Chapter 596: Hulu Village

Minyue Province, Jiaheyu City.

Li Banfeng had originally planned to investigate the taxi driver, but to his surprise, the driver went missing. The driver had no family and, after tossing his phone aside at home, became untraceable.

With this crucial lead gone, Li Banfeng had no choice but to take his team to Jiaheyu City to interview a survivor: a food delivery driver named Wu Nianping, who had gone to Hulu Village at the end of the year before last and successfully returned at the beginning of last year.

"Let me tell you, this whole thing is absurd. When I disappeared, no one cared. I came back on my own, and now you're all asking questions left and right. I've already told you, it was just a village, nothing there. I just wandered around for a few days, and then I secretly slipped away. What I'm telling you is the truth, but you don't believe me, thinking I'm just bluffing. Why would I lie to you? Isn't this just absurd?"

Tangyuan patiently asked, "Mr. Wu, could you clarify what you mean by 'nothing there'?"

"Nothing means nothing, what's there to explain?"

"You stayed in Hulu Village for almost a month. You must have had food to eat and a place to live, right?"

"I don't remember any of that. Didn't I see a doctor? Didn't they say I had psychological trauma?"

Just as he was speaking, Wu Nianping's son suddenly started crying. His son had autism, and his wife's mental state wasn't very good either.

"A-Ping," his wife clutched Wu Nianping's arm, "Who are these people? I'm so scared."

Wu Nianping comforted his wife briefly, then looked at the group and said, "What else do you want to ask? You've already scared my wife and son!"

Li Banfeng observed Wu Nianping's living conditions. The apartment was very small, a one-bedroom, one-living room unit, with very cramped space. Homes in Jiaheyu City were expensive, at their peak prices comparable to Yuzhou. Wu Nianping, who used to deliver food and now drove for ride-sharing services, certainly had a tough time making ends meet with his wife and child.

Walking into the hallway, they could still clearly hear the child's cries, which were mixed with a woman's wails, and the sounds grew louder. Both the mother and child had severe mental health issues. Li Banfeng had researched such conditions and knew that, at the current medical level, their illnesses were unlikely to improve and would most likely worsen.

Dengpao shook his head and remarked, "I really don't know how this person has endured all this. If it were me, I would have broken down long ago!"

Tangyuan looked at the file: "During the period Wu Nianping was missing, his wife and child didn't leave their room. They ate everything edible and nearly starved to death at home. It's fortunate he escaped from Hulu Village."

Li Banfeng led his team to the home of the second survivor, a woman named Deng Yunmei. Everyone was curious why a woman would accidentally wander into Hulu Village.

Deng Yunmei found nothing strange about it: "What's wrong with being a woman? If someone's sisters are pretty, can't I take a closer look? They're good-looking, and their clothes were stylish. I just went over and asked where they bought their clothes. They said they'd take me to see, and I didn't expect to be taken directly to the village! I asked what I was doing there, but they ignored me. I just stayed in the village for a few days and then came back. Didn't I tell you all this several times last year? Why are you still asking? What else do you want?"

"How did you manage to eat and live in the village?"

"I think I did some odd jobs. There are many things I don't remember. Anyway, I worked a bit, got something to eat, and once I was full, I found a place to sleep! What's so special about that?"

A fit of coughing came from the bedroom. Deng Yunmei stood up and said, "Alright, my sister needs her bedsheets changed. Don't ask me anymore, that's all I know!"

Tangyuan gathered Deng Yunmei's relevant information. Ten years ago, Deng Yunmei's sister was severely injured by her boyfriend due to a relationship dispute, and has been unable to care for herself ever since. For all these years, Deng Yunmei has been her sole caregiver.

Back at the hotel, Tangyuan sighed, "Director Li, I told you these survivors wouldn't provide valuable information, but you didn't believe me."

Li Banfeng shook his head. "It is useful. All the information we got this time is very useful."

Tangyuan and Dengpao exchanged confused glances, while Zhong Er nodded repeatedly beside them.

