ATPnovel #591 - First elimination
#591 - First elimination
"Why are you so hostile towards her? Are the elders so detestable?" Tang Yin couldn't help but ask. He couldn't see Qin Yi's expression in the thick fog, but he could feel the strong hostility emanating from him.
"Of course! If it weren't for the elders, Mom would have..." Qin Yi suddenly turned around, his voice filled with suppressed anger, but he stopped abruptly halfway through his sentence. "Tch," he scoffed, a hint of pain flashing in his eyes. "I will tear off your disguise no matter what," he said, gritting his teeth as he stared at Hua Lu.
Tang Yin pondered to himself: Qin Yi's aggressiveness is so strong this time, could he also be a Protector? But soon, he rejected this idea. No, such speculation is too dangerous. Rather than knowing nothing, it's better to remain neutral. Perhaps preconceived judgments will bring even greater risks.
"Sister..." Xiao Mie timidly tugged at Hua Lu's sleeve. Hua Lu's expression remained calm as water, but Tang Yin still caught a glimpse of loss in her eyes. Those usually clear eyes were now shrouded in a faint sadness.
"How should I put it, it seems very complicated," Tang Yin tried to ease the atmosphere, his voice tinged with helplessness.
"Ah, Mr. Tang Yin." Hua Lu turned her head, and for a moment, her eyes flickered with confusion, then bloomed into a gentle smile. "It's so good you're okay, really." Her voice was as soft as the morning breeze.
"Uh, it's just foggy, nothing serious," Tang Yin scratched his head, trying to make his tone sound relaxed.
"Divinity River Valley..." Hua Lu's gaze turned to the distance, as if she could see something through the thick fog. "The stream at the foot of the mountain, legend has it that the fog of the Divinity River is from the demonic energy of the underworld." Her voice carried a hint of mystery. "Since ancient times, it has been the biggest ominous sign of Baifeng Village."
"Qian Jin said the same thing, people die when the fog rolls in," Tang Yin recalled the previous conversation, thoughtfully.
Hua Lu, hearing this, showed a serious expression for the first time. Her delicate brows furrowed slightly, and a hint of unease appeared on her pretty face. "Mr. Tang Yin, you just moved to Wuyin Village, and Qian Jin said such things to you?"
"Ah, well, he probably meant that such a big fog would definitely cause accidents," Tang Yin quickly explained, trying to dispel Hua Lu's worries.
"Even so, it's too careless," Hua Lu gently shook her head, her tone revealing rebuke. "Now that everyone lives in Wuyin Village, death and such are too unlucky."
Her fingers unconsciously twisted the hem of her clothes, showing her inner unease.
"Hua Lu, although I've only moved to Wuyin Village for a day, I've noticed that you are different from the other elders," Tang Yin gazed at this seemingly weak but actually strong woman, a realization dawning in his mind. The thick fog continued to swirl around them, as if eavesdropping on this meaningful conversation.
"W-Why do you say that?" A hint of panic flashed in Hua Lu's eyes, and a faint blush rose on her fair cheeks. Her slender fingers subconsciously twisted the hem of her clothes, appearing somewhat uneasy. The humid morning fog swirled around her, setting her off as even more ethereal.
"Well, whether it's Qian Jin or the people of Baifeng Village, they are very harsh towards Wuyin Village," Tang Yin's gaze was gentle, his voice carrying a hint of thoughtfulness. The thick fog flowed between them, casting a mysterious veil over the conversation. He could feel that Hua Lu seemed to be hiding some unknown secrets.
"I just maintained the basic respect that should be given," Hua Lu lowered her eyes and said softly. Her long hair was gently caressed by the morning breeze, drifting in the mist, "Wuyin Village is a very important place for the continuation of Baifeng Village." Her tone carried some unspeakable profound meaning, and a complex light flickered in her eyes.
Tang Yin's eyes narrowed, keenly capturing the key information in the words. The chill in the fog seemed to suddenly become even heavier. "What do you mean? Can you explain in more detail?" he couldn't help but ask, his heart unconsciously speeding up.
"I'll tell you later, it's a bit..." Hua Lu hesitated, a hint of hesitation flashing in her clear eyes. Her fingers unconsciously caressed her sleeves, as if trying to calm the fluctuations in her heart.
