Chapter 62

Qiao Xinyi bit into the peach with a crisp sound, her eyes smiling slyly like a fox, staring straight at Fu Qingshan. In the end, Fu Qingshan gave in, reaching out to touch her forehead, then gently turned her face toward the window, deliberately diverting her gaze.

Qiao Xinyi was in a good mood, watching the scenery outside while thinking. Although she already knew Fu Qingshan’s two nephews were twins, she hadn’t connected them with the little villains before. After all, Fu Qingshan was a young and accomplished soldier who had decided to bring the two children to the provincial city to raise them personally. Given this, what kind of misfortune had happened later to cause these originally well-raised children to end up on the path of robbery, arson, and murder?

Qiao Xinyi called up the system and asked directly, “Confirm that Fu Qingshan’s two nephews are the little villains, and confirm the identities of Linzhou and Zeyu. Can we check the details of how these two children grew up through this lead?”

She guessed, “Could it be that Fu Qingshan, as their uncle, died, so no one raised the kids afterward, which led them to become criminals?”

She requested, “If so, please also investigate how and when something happened to Fu Qingshan.”

The system didn’t dodge the question. “We will promptly trace the identities of these two children to investigate.”

“Move quickly. Don’t dawdle or wait until I’ve been a widow for days before telling me. If that happens, don’t blame me for becoming the biggest villain myself!” Qiao Xinyi said disdainfully.

They sent her on this mission but gave her so little information. She considered herself lucky to have met Fu Qingshan; otherwise, how could she have found the mission targets so fast? During the few days she’d been in the provincial city, the three targets still hadn’t all appeared there, proving the system’s timing information wasn’t entirely accurate. If she hadn’t known Fu Qingshan, and after he took the kids to the military family housing, she’d have had no chance to get close to those two children. So Qiao Xinyi called it luck—and said Fu Qingshan brought her good fortune.

Qiao Xinyi thought about how the two kids were now six years old. With Fu Qingshan’s discipline, their social values and sense of right and wrong should be forming within a few years. Children who receive proper guidance might still commit crimes in the future but would be unlikely to commit such serious offenses—unless they were born with criminal tendencies. But these two little villains didn’t show any antisocial personalities as kids, so that wasn’t the case.

Qiao Xinyi could only guess that Fu Qingshan ran into trouble before he had the chance to properly raise the children. Analyzing it this way, if she hadn’t come, after Fu Qingshan’s incident, the two kids would have been sent back to their old home in Tong’an County. But something must have gone wrong, and the brothers stayed in the provincial city, where they met the older thief villain. They took him as their big brother.

From then on, the three depended on each other, barely scraping by through petty theft. As they grew older, they started robbing together. When all three developed serious psychological issues, they began committing serial murders.

From newspaper reports, these three villains only killed those they deemed deserved to die—they placed themselves as judges and executioners. Those who abused their wives and children were guilty and were killed. Those who assaulted women were guilty and killed. Those who bullied the weak were guilty and killed. Those who abandoned wives and children or trafficked people suffered even more brutal torture and death at their hands.

Qiao Xinyi had known her mission from the moment she saw that newspaper. Rather than just changing the fate of the three villains, it was more about redeeming them.

Those deceased may indeed have been at fault, but it was not for these three to judge them, much less to take matters into their own hands and deprive others of their lives. Their words and actions violated the law, challenged the law, and caused great negative impact on society. In this society, no one can replace the law or represent it.

Fu Qingshan didn’t know what Qiao Xinyi was thinking. His brow furrowed and relaxed repeatedly. He had been biting on the peach for a long time, but it barely seemed to diminish.

“Is the peach not sweet?” Fu Qingshan asked. “If you can’t eat it, just give it to me. No need to force yourself.”

Qiao Xinyi shook her head. “It’s quite sweet, just too big to finish.”

Then she handed the half-eaten peach to Fu Qingshan. Without changing his expression, he took it and ate it. Qiao Xinyi smiled so much her eyes curved into crescent moons. So this was what being in love felt like—when you’re happy, every moment bubbles with joy.

“Don’t waste it,” Fu Qingshan said, finishing the peach in a few bites. He wrapped the pit in a handkerchief and put it in his pocket to throw away after getting off the train.

“I’ll tell you more about my family,” Fu Qingshan said, patting Qiao Xinyi and telling her to sit properly.

“My dad married into the Fu family, so my older brother and I both take my mom’s surname.”

“The Fu family used to be wealthy in town, but back then being wealthy wasn’t a good status. At the same time, my mom was seriously ill, and she was the only one left in the Fu family. Before she passed, she made some arrangements. I’ll tell you about those when we find a better place—too many people on the train to talk about family background.”

“After my mom died, my dad remarried quickly. He was afraid my mom’s status as a capitalist lady would affect him, so he married a poor peasant’s daughter from town—that’s my stepmother now. The kids she had with my dad all took his surname, Zheng.”

Qiao Xinyi nodded. “How many kids did your stepmother have? How old are they?”

“My dad’s name is Zheng Youliang. The woman he married is Zhang Zao. My brother and I both call her Aunt Zhang.”

“Aunt Zhang had a son soon after she married in, the third child, named Zheng Dajiang. He’s the same age as you, unemployed, always asking for money and hanging out with bad friends.”

“The fourth child is Zheng Dahe, sixteen years old, studying at the town’s middle school,” Fu Qingshan continued.

“My brother and sister-in-law’s marriage was never approved by my dad. My brother decided to marry on his own, registered it, and had a small banquet at his workplace cafeteria. The day they married, only I showed up from our family.”

“If you come back with me, they probably won’t treat you well either. But you don’t have to care about their opinions or attitude,” Fu Qingshan smirked. “If they make you unhappy, do whatever you want. With me around, they won’t dare lay a hand on you.”

From the provincial city to Tong’an County, the train passed through City A. At 7:15, the train arrived on time at City A station. This was a major stop, and the train would pause here for a full twenty minutes.

Hearing the conductor announce City A arrival, Qiao Xinyi immediately thought of Zhuang Chunsheng, the show-off who claimed to be from City A. She wondered if this “City A’s sky” had been overwhelmed lately.

The Chen family case had already entered its final stages in the past few days. The public security’s verdict would come soon. The county police had treated this case as a model to handle, and after Qiao Xinyi returned to the provincial city, she submitted a report to the provincial city daily. The daily ran a joint report and interviews. This case had become a major concern for the entire province.

At this point, no “sky” anywhere was peaceful.

The train stopped. Fu Qingshan took the kettle to refill water, while Qiao Xinyi sat in her seat watching the luggage.