Mingxing was curious: "Do you understand what Director Li means?"

Zhong Er smiled at Mingxing. "I do, but I'm not telling you!"

Li Banfeng called Shen Jingye: "Xiao Shen, has the taxi driver been found?"

Shen Jingye replied that he had done everything he could to find him, but there was still no trace.

Li Banfeng wanted to continue interviewing more survivors, but Shen Jingye couldn't wait any longer: "Director Li, you should probably come back. There are new signs in Liyun District, indicating Hulu Village might open there."

"This thing has signs?"

"Yes, quite obvious. Come back and see for yourself!"

Li Banfeng brought his team back to Yuzhou, and Shen Jingye immediately sent a car to pick him up and take him to Liyun District. In front of a beauty salon, Shen Jingye and Li Banfeng stood together at the entrance, looking inside.

Li Banfeng rubbed his chin, looking down as he asked, "Isn't it a bit embarrassing for us to just stand here and watch?"

"Not at all. There's nothing embarrassing about handling a case," Shen Jingye also looked a bit uncomfortable. "Just keep staring at the entrance, and something will change soon."

After waiting for over ten minutes, the beauty salon's entrance suddenly flashed, as if struck by a camera's flash. In the light, Li Banfeng saw two exquisitely proportioned, beautiful women quietly watching him from the doorway.

"See?" Shen Jingye said to Li Banfeng. "Street cameras only capture the flash, but the illusion-like scene afterward can only be seen by those who experience it firsthand. According to current speculation, this is likely electromagnetic interference caused by the imminent burst of dark energy, meaning this location could very well be where Hulu Village's next entrance appears. Once the entrance formally appears, these two women will stay longer, anywhere from dozens of seconds to several minutes. They will try to lure victims into Hulu Village. I've already informed the relevant departments to close the beauty salon and have dispatched Zhui Zi to guard this spot. If anything happens, this road will be sealed off, absolutely preventing any passersby from entering Hulu Village."

Back at the residence, Li Banfeng asked the Old Man, "Did you see that beauty salon just now? That's the entrance to Hulu Village."

"I saw it. I haven't heard of Hulu Village, but this entrance is quite something," the Old Man said. "If you want to go in and explore, I'd be happy to join you for some research. Once I've had a good look, I should be able to get you out."

"Alright, once the entrance formally appears in a couple of days, I'll find an opportunity to go in and check it out."

Three days later, the "flashing phenomenon" at the beauty salon entrance disappeared. No passersby entered Hulu Village. But Zhui Zi was missing.

Shen Jingye sat in Director Li's office, smoking and drinking tea, trying to calm his emotions. His voice was hoarse, and he spoke with difficulty: "Director Li, do you know how much I trusted Zhui Zi? I just promoted him to squad leader, and he pulls something like this! A Dark Star Bureau agent entering Hulu Village—how am I supposed to explain this?"

Li Banfeng asked, "Has Zhui Zi encountered any problems recently?"

"He has no wife, no children, and his parents are gone. He's a lone wolf. In his last physical, he was as strong as an ox. What could have happened to him?"

Shen Jingye couldn't control his emotions; he got angry just thinking about Zhui Zi. Mid-sentence, his phone rang: an unknown flash had appeared again in Yuzhu District. Shen Jingye was anxious: "Who should we send to monitor it this time?"

Li Banfeng said, "I'll go."

"You're joking," Shen Jingye waved his hand. "How can I let you do such menial work?"

"No one else is suitable either. Who has my kind of composure? You make the arrangements, and when everything's ready, I'll go over and keep watch."

Since Director Li was willing to help, Shen Jingye was naturally pleased.

This time, the flash appeared at a cinema entrance. Li Banfeng, along with Tangyuan, Mijian, Zhong Er, Dengpao, and Mingxing, were on duty in front of the cinema. This work was quite demanding. To ensure efficiency, Li Banfeng assigned roles to everyone. In the morning, Mingxing was in charge of surveillance, with Tangyuan and Zhong Er assisting. In the afternoon, Mingxing was in charge of surveillance, with Mijian and Dengpao assisting. In the evening, Mingxing was in charge of surveillance, with Li Banfeng personally assisting.

