Chapter Eleven: Not Quite

For profit? Judging by the condition of the bedroom, it did look like a burglary in which everything had been tossed upside down. But burglars want valuables; there would be no reason to take the reckless risk of killing people, much less killing both of the people living in the house at once.

Revenge? Murder first, then deliberately mess up the scene to create the illusion of a burglary and robbery?

There are plenty of precedents for that sort of thing. But if this was the same kind of case, then the culprit was hardly capable. After all, what real thief or killer, driven by greed, would prepare so much high-strength cement just to pour the bodies into the bathtub and seal them inside it?

Ning Shuyi’s tactful attempt to turn the crowd away at the entrance had worked; the onlookers who had been blocking the doorway were frightened off. But as they lingered longer and longer here, another problem arose: this area was full of narrow little streets, and with so many police cars parked nearby for such a long time, the evening rush hour soon caused a traffic jam across the neighborhood.

Besides the congestion, it also drew the curiosity of many others, who kept guessing what on earth had happened here.

Meanwhile, the enormous block of cement in the bathroom had not achieved anything that could be called a real breakthrough. The cramped space in the bathroom severely limited everyone’s efficiency.

After some discussion, they decided to figure out a way to cut the entire block of high-strength cement out of the bathtub and transport it back to the bureau for slow, careful processing.

That cutting process was difficult as well. First, they needed suitable tools; second, they were afraid of accidentally damaging the body hidden inside.

Fortunately, there was a layer of cement between the two bodies and the bathroom floor, so the cutting process did not damage them. That made everyone breathe a great sigh of relief.

But the cement block was simply too large and far too heavy. They even had to remove the bathroom door from its frame before they could finally shift it to the doorway.

Once the truck arranged downstairs for transporting the cement had opened up, all the male officers on the scene except Ning Shuyi and the female forensic officer Dong Huihui went over to help. Even so, it still took tremendous effort before they could haul the huge slab of high-strength cement, with the bodies trapped inside, downstairs, load it onto the truck, and take it back to the bureau.

As the truck carrying the cement block slowly drove away, the others also got into their vehicles one after another, preparing to return to the bureau. Huo Yan turned back to Ning Shuyi.

While they had been busy loading the truck, Ning Shuyi had gone to a small convenience store nearby and bought some bottled water for everyone. She naturally kept a bottle for Huo Yan as well, and when he came over, she handed it to him.

Huo Yan wiped the sweat from his forehead. He had put in a great deal of effort just now; by then he was truly drenched and parched. He did not bother with any courtesy, took the bottle, twisted off the cap, tipped his head back, and gulped down half of it in a few swallows.

He drank too quickly, and some of the water spilled from the corner of his mouth, sliding down his chin and over the movement of his Adam’s apple.

“Shall we go?” he asked after catching his breath and wiping the water from his chin.

“Not yet.” Ning Shuyi shook her head and pointed toward where they had parked. “Let’s get in the car and sit for a while, rest a bit. Once most of the people have left and things have quieted down again, we’ll come back and talk to someone.”

Huo Yan never objected to Ning Shuyi’s arrangements. He nodded and followed her back to the car. Neither of them said anything. Huo Yan leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes to rest, while Ning Shuyi carefully retraced everything in her mind, sorting through the details inside the house.

About forty minutes later, the light outside began to change. The sun had tilted westward and was already nearing dusk.

“About enough,” Ning Shuyi said, glancing at her watch. It was past four. “Let’s go back and take another stroll.”

The two of them returned to the residential block from before. The building where the incident had just occurred was still quiet and still. Perhaps frightened by what had happened earlier, no one dared linger outside now, afraid that if the police had not yet left and saw someone coming out to watch the excitement, they would be taken back to the public security bureau to give a statement.

But under the neighboring building, less than a dozen meters away, things were lively. In front of that building stood a shabby little pavilion, and inside it was a stone table, with a ring of old sofas and wooden chairs around it. A number of elderly women were gathered around the stone table, chatting idly while picking vegetables.

Seeing this, Ning Shuyi signaled to Huo Yan, and the two of them walked over to the pavilion at an unhurried pace, listening as they went.

As expected, the old women were discussing the incident next door with great enthusiasm.

They were all in their sixties or seventies, clearly not the sort with the energy to push into a crowd and watch the excitement earlier. They had probably heard from somewhere else that something had happened in the neighboring building, and now they were talking over one another about the family involved.

As Ning Shuyi and Huo Yan approached, the two unfamiliar young people immediately drew the attention of the old women, especially Huo Yan. His appearance in such a setting made him stand out all the more.

The women instinctively fell quiet, looking at the two of them with curiosity and uncertainty.

Ning Shuyi smiled at them and took out her identification. “Aunties, hello. We’re from the criminal investigation unit of the W City Public Security Bureau. We just heard you talking about the neighbors in the next building. Would you mind if we listened too?”

“Oh, a police officer!” The round-faced old woman nearest to her was apparently very approachable. She gave a startled little cry, examined Ning Shuyi’s identification carefully, then looked at Ning Shuyi’s face again and exclaimed, “My, my, little girl, you look so proper and refined, and you don’t seem very old at all. You’re actually a detective!”

“Auntie, do I not look like one?” Ning Shuyi asked with a smile.

“You don’t, you don’t!” The round-faced woman waved a hand, then pointed at Huo Yan beside her. “He looks the part. You don’t!”

Ning Shuyi did not seem bothered by that at all. She was still smiling warmly as she asked very naturally, “Aunties, do you know the mother and son who live in that house? I heard they’ve been living here for many years.”

“Well, I’d say it’s been three or four years, proper and decent,” the round-faced aunt said, nodding.

The aunt with the curly hair nearby waved a hand. “More than that. Maybe six or seven years. When the old lady in their family first started coming downstairs to chat with us, my little granddaughter wasn’t even in kindergarten yet. Now she’s in elementary school!”

“Did she often come downstairs to chat with all of you before?” Ning Shuyi asked. “When was the last time you saw her? Do you remember?”