Chapter 28 The whole world is changing.
The clever uncle's task was to find the minibus station, but he simply stood by the roadside and waved down a passing taxi.
When the taxi stopped beside him, Shengfang opened the car door, climbed into the back seat first, patted the empty seat next to him, and called for his niece to get in the car.
After the uncle and nephew were seated, the young master said, "Wong Chuk Hang Police Academy, drive."
This kind of young master's attitude is like giving orders to one's own driver in the past.
Zhu Qing no longer needs to carry a mountain of photo albums all over the streets. With minibuses coming and going, when the children sincerely exclaim, "Finally, we're living a good life again," she wholeheartedly agrees.
Throw yourself into a comfortable leather seat, away from the hustle and bustle, the bus doesn't stop and start, and you don't have to calculate the number of stops to ask the driver to stop first, then run like a riot squad to another minibus stop to queue up again.
Without her noticing, Zhu Qing's gaze fell on the taxi meter inside the car. The meter kept ticking, and each tick represented not just a number, but a painful amount of cash.
Zhu Qing didn't look at the scenery outside the window; her gaze remained fixed on the meter.
Until a pair of chubby, warm little hands covered her eyes.
The uncle had long noticed that his niece always forgot that times had changed.
A three-and-a-half-year-old child can't speak in profound philosophical terms, and when it comes to education, he can't persuade Qingzai with long-winded lectures. He simply used the simplest language to emphasize the fact to his niece and reassure her.
"Qingzai, we're rich!"
In the driver's seat, the driver was driving and looked up at the two of them through the rearview mirror.
When Sheng Fang returned from the mountainside last time carrying money, Qing Zai told him that one should not flaunt wealth. A little guy carrying a huge sum of money could very well become—a target for robbery!
He needs to protect himself and his niece.
The wealthy uncle's gaze met the driver's through the rearview mirror.
"What are you looking at!" his little voice snapped fiercely. "We're the police!"
The driver was about to say something, his gaze still fixed on Zhu Qing, when he suddenly noticed her looking down at a photo album.
It really is Madam investigating the case!
At this moment, Zhu Qing focused all her attention on the photo in the album.
The photos show a whimsical backdrop with children in stage makeup and exaggerated costumes, standing in several rows. There are also many adults, such as the four victims in this case. Zhu Qing speculates that they, along with the other adults in the photos, might be the parents of the children participating in the event.
More than a decade ago, the four of them each brought their own children to participate in the event.
But this idea was quickly overturned. More than a decade ago, Principal Zheng had already sent his children abroad. Feng Yaowen was a hands-off father who never took care of the children. As for Zhang Zhiqiang, he married relatively late and had no children at all more than a decade ago.
Her eyes were fixed on the photograph, trying to find more clues.
A year ago, in the case of Ma Guohua, who was murdered at the container factory, his body lay on the damp ground, not posed in any way. At first, the police thought that the murderer was interrupted by witness Zhu Daxiong and did not have time to complete the "ritual," but now, comparing this photo, Ma Guohua in the photo has his palms facing upwards and is standing unsteadily, as if he is about to fall.
The fact that he was lying casually on the ground was a pose the murderer had carefully designed for him. The makeup was still incomplete; the murderer had already taken out the eyebrow razor, but was forced to abandon his disposition of the body due to the sudden appearance of Zhu Daxiong and fled in panic.
The killer followed the same approach in disposing of the bodies of the other three victims.
But—is something else wrong?
Zhu Qing stared at the photo for a long time before finally realizing where this vague sense of unease was hiding.
Zeng Yongshan has a happy and fulfilling family life. She is the youngest and most beloved daughter in her family, and she has a deep bond with her parents and brother. There is even a family photo on her workstation.
Zhu Qing had seen that photo more than once, and she was certain that those faces were not actually in the group photo.
Could it be that the deaths of the Zeng family members were not originally part of the killer's plan?
Zhu Qing closed the photo album: "Master, go to the Yau Ma Tei police station."
...
Ching-jai isn't going back to the Wong Chuk Hang Police Academy; she has to go back to the police station to work overtime.
Shengfang was a very good follower; he didn't ask a single question the whole time, as if he had gotten a great deal.
When faced with an unexpected overtime situation, Zhu Qing first contacted Mo Sir. Soon after, several colleagues who lived nearby arrived one after another.
