Chapter 65 The Truth (3)
On the day Wang Shun's body was carried away, a light snow fell in Nan'an Village. Sun Yong stood behind the curtains, watching the medical examiner in his blue hazmat suit come and go. His cigarette burned to the end, burning his fingers. "I'm going to school," his son Sun Lei said, then walked out the door. Sun Yong stared at his son's direction and frowned. The next morning, Sun Lei's voice echoed from the doorway as usual, just as usual, except that his shoulders, burdened by his schoolbag, were unusually straight. When Sun Yong turned around, his face was already painted with his usual gentleness. "Drive slowly on the way home, and come back early after school. Dad will make you braised pork." Sun Lei hummed a "hmm," not looking up, and hurriedly changed his shoes. The security door clicked shut. Sun Yong had originally planned to move that weekend. Wang Shun had died next door, and this house was uninhabitable no matter what. It was unlucky. But before he could find a new home, Guo Zhong found him like a ghost. That afternoon, Sun Yong was packing up his stall downstairs when Guo Zhong's voice suddenly rang out, accompanied by an unpleasant smile: "Sun Yong, are you busy?" Sun Yong straightened up and stared at the landlord in a daze. "Something?" Guo Zhong patted his cart unsteadily, fiddling with a bunch of keys, his eyes darting back and forth over him, as if searching for something. "Can't I come see you if I have nothing else to do?" Guo Zhong stopped beside him. "I heard Wang Shun died? Tsk, tsk, how pitiful." Sun Yong didn't respond, but lowered his head and continued to organize his cart. Guo Zhong smacked his lips and suddenly changed the subject: "Speaking of which, Luo Xin seems to be acting a little off lately." Sun Yong frowned, not knowing why Guo Zhong suddenly mentioned Luo Xin, the mother of his son's classmate. He wasn't very familiar with her, but since he mentioned her, Sun Yong still replied: "What's wrong?" "Nothing," Guo Zhong chuckled, wrinkles forming at the corners of his eyes. "You just look worried. But it's true, someone died in the village, who wouldn't be scared?" He leaned closer and lowered his voice. "Sun Yong, I'm not saying anything, but stay away from that woman." Sun Yong frowned. "What do you mean by that?" "Nothing," Guo Zhong's eyes flickered across his face. "I just feel... it's not appropriate. After all, she used to..." He deliberately left the sentence unfinished, pointing to the sky and then to the ground. His expression spoke for itself. Sun Yong still couldn't understand what Guo Zhong was trying to say. From the very beginning, his words were incomprehensible. At this moment, Guo Zhong suddenly changed the subject, his voice...
On the day Wang Shun's body was taken away, a light snow fell in Nan'an Village. Sun Yong stood behind the curtains, watching the medical examiner in his blue protective suit come in and out. His cigarette had burned to the end, burning his fingers so much that they shivered.
"I'm going to school." Son Sun Lei said and walked out.
Sun Yong stared at the direction his son went out and frowned.
The next morning, Sun Lei's voice rang out at the door as usual, just like usual, except that his shoulders, carrying his schoolbag, were extra straight.
When Sun Yong turned around, his face was already filled with his usual gentleness: "Drive slowly on the way, come back early after school, and Dad will make you braised pork."
Sun Lei hummed, not looking up, and hurriedly changed his shoes. The security door clicked shut.
Sun Yong had originally planned to move this weekend. Wang Shun had died next door, and there was no way he could live in this house anymore; it was unlucky. But before he could find a new home, Guo Zhong found him like a ghost.
That afternoon, Sun Yong was packing up his stall downstairs when Guo Zhong's voice suddenly rang out, accompanied by an unpleasant smile: "Sun Yong, are you busy?"
Sun Yong stood up and stared at the landlord in a daze, "What's the matter?"
Guo Zhong patted his cart leisurely, playing with a bunch of keys in his hand, his eyes darting back and forth over him as if he was looking for something.
"Can't I come and see you if I have nothing to do?" Guo Zhong stopped beside him. "I heard Wang Shun died? Tsk tsk, how pitiful."
Sun Yong didn't respond, but lowered his head and continued to organize his cart.
Guo Zhong smacked his lips and suddenly changed the subject: "Speaking of which, Luo Xin seems to be acting a little strangely lately."
