Chapter 21.1

Arriving at the designated meeting spot with a flashlight, the female student was already waiting there. She had two other students with her, a boy and a girl. As soon as they saw her, they followed the female student and walked toward her.

“Sister, we’ve been waiting for you.”

“Did you find the people?”

“Yeah, these two are the ones. Not many saw what happened that day, and most were too scared to speak up. These two are the brave ones.”

Why were they afraid to speak up? Who is controlling things from behind the scenes, and what are they trying to cover up? Luo Lan’s gaze shifted to the boy and girl. During this period, those who could attend high school were usually quite cherished by their families. The boy looked eager and expectant, while the girl seemed bold and confident.

“You need to give me a notebook first, and I’ll see if it’s as pretty as Shuangshuang’s before I decide whether to talk or not.” The girl spoke with an air of arrogance, bold and assertive.

“Your notebooks aren’t all girly, right? If they are, I don’t want them,” the boy said, also picky and not fond of girly colors.

“Don’t worry, I have a wide variety of designs. You can choose whatever you like.”

She had exchanged for various notebooks from the system and took out seven or eight at this moment. There were ones with hard covers, plastic covers, and even small locks. Designs included a clear blue sky, a serene deep ocean, and orange persimmons with the words ‘Everything goes well.’

The exquisite craftsmanship made the students fall in love with them at first sight, unable to put them down. The girl held one after another, unwilling to let go.

“Sister, can I have an extra one?”

“That depends on your performance.”

“I’ll tell you everything I know.”

“Alright.”

Hearing this, the boy quickly added, “As if I don’t know anything, I was there that day too. It was very chaotic.”

The boy stopped himself and turned to ask Luo Lan again, “If we tell you everything, how many notebooks can we get?”

“It depends on the level of detail. If you have evidence, you can get even more.”

The girl spoke up first, “We’re in the same class as Zhou Minshan. That day, the PE teacher didn’t show up, so we dispersed to play on our own. Not many people saw what happened. But I was there. I saw them pushing Zhou Minshan and picking a fight with him. From what I heard, it seemed like Zhou Minshan didn’t help them during exams, so they held a grudge.”

The boy, afraid the girl would say everything before he got a chance, quickly continued, “I was there that day too. Those two did indeed curse Zhou Minshan. They had fought before. The shorter one mocked Zhou Minshan for being bold enough to fight back and swore to teach him a lesson that day. They started by pushing, and then Zhou Minshan fought back. The fight escalated. There were several of them. One of them, wearing a brown jacket, tripped Zhou Minshan from behind.”

“How long did the fight last? Did anyone report it to the teacher? How long did it take for the teacher to arrive? How exactly did Zhou Minshan die?”

“It was a group beating. There were several of them attacking openly and secretly. Zhou Minshan couldn’t fight them all alone. A girl said she would report to the teacher, but no one stepped forward to stop the fight.”

The boy added, “Zhou Minshan didn’t just fall and hit his head on a rock. He fell because someone knocked him down.”

Luo Lan quickly asked, “How did Zhou Minshan die?”

The boy, already holding a notebook with a sunset cover, now took another one with an underwater design. “Give me this one too, and I’ll tell you.”

Luo Lan turned her attention to the girl, who was holding two notebooks. They had already turned off the flashlight and spoke in unison, showing great coordination.

“We’ll tell you, but we won’t admit to it, nor will we testify.”

It was clear this was no simple matter. Despite their desire for the notebooks, they were still too afraid to testify, even meeting at night and turning off the flashlight to avoid being recognized.

“Each of you gets two notebooks. Tell me what you saw.”

“Alright.”

The girl started first after receiving the notebooks, “About four or five people were beating him up, and he curled up on the ground. One of them had a brick and hit him hard on the head.”

The boy added, “That’s what I saw too. One boy cursed him, saying his bad grades got him beaten by his dad, and it was all Zhou Minshan’s fault.”

“Who had the brick?” Zhou Minshan had died from a fatal injury to the back of his head, so the person with the brick was the one who killed him.

The school explained that it was a group fight, and Zhou Minshan had fallen and hit his head on a rock, causing a fatal hemorrhage. They had covered it up as an accident.