It wasn't normal working hours, so the child could just stay put. Mo Zhenbang had no objections and even kindly asked him if he wanted to go to the cafeteria to watch TV.
Sheng Fang didn't want to watch TV; he just wanted to be with his niece and immerse himself in solving cases.
On the large table in the conference room, Zhu Qing laid out all the photo albums.
As Haozai flipped through the pages, he sighed, "This is the life story of a successful person..." But those loving scenes had left Zheng Shihong's two children with beautiful childhood memories. Now that the children have grown up, after their mother passed away, they have never returned to China to be with their father again.
"It's glamorous, but I even have to ask a colleague to hold my spare key to the house, otherwise I might fall ill at home one day and no one would even notice," Xu Jiale said. "Look at this, what's the use of making so much money?"
At the large table, everyone was flipping through photo albums.
However, after watching the whole thing, the only useful clue turned out to be the group photo that Zhu Qing found.
To be precise, it was the younger uncle who saw it first in the phone booth.
When she heard her colleagues praising her as a lucky star, the little one tilted her head and puffed out her little chest.
“I counted, there are fifty-three people in the photo.”
"I don't know what kind of event it is. Is it a school performance? But these children aren't wearing school uniforms."
"And with so many people, where do we even begin—"
"Got it!" Liang Qikai's familiar voice came from behind. "Come over here quickly."
Inspector Leung also rushed over after receiving a call from the team.
He took more than ten videotapes to the police station's evidence processing room to review them slowly, prepared to work until dawn. However, to his surprise, he made a breakthrough so quickly.
The young master ran off with his colleagues, taking light, quick steps.
On the television in the evidence processing room, the same scene as the group photo appeared, accompanied by cheerful nursery rhymes.
Those are images from at least a decade ago; some frames are choppy, but the entire event was captured.
"Children's theater?"
Uncle Li vaguely remembers that the Hong Kong Concert Hall, more than a decade ago, regularly hosted children's theater events. These performances were usually held on the morning of the first weekend of each month, and the programs were mostly puppet shows, song and dance performances, or adaptations of fairy tales. Tickets were very cheap because basically no one wanted to watch other children perform; those who came were mostly the performers' parents. They stared intently at their own children, and when other children came on stage, their interest immediately waned. They didn't even bother to give polite applause; some would even leave early.
This video was filmed by Zheng Shihong, but he filmed more than just the performances on stage.
As the cheerful background music plays on stage, his camera pans backstage. Props and costumes are scattered in various corners, young actors are being helped with makeup by adults, and some children are peeking at the performance from behind the curtain.
Just then, Haozai suddenly grabbed Liang Qikai's hand: "Stop!"
Liang Qikai pressed the pause button on the VCR, and the image on the television froze: "Feng Yaowen?"
They saw the deceased, Fung Yiu-man, in the breakfast shop in Sham Shui Po.
He looks much younger in this videotape.
He sat at a table backstage, on which sat a huge insulated box. Children and their parents lined up in a crooked queue to receive a warm breakfast from him.
Haozai said, "Feng Yaowen isn't a parent, he's a staff member at the children's theater?"
At Mo Sir's prompting, Liang Qikai pressed the play button again.
Everyone continued searching for those familiar figures.
Suddenly, Zhu Qing said, "This man who's putting makeup on the child—"
“It’s Teacher Zhang, Teacher Zhang from the beauty academy.” Zeng Yongshan recognized him and wrinkled her nose. “Strange, his face is so sour, like these kids owe him money.”
“So that’s how it is,” Mo Zhenbang said. “The four victims didn’t know each other, but they ended up in the same scene because of this impromptu event.”
Colleagues joined the discussion, each contributing their own comments.
“Fung Yiu-man, a breakfast shop in Sham Shui Po, is responsible for providing breakfast.”
"Principal Zheng of the beauty academy is in charge of doing makeup for children."
"That year, the container factory was booming. As a foreman, Ma Guohua's job was to manage the workers in setting up the stage."
"Zhang Zhiqiang, the manager of Xinjing Hotel, assisted in the overall coordination of the event's etiquette!"
As if the clouds had finally parted, the officers' voices gradually rose, and following this line of reasoning, the serial murder case finally revealed a clear outline.
