We Weren’t Fated, I Just Played My Cards Right - Chapter 17
Zhan Hongye didn’t leave immediately. He stood quietly outside, separated from Jenny by just a door.
At that moment, his phone rang.
Zhan Hongye took out his phone, glanced at it, and answered the call. “Mr. Ning…”
His voice grew fainter as his footsteps receded.
By 9:30, Zhan Hongye emerged from the study, carefully cradling the gray vase in his arms.
Soon after, the villa’s front door opened and closed as his car drove away.
In the passenger seat, the gray vase was securely nestled in a soft cloth bag.
Zhan Hongye rarely went out alone at night, but tonight was special—he had an appointment with Mr. Ning, and no outsiders could be present.
At this hour, the southern city of Qingcheng was still lively.
Neon lights flickered along the streets, bustling with traffic. Passing through the downtown area, it was even more vibrant than during the day.
Zhan Hongye didn’t notice that two cars had been following him ever since he left the villa and entered the main road.
He drove to the southern district, gradually slowing down.
The South District was the old urban area of Qingcheng, once considered the city center. But with the relocation, it was no longer as bustling as before. The low-rise buildings appeared aged and dilapidated, with cars haphazardly parked along the roadside, as if left behind by time, unnoticed by anyone.
By just 10 p.m., only a handful of supermarkets along the street remained lit. Some residential areas lacked streetlights, making the surroundings even quieter.
Zhan Hongye finally found a parking spot and pulled over. Most nearby cars were budget brands, with only a single BMW standing out.
His gaze swept casually over the car as he took out his phone to confirm the address sent by Mr. Ning. Following the navigation, he walked ahead another hundred meters.
While still studying the directions, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him.
Instinctively turning around, he barely had time to see who it was before a dark figure lunged at him. Knocked to the ground, he was met with a flurry of punches and kicks.
His attackers showed no mercy. Amid the chaotic blows, he vaguely sensed his ribs might be broken, his tongue bitten, the metallic taste of bl00d filling his mouth.
He couldn’t tell how long the beating lasted. When the strikes finally weakened, someone grabbed his hair and yanked him up, then delivered a heavy punch to his eye socket, followed by several brutal slaps.
Zhan Hongye’s vision went black, his head ringing. He had no idea how much time passed before he regained some awareness—only to realize his assailants had vanished as silently as they had come.
Battered and sprawled on the ground, bl00d filling his nose and mouth, his body wracked with pain, only his sight had partially returned.
He saw someone emerge from a nearby alley. Struggling, he managed to rasp, “H-help…”
The figure hurried toward him, but before he could make out their face, darkness swallowed him again.
……
Jenny didn’t dare close her eyes all night. Near dawn, exhaustion finally pulled her into a brief sleep—only for a nightmare to jolt her awake, one where Zhan Huitian drained every drop of her bl00d.
Dazed, she stepped out of her room to find her eldest brother already seated at the dining table downstairs, eating breakfast.
The master bedroom door remained tightly shut. She didn’t know if her father had come home last night, but right now, she didn’t want to see him.
Zhan Huitian wore a sleeveless athletic shirt, the breakfast on the table bought after his morning jog—enough for two.
Noticing her, he said flatly, “Come eat.”
Jenny sat beside him, mechanically picking up a fried dough stick and chewing.
“What’s wrong? Didn’t sleep well?”
“Had a nightmare,” she murmured. After a pause, she added, “Dreamed that Dad… abandoned me.”
Zhan Huitian glanced up at her with a strange look in his eyes.
Jenny didn’t notice. She swallowed the fried dough stick in her mouth, her mind still in turmoil. Without thinking, she blurted out, “Brother, has Dad treated you well these years?”
The moment she asked, she realized how ridiculous the question was.
Of course Dad treated her elder brother well. When their parents divorced, he only took her brother away. While she and her mother lived an ordinary life, her father and brother moved through a world of lavish banquets and endless toasts.
