RYEY – Chapter 86 Murder

But another man rushed forward, aiming a punch at Li Huan’s face. Li Huan’s eyes narrowed, realizing he had met a tough opponent today. He could only dodge quickly, keeping his focus entirely on this real adversary.

The two of them exchanged blows fiercely. The man carrying a cleaver glanced back, a smirk on his lips—he believed that as long as “Big Head” acted, no one could stop him.

“So? Have you decided? Are you coming with me or not?”

Cheng Qiao took a deep breath and nodded at the man with the cleaver. The man’s eyes lit up with pride and he rushed toward Cheng Qiao impatiently.

“Ah—”

Suddenly, just two or three steps away from Cheng Qiao, the man let out a horrific scream. Li Huan and Big Head both stopped simultaneously and turned to look.

“Red-headed viper.”

Li Huan immediately recognized the snake, remembering that it had once been captured by his wife as a magical treasure. Now, it was finally useful.

The man called Big Head felt goosebumps all over as soon as he heard Li Huan call out the red-headed viper. Seeing the snake crawling toward him, he panicked and ran toward the county town.

He was terrified of snakes, especially venomous ones, so he completely forgot that his accomplice was lying on the ground, life unknown.

But the red-headed viper gave him no chance. Under Cheng Qiao’s mental command, it chased after him. Big Head ran and ran, suddenly feeling excruciating pain in his right leg, but he dared not stop. Gritting his teeth, he continued running.

Cheng Qiao shook her head—this man was finished. Being bitten by a venomous snake and still running like that, who wouldn’t die? She kicked the man lying on the ground, realizing he had already fainted, then used her mind to recall the red-headed viper.

Li Huan was overjoyed. A little fairy really is a little fairy—she could even command a red-headed viper. Truly invincible.

“Wife, you just saved your husband’s life. From now on, my life belongs to you.”

“Stop joking. Let me see if you’re injured.”

“I’m fine, how could I get hurt? Your master did give me martial arts knowledge. But how about you? You’re not overexerted from pregnancy, are you?”

Li Huan didn’t care about the injuries on his own body. Instead, he held Cheng Qiao, checking her all over, worried something might have happened to her.

“Li Huan, what about that man? The red-headed viper’s venom is strong. If left like this, he’s certain to die eventually.”

“Let him be. These two are probably desperados; leaving them alive will only harm the villagers.”

“Mm, I’ll follow your decision.”

“Hmm, where’s the red-headed viper?”

“I’ve stored it. Oh, that man said their bicycles are over there.”

Li Huan’s eyes lit up. He touched his still slightly aching stomach and ran toward the nearby woods. Sure enough, there were two bicycles, looking almost new.

“Wife, can you store them away?”

Cheng Qiao nodded and touched the bicycle handles. In an instant, both bicycles disappeared. Li Huan laughed uncontrollably, helping Cheng Qiao toward the ox cart.

Before leaving, Li Huan carefully checked the scene to make sure he left no trace, then carried Cheng Qiao onto the ox cart, continuing toward Xiangyang Village.

“Wife, get some meat ready. I want to give it to Qian Longkun and the others, and figure out how to get Uncle Niu involved.”

Cheng Qiao thought for a moment. The fastest way to get someone involved was to cater to their preferences—give Uncle Niu what he liked or lacked.

Li Huan nodded. Uncle Niu liked cigarettes and alcohol, and his clothes were worn out. Giving him fabric to make new clothes would definitely get him on their side.

The two exchanged a smile. With a flick of her wrist, two pieces of meat appeared on the ox cart, along with a piece of black khaki fabric—enough to make a pair of pants.

Li Huan raised the whip and struck the ground sharply, murmuring to guide the ox. The ox mooed and stepped forward.

“Oh, you’re back so early today?”

Seeing his ox return, Uncle Niu asked quickly. Li Huan smiled, saying he had just gone to the county to send a letter to his father-in-law, hence the early return.

Hearing “father-in-law,” Uncle Niu’s curiosity spiked. He asked about Cheng Qiao’s father and learned he was the deputy director of the top steel factory in Huizhou. Uncle Niu couldn’t help but sigh.

“You rascal… it’s true, luck sometimes comes unexpectedly. You better cherish her and treat her well, got it?”

“Uncle Niu, watch carefully. See how I treat my wife like a treasure. Here, this fabric is from my wife. Just give me fifty cents for it.”

“What? Such a big piece of cloth for only fifty cents? No, I don’t want it. Even if I took it, I couldn’t make clothes.”

“Take it. You’ll use the ox cart a lot in the future. Consider this payment in advance. Clothes? Let the women in the backyard handle it. Maybe give some firewood or sorghum flour as well, that’ll do.”

Uncle Niu squinted. He suspected the rascal was setting a trap but couldn’t pinpoint why. Giving a piece of fabric just for using the ox cart seemed impossible—he had his own bicycle too.

But the lure of fabric was too strong. He hadn’t made new clothes in over ten years. He figured he’d take it for now; if things went wrong, he’d just be a grumpy old man.

“All right, thank Cheng Qiao for me. I’ll need to make some pants—the ones I’m wearing are so worn I dare not wash them or they’d tear.”

Uncle Niu tugged at his trousers, and a piece of frayed cloth came off, revealing the hardened cotton inside.

“Uncle, these pants won’t keep you warm. I’ll bring a few pounds of cotton for you.”

Uncle Niu fell silent, staring at Li Huan. Suddenly, he grabbed Li Huan by the collar and dragged him into the house.

“Speak, rascal. What are you trying to do?”

“Nothing. I’m just giving you cotton.”

“No, you little rascal. I can tell when you’re up to something. Tell me, what do you want from me?”

Li Huan admired him. Uncle Niu might seem simple normally, but at critical moments, he wasn’t fooled by anyone.

After organizing his words, Li Huan whispered into Uncle Niu’s ear. Uncle Niu’s cloudy eyes brightened. No wonder the boy was so diligent today—he was indeed setting a trap.

But this trap had to be played. Though just a village oxherd now, Uncle Niu had once carried a gun and fought in the revolution. Only health reasons had brought him back home to marry and raise a family.

Sadly, his wife had died early, and his only son had gone missing in the county town and never returned. He could only wait here, hoping for the day his son would come back.