Sun Yong frowned, wondering why Guo Zhong suddenly mentioned Luo Xin, the mother of his son's classmate. He didn't know her very well, but since he mentioned her, Sun Yong still replied, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Guo Zhong chuckled, wrinkles forming at the corners of his eyes. "You just look worried. But it's true. Someone died in the village, who wouldn't be scared?" He leaned closer and lowered his voice. "Sun Yong, I'm not saying anything bad, but stay away from that woman."
Sun Yong frowned: "What do you mean?"
"It's nothing," Guo Zhong's eyes moved around his face, "I just feel... it's not quite appropriate. After all, she used to..." He deliberately didn't finish his words, pointing to the sky and then to the ground, his expression self-evident.
Sun Yong still couldn't understand what Guo Zhong wanted to say. He was confused from the beginning.
At this moment, Guo Zhong suddenly changed the subject, his voice almost whispering, "You have an old wardrobe at home. It's quite old, right?"
"Well, it was there when I rented the house. I put some old stuff in it. Didn't you reduce the rent by 200 yuan for this?" Sun Yong was still confused by the other party's words.
"Really?" Guo Zhong's smile turned a little strange. "I had completely forgotten."
"Is there anything else? If not, I'll go to the stall." Sun Yong didn't want to talk to him more.
"No," Guo Zhong took a step forward and lowered his voice. "I remember there was a hole behind this wardrobe..."
With a clang, Sun Yong lost his grip on the spatula and dropped it to the ground. He stared at Guo Zhong intently, as if he understood Guo Zhong's purpose.
Guo Zhong looked at his reaction and smiled even more proudly: "It seems I was right." He smiled and said, "Did you go through that cave on the night Wang Shun died?"
Sun Yong's throat tightened and he couldn't utter a word.
"I knew it was you." Guo Zhong seemed certain of the answer, pacing back and forth with his hands behind his back. "You must be in love with Luo Xin. Seeing Wang Shun bullying her, you got so angry that you wanted to kill her. You killed someone and came back through this hole without anyone noticing. Even the police couldn't find any evidence." He clicked his tongue in amazement. "Brilliant, really brilliant."
Sun Yong suddenly came to his senses and pushed him away: "What nonsense are you talking about!" Guo Zhong fell to the ground.
Guo Zhong wasn't angry either. He brushed the dust off his clothes and said, "You know whether I'm talking nonsense or not. It's okay. I'll give you some time." He started walking towards the playground, then suddenly turned back, his eyes threatening. "Sun Yong, I advise you to be more sensible. Otherwise, by the time the police get here, it will be too late."
Guo Zhong's footsteps gradually faded away, but Sun Yong felt like he was nailed to the spot, his blood freezing.
He quickly ran back home and opened the door. With a clatter, the wardrobe moved away, revealing the wall behind it.
There was indeed a hole in the corner of the wall, pitch black, only thirty centimeters wide, with some fresh sawdust stuck to the edge.
Sun Yong felt as if he were struck by lightning, and his vision went dark. This hole was so small, there was no way he could get through! The only person who could get in and out of here was...
He remembered that Sun Lei had been home the night Wang Shun died. He said he was doing his homework, but now he thought...
"Lei Zi..." Sun Yong muttered to himself, his heart feeling like it was being gripped by a giant hand, the pain making it hard to breathe. His initial suspicions were instantly confirmed.
He quickly pushed the wardrobe back into place, his fingers shaking so much he couldn't even close the door. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he pulled out his cigarette case and shook it for a long time before pulling out a cigarette.
The lighter clicked several times before it lit the cigarette. The smoke choked him and made him cough violently, tears streaming down his face.
In the next few days, Sun Yong observed his son like crazy. He found that Sun Lei always secretly wiped a folding knife without his knowledge, and that when Sun Lei heard Wang Shun's name, a cold arc would appear at the corner of his mouth.
Every detail pierced Sun Yong's heart like a needle. He was almost certain that Wang Shun was killed by Sun Lei.
But he couldn't understand why his son did this. Why would he kill an adult?
He had thought more than once about pulling his son over to question him and force him to turn himself in. He had checked the law and knew that even if a twelve-year-old committed murder, he would not be sentenced to death.
But every time the words came to his lips, he couldn't say them when he saw his son's young face.
That was his only son. He had no special talents in his life, so he just hoped his son would have a bright future, get into a good university, and not have to work like himself for a lifetime. If he went to juvenile detention, wouldn't his life be ruined?
Guo Zhong's words echoed in his ears like a curse. Another crazy idea formed in his mind: kill Guo Zhong. Once this idea emerged, it could no longer be suppressed.