The children listened intently, wishing they could pull out their toy guns and charge into battle with them.
A tiny seed of wish was planted in Uncle Bao's heart.
I never knew being a police officer was such an amazing thing.
Mo Zhenbang gave the order: "Immediately investigate everyone present at this performance, including the photographers. Conduct a thorough search!"
...
The case finally made a new breakthrough. The officers in Team B extorted money from Inspector Mok, saying that they needed to be well-fed to have the energy to work.
Liang Qikai suggested having dinner at a roadside stall in the alley behind the police station, so they could go upstairs to continue investigating afterward. Along the way, the group chatted about potential breakthroughs in the case, unable to suppress their laughter. This wasn't the first time they'd found a lead since the investigation began, and they wondered if it would all be another false alarm.
This dai pai dong (open-air food stall) in Yau Ma Tei has plastic tables and chairs set up right on the roadside.
Following the example of the adults, Shengfang disassembled the disposable chopsticks and even seriously rubbed them together.
Because of this shocking serial murder case that rocked Hong Kong, business at the dai pai dong (open-air food stall) became quiet, but there were still a few bold old customers who sparsely occupied a few tables.
The people at the next table ordered a pitcher of draft beer, and the friends played drinking games and chatted. After several days of rain, the weather was no longer hot, especially at night when a cool breeze blew in. Enjoying the food and drinks, the group exclaimed how delightful it was.
The police officers expressed their regret, saying that once the case was closed, they would definitely find an opportunity to have a drink and not leave until they were completely drunk.
"How about that old-established seafood restaurant? The one we always go to."
"That's boring, let's go to Lan Kwai Fong!"
"Let's just bring a case of beer back to the police station to celebrate."
They were all talking animatedly, each contributing a sentence, when Liang Qikai noticed that only Zhu Qing remained silent.
This was a topic Zhu Qing couldn't participate in, so she listened quietly. She had never drunk alcohol before. Her colleagues said that the feeling of being tipsy was like that—her mind was temporarily blank, she staggered as she walked, and when she got home she forgot to take off her shoes and collapsed onto the bed, only to open her eyes to find it was already broad daylight.
She had never tried it. All along, she had followed a regular, straight path, very restrained, leaving herself no room for detours or unexpected events.
"Zhu Qing," Inspector Liang said to her with a smile, "You can't be absent then."
Zeng Yongshan buried her entire face in the fried noodles, but still secretly looked up at them.
Does Inspector Leung treat Zhu Qing differently?
It was rare to find the wind on a summer night so cool, even cooler than in a pigeon coop.
The waiter brought over a plate of stir-fried crab. The young master of the Sheng family picked it up with chopsticks, but ate it awkwardly. His niece seemed to notice this and took his chopsticks away. The tacit understanding between the uncle and niece made the child reach out his little hand and grab the fragrant crab covered in breadcrumbs.
The waiter kept bringing out the dishes, and every now and then he would call out to come over and put a plate on the folding table.
The ingredients weren't particularly high-end; some were familiar to the Sheng family, while others were new to them. They didn't align with the Sheng family's healthy philosophy of "less oil and less salt" for every meal, but the young master simply loved them.
He had never tried sitting by the roadside on a night like this, with the wind blowing, and stuffing food into his little mouth.
His niece even made an exception and allowed him to drink a bottle of soda. The fizzy drink exploded in his little mouth like popping candy.
The stars twinkled in the sky, and the children's eyes shone even brighter than the stars.
Shengfang stared intently at everyone, not intending to join their complicated conversation, but simply feeling a deep fondness for them.
He's definitely going to stay with his niece!
"Kids will become stupid if they drink this much soda," Zhu Qing said calmly. "Give me the other half."
Blooming!
I don't like it anymore!
...
The next morning, Aunt Ping appeared at her "workstation" on time.
The young master of the Sheng family had forgotten how they had stayed up late last night after eating at the food stall. Anyway, the little boy had fallen asleep while playing and was taken to the empty office of the senior inspector, where he slept on the sofa for a long time. When he woke up again, he was back in the pigeon coop, and Qingzai told him that they had taken a taxi home.
Moreover, after getting off the bus, he followed Zhu Qing back to the dormitory building... This is outrageous! His uncle has absolutely no recollection of him, as if he has amnesia!
