Chu Ruochun had no knowledge of being considered a suspect again by Zhang Dongliang.
He used the keys to open the door of the Chu family.
Perhaps hearing some noise, a middle-aged man came out, still holding a piece of tissue to wipe his mouth.
It was lunchtime, so having a meal at this hour was normal.
The only abnormality was that the house where the uncle and his family lived was actually owned by their family, and Chu Ruochun, the owner who should have been living there, was absent.
The uncle, Chu Mingkang, was a tall and chubby man. Standing in front of him, Chu Ruochun appeared relatively slender.
Before Chu Mingkang could say anything, a sharp female voice came from behind him, “Who is it?”
Chu Mingkang turned around and said, “It’s Ruochun who’s come back.”
The woman behind Chu Mingkang showed her face, with high cheekbones and a somewhat sharp look in her eyes. “So it’s Ruochun. Come in and have a seat.”
Chu Ruochun smiled and replied, “Well, this is originally my home, Auntie. Perhaps there was a little confusion in your statement.”
This was not a comment he wanted to make in front of Lin Xiaomei, who harbored a deep grudge about the house not being in her name.
Lin Xiaomei’s lips stiffened as she said, “Well, you’ve been living here for over a year anyway.”
Chu Ruochun didn’t dwell on how long he had been living there and simply let the matter pass.
The couple had initially used the excuse of helping take care of Chu Ruochun, who was about to start school, as a reason to live in his house. Later, they complained about the expensive tuition for Chu Ruochun’s university and claimed that the family was in debt and couldn’t afford to send him to school. They forced him to take out a loan. Since Chu Ruochun had to take care of his younger brother, he decided to drop out of school and become a trainee.
If their parents hadn’t had an accident, their family of four should have been living happily.
As Chu Ruochun entered the house, he saw a chubby child devouring a large chicken leg with oil smeared all over his mouth, displaying extremely bad eating manners. His bowl was filled with braised pork, indicating he had a hearty appetite. The man’s claim that he was injured by Chu Ruochun’s younger brother and that there was a thin scar on his forehead didn’t match at all. The scar would likely disappear completely if Chu Ruochun had returned a bit later.
“Where’s Ruolin?” Chu Ruochun asked as he glanced around the messy room where clothes were strewn all over the place, completely different from the neat and clean family photo he had seen on his phone.
Lin Xiaomei, without thinking, replied, “He’s always out and about. He probably doesn’t even know where he went.”
Chu Ruochun turned his gaze towards Chu Mingkang and looked at him intently. “Ruolin injured his cousin? Where’s the injury?”
Chu Mingkang knew that his elder nephew was a quiet person who was also easy to persuade. In fact, during their phone conversation, he had hoped that Chu Ruochun would bring back some money. Unexpectedly, Chu Ruochun returned suddenly, rendering his words ineffective. Being scrutinized like this made him feel somewhat embarrassed.
“This is just a fight between two brothers…”
“A broken head?” Chu Ruochun repeated, walking towards the kid who was gnawing on the chicken leg and taking it away. “If you’re injured, you have to eat vegetarian. No more meat for you.”
“My chicken leg! Chu Ruochun, what are you doing!” The chubby kid was quite impolite and disrespectful.
“Go find Ruolin, and I’ll give you the chicken leg back,” Chu Ruochun said.
“Why should I!” The chubby kid was furious, and he tried to hit Chu Ruochun with his hand. “Get out! You’re just as annoying as Ruolin. Get out of my house!”
Chu Ruochun deliberately provoked the child, and from his words, it was clear what had really happened. He looked at Chu Mingkang with a smile. “Your house?”
Chu Mingkang was so angry with his silly son that he wanted to smack him. He pulled his son up and said, “Go find Ruolin, or you won’t have lunch.”
The chubby kid protested, “Dad, he ran away on his own. I’m not going!”
Chu Mingkang pushed him out the door, and Lin Xiaomei looked at her husband scolding their son like this. “Why did you push him out? He hasn’t finished eating. What if he faints from hunger?”
The smile on Chu Ruochun’s face faded.
At this moment, the door was opened again, and a bruised boy of about eight or nine years old walked in. He bore a resemblance of about six or seven points to Chu Mingkang, and this kid was presumably Chu Ruolin.
When he saw Chu Ruochun, his eyes lit up, “Brother.”
Lin Xiaomei said, “See, he’s back. Nothing happened.”
But Chu Ruochun was fixated on Chu Ruolin’s face and said softly, “You’re injured.” He noticed the swelling on his forehead.
Chu Ruolin suddenly teared up, no need for further words; Chu Ruochun had already understood the truth of the matter.
He said, “Uncle, you may need to move out.”
Chu Mingkang and his wife didn’t expect Chu Ruochun to ask them to leave as soon as he came back.
