Chapter 38: The Living Entombed

  I was about to take the photo, but suddenly a hand took it from Li Hongjun's hands. When I looked up, it was Zhao Yan. I don't know what she wants to do or what her business is. My instincts told me to grab it back, but Zhao Yan dodged quickly and opened my hand: "I will contact your daughter, I believe she wouldn't want you to die either, Li Hongjun think about it..."

  At this moment, both Li Hongjun and I changed our faces. I suddenly turned over and got up, with a thin anger on my face: "Zhao Yan, this has nothing to do with you. If you dare to make a phone call before Li Hongjun dies, don't blame me——"

  Before he could finish speaking, Li Hongjun was even more swift and agile. He had already pounced on Zhao Yan, although his hand didn't have a dagger, but he stretched out one hand like a dragon's claw towards Zhao Yan's throat. Although Zhao Yan reacted and tried to block it with her hand, she ultimately couldn't do it in time and was caught by Li Hongjun's grasp of her throat. In a gloomy tone, he said: "If you dare make a phone call before I die, I'll kill you. Anyway, I'm already a dead man, killing a few more people makes no difference to me, don't test my determination."

  He reached out to take the photo back, but just as he was about to grab it, he suddenly froze, turned his head and looked at me, then burst out laughing. He let go of Zhao Yan's throat and said: "Forget it, little girl, I'll leave this matter to you. When I die, call my daughter for me, so that this kid won't have any ideas about my daughter just because she's pretty."

  That's what they say, but I saw a hint of ridicule in Li Hongjun's eyes, and at that moment my heart was shocked, my body stiffened suddenly, just about to speak, but heard Li Hongjun snorted: "Kid, don't get excited, it's not just you who are clever, better not play too many tricks on me, there's no benefit."

  Looking at Li Hongjun, a stern expression flashed in my eyes, but I took a deep breath and forced out a smile: "What are you talking about? You know what I'm worried about. Didn't you also want to ask for death yourself? I'm helping you fulfill your wish——"

  Li Hongjun let out a cold laugh, but didn't say another word. He simply gazed at Zhao Yan, who had already retreated back to the crowd of police officers. The group of people were staring at Li Hongjun with caution on their faces, and even a few of them had guns in their hands, subtly pointing at him. But would Li Hongjun be afraid? Apparently not. Looking at Zhao Yan, he coldly laughed: "Little girl, I want to tell you something. I've put poison on the photo. If no one cures you within seven days, your whole body will rot away, all the way down to the bones before you die. Only my daughter can save you. To show my sincerity, I'll let you see it first."

  As he spoke, he suddenly pulled over the big pillar next to me, sneering coldly, and patted the big pillar's arm. The big pillar didn't feel anything at first, but just for a short while, its arm had already turned red. The big pillar only felt very itchy then, and started scratching, but the more it scratched, the itchier it became, and soon broke the skin. However, once the skin was broken, a kind of white pus began to flow out, yet at this time, the big pillar still continued to scratch.

  "Halt, Li Hongjun——" My face changed color, I almost couldn't help but take action against Li Hongjun. Although I wasn't his match, the anger I felt was palpable. Wang Liang, who had been quietly standing by the door, suddenly took on a menacing posture, and a faint gust of ominous wind began to blow.

  Li Hongjun's face sank, and he let out a heavy hum, then patted Dazhuangzi on the arm, and Dazhuangzi stopped struggling. As Li Hongjun wiped away the pus from his arm, it was clear that it was just a minor scratch, nothing serious. However, Li Hongjun kept staring at me, his gloomy expression and flashing eyes making me feel uneasy: "Kid, no need to be so tense, killing him would serve no purpose, only enrage you, I won't do something like that. I still need your help with the funeral arrangements, but let this be a warning to you, don't try any tricks on me, or you'll definitely regret it."

  I'm not sure if Li Hongjun saw through my thoughts, but my mood turned sour and I became very cautious around him. For a moment, I didn't say anything, just turning my head to the side. This scene fell into Zhao Yan's eyes, but they had no idea what was going on between me and Li Hongjun. Sometimes two people are like two legs in one pants, but once there is disagreement, they become sworn enemies, which made them also feel puzzled and uncertain.

  But only Zhao Yan saw the situation of Da Zhu, his face turned pale, and he suddenly regretted snatching the photo. How could he still suspect that Li Hongjun was poisoned after seven days? If he didn't follow Li Hongjun's words, would he really die from poisoning? Maybe it was just scaring himself, maybe the hospital could eliminate the toxin, but did Zhao Yan dare to take this risk? The answer is no, because Li Hongjun was too mysterious.

