Chapter 49: White Mist in the Woods 14
A 1.5-meter bed was barely enough for two adult men. A single turn could result in a collision. So, Yi Ke carefully moved to the side, leaving most of the bed for Zhuang Ningyu, who wasn’t a very still sleeper. After a while, he reached out to tuck in the corner of his blanket, then closed his eyes with satisfaction.
In the middle of the night, with a “thump,” someone rolled off the bed.
Zhuang Ningyu sat up, still in shock.
Yi Ke, rubbing his bumped head, climbed back onto the bed. Overcome with sleepiness, he reached out, pulled the person back into the blanket, and wrapped them up tightly, murmuring, “Why are you still sitting up? Go to sleep.”
Zhuang Ningyu, who had just been woken up by him: “…”
Yi Ke’s breathing quickly became deep and even again. He occupied a small corner of the other’s pillow, his hand naturally draped over, sleeping with righteous confidence.
Zhuang Ningyu frowned, pulled out a hand, and brushed his stray hair away from his own face.
In the early morning.
After getting out of bed, Yi Ke first went to the table to carefully examine Zhuang Ningyu’s face. No dark circles, no signs of fatigue, glowing with health. Very good, my wife slept well last night! Then he happily went to wash up.
Zhuang Ningyu was looked at with confusion, but he didn’t have time to deal with him. The investigation team had already sent over Li Degang’s detailed information. Ten years ago, this old teacher left Jincheng due to illness, successively traveling to Japan, Germany, and the United States for medical treatment. Later, he settled in Massachusetts with his younger daughter, who was in the scientific research industry. He was now in his eighties.
“Still… alive?” Yi Ke dragged a chair over and sat down. “Looking at it this way, the one living in 304 can only be that old pervert.” Because a person still living in the real world cannot appear in the rule zone in the form of a monster.
“His memory is not very good anymore. I don’t know if he still remembers Jiajia,” Zhuang Ningyu said. “But it’s not easy to contact this Mr. Li right now. Just two days after the investigation team issued a notice to collect the identity of the tenant of No. 129 Nanping Road, Sima Feng quietly left the country the next evening, without a trace, leaving only Li Hong in the country to continue managing the company’s affairs.”
More details about Jiajia’s death back then were also dug up. According to the medical staff’s recollection, the little girl had an acute onset of illness and was declared dead after lying in the ICU for only a few days. At that time, there were no relatives with her, only a nanny from out of town and a hospital caregiver.
Yi Ke scrolled down two pages. “On the night of December 24th, when He Yu was almost assaulted, did He Yuanhua ever leave the hospital? Has the investigation team found out?”
“The medical staff’s original words were ‘she should have been at the hospital.’ After all, the child was lying in the ICU. Normally, the adults would have to wait at the door,” Zhuang Ningyu said. “But whether she was actually there or not, no one can guarantee. Too much time has passed.”
As for the remains, the medical examiner said that the DNA comparison would still require more time, but the police had already drawn a suspect portrait based on the description of the seven riders. After lunch, Yi Ke mixed the portrait with more than a dozen other similar portraits and asked He Yu to identify it. She only took one look before picking out the correct one.
“It seems he really looks like this.” Zhuang Ningyu looked at the portrait on the screen of a white-haired, seemingly kind-faced old man, then glanced at the tightly closed window of 304.
The truth was being stripped of its outer shell, bit by bit. Currently, based on the three clues of the portrait, handwriting, and “mysteriously disappearing on a cold winter night ten years ago,” they could basically achieve precise target locking.
Qing Gang and Zhong Mu had completed most of the puzzle. Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow, and the Cowardly Lion were happily walking through the golden fields. The gloss of the metal and acrylic board was excellent, and the surface was covered with a layer of shiny pink powder that little girls love. It was indeed beautiful. As long as the last missing piece was put in, Jiajia would receive this precious gift she had been looking forward to for ten years.
The white fog grew thicker and thicker.
Jiajia didn’t feel cold and was still wearing that slightly old blue and white dress, running around in the yard. Compared to her, the adults were more pathetic. The wind of Qingquan Mountain, mixed with the chill of winter, accurately drilled into the cracks of the windows, scraping people’s faces with pain. Zhuang Ningyu: “Achoo!”
Yi Ke took off his own coat and wrapped him up, tentatively asking, “Can I close the window?”
Ventilation enthusiast Zhuang Ningyu: “…” Reluctantly, close it, close it.
A little warmth still lingered on the clothes, as well as a faint scent of roses. Zhuang Ningyu worked for a while, forgetting that this was not his own coat. He casually reached into the left pocket: a bag of sweet plums, a bag of seedless dates. In the right pocket: a bag of beef jerky, a bag of dried apples. The advantage of a jacket with many pockets was fully utilized by Yi Ke, like a treasure bag. Although Zhuang Ningyu didn’t continue to rummage, he finally realized why this piece of clothing was so heavy—it wasn’t some special fabric used by the rich, but purely because Comrade Xiao Yi was too good at packing.
Yi Ke propped up his head with one hand and looked at him, his tone unhurried. “Why don’t you ask me why I brought so many things?”
Captain Zhuang, who had drunk plum water and red date water, and had also eaten beef jerky and dried apples, was not fooled at all and continued to type on the keyboard without looking away. Yi Ke chuckled and continued, “There are salted egg yolk cookies you like in the inner left pocket.”
Zhuang Ningyu: “I’m not eating.”
Yi Ke: “Then I’ll eat.”
One minute later, the two of them together: chew, chew, chew.
In the evening, the investigation team finally sent the preliminary screening results about the “bad grandpa.”
