Chapter 46 He Zhao has developed a natural talent for the art of conversation and banter, and the reason for this is...

He Zhao seemed to have a natural talent for subtle conversation and banter, and this reason was irresistible to Qiao Yanyu. She even thought He Zhao's words made a lot of sense. Going with her to pick up the car tomorrow would be safer than her going to the neighborhood alone.

Moreover, there was already a bad guy watching He Zhao, so if she went alone, she would inevitably encounter danger.

So Qiao Yanyu agreed.

Having slept too much the night before, He Zhao woke up early the next morning, only to find that Qiao Yanyu had woken up even earlier than her. When she got up, she found that Qiao Yanyu had already gone downstairs for a morning run and returned with sweat on her face.

Qiao Yanyu, who was exercising, was dressed quite differently from usual. She was wearing obvious sportswear, and because it was winter, she had a windproof jacket over it. Her short, wispy hair was pulled back with a sports headband. Some of the wispy hairs on her forehead were damp with sweat and looked limp.

At this moment, Qiao Yanyu exuded a powerful aura of hormones, her confident and capable presence making He Zhao involuntarily swallow. Especially notice the bead of sweat on her temples, sliding down her neck and into her clothes…

He Zhao shook the bad thoughts out of his mind and looked down to see Qiao Yanyu carrying breakfast. Qiao Yanyu handed it to He Zhao, who took it and looked at it; there was soy milk and steamed buns. Qiao Yanyu didn't rush to eat, but instead told He Zhao to eat while it was hot: "I'm going to take a shower first; I'm all sweaty."

Who wouldn't love a sister who loves sports and is also very clean!

He Zhao didn't wait for Qiao Yanyu, but instead finished her breakfast as Qiao Yanyu had asked. After finishing, she examined the coffee machine, gathered all the necessary tools, and made Qiao Yanyu a cup of coffee. When Qiao Yanyu came out, the coffee was just right and ready to drink.

Upon seeing the coffee, Qiao Yanyu paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "You don't need to do that. I don't usually use this stuff myself."

"I can't just sit and wait to be fed. Sister Qiao bought me breakfast today, and I only made coffee for her in return. Besides, Sister Qiao let me stay here at the same rent as before, and I'm already very grateful to her. If I don't do anything, I feel like I'm just taking advantage of Sister Qiao for nothing."

Qiao Yanyu didn't want to put He Zhao in a difficult position. She had let He Zhao stay because of her own reasons, and if she made him feel uncomfortable, she might not want to stay there anymore, which wouldn't be good. So Qiao Yanyu simply nodded, said "thank you," and took a big gulp of coffee.

He Zhao is quite skilled at making coffee. She's from a wealthy family, and when she has nothing to do, she likes to indulge in hobbies, such as brewing tea or coffee. However, she's always only enthusiastic for a short time and quits after a few days.

However, she learned the specific steps, and she was very clever, so she memorized them all.

After finishing all this, He Zhao followed Qiao Yanyu out the door. However, she didn't rush to He Zhao's original neighborhood. Instead, she took He Zhao, who was fully armed and wrapped up tightly, and wandered around several rivers.

The location she chose was quite secluded, which puzzled He Zhao. She pulled her hat up a bit and couldn't help but ask Qiao Yanyu directly, "Sister Qiao, what are we doing right now?"

Qiao Yanyu scribbled in her notebook and took the time to reply to He Zhao's questions: "The places we visited today are some of the more common corpse dumping sites recorded in the city's archives. I'm looking to see if there are any places with particularly heavy yin energy. The one you encountered the day before yesterday was a water ghost. He either drowned or was murdered and his body was dumped in the river. I'll look for these places first. It would be best if we could find one."

He Zhao didn't realize that Qiao Yanyu actually had a bit of a protective streak. Her eyes were sharp when she said those words. Although she didn't say it outright, He Zhao had already imagined what Qiao Yanyu would do to the sutured water ghost if she found it.

"Sister Qiao, you're so good to me!" He Zhao said, then moved closer to Qiao Yanyu and hugged her tightly.

He Zhao was dressed like a bear, and even though he was hugging Qiao Yanyu like that, he didn't feel anything. Qiao Yanyu, however, felt a little uncomfortable and moved away slightly. She coughed and continued, "But in the places we ran, there was no sign of yin energy gathering, so the ghost isn't in these places."

She pondered for a moment: "Based on what you encountered that day, its resentment was so strong, it was definitely murder. The perpetrator was very experienced and deliberately avoided these common places..."

While these locations are considered common, they are only frequently encountered in cases. In reality, these are secluded spots ideal for murder and body disposal, likely only discoverable by anglers. After eliminating these locations, it was almost time, so Qiao Yanyu took He Zhao to lunch and then headed towards the resettlement housing complex.

After finishing their meal, they went up to the fifth floor and waited for the sub-landlord to come over.

