Chapter 240: The Gambler and Domestic Abuse
For the next period of time, Yang Haoran poured all his efforts into refining the Death God Seal. He spent half a month, finally completely refining the Death God Seal within his body.
With each bit of the Death God Seal he refined, his strength would increase accordingly. Conversely, the power contained within the Death God Seal would diminish by a corresponding amount. This led to a faster and easier refining process as he progressed.
After thoroughly refining the Death God Seal in his body, Yang Haoran's strength experienced a substantial surge, becoming far more potent than those who had just opened their Heaven Soul.
The benefits were astonishing, but the subsequent troubles proved to be quite a headache for Yang Haoran. The Yin Qi contained within the refined Death God Seal was not Pure Yin Qi, resulting in a large amount of impurities lingering in his body.
If these impurities were not dealt with promptly, it would become even more difficult to handle them in the future. If left untreated, it would greatly hinder his future breakthroughs, potentially preventing him from ever reaching the next realm.
The impurities within his body were entirely detrimental to Yang Haoran. Thus, after completely refining the Death God Seal, he shifted all his energy to clearing these impurities from his system.
Days passed. Yang Haoran, neglecting food and sleep, diligently purged the impurities from his body. He was completely oblivious to the passage of time and had no mind for what was happening in the outside world. His phone, too, had long since automatically shut down due to a drained battery.
Although Yang Haoran, the Emissary of Death, paid no heed to external affairs, Old Master Wu, as his second-in-command, managed the Lecheng Underworld Office with impeccable order.
The Lecheng Underworld Office, which had essentially become an empty shell, quickly returned to normal operations thanks to Old Master Wu's presence, with all work proceeding as usual.
Moreover, compared to the Night Watchers under Deng Feng's leadership, the current Night Watchers of Lecheng, under Old Master Wu's management, exhibited far greater cohesion—a fact Yang Haoran was still unaware of.
Yang Haoran had decided to promote Old Master Wu precisely because he valued his capabilities. With Old Master Wu assisting him, he could freely act as a hands-off boss.
From the current situation, it seemed he was quite comfortable in his role as a hands-off boss. From the day he took office, he hadn't worried about the Lecheng Underworld Office at all, dumping all responsibilities onto Old Master Wu.
For Yang Haoran, this was both a good thing and a bad thing. As for whether it would ultimately turn out good or bad, the decision lay not with him, but with Old Master Wu.
However, given Yang Haoran's cautious nature, he wouldn't dare hand over the authority of the Lecheng Underworld Office to Old Master Wu without any precautions. His willingness to do so naturally stemmed from his own considerations and plans.
Everywhere has its slums, and Lecheng, despite being a small city, was no exception.
Those living in the slums were naturally poor, but not all poor people were the same.
Some poor people toiled from dawn till dusk, working tirelessly and willingly taking on any dirty or exhausting job, solely to change their circumstances, escape poverty, and filled with hope for tomorrow.
But other poor people were the exact opposite. They had long given up on their lives, believing that their fate was set and that no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't change anything; they would never escape the grip of poverty.
Thus, they abandoned themselves, unwilling to strive any longer. They spent their days idling, either waiting for a windfall from the heavens, or playing cards, sipping tea, or chatting, living lives completely contrary to the former group.
Song Laoyao was one of the latter.
Song Laoyao was twenty-five years old this year, the youngest in his family, with two older brothers and an older sister above him.
Once, their entire family lived in this slum, but his brothers and sister, through their own efforts, managed to leave the slum. Only Song Laoyao, the youngest, remained.
As the youngest in the family, Song Laoyao had been doted on by his parents since childhood. Yet, he exploited this, causing trouble daily and never learning to be good.
Even now, despite his young age, Song Laoyao indulged in all forms of debauchery: eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling. Gambling, in particular, was his greatest passion.
And he was known throughout the slum as a notorious gambler.