"Yeah, yeah, now is indeed not the right time," Tang Yin nodded knowingly, not continuing to press the matter. He could feel Hua Lu's inner struggle and understood that now was indeed not the best time to talk about these things.
"I..." Hua Lu took a deep breath, as if making some kind of decision. "I want to protect Wuyin Village." Although her voice was soft, it revealed a firm determination. Those usually gentle eyes now shone with a resolute light.
Tang Yin was speechless for a moment, staring at Hua Lu's silent profile. An unspeakable awkwardness permeated the air, and he could only continue to wait for the situation to develop. The surrounding fog seemed to feel this heaviness as well, becoming even thicker.
Before long, Zhao Gang came out of the thick fog with Qian Jin. As soon as Qian Jin saw Hua Lu, he immediately circled around her like a cheerful bird, showering her with concern. His eyes sparkled with undisguised adoration. But Hua Lu always maintained a cold attitude, treating his diligence as if it were an invisible mass of air. Tang Yin, watching this scene, couldn't help but apologize in his heart: It seems I accidentally hindered someone's path to love.
Finally, Old Man Gao Zhijie also returned with the students. Their figures were looming in the thick fog, erratic like ghosts. "Xia Hui, there, watch your step." Wang Lina's voice came from the thick fog, her tone carrying concern.
"Ah, that was close," Xia Hui's voice was still lively, not at all aware of the strange atmosphere around her. Seeing her familiar figure emerge from the thick fog, Tang Yin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. But then, he realized what was about to happen, and his heart sank, his throat felt as if it was blocked by something.
"Good morning, everyone." Xia Hui, as always, showed a bright smile, her bright eyes scanning everyone in the square, as if she didn't notice the heavy expressions on the faces of the people around her at all. However, not a single person from Wuyin Village responded to her greeting. The fog seemed to congealed, shrouded the strange silence in the square.
"What's wrong with everyone? This fog is indeed big, but so what." Xia Hui looked around, blinking in confusion, the smile on her face gradually solidified. Suddenly, she seemed to think of something, "Hey? Is Zhou Zhengxiong still asleep?" Her naive question echoed in the silent square, like a stone thrown into a stagnant pool, causing ripples. No one answered her, only the thick fog flowed silently.
A deathly silence enveloped the square, not a single person responding to Xia Hui's question. The thick fog flowed between the crowd, like an invisible gauze, shrouding everyone's expressions in a hazy light.
"That, is he still up there? I'll go take a look." Xia Hui tentatively opened her mouth, her voice carrying a hint of unease. She was about to step away, but was interrupted by a low voice.
"No need." Gao Zhijie's voice was hoarse and cold. Tang Yin looked at the old man's stern face, knowing that he was ready to announce this heavy fact himself. The morning light shone through the fog, casting a shadow on the old man's wrinkled face, making him look even older.
Suddenly, a suppressed sob broke the silence. It was Xiao Mei's voice, not just simple fear, but also a premonition of the cruel truth that was about to be revealed. Her shoulders trembled slightly, and tears welled up in her eyes.
"That..." Xia Hui finally noticed the unusual atmosphere, her voice becoming hesitant, and the smile on her face gradually disappearing. But before she could finish speaking, Gao Zhijie interrupted her.
"That big guy, is already dead." The old man's rough voice announced the cruel fact without concealing it, like a sharp knife piercing the hearts of everyone present.
"D-Dead, what do you mean..." Xia Hui's face instantly turned pale, her voice trembled so much she could barely form a sentence. Her hands clenched unconsciously, her knuckles turning white from the force.
"He's already dead up there, at that landslide area," Gao Zhijie continued, each word like a heavy hammer, striking Xia Hui's heart.
"What are you talking about!" Xia Hui suddenly burst out a scream, her reason completely consumed by this abnormal atmosphere. Her eyes glared wide, tears welling up in her eyes. "Don't joke like that! We're going to fix the car and leave here this morning! I-I'll go get him up now."
"Don't move." Gao Zhijie's voice became even colder, carrying a warning.
"What right do you have--" Xia Hui's words were interrupted by a shout.
"Old Man Gao!" Tang Yin shouted subconsciously, because he saw Old Man Gao had already raised that black shotgun. The cold light glinted on the gun barrel, like the gaze of death.