Aunt Ping assured Zhu Qing that she would not allow the child to come near the Yau Ma Tei Police Station again today.
"Today will be very busy," Zhu Qing said. "I may not be home tonight."
The niece then asked her uncle to go back to the hillside with Aunt Ping for one night.
The child is still young and doesn't understand at all. It would be a waste not to live in a luxury house halfway up the mountain. After spending just a few days together, Zhu Qing had gained some understanding of Sheng Fang. The child had the temper of a young master and was only responsive to gentle persuasion. So she didn't try to force him. Instead, she looked him in the eye and discussed things with him as if he were an adult.
They will soon sign a provisional contract to buy the house in Yau Ma Tei.
This is just a special period, a temporary transition.
"Iron Man and Spider-Man haven't seen you in a long time, they must miss you."
"Qingzai, they are toys, they don't think, and it's impossible for them to care about you."
"..."
The young master's toy room in the Mid-Levels villa is several times larger than his dormitory at the Wong Chuk Hang Police Academy.
Some of the models were taller than him, making it impossible for him to take them with him. Come to think of it, he was actually a little tempted by them.
Shengfang agreed and went home with Aunt Ping to stay overnight.
Kids are so funny. They don't seem to know what hardship is. They're faced with a choice between a steamer and a big villa, and they have to make a difficult decision to choose the latter.
Zhu Qing, on the other hand, can devote all her energy to the case.
Fifty-three people appeared in the group photo; investigating back to the source would be a massive undertaking. The meeting room still smelled of coffee in the morning; colleagues forced themselves to wake up and get into the zone as quickly as possible.
"Honestly, I'm starting to doubt everyone involved in this case."
"In the first case, the deceased Ma Guohua, didn't he have a neighbor who scolded him for sprinkling water downstairs and being inconsiderate? Feng Yaowen, who runs a breakfast shop, always has a deadpan expression. If it weren't for the incredibly delicious soup in his xiaolongbao, which neighbor would want to patronize his business..."
"Hotel manager Zhang Zhiqiang is a scumbag. He has harassed several young waitresses. He takes every opportunity to grope them. There are plenty of people who wish he were dead."
"And then there's Zheng Shihong. With a business so big, the story of 'a little kindness is appreciated, but too much kindness breeds resentment' probably isn't just happening to Zhan Weiqiang, is it?"
Mo Zhenbang looked at them, almost laughing in anger.
One by one, they went mad from investigating the case, and began to indiscriminately suspect everyone.
“Why don’t you suspect my mother?” Zeng Yongshan chuckled, then paused, her tone becoming serious. “Honestly, I think Teacher Zhang is a suspect.”
"In the videotape, Teacher Zhang is applying makeup to children."
“He had the opportunity to interact with the other victims, and perhaps that escalated the conflict for some reason, didn’t he?”
...
The members of Major Crimes Unit B compared each person in the group photo of the children's theater performance with their identity information to conduct a comprehensive investigation.
When Inspector Weng arrived, he briefly inquired about everyone's progress on the case and, surprisingly, had someone deliver some milk tea from a local tea restaurant, saying it was to help everyone stay alert.
Xu Jiale went to the concert hall to look for the registration information left over from the performance more than ten years ago.
The event had been suspended for more than a decade, or more accurately, it wasn't held every month back then. In the later stages, the higher authorities discovered that the children's theater performances were almost entirely non-profit and didn't generate any revenue, so they were discontinued without warning.
Xu Jiale managed to get some results after talking to their leader.
The list was quite long, stretching from top to bottom. It wasn't just that officers from Team B had visited each one; even Inspector Mo had borrowed people from Team A. The relationship between the two teams was somewhat delicate. They were constantly competing for the highest crime-solving rate, each trying to outdo the other. Now that Team B couldn't handle the serial murder case, it forced the recently relaxed Team A to work overtime. The officers from the neighboring team gave them attitude, deliberately slamming their files down with a loud bang and making sarcastic, drawn-out remarks.
"No wonder I heard that everyone in Group B is talented."
It's hard to say whether Xu Jiale or Haozai is more impulsive. Right now, they're arguing with the people from Group A in the corridor, pushing and shoving each other, with people from both sides trying to stop them. If a fight really breaks out, they'll be internally disciplined in no time. It's really not worth writing a self-criticism for such a trivial matter.
