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Xiao Yefeng left, and Ji Min, as the investigating officer, escorted him out of the police station. However, as she watched Xiao Yefeng's departing figure, a man appeared beside her. This man was also an old acquaintance of Xiao Yefeng—Officer Wang, who had changed his demeanor dramatically upon learning that Xiao Yefeng was a resident of the Golden House Courtyard. At this moment, Wang asked, "Sister Ji! Do you think this person is the murderer?"
"I don't know, but I feel like things aren't that simple," Ji Min replied.
"But the facts are clear. He really has evidence proving he wasn't at the scene during the time of the incident, and both the Mei Family and Liu Family have confirmed Mr. Xiao's words," Wang said.
"Wang, do you think the testimonies are reliable?" Ji Min suddenly inquired.
This caught Wang off guard, and he mechanically responded, "Of course they are reliable; the testimonies are from the police."
"Stop right there! You don't need to recite those lengthy statements; I know better than you. Anyway, the matter has been handed over to another department for investigation. Let's focus on our work. There have been too many pickpockets around the train station lately with the Spring Festival approaching. Here’s what we’ll do: you take a team to catch pickpockets near the train station, Liu will lead another team to rotate with you, and I'll attend a meeting. After that, I'll head to the train station," Ji Min concluded as she walked towards the police station.
As Ji Min left alone, she glanced at the documents in her hand and shook her head while silently muttering, "Testimonies? They're nothing but scraps of paper for those special individuals; what use are they?"
Time passed swiftly, and a month went by in no time. The Zhu Family incident sank like a stone thrown into the sea—creating a splash before vanishing without a trace. Everyone knew that Solar Group had changed leadership.
Wang Yang! A seemingly ordinary name, yet overnight he ascended to the pinnacle of power within Solar Group, holding a contract with a 40% stake directly in the position of president. To outsiders, this seemed typical; however, in front of influential families, everyone knew that behind Wang Yang stood the illustrious Liu Family. In fact, Wang Yang was a protégé nurtured by Liu Qing and was an exceptional talent within Liu Family. This time he was dispatched by Liu Qing to assist Liu Yiyi in taking over Solar Group.
Under Liu Yiyi and Wang Yang's strategies, Solar Group initiated a cleansing operation. All personnel cultivated by Zhu Family were ruthlessly eliminated—some were laid off while others resigned voluntarily. Within just one month, Solar Group had completely replaced its staff with core members from Liu Family. Meanwhile, Zhu Feng, who had lost his son late in life, remained surprisingly quiet; he attended every board meeting punctually and neither supported nor opposed Wang Yang's plans, giving off an air of resignation.
However, after several close encounters with Xiao Yefeng, he sensed something was amiss with this old man. The glint of unwillingness to accept defeat and an insatiable desire for power burned even more fiercely in his eyes. Xiao Yefeng paid attention to this for some time; however, Zhang Chuanhai's response to him was straightforward: this old man spent his days either eating or sleeping in his villa loft. Yet every time Zhang Chuanhai attempted to enter and take a look inside, he was blocked from entering.
Initially, Xiao Yefeng thought Yuan Xun might be hiding there; however, Zhang Chuanhai clarified that the barrier surrounding that place did not belong to his own domineering Eerie Energy but resembled Shikigami sealed within a Bagua Mirror. Because of this revelation, Xiao Yefeng dared not act recklessly. After all, according to Zhang Chuanhai's description, Eerie Energy now permeated Zhu Family's villa. Ever since Zhu Family's incident occurred, all servants had fled overnight while at the same time being enveloped by a layer of Ghost Mist. Aside from successfully infiltrating twice early on, Zhang Chuanhai had not succeeded again since then.
Xiao Yefeng originally thought that Yuan Xun would come to seek revenge after recovering from his injuries. However, he was mistaken. For over a month, Yuan Xun had disappeared as if he were dead. Not only did he not come after Xiao Yefeng, but he also did not search for Kitagawa Kai's Shikigami. According to Mei Chuanqiong's information, Jin Ling had also vanished during this time. Xiao Yefeng had attempted to locate Jin Ling three times through Zhang Chuanhai, but each time, his whereabouts were obscured, clearly indicating Yuan Xun's involvement.
Finally, the traditional festival of Huaxia People arrived. It was New Year's Eve. Xiao Yefeng declined invitations from Mei Mo'er and Liu Yiyi, choosing instead to leave Golden House Courtyard with Zhang Chuanhai, one person and one ghost in a car. Unbeknownst to him, he had become a topic of conversation among the residents of Golden House Courtyard, as he was the first man to stay in one of the top ten villas for an entire month.
Despite this, Xiao Yefeng rarely interacted with those around him. Although many wanted to speak with him, they ultimately gave up when they couldn't find him. Today, Xiao Yefeng left alone, driving eastward until he reached the airport. He quietly boarded a flight to Evergreen City.
