Chapter 4
There were still no new cases in the morning, and the atmosphere in the entire office was leisurely and slow. Chen Pu has been looking at the resident information of Chaoyang Home from that year. Although he has read it many times and almost knows it by heart, he still finds omissions, errors and supplements every year.
Just as he was watching intently, he heard that soft and crisp voice not far from his desk again: "No problem, drink as much as you want."
Chen Pu looked up and saw Yan Yong, the youngest member of the team. Of course, now that Li Qingyao was here, they were both the youngest. He was standing next to Li Qingyao with a cup of tea in his hand, smiling shyly and nervously, "How can that be? You have to pay for tea leaves, too. How about I pay you for half a box?"
Li Qingyao also brought a cup of tea. His fair fingers were holding a frosted glass cup with rounded edges. Green tea leaves were floating in it, which made people feel fragrant and elegant at first glance. She smiled and said, "How can that be? We are all colleagues. A few dozen dollars worth of tea is not worth much. Next time you buy some tea, I'll try it too!"
Yan Yong gave a thumbs up: "Great!"
Li Qingyao smiled and glanced at Chen Pu inadvertently, but Chen Pu had already lowered his eyes.
Very good, he thought. It was only the second day and everyone in the team, young or old, started wagging their tails to Li Qingyao.
The sophistication of some people is just like the spring breeze, fresh and natural, moistening everything silently. 〓
Chen Pu's feeling towards Li Qingyao reached its peak in the afternoon.
Li Qingyao took advantage of the lunch break to bring a large bag of milk tea and distributed it to each colleague. She was still so humble and gentle: "Yesterday was my first day here, and I was embarrassed to express anything. Although the boss treated me to a meal at the weekend, I also want to thank everyone for taking care of me, a junior. Although a cup of milk tea is small, it is also a thoughtful gesture."
Everyone laughed and said she was very polite. They rushed forward to share all the milk tea, and the atmosphere in the office became more harmonious.
Only Chen Pu didn't go.
After a while, a cup of milk tea was placed on the table. Chen Pu raised his head and met Li Qingyao's eyes, which were dark, bright and clear.
Chen Pu: "Thank you, I don't drink sweets, take it."
From Li Qingyao's perspective, you can see his full forehead, and the clear and neat lines from his nose to his lips and chin. Only his eyes were slightly drooped, always giving off an aura that kept people at a distance.
Li Qingyao said softly, "I ordered the sugar-free osmanthus oolong. Isn't this your favorite flavor?"
Chen Pu didn't seem to react. But his eyes raised slightly and fell on the words on the cup half a foot away - familiar milk tea shop, familiar taste.
Chen Pu was suddenly in a daze. Seven years had passed and everything seemed to have changed. Many people in the bureau no longer knew the name Li Jincheng. But it seemed as if nothing had changed. The milk tea shop that he and Li Jincheng often went to was still there, and the flavor was still there.
Chen Pu realized again how delicate and deep the mind of the girl who ordered this cup of milk tea for him was. Is she trying to test something, or is she trying to express something? But when he looked up again, he still saw a pair of eyes that were bright and almost silent.
This girl is undoubtedly smart and scheming. Instead of going to a top university and a top major, he resolutely dropped out to attend police school. After working in the provincial Public Security Bureau for a year, she somehow ended up in the criminal police team where her brother worked before he disappeared.
What she wants to do and what she wants to get, the answers are obvious.
But for Chen Pu, it was just trouble.
He picked up the cup of milk tea, lowered his eyes again, and said, "Thanks, don't buy it next time, I don't like to drink these things anymore."
——
However, as criminal police, even God cannot bear to see them taking it easy. At the end of the get off work day, Ding Guoqiang walked into their office quickly and said, "Everyone, be careful. There's a murder case in the staff building of No. 29 Middle School. Chen Pu, lead the team and bring the newcomers with you."
No. 29 Middle School is located in an old city area. Directly across the road from the school is a residential building built decades ago. The house is old, but the location is good and it is in the school district, so many teachers live in it.
The community has no walls and several buildings face the street. There are fences and security guards at the vehicle entrances and exits. In addition to residents, there are many training institutions, restaurants, convenience stores, etc. in these dozen buildings. There are a lot of people and it is very lively.
