Pure Darkness

Chapter 18

When the door opened, the third wife, Zhang Jufang, looked at them in bewilderment.

Fang Qing looked into his eyes and led the team in. The officer's black uniform and heavy footsteps shocked everyone in the courtyard.

“What are you doing?”

“What happened?”

Bo Jinyan raised her head and saw Ming Lan standing in front of her room, with an unreadable expression on her face. Then, he disappeared.

The attendant quickly took over everyone in the courtyard, then rushed into Yao Yuange's room, but found no one inside. They searched every corner, but still found no trace of him.

“How can this happen?” asked Fang Qing calmly.

An inspector replied, “No way, our people have been monitoring this place from outside. Yao Yuange did not come out. How could he not be here?

Only Ming Lan's room remained. Fang Qing and Bo Jinyan looked at each other, and Fang Qing said, “Let's talk to him.” Bo Jinyan calmed down.

“Why did you break into my house?” ming Lan asked softly, sitting on a tatami mat beside the window.

He seemed to be somewhat expecting this, and was also as calm as water.

Fang Qing replied, “This is a search warrant. Ming Lan, we have evidence to suspect that you were involved in the disappearance of Zhu Fanglin and Ning Qingru in 2014 and 2015.”

Ming Lan moved her lips, but her face remained ice-cold. “I don't understand what you're saying. I also don't know the people you mentioned.”

“How about Yao Yuange?” Fang Qing asked.

Ming Lan did not speak. His delicate fingers gripped each other tightly.

But does he have a way out?

No. gabe.

“Where are the girls now?” Fang Qing hissed.

Ming Lan continued to stare out the window. Suddenly, the corner of his mouth raised formed something that resembled a smile.

“I told you, I don't know. This has absolutely nothing to do with me, Yuange, or us Yaos. How long will you keep bothering us?

“Cuff him first,” Fang Qing said.

He and Bo Jinyan walked out. Some officers came and shook their heads slightly, signaling that they had not found him. Not far from there, Yao's women and servants gathered in one place. Under the gloomy daylight, each of them had different expressions.

Ming Yue held onto her son tightly, her face extremely grim, not saying a word. When Bo Jinyan and Fang Qing's eyes were fixed on him, he quickly turned around, as if he was electrocuted.

The faces of Zhang Jufang and Chen Mei looked slightly pale as well. Zhang Jufang stood with his hands crossed, cursing softly, yet he did not dare to openly fight back. Chen Mei continued to pay attention to each officer's movements, as if thinking of something.

“It looks like this,” said Bo Jinyan, “Ming Lan, Ming Yue, and the late Zhao Xia know. Zhang Jufang and Chen Mei no.”

Fang Qing muttered softly, “He seems to be very good at using his control over these women. Where do you think he hid the girls?”

“He trusted Ming Lan the most,” Bo Jinyan said. Fang Qing followed his gaze to Ming Lan's backyard, where both of his Auditions were parked. Next to him was a small hut. The officers were busy prying the door. When viewed from a distance, the inside was filled with debris, but nothing seemed abnormal.

“Do you want to bet?” Fang Qing suddenly said, “Is there a girl still alive?”

Bo Jinyan paused for a moment and replied, “You're so good. However, I'm afraid not. ”

Fang Qing did not speak.

Both of them walked into the hut. The officers were busy knocking on every surface, moving debris, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. With his sharp eyesight, Fang Qing noticed that a newly moved closet was standing at the deepest part of the hut, and a blanket was lying on the ground. He leaned over and pulled the blanket. Astonishingly, a movable wooden floorboard began to appear. It locked.

“Interested!” he whispered. The officers gathered, and the board was forcefully opened within a short period of time. One by one, they jumped down. Bo Jinyan turned her head and looked at Ming Lan, who was held safely behind the crowd. He staggered, and his face was more terrifying than a corpse. He looked at her coldly, then came down.

There were very dim lights on the walls, and judging from the condition of the stone walls, this basement must have been dug long ago.

“The Yao family building is in the Ming and Qing dynasties,” Fang Qing said. “This basement and hallway most likely came from that time as well.”

After passing the stairs and walking down the dark short hallway, they appeared in a square room, with walls and floors made of concrete. It was very simple, and very clean. That's at most 30 square meters. Inside stood a table, two benches, a simple wardrobe and a refrigerator.

There are only a few bottles of beer in the fridge.

In the deepest wall was a small iron door. Criminal investigators broke down the door and found a room that was relatively smaller in size, with an elegant bed, as well as several sets of shackles. These are all firmly embedded in the wall, and are impossible to remove. The room was empty, there was no sign of life.

Fang Qing walked towards the window, glanced for a moment, and took out a strand of hair. But he couldn't determine whose.

Bo Jinyan stood in the room, and looked around expressionlessly.

“Bring him here,” Fang Qing said rudely.

The officer pushed Ming Lan inside.

“What else should you say?” Fang Qing said coldly. “What's with this basement?”

