Lin Fan, unable to persuade Hao Jianjun, took out his phone. "Secretary Tian also knows about this. I'll have her speak with you."
He really didn't want to trouble Tian Mengyao unless absolutely necessary.
Hao Jianjun was simple and honest, and not in good health.
While other young men went out to work, he stayed in the village, making a living by farming.
When Cao Dewang was in charge, he often summoned Hao Jianjun to work at the village committee without pay. Hao Jianjun could only endure it, not daring to resist.
Lin Fan figured that Secretary Tian Mengyao's position would have some deterrent effect on him.
As expected.
Upon hearing that he was going to involve Secretary Tian, Hao Jianjun was instantly flustered. "Xiao Fan, don't!"
He repeatedly clasped his hands in supplication, begging, "If you tell Secretary Tian, the whole village will know."
"What, you still think no one knows?"
Lin Fan patted his shoulder. "I'll call Secretary Tian now. If she agrees, I won't say another word and will leave your house immediately."
As he spoke, Lin Fan had already dialed Tian Mengyao's number.
Hao Jianjun was panicked but not strong enough to overpower Lin Fan. He could only look at Lin Fan with pleading eyes.
"Hello, Xiao Fan, what is it? Are you missing me..."
"Cough, cough."
Tian Mengyao was initially excited, but upon hearing Lin Fan's cough, she immediately realized something was wrong. "Xiao Fan, did something happen in the village?"
"I'm at Hao Jianjun's house. When you first took office, you went house to house for research. Do you remember him?"
"I remember. He's the one who repaired the chairs at the village committee. I even paid him the wages that were owed to him."
Tian Mengyao then asked, "What, is something wrong with him?"
Lin Fan gave Hao Jianjun a look of disappointment, then turned away and whispered, "Hao Jianjun found a woman of unknown origin on Luofeng Mountain."
"What?"
Tian Mengyao exclaimed.
Her first reaction was exactly the same as Lin Fan's.
"I'm going to..."
*Creak...*
A grating sound suddenly came from inside the house.
Lin Fan, mid-sentence, immediately became alert.
"Xiao Fan, what's wrong? Why aren't you talking?"
"Wait a moment."
Lin Fan rushed into the room, with Hao Jianjun following closely.
However, in the small bedroom, Wang Xiaoli was nowhere to be seen.
Lin Fan scanned the room. The furnishings were very simple, with no place to hide.
Hao Jianjun looked at the empty double bed, and his heart suddenly felt hollow.
"Lili..."
Hao Jianjun whispered the snake demon's name distractedly, then lunged onto the bed as if mad.
*Whoosh~*
A gust of cold wind blew, and Lin Fan immediately turned his head.
He saw that the north window was wide open, and cold wind was whistling into the room.
It was obvious that the snake demon had escaped through the window.
Lin Fan took a deep breath, then looked at Hao Jianjun and asked, "Brother Jianjun, the window is so high. Without any help, and you bent the steel bars, do you still think Wang Xiaoli is human?"
"This..."
Hao Jianjun stood up and looked. Seeing the bent steel bars and the damaged window, his heart pounded.
In his eyes, Wang Xiaoli was just a frail woman. How could she have such strength?
"Xiao Fan, what's going on? Hurry up and tell me!"
Tian Mengyao's impatient voice came from the receiver.
Lin Fan held the phone to his ear and sighed, "She got away. Secretary Tian, what do we do now?"
Tian Mengyao hesitated for a moment and replied, "I told my dad."
"Mm."
Lin Fan nodded and then returned to the clinic.
...
The next morning, the entire region was in an uproar.
A large number of police officers in police cars went from village to village, checking household registrations and people.
Luofeng Village, which was little known, was surrounded by armed riot control vehicles.
Hao Jianjun was taken away first, and even Lin Fan was questioned.
Fortunately, considering that it was the day before the New Year, and with some influence from above, they were finally released in the evening.
"Xiao Fan, are you alright?"
Xia Xue and Song Yue had done nothing all day, worrying and fidgeting at home.
Seeing Lin Fan return, they finally felt a little relieved.
Lin Fan shrugged. "I'm fine..."
Song Yue chimed in, "We were so worried about you. You should have seen how many people came to the village. They say they're hunting a serial killer, it's all very dramatic!"
"Oh." Lin Fan scratched his head. "Then everyone should just stay home for now, it's almost New Year anyway."
Except for a few who knew the truth, most people only knew that a killer had entered Luofeng Village and the police were actively searching for them. Moreover, most of the police officers didn't know the truth and thought they were really apprehending a murderer.
And the murderer's name was Wang Xiaoli.
Xia Xue looked into Lin Fan's eyes and asked, "Xiao Fan, can you tell me what actually happened?"
"Sister-in-law, I don't know."
Lin Fan spread his hands. "I don't understand why they called me in for questioning. Maybe because I'm the only doctor in the village, they suspected I might have treated the killer's wounds."
"You're still not telling the truth!"
Xia Xue glared at him. "Something happened just a few days ago, and now there's such a big commotion. I'm really worried..."
Song Yue also looked worried.
They had only enjoyed a few days of good life. If anything happened to Lin Fan, it would be like falling from heaven to hell.
"Sister-in-law, it really has nothing to do with me."
Lin Fan stepped forward, took his sister-in-law's hand, and explained, "If it really had something to do with me, wouldn't they have locked me up already? Would they have let me go?"
He chuckled and suddenly changed the subject. "I'm starving. Sister-in-law, please let me eat!"
"Hmph!"
Xia Xue rolled her eyes. "You'll make me worry all day!"
"Sister-in-law, it's really nothing. Let's eat, let's eat."
As he spoke, Lin Fan was already pushing his sister-in-law's shoulders, and they walked into the kitchen together.
...
New Year's Eve arrived in a flash. However, amidst the festive atmosphere of Luofeng Village, there was a hint of tension.
Lin Fan heard from his sister-in-law that Luofeng Mountain was now completely sealed off, and outsiders were not even allowed to approach the foot of the mountain.
The villagers spread rumors that the killer was hiding in the mountains.
There were also rumors that the woman Hao Jianjun had brought back had killed her husband's entire family before escaping.
They spoke with such conviction that most people believed them.
Lin Fan, who was cleaning pig offal in the yard, sighed from time to time.
Tian Mengyao could no longer be reached. Lin Fan guessed that the snake demon had not yet been caught, otherwise, the police would have already withdrawn.
"Xiao Fan, are you done washing?"
Xia Xue's gentle voice came from the kitchen.
"I'm done."
Lin Fan replied, poured the dirty water in the basin into the drain, and then carried a basin of pig offal into the kitchen.
The kitchen was filled with steam.
Xia Xue and Song Yue were busy, processing various ingredients.
The tense atmosphere in Luofeng Village did not affect the two of them. After all, with Lin Fan around, no killer could match him.
Besides, with the police all over the place, it was unlikely the killer would dare to cause trouble.