Chapter 01: Ye Zhou Hangs Himself and Commits Murder!
"It’s not good! Ye Zhou hanged himself..."
"Quick, someone come..."
"Ye Zhou is dead..."
"You damn bastard, let him die. He's a disgrace whether alive or dead. It's better off for him to die. How did my Ye family produce such a disgusting creature? If you have the ability, go die outside and don't dirty my place for no reason..."
When Ye Zhou woke up again, he heard buzzing voices from many people filling his ears. Among them, the scolding voice of an old woman was particularly harsh. However, Ye Zhou couldn't argue back because he painfully discovered that he was in a severely oxygen-deprived state. Something seemed to be wrapped around his neck, making it difficult for him to close his mouth. His tongue was unnaturally stretched out, and his breathing was severely restricted.
Damn it, I didn't expect it to be this serious!
Realizing that he was hanging from the ceiling like a piece of dried old bacon, Ye Zhou cursed in his heart. He weakly reached up with his arms, trying to save himself, but his hands were unexpectedly powerless. Instead of rescuing himself, the thumb-thick hemp rope around his neck tightened even more. Moreover, at this moment, a flood of unfamiliar memories poured into his mind. Ye Zhou felt the air becoming thinner, as if his soul could leave his body at any moment. His gaunt face had turned ashen.
"Uncle, please save my brother... please..."
"Why save him? If he wants to die, let him die. If worse comes to worst, I'll sell the house left by your ghost father and mother1 to buy him a coffin..."
"Mom, can you please stop? Second brother, third brother, hurry up and save him!"
The small house was crowded with people, at least a dozen or so of them roughly estimated. However, no one stepped forward to bring down Ye Zhou, who was hanging from the ceiling. A boy who looked no more than five or six years old knelt on the ground, crying and pulling at the pants of the people around him. However, he was kicked out by the sharp-tongued old lady. This action seemed to awaken others. A man in his fifties or sixties beckoned two others of similar age to rush over and grab Ye Zhou's legs, but...
Damn it, are they trying to murder him?
The three grown men clumsily tried to pull down his body, but they only made his tongue involuntarily extend and retract. His eyes turned completely white, and he not only failed to be rescued but almost choked to death. If his throat hadn't been constricted to the point of speechlessness, he couldn't help but curse. Damn it, are they trying to save him like this?
"Second brother, third brother, you hold him. I'll go get a knife to cut the rope."
Finally, the heavens had opened their eyes. The man who was trying to save Ye Zhou finally grasped the key point. Ye Zhou was on the verge of bursting into tears with excitement. After some struggling and pulling, Ye Zhou finally escaped the fate of becoming dried bacon.
"Brother, brother, are you okay? Brother..."
"Cough, cough, cough..."
As soon as Ye Zhou's body was placed on the ground, the little boy rushed over and hugged him. After having his neck constricted for so long, Ye Zhou was uncomfortable and coughed continuously. He ignored the boy, who was obviously increasing the burden on his body, and didn't even have time to think about how he ended up inexplicably hanging in mid-air after being hit by a car.
"Xiao Zhou, are you okay?"
The man who had saved him earlier bent down and asked with concern.
Ye Zhou, whose bile was about to be coughed out, looked up and couldn't help rolling his eyes repeatedly. Of course, he wasn't okay. He was just a hair's breadth away from suffocating to death. What the hell was going on?
"Forget about it. It would be better if he died. It saves him from embarrassing our Ye family while he's alive..."
"Mom..."
"What 'mom'? Isn't what I said correct? He, a grown man, almost got forcibly taken by a few punks2, and he even had the nerve to go to the police station to file a report. Now the whole village knows about his shameful affair. I've lived for so many years and I'm still being embarrassed because of him. That damn bastard, why hasn't he died yet?"