By nightfall, Mingxing, forcing himself to stay alert, continued to observe in front of the cinema. He knew Director Li was somewhat targeting him, as his performance in previous missions had indeed been subpar. However, he was inherently different from the other team members; he didn't need Director Li's approval. At a higher level within the Dark Star Bureau, there was a more senior figure looking out for him. But now the situation had changed: that senior figure had become a wanted criminal, and Mingxing himself had issues that could be exposed at any time. The current circumstances were extremely unfavorable for him, so he had no choice but to endure.

At 7:30 AM, after staying up all night, Mingxing could barely keep his eyes open and was on the verge of falling asleep. Suddenly, a flash of light appeared before his eyes, revealing a small path made of dirt and pebbles that extended from the cinema entrance, stretching inward. On either side of the path seemed to be farmland, and in the distance, there appeared to be houses. The figures of these houses were neither too stout nor too slender, just right. How lovely... Wait, those aren't the figures of houses; they're the figures of young women. Two women walked along the path, smiling as they looked at Mingxing opposite them.

Mingxing was slowly waking up from his semi-dream state. Wasn't this cinema closed? And this road was sealed off. Where did these two beautiful women come from? The figures of these two beautiful women seemed to be—from Hulu Village!

Mingxing fully woke up and quickly called out, "Director Li! Director Li—" He had barely called out twice when a cold wind swept across his face, and the path, farmland, and beautiful women he had just seen all vanished. A hallucination? Was he dreaming? He guessed it was because he had been too exhausted these past two days. Mingxing rubbed his eyes, sat back in his chair, and continued to monitor the cinema. Should he report what just happened to Director Li? The scene had felt so real; it didn't seem like a dream.

Mingxing turned on his walkie-talkie: "Director Li, I think I just noticed something unusual—Director Li, do you hear me?"

"My surname is Li, and I'm called Director Li. The person you just saw was my friend." On the village road, Li Banfeng was explaining his presence to two women. These two women were A-Yun and A-Yi. They both shared the common characteristic of Hulu Village beauties: larger above the waist, even larger below the waist, with only the waist itself being exceptionally slender.

A-Yun, with full, fair cheeks, put her hands on her hips and asked, "Who are you? Why are you trespassing in our village?"

Li Banfeng replied, "Aren't you standing at the entrance inviting people into the village?"

A-Yi, whose cheeks were slightly thinner, also put her hands on her hips: "We're looking for people who genuinely need to enter the village, not necessarily you."

Li Banfeng said sincerely, "I very much need to enter the village!"

A-Yun snorted, "Nonsense! The village chief didn't say he was looking for you!"

Li Banfeng shook his head: "The village chief didn't explicitly say it, but he hinted for you to come find me. I am the person who most needs to enter the village."

A-Yi didn't believe him: "What evidence do you have?"

Li Banfeng nodded: "There's evidence. You didn't need to invite me; I simply walked in myself. Doesn't that prove I very much need to enter the village?"

A-Yun and A-Yi gave Li Banfeng a hostile look. The two of them huddled together and discussed seriously for a few minutes. Li Banfeng used his "silk thread earrings" to carefully listen to their discussion. The two women debated from three perspectives: the village's overall situation, the village chief's vision, and future development, finally reaching a conclusion: "We have to take someone back anyway, so let it be him."

The three walked together into the village. It was already winter, yet the rice paddies were lush green, and the crops were thriving, indicating some form of cultivation and maintenance. A young man emerged from a cornfield, dark-skinned, tall and slender, with muscles sculpted like a statue, evenly firm and beautifully defined. The young man tossed two corn cobs to the two women: "Try some! They ripened half a month early, so sweet, ha ha ha!" The two women peeled back the corn husks with their mouths and took a bite directly into the raw corn cobs. After biting into them, both laughed at the young man, "It's sweet! Truly sweet, ha ha ha!" After speaking, they finished both raw corn cobs and asked the young man for two more.

