Murder in a locked room bed and breakfast (22)

Long Shanwen seemed to have found a life-saving straw. When Gui Xiangyang pulled her, she rushed to his side decisively. For the first time, she felt safe. That was her most desperate moment, the feeling of being pulled into the abyss. She also looked up at Gui Xiangyang for the first time.

At that time, he had thick eyebrows and big eyes, and looked generous and righteous, which was exactly the hero in Long Shanwen's mind.

The Hong Kong businessmen left in anger, which meant that today's drinking party had become a bubble again.

The deputy factory manager was very angry but had no place to vent. He specifically called Gui Xiangyang aside and said, "Xiangyang, what's wrong with you today? This factory belongs to your father, and it will still be yours in the future. Are you doing this to your father and to us, the veteran contributors who have followed your father through thick and thin?"

"Uncle, I don't understand these principles." Gui Xiangyang put his hands in his pockets, a little nonchalant, "I only know that she doesn't want to go with Jin. What if she goes to the police station to make trouble at night? If she accuses him of rape, you and I will be accomplices."

"Do you think she dares? A child who grew up in a textile factory, what's wrong with her making a sacrifice for the factory at this time?"

"I don't care. From now on, this woman is mine. I will marry Xiangyang. If you are not satisfied, go and tell my dad."

"You..." The deputy factory manager was so angry that he choked for a moment.

Gui Xiangyang held Long Shanwen's hand and walked for a while at night. Along the way, Long Shanwen was quiet and she enjoyed this time.

They stopped in front of a karaoke bar and Gui Xiangyang said he would take her to sing.

Long Shanwen nodded in agreement, and the two of them walked into the private room. The shop owner turned on the TV, inserted the tape into the VCR, prepared two microphones, and brought over a case of beer.

Gui Xiangyang was very excited as the music played, his limbs moving to the rhythm. He poured a glass of wine for Long Shanwen, who was sitting motionless on the sofa, and said, "Hey, don't be shy with me, be more generous, and no one in the factory will dare to bully you in the future."

Long Shanwen was very moved. He stood up and drank the whole cup despite the bitterness. "Thank you, Director Gui. Thank you for helping me. I will definitely repay you in the future."

"Don't be so polite, just tell me to go back to Xiangyang. You don't have to repay me, just sing with me tonight."

“I can’t sing.”

"You sing with me."

Gui Xiangyang handed her a microphone, and he said to the TV, "The song is coming, let's go."

Gui Xiangyang sang loudly: "Don't worry about how it will end in the future. At least we have been together. There is no need to bother to bind each other, and there is no need for verbal promises..."

He smiled at her as he sang.

Long Shanwen suddenly burst into tears. Gui Xiangyang put down the phone and wiped away her tears with his fingertips, "What's wrong with you? Why are you crying?"

"I don't know. I just feel sad and happy at the same time."

"Really?" Gui Xiangyang said with a smile, "Then drink. When you are drunk, you will feel nothing."

Long Shanwen nodded, she filled Gui Xiangyang's glass with wine, then filled her own glass, and she drank it down in one gulp.

"Drink slowly." Gui Xiangyang smiled again, "Let's sing together. Come on, don't you know how to sing with me?"

Long Shanwen had heard this song before. She picked up the microphone and sang along with Gui Xiangyang in a low voice: "As long as we once had it, it is enough for you and me. There are many memories in a person's life, I just hope that your memories will have me..."

The two sang a few songs together, drinking and singing. Long Shanwen suddenly felt that her heart was not so heavy. This was the most relaxed moment for her during this period of time.

Gradually, she passed out and lay on the sofa, her eyes half-dazed. Gui Xiangyang dropped the phone and lay down beside her. Long Shanwen whispered to him, "You know, you are my hero today."

"Hero?" Gui Xiangyang smiled, "That's how you can become a hero."

"Yeah, you are."

"Then let me be your hero tonight." Gui Xiangyang said, slowly leaned over and kissed her soft red lips.

Long Shanwen woke up suddenly and stared at him with round eyes.

"What's wrong?" Gui Xiangyang asked with a smile.

Long Shanwen just didn't know how to respond, she had never been around boys before.

While she was silent, Gui Xiangyang kissed her again, and she didn't know how to respond.

Gui Xiangyang put his arm around her neck and hugged her. Long Shanwen felt warm, but also a sense of awkwardness and uneasiness.

