Chapter 83

Song Wen and Lu Siyu returned to the office and told several team members what Chen Sixue had said, but they skipped over the part about her getting her eyes cured.

Fu Linjiang lowered his head, digesting the information Song Wen had provided, and organized his thoughts. “The current progress of the case, in other words, the real Chen Yanqiu, took Zhang Rui’s phone and ID. After surviving for more than a month after New Year’s Day, he was killed and his body was dumped in a chemical plant. Chen Yanqiu… this person, was terminally ill, right? And he had a sister, so why did he do this?”

Song Wen said, “His behavior seems to be related to the previous ‘work’. But we still don’t know the specifics of what he did for work.”

“What else could it be? Definitely something illegal.” Lao Jia spoke up. “After getting the money and getting scared, the kid changed his and his roommate’s identities and pretended to be dead.”

Song Wen also didn’t know how to analyze the deceased’s behavior. He looked up at Lu Siyu, who was biting his nails, deep in thought. After a moment, Lu Siyu spoke four words: “Cicada shedding its skin.”

After exchanging identities, during this one or two months, Chen Yanqiu must have done something under Zhang Rui’s identity, and he wanted others to think he was dead.

Song Wen then asked Zhu Xiao, “How’s the social investigation into the deceased Chen Yanqiu going?”

Zhu Xiao took out several stacks of documents. “All the information I found is here.” He hesitated for a moment before saying, “How should I put it… this person, is a good person.”

Seeing the puzzled expressions of everyone, Zhu Xiao explained.

“Everywhere I called, whenever I asked about this person, this was the evaluation I got. And then they expressed sympathy and regret for his illness and death.”

Zhu Xiao further elaborated on the event. “This person has always been outstanding. In elementary school, he was a model student in various aspects, even won awards for honesty. In middle school and high school, he was a moral model of ‘Five Loves and Four Beauties’. In college, he was the president of their student union.”

“Not long after graduating from college, his volunteering hours were already more than many veteran volunteers who had been doing it for years. Before getting sick, he donated blood five times. Even when he got sick, he faced it with optimism and positivity. In the mutual aid association, he used his own example to encourage other patients, often letting them stay in the basement he rented for free. When he had extra money, he would lend it to patients in financial difficulty and actively help them. All the patients, doctors, and nurses praised him as a gentle, kind, and understanding person…”

Zhu Xiao sighed. “Honestly, if it weren’t for all the evidence and information in front of me, just hearing others say it, I would doubt that such a person exists in the world…”

After hearing his words, everyone fell silent for a moment.

The world is unfair. Such a young man got terminal illness…

No one knows what happened in the last moments of his life. Why did he die in the end?

Further investigation would not help them much. After Chen Yanqiu transformed into Zhang Rui, he only sent out a few text messages, which were meant to prove Zhang Rui’s survival, while Chen Yanqiu was covering up the truth of Zhang Rui’s death.

Pretending to be a friend, a person who had already “died” silently infiltrated into human society…

He didn’t use his bank card again, perhaps stayed in small hotels or rented a house, but left no records behind.

That young man, cutting off all communication, turned the last two months of his life into a mystery with his own hands.

Song Wen gave the Q group number to Zhu Xiao. There are still more than two hundred people in the group. Zhu Xiao quickly identified the numbers Zhang Rui and Chen Yanqiu had used through various information. Although they were deceased, their numbers were still in the group and had not been removed.

To obtain more information, entering the Q group was undoubtedly the fastest method.

Song Wen asked, “Can you decipher their numbers and log in to see the situation in the group?”

Zhu Xiao replied, “There shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll apply for access right away. I’ll also ask if we can access the past records in the group, but all of this will take some time.”

“It’s best to retrieve them all at once.” Song Wen thought for a moment and added, “But these people are cautious. They probably won’t reveal many details about their ‘work’ online. Retrieve all the available information for now.”

After assigning the tasks on this end, Song Wen turned around and saw Lu Siyu standing in front of the whiteboard in the office, focusing on the information posted on it.

With the confirmation of Chen Yanqiu’s identity, they were getting more and more information.

When Zhang Rui died, the forensic team also conducted an on-site investigation and took a few photos casually. However, at that time, it was treated as a death from illness, so the details were not very detailed.

Lu Siyu lowered his head, focused on several photos of the scene. These were taken when the body in the basement was being processed earlier. The body in the photos had long decomposed, making it impossible to identify the facial features, but it was clear that it was a male wearing winter clothes.

There were also several photos of the indoor environment, showing two dim basements. There were only small ventilation windows on the southern side. In such an environment, sunlight might not even be visible for a whole day. The basement was very messy, with various old furniture. Through the photos, the musty smell of the basement could be sensed.

Lu Siyu’s fingertips paused on a photo of a small desk with paper and pens on it. On top of the desk were two rows of bookshelves. Zhang Rui’s education level was not high, but the bookshelf was obviously Chen Yanqiu’s. It could be seen that he liked philosophical and travel books.

