Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Suddenly, several people rushed out of the hallway, seemingly in pursuit of the woman who had just run away.
As we stepped into the corridor, we heard an elderly man shouting, "It's a massacre! My poor child! How could this happen? This is truly a sin, oh, the heavens!"
Following that was a woman's heart-wrenching cry.
Zhao Mingkun and I exchanged glances and headed upstairs.
When we reached the third floor, we saw a crowd gathered in the hallway.
Zhao Mingkun tugged at my sleeve and said, "Hu Pei's address on her ID is right here on the third floor."
A sense of foreboding washed over me. Hearing that anguished cry made it clear that something terrible had happened. We hurried up the stairs, and I pulled out my police badge, saying, "Step aside, please. I'm a police officer. What happened here?"
The crowd was confused but parted to let Zhao Mingkun and me through when they saw my badge. However, when we stood at the doorway, we were both stunned. I finally understood why that old woman was crying so desperately.
A girl was leaning against the wall, standing upright. She wore a red dress and was about four feet tall. The floor tiles were stained with blood. The bright red blood stood out starkly against the white tiles, and even from the doorway, I could smell the distinct metallic scent of blood.
On the white tiles, there were also bloody footprints. The girl wasn't wearing shoes; it was easy to imagine that she had stood on this floor and walked through her own blood. It seemed all this blood must have come from her.
As we looked at the girl's face, we saw that both her eyes had been gouged out. Black blood oozed slowly from her eye sockets, and within those dark cavities were nerves stained red with blood. Her face bore numerous crimson fingerprints; one could only imagine what it was like for a girl who had lost her sight to wander around in such a state, blood pooling around her.
The girl cried out as she walked back and forth on the blood-soaked floor, searching for her mother. Eventually, she felt herself growing weaker. She was terrified and anxious; she reached out and touched a wall to steady herself. She wanted to cry but couldn't produce any tears. Without her eyeballs, she could feel the wind blowing into her empty eye sockets.
Leaning against the wall, in her fear, the girl finally succumbed to death.
She stood there, lifeless.
What was even more infuriating was that the girl's mouth had been slashed open to her ears, giving her a grotesque smile that seemed to curl upward.
The girl’s hands were arched, gripping the wall tightly, and it was evident that her nails had even pierced into the surface.
I had seen countless corpses, some more horrifying than this one, others that could induce greater discomfort. Yet, I had never felt such anger as I did now. A child barely seven or eight years old, an innocent girl who knew nothing of the world, had been brutally murdered in her own home.
"Such cruelty," an old man muttered as he slumped outside.
Nearby, fruits and vegetables lay scattered on the ground, covered in dust, as if they were lamenting what should have been a joyful moment. Instead, all that remained for everyone was blood and fear. A massive question loomed in everyone’s mind: who killed the girl, and why employ such a cruel method?
I lowered my voice and slowly asked, "Who knows what really happened?"
The neighbors exchanged glances and shook their heads. After a moment, an older man spoke up, "We didn’t see what happened either; we just arrived here. Just moments ago, the child's mother suddenly started screaming."
No wonder Zhao Mingkun had stared at that woman for so long; it seemed he recognized her then. The frantic woman who ran out must have been Hu Pei's wife.
The man's face was pale; he seemed deeply shaken by the scene. "It’s like there are ghosts—ghosts seeking revenge. Then we heard Aunt Zhao crying out, and several neighbors rushed over to check. And here we are, witnessing this horror. No one dares to approach; it’s just too twisted."
Seeing the girl’s condition reminded me of the image on that phone—where a woman's eyes had also been gouged out. It appeared these two incidents were undoubtedly connected. But what kind of hatred could drive a murderer to commit such a heinous act against a seven or eight-year-old girl?
I put on gloves and carefully made my way around the blood to reach the girl.