She had to earn good grades just to beg her mother for a bicycle, while her brother’s garage was lined with rows of expensive luxury cars.
Was it because their father had never cared about her that he treated her this way?
Lost in her thoughts, Jenny didn’t notice that Zhan Huitian remained silent, never answering her question.
After breakfast, Zhan Huitian went upstairs to change and came down with car keys, ready to leave.
Jenny followed him outside and watched as he drove out a car from the garage—this one with a prancing horse emblem, different from yesterday’s blue-and-white logo.
“What are you standing there for?” Zhan Huitian pulled up beside her and asked.
“I made plans to meet a friend. Could you give me a ride if it’s on your way?” Jenny asked cautiously.
“Get in.” He agreed readily.
He dropped her off at the breakfast shop where they had met the day before, then turned the car around and left.
Jenny had texted Liu Mumu first thing in the morning but hadn’t received a reply. Too afraid to stay home alone, she had no choice but to wait at the breakfast shop.
It wasn’t until past eight that Liu Mumu finally responded—disappointingly, she refused to meet.
Left with no other option, Jenny recounted last night’s events to Liu Mumu in a long message.
Right now, Liu Mumu was the only person she trusted.
Meanwhile, Liu Mumu looked rather worse for wear as she read her phone in her room. Last night, she had slipped in the bathtub while showering, banging her head and nearly drowning herself.
After barely managing to save herself, she was left with a swollen lump on her forehead that still hadn’t gone down.
Her wrist was wrapped in several layers of gauze—a wound from a kitchen knife the day before.
No one but Liu Mumu would understand why a perfectly placed knife would suddenly fall and cut her wrist.
Though she wanted to meet Jenny, she decided it was better to wait until after today—for the sake of her own survival.
Reading Jenny’s flood of messages finally lifted Liu Mumu’s spirits. At least Jenny believed her; the misfortunes of the past two days hadn’t been in vain.
Jenny: Last night, I saw Dad smearing bl00d on a bottle. It must have been the bl00d taken during my checkup. What is he trying to do?
Jenny: Mumu, what should I do?
Liu Mumu: Smearing human bl00d on vessels is likely part of some ritual. These things take time—it won’t harm you immediately since the ritual isn’t complete yet. Don’t worry too much.
Jenny’s hands trembled slightly as she typed out a frantic reply.
Jenny: Are those strange marks that suddenly appeared on my body related to this ritual? Did my mom die because of this? He used our bl00d for something terrible and killed her, didn’t he?
Liu Mumu: It’s just speculation, but… you’re probably not far from the truth.
Several minutes passed before Jenny responded again.
Jenny: Then what should I do?
Liu Mumu: Stay away from him, the farther the better. Don’t give him any chance to get your bl00d. Even your birth date information could become his means to harm you—you must be careful. The simplest solution now is to destroy that bottle directly.
Who knows where Zhan Hongye got such sinister things from. If Jenny is brave enough, destroying the bottle would undoubtedly be the best approach.
Jenny: But he keeps the jar locked in his study when he’s not home. If I destroy it, he’ll definitely know it was me.
Liu Mumu: Once the bottle is destroyed, as its owner, he will suffer the backlash. He won’t be able to stop you from leaving.
Even though Jenny isn’t particularly strong, this shouldn’t be too difficult for her.
Jenny: No, I can’t leave that house. Can’t you divine for me again? Tell me how I can take the bottle without him noticing.
Jenny’s words left Liu Mumu speechless for a long moment. She couldn’t quite understand why Jenny insisted on staying, facing a man who wanted to harm her own father.
Still, she answered.
Liu Mumu: I can’t perform two divinations for the same person in such a short time. I’m sorry.
Jenny: I can pay you. Is 50,000 enough?
The bank card Zhan Hongye gave her had at least 200,000 in it. Financially, he hadn’t mistreated her.
