Over the next few days, Chi Zhu and Ming Yang stayed at the Li family estate. The longer they stayed, the more problems they uncovered.
From top to bottom, every member of the Li family seemed to wear a mask, with only one exception: the Third Young Master.
It was truly hard to imagine that someone could be so unabashedly wicked.
On the second day of their stay, they heard a woman’s blood-curdling screams echoing from the backyard.
Initially, as guests, they felt it wasn't their place to interfere, but the woman continued to cry for help, her voice growing increasingly faint.
Finally, Chi Zhu intervened and rescued a young woman.
When they found her, she was barely recognizable as human. Two-thirds of the teeth in her lower jaw had been pulled out, and her speech was a mangled, incoherent mess.
The sight nearly drove Chi Zhu to kill the perpetrator on the spot, but Ming Yang held him back.
After all, this was the home of the Security Bureau Chief!
No matter how grave the matter, they had to inform the master of the house first.
But even Ming Yang hadn't expected the culprit to show no fear at all; instead, the young man accused them of sticking their noses where they didn't belong.
They brought the youth before the Eldest Master, but the man didn't even dare to utter a word of protest. Instead, with a bitter smile, he explained that this was his third brother's only son.
The Third Master had been wounded on the battlefield years ago and was left impotent. This was his only child, and he had been spoiled rotten.
Chi Zhu was fuming. He brought the woman forward, telling her that if she identified her attacker, he would arrest him immediately.
To Chi Zhu’s shock, the woman didn't dare to speak. From beginning to end, she had only one request: she wanted to leave.
The Eldest Master immediately agreed to let her go. Chi Zhu and Ming Yang were powerless; this was someone else's territory, and they could only watch as the woman departed.
At that moment, they didn't think much of it, simply pitying a woman with a tragic fate.
That was until they heard the other servants' title for her.
The Third Madam!
In that instant, even Ming Yang gained a new understanding of the Li family.
Scandals between a son and a stepmother were not unheard of in great families.
But those who dared to flaunt it so openly were rare indeed!
From that day on, the masks the Li family wore when facing the two investigators grew even thicker.
...
How do you make a family lose its reputation and fall into ruin?
It was simple, requiring only three points.
The first point: Righteousness!
Since ancient times, any uprising required a just cause.
Regardless of your true goal, your slogan must be grand and righteous, providing a solid foothold!
If no reason could be found, then the opponent must be framed as unfilial, heartless, treacherous, or unrighteous.
Even if they weren't, you had to make them seem so!
Only then could you stand on the moral high ground and launch your assault.
This would allow others to join the fray. As the saying goes, a just cause enjoys abundant support.
The second point: Public Opinion.
This was equally crucial. History was filled with people destroyed by the weight of public perception.
In the end, public opinion was merely a tool for the ambitious.
People were inherently blind, especially netizens. As long as you made them feel they were on the side of justice, they would charge forward one after another!
All you had to do was make them believe it!
The third point: Interest!
If destroying a certain family brought great benefit to others, then even if you didn't act, those people would.
As long as one mastered these three points, destroying a family was not difficult.
Inside a bar, Yin Yang thought back to the group from the True Knowledge Society.
If he possessed the ability to bewitch hearts, this task would undoubtedly be much simpler.
Unlike now, where he had to rely on clumsier methods.
Not long ago, Yin Yang had bestowed spirit upon the Accident Pen, injecting it with a bit of spiritual energy to 'accidentally' encounter the head of Huang City's largest water army.
He truly hadn't expected the kingpin of the city's internet trolls to be an inconspicuous high school student.
The student was about 1.7 meters tall, slightly hunched, with glasses as thick as the bottoms of glass bottles.
His clothes were extremely plain, making him look completely out of place in the bar environment.
However, Yin Yang noticed many details, such as the watch tucked under his sleeve.
Though it looked like a simple electronic watch, its internal workings were incredibly complex. Calling it a supercomputer wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Such a watch could not possibly be cheap.
Of course, it was just a watch. It could have been a gift from a wealthy friend, or he might have even found it.
But the bracelet on his other wrist was a transcendent item!
If he were as poor as his appearance suggested, how could he afford such an expensive transcendent item?
“Sir, you are sitting in my classmate's seat. Could you please move? They'll be here soon.”
The water army leader looked at Yin Yang with a naive expression. Yin Yang, wearing a black mask, spoke in a cold voice.
“I need you to spread some news for me. I will pay you two hundred thousand yuan.”
“Sir, you must have the wrong person.”
The student looked at Yin Yang with feigned confusion. Yin Yang flexed his fingers.
“How do you think I found you?”
Yin Yang spoke casually, but his words made the other's hair stand on end.
Indeed.
How did he find me?
I've always been extremely careful about my personal information security. How could he locate me so precisely?
His tone is so certain; he doesn't seem to be bluffing. What should I do? Should I admit it?
No, no, no. This guy looks dangerous. That two-hundred-thousand-yuan reward is probably blood money. I can't admit it.
Thinking this, he tilted his head.
“Sir, I really don't know what you're talking about. If you want to sit here, that's fine. We can swap seats.”
He made to stand up and leave, but just as his backside left the sofa, a large hand pressed down on his shoulder, forcing him back down.
The student's expression turned to panic because he saw no one beside him!
As the head of a water army, he understood all too well what this situation implied.
“You... you're a transcendent?”
As he spoke, he felt a chill on his shoulder. Turning his head, he saw a slender, ghostly hand pressing down on him.
It was the blade-wielding ghost.
Buzz—
A zhanmadao was held against the water army leader's neck. Goosebumps erupted across his skin instantly.
“I need you to spread some news for me.”
Yin Yang repeated his earlier statement, but this time, his tone was noticeably more impatient.
The student swallowed hard.
“W-what news?”
Yin Yang handed him a USB drive.
The student knew now was not the time to play dumb. He plugged the USB drive directly into his watch, which projected some information. The student's face grew increasingly pale as he read.
“This is the Li family?”
“H-how is this any different from asking me to die?”
The student was on the verge of tears, cursing himself for not checking the almanac before leaving the house today.
Yin Yang shook his head.
“It's not the Li family of now. It's the Li family ten days from now.”
“What's the difference?”
“A huge difference.”
“How so?”
“The Li family today is made of the living.”
“The Li family in ten-odd days will be made of the dead. That is the difference.”
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