Ex-Wife is a Big Villainess

Zhang Yunwu!

As this name appeared in his mind, Jiang Shouzhong felt a faint stabbing pain in his temples, and those fragmented, bloody images kept flashing through his mind.

These images were like shattered colored glass.

So much so that last night's nightmare became scattered and disordered.

Lu Renjia muttered to himself, his eyes catching sight of a beautifully crafted jade hairpin on the table. His eyes lit up like a thief's, and just as he reached out his hand, he heard Jiang Shouzhong's warning voice,

"If you dare touch it, I'll chop off your hand."

Lu Renjia gave an embarrassed smile and withdrew his hand.

Looking at the valuable phoenix-shaped white jade hairpin, Lu Renjia licked his lips but said strangely, "How come I remember you've always kept this hairpin? It couldn't be from some old flame, could it?"

Although the two had worked together for less than half a year, in his impression, Jiang Shouzhong had always lived alone, seldom interacting with women, and had never even spent the night in a pleasure quarter.

Either this kid was not interested in women.

Or he had been hurt by love, unable to forget a certain woman in his heart.

"Old Zhang has never come over."

Jiang Shouzhong didn't want to discuss his private affairs with this guy and picked up the jade hairpin to go to the small cabinet beside the bed.

Opening the secret compartment of the small cabinet, he put the jade hairpin back in.

"This silly lad must have forgotten himself in the pleasures of love," Lu Renjia said half in admiration and half in envy. "It's stupid luck that he actually married Ms. Wen from Dongping Street, one of the famous two beauties. I still can't figure out what that kid has that I don't. Is this face of mine not handsome?"

Lu Renjia touched his shovel-like face, full of confusion and puzzlement.

"Don't you have Qing Niang from the Spring Rain Building?"

Jiang Shouzhong teased him.

Qing Niang was the madam of the Spring Rain Building. Although she was of a more mature age, her charm was still present, exuding the appeal of a middle-aged woman.

Lu Renjia had been pursuing her for more than a year.

Giving gifts, showing affection, tirelessly helping her out.

Almost always at her beck and call.

And this year-long pursuit had borne fruit; not long ago, he finally succeeded in making Qing Niang remember his name.

For this, Lu Renjia was so proud that he treated him and Old Zhang to a celebration.

"That's true, my Qing Niang is not inferior to that Ms. Wen."

Lu Renjia hehe'd with a smile, then said, "But you, lad, aren't so young anymore. Isn't it about time to find a wife and start a family? How about I find a match for you?"

A wife...

At the mention of these two words, Jiang Shouzhong's mind wandered momentarily.

The vividly charming and beautiful face surfaced in his mind, stirring up warm memories.

But these memories were torn apart by a divorce letter in the end.

Lu Renjia didn't notice Jiang Shouzhong's expression and continued to himself, "There's a girl on Yu Ming Street, eighteen years old, with outstanding beauty. If you're interested, I could set you up?"

Jiang Shouzhong came back to his senses, staring at him with a smile that wasn't quite a smile, "Out with it, how much did they pay you?"

Not expecting to be seen through so easily, Lu Renjia scratched his head awkwardly, and finally held out two fingers stained black from charcoal-baked sweet potatoes, "Just a couple of broken pieces of silver, not much."

"Not interested."

Jiang Shouzhong rejected outright.

Lu Renjia became anxious, "Come on, at least meet her. I've already taken the silver; it... it wouldn't be proper otherwise. Brother Jiang, can't you help me out?"

"That's your problem, it has nothing to do with me."

Jiang Shouzhong said indifferently.

Lu Renjia made a face like a bitter melon.

He didn't want to play matchmaker, but it was a helpless fact that this guy was simply too handsome, and many girls harbored secret affections for him.

As his colleague, he had naturally received quite a few requests and favors because of it.

"What if—"

"Let's go, let's investigate the case first, that's the important thing," Jiang Shouzhong interrupted, putting on his coat and saying indifferently, "On the way, let's also pick up Old Zhang."

...

The streets were sparsely populated.

The whole city was draped in wisps of pure white snow, casting a dreamlike grey and white hue.

Jiang Shouzhong bought a crisp, slightly charred scallion and pork stuffed pancake from his usual street-corner snack stand to appease his hunger and then, with the shovel-faced Lu Renjia, they headed towards Zhang Yunwu's residence.

On the road, Lu Renjia, unwilling to give up, continued to play the matchmaker.

