HH Chapter 66

“A guess,” Pei Qinghuai replied. “Mixing mercurochrome and iodine produces mercury iodide. But separately, these are very common items. Think about it from a different angle: if you wanted to poison someone using common substances, what else could you use?”

“You can’t be serious about using toilet cleaner and bleach, can you?” Cheng Ye looked puzzled. “What have you been thinking about all day?”

Without waiting for an answer, Cheng Ye pushed open the bathroom door. Seeing the two bottles sitting on the toilet tank, he was even more confused. “How did you come up with this?”

Pei Qinghuai walked over to the toilet and tightened the caps on the two bottles. “Just a thought.”

Fang Yuan stepped forward and took a look. “That’s quite a unique method.”

Then Jiang Fei pulled him away. “Let’s get back to work.”

Yan Ya walked along the street, holding Guo Xiaofei’s hand. Guo Xiaofei looked around with wide eyes as if he was out for the first time.

“What do you want to eat?” Yan Ya asked.

Guo Xiaofei pursed his lips, staying silent and gripping Yan Ya’s pinky tightly.

After a few steps, Yan Ya noticed Guo Xiaofei’s expression. His eyes were fixed on a hamburger restaurant, his lips moving slightly.

“Don’t be shy with me. Order whatever you want,” Yan Ya said, pulling Guo Xiaofei into the restaurant.

By the time Guo Xiaofei realized it, the table in front of him was filled with food and drinks. He looked at Yan Ya in surprise and asked, “You really won’t tell my dad?”

Yan Ya reached out to tidy Guo Xiaofei’s hair. “No, I won’t. Go ahead and eat.”

Guo Xiaofei glanced at Yan Ya a few times, but eventually couldn’t resist the temptation of the food and started munching on the fries. After he had eaten his fill, Yan Ya, seeing that he had nowhere else to go, took him to her home. Although initially reluctant, Guo Xiaofei soon fell asleep from exhaustion.

As soon as Yan Ya closed the door, she received a call from Cheng Ye.

“Guo Jiayi has been taken back to the station. Where are you?”

Yan Ya, putting her keys in her bag, replied, “I just dropped Guo Xiaofei at my mom’s place. I’ll be back soon.”

Cheng Ye said, “Alright, be careful.”

After hanging up, Zhang Yibao spoke up. “Captain Cheng, Guo Xiaofei’s mother has remarried and doesn’t want to get involved. Also, Guo Jiayi’s parents are at the door but don’t want to come in.”

“They don’t want to come in?” Cheng Ye asked. “What’s going on?”

Zhang Yibao raised his eyebrows and sighed. “They said on the phone they don’t acknowledge Guo Jiayi as their son. They only came after I explained the situation.”

“Let’s go talk to them,” Fang Yuan suggested, getting up.

In the lobby, the elderly couple was huddled together, looking distressed. Fang Yuan approached them. “Are you Guo Jiayi’s family?”

The old man, with a bad temper, frowned. “Yes. Is there something we need to handle? If not, we’ll be leaving.”

Cheng Ye stepped forward. “You should be aware of Guo Jiayi’s situation. I don’t know what happened between you all, but as his second guardians, you have the right to take care of Guo Xiaofei now.”

“Who is he?” The old man frowned even more. “We don’t know him.”

As he started to pull the old lady away, Fang Yuan and Cheng Ye exchanged a look. “Didn’t you know Guo Jiayi had a son?”

“A son?”

Hearing this, the old couple paused, turning back to Cheng Ye in disbelief.

“Where is my grandson?” the old man asked, stepping forward.

Cheng Ye took a deep breath. “He’s been settled for now. If you want to see him, it’ll have to wait until tomorrow.”

This softened their expressions a bit. After some persuasion, Fang Yuan and Cheng Ye managed to get them to come upstairs.

Guo Jiayi’s father, Guo Zhenguo, was a retired policeman, known for his stubbornness. He looked around the reception room and snorted. “This place looks nice. Watching you guys struggle to catch criminals makes me anxious.”

Fang Yuan was about to retort but was pulled aside by Jiang Fei to avoid unnecessary conflict.

Guo Zhenguo took a sip of tea and looked at Cheng Ye. “I’ll make it simple. We haven’t lived with him since his divorce, so we’re not familiar with his social circle. As for enemies, we don’t know any.”

Leaning back in his chair, he added indifferently, “That’s all I have to say. No need to see the body.”

As if remembering something, Guo Zhenguo leaned forward. “Can you tell me when he died?”

Cheng Ye’s eyelids twitched. “A few hours ago.”

Guo Zhenguo, holding the old lady’s hand, seemed relieved. “Then it’s fine. We were in the village a few hours ago. There are witnesses. You can check.”

“Do you have anything to say?” Pei Qinghuai asked the old lady, who had been silent and looked like she wanted to speak but was held back by Guo Zhenguo.

The old lady looked at Pei Qinghuai with sad eyes, then at Guo Zhenguo. Finally, she couldn’t hold back. “I want to see him.”

Seeing Pei Qinghuai about to stand up, Cheng Ye quickly said, “I’ll take her. You stay here.”

After they left, Pei Qinghuai looked at the fuming Guo Zhenguo and asked, “What did Guo Jiayi do to make you hate him so much, even now that he’s dead?”

Guo Zhenguo crossed his arms and frowned, finally speaking after a moment. “He was a rebellious son! Early on, he married a girl from our village. It was supposed to be a happy occasion, but the next day, they stole everything from our house and ran off to the city.”

He moved his chair closer, continuing, “They took our money, went to the city, and flaunted themselves online. Worse, my son, Guo Zhenguo’s son, was caught with prostitutes. Such disgraceful behavior! He’s not my son! I could never accept him!”

Slapping the table, Guo Zhenguo added, “I became a laughingstock in the village! I had no face left. His death is his own doing!”

“Did you know he was allergic to mercurochrome?” Pei Qinghuai asked, looking directly at Guo Zhenguo.