Initially, Song Laoyao's parents lived with him. His elder brother and sister would deposit a sum of money into his account each month. This money was originally intended by his siblings as filial piety for their elderly parents, hoping Song Laoyao would use it to improve their parents' lives.
But Song Laoyao was awful. After receiving the money each month, he only thought of himself, indulging in food, drink, and entertainment, never considering his parents, wife, or child. He even deceived his brother and sister, telling them the money was all spent on their parents.
Paper cannot wrap fire, and Song Laoyao's actions eventually reached the ears of his brother and sister. In a fit of anger, his brother and sister took their parents away, leaving Song Laoyao's family behind in the slum.
Without his brother and sister's remittances, Song Laoyao's finances grew tight. To satisfy his own desires, he resorted to inventing various excuses to swindle money from his siblings, while also pressuring his wife to go out and work.
As for him, he continued to play cards and drink alcohol every day.
If only it were just that. Every time he got drunk, Song Laoyao also had a habit of domestic abuse, especially after losing money. All his inner rage would be vented on his wife and child. He'd grab whatever was handy—sometimes a kettle full of boiling water, sometimes a rolling pin, sometimes a wooden stool, and once, even a kitchen knife.
The neighbors all knew about Song Laoyao's terrible temper and his frequent abuse of his wife and child, because his outbursts were always loud. The cries of the child and wife could be heard by all the nearby neighbors; it was hard not to know.
At first, some neighbors tried to intervene, but often those who intervened ended up getting hurt themselves.
Some neighbors also called the police, but Song Laoyao, far from changing after being released from the police station, became even more violent. He even threatened his neighbors, warning that if anyone meddled again, and he found out, he would kill their entire family.
Regardless of whether Song Laoyao's threats were real or not, no one wanted to provoke such a madman. If Song Laoyao truly did something extreme, they would be the ones to suffer.
Gradually, the nearby neighbors stopped intervening. They feared for their own safety and that of their families. Over time, they all resigned themselves to Song Laoyao's habit of domestic abuse.
Song Laoyao's wife went to work every day, leaving early and returning late, never seeing a single cent of her wages. All of it was forcibly confiscated by Song Laoyao. This money, Song Laoyao either gambled away or spent on prostitutes, never sparing a thought for her or their son.
As he saw it, as long as his wife and child didn't starve to death, it didn't matter; there was no need to feed them lavishly.
He was not ashamed of his actions; on the contrary, he was proud. He often boasted to his card buddies about his high status at home and frequently shared what he considered to be truths: that wives and children needed to be beaten into shape, that people were inherently depraved and would cause endless trouble without violence to keep them in line, and similar notions.
Outsiders couldn't bear to watch such a man, let alone his wife and child. Yet, his wife never left him.
It wasn't that his wife still harbored any illusions that he would turn over a new leaf. It was because she was constantly under his threats and simply dared not leave him.
Song Laoyao had once made a vicious threat: if his wife divorced him or reported him to the authorities, he would grab a kitchen knife and kill her entire family.
To outsiders who didn't know Song Laoyao, such empty threats seemed unworthy of concern. But his wife dared not dismiss them, because she understood this scoundrel Song Laoyao far better than any outsider.
She had no doubt that if she didn't follow Song Laoyao's wishes, he would indeed wield a kitchen knife and seek revenge on her family. So, his wife endured the torment from Song Laoyao, until a week ago, tragedy struck.
Song Laoyao's wife died, leaving behind a four-year-old child. She died at home; according to Song Laoyao, she died of illness.
With his wife gone, Song Laoyao was very sad, but his sadness was not of regret or longing. It was because he had lost a breadwinner, a free laborer. Without this free laborer, he would no longer have the capital for his monthly indulgences or the gambling money he needed for cards. How could he not be sad?
The funeral was very simple. Song Laoyao didn't notify his wife's family and didn't have money for cremation. That very day, he found a few people and buried his wife.
And today was the head seven for his wife.
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