Chapter 58: A Confession
Chapter 58: A Confession
Deep into the night, the moon hid behind the clouds, and the stars disappeared from view. The town fell into a deep slumber, enveloped in an unusual quietness.
Old Mrs. Hu tossed and turned restlessly in her camp bed, her mind racing with the events of the day. She went over her statements, confident that there were no loopholes. However, the stern gazes of the two public security officers lingered in her memory, their doubtful expressions making her heart uneasy.
Recalling her son's words, Old Mrs. Hu muttered to herself in a soft voice, "After leaving the train station, I immediately parted ways with that wretched girl. I know nothing of what happened to her."
She repeated these words over and over, trying to calm her restless heart. Jun'er was right; whatever happened to that girl had nothing to do with her. She was being wrongfully accused.
Just then, the door creaked open, and a figure silently slipped into the room.
Old Mrs. Hu, who had been sleeping facing the interior of the room, turned over as she felt a chill. That was when she noticed a figure slowly approaching her.
As she was about to question the intruder, the lights in the room suddenly flicked on, revealing a figure clad in white, her face smeared with blood—it was Jiaxin Lu.
"A ghost!"
Old Mrs. Hu let out a piercing scream and fainted.
Jiaxin pinched her acupoint to rouse her, and when Old Mrs. Hu regained consciousness, Jiaxin asked in a sinister tone, "Old Mrs. Hu, why do you want to harm me? Why?"
She deliberately prolonged the last word, her voice sending shivers down the spine. Even Captain Sun, standing outside the door, felt goosebumps rise on his skin. When he had gone to call Jiaxin earlier, her appearance had startled him. It was then that he realized why she had brought a suitcase—it must have been filled with makeup. Recalling his superior's words, he couldn't help but admire Jiaxin's talent.
Due to the dim lighting in the room, Old Mrs. Hu could only make out a vague silhouette. Terrified, she scooted further into the bed, pressing herself against the wall as if she wanted to merge with it. "I never wanted to harm you. I truly never intended to harm you..."
Jiaxin continued in a strained voice, "Old Mrs. Hu, who do you want to sell me to? Who?"
On the last word, she raised her pitch, her voice echoing with a chilling effect in the eerie darkness. Even Captain Sun shuddered; this girl was adept at creating a frightening atmosphere. If only she could get into the Public Security University, they would have gained a valuable asset.
Old Mrs. Hu had been scared out of her wits. Trembling, she stammered, "I... I didn't want to sell you. I just wanted you to marry my nephew."
After a brief pause, she added tearfully, "My nephew hasn't found a wife yet. If you marry him, not only will there be someone to take care of his children, but he will also have a worry-free life."
Jiaxin felt an urge to strangle her.
Noticing Old Mrs. Hu's silence, she continued in a quavering voice, "Miss Lu, I'm sorry. I know I was wrong, and I shouldn't have had such malicious thoughts. But I never intended to take your life."
"Miss Lu, please spare me! As long as you're willing to let me go, I'll burn spirit money for you during every festival. I'll burn a lot of spirit money so that you'll have more than enough to spend in the underworld."
By now, Jiaxin had calmed down. She replied in a drawn-out tone, "The King of Hell pitied me for my unjust death and granted me special permission to return for revenge. Old Mrs. Hu, I shall take you to the eighteenth level of hell now. The imps will first pull out your tongue, then slice off your flesh piece by piece, and finally throw you into a vat of boiling oil..."
Before she could finish her sentence, a pungent odor of urine filled the room, indicating that Old Mrs. Hu had lost control of her bladder out of sheer terror.
Kneeling on the ground, Hu Ermai pleaded, her voice shaking as she begged for mercy, "Miss Lu, please spare me... please spare me..."
Captain Sun, standing outside, was afraid that things might take a turn for the worse, so he quickly entered the room and turned on the lights. He approached Hu Ermai, intending to calm her down.
Before he could speak, Hu Ermai darted behind him, pointing at Jiaxin Lu, and shouted, "Captain Sun, it's a ghost! There's a ghost..."
Captain Sun took out a pair of silver handcuffs and restrained Old Mrs. Hu. With a stern expression, he declared, "Hu Ermai, you are under arrest for human trafficking."
Jiaxin Lu, her face contorted with disgust, retorted, "There are no ghosts in this world; it's your own guilty conscience playing tricks on you. I'm fortunate to be alive; otherwise, you would have gotten away with your crimes."
Finally, the realization dawned on Hu Ermai. It was Jiaxin Lu who had accused her of being a human trafficker, which was why she had been brought back to Feng County to assist the public security investigation. Since she wasn't dead, she couldn't be a ghost.
This thought caused Hu Ermai's legs to turn weak, but she still attempted to defend herself. "I didn't traffic any women; I've been wrongfully accused."
Captain Sun scoffed, "No use struggling now. You admitted yourself that you wanted to sell Jiaxin to be your nephew's wife and have her take care of his children. We all heard it clearly outside."
Who would have thought that she wanted to sell Jiaxin as a wife for her nephew instead of her grandson? Even after being married for so many years, she still had her nephew from her maiden family on her mind.
Terrified, Hu Ermai stuttered, "No, no, I didn't want to sell her. I was just talking nonsense out of fear."
With an emotionless expression, Jiaxin Lu stated, "Old woman, human trafficking, attempted murder, and stealing a large amount of property. For these crimes, you will surely end up behind bars!"
With that, she turned and left the room. Behind her, Hu Ermai continued to argue, claiming that she had been scared out of her wits and wasn't in her right mind when she spoke those words. However, her pleas fell on deaf ears.
After leaving the room, Jiaxin Lu yawned and said, "Uncle, let's go back to sleep."
Lu Jiajie's mouth moved faster than his brain, "That bed... Can you sleep peacefully on it?"
Jiaxin Lu indicated that she wasn't that squeamish. In fact, after entering the room, she had put on a thick coat and dozed off on the table, not even getting into the bed.
However, Lu Dabiao was wide awake and had no intention of sleeping. He asked, "Where did Jiaxin learn all these tricks? It was quite unnerving."
Even though he knew it was all an act, his hair still stood on end earlier, so he couldn't blame Old Mrs. Hu for breaking down and confessing under such frightening circumstances.
Lu Jiajie also found it puzzling. Shaking his head, he said, "I visit her often, but Jiaxin rarely talks about what she learns or the friends she makes. I assume Third Uncle doesn't know much either."
Mentioning Lu Hongjun only served to anger Lu Dabiao further. "If it weren't for him being bewitched by that woman, losing all sense of reason, Jiaxin would be attending university classes right now instead of going through such tribulations."
Lu Jiajie tried to comfort him, "Uncle, Dad always says that blessings come with misfortunes. After this ordeal, Jiaxin has not only become more assertive but also gained a better understanding of the ways of the world. In the long run, this will be beneficial for her."
While the words were meant to reassure, the fact remained that Jiaxin had come perilously close to losing her life, and without it, nothing else mattered. Lu Dabiao felt that once they returned to Si Jiucheng, they needed to teach Lu Hongjun a lesson.
Lu Dabiao said, "Jiajie, after we get back, you and Jiaguang must take good care of Jiaxin and not let that mother-daughter pair bully her anymore."
Lu Jiajie smiled and assured him, "Uncle, rest assured. Jiaxin has become quite formidable now. Forget about that woman; even Third Uncle can't get her to do anything she doesn't want to."
Lu Dabiao muttered curses under his breath, his anger directed at Lu Hongjun for being such a fool and causing all this trouble.
(End of Chapter)
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