Li Maosheng, male, native of Fucheng, one of the founders of Lihe Gene Technology Co., Ltd. Ten years ago, he handed over most of the company’s affairs to his son, claiming to have “retired with merit and would fade out of the public eye to start traveling the world and enjoy life.” But just half a year after he left, he completely “faded out” and disappeared.
“The seven riders have already confirmed the photo. The person they saw in this building back then was him,” Yi Ke said. “Lihe Gene, the scale is not large. The disappearance of Li Maosheng back then only caused a brief heated discussion in a small circle, so Zheng Yang and the others did not see the police’s missing person notice. The person who reported the case was Li Maosheng’s son, Li Yin, who said that his father had lost contact in Qiang County.”
Li Maosheng’s last traceable travel record was a flight from Fucheng to Jincheng on October 21. After landing, he told his family on the phone that a friend had opened a secluded resort mountain villa in a forest in Qiang County near Jincheng. The environment was good, and he was going to stay there for three months, returning to Fucheng before the Spring Festival. Li Yin told the police, “I thought it was a bit strange at the time. The winter in Qiang County is wet and cold, not to mention living in the forest. But my father was very insistent, saying he wanted to reunite with old friends and take some snow scenery photos. I saw he was very happy, so I didn’t ask any more questions.”
“The police did not find any record of Li Maosheng’s stay at the Secluded Resort Mountain Villa. In fact, after October 21, he didn’t even leave a single traceable consumption record,” Zhong Mu said. “At that time, everyone was baffled, but looking at it now, it should be that as soon as Li Maosheng landed, he was secretly picked up by Li Hong’s car and taken to Qingquan Mountain.”
This kind of thing could not see the light of day, so both Li Hong and Li Maosheng definitely wanted “absolute secrecy.” They really did achieve “absolute secrecy,” almost making the police at the time scratch their heads off. They just couldn’t find out where Li Maosheng was living from October 21 to December 29. But one thing was certain: he himself was deliberately concealing his whereabouts from his relatives. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have falsely praised the scenery in the family group chat and even composed a poem “Ode to the Secluded Ancient Forest” when he wasn’t even living in Qiang County.
“Li Maosheng died on Li Hong’s territory. For her, it was like a horror story,” Zhuang Ningyu said. “Because whether Li Maosheng died on his own or was killed by someone else, once the police found out, all the secrets about Jiajia would be exposed. I even suspect that Li Hong had far more than just one ‘Jiajia.’ Once the black industry was uprooted, the two of them would be finished.”
For Li Hong at that time, since Li Maosheng had come quietly, after his death, as long as he could be buried just as quietly, it would definitely be the best choice for her.
It was temporarily unknown what exactly the nanny had told her employer back then, but it was clear that Li Hong accepted and concealed Li Maosheng’s death, gave up on continuing to win over Lihe Gene, completely removed herself from the case, and even silenced the nanny at the most opportune moment.
“Then why did Li Hong and her group let He Yu go?” Qing Gang was puzzled.
“She really had no reason to let He Yu go, but the premise is that she had to know of He Yu’s existence,” Zhuang Ningyu said. “The secret behind this building cannot see the light of day. For Li Hong, it’s definitely better to have as few insiders as possible. The nanny was on the verge of a nervous breakdown from Jiajia’s noise and really needed a helper. Between ‘arguing with the hostess with reason’ and ‘secretly arranging for her niece to move in, finish the puzzle quickly, and leave,’ the latter was certainly easier. Anyway, Li Hong wouldn’t even come to Qingquan Mountain once in half a year. As long as Li Maosheng didn’t say anything, no one would know.”
And Li Maosheng at that time was likely already interested in Jiajia. Plus, a country nanny’s niece, in his eyes, should not have posed any threat. Compared to watching a cooked duck fly away, he would definitely want to maintain the existing living structure. Not to mention, besides not being very pretty, He Yu was also his favorite type—small and childlike, self-conscious, timid, and easy to manipulate.
“The police and the investigation team have a lot to investigate this time,” Zhong Mu said. “A big job.”
“Let them investigate. It’s not our headache anyway,” Qing Gang stretched his muscles. “Captain Zhuang, when do we make our move?”
“First, let’s figure out what kind of thing is living in 304,” Zhuang Ningyu asked. “Who’s going?”
The other three people said in unison, “Me.”
Zhuang Ningyu stood up. “I’ll go.”
But he was pushed back into his chair by Yi Ke.
Qing Gang: “…” How disrespectful!
“I’ll go.” Yi Ke’s hand was still on Zhuang Ningyu’s shoulder. “Sister Zhong, you guard the puzzle. Brother Qing, you watch Captain Zhuang. His leg is still injured.”
Zhong Mu and Qing Gang both looked at him with admiration. He’s still young, hasn’t experienced Captain Zhuang’s mouth yet. Let’s just say, if you get yelled at later, your brother and sister can only stand here and watch.
Zhuang Ningyu asked, “Do you want me to teach you?”
“No need.” Yi Ke glanced out the window. “Perfect, the curtains in 304 are open.”
Zhuang Ningyu patted his arm. “Go on, be careful.”
Qing Gang and Zhong Mu did not hear Captain Zhuang’s classic elegant scolding. On the contrary, the last reminder was even a bit gentle. The two couldn’t help but feel a renewed sense of respect for Xiao Yi. His future is immeasurable.
The nanny was currently shelling peas in the front hall on the first floor. As long as she didn’t go out, she wouldn’t disturb Yi Ke’s actions.
Zhuang Ningyu dragged a chair and sat opposite her, also grabbing a handful of large peas and starting to shell them.
The nanny looked up with a puzzled expression.
Zhuang Ningyu had a pure and innocent university student’s face. “I’m idle anyway, so I’ll help you with some work.”