Liu Mumu: I’m afraid not.
After her reply, Jenny sent no further messages.
After waiting a while with no response, Liu Mumu sighed and sat up from the bed. Others charged money for divinations—hers cost her own life!
As she got out of bed, her foot suddenly slipped, and she fell to the floor with a dull thud.
She sat on the hardwood floor for a while, waiting for the pain to subside before slowly pushing herself up with the bed’s support.
She had originally planned to get breakfast, but now, considering how easily she might choke to death, she decided against it.
*
Qingcheng City Bureau, Special Cases Investigation Division.
In the office, Captain Fang Chuan handed over the investigation materials to their department’s special consultant, Yan Xiu.
Yan Xiu lowered his head to review the documents, a strand of hair falling over his forehead. His slender fingers turned the pages, producing faint rustling sounds.
“Zhan Hongye’s only living bl00d relatives now are his son and daughter. All other relatives have died one after another over the past few years. Oh, and his ex-wife also passed away not long ago,” Fang Chuan said.
Yan Xiu flipped to a particular page, his voice deep as he read the records: “His uncle and two aunts—he took care of them until their deaths?”
“Yes. Our team investigated his hometown. Zhan Hongye has an excellent reputation there. His uncle was in poor health, and his two aunts had no pensions. Not only did he buy them a new house, but he also hired caretakers, provided for their daily needs, gave them spending money, and took them for regular health checkups twice a year.”
“Do we know their cause of death?” Yan Xiu asked.
Fang Chuan shook his head. “No, the bodies were sent straight for cremation after death.”
“By the way, his ex-wife’s cause of death was a bit unusual.” Fang Chuan pulled out a stack of medical reports along with several photos.
He placed a few gruesome, bloodied images in front of Yan Xiu, who took them calmly and examined them carefully before asking, “What was the hospital’s diagnosis?”
“The hospital didn’t provide a specific diagnosis. They suspected it might be an undiscovered disease, with symptoms including skin ulceration and unstoppable bleeding in the later stages.”
“Unstoppable bleeding…” Yan Xiu took the remaining photos and flipped through them one by one.
From Zhang Xueli’s hospitalization to her deterioration, the hospital had taken high-definition photos for documentation.
After Yan Xiu finished reviewing the photos, Fang Chuan asked, “Well? Any findings?”
Yan Xiu set the photos aside and stood up, addressing Fang Chuan, who was staring at him eagerly. “Quite a few. No need to investigate further—we can arrest him directly.”
“Care to elaborate?” Fang Chuan ordered his subordinates to apprehend the suspect while following closely behind Yan Xiu, waiting for an explanation.
“That wasn’t a worsening illness. It was the slow death process of a sacrificial offering after the ritual was completed. In the past, sorcerers in the Shanchuan region would sacrifice livestock like cattle and sheep to feed their cursed artifacts. Once sated, these artifacts could be controlled to harm people.”
“You’re saying Zhan Hongye used people as sacrifices?” A chill ran down Fang Chuan’s spine. Recalling Yan Xiu’s earlier questions about Zhan’s relatives, he immediately understood. “Then his family members…?”
“Most likely, they were all sacrificed. Older cursed artifacts had limited power—controlling them to kill wasn’t easy. The one he possesses now is far more potent, likely modified. Using his bl00d relatives as sacrifices would enhance its effects.”
“But what about his ex-wife? She wasn’t a bl00d relative, was she?” Fang Chuan frowned in confusion.
Yan Xiu scoffed. “Didn’t you say he only has a son and daughter left? Sacrifices must be used sparingly.”
Ordinary people often become obsessed with dark, supernatural powers, unaware that these forces grow increasingly insatiable. At first, only one sacrifice is needed, but over time, the demands multiply until they consume everything the wielder has.
Zhan Hongye had sacrificed his relatives to feed the cursed artifact, using it to kill—an unbreakable cycle of death.