Luo Lan didn’t know how Zhou Qingshan had investigated, nor to what extent, but what these two students said seemed more believable. Zhou Minshan’s death wasn’t an accident. Someone had maliciously killed him. The school and the families involved were trying to distort the truth, and that person likely had some background.

Seeing their reluctance, she added, “Don’t worry, I’m not asking you to point them out in person. He won’t know it was you who talked. With so many witnesses, no one can tell who spilled the beans. Tell me, and I’ll give you another notebook.”

The two exchanged a glance, seeing agreement in each other’s eyes. With no apparent consequences, they became bold again. They quickly started talking, eager to get what they wanted.

“Sun Tong.”

They spoke in unison, then quickly reached for the notebooks. Luo Lan held them back and asked again, this time looking at the girl.

“You saw it with your own eyes, right?”

“Yes, but I won’t testify,” the girl said anxiously. “Sister, you better not lie. If you do, I’ll tell Sun Tong to transfer schools and avoid you.”

The girl was genuinely worried, and the boy beside her looked regretful, realizing they should have secured the notebooks first.

“Sister, if you lie, we won’t let it go.”

“Calm down, I never said I wouldn’t give them to you.” With that, they were reassured. “Tell me more specific information about Sun Tong, as detailed as possible.”

The boy, learning from the girl, said, “You’ll need to up the stakes.”

“No problem.”

The girl spoke first, “Sun Tong is either eighteen or nineteen, in Class 2 of the third year. He’s about 1.7 meters tall and likes playing basketball. Last exam, he ranked 142nd in the whole grade, just behind me, so I remember clearly.”

This was general information any student could know, but it was not particularly useful. Luo Lan turned to the boy, hoping he might know more as a fellow boy.

“He’s not very talkative, so I don’t hang out with him much. That’s all I know.”

They had said all they knew. Since there was no more to gain, Luo Lan handed over the notebooks.

The students were thrilled with their new notebooks. The initial student even bought the remaining ones, likely to share with classmates.

Having obtained the information she wanted, Luo Lan pondered how to investigate Sun Tong further. No matter his background, she couldn’t let her brother-in-law’s death go unavenged.

“Where did you go?”

On the way back, she encountered Zhou Qingshan looking for her. He seemed both angry and helpless. “I’ve told you not to wander around alone at night. Why don’t you listen?”

“Are you worried about me?”

“What do you think?”

She laughed and walked back with him. The autumn night was dark and chilly, with few people on the streets, all hurrying along.

“Have you found out anything about Minshan’s case?”

He turned back, his voice low. “Is that why you went out?”

“I asked first.”

“I found out. It wasn’t difficult. The school quickly covered it up and closed the case back then. But there were many witnesses that day, so it’s impossible to keep it completely under wraps.”

“Sun Tong?”

The man nodded silently. “Yes. The others only used their fists and feet, but the fatal blow to the back of the head was caused by a hard object. It must have been Sun Tong with the brick.”

“Junhui couldn’t let it go because of this, right?” That’s why she constantly thinks about it and gets triggered easily, not knowing what to do. She resents her own helplessness and blames her mother for how she handled it back then. She keeps thinking that if things were handled differently, the outcome might have been different.

Zhou Qingshan didn’t say anything. As a family, how could anyone let this go? It was a young life taken away, not by an accidental fall but by a beating. Even if it wasn’t intentional murder, it was certainly intentional harm.

They silently returned home, washed their feet, and prepared for bed. As they turned off the lights, he finally spoke in a low voice, “Don’t investigate further. I’ve already got it all figured out. The other kid’s family has some connections, which is why they could handle it so cleanly and quickly.”

“Are you planning to let it go?”

“Of course not.”

“So what’s your plan?”

“You’ve already guessed it, so why ask?”

“Oh, come on, tell me so I know how I can help.”

“Just stay out of it.” His voice was low and worried in the dark, afraid his bold wife might do something rash. This was something he, as the man, should handle. He appreciated her concern. She had only joined their family for a few days, yet she was so considerate of his family. Having her as his wife was a blessing.

“It would be difficult in peaceful times, but now there’s an opportunity. Don’t worry, I won’t get myself into trouble. By the way, our boss is back from his trip. I’ll arrange for your household registration and job as soon as possible.”