Chapter 606 - 606: A Slip of the Tongue (6th Update)
"I'm going all out against you!" Ding Changsheng roared furiously, standing up and charging toward Ye Qing.
Ye Qing watched him coldly, clenching his fists, ready to strike. However, after running forward a few steps, Ding Changsheng stopped because he realized that not a single person around him had rushed up to join him. Considering he was alone, he obviously didn't dare to risk his life against Ye Qing; after all, he had suffered a great loss at Ye Qing's hands before.
In his impulsiveness, Ding Changsheng had assumed that someone nearby would restrain him. Even if no one nearby did, he thought that Ding Chang'an would stop him. But Ding Chang'an simply sat there quietly, watching him, showing no intention to intervene, which left Ding Changsheng unsure of how to back down. However, to avoid a beating, he ended up reluctantly retreating, deciding not to fight Ye Qing after all.
"Weren't you going to fight me?" Ye Qing said coldly. "What's wrong? Scared?"
"The Ding family is reasonable, unlike you hoodlums and bandits!" Ding Changsheng said sternly. "Mr. Ye, if you don't want to stay here, just get lost. And don't let me find out it was you who framed Young Master Ding, or I will definitely kill you myself!"
"I'll be waiting!" Ye Qing's cold gaze swept over the people of the Ding family, settling finally on Ding Shaoyan, as he coldly said, "Ding Shaoyan, I will kill you myself!"
After speaking, Ye Qing turned to leave, when Ding Chang'an finally spoke up, "Mr. Ye, please wait a moment!"
"Is there any need for further discussion now?" Ye Qing turned and asked coldly. "Ding Changyuan has already coached Ding Shaoyan on how to answer. Continuing this interrogation will yield no results."
"Regardless, since you're here, let's get things clear!" Ding Chang'an said. "Rest assured, if it really was Shaoyan who did it, I will not cover for him."
"It's impossible that it was Shaoyan!" Ding Changyuan shouted.
"Chang Yuan, don't speak for now!" Ding Chang'an said with a slight frown. "Whether it was Shaoyan or not, I will judge for myself. You should avoid any appearance of bias!"
Ding Changyuan opened his mouth but, eventually, chose not to say anything more.
Ye Qing frowned slightly and pondered for a moment before sitting back down in his original spot.
Ding Shaoyan looked around at everyone in shock; it was only at this moment that he began to understand a bit, and a hint of joy flickered across his face.
Ding Chang'an played the content on the tape again, and as everyone listened to the conversation, all eyes were on Ding Shaoyan. Ding Shaoyan was clearly uncomfortable but tried his best to appear calm.
After listening to the tape, Ding Chang'an looked at Ding Shaoyan and asked, "Shaoyan, tell me, is the voice on this tape yours?"
"Great uncle, I don't know!" Ding Shaoyan said with an innocent look. "How does this voice sound so much like mine? But I never said those words. And how could I possibly harm Grandpa Tie? This must be forged by someone to frame me deliberately!"
Ding Changyuan's face immediately showed a hint of joy, and he gave Ye Qing a provocative glance on this side. Ye Qing's expression was relatively calm, as he suddenly lost his anger.
"Is that so?" Ding Chang'an looked at Ding Shaoyan and said, "Shaoyan, you'd better tell me the truth. If you do, we can be lenient. But if it really was you, and you still refuse to admit it, not even your great uncle can help you!"
Ding Shaoyan said, "Great uncle, I'm telling the truth, there's not a single lie!"
Ding Changsheng said, "Big brother, you watched Shaoyan grow up; don't you believe him?"
"Yes, brother, Shaoyan may be a little mischievous, but he absolutely couldn't do such a thing. This tape must be someone's deliberate attempt to frame him!" Ding Xiangyun added.
The people of the Ding family and the Xingyi School all looked at Ye Qing, curious to see how he would handle the situation. Ding Changyuan was even more triumphantly looking at Ye Qing; after all, the tape didn't capture anyone's face, and as long as Ding Shaoyan insisted it wasn't him, no one could convict him of the crime.
"Ding Shaoyan!" Ye Qing suddenly spoke, "You know Xu Dingjiang, right?"
Ding Shaoyan's expression changed slightly, but he quickly returned to normal and shook his head, "I don't know, who are you talking about?"
"Then you must know Lin Yaqing, right?" Ye Qing asked again.
"I don't know her," Ding Shaoyan answered bluntly.
"Really?" Ye Qing looked at Ding Shaoyan. "Xu Dingjiang, Lin Yaqing, you don't recognize either of them? Lin Yaqing from the Lin family, think carefully before you speak again. Do you really not know them?"
"I don't know them, I've told you I don't know them, and that means I don't!" Ding Shaoyan said. "This is the first time I've heard these two names. What does the Lin family have to do with me? Must I know everyone from the Lin family?"
"You may not know them, but it seems they know you!" Ye Qing said.
"Bullshit!" Ding Shaoyan shouted loudly, "You're trying to frame me again, Ye, you're too damn despicable!"
