Chapter 17 Wipe Your Eyes
Just when Heji was thriving and I was swamped with work, I received a text.
【清微,救救我......】
The sender was Cheng Yanqiu.
My chest tightened. Without a second of hesitation I called the police.
When the officers found her, her face was unrecognizable. She lay in a pool of blood.
It turned out that after Zhang Muzhe got out of prison, he envied my livestream success and copied the Transparent Kitchen idea.
It backfired.
The livestream only exposed his cheap ingredients and filthy hygiene.
His image collapsed overnight. Bad reviews poured in. The curses never stopped.
He blamed every failure on Cheng Yanqiu, called her useless, and beat her again and again.
He stabbed out her left eye with a wine bottle, kicked and broke three of her ribs, and beat her until her right kidney completely failed.
That text was the last cry for help Cheng Yanqiu sent before she died.
It was too late.
I had seen early on how extreme Zhang Muzhe's temper was. Time after time I urged her to turn back.
But she refused every warning. She sank deeper, blamed me for driving a wedge between them, and spoke of me with open resentment.
Standing before Cheng Yanqiu's grave, memories of us laughing and fooling around together rushed up like a tide.
"The court sentenced Zhang Muzhe to life. Rest in peace."
I crouched down and touched the photo on her headstone.
"If you had never married him, maybe we would still be selling the Mala Tang plus Braised Duck Snacks as a Twenty Percent Off Combo Deal."
"Or maybe we would still be sharing a bowl of takeout."
A tear slid from the corner of my eye.
"Next life, remember to wipe your eyes clear, Cheng Yanqiu."