Nobody listens to them.
Just as the two sides were about to fight, suddenly, the cold-faced Madam walked through the corridor carrying the files.
Zhu Qing: "Excuse me."
Almost instinctively, both sides made way for her.
What was originally a "war" that was about to break out was suddenly "borrowed" and both sides were stuck in place.
This build-up of momentum is like a deflated balloon; for a moment, one doesn't know how to start over.
...
The officers conducted a search from top to bottom according to the list of people present at the children's theater.
Their initial suspicion is that a conflict arose between the four deceased and other staff members or parents present at the scene, leading to the motive for the murders.
During the investigation, the police identified Teacher Zhang as the suspect.
The college lecturer said that Principal Zheng is an extremely nostalgic person. Over the years, Teacher Zhang has clearly fallen behind the times; the makeup he does on the models is extremely old-fashioned, so how could he possibly teach students to create trendy makeup looks that young people like? However, because Teacher Zhang has been with Principal Zheng for decades, he has certainly put in a lot of hard work, even if he hasn't made any great contributions, so Principal Zheng did not dismiss him but transferred him to work in the logistics office.
“You can see that Teacher Zhang has a stern face in the video, and his expression is as if everyone in the children’s theater has offended him,” Zeng Yongshan said. “He has a terrible temper. My mom told me in private that he would take any opportunity in the logistics office to put on airs and lecture the newcomers, but in reality, he doesn’t even know how to use a computer.”
"More than a decade ago, Zheng Shihong was already the boss, while he was just a makeup artist who assisted him."
"Think about it carefully, whether it was the container factory foreman or the hotel manager, they were all around the same age as Teacher Zhang, but they were doing better than him. Even the breakfast stall owner, who looked inconspicuous, had a six-figure bank account. Maybe it was a look, or maybe it was a task, but Teacher Zhang held a grudge back then. After being transferred to the logistics office, he felt even more abandoned by the times, which triggered his madness."
This teacher's real name is Zhang Qixian.
Zhu Qing saw him the day she went to the college to collect her notes. She clearly remembered his appearance: a square face with a deep frown line between his brows. She didn't know what he looked like when he relaxed, but the last time she saw him was yesterday afternoon.
At that time, Yi Dongmei's car was blocking the entrance.
Teacher Zhang kept urging them on, honking the horn. The piercing sound echoed at the college gate for a long time without subsiding.
Zhu Qing suddenly recalled what they were talking about at the time.
Was it the incident of going to Zheng Shihong's house to get the key that caused Yi Dongmei to expose something, leading to Teacher Zhang's attempt to silence her?
"But Dr. Cheng's report states that the murderer's height—"
The murderer was about 1.7 meters tall.
Teacher Zhang is quite tall and strong, and she has to bend over when doing makeup, which causes her to suffer from aches and pains.
“Zhu Qing, data can only serve as a reference; we cannot rely on those cold, hard numbers lying on reports,” Liang Qikai said.
Zhu Qing: "That's what the eyewitness, Zhu Daxiong, said too."
"Maybe he was too nervous and didn't see clearly? We can't rule out Teacher Zhang's suspicion just because of this."
"Bring Zhang Qixian back for questioning first," Mo Zhenbang said, then looked at Liang Qikai: "Qikai, you—"
“I’ll go with Inspector Leung!” Tsang Wing-shan volunteered.
Mo Zhenbang waved for them to hurry up and go: "The rest of you continue investigating the people on the list."
...
In the afternoon, all the police officers split up and took action.
With so many people on the list, how could we possibly collect all the statements and take notes in a single day? But we still had to make the most of every minute.
When Zhu Qing returned to the police station from the photographer at the event, it was already past ten o'clock.
This photographer, who used to be in charge of children's theater events organized by the concert hall, took many photos of the children's innocent and adorable moments. He said that the events were not intended to be profitable, but the organizers did not expect that not only would they not make money, but they would actually lose money. They had been too idealistic in their initial considerations. No one was willing to continue such a loss-making business. After all, how much is passion worth?
When Zhu Qing handed the photographer the photo that Zheng Shihong had saved, he thought about it carefully.
