As he spoke, the muscled man's eyes flickered.

It was obvious, just a pretext.

Chen Fang noticed.

He took out a box of unopened Chinese cigarettes from his pocket, quietly slipped them into the muscled man's hand, and said with a smile, "Brother, tell me about Ren Qing'an, I'm really at my wits' end. If I don't get this money, I can't go back; I'm even thinking of jumping into a river..."

Hearing what Chen Fang said.

The muscled man glanced at the cigarettes in his hand again.

He turned to the group behind him and said, "You guys go for a walk, I'm taking this kid to the edge of the village."

You wouldn't believe it, but the group behind him obediently left after receiving the muscled man's command.

The muscled man pointed toward the village entrance, giving a look that meant "let's talk as we walk."

"Buddy, you seem to have it tough too, so I'll be straight with you, Ren Qing'an messed up, and it's something huge. About your money, forget about getting it in this lifetime..."

These words startled Chen Fang.

He quickly asked, "Messed up? What did he do?"

"Murder,"

said the muscled man, lighting a cigarette and taking a satisfying drag.

Murder?

Chen Fang halted in his tracks.

Those two words hit him like a sledgehammer on the head.

"Murder? How is that possible? That guy seemed pretty honest to me..."

Chen Fang said, trying to suppress his inner turmoil.

"Honest? He used to be, but once he got into politics, he changed. He killed his fiancée's entire family, four bodies, five lives, as brutal as it can get..."

Another unbelievable piece of news.

The muscled man pointed with his hand.

In the distance.

An abandoned brick house, completely neglected now.

The red brick walls were charred, looking as if they'd been burned.

"There, that's his fiancée Liu Xijie's house, burnt beyond recognition. You haven't seen it, but back then, four bodies were dragged out. Little Xijie's sister-in-law was even four months pregnant, and that beast showed no mercy!"

The muscled man's anger didn't seem feigned.

As he spoke.

The two had reached the village entrance.

Wanting to clarify this matter.

The most effective way now was to start with this muscled man in front of him.

On the way here, Chen Fang had learned that the muscled man was named Liu Dawei, the security director of Pinghu Village.

Of course.

The so-called security director was obviously self-appointed.

After all, where would a small rural village get a security director?

"Brother Liu, look, it's getting late, almost time for dinner. We've hit it off quite well; how about a drink in town? I'm really feeling down, just accompany me."

Hearing there'd be food and drinks.

Liu Dawei's eyes twinkled.

Without much thought, he nodded and said, "Buddy, you're down on luck too, today I'll risk myself to accompany a gentleman, have a drink with you..."

After saying this.

Liu Dawei made Chen Fang wait for a bit.

Before long, he rode over on a motorcycle.

With Chen Fang as a passenger, they headed straight to town.

Truth be told, Liu Dawei didn't hold back.

He picked the best restaurant in town, ordered a table full of dishes, and indulged in a bottle of baijiu worth over two hundred.

During the eating and drinking.

Chen Fang learned almost everything about Ren Qing'an's murder case.

The incident happened six years ago.

At that time, Ren Qing'an had just been transferred from the Jin Du City Government to become the Deputy Director at the Yang'an City Civil Affairs Bureau.

Just a few months later, the tragedy occurred.

Here's a brief mention of the relationship between Ren Qing'an and Liu Xijie.

They grew up in the same village.

Childhood sweethearts.

They had long secretly pledged their hearts to each other, but Ren Qing'an's family was poor, and Liu Xijie's father, Liu Mangen, disdained him.

Later, Ren Qing'an went to study abroad.

Liu Mangen arranged several marriages for Liu Xijie, who refused to comply.

And so, delaying again and again, it lasted until Ren Qing'an achieved success.

Upon learning Ren Qing'an had become an official, Liu Mangen naturally no longer objected.

Thus.

They quickly got engaged.

Trying to stay closer to home.

Ren Qing'an gave up the lucrative opportunities in the city, applied to return to Yang'an City, intending to marry during the National Day period that year, but who would've thought such a twist would occur?

The day of the incident was midnight.

A raging fire awakened the sleeping Pinghu Village.

The fire was first discovered by a middle-aged woman returning from a night shift in the village.

Her shrill cries immediately woke the entire village.

But by the time everyone grabbed buckets and rushed to the fire, it was too late.

Liu Xijie's family of four, five lives, had already perished in the fire.

When four bodies were dragged out, many people shed tears, as the scene was just too tragic...

At this point.

Liu Dawei seemed somewhat sad.

Clearly, the scene from back then was still vividly remembered.

Chen Fang was puzzled.

He poured Liu Dawei a drink and handed him a cigarette, then asked, "Brother Liu, I'm confused, since the deaths were caused by the fire, why say Ren Qing'an killed them?"

"The police said so. After the incident, many police officers came from the city, and later the... oh, the coroner detected that all four were stabbed to death, and on the night of the fire, someone saw Ren Qing'an rushing out from the fire scene; if not him, who else?"

"No, I mean, Ren Qing'an must have had a reason to kill, right? Didn't he and Liu Xijie already get engaged? Why would he still murder?"

Upon hearing this.

Liu Dawei chuckled.

He leaned closer to Chen Fang, reeking of alcohol, and said, "Buddy, this aspect isn't supposed to be talked about, but seeing how you've been duped by him, I'll be honest with you, do you know why Ren Qing'an borrowed money from you guys?"

"Why?"

Chen Fang asked.

Liu Dawei replied mysteriously, "He borrowed money to raise the bride price. Although he's engaged, Liu Xijie's brother Liu Shuangxi demanded a bride price of fifty thousand, but the guy didn't have that kind of money, so he borrowed from you guys..."

After saying this, Chen Fang had a flash of realization.

The police believed the motive for murder was that the families failed to agree on the bride price, so Ren Qing'an took revenge. Though it sounded absurd to Chen Fang, such incidents weren't unheard of.

Thinking back to the farmer's wife's advice in the village.

It seemed many had come looking for Ren Qing'an to collect money over the years.

It wasn't over.

Liu Dawei suddenly gave a wicked laugh and said to Chen Fang, "Buddy, there's another situation, one that's quite explosive. I heard that both Liu Xijie and Liu Shuangxi's wife were raped that night. This guy must be ruthless, even against a pregnant woman... Oh! What a sin, it's simply a sin..."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.