Сhарtеr 252: Тhe Past оf thе Half-Fаced Ghоst (2)
"Наh!" Тhе mаn sneerеd coldly, then bent down аnd slаpрed Li Каiхiаng aсrоss thе fасe. "Still stubbоrn as a deаd duсk, I seе you still don’t undеrstand the situаtion. Li Kаiхiаng, right nоw, уоu аre the fish оn thе chоррing bloсk, and I аm thе butcher’s knifе. If уou dоn’t wise up, yоur only waу оut is dеath."
Li Хiulian watchеd in соnfusion, fоrgеtting hеr fеаr fоr a mоmеnt, and dеmandеd, "What arе yоu tаlking аbout? Аnd whаt hаvе you donе to Xiaocui?"
"Whаt have we dоne?" Thе scаr-fаcеd man turned to look at her. "If your brother doesn’t cooperate, you’ll soon find out what we did to that ignorant little girl."
"Wh-what are you going to do?" Li Xiulian stammered nervously, swallowing hard.
Li Kaixiang, however, grew furious. "You surnamed Ba, I warn you—don’t touch my sister."
Though his temper was indeed bad, he genuinely cared for his sister, Li Xiulian.
Unexpectedly, the man surnamed Ba not only didn’t back off but even reached out to stroke Li Xiulian’s face, leering obscenely. "What a pretty little beauty."
"You surnamed Ba!" Li Kaixiang’s eyes blazed with fury, wishing he could leap up and chop off the man’s hand.
Li Xiulian shrank back, her voice icy. "Don’t touch me." Though she still didn’t fully grasp the situation, she now understood that this man was likely Li Kaixiang’s enemy. They had captured her to intimidate her brother.
The man surnamed Ba wasn’t angered; instead, he laughed. "Feisty too, just how I like it."
Li Kaixiang panicked instantly. "Surnamed Ba, I’ll do as you say. Just let my sister go."
He didn’t dare gamble anymore. If they really followed through and violated Xiulian right in front of him, he would never be able to face her husband or Kairui again.
But to his surprise, the man surnamed Ba suddenly changed his mind. "Time waits for no one, and lost opportunities never return. Li Kaixiang, you’ve missed your chance. Now, I’m only interested in your sister. Your meager assets are no longer worth my attention."
Originally, he had intended to crush Li Kaixiang’s pride, leaving him with nothing and living worse than a dog. But now, he had changed his mind. The best revenge would be to destroy the person Li Kaixiang cared about most—right before his eyes.
And so, right under Li Kaixiang’s watchful gaze, the man surnamed Ba violated Li Xiulian, ignoring his maddened roars. He then gave Li Xiulian to his underlings to torment until she died.
Only in death did Li Xiulian learn of Xiaocui’s fate.
Meanwhile, Ji Dafu finished inspecting the goods and watched as the servants unloaded them from the ship and transported them back to the warehouse before returning home.
But when he arrived, Li Xiulian still hadn’t returned. Immediately, a sense of foreboding rose in Ji Dafu’s heart. He sent someone to report the matter to the authorities while leading others to search for her at Qingshan Temple.
Halfway there, he spotted a silk handkerchief trampled into the mud. It was a handkerchief he had personally embroidered for Li Xiulian, which she treasured and always carried with her.
Now, seeing it soiled in the dirt, it was clear she must have been in danger.
Even though the authorities investigated efficiently, by the time they found the dilapidated temple, it was already too late.
Li Xiulian was dead. Her body was covered in bruises, and she looked like a shattered porcelain doll.
Li Kaixiang’s eyes were bloodshot, his spirit utterly broken, as if his very bones had been pulled out. He slumped in a broken chair, showing no reaction even when Ji Dafu and the others entered.Ji Dafu held Li Xiulian in his arms and wailed uncontrollably, overwhelmed with self-blame and regret. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Li Kaixiang, and a surge of rage instantly boiled within him. He snatched a sword from a bailiff’s hand and lunged forward, intent on cutting Li Kaixiang down.
If not for this troublemaker stirring up trouble, how could his wife have come to harm?