Who would have thought that Ming Lan, even now, would still refuse. He smiled and said, “What can I say? This room is where I usually rest. And those girls, I just invited them to hang out at my house, but they left later. How do I know where they went?”

An officer next to them shouted, “You still dare to refuse!”

At this time, Bo Jinyan, took out a luminescent bottle from the forensic technician, and immediately threw the contents into the shackles and bed.

No officers spoke. Ming Lan's face quickly turned pale.

Lights out. Shimmering blue spots that are impossible to ignore appear.

“They left?” said Bo Jinyan. “But why are their bloodstains still here?”

——

Fang Qing and Bo Jinyan stood at the end of the underground passageway. To their surprise, outside the cell there was another path that continued as far as 20 meters or so. They guessed that it was leading beyond the limits of Yao's cage. Perhaps, the homeowners in the Ming and Qing dynasties had used it as a way out.

At this point, they could hear the voices of people and cars through the windows above their heads. There were new fingerprints on the dusty window, so it seemed like someone had left this place not long ago.

“Yao Yuange couldn't possibly know that we came to catch him.” Fang Qing said. “Why did he suddenly leave?”

“Xie Min.” Bo Jinyan replied.

Fang Qing nodded.

“The day Zhao Xia died, something must have happened to instigate Yao Yuange to kill her. We can’t be certain, but it might have something to do what Xie Min uncovered as she dug into the Yao family secrets. Yao Yuange’s top priority would this be to silence her.”

“So..” Fang Qing said, “Yao Yuange is also on the mountain now.”

Suddenly, an officer rushed in, “Chief Fang, Ming Lan, she, she.

“What’s wrong”

“She just committed suicide!”

“How could this happen?” Fang Qing’s expression darkened. “Didn’t I tell you to watch over her?”

“We did watch over her the whole time. But she probably already hid the poison in her shirt while we went in. When she and the others were escorted to the car, she seized the opportunity to take the pill! She died right away!”

——

Jian Yao stayed at the police station instead of going with Bo Jinyan to the Yao household. First of all, not too many people were needed for the on-site investigation; secondly, if he stayed, it would be easier to deal with other matters.

However, he reminded Bo Jinyan to be careful, not to rush anymore. For this, Bo Jinyan's response was very calm. “We have Fang Qing at the forefront, do I even need to bring out my strength?” This provoked Fang Qing, who was next to them, to glare at him.

But Jian Yao thought, it might be fine.

Information from the CTF has been sent to the police station. As Jian Yao looked at the photos of the cells and bloodstains illuminated by the luminol, she could only sigh. At that moment, an officer called him. “Master Jian, there's a call to the police station, looking for Professor Bo, we're not sure who it is. But Prof. Bo and co seem to be underground, so we cannot contact them.”

“I'll get it.” Jian Yao walked over.

People in the office come and go, everyone looks very busy and productive.

Jian Yao picked up the phone. “Halo?”

On the other end of the phone, shut up. Just the sound of someone's breath.

Jian Yao was silent for a moment. Faintly, he felt that something was wrong. However, there was also an inexplicable sense of anticipation.

So, she softened her voice, and said patiently, “I am Bo Jinyan's wife, and also her partner. His phone doesn't have a signal right now, so we can't reach him. If you have a problem, you can talk to me. ”

The guy stopped for a long time, then said, “You . . . Lady Bo who lives with her?”

That voice sounds familiar. Jian Yao thought for a moment, then she was startled by a sudden realization, and her heart kept pounding. Trying her best to adopt a quiet voice, she said, “Yes, I. . You are. .”

“MY . . . He said, he will always make criminals submit to the law?” XieMin asked.

“Ya,” replied Jian Yao firmly. At the same time, the attendant beside him responded to his movements and checked – it was indeed Xie Min's number.

Xie Min took two sharp breaths, and suddenly exploded with a choking sound of tears, “I have found. . . I have found my Tong Sheng.” He laughed and sobbed simultaneously, “I misheard. It wasn't ‘munung’, but ‘tiga’. .”

(T/N mounts ( ⁇ , shan) and three ( ⁇ , san) sound very similar)

——

After hanging up the phone, Xie Min raised his head and looked at the mountain opposite him, especially at ‘Sanqing Guan’ (i.e., Sanqing Temple) on the mountain. At this moment, the afternoon mist enveloped the land, and the green hills seemed distant. The burning incense in front of the temple rose and swayed with the wind, and looked extremely pure and beautiful.

Where he currently stood was the mountain behind Sanqing Temple. People rarely visit these forest areas. However, he remembered that Yao Yuange and Ming Lan had been to the mountain several times. There was even a patch of forest where they planted trees.

Xie Min raised his head, wiping away the tears on his face. Under his feet, there was ground that had been dug, deeper ground opening under the sky.

“You are really very determined.” A voice came from behind him.

Xie Min turned around and saw the person standing right behind him, blocking off most of the light. His normally saintly appearance now had an unspeakable evil cast.

“You . .” Xie Min reached out to grab it.

But he grabbed her shoulder, thrust a knife into her stomach, and pulled it out.