Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 620 The Truth

Back in the inner room, Xiao Liu handed the document to Xiao Wei. Now that Xiao Wei was the leader, he had to keep this kind of evidence. Xiao Wei looked at it—a large manila envelope with the words "Suicide Note" written on it. He looked up and asked Lao Cao, "What exactly happened?"

Old Cao said, "Last year, Xiao Hua and I went to a dance party. That's how Xiao Hua and Xiao Mei met. Xiao Mei was a pretty girl, delicate and frail. Xiao Hua took a liking to her and started pursuing her. But for some reason, Xiao Mei just wouldn't agree to date him."

Xiao Hua has asked me to drink about this several times. He's the kind of person who gets stuck on things, and he said that Xiao Mei also likes him, but he doesn't know why she doesn't agree to be with him. This matter has been dragged on until this year.

Last month, Xiaohua came to drink with me again, saying he was going to talk to Xiaomei again, and if she didn't agree, he would die in front of her. I couldn't persuade him no matter what I said. I told him there were other women in the world, so why bother? But he wouldn't listen.

Then a few days later, Xiaohua came again, drunk, and started chatting with me. He said he had found Xiaomei, and Xiaomei had told him everything. She said she loved him too, but couldn't be with him. At that moment, I felt that Xiaohua was a bit menacing, so I asked him what was going on...

Yang Xuemei was an abandoned baby who had no parents from a young age. At that time, the Yang family only had one son, so they adopted her and raised her for more than 20 years. She became a famous beauty with many suitors and got a job in a pharmaceutical factory. Her life was full of sunshine.

The incident occurred when Yang Xuemei was sixteen years old. She was sleeping in her room that day, and her adoptive mother and brother were away visiting relatives. Her adoptive father, reeking of alcohol, climbed onto her kang (a heated brick bed) and assaulted her. Being rather timid, she didn't dare to make a scene, but she told her adoptive mother what had happened.

Unexpectedly, after a big fight with her adoptive father, her adoptive mother abandoned her. She became her adoptive father's concubine, and every few days her adoptive father would climb on top of her, and she dared not resist. This went on for more than a year, until she could no longer bear it and told her adoptive brother about it. Who knew that her adoptive brother, who had always been good to her, would change his attitude drastically after hearing about it.

Her adoptive brother scolded her for spreading rumors and talking nonsense, while her adoptive father turned against her completely, saying he would beat her to death if she went out and talked nonsense. It wasn't until she turned eighteen that she started working at a pharmaceutical factory, eagerly escaping from the den of wolves and moving to the dormitory, but she still couldn't escape her adoptive father's harassment. He forbade her to have a boyfriend, to associate with boys, or to get married, saying he would kill her and her boyfriend if she didn't comply.

Therefore, although Yang Xuemei liked Qin Aihua, she didn't dare to get too close to him until Qin Aihua threatened to kill himself, at which point she revealed the truth. Qin Aihua himself was a rather extreme and volatile person, which led him to contemplate murder.

Qin Aihua was an active member of the railway militia company. He was a good shot and had high combat skills, making him a model soldier in the company. Therefore, he had many opportunities to handle firearms and ammunition. He sought opportunities to hide more than seventy rounds of ammunition and a magazine. However, the management of firearms was too strict, and he could not obtain them.

Because of his work, Qin Aihua was quite familiar with the guard post on the bridge. He knew that the gun was unloaded and that it was his only chance to get a weapon. So he took the bullets to the guard post. He failed the first time because he was nervous. The second time, he said he wanted to touch the gun. Since the gun was unloaded, the sentry didn't think much of it and handed the gun to him.

He took the gun, changed the magazine, and killed two sentries and a coworker, fearing they would report him and cause his plan to fail.

He took the gun to the pharmaceutical factory and found Yang Xuemei, saying, "I've got a gun. Tonight I'm going to Old Yang's house to avenge you. Are you coming with me or leaving?"