Chu Mingkang suddenly put on a stern face and, using his seniority, tried to suppress him, “Ruochun, what do you mean by that? Are you saying we’re overstaying our welcome here? If it weren’t for the fact that you and your brother are my elder brother’s children, would I endure being pointed at by others living in your house?”
Chu Ruochun smiled and looked into his eyes, “You know better than anyone why you came to live here. I send you money every month. Look at what my brother is wearing. His jeans are all worn out, and he has injuries on his face. Did you lay hands on him? I’m sorry, but I can’t leave an underage child with a relative who has a propensity for violence!”
The original host was very kind to his brother and believed that his uncle was genuinely good to them. Unfortunately, he was proven wrong. He gave the best of himself to this family, but it was ultimately misplaced. The original host trusted his uncle’s nonsense without suspicion, but Chu Ruochun didn’t believe it.
Lin Xiaomei, anxious and angry, scolded, “You, Chu Ruochun, you’re breaking the bridge after crossing it, aren’t you? It was you who asked us to live here to take care of Ruolin conveniently. Now, he got hurt outside, and why should we be blamed? Your brother is wild and unruly. He lacks manners, and that’s because your parents didn’t raise him properly!”
Chu Ruolin tugged at Chu Ruochun’s clothes, and the latter patted him to calm him down. “Right and wrong are known to those who have passed away. Children are always their parents’ treasures. Everything you do, they are watching, here, and there.” He pointed to the living room, the dining room, the kitchen, and the bathroom, “Oh, by the way, do your lights turn on in the middle of the night in your rooms? Do you see blood in the toilet when you use it at night? Do you always cut your hand while cooking?”
Chu Mingkang and his wife were creeped out by what he said. Chu Ruochun’s tone made it sound like these things were true, and this house was where their older brother and sister-in-law lived before their passing. The couple felt uneasy.
“Stop, stop talking!” Lin Xiaomei was scared. She had been cutting her hand while cooking recently, especially when she cooked for her son!
Chu Ruochun didn’t say it wrong. They had indeed experienced some strange things recently. Could it be that their older brother and sister-in-law had returned?
Chu Mingkang didn’t dare to push things too far. “Fine, we’ll move, we’ll move right away. Your brother will have to take care of himself from now on!”
Lin Xiaomei’s hands were still trembling. “It’s really eerie. How did you know? Or is it that you did all these things?”
Chu Ruochun said, “To keep something secret, you must hide it well. Tonight, my brother and I will stay at a hotel, giving you a day to move out. Oh, and don’t take away the original items from the house.”
The original owner’s parents had put a lot of effort into this house, carefully selecting the furniture. He couldn’t let it be taken away.
Chu Ruochun gave Chu Ruolin a gentle push. “Go and pack a set of clothes; we’ll be staying at a hotel tonight.”
Chu Ruolin was still a bit stunned, not expecting his brother to be different this time. He immediately rushed to his room to grab some clothes, fearing that his protective brother might disappear in the next moment.
After they left, the couple, Chu Mingkang and Lin Xiaomei, in the house had ashen faces.
Lin Xiaomei propped her hand on the couch and asked Chu Mingkang, “Honey, are we just giving up on this house? What about our child’s schooling?”
Chu Mingkang had a stern expression. “Of course, we can’t do that. What can those two kids accomplish?”
Lin Xiaomei said, “But it seems like there really is a problem with this house.”
Chu Mingkang replied, “This house is a bit old; it might just be the electrical wiring. We’ll replace the toilet in the bathroom, and you’ve been a bit stressed lately, that’s why you’ve been cutting yourself. I almost got fooled by that kid just now. It seems like he’s become smarter after going out into society.”
Lin Xiaomei found her determination. “You’re right; I almost got fooled. So, what should we do?”
Chu Mingkang’s face darkened with determination. “I have a plan; don’t worry about it. Just settle down and take good care of our son!”
㇐
Chu Ruochun brought Chu Ruolin downstairs. He used his mobile phone’s map to search for nearby pharmacies, preparing to buy some medicine to apply.
Just as he exited the elevator, he encountered Xiao Li, who had been assigned to tail him.
Xiao Li, who was caught off guard, felt a bit embarrassed. “Ah, Ruochun, you live in this building?”
Chu Ruochun smiled. “Weren’t you here to find me?”
Xiao Li, whose thoughts were seen through, touched his own face. “How did you know? I don’t have anything written on my face.”
Chu Ruochun pointed upwards. “Some secrets can’t be leaked. I’m taking my little brother out for a meal. Care to join us?”
He had just heard his brother’s stomach growling. Hungry eight or nine-year-olds were the most difficult to deal with, especially during their growth spurts.
The amount of food on the high-speed train was insufficient, and Xiao Li was starting to feel hungry too. “Sure.”
The location of the residential area was excellent, with two subway stations nearby, shopping malls, pharmacies, and restaurants in the vicinity.
After buying some first-aid supplies, Chu Ruochun took Chu Ruolin to a restaurant. He applied the medicine after they had placed their orders.
