“When Zhao Xiangmei was arrested, my mother was present,” The woman explained, “Based on her memory, Zhao Xiangmei was captured at the Qian Family courtyard. She was already heavily injured. Her body was covered in blood. Her hair was matted with blood and mud. Her face was scratched. She was practically unrecognisable.”
“Even so, they should be able to recognise her voice, right?” Chen Xiaomeng questioned.
The woman shook her head. “There appeared to be some issues with her throat. She could not make any sound, much less speak.
“Just as the police brought the kidnapped women over to have them identify whether she was the real Zhao Xiangmei, someone riled up the crowd to beat up Zhao Xiangmei. The parents of the kidnapped women exploded. They charged over the cordon line and took her away.” Jiang Cheng and Chen Xiaomeng knew what happened next. The woman, who was assumed to be the human trafficker, was beaten to almost death and dumped near the Cold Virtue Pool. By then, she only had one last breath in her.
At this point, Chen Xiaomeng and Jiang Cheng shared a look. They had been to the Cold Virtue Pool. It was hidden deep in the mountains. Even the young locals would have a hard time finding the way there. How did the parents of the kidnapped women know the way there if that was their first time at Little Ravine Village?
Clearly, they had a guide.
The Qian Family swapped an innocent woman’s identity with that of their daughter, Qian Jianxiu. That would explain how all 29 kidnapped women were alive, and there was still an extra ghost.
Jiang Cheng narrowed his eyes. He already knew Qian Jianxiu’s hiding spot. It was at An Ping Inn!
The woman in the hidden room with the ruined face… was the culprit from twenty years ago. She was the daughter of Village Head Qian, Qian Jianxiu!
Jiang Cheng thought back to the pair of red eyes he saw at Cold Virtue Pool. The resentment was pouring out. She was tortured when she was alive, and she had to suffer the ignominy after she died. No wonder…
Chen Xiaomeng could empathise with the woman further. She couldn’t imagine what she would do if this happened to her. She was originally a carefree young miss. Then, she was tricked and kidnapped to this countryside village. She was raped and bullied. Finally, the police she waited for arrived. However, before she could rejoice, her face was ruined, her throat was destroyed, and she was finally beaten to death by a mob that included her own family.
It was hatred that supported her will until now. It was pure hatred. When she dragged her broken body to leave behind the bloody curse on the stone plaque, the nightmare for Little Ravine Village began.
The formerly weak and fragile woman became the scariest ghost. No one knew how much anger could be store in her lanky body. She walked in the darkness as she dragged those who had harmed her into the abyss.
Jiang Cheng could imagine the pain and fear those men felt before they died. They would kneel to beg for mercy. They would scream and struggle… What a beautiful image… He couldn’t help but laugh. To fight sin with sin was the true meaning of justice.
Since the sun tolerated sin, then let darkness mete out justice.
The woman widened her eyes at Jiang Cheng. She had no idea why the man was laughing… Plus, it made him look scarier. At this point, she shivered.
Chen Xiaomeng studied Jiang Cheng’s side profile. There was something in his eyes that shared the nature of the night.
“Continue.” Jiang Cheng stopped laughing. He looked at the same. There was an unmistakable emotion in his eyes. It was… joy.
Being stared at by Jiang Cheng, the woman’s breathing became uneven. She didn’t even notice that since Jiang Cheng started laughing, she had been holding her breath.
“When my mother saw the bloody message on the stone plaque, she was even more certain of her guess. She said that even though Zhao Xiangmei put on airs, she was definitely illiterate. She couldn’t have written down that message:” The woman was very nervous. “So, the woman who died was definitely not Zhao Xiangmei.
“Back then, there were so few women who knew words. There was none in the village. Therefore, that woman had to be one of the girls taken from outside.”
“Does your mother know who among the women knows how to write?” Jiang Cheng asked.
The woman shook her head, “No. The women were kept apart after they were brought here to prevent them from encouraging each other to flee.”
“Did your mother tell the others about this?”
The woman sighed. A hidden anger crossed her eyes. “Of course she did. She couldn’t bear to see a woman who shared her fate suffer. She didn’t want Zhao Xiangmei to escape punishment either.
“She told everyone about this, but no one believed her. This was especially true after the Qian Family told the villagers that the main culprit, Zhao Xiangmei, was dead, and her corpse was dumped into the Cold Virtue Pool.
“Village Head Qian and some men of the Qian Family might have been taken in by the police, but back then, the Qian Family still had full control of the village.” The woman explained, “My mother couldn’t sleep or eat because of this. She became sick and had to stay home to rest.” The woman’s tone chilled. “One day, when I came back from the field, I saw a few members of the Qian Family and the village doctor in my home. They claimed that they were there to treat my mother.
“I didn’t trust them at all. I chased them away. In the end, they didn’t resist and left.
“Once they left, I noticed dried medicine stains around my unconscious mother’s lips. There were also deep traces on her pillow. I checked the stove and discovered a washed bowl.
“From then on, my mother lost the ability to speak, and she couldn’t move her lower body anymore. She was bedridden, and she was silenced,” The woman said through gritted teeth.