Lu Junchi’s hand has already fallen on the door handle, urging Su Hui again, “Let’s go, we still have a lot of things to deal with.”
Su Hui seemed reluctant and sighed. He turned around and took out a tissue from his pocket, handing it to Fu Mei.
Fu Mei trembled and sobbed, then she raised her head and said, “Wait…wait a minute…I’m willing to talk…”
Su Hui looked up at Lu Junchi as if pleading for Fu Mei, “Captain Lu, she’s willing to speak now…do you want to hear her testimony again?”
Lu Junchi’s face showed obvious signs of impatience, and he took two steps back, leaning against the wall. “What do you want to say now? If you tell us the truth, we may try to help you apply for a reduced sentence. But if you continue to talk nonsense, no one can save you.”
Although he spoke harshly, he pressed the recording pen in his hand and started to record.
Fu Mei was finally defeated. She trembled and opened her mouth, “The day before yesterday, the whole thing was like this…”
She would never forget what happened that night.
Although Li Congbo often beat and scolded Xie Pailan before, this time was different. They could hear Li Congbo’s loud curses and heavy blows from upstairs. In the beginning, they could still hear Xie Pailan’s screams and cries for help, but later those sounds became quieter and quieter.
At that time, Fu Mei was extremely afraid. She trembled and asked her husband Li Wei, “Today seems to be taking a long time.”
Li Wei was looking at his phone, he took off his earphones impatiently and looked up at her, asking, “What are you afraid of?”
Fu Mei had a woman’s sixth sense, and she was very frightened. “I’m afraid something will happen…”
Li Wei said, “What could happen? Don’t worry, our son is reliable.”
Fu Mei murmured uneasily and didn’t say anything.
But is their son really reliable?
Since childhood, Li Congbo had a tendency towards violence. Although he was thin and weak, he occasionally fought with other classmates. After he married Xie Peilan, he started to physically abuse her from the third month. At first, he only slapped her once. Xie Peilan bled from her nose and her eye sockets were broken. She cried and wanted to go back to her parents’ home, but Li Congbo knelt down and begged her, even writing a guarantee letter.
The second time the domestic violence occurred was six months after their marriage, and the third time was eight months…
The intervals between domestic violence incidents became shorter and the violence became worse. Until Xie Pailan became pregnant, Li Congbo restrained himself slightly. However, in the next incident, he directly sent Xie Pailan, who was five months pregnant, to the hospital…
Fu Mei tried to intervene that time and ended up getting her forehead broken.
Now, their child is already one and a half years old…
Fu Mei felt that Li Congbo might never change in his life.
Sometimes, after Li Congbo finished beating Xie Pailan, Fu Mei would help persuade her daughter-in-law. She would tell her that Li Congbo still loved her and that she should bear with it and endure.
At that moment, as Fu Mei fell into contemplation, Li Wei suddenly lifted his head and said, “Aren’t you already meddling in their affairs enough? Last time you tried to stop them, didn’t you get injured by your son? And now they’ve reconciled, so why do you still interfere?”
Fu Mei nervously rubbed her hands and said, “That woman, she went out to play when the child was still young, and told me she was having dinner with her former colleagues. But it turns out she went to a gathering with her classmates and even told a male classmate that she wasn’t happy. The messages were sent to her phone and were seen by Congbo. Can you blame our son for getting angry?”
Li Wei nodded and said, “That woman… hasn’t worked since getting married and has relied entirely on Congbo to support her. Congbo has a lot of work pressure, and it’s not easy for him either.”
Suddenly, the sounds of beating from downstairs stopped, and even the painful moans became inaudible.
As the conversation reached this point, they heard their son calling for Xie Peilan, and panicked cries for help.
The elderly couple rushed downstairs and saw their daughter-in-law lying on the ground, covered in blood, with her eyes half open and motionless.
Fu Mei took a quick glance at the bloody scene, let out a cry, and quickly covered her mouth, nearly vomiting. She knew that this time things were probably not going to be good.
Li Wei frowned and asked, “What’s going on?! Should we call for an ambulance?”
“It’s too late…” Li Congbo’s face turned pale, he took two steps back and fell to the ground. Tears streamed down his face as he said, “She… she’s already dead! I touched her just now and she wasn’t breathing anymore! I… I killed her! Dad! Mom! I didn’t mean to! I didn’t mean to kill her!”
