Qiu Ji Town's Luo Family Village is located in the heart of Mount Dahong, under Hongzhou County, and is only seventy kilometers away from the Xinhe District of Hancheng City.
After returning from Xichuan, Yang Jian and his group did not go home. They came directly here and stayed in Hongzhou County for a day, making an appointment with the bank to withdraw some cash.
Luo Hao, who attacked Old Gui with Lu Feng, was from Luo Family Village. He was only eighteen this year and was shot dead by Old Gui's men on the day of the incident, succumbing to his injuries.
After asking two villagers, Yang Jian and his group found Luo Hao's home.
It was a three-room house with red bricks and green tiles, a common architectural style in the area. There were a few multi-story buildings, but Luo Hao's house looked a bit dilapidated and seemed to be quite old.
Several chickens were foraging in the yard, and the main gate was ajar.
Yang Jian asked Chen Xiaoli to knock on the door. A girl would be more approachable and less likely to arouse suspicion.
A middle-aged woman in her forties, looking dispirited, appeared at the door.
"Hello, Auntie, is this Luo Hao's home?"
Chen Xiaoli spoke in Mandarin, a precaution in case the police, while investigating Lu Feng, turned their attention to them.
The middle-aged woman sized up Chen Xiaoli, then looked at Yang Jian and the others behind her. "Who are you? If you're from the police, please don't disturb me. My son is already dead, and I don't want to answer any more questions."
Perhaps due to repeated questioning by the police, the middle-aged woman was very wary. If Chen Xiaoli hadn't already stepped inside her house, she would have closed the gate.
"Auntie, we are Luo Hao's friends. We have something very important to tell you. Don't worry, we mean no harm."
"Xiao Hao's friends? How come I don't know he has friends like you?"
"Auntie, Luo Hao just didn't mention us. We are truly his friends."
"Then tell me, Xiao Hao is gone, what do you want?"
"Auntie, can we come in and sit for a while? We drove over a hundred kilometers from Hancheng and are a bit thirsty."
The middle-aged woman sighed and turned to go inside.
Yang Jian and the others quickly followed, carrying health supplements, fruit, and a few pounds of pork ribs they had bought in the county town. They had already inquired that when visiting rural areas, gifts of pork were common.
Upon entering the house, Yang Jian noticed a man sitting on a chair to the right of the main hall. He was also in his forties, thin, with graying hair and vacant eyes. He sat there motionlessly, indifferent to the guests who had entered.
"This is Xiao Hao's father. After hearing the bad news about Xiao Hao, he became disoriented and listless, unable to even take care of himself. I am Xiao Hao's mother. We only had this one son, and he's suddenly gone. This family is falling apart."
Luo Hao's mother spoke weakly and did not invite her guests to sit.
Yang Jian found a chair for himself and sat down. "Auntie, we are Luo Hao's classmates from the hairdressing school in Hancheng. We only recently heard about what happened to him, so we came to visit you."
According to information provided by Lu Feng, Luo Hao started learning hairdressing in Hancheng at the age of sixteen. He had a promising future but ended up on the wrong path of crime.
Luo Hao's mother suddenly burst into tears. "You all learned the same trade, why did he have to go and kill people? What sin did I commit in my past life? Why wasn't it me who died?"
Her tears left Yang Jian and the others speechless.
After she finally stopped crying, Yang Jian took out the twenty thousand yuan they had prepared and placed it on the table in the center.
"Auntie, this is a little money we've pooled together. Please accept it as living expenses."
"What use is more money? Our son is gone, our hearts are dead. We'll live one day at a time. Take the money, we don't need it."
Luo Hao's mother merely glanced at the pile of cash, her face expressionless.
The greatest sorrow is a heart that has died. Perhaps this was the state they were in.
Unable to bear the atmosphere any longer, and with nothing more to say, Yang Jian and his group got up to leave.
Luo Hao's mother did not come out to see them off, as if no one had visited.
The second person Lu Feng entrusted to deliver money was named Gu Lei, who was from Qiu Ji Town.