Li Banfeng looked at the three and frowned, asking, "Why are you all acting so crazy?"

A-Yun looked at Li Banfeng and said, "You think we're crazy? Didn't you want to come here yourself?"

"I came here, but not because I'm crazy!"

"No one said you were crazy. We're just asking you to eat some corn." A-Yi peeled a corn cob and placed it in front of Li Banfeng.

Raw corn? If he were truly hungry, it wouldn't be impossible to eat.

"But I'm not hungry right now!"

A-Yun laughed, "Who asked if you're hungry? We're just asking if it's sweet?"

Li Banfeng shook his head. "I don't like eating corn."

A-Yi asked, "Do you eat wheat then?"

"No, not wheat either."

"So what do you usually eat?"

Li Banfeng's expression darkened as he said, "In any case, I'm not a vegetarian."

A-Yi called out to a man by the roadside, "A-Mu, did you catch any fish? Give us one! We have a newcomer here, and he's not a vegetarian."

A live, wriggling fish was placed before him. Li Banfeng blinked and said, "I don't eat fish either."

"So picky," A-Yun called out, "Brother A-Long, how many snails did you catch?"

"About a basketful."

Li Banfeng shook his head: "Snails can't be eaten raw; they have parasites—"

"Uncle A-Gen, how many earthworms did you catch today?"

"About a basinful."

Li Banfeng picked up the corn cob and took a bite: "It really is sweet."

After walking over a hundred meters further, A-Yun asked A-Yi, "Did you bring the indenture?"

A-Yi shook her head: "No, I didn't. We agreed today that you would bring the indenture."

A-Yun pursed her lips: "I forgot too."

A-Yi complained, "How can we not bring the indenture? The village chief doesn't have a copy at his house either."

A-Yun thought for a moment: "My house is close by. Let's go get it from there."

The three walked into the village and entered a farmhouse courtyard where there was a mushroom-shaped house. The house was called mushroom-shaped not because of a large roof, but because its first floor was like a mushroom stem: upon opening the door, there was only a staircase and nothing else. The second floor was the mushroom cap, with a living room, a kitchen, and two bedrooms.

Leaving aside the stability of this building, the issue with the second floor itself baffled Li Banfeng: "Why did you design a second floor here?"

A-Yun replied, "Where would I sleep without a second floor?"

"Couldn't you just make it a single-story house?"

"The first floor is so small, how could I sleep there?"

"You know the space is small, so why keep this first floor?"

A-Yun said, "If I don't keep the first floor, where would the stairs be? How would I get to the second floor without stairs?"

Li Banfeng pondered for a long time; he almost accepted A-Yun's logic. But he finally understood: "You don't need to build a multi-story house; a single-story house would suffice."

A-Yun shook her head: "No, that won't do. Living high up means you can see far. If you live close to the ground, it's clear you're someone with no vision."

Li Banfeng frowned: "What does that have to do with vision? What if someone lives in a basement? How would you explain that then?"

A-Yun said very seriously, "Our village chief's wife lives underground. She dug a total of twenty-six layers underground. The village chief's wife says living underground is the most secure, but we all laugh at her for her lack of vision, saying she's like a frog at the bottom of a well, ignorant of the vastness of the world."

Li Banfeng chuckled, "If you have the ability to live on the twentieth floor above ground, that's truly having vision."

A-Yun pointed into the distance and said, "Our village chief lives on the twenty-sixth floor above ground. The village chief is the person with the most vision in our village!"

Li Banfeng calculated the distance between the two: "How often do they see each other?"

A-Yun knew the situation here: "Usually twice a month. On the first day of each month, the village chief goes down, and every time he comes back, he says his cultivation foundation has become more stable."

