Chapter 37 - 32: Reversal! Decisive Ironclad Evidence

Li Family Village.

This was a desolate and backward place. Lin Yue had already prepared herself for it before they arrived.

But she never imagined it would be *this* desolate.

10:30 PM.

Not a single light shone from the houses of Li Family Village, which were clustered on the mountainside. It was like a cluster of lonely tombs and abandoned temples in the deep mountains, exuding an unsettling eeriness.

"Is there no electricity here?" Lin Yue asked, stepping out of the car and frowning at the sight before her.

Just then, Wang Chao also got out. He stepped onto the uneven dirt road, stomping his foot a few times.

"They don’t even have a single concrete road?"

Power grid coverage and the "Every Village Concrete Road" project were mandatory parts of Dongguo’s official infrastructure plan.

This godforsaken Li Family Village didn’t have either one!

Then, from the back seat, Wang Mei spoke up quietly:

"They had electricity at first."

"But someone kept cutting the power lines to sell the wire. After it happened several times, the power company had no choice but to give up on Li Family Village for the time being."

"As for the road... no one was willing to contribute when they tried to raise funds. The village secretary tried to get the money himself, but that didn’t work either. Whenever someone came to start construction, people would just cause trouble."

Hearing this, Lin Yue and Wang Chao were at a loss for words, simply staring at the distant buildings with a sigh.

Xu De, however, had no time to dwell on such things. He got out of the car and said directly:

"Ms. Wang, you just wait in the car."

"Lawyer Lin, Wang Chao, let’s go get the child."

"Time is of the essence. We need to be back within half an hour."

With that, he glanced at his watch and was the first to head toward Li Family Village.

Wang Chao and Lin Yue hurried to keep up.

There was a good reason for not letting Wang Mei come along.

She had been here for ten years. And although she was held captive, ninety percent of the villagers would recognize her.

With Li Youcai and Liu Cui not in the village, if Wang Mei were to sneak back in the middle of the night... well, it wouldn’t take a genius to figure out why she was here. It would most likely trigger an unnecessary conflict.

But if Xu De’s group of three was discovered... while it would arouse suspicion, as long as they weren’t caught in the act, there would be no direct confrontation.

TAP.

Xu De stepped into Li Family Village.

Tire tracks from the police minibus’s last visit were still visible on the ground. Not far off was a brownish stain—the spot where Li Erniu had died.

He scanned his surroundings, determined his direction, and began to move cautiously forward.

Along the way, Wang Chao was practically buzzing with excitement. He felt a rush of heat, his blood boiling. Watching Xu De’s back disappear into the darkness, he couldn’t help but whisper, "Hey, Lawyer Xu, do you know where the kid is?"

Without turning his head, Xu De replied:

"I found out before the trial."

"When Li Youcai and Liu Cui are staying in the city, they leave the child with a close acquaintance in the village. The location is..."

As he spoke, a strange expression appeared on Wang Chao’s face.

’What kind of lawyer investigates where the opposing party’s child lives before a trial?’

’Shouldn’t he be gathering evidence?!’

But he didn’t have time to dwell on it.

Suddenly, Xu De stopped in his tracks. Wang Chao, still lost in thought, bumped right into his back and stumbled.

"Hey, why’d you stop?"

Wang Chao rubbed his head and looked up, a confused grin on his face.

Xu De didn’t answer directly. Instead, he looked up at the dilapidated, tile-roofed house made of mud and straw before them, his gaze hardening.

"This is it."

Hearing that, Wang Chao and Lin Yue finally noticed the house hidden in the darkness.

It resembled a rural earthen house from the 1980s, with a courtyard formed by several thatched huts inside, all surrounded by a thick mud wall. The iron gate was shut tight, and not a sound could be heard.

Wang Chao pressed his ear to the gate and listened for a long while before turning back.

"No movement. They must be out."

Xu De placed his hand on the main gate, and the next second...

CREAK.

The gate opened a crack, about a finger’s width, but wouldn’t budge any further. Faintly visible on the outside was a small lock that Wang Chao had overlooked.

"It’s locked from the outside, and the inner bolt isn’t used. They’re definitely out. The child should still be inside," Xu De concluded immediately.

When adults in the countryside go out, they often lock their children inside. So, a locked door didn’t necessarily mean the child was gone too.

"Heh, I’ll go in and see if I can find a key."

Now that he knew the owners were out, Wang Chao was eager to give it a try.

He looked around, found a good spot, took a few steps back, and then broke into a sudden sprint.

THUD! THUD!

With two quick steps on the wall, he vaulted over the top. In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

Watching this, Xu De, who had just been a formidable force in the courtroom, was a bit stunned. He instinctively looked at Lin Yue, somewhat hesitant.

"This Lawyer Wang... has he always been this... athletic?"

’It’s pitch black, and that wall isn’t short, yet he just vaulted right over? Not even a thief is that skilled!’

"Don’t ask," Lin Yue said with a sigh, covering her face.

Xu De didn’t press the matter.

A moment later.

A RUSTLING sound came from inside the gate.

Then...

CLACK!

A small, square panel on the gate was pushed open from the inside, and a hand reached out.

The hand fumbled around on the outside of the gate, soon finding the lock. It fiddled with the lock for a moment, and then...

CLICK!

The lock opened.

CREAK.

The gate swung open. Wang Chao appeared on the other side, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively at the two of them.

Xu De was astonished, staring at him in disbelief.

"You found the key that fast?"

Wang Chao shook his head. "Nope."

Then, he grinned, opened his palm, and revealed what was lying in it... a piece of wire!

"But I found this."

’He... he picked the lock!’