment, but did not turn back. The stray hairs at the back of her neck trembled in the wind, like a butterfly with broken wings.
Chen Kan helped her walk into the crowd. When they passed the temporary shed, a worker cried out "Miss Lin." She slowly raised her hand and waved it lightly, as if saying goodbye to her past self.
Qiao Yuan stood there, watching her silhouette grow longer and longer in the firelight until it finally blended into the crowd and became a blurry little dot.
The wind carried the burnt cotton fibers over, and his hand was still outstretched, his fingertips still holding the warmth of when he tried to grasp her, but now, that warmth seemed to have been blown away by the wind, leaving only a bone-chilling cold.
“Master Qiao…” Ah Chen walked over and gently touched his arm, her voice hesitant, “The police are here, shouldn’t we…”
Qiao Yuan didn't speak. He looked down at his hands; the blood on his palms had dried and formed dark brown scabs, like an ugly scar.
The sound of police sirens pierced the night sky from afar.
Qiao Yuan looked up and saw the moon emerge from the dark clouds, like a crumpled piece of silver paper, gleaming with a cold light.
He smiled, a self-deprecating laugh, and reached up to wipe his face, only to find it covered in tears.
"Achen, let's go."
Whether it was a misperception or not, Qiao Yuan felt as if the wind was carrying the lyrics of "The Peony Pavilion" from afar, "What a pity that such a beautiful day could not be lived," a song that broke one's heart.
Qiao Yuan stood up and stumbled towards the car, his back looking lonely and stubborn in the firelight. He knew that from this day forward, there was no turning back between him and Lin Tang.
...
Cheng Qing stood by the window of the Qiao residence, looking at the distant firelight, a smile on her lips like a bewitching datura in full bloom.
She hung up the phone, picked up the red wine on the table, poured herself a glass, and took a small sip.
The phonograph was still playing "The Peony Pavilion," and she sang along, her voice filled with pride, "What a pity that such a beautiful day is wasted."
"Qiao Yuan," a cruel smile played on her lips, "do you think I'm still the kind of girl who can be moved by a few words and a little tenderness from you? I'm not Lin Jintang!"
She laughed, her shoulders shaking with laughter, and red wine spilled onto her pale cheongsam like a flower of blood.
The moon finally hid behind the clouds, plunging the world into darkness. Only the distant firelight continued to burn, like a huge wound, bleeding.
The lyrics of "The Peony Pavilion" still linger: "What a pity that such a beautiful day and lovely scenery are wasted; whose courtyard enjoys such delightful pleasures?" It's like a curse, haunting people and making them feel depressed.
Cheng Qing was still laughing, muttering, "Am I Gu Manqing... Sato Sakura, or Cheng Qing? It doesn't matter who I am... but all of this is because of you, Lin Jintang... Lin Jintang, I want you to personally kill Qiao Yuan, I want you to live in pain for the rest of your life..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
