Chapter 7: The Corpse Room 7  

“Keep up!”  

Ye Zhu smacked her forehead in frustration and quickly quickened her pace, unsure why such a terrifying thought had crossed her mind just now. Bumping into the man again? She might as well slam her head against a wall behind closed doors—at least that would be less humiliating.  

At least walls couldn’t talk.  

“Ah!!! Ah!!! You heartless bastards!!! My Lao Huang is gone, and now you have the nerve to say such cruel things? Let’s all die together!!! I can’t go on living like this anyway!” Perhaps from screaming for too long, the woman’s voice had grown hoarse, but no matter how much she wailed, her grip never loosened. Several men trying to pull her away still couldn’t free Manager Jin from her clutches.  

Truthfully, everyone was wary of her hysterical tantrum. If they used too much force, they might end up tangled in her mess, so most only offered verbal intervention without actually exerting much effort.  

Manager Jin was a far cry from his usual composed and polished self. Two buttons had popped off his shirt, his slicked-back oily hair had turned into a bird’s nest, and he kept pleading, “Sis-in-law… Sis-in-law… let’s talk this out properly…”  

“What’s there to talk about?! Your company just wants to take advantage of us, a widow and her child! I… I might as well smash my head right here and die rather than let you trample all over us!” Despite her words, the woman showed no intention of letting go. Instead, she shook him even harder.  

Anyone could see that her outburst today wasn’t just about declaring her intent to commit suicide.  

“Sis-in-law, please let go first…” Manager Jin was in a sorry state. As he struggled, he caught sight of the three approaching figures and immediately cried out, “Officer Yan! Officer Yan! Help! Help!”  

The woman paused briefly at his words, but upon noticing that the two men and one woman walking over weren’t in police uniforms, her voice grew even shriller. “Who are you trying to fool?! Even if the police came today, you’d still be in the wrong!”  

Chaos ensued once more.  

“Ye Zhu.”  

This time, even without Yan Yu’s silent cue, Ye Zhu understood his intention perfectly. She stepped forward swiftly, precisely gripping the woman’s wrist. Amid the woman’s shrieks, Ye Zhu forced her hand open, finally freeing Manager Jin.  

“Murder… I’ll call the police…”  

The woman tried to keep up her hysterics, but the sight of the police badge shoved right in her face silenced her. Her lips twitched as she stubbornly insisted, “So what if you’re police? Does that mean you can twist the truth and let these swindlers cheat me out of my husband’s money?”  

“Discussing the issue is fine, but violence isn’t acceptable,” Ye Zhu said sternly, her tone far from gentle. “Do you realize that if they press charges, you could face administrative detention?”  

The woman’s expression shifted. She glanced at the two men she had just attacked, then suddenly opened her mouth—as if about to burst into tears.

“We won’t pursue this! We won’t!” Manager Jin hastily waved his hands, afraid she would continue making a scene. Despite having just been beaten, he still spoke softly to placate her: “I know sister-in-law is grieving. How about this—let’s sit down and talk properly. Come to my office for some water. Whatever requests you have, just tell me, and I’ll do my best to accommodate them, alright?”

“That’s more like it!” The woman snorted, smoothing her disheveled hair before pulling along a boy who looked about fourteen or fifteen behind her.

Under Manager Jin’s deliberate flattery, the mother and son got onto the electric scooter, heading in the direction of the office building.

“Is everyone alright?” asked the man in dark blue work clothes who had taken the brunt of the woman’s beating before Manager Jin stepped in. After confirming no one else was injured, he clapped his hands to signal everyone to disperse and get back to work.

Speaking tugged at the bruises on his face, making him wince. He had a refined appearance, with fair, clean-shaven skin. From the way he had taken charge earlier, he seemed to be some kind of supervisor.

Once he confirmed all workers had returned to their posts, he approached Ye Zhu and the other two, giving a formal slight bow. “Thank you, officers. If not for you today, who knows how long this would have dragged on.”

“She didn’t hold back. You do know you have the right to report this, right?” Yan Yu glanced at the bruises on the man’s face, raising an eyebrow.

“I know, but… let it be. Times are hard for everyone. It’s just a couple of hits.” The man shook his head resignedly before turning curious. “By the way, you’re here investigating Huang Jingguo’s case too, aren’t you?”

“Right. We just finished talking with Manager Jin when your call came through,” Yan Yu explained briefly, then lazily glanced at Ye Zhu standing a few steps away.

Taking the cue, Ye Zhu casually asked, “And that upset woman just now was…?”

“Huang Jingguo’s wife and son! When news of the truck accident reached the company last night, we notified the family immediately. They showed up around midnight and made a scene until nearly dawn before leaving. Must’ve gone home to rest and eat breakfast before coming back for round two.”

The man sighed. “Everyone understands they’ve lost their breadwinner—it’s hard to accept, and they’re worried about their future. But the company has procedures to follow. Before anything was even said, they started yelling about us withholding Lao Huang’s compensation…”

“Manager Dong, why bother defending them? All she cares about is money—demanding eight million outright! Didn’t even cry much over Lao Huang’s death, but the moment she heard the company had to follow protocol for compensation, she started wailing louder than anyone!” A nearby loading worker interjected loudly, clearly displeased.

