45: Then you can die (please read it again! Thank you!)
Qin Jiang's voice, like a death knell, rang in the Village Chief's ears, making his body tremble uncontrollably.
He swallowed with difficulty, "This humble old man truly… truly doesn't know what you… you are talking about, sir."
"Then you can just die."
Qin Jiang stood up, holding Blackwater in his right hand and dragging the Village Chief by his hair with his left, walking towards the mine shaft.
The Village Chief struggled incessantly, his fingernails scraping against Qin Jiang's arm, but it was like scratching iron; it had no effect whatsoever, not even leaving a tiny scratch.
"You… you can't kill me! I am the Village Chief of Da Liu Village! I am the Village Chief personally appointed by the imperial court! You can't kill me! Everyone, quickly save me!"
He looked terrified, crying out for help to the villagers who had come with him, almost on the verge of tears.
But at this moment, these villagers just stood there, staring blankly, not daring to make the slightest move.
Qin Jiang threw the Village Chief to the mouth of the mine shaft. The Village Chief rolled a few times, lay on the ground, and let out a wail.
Walking over and squatting down, Qin Jiang held Blackwater to the Village Chief's neck, making a gesture.
"At this point, let alone the Village Chief, even if your entire village was gone, it wouldn't be a big deal. Go in peace."
"Wait! I! I know!"
Suddenly, a person stood out from the crowd of villagers, it was the tall man who had just been speaking with the Village Chief.
Qin Jiang stood up, taking a single step directly in front of the tall man. His imposing figure was half a head taller than the man, casting him into shadow.
"You probably don't want to know the consequences of lying to me."
The tall man's throat bobbed, "I wouldn't dare… wouldn't dare."
His face showed panic, and he suddenly regretted stepping forward. If only he had known, he wouldn't have wanted those few taels of silver!
"Tell me, what do you know?" Qin Jiang said.
"No! Liu Quan! You—"
The Village Chief's shouts stopped abruptly, struck by the Evil Qi Qin Jiang casually unleashed. His body was thrown flying, landing on the ground, his fate unknown.
The tall man's face was tense, the Evil Qi around Qin Jiang making him gasp for air. He bit the bullet and said, "It's the Village Head, oh no, it's the Village Chief's youngest son.
He… his name is Liu Pingan, and he's the leader of the village's mining team. That night, during Zheng DeYu's wedding, he took a liking to the bride. The bride refused, so he… he…"
"So what? Stop with the nonsense!" Tian Shangfei strode over and slapped Liu Quan across the face.
Liu Quan covered his face, his eyes flustered, "I'll tell! I'll tell! The bride refused, so Liu Pingan had the miners steal the bride out. Then, they took turns, and she died…
Liu Pingan was afraid of causing trouble, so he arranged for a miner. If anything went wrong, that miner would take the blame for him, and he himself ran off to the city to lay low."
Qin Jiang's eyes narrowed slightly as he glanced at the mine shaft. "So, she wasn't forced to commit suicide, but after her death, you spread rumors and created the illusion of suicide?"
Upon hearing this, Liu Quan quickly waved his hands in terror, "No, no, no, no! I didn't! Not me! I only found out later!
I was the one who led people to block that mine shaft! At first, I didn't know anything, sir! Really! It wasn't me, sir! It really wasn't me!"
He immediately knelt on the ground, snot and tears streaming down his face.
Standing with Qin Jiang was too terrifying! It was like his head could be chopped off at any moment!
"Damn it! So it was you, you dog, who blocked it!" Tian Shangfei kicked Liu Quan in the face, leaving a black shoe print.
"That's enough, Lao Tian, don't kill him," Qin Jiang said.
Tian Shangfei glared at Liu Quan hatefully, "Yes, Boss!"
"Lao Meng, go to the city and find Liu Pingan. Bring him back before tomorrow night," Qin Jiang said to Meng An.
"Understood! Boss, you can rest assured! No need for tomorrow night, I, Lao Meng, will definitely bring him back before tonight!" Meng An said, patting his chest.
After he left with a few gang members, Tian Shangfei looked at Qin Jiang, "Boss, what should we do with these troublemakers? Do they need a lesson?"
"No need. Leave ten brothers to watch them, and the rest will come with me to the village to check on Zheng DeYu," Qin Jiang said.
"Alright! Brothers! Keep a close eye on them!" Tian Shangfei shouted to the gang members.
With that, he picked out a few people, including himself, and walked towards the village with Qin Jiang.
Back in the village, the bodies in the open space were still there. A few villagers had covered them with straw mats to prevent them from getting too sun-baked.
After all, some of them were their own relatives, the pillars of their families.
"Sir! How is your investigation going? You must avenge my son!"
An old woman walked over, wiping away tears, followed by a woman holding a baby.
Behind them, a group of villagers also followed, mostly the old, weak, sick, and disabled, essentially all family members of the deceased miners.
Qin Jiang's eyes flickered. After a moment of silence, he said nothing.
"Go, go, go! Don't get in the way here! The sir is busy with the investigation!" Tian Shangfei stepped forward, scattering the crowd.
"Let's go to Zheng DeYu's place to take a look," Qin Jiang said.
"Alright, the courtyard is over there."
Tian Shangfei pointed into the distance, and the group headed that way.
"Lao Tian, give some silver to the families of those miners. Give more to those with children at home."
Halfway there, Qin Jiang suddenly spoke.
Tian Shangfei was stunned. "Boss, those guys were all—"
Qin Jiang slightly raised his hand, shaking his head. "Not all of them deserve to die. Alright, it's settled."
"Alright then, I'll prepare it later," Tian Shangfei said somewhat helplessly.
Soon, the group arrived at the courtyard where Zheng DeYu was recovering. Several gang members stood guard at the entrance, and Qin Jiang and Tian Shangfei walked into the courtyard.
Looking around, "The environment is quite good. Let's stay here tonight."
"Hehe, that's right. Old Man Liu wouldn't dare to play tricks on me," Tian Shangfei laughed.
Entering the house, the furniture on display was relatively clean, just a bit old.
Zheng DeYu sat on the bed in the inner room. Two bowls were placed in front of the bed; one was thin porridge, and the other was also thin porridge.
"You fellow, why aren't you eating what's given to you?!" Tian Shangfei walked over, directly picked up a bowl of thin porridge, and drank it.
"It's all cold. You don't know how to cherish food!"
Qin Jiang waved his hand, signaling Tian Shangfei to leave. Tian Shangfei looked at the other bowl of porridge, quickly finished it in one gulp, and took both bowls out.
"Boss, if you need anything, just call me. I'll be waiting outside the door."
After he left, Qin Jiang stood by the bed. "The investigation is almost complete. Don't worry, I will get justice for you and your wife."
Zheng DeYu shrank his head and looked at Qin Jiang, his eyes full of disbelief. "You are all your own people helping your own people. You won't care about an outsider like me!"
Qin Jiang frowned slightly. "I am not from Da Liu Village."
"You don't need to lie to me! And you can't lie to me! None of you people are any good!" Zheng DeYu's head twitched involuntarily, but his gaze never left Qin Jiang for half a second.
"Believe it or not!"
A surge of unknown anger rose, and Qin Jiang pressed his forehead, saying impatiently.
Zheng DeYu said nothing more. Qin Jiang frowned and looked up slightly, only to see that Zheng DeYu had already fainted, a strange smile on his face.