“Why did this happen, why did this happen…” Fu Mei’s voice trembled as she uttered these words. She was more afraid that her son would go to prison for killing someone than her daughter-in-law’s death. She felt like the whole world had collapsed.
At this point, both men in the family were panicking.
With red eyes, Li Wei pointed at her and scolded, “Why didn’t you stop our son earlier? Why didn’t you take better care of your daughter-in-law? It’s all your fault. If you didn’t provoke and meddle in things, how could this have happened?”
Her son cried and shouted, “I don’t want to go to jail. I didn’t mean to…”
Those words stabbed her heart like knives. But even now, she was still thinking about how to make up for everything and save the family.
“Lower your voices, please, both of you…” Fu Mei pleaded.
The crying of the children upstairs only made the mood more agitated.
Li Wei continued to scold her, “Now your daughter-in-law is dead, and your son is going to jail. Are you happy now, mother-in-law?”
“Okay, okay, it’s all my fault.” Fu Mei was the first to calm down. Her world tilted and swayed, and her voice seemed to come from someone else, “I’ll take the blame for this, I killed her…”
Li Wei pointed at Xie Peilan’s body and said, “The police are not idiots. How could you have inflicted these wounds?!”
“What do we do now? What do we do?” Fu Mei sat down and hugged her knees.
“Unless another perpetrator appears, we can’t get out of this situation,” Li Wei said.
Their son was still crying, “Mom, you don’t want me to die, right? Please help me…”
“It’s my fault… it’s my fault…” Fu Mei murmured. Suddenly, she thought of something and said, “Do you remember… the last time I went to Wenwen’s house, and I told you something when I came back?”
Li Wei and Li Congbo both quieted down and listened.
Fu Mei continued, “Before, there was a group of robbers who would break into people’s homes and rob them. Recently, I heard that there was an incident in Huating neighborhood where a couple was killed. Maybe it was done by the same group. As long as the police believe that these incidents are all connected, we can get out of this. Erase your fingerprints, throw away the murder weapon, and say that the blood on your clothes is from trying to save her. We have to coordinate our testimonies and make sure they are consistent. They will believe us… I still remember what those three people looked like, and only I know what they look like.”
The group quickly calmed down and began to tidy up the scene while coordinating their testimonies.
“Pailan was killed by the robbers. They broke in and attacked her… then we went downstairs…” Li Congbo explained the process. Suddenly, he thought of something and held his head, “But this time there’s only one victim. This loophole is too big, and the police won’t believe our testimony…”
“Yes, unless someone else gets hurt…” Li Wei turned his head to look at Fu Mei. “This idea was your idea. If we can’t convince the police, then everything will have been for nothing.”
Li Congbo cried out in tears, “Mom, save me…”
Fu Mei suddenly understood that they wanted to force her to be the second “victim.”
“You…you…” Fu Mei’s cold sweat kept flowing down her back. “Why me? Why can’t it be Li Congbo who fought with the other person, or you, the old man?”
Who wouldn’t feel pain if their flesh was cut?
“Our son can’t go downstairs. If he goes down to investigate, it will only increase his suspicion. It’s not appropriate for her father-in-law to come down to check in the living room. Only you, as the mother-in-law, won’t make the police suspect…” Li Wei spoke up. “We have no way out now, Fu Mei. As a mother, sacrifice a little bit for us.”
“Yes, Mom. You don’t have to stab too deep. Just pretend, help me, and you will be saving my life…” Li Congbo begged.
Fu Mei felt like she was being sacrificed like an animal, but when she looked at her son crying sadly, she hesitated and wavered. She couldn’t just sit by and do nothing…
Fu Mei gritted her teeth, took out a knife from the kitchen, put on gloves, and stabbed herself through her clothes. But making this decision was not easy.
Li Wei looked at his son and said, “Hurry up! Help your mother!”
At this moment, even hearing the word “mom” felt like a great irony to Fu Mei.
“I don’t need help…I’ll do it myself,” she said, placing the knife against the nearby wall and pushing her body onto it with determination.
The sensation of the blade piercing her body sent a chill through her, and she collapsed on the stairs. From her angle, she could see Xie Pailan’s open eyes.
