Skin - Chapter 15

After a while, Cheng Yun opened the door and walked in: “Brother Zhao, your takeaway has arrived.”

　　”Bring it here.” Meng Zhao stretched out his hand to take it.

　　”However, there are two takeaways…” Cheng Yun came over and put the two takeaways on the table, “One is from the restaurant you mentioned, and the other one also has your name on it…”

　　Meng Zhao looked at the two takeaways with huge differences in appearance.

　　One of them was packed in a silver thermal bag, and the logo on it showed that the takeaway came from a Chaoshan casserole porridge restaurant which was famous for its expensive prices. When Meng Zhao ordered takeout in the past, he had glimpsed this extremely expensive porridge countless times, but because the expensive price was a bit inconsistent with his status as a social worker, he chose to turn a blind eye many times.

　　There was another portion, which was packed in an ordinary transparent plastic bag. It looked extremely simple and down-to-earth, but at this moment, it was like a gutter oil set meal because of the extravagant thermal bag next to it.

　　… It was a style of not seeking the best but the most expensive. Among the people he knew, Meng Zhao only knew one person who had such a style. And he had just met the man not long ago.

　　”Brother Zhao, who ordered it for you?” Cheng Yun asked curiously.

　　Meng Zhao came to his senses, paused, and dismissed her: “Why are you asking so many useless questions? Go away quickly and think about the case.”

　　Cheng Yun curled her lips and took another look at the takeaway before leaving, thinking it was not normal for it to be that expensive.

Chapter 16

　　At first glance, it seemed that the porridge was enough for three or four people, and it also came with several disposable bowls. Meng Zhao scooped out a bowl with a spoon.

　　The casserole porridge was rich in ingredients, even though Meng Zhao didn’t have much appetite at the moment. After swallowing a mouthful of porridge mixed with plump shrimp meat, he had to admit that it was much more delicious than the gutter oil set meal he usually ate.

　　The hot porridge slid down the oesophagus into the stomach, and the stomach, which had been almost numb after being empty for a day, seemed to gradually warm up again.

　　News that Zhao Yunhua committed suicide by jumping off a building began to appear on his news feed. Meng Zhao took a quick glance at it and found that most of the news came from the same public account as before, but it was more cautious in wording it, saying that it was rumoured online that Zhao Yunhua accidentally killed Zhou Yan.

　　Was it really a manslaughter? Meng Zhao looked at the news, and the scene before Zhao Yunhua’s death appeared in his mind.

　　”He deserves to die!”

　　”I saw it, I saw it…”

　　”I obviously heard it…”

　　”He is the murderer, he was the one who forced Zhao Tong to death!”

　　Before she died, the tearful Zhao Yunhua was still certain that Zhou Yan was the murderer. What did she see and what had she heard? Meng Zhao pushed aside the remaining porridge and fell into deep thought. Although the case seemed to be over, he had no feeling of closure at all because there were too many unsolved mysteries.

　　”Brother Zhao, I’m back!” One minute before getting off work, Zhou Qiyang pushed the door open and came in.

　　He glanced at the expensive takeout packaging on Meng Zhao’s table: “Damn it, Brother Zhao, you are really going to get a promotion and a salary increase. You have already upgraded your consumption ahead of schedule!”

　　Meng Zhao glanced at him: “What promotion? Don’t spread nonsense.”

　　”No…then if you order such an expensive takeout, its price is enough for me to eat several good meals, and there is still so much left…what a waste!”

　　”You can take these and share them later with others,” Meng Zhao changed the subject and asked, “How about the surveillance? Have you found the person he mentioned?”

　　”I searched for the person at the meeting place mentioned by the thief. I also checked the surveillance of the railway station. There was no one standing there all afternoon. Brother Zhao, I thought about it on my way back. This person’s purpose at that time should be diverting and decaying us. Otherwise if we could have tracked Zhao Yunhua from the beginning, she might not have been able to commit suicide at all… So, who really wanted Zhao Yunhua to commit suicide?”

