To defy fate and bring a dead person back to life is nothing short of a fantasy. At least, Nuwa Stone had never heard of such a miracle.
"There must be a way. Once I see Hou Qing'er, it will be fine. Hou Qing'er must be waiting for me. She's trapped alone in the sea of fire, unable to escape. How terrified she must be."
Seeing that Ye Tiancheng had become obsessed, Nuwa Stone realized that no amount of persuasion would help. It quickly hid, deciding it was best not to waste its breath in this precarious situation. It would try to advise him again when Ye Tiancheng calmed down.
Ye Tiancheng drove very fast all the way. By the time it was dark, he finally arrived home.
However, upon reaching home, the villagers had already helped to handle Hou Qing'er's funeral arrangements.
Pushing through the crowd, Ye Tiancheng rushed to the center and saw the coffin placed in the mourning hall. Ye Tiancheng, as if driven mad, shouted at everyone.
"She's not dead yet! Hou Qing'er can still be saved. I won't allow you to hold her funeral. Get out!"
Due to Ye Tiancheng's strange behavior, a wave of frantic discussion erupted among the crowd. Everyone unanimously agreed that Ye Tiancheng had lost his mind and was acting abnormally.
"He's gone mad! Ye Tiancheng must be crazy. The person was burnt beyond recognition, how can she possibly be saved? It seems he's overcome with grief!"
"I knew there was something unusual between Ye Tiancheng and Hou Qing'er. Now that the girl is gone, it's driven him to this state. How can there not be a relationship? They must be lovers!"
"But isn't Ye Tiancheng the fiancé of Hou Mingzhu? This would be considered an affair. It looks like a crime of passion!"
The villagers' speculation grew more and more outrageous. Ye Tiancheng looked at them with red eyes. These people were all watching coldly, while Hou Qing'er's departure was the most painful thing for him.
Seeing Ye Tiancheng standing amidst the crowd, being slandered mercilessly, Little Fatty couldn't bear it any longer and rushed in. Little Fatty tried to pull Ye Tiancheng away.
"Brother Ye, let's go quickly. These people would eat bones without spitting them out. Don't listen to their nonsense!"
With a bang, Ye Tiancheng punched Little Fatty in the face without mercy, nearly dislocating his jaw. The person flew more than a meter away and landed on the ground.
"Yan Dazhuang, what did I tell you? I told you to take good care of Hou Qing'er, and all you gave me back was a cold corpse. It's all your fault!"
Little Fatty struggled to get up, then knelt on the ground and kowtowed frantically to Ye Tiancheng.
"Brother Ye, I'm sorry. It wasn't my intention. I wanted to take good care of Hou Qing'er, but who knew an accident would happen? I wanted to save her, but the fire was too intense, and I couldn't save her!"
Ye Tiancheng quickly took a few more steps and kicked Little Fatty in the chest, sending him flying another two meters away.
Little Fatty was seriously injured and couldn't even get up. There was blood at the corner of his mouth.
"Give Hou Qing'er back to me, you villains! Everyone is watching this as a joke. That was a human life! If your relatives died, could you still watch like this? Could you still discuss it so casually?"
Everyone had heard of Ye Tiancheng's character, and no one dared to provoke him.
Moreover, Ye Tiancheng was wealthy, had built roads, and benefited everyone, providing jobs for the villagers. In a way, Ye Tiancheng was their boss. Therefore, they only dared to gossip behind his back. After Ye Tiancheng made his stance clear, no one dared to step forward and refute him to his face.
"Who did this? Who burned Hou Qing'er to death? Come forward immediately! If I find out who did it, I'll make them wish they were never born!"
Ye Tiancheng stood in the middle of the crowd, his mouth trembling with anger. Someone dared to touch his woman and burn her to death. This was clearly a move to take his life.
No one answered, and there were no clues. Just as everything reached a deadlock, everyone urged the village chief to resolve the problem, but the village chief did not dare to step forward.
How could the young village chief of Dahe Village dare to offend the industrialist Ye Tiancheng? Moreover, to confront Ye Tiancheng at such a moment of agitation would be like hitting a rock with an egg, a foolish act that no sensible person would commit.
"Mr. Ye, please stop making a scene. Let me bury my daughter properly. Since it has already happened, I only hope my daughter's spirit can rest in peace."
The person speaking now was Hou Qing'er's father. Ye Tiancheng had previously sponsored his treatment for heart disease. Although the surgery was successful, there were some sequelae that required slow recovery, so he spoke weakly and leaned on a crutch.
The most pitiable was this father. No matter how reluctant Ye Tiancheng was to part with Hou Qing'er, it was still different from the affection between father and daughter. Furthermore, Ye Tiancheng glanced at Hou Qing'er's father, whose entire face was swollen from crying. To pretend to be strong at such a moment was truly heartbreaking for Ye Tiancheng.
"Uncle Hou, someone must have harmed Hou Qing'er. Please give me a chance to investigate the truth. I want to avenge Hou Qing'er."
"My daughter is already gone. Let her rest in peace. If you investigate, it will only be because you've attracted too much attention and offended some enemy, which led to my daughter's death. But I don't want to pursue it. Ye Tiancheng, let this matter end here. Since the person is gone, what good will anything do?"
Hou Qing'er's father had clearly lost the courage to continue fighting. His eyes were vacant, and he only wished for everything to end quickly. He did not want to remain immersed in the pain of losing his daughter.
"No, Uncle Hou, we cannot let Hou Qing'er die in vain like this. I must investigate to the end."
