A villager angrily said: “You outsider police always meddle in other people’s business! This wretched woman killed someone, we want to beat her to death. Don’t you know the principle of life for a life?”
Luo Yingbai covered the woman with Xia Xianning’s clothes, checked her condition, and saw that while her external injuries were severe, her life was not in danger. He turned and said: “This sister has already been disabled by you. How can you kill her?”
The villager was provoked by Luo Yingbai and flew into a rage: “Nonsense! Who knows how this woman went crazy? She heard her father wanted to sell Cuinü and started causing trouble. We thought she couldn’t do anything, but unexpectedly, she killed Cuinü’s father! She must pay with her life!”
As he spoke, the crowd became agitated, cursing from all directions. They were originally angry that the outside police had forcibly taken away the wives they had bought, and this incident further ignited their resentment.
The police following Xia Xianning had just arrived; otherwise, these people would have likely attacked Luo Yingbai and the others.
In the midst of their angry curses, Luo Yingbai gradually understood what had happened. The woman whose hands and feet had been chopped off was named Feng Shu, and Cuinü was the little girl she had been staring at – her daughter.
Cuinü’s father was a gambling addict who owed a lot of money. He had originally wanted to sell Feng Shu, but because she was disabled and older, he couldn’t sell her. He was heartless enough to want to sell his nine-year-old daughter to the neighbor Sun Cai as a wife.
Sun Cai, who had demanded Feng Shu’s death, looked to be at least in his forties, with a fierce and malevolent face, persistently insisting on killing Feng Shu.
Luo Yingbai ignored him, took a deep breath, and told Xia Xianning: “This is the person I’m looking for. I must take her away.”
He paused, then spoke as calmly as possible: “I understand the principle of life for a life. But her situation has more to it. Even if she dies, it shouldn’t be like this.”
Xia Xianning said: “Okay.”
Sun Cai waved his hand, and the surrounding people immediately surrounded them. He angrily said: “No, I must kill this woman!”
Xia Xianning coldly snorted, loaded his gun, and pressed it against Sun Cai’s forehead. With his other hand, he took out handcuffs and quickly restrained Sun Cai, then pushed him towards Gou Songze: “Obstructing official duties. Take him away too.”
Gou Songze, who had been displeased with this man, was delighted and immediately responded: “Yes!”
Sun Cai hadn’t expected to be caught up in this and was stunned, breaking out in cold sweat with a gun pointed at him.
Someone nearby, seeing the situation, said to the seemingly gentler Luo Yingbai: “She’s just a used woman. No one will care even if you take her away.”
Luo Yingbai carried the woman on his back and said flatly: “I care.”
He angrily said: “What are you doing!”
Sun Cai said: “Old Liu, don’t forget, your son took my money, saying he would give me your daughter. Now the person is gone, the money is gone, you won’t want to keep the police’s money for yourself, will you?”
Old Liu rushed up to grab it: “The person was taken away by the police, go ask the police! This money was earned with my son’s life, you give it back to me!”
He tried to grab forcefully, Sun Cai wouldn’t let go, and soon they were wrestling together. During this process, someone accidentally let go, and banknotes flew everywhere.
People around saw this and stopped trying to mediate, instead rushing forward to grab money indiscriminately, stuffing bills into their own pockets.
Sun Cai quickly kicked Old Liu and scrambled up, also rushing to grab money. After finally grabbing a bill, he looked at it and his expression changed dramatically: “This – this is hell money!”
Others were too caught up in grabbing to look carefully. Only after hearing his cry did they check their bills, shocked to find “Hell Bank” printed on the black and white papers.
Some tore up the papers, cursing: “Damn, we’ve been played by that kid!”
Sun Cai felt a chill – unlike others, he had held these bills earlier and they were definitely normal currency!
He looked at his hand, then suddenly looked up, noticing the hell money fragments falling unusually slowly, like a film in slow motion.
Suddenly, a haunting song began: “Paper money, paper money, who made it, Living cannot use what ghosts enjoy. A thread hanging over a desolate grave, Pear blossoms and wind rise, a sorrowful cold cloud.”
Accompanying the song were faint drum beats, adding to the eerie atmosphere.
People panicked, shouting: “Who’s there?!” “Who’s playing ghost tricks, are you crazy?!”
Amid their cursing, Sun Cai horrifyingly discovered a woman not far away. Her face was familiar but strangely rigid, slowly splitting into a grin with yellowed teeth.
Sun Cai screamed and ran, but the woman instantly lunged, her claws tearing him in half!
The gruesome scene terrified everyone. They realized strange figures had appeared around them, chasing and killing on the open ground. Paper money scattered everywhere, falling slowly and covering the blood-soaked earth.
The seat was soft and comfortable, soft music playing, everything familiar – yet the savage, primitive brutality he’d experienced kept circling in his mind.
Luo Yingbai couldn’t help but shiver.
A hand reached over, draping a blanket around him, also moving his forehead-resting arm inside.
Xia Jianning rubbed his temples: “Don’t be sad.”
“I’m not sad,” Luo Yingbai sighed, “Just feeling some emotion. Sometimes this world is quite absurd. Those villagers… sigh.”
Xia Jianning seriously said: “Good and darkness always coexist. Since there’s you in this world, naturally there will be them too.”
Luo Yingbai was taken aback, then laughed, pinching Xia Jianning’s face: “Seriously? So smooth-talking?”
Though he laughed, his expression remained somewhat melancholic. Xia Jianning, who usually liked teasing him when he was cheerful, now felt sympathetic seeing him dejected. After much thought, he finally found something to say: “Let me tell you something.”
“Hmm?”
Xia Jianning whispered: “When I gave them money in the village, I gave hell money. By now… they’ve probably discovered it.”
Luo Yingbai was stunned, then laughed: “No wonder! I was wondering how you could suddenly produce so much cash. You’re truly devious.”
Xia Jianning stared at him, and also began to laugh.
“But Jianning…” Luo Yingbai leaned close, lowering his voice: “You gave hell money because you thought it would be more useful to those people… right?
Xia Jianning smiled lightly, shaking his head: “Whether executing justice or harming lives, it’s all my own karma. Senior brother wasn’t involved, so don’t ask.”
Their heads were very close. Xia Jianning’s voice was almost a whisper. Luo Yingbai’s gaze flickered, and he indeed said nothing more.
Though Xia Jianning’s actions were meant to serve justice, they were too bloody. He was prepared to bear any consequences of breaking this blood curse.
But while he could bear it, Luo Yingbai couldn’t. Xia Jianning deliberately used misdirection, unwilling to let him get involved.
They sat in a three-seat row.
Another cold shoulder, bah!
More than a hundred people were rescued this time. Even if we set aside the part about the Yiyi people that needs to be kept confidential, it was still an extremely serious human trafficking case. Newspapers carried extensive reports, and online discussion boards were filled with discussions about this incident.
The municipal bureau and special investigation unit were surrounded by reporters, all seeking to inquire about the specific details of the incident from Xia Jianning and Captain Fang.