But she didn't know how to refuse.

"Long Shanwen, you are so beautiful, please be my woman, I will not treat you badly."

This sentence made Long Shanwen even more at a loss.

His fingers slowly moved to her collarbone, his fingertips touched her smooth skin, and gently fiddled with the button. Long Shanwen finally woke up, and she grabbed his hand, "Director Gui, this is not allowed, not allowed."

"Why? Didn't you say I was your hero?"

"It's different, it's different..." Long Shanwen stammered.

"What's different?"

Long Shanwen didn't know how to answer, she held Gui Xiangyang's hand tightly.

"I remember your family's conditions weren't very good." Gui Xiangyang said in a slow and soft voice, "Are you very short of money?"

Long Shanwen felt like she was seen through. She forgot the purpose of her drinking, which was to treat her uncle. For a moment, the strength she held on his hand loosened a little.

Gui Xiangyang said seriously, "It's too difficult for you to go to the bar every time. I promise you that I will give you the highest price, fifty. This number will buy you a night. If you need money, come to me. I will give you this price."

Long Shanwen's tension and anxiety were torn apart at once, and she burst into tears. It was an indescribable pain. She was facing a dilemma that she could not escape. She thought this man was her hero, but he was not what she imagined. Her worldview seemed to collapse at this moment, as if life was meaningless.

That night, Gui Xiangyang kissed away her tears, and when he pressed her under him, she did not refuse.

In the morning, Long Shanwen left the nightclub holding tightly the fifty yuan that Gui Xiangyang gave her.

From that day on, under the influence of Gui Xiangyang's initiative to approach him and Aunt Xu Lanlan's desire for money, Long Shanwen and Gui Xiangyang became closer and closer, and they would even meet every other day.

At first, Gui Xiangyang gave her the money, but later, he said that the factory was in financial difficulties and said that he would save the money and give it to her later.

Long Shanwen believed it, but one day, she was called to the hospital by her aunt Xu Lanlan, and she heard the bad news that her uncle Long Shihua had passed away.

At that moment, Long Shanwen did not shed tears. She felt like she was freed. However, Xu Lanlan did not stop that day and took her to the hospital's utility room. Xu Lanlan clamped her shoulders with both hands, shook her desperately, and shouted hysterically: "Where is the money you talked about? Where are the hundreds of dollars you talked about? You have been lying to me. Now you are happy. Your uncle is dead. Are you happy?"

Long Shanwen's eyes were red but she didn't cry. She had indeed promised her aunt that she would give a few hundred yuan to her uncle for his medical treatment, but Gui Xiangyang broke his promise. To date, she has at least 800 yuan that Gui Xiangyang has not given her.

After Xu Lanlan pushed her to the ground, the despair in her heart grew like wild weeds. She blamed others and hated herself. She really wanted to jump off the building and end her life.

But she remembered Gui Xiangyang's deception and became angry. She rushed out of the hospital and ran to the textile factory.

She must ask him to return her things.

When they were almost at the factory, it suddenly started to rain heavily. Long Shanwen was soaked. She ran desperately and rushed into the only office with the lights on. She panted and asked Gui Xiangyang who was sitting at the desk: "Have you been lying to me? You lied to my feelings and my body. Where is the money you promised me? Why didn't you give it to me?"

Gui Xiangyang was stunned for a moment, then smiled and started practicing Tai Chi: "Shanwen, come sit here for a while, I'll wipe you dry and pour you a cup of hot water."

Long Shanwen's hair was wet, but she didn't care. She said angrily, "The factory has a lot of money, 400,000 yuan, why don't they give me a penny?"

"Who told you 400,000? Where did you hear that rumor?" Gui Xiangyang's smile disappeared and he ordered her, "Sit down. I have something important to do today. If you mess it up, I'll kill you."

"You liar, you are a liar!" Long Shanwen cried, expressing his despair for Gui Xiangyang and the reality.

At this time, the sound of rain was heard outside the door, and a man took off his raincoat and pushed open the office door.

Long Shanwen stopped crying, only sobbing softly. Gui Xiangyang came up to hold her arms and comforted her: "Please go ahead and sit down. I have something else to do. Let's talk after we finish our business, okay?"

Long Shanwen was pushed to sit on the sofa next to her. She suppressed her sobs and raised her eyes. She knew the man who came in. He was Kong Qushan, a model worker in the factory.

