"My dad is the village head of Nantai Village, and my mom is a full-time housewife. I have an older brother who is three years older than me, and also grandparents. Although our family isn't wealthy, we live a very happy and fulfilling life."
Qi Yan's eyes were filled with memories as she became completely immersed in them. Everyone in the private room listened with rapt attention.
"Our Nantai Village has been farming for generations, working diligently. The villagers are also very harmonious."
"One day, an uncle from the village was digging in his field when his hoe unearthed some black stuff. Many villagers were also farming in nearby fields at the time, and it attracted a lot of attention."
"Everyone gathered to see what that black thing dug out from the ground was."
"It turned out to be coal!"
In the private room, as everyone heard this, their expressions didn't change much. While such an event might be unusual elsewhere, it was very normal in Shanxi Province, a major coal-producing region.
Growing up as locals, they had all heard many stories related to coal.
Some people could find coal resources by just urinating in the wilderness, while others could discover hidden coal in their own backyards.
There were also instances where coal was found while building houses or herding sheep. Discovering coal while digging was not surprising at all, especially in areas with concentrated coal reserves.
They continued to listen with bated breath, everyone knowing that this was the beginning of the story.
As expected, Qi Yan's voice gradually changed, her expression filled with deep sadness.
"News of the coal found in the fields quickly spread to the surrounding villages. The originally peaceful Nantai Village also began to become lively."
"Because everyone knew that discovering coal in the ground meant they would get rich!"
"As expected, the situation soon alerted the local government, which immediately sent people to investigate and verify."
"After extensive surveys, an astonishing conclusion was reached: Nantai Village had a large coal reserve underground that could be developed."
"The villagers were ecstatic upon hearing this, all shouting about getting rich. Even my parents were the same."
Qi Yan slowly recounted the events, her voice growing increasingly sorrowful.
"Everyone knew that although the coal wasn't theirs, the country would acquire land for development. The farmland and houses that were damaged would receive significant compensation."
"This money would be enough to change a family's destiny."
"Not long after, the local government arrived with a group of people to discuss compensation."
"Since my father was the village head, he was naturally responsible for this matter."
"I was very young then. I only remember that it was getting dark, and my father was called away, along with several uncles and elders from the village."
Qi Yan recalled the situation at the time.
"That night, I fell asleep early. Later, I was woken up by a quarrel. I opened my sleepy eyes and found that my father had returned home at some point."
"But his expression was furious, and my mother was also clenching her fists. I only learned later that the compensation offered by those people was very low. It wouldn't make them rich, and it wouldn't even cover the loss of their farmland and homes."
"From that day on, my father and the uncles and elders in the village began to run errands tirelessly for this matter, almost never coming home."
"They left early and returned late every day, losing a lot of weight..."
"My mother was also very anxious. Until one day, when my dad was sent back, covered in injuries. It turned out he had been beaten!"
"The people who beat him were reportedly developers who were preparing to bid for the coal development rights."
Qi Yan clenched her fists tightly as she narrated this part.
"My dad's injury enraged our entire village. From then on, all the people of Nantai Village stood against those developers!"
"They absolutely refused to let them set foot in Nantai Village again. The conflict between the two sides escalated, and bloody incidents occurred frequently. Some of our uncles and elders were also beaten."
In the private room, as everyone heard this, they exchanged glances, their expressions varied.
Such incidents were very common in major coal-producing provinces. Every coal boss employed a group of thugs specifically to handle such matters.
Even now, it was the same. The inner workings of the coal industry were just the tip of the iceberg.
Coal bosses had plenty of money and could hire a large number of people. Killing someone was just a matter of paying money. At that time, a life was only worth tens of thousands of yuan, which they could easily afford.
"This conflict continued for a very, very long time. One day, a group of people came to our house."
"I clearly remember the appearance of the man leading them. He was a man in his fifties, and he seemed to have a very important background. Many officials bowed respectfully to him."
Qi Yan continued.
Qin Chuan's heart stirred, and he subconsciously asked, "Was that person Han Guangyao?"
He asked this because the age matched. Han Guangyao was now in his early eighties, and eighteen years ago, he would have been in his late fifties.
Qi Yan describing him as being in his fifties was merely because Han Guangyao was wealthy and powerful, and had maintained himself well, appearing younger than his actual age.
"That's correct. That person was indeed Han Guangyao. I will never forget the appearance of that beast!"
Upon hearing Han Guangyao's name, Qi Yan's eyes suddenly filled with immense hatred, and she gritted her teeth.
"My mother was famously beautiful in our village. This Han Guangyao set his sights on her beauty the first time he saw her."
"However, this beast was too good at pretending. A few days later, under the guise of discussing business, he invited my parents to town for dinner. During the meal, he plied my parents with a lot of alcohol."
"My brother and I were too young to go with them then and stayed at our grandparents' house."
"Only later did we learn what happened. That night, that beast Han Guangyao brutally raped my mother. He then fabricated an excuse, claiming my mother had tried to assassinate him with a knife during dinner and was arrested by the police!"
"In reality, that was not the case at all. My mother was secretly imprisoned by that beast Han Guangyao and treated as his personal property."
"Every day, she suffered inhuman torment, as Han Guangyao unleashed his beastly desires upon her."
When Qi Yan reached this point, everyone in the private room showed unconcealed anger.
This kind of thing was incredibly wicked, a true beast!
"My father went insane upon learning of this. He frantically searched for my mother every day, as did my grandparents."
"The end result was that my father was beaten to death by Han Guangyao's men. My grandparents were also beaten so badly they couldn't get out of bed. The once harmonious and happy family was completely shattered."
As Qi Yan recounted this, her emotions became extremely agitated. She drank an entire bottle of hard liquor on the table in one go, breathing heavily like an ox.
This scene made everyone in the private room's hearts pound. Fearing Qi Yan would harm herself, they quickly tried to comfort her.
After a long while, Qi Yan regained some composure, but her demeanor became even colder, her eyes filled with bone-chilling hatred.
"Perhaps it was because people were killed, or perhaps that beast Han Guangyao had grown tired of her, but a few days later, my mother was released!"
"I clearly remember what my mother looked like when she came out. She was so tormented that she was unrecognizable. Especially after learning that my father had been beaten to death, she fainted."
"My brother and I were still very young then and were terrified!"
"When we saw our mother again, she was already a cold corpse!"
"My mother committed suicide by hanging. She left a blood letter, which she wrote with her own blood. It detailed all of Han Guangyao's beastly acts and entrusted my grandparents to raise my brother and me to adulthood. She was following my father..."