"Ye Qing, watch your mouth!" Ding Changyuan barked angrily.
"Chang Yuan!" Ding Chang'an called out to stop him, while Ding Changyuan glared at Ye Qing, muttering something under his breath.
"Ding Shaoyan, there's something you might not know yet," Ye Qing said. "Xu Dingjiang is dead!"
Ding Shaoyan's face changed, but there was also a flash of joy in his eyes. This man's death was good news for him.
"Lin Yaqing is dead too!" Ye Qing added.
Ding Shaoyan was even more secretly delighted; with both people gone, his links to them were cut. At last, he was completely safe.
"Li Wenyuan is dead too!" Ye Qing looked at Ding Shaoyan and said, "Shangguan Tian has gone mad!"
Ding Shaoyan frowned, the last two people had nothing to do with him. However, hearing Ye Qing say this, he still felt uneasy. Almost everyone involved in that last incident had died, was Ye Qing hinting at something?
"Ye, can't you say something useful for once?" Ding Changsheng shouted, "So what if these people are dead? What does it have to do with the Ding Family? Now, either you prove that Shaoyan is the murderer who killed Tie Yongwen, or admit that you framed Shaoyan—stop talking nonsense!"
Ye Qing didn't even look at him, only at Ding Shaoyan, and said, "You might not recognize Xu Dingjiang and Lin Yaqing, but I found call records with you on their phones!"
"What?" Ding Shaoyan's face changed as he exclaimed, "How's that possible? How could they possibly still have the call records?"
Ye Qing gave a cold smile; he had mentioned these four names just to test Ding Shaoyan's reaction. From Ding Shaoyan's response, Ye Qing could tell that he had had some contact with Xu Dingjiang and Lin Yaqing. So, Ye Qing deliberately mentioned the call records on their phones as a bluff, but Ding Shaoyan was indeed guilty, and as soon as Ye Qing scared him a bit, he gave himself away!
The faces of the Ding family members all changed—Ding Shaoyan's words were basically an admission that he had contacts with Xu Dingjiang and Lin Yaqing. And they all knew that Xu Dingjiang and Lin Yaqing were connected to the death of Tie Yongwen, so everything was becoming clear.
"Ye, you deliberately set a trap to frame my son!" Ding Changyuan shouted angrily, "My son has no connection with these two; how could they have his call records? You're just scaring people, tricking my son into misspeaking!"
"Is that so?" Ye Qing looked at Ding Shaoyan with a cold gaze, "I've already given the phones of Lin Yaqing and Xu Dingjiang to the police for safekeeping, do you want me to bring the phones now and prove it?"
Ding Shaoyan's mouth gaped open, unable to speak for a long time. Because he had indeed contacted Lin Yaqing more than once. Perhaps her phone really did have his call records.
"Shaoyan, what else do you have to say now?" Ding Chang'an asked in a stern voice. Everything was clear; the evidence proved that Ding Shaoyan was really the person speaking on the tape, the one who had killed Tie Yongwen.
Suddenly, Ding Shaoyan turned around and fell to his knees with a thump, pleading in a trembling voice, "Uncle, I... I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong... please spare me, give me one more chance, I won't ever make a mistake again..."
With this knee-fall, Ding Shaoyan had thoroughly admitted to the affair. The Ding family members shook their heads and sighed, while the Xingyi School members were extremely angry, clamoring to kill Ding Shaoyan.
Ding Changyuan sat there with a face ashen, knowing he was now powerless to change the course of events. Ding Shaoyan had made such a big mistake, and he no longer had the ability to protect him!
"You now realize your mistake!" Ding Chang'an slammed his fist on the table and shouted, "When you plotted to kill Old Master Tie, didn't you think you were in the wrong? When you schemed to blame Ye Qing, did you ever consider your mistake? When your grandfather died of anger because of you, did you think you had already erred?"
Ding Shaoyan shivered all over from Ding Chang'an's outburst, kneeling there trembling uncontrollably, not knowing what to say.
Ding Chang'an himself was shaking with anger, glaring fiercely at Ding Shaoyan, and suddenly hit the table and roared, "Drag him away and execute him!"
"Big brother!" Ding Xiangyun hastily stood up, urgently saying, "Don't do it, please!"
"Big brother!" Ding Changyuan also stood up quickly, pleading, "He's your nephew; how can you treat him like this?"
"Shaoyan is still young; making some small mistakes is normal. A beating to teach him a lesson would be enough, there's no need to kill him, right?" Ding Changsheng also pleaded for Ding Shaoyan.
Several other members of the Ding family stood up to speak for Ding Shaoyan, but most people did not rise; they too harbored hatred for Ding Shaoyan. Because of him, Tie Yongwen was dead, Gao Shusen was dead, and even Old Master Ding had died. With that, the Ding family was ruined; they were once the top family in Shenchuan City. But now, because of what Ding Shaoyan had done, they couldn't even make the top five, how could they not be angry!
"What is the use of keeping such a monstrous child?" Ding Chang'an shouted angrily, "Kill him for me!"