It was so long ago that he couldn't remember clearly. He sighed and said that taking a group photo wasn't so easy. You can't wait until everyone is in the right pose before pressing the shutter button. There's always someone holding you back, like Ma Guohua, who suddenly adjusted the stage that had been set up and reached out to grab a balloon, almost falling over.
Of the four dead, only Zheng Shihong left an impression on the photographer.
He was the only staff member on site who asked for a photo. Zheng Shihong said that he also enjoys photography and hopes to cherish the group photo and put it in his home album.
This is Zhu Qing's last trip tonight.
The photographer didn't give her any clues.
The CID office was empty; she was all alone now.
But she knew they would come back, and no one wanted to call it a day.
Zhu Qing sat at her workstation, her hands clasped under her chin, staring at the calendar on the corner of her desk.
She kept calculating the time.
Zeng Yongshan's next shift will be in four days.
But on her way here by minibus in the morning, she heard the weather forecast broadcast on the bus radio.
For the next few days, the weather was sunny. But the problem is, in the original storyline, the Zeng family was murdered on a stormy night as well.
Everyone says the weather forecast is inaccurate. Especially Sister Zhen, who works in the office, complains every day that she's been terribly fooled by the weather forecast, forgetting to bring an umbrella for her child when she leaves home in the morning.
Is that the reason?
Zhu Qing's intuition told her that the schedule was still not right.
She got up and went downstairs, running quickly towards the duty room.
She wanted to retrieve the duty roster for Major Crimes Unit B for this month to check if there were any issues with the shifts.
The police station was quiet. She went downstairs and looked out the small window as she passed through the stairwell. She noticed that it was raining again.
As she walked along the corridor and around the corner, Zhu Qing suddenly smelled a fragrance wafting past her nose.
She stood at the corner and peeked into the duty room.
This duty room was originally an unused backup office, only used temporarily when there was an occasional need to print urgent documents.
And now, she hears the sound of water boiling in the pot.
"Do you want some instant noodles?"
At this hour, Cheng Xinglang had just finished examining the body and strolled into the building.
There was only a small pot in the duty room. He had plenty of leisure time to patiently wait for the water to boil, then he tore open the plastic wrap and put in a packet of instant noodles.
"It seems like every time we bump into each other, we're having a meal."
After a long day of running around, Zhu Qing forgot to eat, and her stomach rumbled without warning.
The next moment, Madam, without changing her expression, clutched her stomach and pulled up a plastic stool to sit down.
It was as if nothing had happened.
Dr. Cheng smiled slightly, slowly making circles with her chopsticks in the small pot.
Zhu Qing raised her eyebrows. That's enough.
"It's just instant noodles."
"Madam, don't underestimate this bowl of instant noodles."
Even with a simple bowl of instant noodles, Dr. Cheng has his own way of making a fuss.
Besides skillfully cracking open an egg, he also used scissors to cut open a sausage, filling the small duty room with a rich aroma.
Cheng Xinglang said that whether it's instant noodles, eggs, or sausages, they are all single-serving portions.
He didn't know Madam had suddenly arrived, so he could only take a share.
She paused for a moment, then murmured repeatedly, "There wasn't supposed to be any for me..."
Zhu Qing finally realized what was wrong with the work schedule.
The problem lies with her.
Zhu Qing always believed that, as the plot unfolded, something would happen to the original female lead's family on the night she was on night shift, so she was always on guard against any movement on that specific date.
However, due to his sudden death, the original schedule had a vacancy, so the duty roster for the entire B group naturally had to be readjusted.
And now, her name is clearly written on the duty roster.
Zhu Qing survived.
As a result, the trajectory of the entire world changed.
...
It's been a long time since the children have returned to their home in the hillside.
The marble floor was icy cold. He lay there rolling around, feeling the cold air coming from all directions, and felt like an ice cream cone.
At first, the children were very excited and intrigued.
But gradually, as darkness fell, he felt that the house was very quiet.
All the housekeepers have left, and now only Aunt Ping is left.
Aunt Ping helped them look after the house, and every corner of every room was kept spotless.
Aunt Ping's homemade shrimp dumplings are still so delicious; the young master has been eating them since he was a child.
But as the night deepened and the delicious food in his stomach gradually digested, a sense of insecurity began to creep in.
Shengfang leaned against the third-floor railing, looking towards the backyard.
