HH Chapter 41

This house, although near the school, is in an area where there are hardly any people around. The interior has an old European style, with paintings of crowned princes hanging on the left and right walls as soon as you enter. Further inside, besides the furniture, there are more paintings, making it feel like an art gallery.

“There are a lot of paintings,” Cheng Ye remarked, looking around.

Zhang Pingshun smiled and replied, “It’s a hobby of mine. I love collecting them. When I ran out of space, I bought this house.”

Seeing Cheng Ye seemingly looking for something, Zhang Pingshun approached with a smile, “Officer, are you looking for something? Shall I help you?”

Cheng Ye grunted, “No, just looking around. Hope it’s not a bother.”

“No bother at all,” Zhang Pingshun straightened up and said with a smile, “I’ll get some water for you officers.”

Cheng Ye looked around the house. Other than the paintings, there was nothing particularly unusual. He tapped on the walls, but everything seemed normal.

Just as he was feeling at a loss, he turned around to see Pei Qinghuai standing in front of a painting, lost in thought.

“Did you find something?” Cheng Ye walked over and asked.

“No,” Pei Qinghuai replied. “But I noticed something interesting.”

He turned around, taking in the whole room. “All of Zhang Pingshun’s collected paintings feature nobility or princes. Without exception, the main figures are positioned in the upper center of the paintings, immediately catching one’s eye.”

He lightly shrugged his shoulders, “To me, this exposes his most fatal flaw. When someone feels deeply insecure about something, they often try to disguise it, even using deception to numb themselves. Our line of investigation should be correct.”

When Zhang Pingshun emerged from the kitchen, Cheng Ye and his team were already gone. His smile froze slightly.

“Over here,” Fang Yuan suddenly peeked out, looking at Zhang Pingshun standing in the living room.

“Wondered where you all went,” Zhang Pingshun smiled again and walked into the study with a tray of water.

He placed the tea on the desk and said, “I often come here to read when I have free time. Over time, the place got messy. Don’t mind it.”

“No problem,” Pei Qinghuai said, and then asked, “Do you and your wife usually live here?”

Cheng Ye’s hand paused for a second while flipping through a book, then continued as usual. Fang Yuan and Jiang Fei exchanged glances, raising their eyebrows.

Zhang Pingshun’s expression turned slightly unnatural, but he maintained a smile and pushed up his glasses, “Oh, don’t be fooled by my age. I’m not married yet.”

“Sorry, I didn’t know,” Pei Qinghuai apologized. “Is there a reason for that?”

Just as Zhang Pingshun was about to laugh it off, Pei Qinghuai’s next question caught him off guard. He shifted his gaze, “Nothing much, just never wanted to get married.”

Then, Zhang Pingshun frowned and asked, “Isn’t this a personal matter? What does it have to do with the police investigation?”

Pei Qinghuai smiled faintly, “Apologies, just a curious question. I noticed a long hair on your bookshelf and thought you might live here with your wife.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Pingshun’s eyes darted back to the bookshelf but quickly collected himself, laughing, “Oh, that’s nothing. Many people visit here, including school teachers, friends, and students. The hair must have belonged to one of them.”

“You seem quite close with the students,” Cheng Ye added.

“Well, yes,” Zhang Pingshun sighed with relief, “the school is small, it’s hard not to get familiar over time.”

“Do you know Chen Yuxin?” Cheng Ye asked, lifting his eyes to look at Zhang Pingshun.

Zhang Pingshun frowned, thinking for a moment, “I do know one Chen Yuxin, but she has already graduated.”

As Pei Qinghuai leisurely flipped through books on the shelf, Zhang Pingshun’s eyes kept darting between Cheng Ye and Pei Qinghuai.

“Officers, the study is quite small and I haven’t cleaned it. How about we talk outside where it’s more spacious?” Zhang Pingshun suggested, turning to pick up the tray.

“Are you genuinely unaware, or are you afraid we’ll find something in your study?” Pei Qinghuai asked, holding a book in his hand and turning to Zhang Pingshun.

Zhang Pingshun froze, gripping the tray tighter, “If you prefer to talk here, that’s fine.”

Pei Qinghuai exchanged a glance with Cheng Ye, then opened the book in his hand, “You mentioned you often come here to read. ‘Often’ implies a considerable amount of time.”

Pei Qinghuai looked down, flipping through the book, “But these books look so new. They don’t seem to have been read, not even a bit of wear.” He turned to a corner of the shelf, “Except for those few… adult novels.”

Seeing Pei Qinghuai reaching for them, Zhang Pingshun hurriedly intervened, “Everyone has desires. It’s normal to hide a few of those.”

“Normal?” Pei Qinghuai chuckled, locking eyes with Zhang Pingshun, “You placed such items in a conspicuous spot. Visitors come and go without noticing. Isn’t this fulfilling your thrill?”

“That near-danger, where your gentlemanly facade could crumble, causing a rush of blood pressure? Isn’t it?” Pei Qinghuai asked, staring into Zhang Pingshun’s eyes.

Pei Qinghuai pulled a book off the shelf, revealing a small black switch. Seeing this, Cheng Ye pressed it. Zhang Pingshun’s expression turned from complex to grim.

Pei Qinghuai threw the book on the table, “I don’t deny your success, but overconfidence leads to more flaws. You provided the answers yourself.”

Behind the bookshelf was a small room, about thirty square meters. The dim red light made it hard to focus. In the center, a black leather bench was surrounded by various restraints, their variety leaving everyone momentarily stunned.