You said you were going to make games, how did you become the richest man without doing anything?

Chapter 573 Weird Melody
As the night deepened, the outline of Baifeng Manor loomed in the distance. Tang Yin stood on the small slope at the entrance to the village, a cool breeze blowing through his short hair, bringing a sense of clarity. He squatted in the weeds by the roadside, his eyes warily scanning the path leading to the village.

"If I go in directly, I'll definitely be caught and kicked out..." Tang Yin rubbed his chin in thought, the chirping of insects at night making his thoughts clearer. Since normal communication didn't work, he had to resort to extraordinary measures.

He reached into the plastic bag he'd just bought from the convenience store and pulled out a bottle of cheap sake. In the moonlight, the label on the bottle had faded, giving it a somewhat shabby look. Tang Yin unscrewed the cap and took a sip.

"Ah, ah! It's so hard to drink!" He coughed and frowned at the pungent taste of the wine. Cheap stuff is cheap stuff. It tastes like white vinegar and burns the throat.

Tang Yin wiped the corner of his mouth and laughed self-deprecatingly. This low-quality wine really wasn't meant to be drunk this way, but to ensure his own safety and to solve the mystery of this strange village, he had no choice but to put up with it.

After the second drink, the alcohol began to take effect. Tang Yin felt his stomach churning and couldn't help but burp: "...burp."

By the third glass, his consciousness was blurring and his vision was becoming hazy. The bottle swung in his hand, spilling a few drops of wine, leaving dark marks on the ground.

By the fourth cup, Tang Yin was completely unable to stand. He leaned against a roadside telephone pole, staring blankly into the distance.

At that moment, a flashlight beam shone over. "...Huh?" It was the patrolling police officer, his voice full of confusion.

Tang Yin grinned, revealing a drunkard's standard silly smile: "...Huhehehe...Huhehehehe..."

"What's wrong, young man? Are you drunk? I've never seen you before!" The police officer walked closer and looked at the stranger warily.

"Yes~ah, yes...ah." Tang Yin answered vaguely, deliberately making his voice sound drunk.

The police officer wrinkled his nose and smelled a strong odor of alcohol: "Wow, you reek of alcohol! Where did you come from? It's already so late!"

"Yes...ah..." Tang Yin continued to pretend to be drunk and could not speak clearly.

"Oh, forget it, okay, okay! Come with me to the police station first!" The policeman sighed helplessly.

The plan worked! Tang Yin was secretly delighted. If he were sober now, this conscientious policeman would have kicked him out without hesitation. But now, he was a drunk who needed humanitarian care.

To make the performance more realistic, Tang Yin began to talk nonsense and sing loudly: "Hey ya~!! Hey ya~~~!!"

"I'm so annoyed, little brat! Stop disturbing others!" The police officer held his shoulders and shouted angrily.

……

The next morning, sunlight streamed in through the window. Tang Yin groggily opened his eyes. His head felt like it had been struck hard with a hammer, and the intense pain made him groan. Not only was his head aching, but his back and muscles throughout his body ached unbearably, as if he had been run over by a car.

He struggled to stand up and looked around, trying to determine his location. The hangover had left his mind in a state of confusion. "...Where is this..."

……

Tang Yin blinked his sleepy eyes, feeling the rough straw mat beneath him and the slightly musty blanket on his body. Although simple, it was exactly what he wanted. Through the iron bars of the detention room, he saw the police officer in the duty room dozing off, and a smile unconsciously curled up at the corner of his mouth.

This seemingly menacing uncle actually had a warm heart. Thinking of how he'd made his bed last night while complaining, Tang Yin couldn't help but sigh: Sometimes the simplest approach is the most effective. There's no need for complicated excuses; simply appearing ordinary and without any special features can actually earn trust.

"Ah, young man, are you up? I have a few questions to ask you." The policeman pushed open the door and walked in, holding a cup of steaming tea in his hand.

Tang Yin took a deep breath and adjusted his expression. This was the most crucial moment. What followed was a test of his acting skills.

The police officer sat in a chair across from him, gazing at Tang Yin intently. After a long pause, he concluded with a hint of sympathy, "... Simply put, his parents are both dead, he has no money or a job, he was kicked out by his landlord, and his girlfriend dumped him."