A three-and-a-half-year-old's memory is constantly changing. He can no longer remember things that happened when he was one or two years old, but his memories of the last few months are very vivid.
There's a toy house for the puppy Bobo in the backyard.
The puppy died there. They said it died of old age, and that was indeed the case. Later, he threw a frisbee to Bobo, but Bobo was too tired to run.
Next to the toy house, he had seen his second sister and brother-in-law reminiscing about Bobo.
Earlier, Daddy and Mommy were taking a walk in the small garden.
The small head that was in full bloom was filled with fragments of memories.
He was like a viewer watching television.
The little boy sat back on the bay window in the children's room, burying his face in his short arms.
What hillside mansion? It's not good at all.
Fangfang still wants to go home more.
...
Zhu Qing came to print the duty roster. She brought a folder with her and planned to put the duty roster in it.
But now, she no longer needs to print.
She and Cheng Xinglang each ate half a bowl of instant noodles, burying their heads in their food.
Even the sausages and eggs were cut in half by Dr. Cheng. He held the chopsticks as if he were holding a scalpel, measuring precisely and very fairly.
They remained silent, each with their own things to do.
Dr. Cheng held chopsticks in one hand, casually flipping through an anatomy reference book with his slender fingers, as if he were reading a magazine.
Zhu Qing stared at the group photo, her mind filled with numerous clues. The clues were chaotic and intertwined, like a ball of yarn tangled in the hands of the dormitory supervisor.
Because she didn't die, the original plot changed, and her place was added to the schedule.
The memory was reloaded. Yesterday afternoon, Zhu Qing bumped into Yi Dongmei at the academy gate. In the original storyline, if everyone investigated along the same lines, they would have gone to the academy to retrieve the key, encountered her, and during their conversation, they would have aroused suspicion from Teacher Zhang in the car behind, leading to his ruthless attempt to silence her…
Zhu Qing's gaze swept over the group photo. The children participating in the performance had rough makeup on their faces, but because of their innocence, they exuded an innocent and adorable charm. Years later, this same makeup, transferred to the faces of adults, resembled a terrifying mask.
She sighed.
If witness Zhu Daxiong had seen the killer's face a year ago, none of this would have happened.
The sound of a pager abruptly broke the silence. It was Sheng Fang calling. There was a phone in the duty room, so Zhu Qing put down her almost-finished instant noodles and called the child back.
On the other end of the phone line, the child's voice sounded somewhat aloof.
"Qingzai, I can't sleep."
Madam and her uncle had a long phone conversation.
He brought up things from the past, and although he didn't explicitly express his emotions, Zhu Qing thought that perhaps the child missed his family.
When Zhu Qing was very young, she met an older sister at the orphanage.
My sister said that if you miss your parents, you can look at the stars in the sky. The stars are like twinkling, responding to your longing.
Zhu Qing doesn't miss her parents who "abandoned" her, but she enjoys listening to her older sister talk.
Later, her older sister was adopted by a family, while she was never chosen because her personality was not affectionate enough.
She and her sister never saw each other again after that.
The conversation on the rooftop of the orphanage was one of the few heartwarming moments in her childhood, and now Zhu Qing is passing it on to her uncle.
“If you miss them, you can look at the stars in the sky.” Zhu Qing’s gaze remained on the group photo, then she looked out the window and said, “The stars are like golden fireflies, representing your daddy and mommy in a faraway place, keeping you company through the summer.”
Her tone was indifferent, but her voice was unusually gentle, after all, she was teasing a child.
Until the child on the other end of the phone scoffed.
“Qingzai, Arcturus is orange, and Cartesian is pale yellow.”
"besides……"
The children have a wealth of knowledge.
Zhu Qing was suddenly enlightened by his scientific knowledge and listened to his old-fashioned astronomer manner, a smile appearing on her lips.
The rain outside the window is getting heavier.
The weather forecast is really inaccurate; it said the next few days would be cloudless.
"It's not gold at all!"
"Qingzai, are you colorblind?"
Zhu Qing's smile suddenly froze on her face as memories rushed through her mind.
A point that is not perfectly aligned is a flaw.
That day, she and Uncle Lai went to the United Christian Hospital in the North District of the New Territories to have Zhu Daxiong give a statement.