Kong Qushan was not tall, but he was vigorous and had bright eyes. He took off his raincoat, closed the door, glanced at the two people, and said calmly: "Is your lover here too?"

Long Shanwen felt particularly uncomfortable hearing this. She controlled her uncomfortable emotions, lowered her head and ignored them.

Kong Qushan sat down across from Gui Xiangyang's desk and said to him, "Is the money ready?"

Gui Xiangyang sat down and said, "Since you are here, let's talk things over today."

"You can say it, but I have to make it clear in advance that this factory is not your home. The workers in the factory have worked so hard for so many years, it is impossible for them to end up with nothing."

Gui Xiangyang smiled and said, "Let's get this out of the way. What do you want to talk about?"

"What do you mean? The 400,000 yuan earned from the factory's equipment sales will be shared among everyone. That's it."

"Kong Qushan, are you crazy? Where did the 400,000 yuan come from? Where did you hear that?"

"I know the equipment in the factory best. I know how much it would be worth if I sold it all."

"I tell you, those are people with ulterior motives who are spreading rumors."

Kong Qushan shouted: "Since you are not honest, how can we talk?"

Gui Xiangyang also slammed the table, "Who doesn't want to talk?"

This confrontation gave the restless Long Shanwen a chill.

The air froze instantly, and the sound of rain outside became even more deafening. Kong Qushan seemed to calm down a little. "Tell me what you think."

"Okay, since I invited you here, it must be to satisfy us all. The equipment in the factory was sold, but only for tens of thousands of yuan. What I mean is, you take 10,000 yuan. As long as you don't make trouble and appease everyone, you are a model worker in the factory. You have played a leading role in these years. As long as you don't make trouble, everyone should take a break. With the remaining money, we will think of ways to see if the factory can have a second spring."

Kong Qushan laughed coldly: "Gui Xiangyang, you are daydreaming, and you still think you have a second spring. What do you think of me, Kong Qushan, as a traitor who betrays the factory workers?"

"You'll have to earn ten thousand dollars over several lifetimes."

"I can't drink the blood of workers for several lifetimes." "Then there's no room for negotiation," Gui Xiangyang said firmly, "Either take 10,000 yuan or get out of here!"

"Hahaha..." Kong Qushan suddenly laughed, "I knew you were this kind of person, Gui Xiangyang, I came here well prepared today, just in case you cheated. I have a friend who works for a city newspaper, and I borrowed a camera from him. More than three months ago, at the Bangkok Grand Hotel, you took three female workers from the factory to accompany the Hong Kong businessmen for drinking and sleeping, and I took pictures of you.

"By the way," Kong Qushan glanced at Long Shanwen, "your lover is in there too, right?"

At that moment, Long Shanwen was shocked, as if the sky had fallen. She remembered that incident, the incident that had frightened her countless times in her dreams.

Gui Xiangyang's face turned black. "Kong Qushan, you are so despicable. You just want the factory to be gone, right?"

Kong Qushan said calmly: "If you don't share the 400,000 yuan with everyone, the city newspaper will soon publish all the photos. I'm not kidding you, the photos are here."

Kong Qushan put a rolled-up paper bag on the table and said, "If you have made up your mind, I will give you a chance today."

Gui Xiangyang gritted his teeth, his face darkened for a moment, and he said nothing. At Kong Qushan's urging, he compromised: "Okay, sign it. I've brought the money, and the matter is settled after signing. It's only 250,000, do you understand?"

"Two hundred and fifty thousand? Sure, I accept this number."

Gui Xiangyang took out a piece of paper, wrote down the amount and terms, and gave it to Kong Qushan. Kong Qushan signed the bill, but when he was about to put his fingerprint on it, he stopped and said, "Let's talk about it after I get the money. I won't put my fingerprint on it yet."

Gui Xiangyang sighed, stood up, and reached for the film roll, "Give me the photos first."

Kong Qushan held the film with his hand and said, "Not now. Once the money comes in, I will return the photos to you intact. There are pictures of several of your leaders in them. You know how important they are."

"Kong Qushan, I promised to give you money, but you only thought about the workers and didn't think about the fate of these girls. Look..." He pointed at Long Shanwen, "What about her? You didn't even think about her. You published her. Do you know how she will live in the future?"

Kong Qushan glanced at Long Shanwen. She was in tears and her whole body was shaking slightly, but he smiled: "Everyone has their own choice. She chose to be a prostitute..."