The sub-landlord didn't arrive early; the two women waited for about an hour and a half before she finally came out of the elevator lobby. She was on the phone as she walked, and her sleazy demeanor immediately made He Zhao recognize her… she was one of the people who had been smoking in the elevator lobby earlier.

She suspected at the time that the other party was a sub-landlord, and now that she sees it, it turns out she was right.

"Who among you wants to rent a house?"

Qiao Yanyu took a step forward: "It's me. I want to rent a house."

The sub-landlord said, "Only room 501 is available. Come with me and take a look." The sub-landlord took out a bunch of keys from his bag, searched for a while before finding the key for 501, opened the door, and led the two inside. The layout inside was exactly the same as the shared apartment where He Zhao originally lived upstairs.

He Zhao and Qiao Yanyu instinctively looked towards the end of the corridor.

Rooms with large balconies tend to be more expensive. Shared rental apartments can't be left unused by all tenants, so the balcony is definitely partitioned off inside the shared apartment.

Meanwhile, the sub-landlord was rambling on as he led the two inside: "You guys are lucky. This room faces south and has a big balcony. If the previous tenant hadn't run away, you wouldn't have had a chance to see this room. I'm not bragging, but the room has great lighting and a great view. No bargaining, 1200 a month. I'm not worried about renting it out."

He took out his key and opened the room, but unlike the empty rental apartment after He Zhao left, it was full of things. At a glance, it was clear that this was a girl's room; the sheets and blankets were still there. It was obvious that the original tenant was someone who loved life, as the blankets and sheets were all cute and adorable.

Upon seeing this scene, He Zhao's breath caught in his throat.

Qiao Yanyu spoke directly: "Landlord, this place doesn't look like it's uninhabited; all the things are still here."

The sub-landlord cursed, "Don't even mention it. That girl seemed pretty honest at first, but who knew she would run away without paying rent? It's been two months now, and we haven't seen her anywhere. I can't just leave this place empty and unrented forever."

"You can handle these things as you see fit. Just put them aside for her. Call me when she comes back. I haven't paid the rent yet."

While Qiao Yanyu and the sub-landlord were talking, He Zhao had already stepped forward and walked to the window. The room used the balcony floor, and the window was covered by floor-length curtains to protect privacy. He Zhao stood at the balcony entrance, slightly pulled back the curtains, and looked down.

At this moment, He Zhao could clearly see the place where the electric scooters were placed downstairs, and he could also see his own food cart.

Her mind involuntarily recalled what the system had said that night. He Zhao took a step back and lowered the curtains slightly, leaving only a small gap, yet still allowing a clear view of her food cart. From below, however, there was absolutely no way to see what was happening upstairs.

He Zhao swallowed hard, turned to look at Qiao Yanyu, and nodded to her.

But the things that came to mind terrified me.

The room was rented by a young girl who had disappeared for two months, while the person who stood here looking at him a few days ago was clearly that tall, thin man. Where did the girl go, and why was that man here? A bad feeling crept into He Zhao's heart… Perhaps that young girl was harmed by that man!

Qiao Yanyu chatted with the sub-landlord for a few minutes, mainly about the house. Suddenly, the sub-landlord's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and said to Qiao Yanyu and He Zhao, "You two stay here and look around. I'll go take this call."

With the sub-landlord gone, it became easier for Qiao Yanyu to search the room. She put on plastic gloves and began searching, including the wardrobe, the bathroom, and under the bed. He Zhao leaned over and asked, "Sister Qiao, what are you looking for?"

“Corpses.” Qiao Yanyu said truthfully, “Some criminals will hide their victims nearby after killing them. Some residents don’t even realize that they have been living with a corpse for a month until the corpse decomposes and they find out that something is wrong and call the police.”

Qiao Yanyu's words were devoid of any emotion or vivid description, yet He Zhao unconsciously conjured up corresponding images upon hearing them. At that moment, He Zhao felt her stomach churning, and couldn't help but think: Maybe I... still have a fever and a cold that haven't gotten better.

Fortunately, Qiao Yanyu searched the area but didn't find the body, which relieved He Zhao somewhat. She didn't want to be near a corpse either.

After a while, the sub-landlord returned, but Qiao Yanyu said, "I need to think about it some more." Then she pulled He Zhao away. After the two went downstairs, Wang Yu called and asked Qiao Yanyu, "Senior, how's it going? Have you found any clues? I've stalled that sub-landlord for a long time, that should be enough time for you to investigate, right?"

"You did a great job."

Qiao Yanyu gave a perfunctory reply and hung up the phone. Only then did He Zhao belatedly realize that the call the sub-landlord had answered was actually made by Wang Yu.

After that, Qiao Yanyu didn't go straight home. Instead, she took He Zhao back to the bureau. She took He Zhao to a sister department and found someone from the information processing department to arrange for a composite sketch of He Zhao.