Chapter 38 Bird of Paradise 23
The suspect confessed to the crime and the case was finally solved.
In the afternoon, a police notice with white text on a blue background was issued. The notice was concise and described the entire case.
A crowd quickly gathered below the notice. Some expressed surprise that the suspect wasn't He Jin, but that was all they were. The crowd then dispersed.
When the dust settled, the attention it attracted was less than one-tenth of what it had been when the case first occurred.
A few days passed, and those online spectators who were originally outraged had been attracted by new hot topics and had forgotten about this case.
In the office in the afternoon, the police officers chatted about gossip.
Huo Cunsheng looked at the news and said, "Interesting."
Ni Xiang asked curiously, "Is there any new news?"
Huo Cunsheng said, "Right after the murder and the fire, the landlords in Helan Community began selling off their houses en masse."
Guo Zhengyao, standing nearby, interjected, "That's easy to understand. The house was so old, and after the fire, it became a dangerous building. And with so many people dead, the landlord is of course eager to sell while the school district still has some value."
Huo Cunsheng nodded. "Yes, this is an old, dilapidated, and dangerous house. The landlord is selling it urgently at a low price."
Shen Qing was surprised: "Hasn't the housing price been falling recently? Is there anyone still buying a house in this old neighborhood?"
Ni Xiang also said, "People who buy houses aren't stupid. Even if it's cheap, if someone just caught fire and died in a building, wouldn't that mean they're just buying it?"
Huo Cunsheng smiled. "Not only are there buyers, but there are quite a few of them. Over a hundred units have been signed in those nearby buildings recently, and many have even expedited payments. The real estate agents are completely swamped with work."
Luo Siwei was reading the case report. When she heard this, she frowned and looked up: "Who bought those houses?"
"It's hard to say. Guess what's interesting?" Huo Cunsheng clicked on the headlines and showed them. "Just now, Donglan's official website suddenly announced the demolition of Tomorrow Lake Wound. The original landlords will no longer be compensated for the demolition and resettlement housing. Those landlords who signed the contracts must be regretting it to death."
Guo Zhengyao shook his head when he heard this and sighed, "Fate plays tricks on us."
Luo Siwei's eyes fell on Li Muyao's confession. She drew a line under those words. Why did Huang Gan let Li Muyao set fire to Helan Community?
Or...did he know something in advance?
At this point, He Jin's suspicion has been completely cleared.
Before leaving get off work, Luo Siwei went to the women's detention center to help He Jin complete the procedures.
After leaving the detention center, she returned He Jin's personal belongings to her.
Luo Siwei said apologetically, "I'm sorry." Although the truth was soon discovered later, the police almost wrongly accused the girl at the beginning.
He Jin lowered her head and said, "It's all my fault for lying. I interfered with the police investigation, and if it weren't for you, I might have been locked up here forever." She has always been grateful to Luo Siwei.
Luo Siwei said: "I'll take you to the hospital to see your mother."
He Jin responded softly, then looked timid: "But, I'm a little afraid to see her..."
Luo Siwei comforted her: "I just happen to have some things I want to verify with her. I will briefly explain your situation to her."
When the two arrived at the hospital, Liu Wangnan had just stopped receiving the IV drip. Her condition had improved and she was no longer in danger of death, but some of her wounds were still difficult to heal, especially the large and conspicuous scar on her face, which made her look a little hideous.
After listening to Luo Siwei's statement, Liu Wangnan was silent for a moment and said, "So that's how it is..."
There was no joy or anger on her face, nor was there the indignation she had when she first suspected He Jin. It was as if she had calmly accepted her fate.
Luo Siwei suddenly remembered what Li Muyao said. Although that incident would not change the outcome of the case, she still wanted to know the truth.
Luo Siwei asked her, "Li Muyao said that something happened at the time. A box of shampoo was lost from your company, and they suspected he had stolen it. Your husband told the boss of the delivery company about it, which caused him to lose his job. Was the box of shampoo really lost?"
They had mentioned this matter before when they called to contact former employees.
Liu Wangnan hummed, then lowered her head, looked to the side, and said expressionlessly, "It's lost."
Luo Siwei paid attention to her expression. When Liu Wangnan said that it was lost, his voice suddenly became smaller. She lowered her head, not daring to look directly into her eyes. At the same time, her right hand grabbed the bed sheet as if cramping.
Luo Siwei asked: "Are you sure?"
After hearing this question, Liu Wangnan trembled and said, "It seems... I can't remember clearly."
She finished saying this herself, and before Luo Siwei could ask her any more questions, she couldn't hold it in any longer.
The woman covered her face with her hands, and there were burn marks on the back of her hands.
Liu Wangnan's voice trembled, her shoulders shaking. "The box of shampoo was later found. My husband initially thought someone down there had stolen it. He questioned everyone and finally suspected the delivery guy had taken it and used it, so he told their boss. Three days later, we did a warehouse inventory and found the item... The kids were playing with the boxes in the warehouse and had moved the items around."
"I later learned that the delivery man lost his job because of this incident. He even came to our house, but Lao He refused to change his story."
