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墨書 Inktalez
At that moment, Old Shao's face turned grim as he said, "Liu Huairou is dead."
"Liu Huairou is dead?" Xu Yiman could hardly believe her ears. It hadn't even been twenty-four hours; how could Liu Huairou be dead? Was the murderer so swift that they had planned and executed the killing in such a short time?
"What happened?" Xu Yiman asked again.
Old Shao hurried forward, saying, "It's still unclear. Let's head to the police station."
Yuan Jun drove the team members to Lindong Police Station. Guan Deng was busy tapping away on a tablet. After a while, he pulled Jiang He, who was sitting next to him, to take a look at his screen. Jiang He glanced over and saw that numerous media outlets had already reported on the press conference within just half an hour.
After reading the reports, Jiang He finally understood why Old Shao had been so worried before the conference. As expected, most netizens did not believe that Deng Xiangyu had committed suicide; they unanimously thought it was the work of an unknown killer. They believed that the police were trying to cover up their inability to solve the case to save face.
A group of indignant netizens demanded the truth beneath the reports, yet the truth was already laid out before them. No one believed that this was indeed the truth; they wanted what they hoped to be the truth.
Old Shao sat in the passenger seat and caught a glimpse of Guan Deng's tablet through the rearview mirror.
"Old Shao, it's pretty much as you predicted," Jiang He said, puzzled. "The media hasn't disclosed all the information, and most netizens think the police are incompetent and trying to pull a fast one. They're still looking for the truth."
Old Shao sighed lightly and replied, "I had already guessed this beforehand. If it were murder, it would be better; but if it were suicide, perhaps they would never believe that truth. Most netizens think of themselves as clever, but they don't realize that the media can lie. They also don't know that clever people are often burdened by their own cleverness."
"The independent thinking they pride themselves on is really just following the crowd," Old Shao said, staring ahead.
He had known these truths since he was young, yet decades later, the world remained unchanged in many ways. Sometimes Old Shao felt that this world was utterly terrible; other times he found it quite beautiful. In reality, human nature had not changed over thousands of years. The world might not get much worse than it already was, but it could gradually improve.
And this was why Old Shao still held hope for the world.
The group quickly arrived at Lindong Police Station. As soon as they stepped through the substation's entrance, they heard hoarse cries echoing through the air. The voice was rough and high-pitched—it was unmistakably a man's wail. As they approached, they realized that the one crying was none other than Liu Huairou's father.
Liu's Father held Liu Huairou's lifeless body in his arms; she lay there like a lamb in his embrace. Several police officers stood nearby, helplessly watching Liu's Father weep uncontrollably, unsure of what to do.
"What are you waiting for? Get the body sent for an autopsy!" Old Shao called out to a nearby officer.
A young police officer shook his head and said, "He won't let anyone near him. Did you see that iron rod in front of him? Several people have already been beaten by him."
Old Shao frowned slightly and nodded to Yuan Jun. Understanding the cue, Yuan Jun stepped forward to Liu's Father. At that moment, Liu's Father was crying uncontrollably and did not notice Yuan Jun approaching. Just as Yuan Jun was about to crouch down to touch Liu Huairou's body, Liu's Father picked up an iron rod nearby and swung it at Yuan Jun.
Yuan Jun did not dodge; instead, he reached out and caught the descending iron rod firmly in his hand.
Liu's Father was taken aback by Yuan Jun's strength and tried to pull the rod away, but no matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't do it.
"Smack!"
"Smack!"
The two crisp sounds stunned everyone. They were the sounds of two slaps, and they came from Liu's Father's face. To be precise, it was Old Shao's hand that struck Liu's Father's face. Old Shao hit hard, causing Liu's Father's face to swell immediately.
Enraged, Liu's Father was jolted awake by the two slaps.
"Now, let's proceed with the autopsy on the body, and you will tell us exactly what happened," Old Shao said, raising his head to stare into Liu's Father's reddened and wide-open eyes, questioning sternly.
At that moment, Liu's Father seemed to regain his senses. Through his fragmented narration, everyone began to understand what had transpired.
After returning home yesterday afternoon, Liu's Father had not taken the incident seriously at all. He had always bullied others; he would hit and scold other kids without thinking it was a big deal. He had been out in society since middle school and had always been the one doing the bullying—no one ever bullied him.