"Aren't you, joking, what's, going on, is this a reality show? It started at the flat tire spot? Ah, ahaha, I get it." Xia Hui's voice became more and more hysterical, her laughter carrying a clear sense of collapse.
"We don't know your rules here yet. Even if you threaten us with a gun, we might not do what you want," Tang Yin forced himself to calm down, looking directly into Old Man Gao's eyes. He could feel his back was soaked in cold sweat.
"What do you want to say?" Gao Zhijie's gaze was as sharp as a knife, the shotgun in his hand unmoving.
"Ah, don't be impulsive, Old Man Gao, what's going on? You absolutely can't aim the gun at people, you said that yourself, right?" Zhao Gang hurriedly stepped forward to smooth things over, his voice carrying obvious tension.
"." Gao Zhijie was silent for a moment, finally slowly putting down the muzzle.
"If it's not a reality show, then it's a crime, it's too much, let's stop here, I'm leaving here now." Xia Hui's voice carried a hysterical tremor, she turned to leave, but was stopped by Zhao Gang.
"Xia Hui, right? Sorry, you can't leave here yet. You absolutely can't go into the mountains until the fog clears," Zhao Gang's voice was low and firm, a hint of subtle grief appeared on his young face, "And, although it's hard to say, but your partner is indeed gone, he was killed."
"Killed, killed...? I-I don't understand what you're talking about." Xia Hui's face instantly turned pale, her legs trembling slightly, as if she would collapse to the ground at any moment. The thick fog swirled around her, like an invisible net, trapping her in place.
"Zhao Gang, take her to see it," Gao Zhijie's voice came from the fog, hoarse and cold.
"Do you faint at the sight of blood?" Zhao Gang asked softly, his eyes carrying a hint of concern.
"Aren't you joking?" Xia Hui's voice already carried a sob, her fingers tightly clutching the hem of her clothes, her knuckles turning white.
"I'll go too, after all, I received his care yesterday," Tang Yin stepped forward, having already prepared for the worst.
"Okay, help me out then," Zhao Gang gave Tang Yin a meaningful look. Tang Yin immediately understood what he meant -- cleanup. "I understand," he responded softly.
"I'll go too, Xiao Mie, you stay here," Hua Lu gently touched her sister's head, her eyes carrying a hint of worry.
"I'll go too," Wang Lina said in a low voice, her voice carrying a tremor.
"I'll go too, what's there to be afraid of," Qin Yi snorted disdainfully, but a hint of unease flashed in his eyes.
"Boring, isn't it just a slip and fall in the fog? It's still on my construction site, I'll go take a look too... Annoying." Qian Jin pretended to be indifferent, but his tone could not hide his nervousness.
In the end, except for the old man, Madam Chen Xiang, Xiao Mei, and Xiao Mie, everyone else followed Zhao Gang onto the mountain road. In the thick fog, their figures looked particularly blurred, as if they would disappear into this white world at any moment.
They climbed up the winding field path, occasionally someone slipping because they couldn't see the road, or sinking into the muddy rice paddies. About ten minutes later, they finally arrived at the scene. The scene before them was almost exactly the same as Tang Yin remembered, but the scene at this moment was much more cruel.
The body lying on the ground was too horrible to look at. The body was located behind a rock near a mobile home. That waist-high rock seemed to want to conceal something, but it couldn't cover that overly enormous body at all. The fragmented remains lay there quietly, covered with torn or broken internal organs and bones and tendons, it was impossible to see what human form looked like. That pile of chunks of meat and clothing fragments like a small mountain became the only clue to prove the identity of the deceased.
Tang Yin's heart beat violently -- this time, Zhou Zhengxiong still couldn't survive the first night.
"He went out at night," Zhao Gang sighed with a wry smile. At this moment, a heart-wrenching scream broke the deathly silence.
"What's going on, aaaaaah!!" Xia Hui collapsed on the ground, looking at this unbelievable and unwilling to believe scene, hoarse screaming madly. Her eyes glared wide, tears pouring out uncontrollably. "What!! What happened!! How could Zhou Zhengxiong become like this!! What happened, what happened, what happened!!" Her voice echoed in the mountains, but only got a silent response from the thick fog.