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墨書 Inktalez
Teacher Gao looked at me but remained silent.
"So you did go out, didn't you?" I continued. "With the rain pouring down like this, what were you doing outside?"
Teacher Gao seemed surprised that I had noticed this detail. He stared into my eyes for a long time before slowly saying, "I did go out, but that's my business. I have the right not to disclose it."
I nodded and replied, "You do have that right, but we can also suspect that you're hiding something. When I asked you earlier, you could have said you went out but chose not to. Instead, you told me you hadn't gone out at all, which implies some concealment. So what exactly were you doing in such terrible road conditions?"
I glanced at Gu Chen and continued, "If you're not going to cooperate here, I'll have no choice but to take you to the police station. You haven't gone out recently, but since May 26th, when Gu Hui died, I haven't seen any signs of you being active."
With that, I stood up and picked up the rain boot from the side. I slowly spoke again, "And this rain boot has two types of traces on it: one is dried mud spots, and the other is fresher marks. This clearly shows you're lying, doesn't it? You've been out, and not just once."
I threw the rain boot at Teacher Gao's feet.
His expression changed slightly as he said, "Wait a moment; I'll show you something that will clarify everything."
As he spoke, Teacher Gao stood up and walked over to the table in the room, seemingly intending to open a drawer to retrieve something. Once he reached the table, he turned back to look at me and after a moment said, "I did go out; as for what I did…"
I stared at Teacher Gao and saw a resolute look in his eyes.
"Gu Chen, stop him!" I shouted urgently.
But it was too late. Before my words could fully register, Teacher Gao suddenly lunged sideways and slammed his head violently against the white wall. Blood splattered everywhere as bright red liquid trickled down the wall like a vivid painting on a blanket of white snow.
Teacher Gao collapsed to the ground with a soft thud.
All of this happened in an instant. In Teacher Gao's eyes, I saw determination; he would rather die than reveal what he had done outside. If he preferred death over speaking up, then what could be worse than death for him?
I didn't fully understand it all, but one thing was clear: Teacher Gao was beyond saving. This village lacked the facilities to treat such severe skull fractures; even if a doctor arrived, it wouldn't make much difference. And getting Teacher Gao to a hospital outside the village would take at least two hours; judging by the situation, he wouldn't last a minute before succumbing to his injuries.
Gu Chen stood up as soon as he heard my words, instinctively wanting to grab Teacher Gao, but everything happened too quickly. Even Gu Chen, who usually reacted so swiftly, was left staring blankly at Teacher Gao, who was still twitching on the ground.
"Call for help!" I shouted urgently.
Gu Chen nodded and rushed out of the room to summon others.
I approached Teacher Gao's side, watching him convulse on the ground due to nerve reactions, feeling a mix of emotions I couldn't quite identify. From our previous conversation, it was clear that Teacher Gao had been outside before, and not just once.
But how many times had he gone out, and what had he done? We had no way of knowing. We hadn't even managed to ask him any crucial questions before he crashed into the wall and died. This left me feeling somewhat perplexed, yet I understood that there must be some hidden secrets behind Teacher Gao's actions.
Gu Chen had already called in a few people. To my surprise, they were the same individuals who had been dragging Gu Zhi along; he hadn't gone home at all. It seemed Gu Zhi was determined not to rest until Teacher Gao was dead. At that moment, he charged in first. Upon seeing the scene drenched in blood, he paused for a moment before lowering his head.
After a brief silence, Gu Zhi burst into hearty laughter and exclaimed, "Hahaha, he's dead! Dead! What a great job! You really solved my problem the moment you arrived, haha! I have to go home and tell my wife that the murderer is dead—what a relief!"
With that, Gu Zhi laughed maniacally and dashed out.
Everyone else watched his retreating figure in silence.
After a moment, a villager's voice broke the stillness: "What's wrong with Teacher Gao? I thought he seemed fine."
"Is there a doctor in your village?" I asked.
One villager replied, "There is a doctor, but he's definitely dead now; just look at all the blood splattered everywhere."
Indeed, Teacher Gao was beyond saving.
I slapped my forehead and said, "Great, now can we figure out what happened? Teacher Gao barely spoke a few words before crashing into the wall and dying. Let's search around and see if there's anything at home that might provide clues. Now that Teacher Gao is dead without witnesses, I can finally express my thoughts on this matter."
Everyone turned to look at me.