Guo Zhong was the only one who knew the passage, and the only one who had nearly guessed the truth. If he were killed, no one would threaten Lei Zi anymore.
Even if the police found out that he had murdered Guo Zhong, he could still take on Wang Shun's case as well. It was better for him to take on two murders alone than to let his son be ruined.
Thinking of this, he immediately took action.
He began to approach Luo Xin intentionally or unintentionally, deliberately chatting her up at the vegetable market and "running into" her on her way home from work. He knew the police must be secretly investigating Wang Shun's case, and he wanted them to think that he was interested in Luo Xin and killed Wang Shun for protection.
"Luo Xin, are you off work?" He was carrying the vegetables he had just bought and pretending to be casual as he walked along the road that Luo Xin had to take on her way home.
Luo Xin was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Well, Brother Sun, you are buying vegetables too."
"Yeah, make something delicious for Lei Zi." He smiled as naturally as possible, but his eyes were secretly observing the surveillance cameras around him.
He saw the hesitation on Luo Xin's face, the way she wanted to hide but was embarrassed, and his heart felt like it was being stabbed by a needle. He felt sorry for Luo Xin, for taking advantage of her kindness. But he had no other choice. For the sake of his son, he could only feel sorry for everyone.
On the day he killed Guo Zhong, he dressed up, wearing a new coat he'd only worn during the Lunar New Year. He met Guo Zhong at the entrance of a rarely visited alley, and when he went to get his money, he plunged the knife into Guo Zhong's chest.
He was so strong that he almost sank the entire tip of the knife into the opponent's chest. Guo Zhong did not die immediately, but looked at Sun Yong in disbelief. He never thought that Sun Yong would kill him directly like this.
Guo Zhong didn't understand one thing. If the murderer was really Sun Yong, since he had killed one person, then killing him again would be fine.
If the murderer was not Sun Yong, then his threat to Sun Yong would be meaningless. The most important thing is that he only knew there was such a hole, but he did not realize that the hole was very small and an adult could not pass through it. This just touched Sun Yong's bottom line.
Sun Yong killed Guo Zhong cleanly and efficiently without any hesitation.
After killing Guo Zhong, he deliberately did not clean up the scene and left his footprints at the door. He knew that the police would find him soon, which was exactly what he wanted.
If Liu Feng was only interested in living, then Sun Yong was only interested in dying, and was willing to exchange his own death for his son's life.
Later, he followed Luo Xin more and more frequently, and even jumped out to "save the damsel in distress" when Xiao Yan harassed Luo Xin.
He fought fiercely and injured himself on purpose just to make the police believe that his feelings for Luo Xin had reached a crazy level.
"Stay away from her!" He pinched Xiao Yan's neck, the anger in his eyes half acting, half real - he would not allow anyone to hurt Luo Xin, even if it was just for show. But in reality, this act-like emotion was slowly changing.
What he hadn't expected was that Sun Lei would also murder Xiao Yan. Furthermore, he knew nothing about his son's subsequent actions. Especially during the interrogation, when the police asked him if he had committed the murder of Xiao Yan, his first reaction was that since he had already taken the blame for both murders, he could take on the rest. One more thing wouldn't make a big difference.
On the Lantern Festival, he went to find Liu Bing, but he had no intention of killing him. Liu Bing's panic when he saw him and his fear when he heard his voice were all within his expectations.
"Sun Yong! What do you want to do?" Liu Bing held the steel pipe, his hands shaking.
Sun Yong smiled, said nothing, and turned to walk towards the cemetery. He knew the police were nearby. He deliberately exposed his flaws and let Liu Bing see the knife, just to give them a reason to shoot and arrest.
The moment he was pinned to the ground, he felt a sense of relief. The red and blue lights of the police lights shone on his face. He closed his eyes, and a picture of Sun Lei as a child emerged in his mind—a little boy in open-crotch pants, chasing butterflies, his smile as bright as the sun.
Only if he died would his son have hope of survival. Alas, his mistake was too big, and he had no choice but to exchange his life for his own.
He had no regrets. Even if he had to bear the crime of murder, as long as it could bring his son a peaceful life, it would be worth it.
審訊室裏，當他承認所有罪行時，心裏想的是：雷子，好好活着，別像爸一樣。
窗外的月光透過鐵窗照進來，在地上投下一塊小小的光斑。孫勇擡起頭，仿佛能看到南岸村的方向，看到兒子坐在書桌前，認真地寫着作業，桌子上擺着他刻的蝴蝶木雕。
那是他這輩子唯一的希望了。
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