The police car drove all the way to the building where the crime occurred, and it was difficult to park the car. Li Qingyao followed him to the entrance of the building and looked up to see a surveillance camera.
This is a tower structure. After they went up to the 4th floor where the deceased was, they walked along the long corridor with at least a dozen households on both sides.
The district police were standing at the door of 403 waiting for them.
Li Qingyao was the last one to walk in. He looked around and listened attentively to the police officer and Chen Pu's report.
This is a common old-style two-bedroom apartment with a square living room, two bedrooms next to it, and a kitchen and bathroom at the other end. The decoration is simple, with white walls made of tiles, ceiling lights, and quite old mahogany furniture. The only appliances are a small TV and a refrigerator. There are two badminton rackets hanging on the wall and a basketball in a net bag. There are two pairs of sneakers, a pair of leather shoes, and a pair of men's slippers on the shoe cabinet at the door. The whole house looked empty at first glance, with very few things in it, and could even be described as simple.
"The deceased is named Liu Huaixin, male, 28 years old, a high school Chinese teacher at No. 29 Middle School, and he has just been there for two years. He rented this house. He finished his second class at 4 o'clock this afternoon and went home when he had no more classes. He is in the bathroom." said the police.
There is a dining table for four people against the wall of the living room near the kitchen. Li Qingyao couldn't help but pay attention to the dining table, because in addition to two plates of braised dishes, there were also two bottles of Moutai liquor on it. There was also a small plate next to it, with three sets of clean wine utensils on it.
Passing through the living room, the bathroom is on the left and the kitchen is on the right.
The bathroom is about five or six square meters in size, with white porcelain floor and green walls, and is very clean. At the innermost part was a relatively small bathtub, which was very old and could only accommodate one person lying down. But the deceased was not in the bathtub, but sitting on a wooden chair with a backrest next to the bathtub. At this moment, he was lying on the edge of the bathtub with his back to the police, one hand hanging in the bathtub and the other hanging outside the bathtub.
Several tall and strong criminal police rushed into the bathroom, and it immediately became crowded. Li Qingyao walked around them and went to the bathtub to take a look: the dead young teacher had an unexpectedly delicate and fair profile, and a tall and thin figure. The wound on the wrist that was hanging in the bathtub was no longer bleeding because the bathtub was full of blood.
The ground outside was clean, with almost no blood splattered.
A scene investigator was using tweezers to fish out a blood-soaked fruit knife from the bathtub and putting it into an evidence bag.
"Who discovered it?" Chen Pu's voice rang out.
Li Qingyao looked up subconsciously. Chen Pu was putting on gloves with the five fingers of one hand spread out, and with the other hand his fingers hooked on the edge of the glove and pulled it down, revealing a thin and slender wrist. He was still wearing the same black jacket and black trousers as yesterday, with a white T-shirt underneath. Once he arrived at the crime scene, he seemed like a different person, with drooping brows and solemn features, like a sharp knife sinking into endless black water.
The police brought a man over and said, "He was the first to discover the body. His name is Zhang Liangwei, and he is the parent of a student from No. 29 Middle School. He said Liu Huaixin asked him to come over, and he found the body as soon as he entered the house."
Zhang Liangwei looked a little dazed and his face was pale. He glanced at the criminal police, then lowered his head and looked at the corpse.
Li Qingyao was startled and his eyes fell on Chen Pu's face. He was also staring at Zhang Liangwei, and suddenly his eyes moved and met Li Qingyao's. In an instant, they both realized at the same time that the other had also caught something.
But Chen Pu immediately looked away, as if keeping his gaze with her for even one second longer would be poisonous. The corners of Li Qingyao's mouth curled up slightly.
The police handed Chen Pu an evidence bag containing papers, so Li Qingyao went over to take a look. Her white sleeve touched Chen Pu's coat, but Chen Pu ignored her.
It was a very simple suicide note, or rather a suicide declaration:
[I can’t find the meaning of life. The pressure is too great and I don’t want to live anymore.
I hope my death can atone for my sins.
——Liu Huaixin’s last words]
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