“You’re quite skilled at applying medicine,” Xiao Li remarked.
“It’s just a little skill,” Chu Ruochun downplayed his abilities. “How’s your case progressing?”
Originally, Xiao Li wasn’t supposed to disclose case information to Chu Ruochun. However, since Captain Zhang was suspicious of him, he decided to turn the tables.
“Now, we’ve investigated Jiang Qiao’s past. He had intimate relationships with multiple girls and even recorded some explicit videos. Currently, we’re tracking them down one by one. One of them dropped out of school and moved here, coincidentally residing in your neighborhood. We came over to investigate.”
He had just checked Chu Ruochun’s information. After his parents passed away, they left behind a property, which was here.
Chu Ruochun asked, “Have you found the person?”
Xiao Li replied, “Captain Zhang has already gone over.”
Just as he said that, Xiao Zhou called Xiao Li.
“I’ve sent you a video. Watch it right away; it’s gone viral online! Someone exposed Jiang Qiao’s records of dating multiple female classmates, as well as a video of his mother insulting a girl. Take a look! It’s spreading too fast online, so I’ll handle it for now!”
Xiao Li opened the video sent by the other side. After watching it, a fair hand extended towards him. “Can I see it too?”
Since it was already going viral online, there was no harm. “It’s a video of Jiang Qiao’s mother physically assaulting and verbally abusing a girl at school.”
After watching it, Chu Ruochun remarked, “What a pity, she seemed like a nice girl.”
In the video, Zhao Lizhu was pulling the girl’s hair and hurling extremely offensive insults, using words like seduction, shamelessness, and more, all directed at the girl.
Xiao Li exclaimed in anger, “Jiang Qiao’s mother is truly despicable. It’s clearly her son’s fault, why blame it on the girl?”
Chu Ruochun handed the phone back to Xiao Li and said, “It’s too late now.”
Xiao Li asked, “Too late for what?”
Chu Ruochun pointed at Zhao Lizhu in the video and said, “She’s in trouble.”
Xiao Zhou called and said, “Xiao Li, Zhao Lizhu is dead!”
Xiao Li, shocked, asked, “How do you know?”
Xiao Zhou replied, “Someone filmed it and uploaded it online.”
Xiao Li was momentarily stunned, not explaining that he actually wanted to ask Chu Ruochun, “When we went to see her before, we couldn’t even get in. How did she die?”
Xiao Zhou explained, “From the video, it seems she walked onto the street by herself, running and walking at the same time, waving her hands as if rushing for something. She was muttering to herself, not making sense. She didn’t notice the step, fell, hit her head, and despite rescue efforts, she passed away.”
Xiao Li said, “Okay, I understand. I’ll inform Captain Zhang.”
Coincidentally, Zhang Dongliang had just finished his investigation at the Zhuang family’s place and came out to buy a bottle of water, spotting Xiao Li and Chu Ruochun sitting together, along with a child.
“Haven’t you already had dinner?” They had eaten the boxed meals on the high-speed train to save time.
“I’m a bit hungry again,” Xiao Li immediately repeated the news he had just received from Xiao Zhou to Zhang Dongliang.
Zhang Dongliang said, “That means the suspect is still in the city.”
Chu Ruochun said, “Captain Zhang, the vengeful spirit has killed again, and you can’t handle her. It’s up to me now. Her next target will surely be Jiang Qiao’s father.”
Zhang Dongliang caught onto the keyword and squinted at him, “Her? You know the killer!”
Chu Ruochun, unfazed by the scrutiny from the detective team, said frankly, “If I’m not mistaken, the killer should be Zhuang Yanyan, the one you’re investigating.”
Zhang Dongliang couldn’t tolerate his nonsense anymore. “Chu Ruocun, I can recommend a psychiatrist for you. Stop being paranoid. Let me also inform you that Zhuang Yanyan jumped off a building and committed suicide two years ago. Her mother moved back here long before that. Now, she’s mentally unstable. How do you think she could commit these crimes?”
Chu Ruochun said, “I’m talking about her ghost. Right now, she has killed Jiang Qiao to absorb his life force. She’s much more powerful than an ordinary vengeful spirit. If we don’t stop her, Jiang Qiao’s father won’t survive past midnight. I’m not making this up.”
“You’re insane,” Zhang Dongliang gave him a dismissive look and walked away with Xiao Li.
Chu Ruochun shrugged in resignation, and when he lowered his head, he noticed Chu Ruolin’s clear and distinct eyes fixed on him.
He asked softly, “You heard all of it?”
Chu Ruolin nodded earnestly, “Yes, big brother, I believe you. On the night when Mom and Dad had their accident, I vaguely felt like they were standing by my bedside saying goodbye to me. But when I told you about it later, you didn’t believe me.”
For the first time since his rebirth, Chu Ruochun heard someone believe him, and it was a child. He genuinely smiled from the heart and ruffled his little brother’s hair. “I believe you now.”