　　”Who predicted that Zhao Yunhua would commit suicide…” Meng Zhao raised his hand and rubbed his temples.

　　”Are you saying that Zhao Yunhua’s suicide was most likely not spontaneous…” Zhou Qiyang quickly reacted, “But someone lured her to commit suicide?”

　　”I mean,” Meng Zhao stood up and walked to the window, “Maybe Zhao Yunhua had planned to strangle Zhou Yan from the beginning.”

　　Zhou Qiyang was stunned: “Huh?”

　　”It’s just a guess.” Meng Zhao shook his head and turned around, “Let’s go in and interrogate the thief once again.”

　　*

　　”No one? How is it possible?” When he heard that there was no one at the agreed place, the thief almost jumped up from his seat, “He really came to me! The five thousand yuan is still with me. I haven’t touched a penny!”

　　”Don’t get excited, I didn’t say you were lying,” Zhou Qiyang told him to calm down, “But if someone really asked you to go to the rail station to deliver the goods, and then the person didn’t show up, it’s most likely to get cheated.”

　　”You kept me here all afternoon, who could wait that long!”

　　”Don’t say that. I checked the surveillance. From 12 noon to around 4 p.m., no one was standing at the place you mentioned. Did that person leave any other contacts for you?”

　　The thief insisted: “No.”

　　”Then leave me the address where that person met you at noon. I need to go and verify whether what you said is true.”

　　After the thief told him the address, he underestimated: “Can there be surveillance there…”

　　After recording the address, Zhou Qiyang glanced in the direction of the one-way mirror.

　　Meng Zhao said in the earphone: “Okay, let the local police station handle the matter of the theft. Let them come and pick him up later.”

　　After interrogating the thief, Zhou Qiyang opened the door and came out: “Brother Zhao, are you just going to let him go?”

　　Meng Zhao said “hmm”.

　　Judging from the thief’s expression, when he learned that no one showed up at the agreed place, his reaction was indeed an angry reaction resulting from being deceived, and it was not like he was pretending.

　　”Okay,” Zhou Qiyang carried Meng Zhao’s large box of porridge: “Can I really take this porridge and share it?”

　　”Split it up.” Meng Zhao nodded.

　　”Director Xu didn’t say anything for now, right?” Before leaving, Zhou Qiyang asked Meng Zhao worriedly. There were rumours in the bureau that Director Xu put Meng Zhao in charge of the case in order to find a reason for his promotion. But now that Zhao Yunhua had committed suicide, there were different opinions from the outside world. Compared with solving the case step by step, the results were still not very good.

　　”I don’t know, isn’t he still having a meeting in the province?” Compared with the rumours of promotion, Meng Zhao was more concerned about whether the various mysteries involved in the case could be solved one by one.

　　It was already time to get off work, and Meng Zhao pushed open the door and walked into the office. Several people who hadn’t left yet sat down and shared the porridge. Everyone had hardly had a stable meal throughout day.

　　”Captain Meng,” Ren Bin came over with a disposable bowl, “Are we still going to investigate the matter of the dog hair? Do we still need to check the surveillance? I’m already prepared to stay up all night tonight.”

　　”Let’s wait for the situation on Zhao Yunhua’s side first.” Meng Zhao said after thinking about it.

　　Ren Bin pointed outside: “Then can I go to the kindergarten to pick up my son?”

　　”Go ahead, Brother Bin.”

　　Sensing that something was wrong with Meng Zhao’s mood, Ren Bin took two steps, stepped back, raised his hand and patted Meng Zhao on the shoulder: “This case was solved in time, and I don’t see any unnecessary steps. As for the way things have developed, no one could’ve predicted the outcome in advance, so don’t take it too seriously.”

　　”I know, it’s just…” Meng Zhao paused, “It would have been better if I had been one step early.”

　　”You think it might have changed the outcome if you were a step early, but maybe no matter how many steps you take, the result will remain the same.”

　　Meng Zhao looked up at him: “You also think…”

　　”Well, this case is not as simple as it seems on the surface,” Ren Bin smiled, “My ability to control the overall situation is not good, but don’t doubt my investigative ability. Take your time to investigate, don’t be impatient.”

