Chapter 77

Huge raindrops fiercely pounded on Xia Tianqi's face, and he was already numb with cold, having lost all sensation.

Excluding Chen Lao Da, almost all the key people involved in this incident had already been killed, leaving only Zhang Quezi, whose fate was unknown.

He dared not think about what would happen if the female ghost struck again before they could act; from whom else could they learn the truth about this incident?

From Chen Lao Da? Or perhaps they would have to find a way to make that vengeful ghost speak.

Fortunately, Zhang Quezi's home was not far from Zhao Kuai's, and it didn't take long for them to reach the front door of Zhang Quezi's house.

After the previous failed attempts, neither Xia Tianqi nor Leng Yue waited any longer. They each climbed over the gate from opposite sides of the door.

There was only one room in the yard, so they quickly found Zhang Quezi, and to their relief, he was still alive.

At that moment, Zhang Quezi was sitting at a table, staring blankly at the oil lamp on it, which cast a ghostly glow on his oily face.

"It's just him, let's go in directly."

Xia Tianqi called out to Leng Yue and went straight to the window, knocking on it to get the dazed Zhang Quezi's attention.

"Knock, knock, knock..."

Startled by the sudden knocking, Zhang Quezi jumped and instinctively turned his head, his face filled with terror.

"Open the window, we need to talk to you."

Xia Tianqi's voice was largely drowned out by the rain, making his words sound somewhat weak.

Zhang Quezi was initially stunned, but then he reacted as if he had found a savior, and without any resistance, he opened the window for them.

Xia Tianqi and Leng Yue didn't care about Zhang Quezi's unusual behavior; as long as he was alive and could speak, that was all that mattered.

Seeing Zhang Quezi open the window, Xia Tianqi and Leng Yue jumped in without hesitation.

"Time is limited, so I'll be brief. What secret did Hu Daniu know about Xiaoli, and who did Chen Lao Da order you to kill?"

After entering, Xia Tianqi wiped the rain from his face and asked in a stern tone.

Leng Yue, on the other hand, remained vigilant, muttering to himself and pasting yellow talismans around the room.

"How do you know these things... and what is he doing?"

Zhang Quezi was shocked that Xia Tianqi knew about these matters, but what puzzled him even more was Leng Yue's actions.

"He's protecting you, to prevent any ghosts from coming in and killing you."

Xia Tianqi directly informed Zhang Quezi of his dangerous situation and continued without waiting for his reaction: "Your retribution has come. Xiaoli, whom you forced to her death, has returned as a vengeful ghost. Not long ago, your good friends—Hu Daniu, Lao Wang, Qi Dali, and Zhao Kuai—were all killed.

"We don't have time for you to accept or believe us. What you need to do now is answer the questions I just asked. Do you understand?"

As he spoke, Xia Tianqi took out a dagger from his waist pouch and slammed it into the table, saying:

"You should have heard about our identities from Chen Lao Da. We promise to keep your secret. If you keep stalling and trying to play games with us, I'll kill your wife first, and then I'll kill you."

Xia Tianqi's words were filled with menace, and he deliberately glanced at the outer room.

In fact, he was quite confident, as Zhang Quezi's decision to sleep separately from his wife indicated that he had already sensed the danger.

Xia Tianqi's words hit Zhang Quezi's soft spot, especially after hearing that Hu Daniu and the others had been killed. He became like a frightened bird, his face contorted with extreme fear.

"You really...?"

"Speak quickly or die. Even if we don't kill you, that ghost won't spare you. You have no right to bargain with us, and you have no choice but to speak quickly."

Xia Tianqi coldly interrupted Zhang Quezi, who was about to continue his nonsense.

Only then did Zhang Quezi begin to answer the question Xia Tianqi had initially asked.

"The secret Hu Daniu knew about Xiaoli was something I discovered by chance and told Zhao Kuai.

Xiaoli, Chen Lao Da's daughter-in-law, was actually having an affair. One day, I happened to pass by Shen Chong's house and saw Xiaoli coming out. Since I was far away, she didn't see me.

She was acting suspiciously, as if she was afraid of being seen, which made me suspect she was involved with Shen Chong.

But I didn't take it seriously, thinking that anyone could make a mistake. Considering Chen Lao Da's influence throughout the village, even if Shen Chong had the courage, he wouldn't dare to seduce Chen Lao Da's daughter-in-law, so I forgot about it.

However, one day, after drinking with Zhao Kuai, I mentioned it as a joke. A few days later, Hu Daniu came to me and asked if I had done anything to Xiaoli.

I was surprised and pressed him for details, only to find out that Zhao Kuai had told Hu Daniu, who then used the information to threaten Xiaoli. To his surprise, Xiaoli really was involved with Xu Chong and agreed to do that kind of thing with him."

At this point, perhaps realizing his voice was too loud and fearing his wife would wake up and discover his secret, Zhang Quezi lowered his voice and continued:

"After I found out, I also had evil thoughts and threatened Xiaoli a few times, forcing her to do that kind of thing with me.

Although we enjoyed it, Xiaoli was Chen Lao Da's daughter-in-law, so we were afraid that if we continued, he would find out. We decided to stop and leave Xiaoli alone.

But what we didn't expect was that Chen Lao Da found out about Xiaoli and Xu Chong on his own.

It seems that Xu Chong wanted to run away with Xiaoli from Hulu Village, but they were discovered, and Chen Lao Da found out about their relationship."

"Chen Lao Da's confidants in Hulu Village are you, right? Who else could inform him?" Xia Tianqi asked, puzzled.

"On the surface, we are indeed Chen Lao Da's most trusted people, but secretly, he might have many informants. Otherwise, how could Xiaoli have been caught every time she tried to run away when Chen Lao Da first brought her back?

So when I saw Xiaoli sneaking out of Xu Chong's house, I didn't suspect them because I didn't believe they would dare to be together behind Chen Lao Da's back.

For his son's wife to be involved with another man, and right under his nose in Hulu Village, was a slap in the face. If this news got out, it would be a laughingstock for the whole village.

After this incident, he urgently found us and ordered us to keep it a secret and to find a way to kill Xu Chong."

When it came to the murder, Zhang Quezi's voice became even softer, and he wiped the cold sweat from his face with his sleeve.

...

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