Chapter 268: Why Is It Always the Honest People Who Suffer Bad Luck

"Practice, practice courage."

He Tianxin's voice was as faint as a mosquito's hum.

"What?" Yu Dazhang looked at him in disbelief, his eyes wide open.

Just a moment ago, he had suspected he had misheard.

"Practice courage." He Tianxin repeated it again, then added:

"To use the words of that time, it was finding someone to practice on."

Seeming to find such words truly hard to utter, after He Tianxin finished, he lowered his head again, daring not to look at Yu Dazhang before him.

"Your mother..."

Yu Dazhang opened his mouth, forcing the curse words at his lips back down his throat.

Taking a deep breath, he then said:

"You mean, before that, you didn't know Han Lianwen at all?"

He Tianxin said nothing, only nodding his head.

"Then when there were two people on the road, why did you choose him?" Yu Dazhang asked again.

He Tianxin answered with his head down:

"Because he looked more honest."

This answer nearly made Yu Dazhang lose control; he quickly took two deep breaths.

Unfortunately, this method could no longer relieve his emotions.

His fists were clenched tight, veins bulging on his arms, veins throbbing on his forehead.

Damn, I want to kill someone!

Hell is empty; all the devils are here.

It was precisely because he was honest that he was targeted by these beasts.

What kind of bullshit logic is this!

Why is it always the honest people who suffer bad luck.

Should honest people die?!

At this moment, Yu Dazhang truly wanted to kill; he glared at He Tianxin before him, truly wanting to pounce, to beat him to death with punch after punch.

"I guess you won't believe it, I really didn't want to do that back then, but I had no choice."

As if sensing Yu Dazhang's fury, He Tianxin kept his head down, not raising it while speaking.

"Back then, we all had murder cases on our heads; if we didn't bully people with them, they very likely would have turned around and dealt with me."

"Helpless, truly helpless; for many years afterward, I had nightmares."

"I never dreamed of the person I killed with my own hands, but I could always dream of Han Lianwen; I returned to that rental room in my dreams countless times, and stopped it countless times in my dreams."

Being a good person in a dream? Yu Dazhang was disgusted by his words.

Having nightmares shows he did something wrong; it has nothing to do with whether he has a conscience.

"Raise your head!"

Yu Dazhang suddenly raised his voice:

"The person who made you mutilate yourself, did they have a connection with Han Lianwen?!"

He asked this with a basis.

He Tianxin wasn't stupid; it wasn't possible for just anyone to call and make him mutilate himself.

Even threatening his family wouldn't work.

For example...

"He Tianxin, you must chop off four of your fingers, or I will kill your family."

"Who are you?"

"Don't ask who I am, just do it."

"Are you sick? Get lost."

Isn't that a bit like a harassment call.

Such headless and tailless threats would only be treated as a prank; no one would take them seriously.

Only with a cause comes an effect.

The suspect must make He Tianxin know this "reason" to get him to obey obediently.

Add a scene dialogue...

"He Tianxin, do you remember what you did sixteen years ago?"

"Who are you?"

"I am here to seek justice for Han Lianwen."

"You, what do you want to do..." Doesn't that feel much better.

Only by stating the evil deeds He Tianxin committed would he believe this wasn't a prank.

Among the things the small group did together, the Han Lianwen incident was the most heinous, so Yu Dazhang concluded the suspect had a connection with Han Lianwen.

Moreover, judging from He Tianxin's reaction, his guilt over Han Lianwen was the strongest.

If it were any other victim, it really wouldn't necessarily make him mutilate himself to atone.

"I, I don't know." He Tianxin stared with wide eyes, desperately denying:

"He didn't mention Han Lianwen; I mutilated myself because he threatened me."

Lying!

This time, Yu Dazhang saw right through the expression on his face.

His eyes were unsettled and one shoulder slightly raised, indicating that He Tianxin felt awkward about what he had said—this was a reaction only made when lying.

"I don't have time to waste here with you."

!

Yu Dazhang's expression changed, and his voice turned cold and hard:

"The conditions I agreed to earlier were based on the premise that you'd come clean. I'm giving you one last chance to tell the truth."

Still a threat.

In his view, to get He to tell the truth, this was the most effective method.

After a few seconds of silence, He Tianxin pressed his lips together and finally sighed:

"Yes, he mentioned Han Lianwen."

Hearing this come from his mouth, Yu Dazhang felt a surge of wild joy in his heart.

This was equivalent to having the result he had inferred confirmed.

Since he had already spoken, He Tianxin simply stopped hiding it and continued:

"He said he came to settle the score for Han Lianwen, and told me a knife was placed at the half-fifth-floor landing of the stairwell."

"One finger represents one family member—he told me to decide for myself."

Parents, wife, child… Yu Dazhang counted in his head—exactly four people.

Earlier he had assumed He Tianxin's finger-chopping was random: one cut, however many came off, so be it.

Now he understood—every finger had not been chopped for nothing.

"Do you know who he is?" Yu Dazhang asked, probing.

"I don't know, I really don't know about that." He Tianxin, afraid he wouldn't be believed, added another sentence:

"So many years have passed, I really can't think of anyone who would avenge Han Lianwen."

It was the truth… Yu Dazhang didn't dwell on this topic any longer, but shifted the conversation:

"Last question—who among the Twelve Young Masters of Xicheng is still left?"

"You promised—I only talk about my own affairs." He Tianxin refused to answer.

He struggles too much… Yu Dazhang found that He Tianxin was an overly cautious person.

No wonder he alone had no criminal record on him.

Even when confessing, he had to leave himself a way out, to prevent his accomplices from taking it out on his family.

"You don't really think I don't know anything, do you."

Yu Dazhang looked at him coldly and said:

"Nine Madmen One Dead—now only you and Wan Bo are left."

"No, to be precise, only Wan Bo is left. You were also retaliated against yesterday, and your time is running out."

Upon hearing the name "Wan Bo," He Tianxin's eyes suddenly widened, and he unconsciously made a swallowing motion.

Seeing he still didn't intend to speak, Yu Dazhang sighed and said with a hint of regret:

"In my view, your caution will only endanger your family. Do you think that as long as you say nothing, Wan Bo won't come after your family?"

"Naive!"

"If I were him, I wouldn't feel that reassured."

"Someone as cautious as you might well tell your family about the matter—because doing so gives your family an extra life-preserver."

"Even an outsider like me can think of this—do you think he won't think the same?"

"And the only ones who can truly keep a secret are the dead."

He discovered that He Tianxin's personality wasn't that domineering; there was a hint of submissiveness to it.

So Yu Dazhang decided to provoke him a little, using his family's lives to stimulate him.

Sure enough, upon hearing the end, He Tianxin's emotions grew agitated.

"No, you know, my family doesn't know anything."

He argued vehemently, but as he spoke, his voice grew lower and lower.

Yu Dazhang knew what he was thinking, so he deliberately said:

"Compared to me, you understand Wan Bo better."

"Yesterday you were retaliated against, but you only lost fingers—you were still conscious."

"Think about it from his perspective—does that count as preferential treatment?"

(End of this chapter)