The old lady's sharp and cutting voice overpowered the low voice of the man. Ye Zhou, who could barely make out what they were saying, frowned in confusion. A series of memories that didn't belong to him were forcefully inserted into his mind. Before he could understand the ins and outs, another young but equally cutting voice rang out, "Big Brother, you're too honest. A person like him should have died long ago and apologized. If Fourth Brother and Fourth Sister-in-law knew, they might crawl out from their graves and strangle him alive."
The woman held the old lady's hand without being any less impolite than the old lady. Ye Zhou lifted his head and glanced at her, but a sharp pain shot through his throat. Before he could clearly see the woman's appearance, he was forced to lower his head again. The pain in his throat burned deep, making it difficult for him to concentrate on understanding the situation, let alone argue.
"You're talking nonsense. My brother did nothing wrong. It's the fault of those little gangsters..."
Ye Zhou couldn't move, but the little boy in his arms rushed out like a locomotive. Ye Zhou tried to hold him back, but failed. The tearful boy not only argued but also attacked the two women, one old and one young, with his limbs. However...
"Get lost, shameless brat! He's just a scumbag, as despicable as your dead mother!"
"Bang..."
"Wah-wah..."
The boy was too young, and the old lady easily pushed him down with a casual shove. It must have hurt as the boy sat on the ground, crying loudly, filling the entire room with his earth-shattering cries.
"That damn brat is so annoying..."
"Bang..."
"Ah... Ye Zhou is killing someone... Mom... Ye Zhou wants to kill me..."
The young woman lifted her foot, intending to kick the little boy, but Ye Zhou grabbed the firewood chopping knife he had used to cut the rope and swung it at her. The ground instantly cracked, frightening the woman, who screamed and hid behind the old lady. With one hand holding the knife and the other searching for the boy, Ye Zhou looked up, his voice hoarse like a broken voice: "Get lost! If anyone dares to say another word of nonsense, I'll make them pay right here!"
Only heaven knows how much effort it took for him to say so much. His throat felt like it was about to split open from the pain. But even though he was losing, Ye Zhou still displayed a strong presence.
"You, you, you... you shameless dog!"
"Bang!"
The old lady trembled with anger. Ye Zhou's eyes narrowed, and he lifted the firewood chopping knife once again, striking it forcefully on the ground. Although he still hadn't figured out the situation, he knew better than anyone that when facing such shameless and vicious people, you had to be even more shameless and vicious than them. Otherwise, he and his brother might really be cursed to death by the old lady's malevolence.
"Someone's being killed! Ye Zhou is going to kill his own grandmother... We can't go on like this. Oh, Fourth Brother, open your eyes and see. This is the good son you raised, actually wielding a knife to attack his own grandmother…”
The old lady had clearly never been threatened and intimidated like this before. After a brief moment of daze, she slapped her thigh and began to cry and shout. The men and women who were following her anxiously gathered around. Ye Zhou felt a throbbing pain in his forehead. He pushed away the sobbing little boy still in his embrace and unsteadily stood up, wielding the firewood knife.
"What... What are you going to do? I am your own grandmother... How dare you..."
The old lady, sitting on the ground and throwing a tantrum, cast a fearful glance at the sharp firewood knife in his hand. The men and women surrounding him also took a few steps back in fear. Ye Zhou, enduring the discomfort throughout his body, forced a chilling smile with a hint of bloodlust.
"Since I'm already a dead man walking, why not drag a few scapegoats down with me before I die? It'll be livelier on the road to the underworld, won't it?"
At this moment, Ye Zhou was as terrifying as a vengeful ghost. Combined with the dimming sky outside, it seemed to add a touch of sinister aura to him.
"Ah... He's killing someone! Ye Zhou is going to kill someone!"
"Oh my god, run!"
"Hurry, hurry... Ahhh!"
After he finished speaking, Ye Zhou raised the firewood knife again. The old lady no longer cared about throwing a tantrum and swiftly got up, rushing toward the exit. Seeing this, the others screamed and retreated. Ye Zhou, acting like a madman, chased them with the knife until they reached the door. He made sure they were scared away before closing the door and sliding down to the ground, leaning against it.