Yang Xuemei hated the Yang family of three to the core, and immediately said she would go back with him. She went to her dormitory, packed her things, took the key to the Yang family's house, told her roommate that she was going home for a few days, and went back to the Yang family's house with Qin Aihua. This was at 10 p.m. on the 14th.

Upon arriving at the Yang family home, Yang Xuemei unlocked the door with her key, and the two entered the house. At that time, Yang Xuemei's adoptive parents were playing cards with their neighbor Xiao Zuo on the kang (a heated brick bed). When the adoptive father saw Yang Xuemei bringing Qin Aihua into the house, he flew into a rage. Qin Aihua opened fire without hesitation, killing the adoptive mother instantly. The adoptive father was shot and fell on the kang. Qin Aihua shot him in the genitals several times and cut him with a bayonet before putting the gun in his mouth and shooting him to death.

Yang Xuemei pointed to her neighbor Xiao Zuo, who was kneeling to the side in fright, and said, "This has nothing to do with Xiao Zuo. He usually takes good care of me. Let him go."

Qin Aihua said, "No, if he goes out, we have to call the police. That way, not only will we fail to kill his son, but we'll also be caught off guard." Upon hearing this, Xiao Zuo ran frantically outside and was shot in the back by Qin Aihua in the yard, where he died.

After killing the man, Yang Xuemei felt a little panicked and wanted to leave, but Qin Aihua said, "You can't leave, his son is still alive. I'm hungry, can you cook me something?" So Yang Xuemei went to the stove in the outer room and cooked something. After the two of them finished eating, they pushed the body aside and rested together on the kang (a heated brick bed) until four in the morning, when her adopted brother came back from drinking outside and was shot dead by Qin Aihua.

The two packed their things and prepared to leave. Just then, Wang, a neighbor of the Yang family, came out of his house and arrived at the Yang family's gate. He was a veteran who had been to the battlefield and could recognize the sound of gunfire. Unable to resist his curiosity, he came over to investigate and was shot dead by Qin Aihua without hesitation. Then Qin Aihua took Yang Xuemei directly to Old Cao's house, handed him a pre-prepared suicide note, and left with Yang Xuemei.

"Here's the thing, I thought about it over and over, and I couldn't bear to take the blame. I didn't dare let my family know, so I was planning to go to the police station to report it first thing tomorrow morning, and then you guys showed up." Old Cao sighed a bit. This was his best friend, and the fact that he could find him openly and honestly right after committing the murder showed the strength of their friendship and Qin Aihua's trust in him. But he couldn't keep that trust.

Xiao Wei read through the suicide note. Qin Aihua had written down the whole story very clearly, including the details of the murder, which were later added back. It was a full twenty-one pages long. At the end, she bid farewell to her parents, saying that she was sorry for their kindness in raising her and that she would come back to repay them in the next life.

After carefully putting away the suicide note, Xiao Wei asked Lao Cao, "Do you know where they went?"

Old Cao shook his head and said, "I really don't know. He didn't say, and I didn't ask. I was completely baffled at the time."

Xiao Wei asked, "Do you have a telephone at home?"

Old Cao said, "We don't have any at home, but the supply and marketing cooperative does."

Xiao Wei said, "Let's go to the supply and marketing cooperative."

The five men left the courtyard, locked the gate, and got into a car at the supply and marketing cooperative on the other side of town. Old Cao opened the gate, and the five men went inside. Xiao Wei said, "Liu, call Director Lu. Da Wei, if you're hungry, look for something to eat. There should be some here. It looks like we won't be able to have a big meal tonight."

Old Cao said, "Yes, yes, we have bread and sausages, and eggs too. We also have a stove. Shall I cook something for you?"

Xiao Wei said, "Just take some bread and sausages."

Old Cao went to the counter to get some, saying, "There's also steamed rice cake and soda."

Xiao Wei said, "Okay, bring some of everything out, I'm hungry too."

(End of this chapter)