"Kong Qushan, you're a bastard..." Gui Xiangyang rushed up and grabbed his film bag.

At that moment, Kong Qushan also held on tightly.

Suddenly, the two men started to fight each other. Long Shanwen was terrified. She watched as the two men were fighting and wrestling on the ground. She could only watch. She hoped that Gui Xiangyang would snatch the film away. Her heart was so tense that she couldn't breathe.

After a while of struggling, Gui Xiangyang pulled out a rope from somewhere and wrapped it around Kong Qushan's neck. The two continued to fight. Gui Xiangyang suddenly shouted, "Long Shanwen, I'll give you 10,000 yuan. Come and hug him!"

Long Shanwen was so frightened that she was almost out of her mind. She could not move for a moment. No matter what, she had to get the film back. She walked forward and tried to grab the paper bag in his hand, but failed. She shouted to Gui Xiangyang, "Hold his thigh!"

Long Shanwen was at a loss, like a puppet being controlled by someone, and suddenly hugged Kong Qushan's legs tightly.

She held on tightly, as if everything would soon be over, the photo would be returned, and the eight hundred dollars that belonged to her would be returned too. However, until the thigh she was holding moved a little, there was no movement anymore.

Kong Qushan was completely motionless, and Gui Xiangyang also let go of his hand. He was sweating profusely, and his eyes were full of fear. "It seems that he is dead."

Long Shanwen suddenly fell to the ground, as if his soul had been sucked out of him.

She didn't know what happened next. She only saw Gui Xiangyang suddenly rush out the door. After a while, he came back and told her that there was a wild cat at the door.

Long Shanwen lost control of her breathing and she desperately crawled backwards, trying to get away from Kongqu Mountain.

Gui Xiangyang swallowed and panted and said, "Don't worry, Long Shanwen, we need to deal with this matter properly later."

"Let me think about it." Gui Xiangyang walked around Kong Qushan's body for a long time, and finally he stopped.

"Well, your uncle is dead, just in time for his death. Take him to be cremated immediately."

After Gui Xiangyang made this decision, he immediately went to the office next door to handwrite a death certificate. Long Shanwen's uncle had just passed away. He was an employee of a textile factory and lived in the textile compound. After his death, a death certificate needed to be issued in the factory.

Gui Xiangyang quickly finished writing the death certificate and immediately returned to his office. At this time, Long Shanwen seemed to have lost his soul. He sat paralyzed on the ground, and his mouth was trembling with something.

Gui Xiangyang put away the rope and moved the body. The body was very heavy. He suddenly remembered something and took the body's index finger and pressed a fingerprint on the signature sheet.

Then he rushed out and drove the minivan to the door of the office. When he came back, he shouted, "Come and help me."

Long Shanwen did not move, so Gui Xiangyang had to do it himself. He took great pains to move Kong Qushan's body onto the car, then fetched a stretcher and turned the body onto it.

When he returned, he dragged Long Shanwen up from the ground and said, "If you want to die, don't drag me, come with me now."

Long Shanwen was awakened a little by his roar. She raised her head and was pulled into the car by him.

The car drove all the way to the crematorium, which is the crematorium closest to the textile factory. In fact, it mainly serves the textile factory.

Since most people in this era prefer burial, the crematorium is quite deserted. The person on duty at the crematorium tonight is Old Liu, who is sitting in his office eating peanuts and drinking some wine.

Gui Xiangyang and Long Shanwen carried Kong Qushan's body on a stretcher into the crematorium hall. At this time, Long Shanwen was like a puppet, stumbling and shaking all over.

Gui Xiangyang knocked on Old Liu's window and said, "Let's burn a fire tonight."

Old Liu raised his head.

"An old worker in the textile factory got an infectious disease and was burned at night." He pointed at Long Shanwen, who was standing nearby with a dull expression, "It was his uncle who just died in the hospital."

Gui Xiangyang handed the death certificate to Old Liu and said, "See if you can give me some convenience at night. They are all from the textile factory." He passed a pack of cigarettes he had prepared in advance into the window.

Old Liu looked at the death certificate and said slowly, "The stove was not turned on tonight. Let's wait until tomorrow."

"This is a special case. If it were tomorrow, the situation might be different. The whole family wants to bury the body, but this only niece wants to receive the cremation benefits from the factory. She was brought here overnight."