Zhu Daxiong said that the murderer was dressed in red that day... and before leaving, two foremen from the construction site came to visit him with nutritional supplements, mocking Zhu Daxiong for being cunning and knowing to take the foreman's helmet, which saved his life.
Uncle Li told Zhu Qing that there's a reason why helmets are used on construction sites.
The foreman used thickened PVC, while ordinary workers used recycled plastic; that was the "class distinction" on the construction site.
"Dr. Cheng, do you know what color the foreman's helmet is on the construction site?"
Cheng Xinglang: "Green."
"What about helmets made of recycled plastic?"
"Unsure, yellowish-brown?"
A bold conjecture suddenly popped into Zhu Qing's mind.
Working-class workers have never received formal color blindness screening and have adapted to their congenital defects since childhood. Perhaps Zhu Daxiong, who has spent his entire life struggling to make a living, has never realized that he may be red-green color blind.
The murderer he saw at the container factory a year ago was not wearing red.
The original plot deliberately mentioned the killer's clothing, even using this detail as an important label for the case, indicating that it would be a clear and direct clue.
Could it be a uniform?
A flood of clues rushed into Zhu Qing's mind, and that sentence floated through her mind—
"I don't know, I don't know anything, I'm new here."
If he is a new employee of the Feman International Beauty Academy.
So where was he a year ago, and what was he doing?
Zhu Qing's heart began to race.
The rain pattered outside the window. She closed her eyes, trying to picture the light yet discordant silhouette Zhu Daxiong had described.
"Dr. Cheng, if we calculate the data based on the angle of the ligature marks, the killer's height is accurate. But in reality, the height isn't quite there," Zhu Qing asked. "Is it possible—"
Cheng Xinglang: "High heels?"
It's high heels.
The murderer made meticulous preparations before committing the crime, wearing shoe covers indoors to avoid leaving traces, while outdoors, the heavy rain would perfectly wash away all traces.
In a state of extreme terror, Zhu Daxiong's testimony contained errors. He heard a crisp "ding-dong" sound and subconsciously thought it was raindrops hitting the roof, but in reality, it was the sound of heels stepping on the ground.
The culprit whose weight changed significantly within a year and whose stature became excessively short.
She already had someone in mind.
At the school gate, she and Yi Dongmei discussed not only the spare key, but also whether Zhan Weiqiang had lost weight.
The conversation wasn't only overheard by Teacher Zhang, but also by the person who was standing guard at the gate.
Those eyes remained fixed on them.
Fearing his actions would be exposed, he killed Yi Dongmei to ensure everything went smoothly.
As for her husband and son, they were unexpected victims.
"Put it aside," Zhu Qing said. "I have something to do, I'll hang up now."
Zhu Qing immediately left a message on the original female lead's pager.
Tsang Wing-shan called back a few minutes later. She and Leung Sir had just finished their work and were about to go get a bowl of wonton noodles.
Is your mother home alone?
"Daddy and Big Brother are back! They should be—"
"Go home immediately, they are in danger."
After hanging up the phone, Zhu Qing immediately contacted Inspector Mo and asked for backup.
After confirming everything, she recalled the exact address of the original female lead's house that she had found out before.
Zhu Qing turned and ran away.
If she made the wrong judgment, she didn't know how to handle the situation, but the rain was pouring down outside the window, and those were three lives at stake; she couldn't wait any longer.
Just as she was about to rush into the rain, Dr. Cheng from the forensic department caught up with her.
"I'll take you there."
...
Zhu Qing fastened her seatbelt and, using the streetlights outside the car window as a guide, opened the screening list.
The scenes from the original storyline are still vivid in my mind.
Brutal slaughter, blood splattering, vibrant lives lost.
Those who survived became zombies. The original female lead, who was saved and healed, drove the plot forward and was redeemed by the original male lead.
However, she didn't have to be the protagonist of this tragedy.
Raindrops fell heavily onto the windshield, obscuring the view.
The tires rolled over the puddles on the road, and the car sped through the heavy rain.
"Hold on tight."
Meanwhile, the hillside villas—
The child has already put down the phone receiver.
Fangfang isn't afraid.
They even rubbed their hands together in anticipation, their blood boiling with excitement.
Their uncle, from a family of police officers, is just that reliable!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com