Mei Shilin recounted the events of that day in detail while Zhao Lin stood at the street corner, listening in silence.
It turned out that on that day, Chai Qihong, furious with his sons, had gone to vent to his old friend. He got dead drunk, and Mei Shilin, worried something might happen to him on the way, decided to escort him home.
When they were almost at his front gate, Chai Qihong turned and said, "Brother Mei, I'm home. You can head back now!"
Mei Shilin heard that his speech was clear and his words were coherent, so after a word of caution, he started walking back toward his own home.
He hadn't gone far when a pained cry of "AGH!" came from behind him. The voice sounded like Chai Qihong's.
Without a second thought, Mei Shilin turned and ran back toward the Chai family's residence.
When he got to the gate, he saw Chai Qihong lying on his back in the courtyard, a gleaming steel knife plunged into his chest.