"So that's why you came to the mountains, drank to boost your courage, and tried to die, but failed?"

Tang Yin lowered his head, his voice choked with sobs: "Yes..."

The police officer sighed, a look of pity in his eyes: "...The big city is really a hell."

"Yes..." Tang Yin continued to remain in a depressed mood.

For the next hour, he recounted his life story in detail. His carefully crafted tragic experiences successfully touched the police officer's sympathy. The protagonist's life was difficult, yet he always maintained a yearning for life—a setting that easily moved people.

"Hey, if you didn't dress so frivolously and acted more mature and stable, maybe it would be better." The police officer couldn't help but lecture him.

Tang Yin immediately put on a sincere look: "...Yes, I reflect on it..."

He knew exactly how to respond: not speaking up, not contradicting, and maintaining just the right amount of deference. While kindhearted, this police officer also had a nagging, preachy side. To achieve his goals, he had to satisfy his desire to perform.

People frequently passed by the police station's glass door, curious villagers peeking in. Even though it was still early, the villagers of Baifeng Village were already acutely aware of the stranger's presence. Tang Yin could sense the inquiring gazes, but he remained subdued.

"...Hey, suicide is not a good thing." The police officer started a new round of preaching.

"Yes... Even if I'm drunk, I don't have the courage." Tang Yin responded softly.

“But I didn’t notice it.”

"When you are scared to death, you can only laugh..." Tang Yin's answer was just right, both reasonable and logical.

The police officer nodded thoughtfully: "Well, maybe that's the case... Anyway, what are you going to do next?"

Tang Yin was silent for a moment, deliberately showing hesitation. This was the final, crucial moment, and he had to strike the right balance.

"...I want to start over, but I've reached my wit's end..." His voice trembled, tears welling in the corners of his eyes. This performance seemed sincere, but in reality it was carefully calculated, paving the way for the somewhat unreasonable request that followed.

"...My wife's family lives in the next city and owns a small workshop. Would you like to try it there?" The police officer suddenly suggested this, his eyes gleaming with kindness. Tang Yin's eyes lit up, and he asked casually, "Is your wife from Jiuzhou?"

"Yes, she is a strong and good woman." When the policeman mentioned his wife, his expression softened instantly, and happiness was revealed in the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes.

"How did you two meet?" Tang Yin seized the opportunity and asked softly. This sentence seemed to open the floodgates of memory, and the policeman's eyes suddenly became profound.

"It's a long story. I was only twenty years old then..."

For the next hour, Tang Yin listened quietly as the middle-aged policeman recounted the story of his youth. It was a love story that transcended geography and overcame obstacles, filled with the passion of youth and romanticism.

As he listened, the phrases "karma" and "harming others ultimately harms oneself" kept flashing through Tang Yin's mind. He lowered his eyelids slightly, concealing the complex expression that flashed across his face. Through the police officer's account, he unexpectedly learned that the man wasn't actually from Baifengzhuang, but had been assigned to this remote mountainous area and had moved there with his wife.

As he was speaking, the glass door of the police station was gently pushed open, and a plump, kind-looking middle-aged woman walked in, carrying a tray. She was wearing a simple floral dress, a gentle smile on her face, and a cup of tea in her hand was still steaming.

"Come, drink some hot tea to warm yourself up." She placed the teacup in front of Tang Yin, her movements as gentle as if she were treating her own child.

The scene that followed was a bit overwhelming for Tang Yin—this couple, now over fifty years old, began to openly display their affection. Sometimes they smiled at each other, sometimes they filled each other's cups with tea in perfect tacit understanding, their every gesture revealing the warmth of years of companionship.

Tang Yin sipped his hot tea while secretly pondering a solution. He had originally planned to start over at Baifeng Manor, but at this moment, this request seemed particularly difficult to bring up. However, looking at this kind couple, a new idea gradually took shape in his mind.

"It sounds really good... But this place is not bad either, the natural environment is great, and there is a sense of peace..." Tang Yin said tentatively, looking thoughtfully at the mountains outside the window.

"Oh, it's very inconvenient here, and there are nothing but mountains around." The policeman's wife shook her head repeatedly, with concern in her tone.