  I glanced at Zhao Yan, and suddenly felt annoyed in my heart. I knew that Li Hongjun had originally intended to poison me, but was robbed by Zhao Yan instead. It should have been a cause for celebration, but I couldn't muster up any excitement. If Zhao Yan really got poisoned, did it mean that she would definitely call Li Hongjun's daughter? But what would come of that phone call? Li Hongjun was so mysterious and had such unpredictable methods - his daughter wouldn't be an ordinary person, would she? Li Hongjun came here and got bitten by a zombie - there was no way he was just here for tourism. What was his purpose? I couldn't guess, but my instincts told me it wouldn't be that simple. No matter what Li Hongjun's goal was, at the very least, it would stir up that zombie. And the kind of zombie that could cause Li Hongjun to become a zombie must have been a powerful one. If no one disturbed it, perhaps it would continue to sleep, and with time passing, as well as the influence of the earth's energy, its resentment would slowly dissipate, and the power on its body would also fade away. Maybe it wouldn't even harm humans, but once disturbed, who knew what kind of consequences there would be?

  I was lost in thought when I suddenly heard a soft voice whispering in my ear, the sound directly entering my mind: "Don't worry, my elder sister is best at using poison, she can definitely cure Zhao Yan's poisoning."

  It turns out that Big Sister is also skilled in this area, no wonder she dared to take on the mountain bandits with just three weak women back then, and even managed to take down so many of them. It seems they all had skills, thinking about this made me breathe a sigh of relief, I simply nodded lightly, as long as I can cure Zhao Yan's poison, I can get her not to make that phone call, maybe that way some things won't happen.

  Li Hongjun couldn't see Sanmei, but he could feel the flow of yin energy. Although he didn't know what I was doing, when I let out a sigh of relief, Li Hongjun's heart sank, and his mind was filled with unknown thoughts. Suddenly, everyone fell silent, but neither the police nor Li Hongqi dared to approach Li Hongjun again.

  Even Zhao Yan and his group, after witnessing Li Hongjun's various mysterious behaviors and experiencing everything tonight, have given up on stopping Li Hongjun. These things are simply beyond their control. If they can't stop him, as long as they've tried their best, it's already a comfort to their conscience. As for covering this up, it's actually simple - at most, they'll just get scolded, but there's no need to risk provoking Li Hongjun's anger and looking foolish by trying to stop him from going to his death.

  The atmosphere changed, and everyone fell silent, just waiting quietly. Some people who were sleepy leaned against the wall and dozed off for a while, but no one knew how long it had been. The sky finally began to brighten, this was the last day. Li Hongjun, who had been silent all night, walked to the door by himself, looked up at the sky with a hint of dawn, and let out a long sigh: "Let me take another look at the sunrise. It's only when you lose something that you truly understand its value. This is my first time looking at the sunrise like this. I never thought it was important before, but now I know how beautiful the sunrise is."

  Standing behind Li Hongjun, I didn't know what to say, but I felt a sense of melancholy. I whispered: "Yes, it's only when you lose something that you realize the importance of cherishing it. You must be regretting now for not spending more time with your daughter. Unfortunately, regrets are useless after the fact. Some things can only be understood once they've been done, and their consequences revealed. Hopefully, you'll make your daughter understand your current feelings as well."

  A double-edged word, I don't know if Li Hongjun understood it or not, but he let out a cold snort and didn't say anything else, just staring at the sky thinking about who-knows-what. I also stopped talking and didn't disturb the last bit of hope for someone on the verge of death.

  Turning back, he walked up to the fat dog and looked at Da Chun, then lowered his voice and said: "You two go buy some gasoline, at least two large barrels, just send it directly to the grave site, you must hurry back before noon."

  The two nodded and looked at Li Hongjun, saying in a low voice: "Xiao Hai, don't worry, we know what's important and unimportant, and we won't delay your business."

  I'm sure Li Hongjun heard it, but he didn't react at all, except that he felt even more sad because he knew what the gasoline was for. It was meant to burn him, no matter who did it. Even if someone had a big heart and could accept it, hearing those words would still make them feel uncomfortable.

  As Da Chun and Pang Dogzi left, we continued to wait quietly until the sun rose. The filial sons and grandsons also arrived, along with the trumpeters and scripture readers. The surrounding area was packed with onlookers, causing a commotion. Li Hongjun lost interest and without my prompting, he climbed into the coffin by himself.

  In the end, there were still 50,000 to 60,000 yuan left over. I was just throwing money around, the band was playing non-stop, anyone could request a song, and the mourners were circling the coffin reciting scriptures that no one understood. The filial sons and grandsons were wailing as if their parents had really died. Villagers came in waves to pay their respects, even from distant villages just to join in the excitement. By noon, the Western-style meal was ready, all arranged by the village chief. Although two pigs had been slaughtered and countless chickens and ducks had been killed, it was still the most lavish spread in the village, but actually not much money had been spent. In the end, 30,000 yuan was left over.