Chapter 84: Catching a Turtle in a Jar

At first, I truly did not think in terms of a debt of resentment being deliberately forged.

Not before I had confirmed that both matters were connected to the Golden Cicada Society.

I had simply assumed that Wang Sheng had some terrible misunderstanding about Song Baoguo.

If this hidden debt was not properly laid to rest, then Song Chao would surely become a man of monstrous evil.

Now it seemed that all of this had been arranged by someone with intent.

If it was not for the making of that resentment, then why, when everyone had died, was Song Baoguo the only one left behind?

I narrowed my eyes. Whether it was Song Baoguo, Wang Sheng, or all those who had died back then, they had all perished too unjustly. Every one of them had been used as a pawn in the making of a grudge.

My grandfather had said that such a thing could be encountered only by chance, never sought, and that the process was far too long.

Ever since that incident during the Republic era, my grandfather had said that no one had ever been willing to make such a resentment again.

I had been wondering: what on earth could make the woman of the Golden Cicada Society willing to spend decades waiting for an unknown outcome?

No matter how I thought about it, there could never be any good reason.

In the blink of an eye, fourteen hours passed. Song Baoguo, who had been trembling from the very beginning, was now drenched in sweat.

His whole body had turned flushed, and he panted heavily. The appearance of Song Chao in his arms changed as the temperature within the iron tub changed.

No longer that sullen, prematurely aged look, he had regained the expression he should have had all along.

The moment the time was up, just as Song Baoguo held Song Chao and stepped out of the iron tub, a mass of black vapor shot from between Song Chao’s brows and circled repeatedly over the backyard of Song Baoguo’s home.

The resentment was so thick that even ordinary people like Song Baoguo could see it with the naked eye.

Whether that resentment had come seeking death on its own or simply thought I was easy to bully, it actually chose me as its target.

The instant it rushed toward me, I widened my eyes, sprang straight up, and flung out the yellow cloth I had prepared in advance.

The yellow cloth spread open in midair, printed with a pattern of the yin and yang fish of the taiji. Like a celestial net, it tightly trapped the resentment within.

The resentment tried to flee. I formed a sword sign with both hands and pointed at the yellow cloth.

“By decree, be sealed!”

The yellow cloth completely wrapped the resentment inside. I seized it with both hands and kneaded it into a small ball.

After I sealed the yellow cloth with a talisman, it immediately shriveled up. I stuffed it into my backpack.

“This... is it really over?”

Song Baoguo had already changed back into his clothes and walked over to my side, unconsciously peering into my backpack.

I nodded. “Uncle Song, the hidden debt may be settled, but the real trouble is only just beginning.”

While Song Baoguo had been soaking, I had already explained the cause and effect to him.

He told me that if this matter truly concerned the deaths of Wang Sheng and the others from decades ago, then no matter what price it took, he would see it through to the truth.

Especially that old question: why had Wang Sheng’s head once claimed that Song Baoguo had betrayed them? Why had Wang Sheng hated him so deeply?

This question had haunted Song Baoguo for decades. He had dreamed of knowing the answer.

So much so that he promised me that if I handled Song Chao and his matter completely, he was willing to pay me one million as a reward.

When I heard that number, my legs nearly gave way beneath me.

By the time I stumbled out of the Song family’s gate, I was still muttering under my breath: one million, one million.

“Jiang Huai!”

I turned and saw Wang Zihào. The moment he spotted me coming out of the Song residence, he leaped from his car and ran over.

Seeing how distracted I looked, Wang Zihào gave me a hard smack. “What are you thinking about?”

As he spoke, he pulled me into his car. “I’ve arranged the place according to your request. Want to go take a look?”

I looked at Wang Zihào and subconsciously nodded.

After all, Song Baoguo had spent fourteen hours in the iron tub. During that time, I had asked Wang Zihào to find a deserted single-story house.

I hadn’t expected him to move so quickly.

Dealing with the Golden Cicada Society was unlike dealing with ordinary evil spirits or ghosts. If this were in a busy district, who knew what kind of commotion they would cause.

At the edge of the northern part of Jianghuai City stood an abandoned fish pond. The water had long since dried up, and in the middle of it stood a dilapidated earthen house.

This had once been where the pond’s owner lived. After the pond was abandoned, the man moved away, and the place was left empty.

The house itself was not large, just enough for one person to live in. But because no one had lived there for years, cobwebs hung everywhere, and the dust on the mattress had thickened into a hard crust.

Wang Zihào waved his hand in front of his nose. “Why did you pick a place like this?”

I was quite satisfied with it. The house could be seen through at a glance, and all around it were dry fish ponds, leaving nowhere to hide.

Wang Zihào and I stood on the raised bank. He took out a cigarette and lit it, offering one to me, but I did not take it.

“I’m setting up an easy trap for a turtle in a jar. I figure you’d probably want to catch a few more of those bastards from the Golden Cicada Society too.”

At the mention of the Golden Cicada Society, Wang Zihào’s gaze turned especially resolute. “Of course I do.”

I nodded and smiled faintly. “Three days from now, I’ll bring Song Chao here and wait for those filth to come. Have your men lie in ambush around the area. But without my signal, none of you show yourselves.”

“What did you say? You’re using Song Chao as bait? Will Song Baoguo agree to that?”