Tang Yin took a deep breath and smiled a slightly melancholy smile: "I can feel that my coming here is fate's arrangement. Maybe, I will have my fateful encounter here."

"That's right, maybe we are really destined to be together." The policeman's wife immediately responded, keenly grasping the emotion in the words.

Watching the auntie skillfully display her caring skills, Tang Yin secretly praised her in his heart. He deliberately choked up and said, "...This, this is the first time someone has been so kind to me..."

"Oh, oh, oh, okay, okay, don't cry! Handkerchief, handkerchief..." The aunt hurriedly took out a handkerchief from her pocket.

Tang Yin seized the opportunity and said excitedly, "...I, I want to repay you two for your kindness! Are there any job opportunities around here?"

"...Ah..." The police officer's expression suddenly became complicated, his brows slightly furrowed, and a hint of imperceptible hesitation flashed in his eyes.

Finally bringing the topic to this crucial point, Tang Yin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. However, looking at the subtle changes in the police officer's expression, he knew that things might not be that simple.

After the auntie cleared the tea set and returned to her room, the atmosphere in the police station office suddenly plummeted to a freezing point. Warm yellow fluorescent lights shone silently overhead, and Tang Yin could clearly hear the ticking of the wall clock and the slightly heavy breathing of the police officer.

"...It's better not to have such an idea." The policeman finally broke the silence, with a barely perceptible gloom in his voice.

"Huh?" Tang Yin raised his head in pretended surprise.

The police officer rubbed his rough palms together, as if weighing his words: "Don't get me wrong, this village is full of elderly people, and there aren't many specialties. Perhaps at best you can only be a helper..."

"I don't mind. It doesn't matter even if I don't get paid." Tang Yin said sincerely, with a determined light flashing in his eyes.

"That being said... there are other towns not far from here." The police officer's brows furrowed tighter and tighter, and the wrinkles on his forehead seemed to deepen a little.

"I want to stay here and work!" Tang Yin raised his voice, showing strong persistence.

"...Well, um...how should I put it." The policeman hesitated, his eyes unconsciously drifting towards the darkening sky outside the window.

The air seemed to freeze for a few seconds. Tang Yin waited in silence, observing the other party's every move.

"...Well, actually, the villagers here are a little strange." The policeman finally said this, his voice so low that it almost sounded like he was talking to himself.

As expected, Tang Yin nodded inwardly. Through their previous conversations, he had already sensed that, despite living in Baifeng Manor for twenty years, this couple maintained a certain distance. They were like a pair of migratory birds forced to land in a foreign land; even after building a nest and settling down, they could never fully assimilate to the land.

Looking at the bitter expression on the police officer's face, Tang Yin's thoughts began to run wild.

"...Strange?" he asked softly.

"Ah, nothing. I mean, you have other options..." The policeman hurriedly changed the subject, but before he could finish his words, a sudden noise interrupted him.

It was the sound of a distant broadcast, echoing intermittently in the air of the mountain village. Tang Yin pricked up his ears and listened carefully, trying to discern the location of the speaker.

"...Ah, are you scared? This is the seven o'clock bell." The police officer looked at Tang Yin's slightly trembling body and explained.

That melody—Tang Yin's pupils suddenly contracted. He had heard this folk song, reminiscent of a children's song, in Wuyin Village. Wang Lina had once told him it was called "Pray to the Thousand Mysteries." On the surface, it appeared to be a sacrificial song, but in his memory, it was clearly a sacrificial song dedicated to the Huangquan Festival.

"...It's a rare melody." Tang Yin said in a deliberately nonchalant tone.

"Oh, I forgot what it's called. This folk song has been passed down in this village a long time ago." The police officer answered casually, obviously not wanting to talk more about this topic.

So that's how it is. Is this the shared cultural heritage of the entire village? Tang Yin sneered inwardly. This is understandable. Even the most brutal legend will be diluted into a harmless folk tale over time. If managed with care, perhaps it could be packaged as a selling point for rural tourism, perhaps by holding an event like a "Wolf Slaughtering Festival."

——Of course, the premise of all this is that these legends are just legends.

But what happened next forced Tang Yin to reconsider his judgment. Even someone like him, who had many doubts about Baifeng Manor, was shocked by what was about to happen.

(End of this chapter)