A-Yi eagerly added, "On the fifteenth of every month, the village chief's wife comes up, and every time she comes up, she's especially happy, constantly saying she's 'opened her eyes'!"

Li Banfeng clasped his hands, squatted on the ground, and said, "I want to go home. I'm leaving now."

A-Yi was very surprised: "Didn't you say you wanted to come? Why are you changing your mind so quickly?"

Li Banfeng sighed, "Who hasn't acted impulsively when they were young?"

A-Yun shook her head: "You can't leave now. You haven't met the village chief yet!"

Li Banfeng looked up and asked, "Once I've met the village chief, can I leave?"

A-Yi shook her head: "No, not even then."

"Then what's the point of me meeting him?"

"You meet the village chief, stay in the village for a month, and then you can leave."

To be honest, if Li Banfeng truly wanted to leave, A-Yi and A-Yun certainly couldn't stop him. Whether anyone in the village could stop him was also debatable. He knew these two women were exaggerating a bit; there couldn't be such an eccentric village chief, let alone such an eccentric village chief's wife. But he still wanted to see what kind of existence this village chief truly was.

A-Yun and A-Yi picked up the indenture and led Li Banfeng towards the center of the village. Halfway there, Li Banfeng saw a man pulling a cart full of soil towards the river. The cart was large, and the soil on it probably weighed several tons. The man pulled it steadily, indicating extraordinary cultivation.

Li Banfeng asked, "What are you doing with so much soil?"

A-Yi replied, "The village chief's wife is digging tunnels underground, so the excess soil definitely needs to be cleared out."

So he was helping the village chief's wife. For someone with such high cultivation to be doing this kind of work, it seemed this village chief was highly unusual. Could he really be living in a twenty-six-story building?

In the center of the village, there was indeed a strange building, standing like an umbrella in the middle of a courtyard. Li Banfeng looked up. The estimated height really did seem to be twenty-six stories.

A-Yun wiped sweat from her forehead and said, "The building is too tall; I'm not going up."

A-Yi led Li Banfeng upstairs. The bottom twenty-five floors of this building were all staircases, extending from top to bottom like a chimney. Reaching the twenty-sixth floor, they finally saw a door. A-Yi said to Li Banfeng, "I won't go in. Just take the indenture and go in yourself."

Li Banfeng took the indenture and glanced at it: "Outsider [Name], voluntarily comes to Hulu Village, will reside in Hulu Village for half a month, then decide their own destination."

Just two lines of text? Did they really need to prepare this in advance? Li Banfeng, with a look of disdain, pushed the door open and entered the village chief's house. Behind the door was a living room furnished with a sofa set and a coffee table. A man sat on the sofa, reading a newspaper.

This was the village chief? He didn't look very old.

Li Banfeng held the indenture and asked, "You brought me here just to sign this?"

"Yes," the man nodded.

"Can we discuss this? Half a month is too long. Can it be shortened?" Li Banfeng placed the indenture in front of the man.

The man shook his head. "That's absolutely not possible. This duration cannot be changed."

Li Banfeng smiled. "Then I won't sign it."

The man looked up at Li Banfeng: "If you don't sign the indenture, you won't be able to leave here."

Li Banfeng seriously asked, "You say that to scare me, but can you really stop me?"

The man nodded. "They can stop you. I haven't been allowed to leave because I refused to sign the indenture."

Li Banfeng was stunned: "Aren't you the village chief?"

The man shook his head: "I am not the village chief."

"Then who are you?"

"My name is Zhang Peiwen. You probably don't know me. I've only been here for a few days." There was a hint of fear in the man's eyes.

Zhang Peiwen... why did that name sound so familiar? The recently missing Zhang Peiwen? The Zhang Peiwen they had been looking for these past few days?

Li Banfeng carefully examined the man, then compared him to photos and surveillance footage. He noticed that Zhang Peiwen had gained some weight.

Li Banfeng asked, "How did you end up here?"