There was no kitchen in the room, but there was a small operating table with an old rice cooker on it, as well as a microwave. Next to it was a chopping board and a simple knife rack.

“It seems like there’s a fruit knife missing from the rack.” Lu Siyu handed the photo to Song Wen, pointing to an empty space next to the kitchen knife.

Song Wen remembered something. “Lin Xiuran’s previous forensic report stated that Chen Yanqiu… that is, the deceased’s cause of death seemed to be a knife about fifteen centimeters long, which is somewhat similar to this fruit knife…” Then he shook his head, denying his own thoughts. “This kind of knife is too common. Even if it’s similar, it doesn’t prove anything.”

Although there was some progress in confirming the victim’s identity, the next actions would have to wait for the results of the next investigation. Song Wen and Lu Siyu finished work half an hour later, almost on time.

As soon as they entered the door, Lu Siyu took a few steps and collapsed on the sofa. The side effects of reducing medication had fully emerged. He had only slept a few hours yesterday, and his mind felt like porridge. After a busy day, Lu Siyu felt that every cell was overloaded, and he didn’t want to move at all.

Song Wen had long noticed that he wasn’t feeling well but gritted his teeth and didn’t say anything. He walked over and asked him, “How about I make dinner tonight?”

Lu Siyu raised his eyes and looked at him. “Team Leader Song, don’t be silly. I still want to eat something good.”

Song Wen said, “Alright then. I’ll help you, and you can instruct me.” Lu Siyu couldn’t see, but he sensed that the person’s complexion was abnormally pale, and even the lips had turned pale.

After thinking for a moment, Lu Siyu, who had no strength to get up, compromised, “Then let’s make porridge.” After saying this, he curled up on the sofa, feeling a deep fatigue from head to toe. He had vomited all the breakfast he ate in the morning, didn’t eat much for lunch, and now he should be hungry. However, his stomach was empty, and he felt nothing, as if that organ was no longer his.

Song Wen put the rice in the rice cooker, considering that he shouldn’t mess things up too much, he went to make two dishes. When he arranged everything, he approached Lu Siyu.

Lu Siyu still had his eyes closed, but it was evident that he was still awake. His whole person seemed boneless. Song Wen gently shook him. “No, you have to eat something before going to sleep.”

Lu Siyu’s face was pale, his eyes couldn’t open, and his voice had a hint of a crying tone, as if a child was coquettishly pleading, “Officer Song, I feel uncomfortable, my head hurts… Let me rest for a while… Don’t disturb me…”

Lu Siyu almost begged with that tone, and when he called Officer Song again, Song Wen was taken aback. He straightened up and reached out to check his pulse, fearing that his body was too weak and would go into shock. Lu Siyu brushed away his hand. “Really, I’m just a bit… tired. Let me rest a bit.”

Little Wolf, at this time, pricked up its ears and approached, whimpering to lick Lu Siyu’s hand.

Seeing that Lu Siyu was indeed breathing steadily but extremely weak, Song Wen reached out to pull the dog away. He gestured to it to keep quiet, then hesitated for a moment. Instead of lifting Lu Siyu, he went upstairs to get a thin blanket, covered him, and sat on the nearby sofa.

Lu Siyu felt drowsy and drifted off for a long time. He felt as if he was sinking somewhere, surrounded by various sounds and people. For a moment, it seemed like he was in a dark cabinet; his brother had stuffed him inside, telling him, “Don’t make a sound, absolutely don’t make a sound.” Another moment felt like he was in a classroom, where the teacher’s mouth moved, but he couldn’t hear anything. Then, it felt like sitting in the forensic room, facing a dead body.

This was purely the body reaching its limit, activating a self-protective mechanism. After what seemed like a short nap, Lu Siyu’s headache had alleviated. Then, he was awakened by hunger.

Lu Siyu struggled a bit. He thought what Song Wen said might be right. If he had dinner and then slept, he might not be woken up by hunger.

Song Wen noticed he was awake and turned to look at him.

Lu Siyu opened his eyes, his eye circles still red. He looked like a cat that had just woken up. After adjusting to the light in the room, he asked, “What time is it?”

Song Wen said, “After two, you’ve slept for about five hours.”

Lu Siyu felt as if only a short while had passed and didn’t expect it to be this long. He got up and said, “I’m much better now. Did you not sleep all this time?”

Song Wen got up, put the dishes in the microwave, and said, “I’ve been waiting for you to have dinner.”

Lu Siyu looked up. The tableware was the same as when he fell asleep, untouched. He supported his forehead and sat up, anxious, “You fool, why did you wait for me…?”

Lu Siyu was a bit worried that Song Wen might be starving and had slept drowsily. He spoke without choosing his words carefully, and after saying it, he felt a bit embarrassed and covered his face, reflecting on his words.

Song Wen didn’t mind much but retorted, “Uh, don’t speak to your direct superior this way. I also had two packs of bread and a box of chips. And it’s not all just for waiting for you; I’ve been searching for clues online.”

Lu Siyu lacked strength all over his body, but his mind was turning. “Got any clues?”

Song Wen said, “I finally got into that terminal illness group.”