"Let me tell you, Jiang, that girl is really not bad, well-educated, from a wealthy family, and she's got the hips for childbirth—a perfect match for you. It's absolutely a case of handsome meets beauty. You won't find such a beautiful girl even if you searched with a lantern..."

"Prettier than our boss?"

Jiang Shouzhong asked casually.

"Who?"

Lu Renjia was taken aback for a moment, then his eyes widened as he said, "Are you talking about Li Nanshuang, that mannish woman? Get out of here, brother. Any woman you grab off the streets of the Capital is prettier than her."

"Are you sure?" Jiang Shouzhong raised an eyebrow.

"Of course, I'm sure—," Lu Renjia suddenly stared with a weird expression at the man in front of him, as handsome as a deity, and asked frowning, "Say, Jiang, you're not interested in our boss, are you? Are you telling me that you no longer aim to put in effort?"

"I'm not interested," Jiang Shouzhong shook his head.

"Good."

Lu Renjia breathed a sigh of relief, earnestly advising,

"I'm not kidding, Li Nanshuang is indeed beautiful, one of the top beauties. But with that character of hers, if you marry her, you really wouldn't be able to live in peace."

Jiang Shouzhong laughed and didn't argue.

What the other person said was indeed true; Li Nanshuang was indeed a weirdo with a woman's body but a man's heart.

A generous character, reckless in action, fond of eating and drinking.

Good as a brother, not fit to be a wife.

However, what Jiang Shouzhong envied the most was her extraordinary cultivation; aside from Zhang Yunwu, that brute who could withstand a couple of moves, she could put down anyone else with a single strike.

It was said that Li Nanshuang's talents were exceptional, having gone to cultivate on Huoyun Mountain at the age of six and achieved success by the time she was sixteen.

When she left the Sect, her brothers and sisters all came out to send her off, even her master had prepared gongs, drums, and firecrackers, eagerly watching her descend the mountain.

Li Nanshuang was moved by this scene, so before she left, she gave her master a pair of panda eyes.

"But speaking of beauty, the Ran Family's young miss takes the crown for a truly breathtaking appearance."

Lu Renjia touched his small mustache and exclaimed sincerely, "Last year I had the fortune to see the young miss of the Ran Family, and I doubt there are many women in the entire Capital with such a fairy-like presence."

Suddenly, Lu Renjia lowered his voice and added mysteriously:

"There have been rumors lately that the young miss of the Ran Family secretly married half a year ago, and her spouse is said to be an undercover agent from the Liushan Division. Whether it's true or not, I don't know.

But I, Jia, don't believe such nonsense. Given the status of that lady, how could she possibly stoop to marry a mere agent? Impossible even if they had water in their brains, right, Jiang?

If she were to marry, it should be to a suave and debonair man like myself."

Jiang Shouzhong's face was expressionless as he spoke casually, "Maybe it's true."

"True my ass!"

Lu Renjia spat on the ground, "If such nonsense were true, Jia here would run naked through the Capital for a year! And do it while doing a handstand, no less!"

Jiang Shouzhong coughed and said no more.

Passing through a narrow alley, the two arrived at Zhang Yunwu's residence, in front of a simple thatched cottage.

The cottage's fence was made of bamboo and straw, showing a tinge of yellow that hinted at its age.

An ancient tree grew inside the yard.

Underneath the tree hung two battered paper lanterns, the red ribbons on them fluttering in the wind, adding a touch of brilliant color to the winter yard.

"Zhang!"

Lu Renjia knocked loudly on the courtyard door.

But no matter how long he knocked, there was no response from inside the house.

Jiang Shouzhong looked up at the red ribbons on the lanterns, feeling oddly absent-minded, with a prickle of pain in his head.

It was as if it wasn't ribbons fluttering but blood.

The interior of the yard was silent and still.

No matter how much Lu Renjia banged on the courtyard door, there remained no answer.

Lu Renjia scratched his head in confusion and said, "What's the deal? Has the whole family gone deaf? Or are they not at home? But that shouldn't be the case, Zhang's mother is still bedridden with illness."

Jiang Shouzhong shook his head, indicating he didn't know.

He looked down at the footprints outside the door and then glanced at the half-cleaned snow in the courtyard, pondering.

After a few more shouted attempts with no response, a restless Lu Renjia simply climbed over the wall, letting Jiang Shouzhong in by opening the courtyard door.

"Zhang!"

Lu Renjia strode toward the main house.

The door was ajar, and through the crack, a few drops of eye-catching blood on the ground suddenly came into view for both men.