Gui Xiangyang lit another good cigarette for Old Liu and said, "Please help me."

Old Liu agreed: "Evening is fine. It will take about three hours."

"Three hours?"

"It takes a long time for this stove to heat up. Do you think it's a stove at home? Pay all the fees you should pay."

"All right then."

After arranging everything, Gui Xiangyang returned to the hall again. At this time, Long Shanwen was sitting in a chair, motionless, with a dull expression. He said, "Long Shanwen, I'll go back and deal with it first."

He also reminded me: "As a family member, you should stay here and wait until you receive the ashes. Remember to protect them well and don't go home. If I don't come back in time, go to the old place and I will look for you."

Seeing that she still didn't respond, Gui Xiangyang lowered his head and warned her in her ear: "Did you hear me? If you screw up, you will lose your life. Do you think I will be soft-hearted?"

Long Shanwen suddenly woke up and looked at him with bloodshot eyes.

She seemed to understand it all. It was she who helped Gui Xiangyang kill Kong Qushan. Now she had to deal with the body. If it was not handled properly, she would also die.

Two hours later, Long Shanwen received the ashes and the returned death certificate.

She walked on the muddy road after the rain, step by step towards the so-called old place, which was the small river where she and Gui Xiangyang had been before.

But halfway through the journey, she became more and more panicked. She felt that Gui Xiangyang could kill her at any time because she was the biggest threat to Gui Xiangyang now, unless he left behind ashes and a death certificate.

She made a decision to bury the ashes and the death certificate under a tree in the grove.

After waiting by the river for more than half an hour, Gui Xiangyang appeared and asked, "Where are the ashes?"

“I threw it into the creek.”

"Didn't I ask you to wait for me?"

Gui Xiangyang suddenly became angry, grabbed her shoulders, and strangled her neck, "Do you want to die? Do you want to be reduced to ashes with Kong Qushan?"

"I...I..." Long Shanwen's neck felt like it was being cut by a knife, and she suddenly found it difficult to breathe. She tried desperately to pry his hands away, and shouted desperately, "Where's the money you promised to give me? Ten thousand yuan!"

"You're such a fucking bitch. It turns out you've been holding back." Gui Xiangyang pinched her neck tightly until her face turned purple and her eyes turned white, then he pushed her away.

Long Shanwen rolled onto the wet muddy ground, gasping for breath and shedding tears. Finally, she laid on the ground and begged him for mercy: "Gui Xiangyang, I don't want to die. As long as you give me everything I deserve, I will become what you consider a 'dead person' for the rest of my life."

Gui Xiangyang smiled coldly: "You are really amazing!"

The wind blew by the creek, and the trees rustled, as if ghosts were howling. Long Shanwen felt cold and shivered.

Gui Xiangyang put his hands on his hips and walked around in front of her, gritting his teeth and saying, "I will give you 10,000 yuan, but we should not contact each other recently. Last night, you did not go to the textile factory, do you remember?"

Long Shanwen cried and said, "I'll remember it."

Long Shanwen returned home and had a high fever for several days. The funeral was being held at home, so she was taken away by Ding Qian and her friends and stayed at their home for a while.

As the textile factory closed down, everyone was forced to resign and Long Shanwen began looking for a job. During this period, she accidentally heard the news that Old Liu from the crematorium had passed away.

Until one day, Gui Xiangyang's younger brother gave her 10,000 yuan, but told her: "Long Shanwen, my elder brother said that he can give you 10,000 yuan, but there is a condition."

"You say."

"Marry me, stay home and don't play tricks on me."

Long Shanwen knew that Gui Xiangyang wanted to monitor her. Her life was already uncertain, and the 10,000 yuan was very important to her, so she agreed and became Shen Song's nominal wife.

From then on, her life became restricted, but it was better than being poor. One day, she took Kong Qushan's ashes to a guest house on the pretext of celebrating her birthday. She was worried that one day, Gui Xiangyang would really do something to her, so she had to leave a way out for herself.

When she celebrated her birthday for the first time in a B&B with her friends, she sneaked out at night with her bag while everyone else was staying in their rooms, and buried the ashes and a letter she had written in the yard.

Every year she would come back to visit and pay tribute to Kong Qushan.

This is the whole story. Gui Xiangyang told at least half of it, and the other half was supplemented by Meng Siqi based on investigation. All the chains of evidence are complete.