114: Memories of Lü Zhanyong

"Stop! Don't zoom in on the phone; zoom in on her face, around the 49-minute mark," Ye Lin said. This was the time A Feng started to go crazy.

Manager Zhao directed his subordinates to zoom in on An Yunxi's face. Time ticked by second by second, finally reaching the 49-minute mark. Although the screen was very dark and blurry,

everyone could see the change in An Yunxi's expression. Her originally sorrowful face suddenly tightened, revealing a hint of a smile. She pointed at the phone screen, her mouth wide open as she said something. Immediately after, A Feng went berserk, swinging his knife, and An Yunxi's face once again contorted in terror.

The image was unclear, but everyone shivered, a chill creeping up their spines.

This woman was terrifying.

Ye Lin recalled that when he negotiated with Lü Zhanyong that day, Lü Zhanyong kept calling her a demoness.

Before, he thought Lü Zhanyong was just cursing, but now it seemed Boss Lü might know something.

Ye Lin felt he needed to find Lü Zhanyong immediately and talk to him again.

"Team Leader Guan, I need to go out for a bit to find someone," Ye Lin said.

Team Leader Guan was still immersed in the horror and didn't react immediately, casually mumbling a response. By the time he came to his senses, Ye Lin had already left.

This time, Ye Lin didn't look for Young Master Fang. Instead, he found Lü Zhanyong through Young Master Kang, because Young Master Fang was currently with An Yunxi, and he didn't want to tip them off.

He arranged to meet Lü Zhanyong in a secluded teahouse.

Upon entering, Lü Zhanyong was already there. He was very annoyed by this young police officer who had opposed him and wanted to protect An Yunxi last time. Coming here was only out of respect for Young Master Kang.

To be honest, he didn't quite understand why this young police officer knew both Young Master Fang and Young Master Kang. The two young masters were known to dislike each other.

"What? Didn't finish what you wanted to say last time?" Lü Zhanyong glanced at Ye Lin, speaking irritably.

Ye Lin looked at Lü Zhanyong. After a few days, his brows seemed even more furrowed, and a few more white hairs had appeared on his head.

Ye Lin sat down directly, poured a cup of tea, took a sip, and said,

"No, I didn't finish. So I want to hear what you meant last time when you said An Yunxi was a demon."

"A demon?" Lü Zhanyong scoffed, mocking, "Didn't Officer Ye say she was a pure young girl?"

"Don't worry about what I called her. Today, I just want to hear what you have to say," Ye Lin replied calmly.

"Have you found something? If you had listened to me earlier, you would have found out already," Lü Zhanyong gave Ye Lin a sideways glance.

Ye Lin said indifferently, "Today, I just want to hear why you called her a demon. I don't want to hear anything else."

Lü Zhanyong snorted, then said, "Then I'll tell you."

"What kind of person do I seem like to you?" Lü Zhanyong's first question to Ye Lin was about his perception of him.

"A ruthless person, someone who walks on the edge of crime."

"That's right. I'm in construction. Back in the day, when leading a construction crew, whether it was seizing a site or demanding wages from a boss, I've done some things. There was no other way; that era was like that. To survive, you had to be tougher than others," Lü Zhanyong said self-deprecatingly.

"So, later, when my business grew, I always guided Shaohui to walk the right path."

"The kid didn't disappoint me. Although he was a bit extravagant with money and liked to have several girlfriends, he never went astray," Lü Zhanyong said with a touch of emotion.

Ye Lin listened silently, not speaking.

"Shaohui is young, and it's normal for him to have girlfriends. We never interfered, only asking for one thing: casual relationships are fine, but if he wanted to marry, it had to be with our consent."

"So, over the years, Shaohui basically changed girlfriends every year. They were all young models; he liked that type, just like me in my younger days," Lü Zhanyong's face showed a hint of a doting father.

"But one day, he said he met a different girl at a club, someone who gave him the feeling of first love, and he was very infatuated with her."

"I even mocked him at the time, saying, 'Your first love probably has several children by now, and you're still talking about the feeling of first love,'" Lü Zhanyong shook his head self-deprecatingly.

"But, at the time, I just said it casually. The kid suddenly got emotional and had a big fight with me. I was so angry I was stunned; how could he be like this?"

"Later, Shaohui said he wanted to marry that girl. He told me her name for the first time: An Yunxi." As soon as Lü Zhanyong mentioned An Yunxi, his expression began to contort.

"I just offered a word of advice, and Shaohui yelled at me, smashed things around the house, and then left."

"Honestly, I was a bit confused; I didn't understand what was happening. At the time, I even thought it was true love or something, so I found a bunch of old brothers to drink and complain with."

Lü Zhanyong paused here, took a big gulp of tea, his eyes unfocused as he began to recall.

"At that time, seven or eight old brothers, some of whom had children older than Shaohui, were all trying to console me, saying that all kids are the same when they grow up, and I should just let it go."

"But..."

"Only one brother secretly pulled me aside and told me something. The gist was that his family was from another province, and there was a young man in his village who was in a similar situation to Shaohui."

"Everyone thought he was just lovesick, but an old blind man in the village said he had been 'tricked' by someone. Apparently, this old blind man used to be a grave robber and knew many strange things."

"No one believed him. In the end, one day, this young man suddenly went crazy, killed his entire family, and his girlfriend also disappeared. Only then did everyone believe that this young man had truly been 'tricked' by something."

Lü Zhanyong's eyes showed a hint of fear as he said this, then continued, "At the time, I asked, 'How do you undo it?'"

"That old brother said, according to the old blind man, not meeting her would most likely undo it."

"So, my drunkenness immediately cleared up. I went straight home, brought people to grab Shaohui, and locked him in his room for a full week."

"That week, Shaohui was like someone on drugs, you understand?" Lü Zhanyong looked at Ye Lin.

"I understand. I also fell victim to it," Ye Lin said calmly.

Lü Zhanyong looked at Ye Lin in surprise, then suddenly realized, "No wonder you came to find me."

"Shaohui didn't eat or drink for those few days, shouting and screaming. Later, I had no choice but to invite an old traditional Chinese doctor to help him regulate his body."

"He used a prescription to clear the heart and resolve stagnation, along with acupuncture. After about a month, he gradually got better."

"Once he was fully sober, I told him about this, and he seemed to understand. That's why he's been avoiding An Yunxi ever since."

"However, according to Shaohui, An Yunxi is extremely vengeful and likely won't let him go, which is why he carries a folding knife whenever he goes out."