Liu Huairou inherited her father's temperament and naturally did not take it seriously either. Who would kill over a mere threatening note? After all, fighting might lead to jail time, but murder could cost one's head.
Disregarding the police warnings, Liu Huairou and her father went to Joy Valley amusement park in Dragon City that afternoon. As Liu's Father put it, since she couldn't continue school, they might as well enjoy themselves.
However, during their outing, trouble struck.
Liu Huairou's father had never known what etiquette meant. Although it wasn't peak season, there were still quite a few people at the amusement park. Most students were already in school; the crowd consisted mainly of young couples. As they prepared to ride the roller coaster, Liu's Father grew impatient looking at the long line and decided to walk straight to the front.
At that moment, a group of four or five young men stood at the very front of the line. Without saying a word, Liu's Father pulled Liu Huairou and positioned them right at the front.
The guy behind tugged at Liu's Father's arm and said, "Get in line."
His tone was unfriendly, showing no respect for Liu's Father.
Liu's Father slowly turned his head to face the guy and replied, "I've lived this long without ever knowing what it means to stand in line. Either stop whining like a woman and just throw a punch, or behave like a woman and wait your turn at the back."
For a moment, the guy was speechless. He looked at Liu's Father, with his round face, gold chain around his neck, and tattoos on his arms, and instinctively thought of him as someone from the underworld. He had intended to let it go, but suddenly a voice came from behind him.
"Isn't that the woman who strips people online?"
He recognized Liu Huairou.
Upon hearing this, everyone else turned to look at Liu Huairou. The campus bullying incident had stirred up quite a commotion; nearly everyone in Dragon City was aware of who she was. Yet here she was, not hiding at home but daring to come to an amusement park and even cutting in line.
"I'm a thug, and that girl is a whore," one person shouted.
"What the hell did you say?" Liu's Father grabbed him by the collar.
"I said your daughter is a whore! No, maybe she's not your daughter; perhaps she's just your kept mistress!" The young man felt a surge of anger and spoke each word deliberately.
Liu's Father responded with a punch to the guy's face, sending him crashing to the ground.
"Cutting in line is one thing, but hitting people!" a girl exclaimed.
"Damn it, I can't stand by anymore. Anyone with guts, come at me!"
Before he finished speaking, several guys rushed forward and started fighting Liu's Father. The scene quickly descended into chaos. Although Liu's Father had spent his life fighting, he found it hard to take on four opponents alone and was soon knocked down. Liu Huairou threw herself onto the ground to protect her father from the blows.
Meanwhile, the bystanders were filled with righteous indignation; they viewed these two as societal pests.
Liu's Father and Liu Huairou clung to each other as they endured the crowd's justice until Liu Huairou began to vomit and convulse. Only then did the crowd finally stop. Liu Huairou was covered in footprints, with marks overlapping so much that it was impossible to tell whose shoes had left them.
More than twenty men were involved, and by the time the police car and ambulance arrived, the youths had all vanished. They were against campus violence, yet they treated Liu Huairou and her father in the same way.
Since the amusement park was located in the suburbs of Dragon City, and the doctors there lacked the conditions and capability to treat Liu Huairou, she had completely lost consciousness by the time she was loaded into the ambulance. Before Liu Huairou could reach the nearest hospital, her heartbeat had already stopped.
The doctors worked for twenty minutes in the ambulance, but Liu Huairou still passed away.
The death certificate issued by the hospital indicated that Liu Huairou died from a brain injury. The specific external injury was a kick to her head, which caused a concussion, leading to brain herniation and intracranial bleeding that pressed on her nerves. Due to delays on the road and lack of timely assistance, she succumbed to her injuries.
Upon learning this, the police transported both Liu's father and Liu Huairou's body back. Liu's father held onto Liu Huairou's body tightly, unwilling to let go.
At this moment, however, Liu Huairou's body had already been taken away for an autopsy by Xu Yiman.
The police were investigating the more than twenty individuals who participated in the assault on Liu's father and Liu Huairou. They were not very optimistic; with over twenty people involved in beating Liu Huairou, surveillance footage only showed a mass of dark figures, making it impossible to identify who delivered that fatal kick.
It was possible that it wasn't just one person responsible; in the chaos, stepping on something was beyond their control.
"Keep it under wraps," Old Shao said. "Just say Liu Huairou is still receiving treatment."
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