“Don’t talk nonsense.” The man in work clothes, addressed as Manager Dong, turned his head to glare before looking back at the three across from him, rubbing his hands together. “Well… is there anything else, officers? As you can see, there’s a whole warehouse of goods waiting to be loaded, plus three more over there. I’m really swamped here.”

“There is actually something. Although Manager Jin just gave us a general overview of Huang Jingguo’s basic situation, we still need to gather more in-depth information from his close colleagues and friends.” Ye Zhu paused briefly before casually mentioning two names. “We heard Qian Bin and Wu Huaqing were particularly close to the person in question? Could we speak with them now?”

“Hold on… right, Wu Huaqing! Come here!” Manager Dong waved over the man who had just voiced his dissatisfaction. As the man approached with a suspicious look, Manager Dong glanced around, muttering, “Huh…? Where’s Qian Bin?”

“He was here earlier, wasn’t he?” Manager Dong said as he walked toward the warehouse, turning back to add, “Why don’t you start questioning him first? I’ll send Qian Bin over as soon as I find him!”

Yan Yu and Jiang Bing began interrogating Wu Huaqing. Though Ye Zhu listened, her attention was partly fixed on the warehouse. She noticed Manager Dong circling the warehouse entrance a few times before heading inside, seemingly unable to locate the person. At almost the same moment, a figure swiftly slipped out from the other side of the door, hugging the wall. The person wore the standard Happy Logistics uniform, blending seamlessly into the crowd.

With his head lowered, his facial expression was hard to discern, but his gait was steady—at least in terms of body language, he didn’t appear nervous. At a casual glance, nothing seemed amiss.

However…

Ye Zhu frowned, recalling a casual remark made by the short, stocky driver during their earlier conversation. He had mentioned Qian Bin was a bit eccentric, always doing things differently. For instance, while everyone else used their chest pockets for pens, he insisted on stuffing two cigarettes in there, flouting the company’s dress code. At the monthly company meetings, he’d always end up paying a fine of a few dozen yuan. Even those who didn’t know him had heard his name.

Her gaze sharpened as it landed on the figure’s chest pocket. The Happy Logistics uniform’s pocket wasn’t very large, but she could just make out two cigarette butts peeking out—something easily missed unless you were looking for it.

The next second, Ye Zhu strode toward the man.

Unexpectedly, he was sharp too. Sensing something off, he glanced back at her, then shoved aside a colleague blocking his path and bolted at full speed.

“Fenghhe City Public Security Bureau! Qian Bin! Stop!” Ye Zhu reacted almost instantly, sprinting after him with matching speed.

Qian Bin clearly hadn’t expected the seemingly petite woman chasing him to be so fast. The distance between them rapidly shrank—300 meters… 200 meters… 100 meters…

In just a few breaths, he could almost hear her fragmented gasps.  

After all, this was his first time experiencing such a scene. The fear in his heart made Qian Bin’s steps unsteady. Panicked and disoriented, his mind went blank—until his eyes landed on the artificial lake ahead. A reckless idea flashed through his mind, and he bolted straight toward it.  

The moment Ye Zhu noticed his direction, her heart sank. Gritting her teeth, she pushed herself harder, her speed astonishing the distant onlookers. To them, she moved like a professional athlete—a white blur streaking past before vanishing from sight.  

Just as she feared, Qian Bin’s actions matched her prediction. Upon reaching the lake’s edge, he gripped the railing and vaulted over it!  

“Qian Bin, don’t be rash!” Ye Zhu shouted, stretching out her hand in a desperate attempt to grab him.  

Jiang Bing, who had been chasing from behind, felt his heart leap into his throat. “Ye Zhu! Let go!”  

Qian Bin easily weighed over 150 pounds, while Ye Zhu barely scraped 100. Trying to stop him from jumping was sheer recklessness—one wrong move, and she’d be dragged down with him.  

But his warning came too late. Ye Zhu’s right hand had already seized the back of Qian Bin’s collar. Her body jerked to a halt, her left hand bracing against the railing as she strained to hold her ground.  

“Ugh—” A muffled groan escaped her as the muscles in her right arm screamed under the strain, veins bulging on her forehead.  

Luckily, Jiang Bing caught up moments later. Together, they managed to pull Qian Bin back.  

Once Jiang Bing had the man pinned to the ground, knee pressed firmly into his back to immobilize him, Ye Zhu collapsed against the railing, utterly spent.  

“Tch…” She winced as she tried to move her right arm, sucking in a sharp breath.  

But this was just how she was wired. In her past life, barely eight years into the job, her body had been riddled with old injuries—aching unbearably whenever the weather turned damp.  

“Can you stand?”  

Ye Zhu snapped out of her thoughts and looked up at Yan Yu, who now loomed over her. She attempted to lift her injured arm again. It felt slightly better than before, though still shaky.  

Frowning, Yan Yu didn’t hesitate—he pulled his right hand from his pocket and extended it toward her.  

“…” Ye Zhu stared at the large, strong hand before her, momentarily stunned. But she wasn’t one for false modesty. Placing her uninjured left hand in his, she let him pull her up.  

“Tha—”  

Before she could finish, her eyes widened in shock.  

Fragmented images flickered through her mind once more, accompanied by faint but distinct sounds—chaotic yet clear.  

Slowly, she lowered her gaze to their still-clasped hands.  

So… physical contact worked too?