"Ye Tiancheng, I know you are very capable and you have money, but I am your elder. My daughter's death has made me disheartened. I hope you can pity me as a father and stop opposing me."
Ye Tiancheng could no longer make a scene. Hou Qing'er's father had spoken. Even though he was reluctant, Ye Tiancheng could only watch as Hou Qing'er's coffin was carried away, bidding him a final farewell.
After everyone left, a thunderclap echoed in the sky, followed by a drizzle.
Ye Tiancheng felt unwilling. He called out to Nuwa Stone several times, but Nuwa Stone dared not come out. Ye Tiancheng was now in a frenzy. Coming out would yield no good results, and he might even be scolded.
"You're a useless stone. It's okay if you don't help me save her. At least tell me, who is the enemy!"
Heaven's secrets must not be revealed. Nuwa Stone dared not appear. This was a matter of life and death. If it told Ye Tiancheng, who knew what chaos would ensue. Therefore, it could only choose to keep its mouth shut and not cause trouble.
Seeing that there was no hope, Ye Tiancheng knelt in the rain and shouted at the sky.
"Hou Qing'er, if you can hear me from the heavens, can you tell me who harmed you?"
The fatty had been semi-conscious. Now, the cold rain hitting his face finally brought him back to some sense, but his whole body ached terribly, as if his bones had been shattered by Ye Tiancheng.
However, Little Fatty did not resent Ye Tiancheng at all because Ye Tiancheng was his boss. Little Fatty was loyal. Once he recognized a boss, he would follow him for life. Although Ye Tiancheng had hit him, Little Fatty did not resent him, because Little Fatty had failed to complete the task entrusted to him by his boss and had not protected his sister-in-law. This would be a lifelong regret for him.
Fortunately, Ye Tiancheng had at least acted, which made Little Fatty feel a little better. If Ye Tiancheng hadn't acted, Little Fatty would have felt even more self-reproach.
The heavy rain continued to fall, and it grew heavier, soon turning into a downpour.
Little Fatty could barely keep his eyes open. Seeing Ye Tiancheng kneeling in the rain, shouting at the sky in agony, Little Fatty couldn't stand it. Seeing his good brother suffering so much, despite his whole body hurting, he forced himself to crawl to Ye Tiancheng's side.
"Brother Ye, I beg you, don't torture yourself. If you're unhappy, then hit me. My bones are strong, and I won't die anyway."
"What's the use of hitting you? The person is dead. I'm a coward. Little Fatty, it's not your fault. Protecting Hou Qing'er was my responsibility, but I pushed it onto you. You are my brother, not my slave. Your help is a favor, and not helping is your duty. I was wrong for a moment. I was so heartbroken that I pushed the responsibility onto you. It's all my fault. Losing Hou Qing'er is my retribution. What does it have to do with you!" httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
"Brother Ye, please don't say that. We are the best of friends. You entrusted her to me, but I failed to protect her. I am truly self-reproachful. If possible, I want to trade my life for sister-in-law's life!"
It is said that men do not shed tears easily, but only when they have not reached the point of deep sorrow. Little Fatty, who had never cried in his life, was now crying bitterly. Unfortunately, his tears had merged with the rain, making them invisible.
"Brother Ye, our home has been burned down. We have no home! Wuwuwu..."
Seeing his good brother beaten black and blue by him and crying like a child, Ye Tiancheng finally regained some sense. He suddenly felt that he was a very incompetent big brother, pushing the blame onto his younger brother when something happened, and even beating him like this. Fatty was already injured when he escaped the fire, and now he had to endure his blows. He didn't know if his body could withstand it.
"I'm sorry, Fatty. We shouldn't be so dejected. I shouldn't live in the shadows either. We should find a way to find the killer and avenge Hou Qing'er."
"Let's go. We'll find shelter from the rain first, and then we'll discuss how to find out who the killer is."
Although Ye Tiancheng was in despair, he had to persevere. If he didn't stay rational, how could he avenge Hou Qing'er? Then Hou Qing'er would have died in vain.
The two had nowhere to go, and their houses had collapsed. In the end, they could only go to the shed Ye Tiancheng had built earlier for planting pear trees.
However, the rain was too heavy, and the shed was too simple. Rain leaked everywhere. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, Ye Tiancheng took Little Fatty to the horticultural center.
The people at the horticultural center all knew about Ye Tiancheng's madness, and they all kept their distance from him, not daring to approach him. If Ye Tiancheng's anger were to be directed at them, they would be in great trouble.
Little Fatty poured Ye Tiancheng a cup of hot tea. Ye Tiancheng sat in the lounge of the horticultural center, drinking tea and recalling what had gone wrong.
Thus, Ye Tiancheng did not sleep all night. He kept feeling that something was abnormal, but he couldn't recall it. He thought for a long, long time, racking his brain, and finally, a flash of inspiration came to him.
Ye Tiancheng immediately called Hou Mingzhu. Hou Mingzhu was leisurely getting her nails done. She had already heard the report that Hou Qing'er had been dealt with, and Hou Mingzhu was overjoyed, enjoying her leisure time.
"What's wrong? Missing me? It's really not easy for you to call me proactively. Is the sun rising from the west? You finally remember me."
"Does Hou Qing'er's matter have anything to do with you?"
Unexpectedly, Ye Tiancheng had come looking for her so quickly. Hou Mingzhu was a little flustered, but then she thought that since it wasn't done by her own hand, Ye Tiancheng probably wouldn't be able to find anything out.