Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Cabin in the Countryside

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At seven thirty in the evening, the red dot on the tracker suddenly began to move.

Han Duoduo noticed immediately and woke up Yin Nian, who was still on the bed.

Yin Nian scrambled up, put on the earpiece for eavesdropping, and heard the deep hum of an engine through it.

“Should we follow him?” Han Duoduo asked.

“He wouldn’t be going out at this hour without a reason. We follow,” Yin Nian replied decisively.

The two of them packed quickly and rushed out the door.

Yang Yongli was driving toward the outskirts of the city, and Yin Nian followed close behind. Night had already fallen, making surveillance difficult; they could only rely on the eavesdropping device. After a while, Yang Yongli’s voice came through the earpiece as he made a phone call.

“I’m already on the way... Don’t do anything until I get there!”

“Don’t panic, I’m almost there... Hold tight!”

“No one can know about this... Yes, make sure to keep his mouth shut, or our two million will go down the drain, understand?!”

After he hung up, the red dot sped up noticeably—clearly, Yang Yongli had increased his speed.

“It seems someone knows the truth, and they want to silence him,” Han Duoduo analyzed. “It’s related to the two million, so it must be connected to the Yang granny hit-and-run case... Could it be an insider? Or maybe one of them betrayed the others?”

“Could be a witness or something. They sound panicked, utterly unprepared.”

“Do you think they might hurt someone?”

“Could be threats or bribery, but whatever it is, they’re definitely planning to deal with this person tonight. This is our chance.” Yin Nian took a deep breath, steadying herself. After two days of tracking, tonight might finally bring a turning point.

The red dot moved rapidly, heading straight for the countryside, past the city limits, and farther on.

“Where is he going?” Han Duoduo asked.

“No idea... There’s a lake ahead, and behind it, a small village.” Yin Nian checked the map.

Han Duoduo tried scanning the area with binoculars, but the night was fully settled, the darkness impenetrable—she could see nothing.

After a while, Yang Yongli’s voice came through the earpiece again.

“I’m almost there... Stop rushing me... Keep an eye on him... Wait for me in the cabin!”

The red dot veered onto a mountain road; there were few cars and the streetlights were dim.

When Yin Nian turned onto this road, the red dot stopped about a kilometer ahead—a blind spot on the map, impossible to pinpoint.

“Where did he go?” Han Duoduo stared at the map, puzzled.

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“He mentioned a cabin... It must be nearby.” Yin Nian switched off the car’s headlights and crept forward along the side of the road.

Han Duoduo gripped the binoculars, scanning the surroundings. Dense thickets blocked her view; she saw neither Yang Yongli’s car nor any sign of a cabin.

“What now?” Han Duoduo asked. “I can’t see a thing.”

By now, they were only two hundred meters from the red dot’s location.

The hum in the earpiece had stopped—Yang Yongli had evidently left his car.

“We’ll go on foot,” said Yin Nian. “Stick behind me, record everything.”

“No problem.” Han Duoduo nodded, producing a spring-loaded knife from somewhere. “Take this, just in case.”

Yin Nian hesitated, but took it, tucking it into her pocket along with the earpiece.

With the tracker in hand and a black coat on, Yin Nian got out of the car.

The cold wind howled; there were no stars, no moon, only a fine, persistent drizzle. The wilderness was utterly deserted.

A harsh cry rang out—“Caw!”—as a black crow burst from a nearby tree and vanished into the night.

Yin Nian paused, glancing up. The sky was pitch-black—nothing to be seen.

She slipped into the undergrowth, moving in a crouch, Han Duoduo trailing closely behind.

After a while, Yin Nian turned and said, “Keep some distance between us. If I’m discovered, you won’t be. If anything goes wrong, call the police immediately. Record and photograph everything.”

Han Duoduo nodded, widening the gap to about twenty meters as instructed.

Yin Nian made her way through the thicket. Suddenly, something caught her eye among the branches ahead—a card. She plucked it down; it was an oval card, deep purple-red, with a bold red number: 3.

Yin Nian frowned. Another card, just like before. But time was short—she stuffed it into her pocket and moved on.

Soon, using her binoculars, she finally spotted a small cabin perched on a low mound just beyond the trees, a yellow light glowing at its door.

A white Buick was parked outside.

Yin Nian hurried forward. As she neared the cabin, a scream rang out inside—sudden, sharp, and then abruptly cut off, as if severed.

She glanced behind her—no sign of Han Duoduo; the thicket was utterly black. Han Duoduo must be hiding behind a tree somewhere. Yin Nian gestured, then bent low and moved toward the cabin.

Indeed, Han Duoduo was hiding, but when she saw Yin Nian beckon, she did not follow. Instead, she quietly retreated deeper into the shadows.

Yin Nian reached the cabin, pressed herself against the window, and peered inside. It was pitch-dark; she could see nothing, but faint groans were audible—sounds of pain, or perhaps pleas for mercy.

She drew out her phone to record. Just then, Yan Ming called. She hung up in a hurry, switched her phone to airplane mode, and resumed recording.

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The lighting inside was so dim that even filming yielded only darkness.

Adjusting her angle, Yin Nian noticed another door inside, on the western wall—a sliver of yellow light shone through it. Yang Yongli was probably inside that room.

A fresh gasp of pain, then the sound of blows.

Yin Nian crept to the door and gave it a tentative push. It was locked from within, but the gap around the latch was wide enough to see the bolt. She took out the spring knife, slid it through, and popped the bolt open.

She eased the door open and slipped inside.

A musty, fishy odor pervaded the room. She tiptoed along the western wall, pressing her ear to the door. Inside, she could hear the slap of blows and muffled cries of pain.

She peered through the crack. The inner door was ajar, the light inside dim, but she could just make out a figure bound to a chair, a hood over his head. Two people stood in front of him—Yang Yongli and Yang Yongfang. Yang Yongli held something like a pair of pliers; Yang Yongfang clutched a kettle. Judging by their stance, they were torturing the man on the chair.

Yang Yongli pressed the pliers to the man’s leg. He writhed and groaned in pain. Yang Yongfang poured liquid from the kettle onto his leg; the man thrashed violently, the chair creaking beneath him.

Yang Yongli barked, “Is this all? Are there any more?!”

The man shook his head frantically, sobs of agony muffled by the hood.

Yang Yongfang lifted a black paper box from the table, opened it, glanced inside, and said, “This is it. Let’s destroy it. If we do, no one will ever know we were behind this.”

Yang Yongli nodded, then asked the man, “Did you tell anyone?!”

The man shook his head again, sobbing helplessly.

Yang Yongli jabbed a finger into the man’s forehead. “If you dare lie, I’ll skin you alive!”

The man trembled in terror, his cries pleading.

Yang Yongli turned to Yang Yongfang. “Burn it.”

Yang Yongfang lit a pile of firewood, ready to throw the black box into the flames. At that moment, Yin Nian burst into the room, lightning swift, and snatched the box from Yang Yongfang’s hands!

She moved so quickly that by the time Yang Yongfang realized what had happened, the box was already in her grasp.

Clutching the box, Yin Nian prepared to run. Just then, she heard a sinister chuckle from Yang Yongli.

A sense of dread swept over her.

At that moment, the bottom of the box suddenly split open, and something fell out.