Chapter 272

Chapter 272

Boss Lin’s words lifted everyone’s spirits.

If we knew who had buried the object that injured Seventh Master and nearly killed us, we had to take revenge!

“It was probably the previous developer.”

Boss Lin said, “I told you before that another developer originally handled this project. But he resorted to forced demolition, which I couldn’t stand. The project also had real potential, so I used certain methods to take it from him.”

“If anyone wanted revenge on me, it would have to be that developer.”

“And he may have investigated the site’s history and known there was a problem with the land.”

That certainly seemed possible.

In business, cutting off a person’s source of wealth was like killing their parents. It was bound to create hatred.

Meng Yifan asked, “Did nothing happen at the site when the previous developer had it?”

Boss Lin said, “He never had time to begin construction. Negotiations with the local residents over compensation broke down, so he tried to force them out. He has some connections and influence too. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have dared attempt forced demolition.”

Song Xiaotian grew curious. “If you don’t mind me asking, what methods did you and the previous developer use against each other?”

Boss Lin looked embarrassed but did not hide it. “I… threatened him.”

That only made us more curious. “Didn’t you say this developer has connections too? He still let you threaten him?”

Boss Lin nodded. “He’s basically the local tyrant, a gang boss. Ordinary people are afraid of him because he has plenty of men. But my connections are all people from the upper levels of society, or people with some authority. If someone from the underworld dares act arrogantly in front of the authorities, he’s asking to die.”

We understood. Ordinary people would not dare touch a gang boss, but Boss Lin would, so he had threatened the man.

The gang boss might have been afraid, but he surely could not swallow the insult. Secretly sabotaging the project fit the underhanded methods of a thug.

I said, “We can’t let this go. He almost killed us and left Seventh Master like this. We should kill that bastard!”

Song Xiaotian looked at me. “Brother, this isn’t a street brawl. That man is the local tyrant. If you provoke him on his own turf, you may not live to see tomorrow.”

Seventh Master nodded. “It’s best not to provoke people like that. Once you do, the trouble never ends. The man himself isn’t frightening. His influence is.”

Boss Lin frowned too. “I will investigate this thoroughly. If he really did it, I won’t need anyone to tell me what to do. I won’t let that bastard go. I owe Seventh Master an explanation.”

“Let’s end the construction-site matter here. Maybe my luck is simply poor this year. I can earn back the money I lose, but I can’t gamble with your lives.”

When it came to conducting himself, Boss Lin could almost be called a saint among businessmen.

But Seventh Master waved a hand. “That’s not how this works. If I hadn’t accepted the case, we could abandon it. But once I agreed, I have to see it through. Those are the rules.”

Boss Lin hurriedly said, “We’re not strangers. It truly doesn’t matter. If something happened to you and Xiao Chen, I would never be at peace, even if the construction site was completed and made a profit. Money honestly isn’t that important to me.”

Seventh Master waved his hand again. “This isn’t about money. Every profession has its rules. No matter how far we’ve progressed, once we accept something, we have to do everything humanly possible before leaving the rest to fate. Abandoning a case halfway is never an option.”
Seventh Master’s stubbornness was truly extraordinary.

Meng Yifan tried to persuade him too. “Seventh Master, look at the state you’re in. Staying alive is more important.”

“What state am I in?” Seventh Master said unhappily. “Injuries are common. Police officers get injured too. Should they stop being police officers? Soldiers get injured. Should they stop going to war?”

“Once you’ve become involved, you have to see things through.”

Then he looked at Boss Lin. “But much of the information you gave us was indeed wrong. What happened at Luo Mansion differed significantly from the records. That isn’t your fault, though. After so much time, many things were bound to be misreported. We still need to investigate certain events from back then in detail.”

Boss Lin looked embarrassed. “I’ll ask Assistant He to sound out the villagers again. After a century, stories can certainly become distorted.”

What I wanted to know most was whether the Ninth Concubine had descendants if she had survived.

Boss Lin did not remain at the hospital long. He had many things to handle.

Before leaving, he said he would ask his daughter, Lin Yin, to bring Seventh Master meals. We could also take his Chinese medicine to their home to be prepared.

I left the hospital with him. He returned to his company, while I drove Assistant He’s car to a nearby pharmacy and filled Seventh Master’s prescription.

That evening, after Seventh Master drank the medicine, I prepared to stay in the ward with him.

But he refused, saying he was fine and telling me to return to the hotel and rest.

“You’ll have to question the villagers in person.”

Before I left, Seventh Master reminded me, “Assistant He isn’t directly involved. He won’t know which questions to ask, and his questions will be too vague. Sending him alone would accomplish nothing.”

“Also, if the Ninth Concubine didn’t die, she should have descendants. I suspect her descendants were the ones who incited the villagers to smash the Thunder Ancestor statue and demolish the Thunder Ancestor Temple.”

I understood his meaning and nodded. Tomorrow, I would definitely go with Assistant He myself.

After leaving the hospital, I returned to the hotel.

Boss Lin had arranged all our accommodations in Lincheng. We were staying at a five-star hotel, and Song Xiaotian and the others had moved there from their previous hotel too.

When I returned, Song Xiaotian and Meng Yifan were both in my room.

I had no idea what they were working on. A pile of papers lay before them. When I approached, I realized they had organized all the clues Seventh Master and I had found.

One name had been circled.

It belonged to someone Seventh Master and I had temporarily overlooked: Xu Changming.

Xu Changming was the man who wrote to the Ninth Concubine. His letter contained the complete version of Seven Deaths for Life Exchange.

“What’s special about Xu Changming?” I asked Song Xiaotian.

Song Xiaotian set down his pen and paper. “You’re planning to question those villagers tomorrow, but Assistant He already spoke to them, and all he got was false information. Even if you ask them again, you won’t learn anything useful.”

“Forget the villagers of today. Even the original residents back then may not have known what happened inside Luo Mansion.”

I nodded. “You’re right, but if we don’t ask them, who else can we question?”

Song Xiaotian said, “There’s one place where the people will know much more, and their information will be far more accurate.”

“It’s called Xujia Village. The Ninth Concubine, Xu Xiu, and Xu Changming most likely came from there.”