For a moment, Fu Mei realized that the girl was someone’s daughter too. If her son could mercilessly kill her, how much love could he possibly have for his own mother?
The pain was beyond her imagination, and her body shook violently as tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Call an ambulance.”
“Please, call the police…”
“It hurts so much…”
“Mom, remember the rehearsed alibis. Don’t reveal the truth. If anyone finds out, my life will be ruined forever…” Li Congbo cried.
Fu Mei looked at the two men in front of her, her husband and son, the two people closest to her in the world, but now they seemed like strangers.
Her vision gradually darkened…
TN:
Fuck this Li *shit Congbo! If only I could just…Rip his intestines out and strangle him with them! Sorry for being too graphic but he’s pissing me the f*ck off! Li Wei this walking bag of bones does not deserve to be called a father. Throwing the blame around like it had nothing to do with him! I hope you fall down the stairs and break those brittle bones of yours! Disgusting old man ugh! There’s motherly love and there’s stupidity. Fu Mei is a goddamn delusional idiot. No wonder these bastard men toss her around like that, because she condones such atrocities and even encourages them. She victim shames and gaslights Xie Pailan knowing damn well her son is a monster. I hate women like her the most. I wish I could transmigrate there and beat her a$$ until even her mother can’t recognize her. This is the shittiest family and I hope they all rot in hell. What a bunch of cowardly sociopaths. This chapter made me so mad!
Certified member of the IIO(International Introverts Organization), PhD holder in Overthinking and Ghosting, Spokesperson for BOBAH(Benefits of Being a Homebody), Founder of SFA(Salted Fish Association), Brand Ambassador for Couch Potato fall line Pajama set.
fu mei really I hate women like you most you are scum woman, you would rather cover a crime than feel bad for the victim, ni matter how you are raised the world teaches you right and wrong it’s your own fault for not learning or ignoring, and I hope you suffer because of that
Wow. The son killed his wife, the father could have stopped him but asking his wife why she didnt stop him? This 2 man, are they even sane? Pailan could have left long ago, divorced and have a better happy life, but this lady stopped her.
To quote Oprah “they just have to die” 🤷♀️ I only feel bad for the poor baby who won’t ever get to know his mother and will most likely grow up with the people who abused her. All three of these people are guilty, both for the abuse and the murder. And guess what? Abusers never stop. Abusers only get worse and their attacks escalate until they’re forcefully stopped or their victims die. Expecting an abuser to change or even “slightly improve” is a exercise in futility.
oh Li Congbo defintely get some of it from his father just magnified by whole lot especially when his mother is there that allow his behaviour to continue 🙄
Exactly! This mother has conditioned herself into accepting such a sh*t existence and now thinks everyone else should. Such an environment is clearly a breeding ground for a monster.
fu mei really I hate women like you most you are scum woman, you would rather cover a crime than feel bad for the victim, ni matter how you are raised the world teaches you right and wrong it’s your own fault for not learning or ignoring, and I hope you suffer because of that
Wow. The son killed his wife, the father could have stopped him but asking his wife why she didnt stop him? This 2 man, are they even sane? Pailan could have left long ago, divorced and have a better happy life, but this lady stopped her.
To quote Oprah “they just have to die” 🤷♀️ I only feel bad for the poor baby who won’t ever get to know his mother and will most likely grow up with the people who abused her. All three of these people are guilty, both for the abuse and the murder. And guess what? Abusers never stop. Abusers only get worse and their attacks escalate until they’re forcefully stopped or their victims die. Expecting an abuser to change or even “slightly improve” is a exercise in futility.
Very profound quote.
oh Li Congbo defintely get some of it from his father just magnified by whole lot especially when his mother is there that allow his behaviour to continue 🙄
Exactly! This mother has conditioned herself into accepting such a sh*t existence and now thinks everyone else should. Such an environment is clearly a breeding ground for a monster.
Fuck this entire family!!!!! AAAHHHHHH I WANT TO KILL THEM ALL THREE OF THEM!!!!!!!!
Thank you for the chapter.
Take me with you!
Man, that family is horrible. Xie Pailan deserved a better life than that.
Agreed 100%. No one deserves to go through that kind of sh*t.