At this point, Liu Wangnan collapsed on the bed and burst into tears. "I tried to persuade my husband to tell the owner if he found it, but he refused. He said he couldn't say he was wrong because that would make people look down on him. He told me not to get involved, saying the man lost his job because he had bad luck. He said how could the boss fire someone just because of a word from him? There must be other reasons. The delivery guy must be a repeat offender..."
"I was a little worried at first, but then a long time passed and the man never came again."
She cried louder and louder: "Why would someone kill someone for a box of shampoo? Why is our family so unlucky to have met such a madman..."
Luo Siwei stood aside, watching the woman crying, she did not sympathize with her at all. In Liu Wangnan's words, all the faults were put on her husband, but as an insider, she knew that her husband had wronged Li Muyao, and she did not make any compensation.
If it weren't for this incident, Li Muyao might still be a hard-working truck driver. It looked like just a box of shampoo, but it caused Li Muyao to lose his job. Many people in the city already have a hard life, and that was the last straw that broke the camel's back.
Who should be blamed for this murder that destroyed this family?
Liu Wangnan cried for a while before Luo Siwei continued, "We've finished discussing work matters. I brought your eldest daughter here. She had nothing to do with what happened that day."
Liu Wangnan wiped away her tears and nodded.
Luo Siwei said, "During the investigation, I learned a lot about what happened between you and your daughter. I want to ask, why did you treat her like that?"
Liu Wangnan stopped crying, raised his head and asked her: "How should we treat her?"
Luo Siwei said, "When she fell, you let her stand up on her own, but you asked her to help her younger siblings. He Jin said you also said something like, 'Let her die outside.'"
Liu Wangnan hesitated for a moment and said, "Did I do that..." Then she shook her head, "I don't remember."
She no longer admitted to having done anything like that.
"You even made her live on the balcony, prevented her from taking the university entrance exam, and sprayed her face with disinfectant."
Liu Wangnan said, "My family isn't wealthy, and I always have to balance things out with my three children."
Luo Siwei asked the question more clearly: "Then why did you suspect He Jin after the fire?"
It was because of her suspicion that He Jin was pushed to the forefront and listed as a suspect by the police.
"Because she said something to hurt us. I think the child is really capable of doing it. Besides, this is our family affair."
Speaking of this, Liu Wangnan frowned. When she talked about Li Muyao and the case just now, she felt guilty, regretful, and heartbroken, but now that she talked about this topic, she felt justified and even a little impatient.
Her tone was cold, as if she felt that she had complete control over her daughter.
Luo Siwei thought of what He Jin had said when he was crying in the interrogation room, and felt a chill rising from the bottom of her heart. She asked, "Don't you love her?"
"Love! How could a mother not love her own daughter? Even though she was rebellious, didn't I forgive her? I raised her to this age?"
Liu Wangnan paused here, then she continued: "She is the eldest daughter, isn't it her duty to take care of her younger siblings? I am also the eldest daughter in the family. I have been cooking for the family since I was six years old, and started washing clothes for the whole family at the age of eight. My mother died early, and I have to be both an older sister and a mother. I paid for the money for my two younger brothers to build houses and get married. My husband scolded me for only subsidizing my parents' family. I work hard every day and gave birth to three children for him, but in return I can't get a smile from him. When I was taking care of the children..."
She paused here, remembering that those people were already dead, and now only she and He Jin were alive.
Liu Wangnan tilted his head, sorted out the things in it, and finally turned the topic to his relationship with He Jin.
Tears welled up in her eyes, and she sighed and said, "I had a heavy hemorrhage when she was born, and I almost died. It was my first time being a mother, and I had no practice, and no one told me what to do. I got pregnant when I was still a child. After giving birth to her, I often thought that if she hadn't been there, I might have been happier, and I might not have married a man like this. Later, I had two more children, but every time I saw He Jin, I thought that as the eldest daughter in the family, it was also difficult for me. Why didn't she have to suffer the hardships that I suffered?"
It's like a reincarnation. Liu Wangnan had a daughter early on when she hadn't figured out her own life yet. Then she passed on all the suffering she had experienced to her eldest daughter.
It seems that this is the fate of many eldest daughters.
Luo Siwei chatted with her for a few more words and ended the topic. When she walked out of the ward, she saw He Jin leaning against the wall by the door, crying silently.
He Jin heard all those conversations.
The girl looked up and asked Luo Siwei, "Officer Luo, is it true that some people in this world will never be loved by others in their entire lives?"
Luo Siwei shook his head: "You are still young, there is still time for everything."
He Jin's tears flowed even more: "If I had stopped my brother and sister from touching the cardboard box, would this have happened? Is it because of what I posted online that Dad and my brother and sister got into trouble..."
Luo Siwei said, "You may be wrong, and you're not perfect, but the fault lies more with others. If you were simply venting your anger and didn't actually do anything to hurt others, you shouldn't be punished."
She left her contact information to He Jin.
"From now on, you and your mother will be the only ones left to depend on each other. You must work hard to go back to school and take the college entrance exam."
He Jin nodded and said, "Okay."
The setting sun shone through the window. Looking at the girl in front of him, Luo Siwei suddenly remembered his past self.
She couldn't help herself and reached out to hug the thin girl in front of her. She spoke in her ear and made her words clearer.
“You have to grow up and become strong, then you will find that you can change the world and make it what you want it to be. As long as you are strong enough, someone will discover your beauty and you will be loved by others.”
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