Gently touching her body, I noted that rigor mortis hadn’t yet set in; she must have died not long ago. A preliminary estimate suggested she had been dead for one to two hours at most. With my level of expertise, I could only ascertain this much. If Guan Zengbin were here, he would surely be able to uncover more details.
From the girl's corpse, only the wounds on her eyes and mouth were visible; the rest of her injuries were hidden, leaving the cause of death a mystery.
However, the girl's mother must know something; otherwise, she wouldn't have spoken of ghosts seeking revenge. It seemed that Hu Pei was afraid of vengeful spirits, which is why he sent his wife and child here. Yet, Hu Pei had only died about eight hours ago, and now his daughter was also dead.
What about Hu Pei's wife? Could she have also fallen victim to foul play?
Shaking my head, I asked, "Is this Hu Pei's home?"
The old man nodded and replied, "Yes, this is Hu Pei's house. This is Hu Pei's mother, and this child—sigh—this is Hu Pei's daughter, Hu Xiaoxue. But wait, how do you know all this?"
I sighed as I glanced at Hu Pei's mother, who was on the ground crying uncontrollably. I slowly spoke, "Because Hu Pei is dead. We came to inform you of this matter. We didn't expect that Hu Pei's daughter would also be dead."
"My son?"
The old man uttered those words before fainting. Several people rushed to check on him; someone quickly began rubbing his arms and legs. After a while, he finally regained consciousness. As soon as he woke up, he burst into tears again. Receiving two pieces of bad news in just a few minutes was too much for an elderly man to bear.
I didn't know what else to say and could only offer some comfort: "Elderly sir, with such a significant event occurring, finding the murderer is the most important thing. Do you know if anyone had a grudge against your son?"
The old man shook his head while exclaiming, "My son was outstanding; he never had conflicts with anyone. He was always kind to others; how could anyone harbor such deep hatred for him? My daughter-in-law is also a well-bred lady; after marrying, she stayed home to take care of the household and children. How could she have made enemies?"
"Blind old man!" he screamed in despair. "Blind old man! My granddaughter is dead; my son is also dead! Why couldn't I just die instead?"
At that moment, the old man's grief was overwhelming. It seemed unlikely that I would be able to extract any useful information from him.
Zhao Mingkun tugged at my arm and said, "Someone must have called the police; we can't stay here any longer."
I nodded and said, "Don't touch the body. Let's check the surroundings. It's clear that the girl hasn't been dead for long. We need to look for any traces around here. Soon, more police will arrive, so remember not to disturb the scene and take good care of this elderly lady."
The old man nodded and replied, "We're all neighbors; we can handle this."
Just as we were about to leave, someone suddenly spoke up, "By the way, didn't something happen eight years ago?"
I frowned and scanned the crowd until I found the man who had spoken. He looked to be in his forties and wore glasses.
"Yes?" I turned to him and asked, "What happened?"
He began, "About seven years ago, Hu Pei was just in his twenties. He had just become a designer and was working on a construction site, trying to gain some experience. But due to a mistake made by Hu Pei regarding safety protocols, a woman ended up dying."
Hearing this, my interest piqued. One person had died, and it was a woman—could it possibly be her? Moreover, in that image, the background was also a construction site, which seemed to fit perfectly. If only Zhao Mingkun and I had remembered to take a picture of that photo; perhaps this man would recognize her.
"Do you know what the deceased woman looked like?" I asked.
Hu Pei's mother interjected angrily, "That incident has nothing to do with my son! That woman died due to her own operational error. Besides, she might have even committed suicide for money! They paid out one hundred twenty thousand back then—almost ten years ago! This matter is long gone; it's not my son's responsibility. If you don't know anything, just keep your mouth shut."
The man grew irritated as well and retorted, "This is a real incident! Are we not allowed to talk about it? People came knocking at your door back then; have you forgotten? I still remember! Who knows how that woman died? It could have been an accident or maybe your son caused it!"
Zhao Mingkun and I exchanged glances, sensing that there was more to this story than met the eye.
Comment 0 Comment Count