When Yang Jian and his group found Gu Lei's home, there were many people there, as if a celebration was underway. Upon inquiring, they learned that Gu Lei's sister was getting married the next day.
With so many people around, misunderstandings were likely. Yang Jian asked Chen Xiaoli to accompany him inside, while Liang Liang and the others stayed in the car.
"Who are you looking for?"
A young girl saw Yang Jian and Chen Xiaoli enter the courtyard gate and quickly came over to ask.
"We are friends of Gu Lei. We heard his sister is getting married and came specifically to give a gift."
Yang Jian improvised, referring to the delivery of money as giving a gift.
"Then please come in quickly. Aunt, second cousin's friends are here!"
The girl called out loudly while ushering the two inside.
Upon hearing that they were Gu Lei's friends, the dozen or so people inside all stared at Yang Jian and Chen Xiaoli.
Gu Lei's mother, in her fifties, was plump and looked at Yang Jian and the other for a moment before saying, "Where are you from? I know all of Gu Lei's friends, but I haven't seen you before."
"Auntie, we are Gu Lei's colleagues from Hancheng. We also know about his situation. We heard his sister was getting married, so everyone pooled some money to send over."
As Yang Jian spoke, he placed twenty thousand yuan in cash into the young girl's hand. Gu Lei had worked in a factory in Hancheng for a year two years ago, but that was a long time ago. There was no other way, so he used this excuse to deliver the money.
Before Gu Lei's mother could speak, a stout man in his thirties suddenly rushed up to Yang Jian. "You're not Gu Lei's friends, are you? Lu Feng sent you, or are you Lu Feng yourself?"
"I am not Lu Feng. May I ask who you are?"
"I am Gu Lei's older brother. Gu Lei was instigated by Lu Feng to commit murder. He ran away, but my brother is still in prison and might be sentenced to life imprisonment or even death. Hand him over, or you won't leave today."
As soon as the man finished speaking, everyone in the room surrounded them, and several people from the second floor also came down, including a few young men.
Chen Xiaoli trembled with fear, but Yang Jian remained calm. "Is this how you treat people who bring gifts?"
"Don't talk nonsense. Gu Lei hasn't worked for two years, so who are these colleagues? And bringing such a generous gift of twenty thousand yuan? Even a ghost wouldn't believe it. If I'm not mistaken, Lu Feng feels guilty and sent you to deliver this money, right?"
Well, that excuse didn't hold up. Yang Jian nodded. "Yes, we were entrusted by Lu Feng to deliver the money. So what, are you going to arrest me?"
"Yes, you are Lu Feng's accomplice, and we will arrest you and take you to the police station."
The girl who had guided them earlier shouted.
"Then call the police. Send this money to the police station too. I'd like to see what evidence you have to say I'm Lu Feng's accomplice. I don't even know what Lu Feng did. I only met him on a construction site. He helped me once, so I accepted his委托 to deliver the money."
Gu Lei's brother looked at the money in his cousin's hand and said, "Then tell me, on which construction site was Lu Feng working?"
"On a construction site in the Northeast. He left after entrusting me, and I don't know where he is now. Even if the police come, I'll say the same thing. It shouldn't be illegal, right?"
Hearing Yang Jian say this, Gu Lei's brother fell silent. If this matter were to go to the police station, not only would they not find Lu Feng, but the money would also be confiscated, as it was Lu Feng's money after all.
Gu Lei's mother spoke up. "Forget it, eldest brother. This young man was just fulfilling a request. There's no need to make things difficult for him. Young man, you've traveled a long way to deliver money, you must be tired. Please stay for a meal."
Seeing that the situation had eased, Yang Jian did not press the issue. "No, Auntie. We still need to rush back to Hancheng. I suggest you use this money to find a good lawyer and try to get a lighter sentence for Gu Lei."
"Thank you, young man. We are indeed considering that. This money has come at the right time."
Gu Lei's mother then bowed to Yang Jian, indicating that she was indeed in need of money and wanted to use it to get her son out.