Zhang Peiwen rubbed his eyes, tears welling up as he said, "Didn't I just say? If you don't sign the indenture, they won't let you leave. I've been living here for several days already."

"You're living here, so where is the village chief?"

Zhang Peiwen thought for a moment and asked, "When you entered the village, didn't you see the village chief?"

"No! I mean—" He probably didn't." Li Banfeng pushed open the window and looked downstairs.

A-Yi was craning her neck, also looking at Li Banfeng. No way...

Li Banfeng tentatively asked, "Are you the village chief?"

A-Yi burst into loud laughter: "I am the village chief! You didn't expect that, did you? Ha ha ha!"

Li Banfeng pondered for a moment, then looked at A-Yun and asked, "Are you the village chief's wife?"

A-Yun shook her head: "I'm not the village chief's wife. That man you just saw pulling soil, he's the village chief's wife."

Li Banfeng was puzzled: "He's a man, why would he be the wife?"

A-Yi retorted angrily, "What do you think? Can I marry a woman?"

Li Banfeng thought for a moment and then asked, "Then what did you mean by 'opened your eyes' earlier?"

A-Yi snorted, "None of your business! We just like it this way! Have you signed the indenture?"

"No!" Li Banfeng closed the window and immediately headed for the door. "I can't stay here any longer. Everyone in this place is crazy. I've never been to a mental hospital, but even the psychiatric ward of a regular hospital isn't this insane!"

Zhang Peiwen interjected, "You can't go down there anymore. The stairs are gone."

"How could the stairs be gone—" Li Banfeng opened the door and saw that the stairs were indeed gone. From the first to the twenty-fifth floor, only an empty stairwell remained; the stairs had vanished.

Li Banfeng closed the door and heard A-Yi laughing downstairs, "No stairs. Can you fly down? Ha ha ha ha!"

Zhang Peiwen, from behind, advised, "You definitely can't fly. Just give up."

Can't fly? Is flying that difficult? With such limited understanding, she's the village chief?

Li Banfeng pushed open the window, looked at A-Yi, and thought, "Today, I need to teach her a good lesson." Li Banfeng stepped onto the windowsill, preparing to fly down. A-Yi had the villagers prepare a row of Gatling guns and instructed, "As soon as he comes down, shoot him hard!"

Li Banfeng hesitated for a moment and retreated back into the living room. Zhang Peiwen, hiding behind the sofa, said, "She really will shoot. Several people tried to jump down from here and were riddled with bullets."

Li Banfeng smiled calmly and shook his head. "I'm not afraid of her bullets. I have many ways to dodge them. I just don't want to implicate others."

Zhang Peiwen looked around: "Who don't you want to implicate? Is there anyone else here?"

"I don't want to implicate you; I want to take you with me," Li Banfeng reopened the door. "I'll take you flying down the stairwell."

Zhang Peiwen shook his head, a look of fear on his face: "It's no use flying down. They won't let me go."

"I have a way. Don't worry, just stick close to me." Li Banfeng looked at Zhang Peiwen, his face showing a calm and reliable smile.

Zhang Peiwen nodded vigorously: "I trust you!"

The two stood at the doorway. As Li Banfeng prepared to jump down, Zhang Peiwen warned, "There might be explosives in this stairwell."

The village chief planting explosives in her own house? Li Banfeng had truly not expected that.

"Where are the explosives usually located?"

Zhang Peiwen thought for a moment: "Between twenty and thirty meters from the ground up."

Li Banfeng flew down a certain distance, carefully checking along the walls. Since he didn't know how many explosives had been planted, he tried his best to avoid the locations where they might be hidden. Checking from thirty meters down to twenty meters, Li Banfeng looked up at Zhang Peiwen: "I don't see any explosives."

"Look again carefully." Zhang Peiwen lit a dynamite pack, threw it into the stairwell, and closed the door.

Boom! The stairwell exploded.

Zhang Peiwen pushed open the window and excitedly shouted, "Village Chief, I blew him up!"

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