Nowadays, flights are much faster than in Xiao Yefeng's time. He soon arrived in Evergreen City. After disembarking, he took a taxi to a village called Dongxin Village—an unremarkable place that nurtured countless hardworking farmers like many villages in Huaxia.
The taxi stopped at the village entrance as the sun began to set. After purchasing a large amount of food from a deli, Xiao Yefeng shouldered his backpack and walked toward the mountains behind the village. As he passed through the village, it was brightly lit with bonfires and fireworks illuminating the area. The local farmers quickly noticed this outsider.
In the center of the village, Xiao Yefeng encountered an old man squatting at the entrance while smoking. The old man was clearly watching his grandson play nearby when Xiao Yefeng accidentally bumped into a child who was engrossed in a game with his friends. The old man stood up apologetically and said to Xiao Yefeng, "Young man! Sorry about that! I hope my grandson didn't get you dirty!"
The old man was worried that the candied hawthorn in the child's hand might stain Xiao Yefeng's clothes. Indeed, Xiao Yefeng had been hit by the child's treat just as he was lost in childhood memories and hadn't noticed the blindfolded child approaching. In that moment, he saw a stone on the ground and instinctively protected the child from falling onto it. However, the child's grip on the candied hawthorn meant it stuck between them.
"It's fine! The candied hawthorn won't hurt," Xiao Yefeng said as he looked down and realized what the old man meant. This wasn't one of those hardened treats; it was freshly coated in syrup, leaving a long sticky mark on his pants.
"Come inside quickly! Do you have any spare pants? If not, I can find my son's for you!" The old man gently scolded the child before continuing.
"No need! I'm just here to pay respects; this little bit of syrup doesn't matter!" Xiao Yefeng insisted as he tried to leave. However, the old man grabbed him again and asked, "Young man, are you back to honor your ancestors? Which family do you belong to?"
"Oh! Old sir! My family moved away long ago; I'm just here to pay my respects since there are no relatives left in the village," Xiao Yefeng replied.
"Then what are you waiting for? Come inside! After we eat dumplings, we can go up the mountain together to pay respects," said the old man as he ushered Xiao Yefeng into his home. Once inside and after hearing about what had just happened at the door, the male host looked genuinely apologetic while his wife brought out a pair of pants belonging to her husband at his suggestion. Unable to refuse their hospitality, Xiao Yefeng changed out of his jeans into those pants which fit reasonably well given that their sizes were similar.
In the midst of their conversation, Xiao Yefeng did not hold back much. Although the old man did not know Xiao Yefeng, the latter recalled the identities of the elderly and the male host through childhood memories. This place was where Xiao Yefeng's uncle had settled, the hometown of the man who took Xiao Yefeng away after his parents passed away.
After handling the funeral arrangements, Xiao Yefeng remembered that his uncle had brought his parents' ashes back here. After his uncle's death, his ashes were buried on the mountain behind the village. This visit was meant to pay respects to his parents and uncle.
However, Xiao Yefeng was not afraid of this warm-hearted family discovering his identity. The village was large and had absorbed four or five relocated villages, so there were plenty of outsiders around, making it unlikely for those who harmed his parents to find him.
After a few rounds of drinks, Xiao Yefeng took out some food originally intended for the memorial to share. With a bribe of a chicken leg, the boy finally stopped fearing Xiao Yefeng. The old man's name was Wei Zhenjiang, the kind-hearted male host was Wei Qingqiang, and the female host was Yang Lin. The child who had spilled syrup all over Xiao Yefeng was the family's precious gem, named Wei Hongtu. The boy was not too shy; under Xiao Yefeng's chicken leg strategy, he was now sitting beside Xiao Yefeng munching on a chicken leg.
Before long, shadows began to move outside the courtyard, and several children came with lanterns made by their families to invite Wei Hongtu to play. Soon, families of those children gathered as well, and before long, the spacious Wei family courtyard was filled with villagers. At this moment, Wei Zhenjiang extinguished his cigarette and stepped forward to address everyone: "Fellow villagers! The annual memorial is about to begin. Let me prepare for a bit and then I'll take everyone up Heroic Spirit Mountain for ancestor worship!"
Afterward, Wei Zhenjiang returned inside and said to Xiao Yefeng: "Feng! Wait for me to change clothes; I'll take you to pay respects to our ancestors!"
The old man rummaged through a box and pulled out a special outfit. Upon seeing it, Xiao Yefeng's eyes lit up as he exclaimed, "Old man, are you a shaman?"
The elderly man paused in surprise at Xiao Yefeng's words and replied with a question of his own: "How did you know that? It’s been a long time since anyone called me that!"
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