Seeing his agitated state, the bailiffs had no choice but to knock him unconscious. They then brought him, along with the bodies of Li Xiulian and Xiaocui, to the county magistrate’s office. Xiaocui’s body had been found in a dry well outside the dilapidated temple.
By the time Li Kairui received the news and hurried to the magistrate’s office, a crowd of onlookers had already gathered outside the courtroom.
Upon entering, without even paying his respects to the magistrate, Li Kairui spotted Li Kaixiang kneeling on the ground in a daze. He strode over, grabbed him by the collar, and demanded, “Li Kaixiang, are you satisfied now? What were you doing when Xiulian… when Xiulian met her end? Huh? I warned you earlier to rein yourself in, lest disaster strike. And what happened? Why wasn’t it you who died?”
Were it not for the fact that Li Kaixiang was his elder brother, he would have struck him long ago.
On the way here, he had already pieced together the general details. The thought of his sister suffering such humiliation before her death made his heart ache unbearably.
In their childhood, though the family was not well-off, Li Xiulian was their only sister, and the entire family had cherished her, raising her with utmost care and affection.
When she came of age and married Ji Dafu, he treasured her like the apple of his eye, never allowing her to endure the slightest grievance.
Yet now…
Li Kaixiang, held up by Li Kairui, hung limp like a strand of noodles.
Faced with Li Kairui’s accusations, he had no strength to argue and remained silent.
In the courtroom, disorderly conduct was not permitted. With a single glance from the magistrate, bailiffs immediately stepped forward to pull Li Kairui away.
“Behave yourself. The magistrate will surely investigate thoroughly and deliver justice for your sister.”
The facts of the case were already clear: it was simply a matter of enemies seeking revenge. To retaliate against Li Kaixiang, they had first violated and then murdered Li Xiulian.
Earlier, Li Kaixiang had already identified Scarface as the culprit. By now, bailiffs were already on their way to apprehend the murderer.
Had they not been a step too late, they could have captured the man surnamed Ba right at the dilapidated temple.
But the man surnamed Ba was cunning by nature. He had posted lookouts, and upon learning that bailiffs were approaching, he fled without even having time to silence Li Kaixiang.
Li Kairui had no choice but to restrain his impatience.
As the courtroom quieted down, the magistrate struck his gavel. After the bailiffs finished shouting “All rise,” he spoke: “Li Kaixiang, confess truthfully. Why did you become enemies with this Scarface? Do you have evidence to support your accusation that he violated and killed your sister?”
After all, handling a case required solid evidence. Even though the details were already understood, in front of the public, the magistrate still had to follow procedure.
Li Kaixiang now confessed without hesitation, producing a button he had been clutching in his palm. “Your Honor, I tore this from his lapel during our quarrel, catching him off guard. Once he is captured, simply check his clothing.”
Having witnessed his sister’s tragic death with his own eyes, his heart felt as if it were frying in oil. Yet he had to muster his strength.
If he could not make the man surnamed Ba pay with his blood, he feared his sister would find no peace even in the afterlife.
As for the conflict between them, it was merely a matter of business. Li Kaixiang had a bad temper and an overbearing attitude, causing the other party to suffer losses—not just once, but repeatedly, costing him a considerable amount of silver.That fellow surnamed Ba was no easy mark either—stingy and vindictive—which led to this calamity.
By the time Li Kaixiang had explained the whole story from beginning to end, the constables had already captured Scarface and brought him back, along with the kidnappers.
The kidnappers were nothing but local ruffians and troublemakers. They had never seen such a scene before; without even needing torture, just the magistrate slamming his gavel was enough to make their legs go weak.
Thus, they confessed without hesitation.
With the frog button as physical evidence and the kidnappers as witnesses, the case against the man surnamed Ba was already ironclad.
Carrying the weight of two lives—Li Xiulian and Xiaocui—he was ultimately imprisoned on charges of hiring assassins and sentenced to execution after the autumn harvest.
As for the kidnappers, they were exiled to the southwest, never to return to their hometowns.
As for Li Kaixiang, since this calamity had started because of him, he was publicly given twenty strokes of the cane.
With that, the case was considered closed.
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