I gazed at Teacher Gao's lifeless body and said, "As an outsider, I am not from this village and do not know what kind of person Teacher Gao was. However, from the few words exchanged earlier, I can form a rough opinion. There is definitely something off about Teacher Gao, but I do not believe that Teacher Gao killed Gu Hui."
"What do you think?" Gu Chen's Father asked me.
I replied, "To commit murder, several conditions must be met. First, it has to be raining heavily; the water in the pit must be full due to the rain. Second, Gu Hui and Teacher Gao were both out at that time. Third, Teacher Gao just happened to encounter Gu Hui. All three points are possible, but for them to coincide is rather strange."
Gu Chen's Father shook his head, his brow furrowed tightly. "So you mean Teacher Gao is not the murderer."
I shook my head. "The probability is too low. Gu Hui coming out in such an environment likely means she was not just out for fun; perhaps she had an appointment with someone or was called out by someone. Otherwise, even if she wanted to play outside, she could have done so in the yard since it’s all mud there—what's the difference?"
"So," I continued, "Gu Hui must have been lured out by someone. Whether it was intentional or if she accidentally fell into the pit is uncertain. However, right now, the possibility of accidental death still seems high."
As I spoke, I noticed a commotion outside. Listening closely, I realized that news of Teacher Gao's death had spread quickly from the East End of the Village to the west and back again within just a few minutes. Looking through the window, I saw a crowd gathered in the yard—villagers had come to see what was happening.
I turned to Gu Chen and said, "Get a few villagers to move the body into a room first; let's see if there's anything valuable in there."
Gu Chen nodded and told his father, "Dad, find a few people to take care of the body."
"Alright," Gu Chen's Father replied.
After gathering a few strong men, they carried Teacher Gao's body away. At that moment, only Gu Chen and I remained in the house.
I said to Gu Chen, "The villagers know you are a police officer, so no one will report this. What do you think we should do? I’m a fugitive from Dongxing City; there must be records about me at the Police Station. While they might not recognize me immediately, if I stay in this village too long, someone might eventually identify me."
Gu Chen waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry about that. With the current situation, they can't come in here anyway. They all know my identity; although I'm technically a free man now, my previous reputation with the Special Operations Group carries weight. If I get involved in this investigation, they shouldn't raise any suspicions."
"That's good," I said.
Gu Chen and I began to explore the house. We rummaged through everything for a long time, but we found nothing of value. However, I never had high hopes of finding anything. What could possibly be the secret that Teacher Gao would rather die than reveal?
After a moment of silence, I said to Gu Chen, "The methods of Hu Ningning and Teacher Gao are completely different. Don't you find it strange? From Teacher Gao's actions, it's clear that he's quite resolute; he seems like someone who would crash into a wall if things didn't go his way. If he truly doesn't care about dying, then if he was involved in the murder and the indecency from a year ago, would he really refuse to admit it even in death?"
Gu Chen was silent for a while before replying, "I don't know. Although we were classmates and played together sometimes, our relationship was just average. I'm more carefree, while he seems more introverted and quiet, not really my type of person to hang out with. Once we got to middle school and met more people, we stopped playing together."
"The last time I had any interaction with him," Gu Chen pondered for a moment, "was probably in the first year of middle school. Back then, I didn't know why, but some kids in our class kept bullying him. I can't stand people who pick on the weak, so I taught those bullies a lesson. After that, we lost contact because we weren't in the same dorm anymore."
Gu Chen continued, "In high school, we weren't at the same school. My grades in middle school were poor, so I ended up at a sports school. Then I got into a police academy and became a paramilitary officer. As for Gao Dafu after graduating from middle school, I have no idea what happened to him."
I looked at Gu Chen; even though he was dressed, his muscles were clearly visible beneath his clothes. I touched my own withered abs and thought to myself that building muscle wasn't something that could be achieved overnight. Gu Chen's masculine physique was different from the exaggerated muscles gained from taking supplements; he had started training back in high school.
"Well," I said helplessly, "should we ask Hu Ningning?"
Gu Chen paused for a moment before responding, "Isn't it inappropriate to ask an eight-year-old girl about such things?"
If it were true, I wouldn't want to bring up such matters for a young child to remember.
I suggested, "Then let's meet her grandparents; after all, they are the first ones who would know about this. By the way, today is Wednesday—do you think Hu Ningning is in class or at home? This road won't be easy..."
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