“Sister-in-law, what nonsense are you talking about?”
Ruan An’an pushed away Liu Pozi’s support, blinking with eyes so innocent they seemed almost unreal, and walked up to Su Qingyue.
She reached out, seemingly to help Su Qingyue to her feet—but that fragile, boneless little hand pressed sharply into the soft flesh on the inside of Su Qingyue’s arm.
“Ah—!!”
Su Qingyue was caught off guard, pain ripping through her as she screamed, tears flowing instinctively: “Ruan An’an! You…”
“What did I do? Sister-in-law, the ground’s cold, get up quickly.”
An’an’s face was the picture of pure concern, but the pressure in her hand did not lessen at all.
Seeing Su Qingyue weakened and unable to rise, she leaned in closer.
When her face drew near to Su Qingyue’s ear, the innocent, concerned expression vanished completely, replaced by a chilling smile laced with sweet malice.
In a voice only they could hear, soft and deliberate, she whispered into Su Qingyue’s ear:
“My dear sister-in-law… you and that little brat in your belly… you’re lucky to be alive! But don’t worry…”
She paused, the smile widening, showing a hint of white teeth like a small beast about to strike:
“This is just… the beginning. The real fun hasn’t even started yet.”
The ice-cold, murderous words, combined with the deceptively sweet expression so close to her face, made Su Qingyue feel like she had fallen into an ice tomb.
A demon! She was a demon! How could she smile while speaking such poisonous words?
Before Su Qingyue could recover from the utter terror, a sudden, irresistible force grabbed her arm!
Ruan An’an’s seemingly fragile arms lifted the limp Su Qingyue off the ground effortlessly.
She brushed the corner of her slightly reddened eye with the back of her hand, voice returning to a soft, worried tone: “Look at you, kneeling for so long—your knees are dirty. The ground is so cold, get up, take care of yourself.”
Overwhelmed with fear and injustice, Su Qingyue completely broke down!
She struggled to escape An’an’s “support” and frantically lunged toward ***, screaming in a piercing, heart-wrenching voice: “Commissar! Commissar!! She’s deceiving all of you!”
She pointed at Ruan An’an, her fingers trembling: “All of this… it’s all her plan! She’s the one hurting me! She wants to kill the child in my belly! Commissar! Please! Please protect me!!”
The jade-like bracelet on Ruan An’an’s delicate wrist gleamed provocatively in Su Qingyue’s eyes.
A surge of fury shot straight to the top of Su Qingyue’s head! This little brat dared to scheme against her? No way!
She lifted the hem of her clothes, unwilling to accept it: “Commissar, look! She’s the one pinching me, I didn’t push her! She’s lying!”
“Bah!” Luo Guifen slapped her hard, the sound crisp and resounding. “Despicable wretch! Caught red-handed stealing a man, still not enough shame? Now you want to strip in public? How did your parents raise such a creature?!”
“Exactly!” Liu Pozi spat, pointing at Su Qingyue to the Commissar: “Leader, don’t be fooled by her pitiful act! She’s a master of pretending, all the men on this street rush to do her favors! What a flirt!”
“Oh my, sister-in-law, isn’t your brother-in-law enough for you? How can you…”
Ruan An’an covered her mouth, letting out a perfectly timed expression of shock and heartbreak, her eyes, however, sharp and cold as knives, piercing Su Qingyue’s heart.
“Comrade Su Qingyue!” ***’s deep voice carried the pressure of an approaching storm, “Mind your words and behavior!”
“Mind my words?” Su Qingyue trembled with anger, eyes wide, pointing at Ruan An’an. “Are you blind? She cries and it’s being wronged, I cry and it’s shameless? Where is justice?”
At that moment, two militia members rushed in, panting and pale:
“Commissar! Captain! A—something big has happened!”
“What’s the panic? Speak clearly!”
Captain Zhang’s heart skipped a beat, stealing a glance at ***, whose face was dark as night, afraid his words might misstep.
One of the militia men shakily raised a gun: “This… this was found in the Xu family cellar…”
***’s gaze sharpened like lightning, instantly locking onto—
It was a **** gun!
He snapped his head toward Xu Yanli, his icy stare slicing through him like a blade: “Xu Yanli! How dare you hoard firearms?”
“Ugh?! Ugh ugh ugh—!”
Xu Yanli had a rag stuffed in his mouth, eyes nearly popping, his pants suddenly wet.
Li Ying was dumbfounded, her mind blank. A gun? Where did a gun come from?
Su Qingyue felt a chill shoot from her feet to the top of her head, frozen in place, her blood running cold.
A “personal conduct issue” at most meant losing her job.
The treasures Xu’s mother had been hoarding in the cellar over the years could have provided comfort for life.
But… but this was a gun!
In China, hoarding firearms could cost you your life!
Before she could recover, two more militia men carried out a heavy army-green box.
On the lid was a skull crudely painted in crimson, grotesque and menacing.
Su Qingyue’s pupils shrank to pinpoints, her strength drained instantly, her body frozen like stone.
That… that was the mark of “Blood Skull”! The notorious, violent foreign spy organization!
How could something like this appear in the Xu household?!
***’s pupils contracted sharply, and he stepped forward, flipping open the lid with a “clang.”
Inside lay a few scattered golden bullets. By the model, they matched that 54-type pistol.
“T—treason?!”
Captain Zhang was terrified, his legs trembling, voice breaking: “Commissar, this… this is…”
*** stared at the crimson skull and the cold bullets, fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles cracked ominously.
It’s them! This persistent, evil organization! Still active on domestic soil?!
So many of his brothers-in-arms had fallen in the operation to eliminate them, with no remains ever recovered!
The Xu family… colluding with them?!
A surge of fury mixed with bone-deep hatred shot through ***, his eyes bloodshot at the corners, his voice like it was dragged out of an ice tomb, each word weighing a thousand pounds:
“Investigate! Thoroughly! Strictly! No mercy!”
“Yes!” Captain Zhang’s voice trembled as he obeyed, the thrill of merit long replaced by deep hatred for the enemy.
Su Qingyue’s mind went “buzz,” and she looked at Ruan An’an sharply.
Meeting An’an’s calm, unflinching eyes, even faintly amused, she realized everything!
That line—“this is just the beginning”—
It wasn’t about money. It wasn’t about people.
Ruan An’an wanted one thing: their lives!
She wanted them utterly, completely dead!