Chapter 105 : Murder
Chang Jinguang pleaded with Ding Wenyu, knowing that if she didn’t agree to let him go, the brigade would certainly make his life difficult. He wanted to cut the Gordian knot, study hard, pass the college entrance exams, and escape this hellhole.
Tears rolled down from Ding Wenyu’s eyes, but she quickly wiped them away. She took a deep breath and declared, “Impossible. Chang Jinguang, I won’t divorce you. Even if you register for the exam, even if you’re admitted to university and return to the city, I won’t give up. I’ll find out where you go, and I’ll come to your school. If you dare have an affair behind my back, I’ll report you to your superiors and tell your colleagues, humiliating you completely. Don’t ever think of abandoning me for the rest of your life. Dream on about being with that woman forever!”
Chang Jinguang hadn’t expected Ding Wenyu to be so ruthless. He felt nauseous. “Do you really have to be so cruel? I don’t love you, don’t you understand that? You and I have nothing in common. Even if you keep me by your side, you can’t keep my heart. What’s the point of having a body without a soul?”
Ding Wenyu stubbornly raised her head. “That’s fine by me. Chang Jinguang, let’s be a resentful couple for the rest of our lives.”
She opened the door and stormed out, pushing past her two younger brothers, who were eavesdropping at the door. She ran outside, crying.
Her two tall, burly brothers were furious. One of them rolled up his sleeves and growled, “How dare he try to abandon my sister? I’ll teach him a lesson he’ll never forget!”
The other brother eagerly added, “I think he’s lost his mind from studying too much. Let’s break his legs, tie him up, and see if he can still take his stupid exam!”
Their father, Ding Wenming, stopped his sons. “Wait, it’s not time yet.”
He shot a fierce glance at the figure inside the room. “If he thinks he can chew Wenyu up and spit her out like sugarcane pulp, let’s see if he has the guts to pull it off.”
—
A similar quarrel was happening at the educated youth center, though the atmosphere there was even more intense.
“Guo Haifeng, I’m asking you one last time: are you going to get a marriage certificate with me or not?” Xu Caixia, her emaciated frame resembling a human skeleton, stared at Guo Haifeng with sunken eyes.
Guo Haifeng had grown thinner too, though he carried himself with an air of elegance. He looked at Xu Caixia with a tinge of disgust. This woman was becoming uglier by the day. Just two days ago, he had accidentally touched her hand, it felt like he was touching a skeleton. He’d washed his hands repeatedly afterward, unable to shake off the revulsion.
“Caixia, haven’t I told you already? We’ll inform our parents once we’re back in the city, and they’ll arrange the wedding.”
“Besides, the college entrance exams have been resumed. The most important thing now is to prepare. Once we’re admitted to university, we’ll return to the city and get married then.”
Xu Caixia was out of breath, her vision swimming. She had been saving her food rations for Guo Haifeng for so long that her body was in terrible shape. She was so malnourished that her period had stopped.
Living off wild vegetables and water, her body had become so swollen that pressing her skin left pits behind.
Xu Caixia knew she had no hope of passing the college entrance exams. She’d never excelled academically, and after years in the countryside, she had forgotten most of what she’d learned.
Guo Haifeng, on the other hand, had always been a good student. But the registration fee and study materials cost several yuan, money she had painstakingly saved by spinning yarn for villagers. It was barely enough to cover Guo Haifeng’s expenses.
Still, she was terrified that once Guo Haifeng passed the exams and returned to the city, all her sacrifices over the years would amount to nothing. So she insisted he get a marriage certificate with her before registering.
“If you come with me to get the certificate, I’ll give you the money for your study materials.”
“Caixia, stop causing trouble! I heard there’s already a long line outside the Xinhua Bookstore in the county. If I wait any longer, I won’t be able to buy the books. Hand over the money now!”
“No, not unless you agree to my request.”
Clicking his tongue impatiently, Guo Haifeng shoved Xu Caixia aside and stormed into her room to search for the money.
“So this is where you hid it! What a sly woman!”
Grabbing a pair of scissors, Guo Haifeng began cutting into the soles of her shoes, eventually finding the money hidden in an inner layer.
Xu Caixia wanted to stop him, but it was too late. She watched helplessly as Guo Haifeng pulled out the hidden money, and the thousand-layer sole she had painstakingly crafted was now cut into pieces, scattered across the table.
In a frenzy, she rushed forward and tried to snatch the money back. “No, you can’t take it…”
Guo Haifeng effortlessly shoved her aside, dusted off his clothes theatrically, and sneered with satisfaction. “Let me be honest with you, Xu Caixia. You’re a nice person, but you’re not good enough for me. The woman I want to marry needs to be someone who can help me achieve my goals. Look at yourself. You look like a walking skeleton, it’s terrifying. You’re poor, you have no resources. Do yourself a favor and leave. Stop holding me back from returning to the city.”
Whistling a tune, Guo Haifeng counted the money in his hands. Nearly five yuan! It was more than enough to buy his books, and perhaps even afford a bowl of white noodles.
“Looks like today’s my lucky day,” he muttered gleefully.
His words struck Xu Caixia like a thunderclap. For a moment, her world spun, her mind struggling to process the betrayal and cruelty in his words.
She had sacrificed everything for him. Her time, her health, her future. And yet, this was how he repaid her?
“No, you can’t,” she muttered to herself, her voice trembling. “You can’t leave. You can’t leave!”
Xu Caixia’s tear-streaked gaze fell on the pair of scissors discarded nearby. The sunlight gleamed off the sharp blades, golden and bright.
Taking a deep breath, Xu Caixia felt a strange sense of calm wash over her. It was a beautiful autumn day, with a cloudless sky and a soft wind carrying the scent of blooming osmanthus flowers.
Summoning strength she didn’t know she had, she grabbed the scissors tightly and ran after him.
“Guo Haifeng, wait a moment!”
He turned around, still smug, and asked, “What now…”
Before he could finish his sentence, he felt a searing pain in his abdomen. Staring down in shock, he saw the copper scissors, wrapped in red silk thread, embedded deep into his flesh. Only the semicircular handle remained visible.
He looked up at Xu Caixia, his eyes wide with disbelief, only to be met with her strange, exaggerated smile.
“Don’t leave,” she murmured. “You’re mine. You’ll always be mine.”
Guo Haifeng tried to press his hands against the wound, but the blood poured out uncontrollably. “Help… someone help…”
His strength ebbed away. With a heavy thud, his body crumpled to the ground, splashing the fallen osmanthus petals left behind by the rain.
Instead of fleeing, Xu Caixia knelt beside him, cradling his writhing body in her arms. She leaned her head lovingly on his shoulder, her voice soft and dreamy.
“Now we’ll always be together,” she whispered.
From a distance, a villager witnessing the scene froze in terror. Dropping his hoe, he ran as fast as he could, screaming, “Murder! Murder!”
The Dashuping Educated Youth Murder Case quickly became the talk of the commune. The story spread like wildfire, and people whispered about the horrifying details.
“I heard she went completely mad after killing him,” one person said. “She sang and laughed like a lunatic. When the police arrived, she refused to let go of the body, clutching it tightly and shouting that she wanted to eat him…”