　　After Ren Bin left, other colleagues also left work one after another.

　　The sky gradually darkened, and Meng Zhao was the only one left in the office. He didn’t turn on the light and was sitting at his workstation, the fluorescent blue light emitting from the computer shined on his face.

　　Meng Zhao looked at the photograph on Zhou Yan’s homepage. Zhou Yan had a delicate face, because the corners of his mouth were naturally slightly upward, it seemed as if he was smiling even when he was not. He looked likeable at first glance.

　　Zhou Yan’s friends said that although Zhou Yan had always loved music, he never dared to quit his previous stable job because he was afraid that he would not be able to support himself through music. About a year ago, Zhou Yan decided to completely change his life. He resigned from the company despite the opposition of the people around him, and concentrated on making music. Unexpectedly, his music was liked by many people.

　　The house in Yuhuwan Community was rented by Zhou Yan three months ago. He had always wanted to rent a big house where all his friends could gather together. Now that his idea had finally come true, he unexpectedly encountered an accident.

　　Meng Zhao scrolled the mouse and looked at the fragments of his life recorded by Zhou Yan over the years. Zhou Yan mentioned Zhao Yunhua many times on Weibo.

　　”Auntie’s birthday is tomorrow. How about I give her this cervical massager? It’s not an advertisement. Friends who have used it can tell me about the effects.”

　　”Auntie’s cooking is so delicious… When you’re full, lie down.”

　　”Auntie made me Pangdahai chrysanthemum tea, I feel like I can do a live broadcast tonight!”

　　The amount of interactions on Zhou Yan’s Weibo had only increased dramatically in the past year. Two years ago, he was still talking to himself.

　　Meng Zhao searched for the keyword ‘aunt’. The earliest one was posted four years ago and said—

　　”Today I invited the housekeeping aunt over for the first time. I unexpectedly met the mother of my high school classmate. Looking at her current living situation, I feel very uncomfortable. But… Could this be an opportunity given by God to make up for my mistakes?”

　　Making up for his mistakes… Was Zhou Yan the real culprit who forced Zhao Tong to death, or was he blaming himself for not standing up for Zhao Tong when he was being bullied at school?

　　If it was really the case of manslaughter, then the way Zhou Yan died, wasn’t it really pitiful? Meng Zhao looked at the updates posted by Zhou Yan with complicated emotions. What did Zhao Yunhua see and hear that led her to strangle Zhou Yan to death with such hatred? Even up to the second before committing suicide, she still insisted that Zhou Yan was the murderer of Zhao Tong…

　　His cell phone rang. It was a colleague who had stayed in the hospital waiting for news about Zhao Yunhua.

　　”How’s it going?” Meng Zhao answered the phone and walked to the window to ask.

　　”Captain Meng, Zhao Yunhua… died.”

　　Meng Zhao tightened his grip on the phone. For a moment, his whole body stiffened, and there was a buzzing in his brain. After a moment, he exhaled a long breath: “Thank you for your hard work, let’s see if we can contact Zhao Yunhua’s family and ask them to collect her body tomorrow.”

　　After turning off the computer, Meng Zhao was stunned for a while before walking out of the city bureau. After so many years in the criminal investigation field, he still couldn’t face life and death calmly.

　　Especially… Zhou Yan’s death reminded him of his uncle’s case from back then.

　　Perhaps because, like Zhou Yan, Meng Xiangyu had also been mistaken as a murderer. Maybe because of that, it made Meng Zhao feel even more sad.

　　Meng Zhao walked to his car and bent down to observe the position of the front of the car. In the afternoon, he collided with Lu Shichen’s car. Although it was not serious, there was an obvious dent at the location of the impact, and the paint was rubbed off in two places.

　　It seemed that this car would have to be sent for repair early in the morning. He had no idea how many days it would take to get it back. Meng Zhao got into the car and planned to go to the hospital to visit Mr. Zhou Mingsheng while he could still drive like a gentleman.

　　Like Lu Shichen’s father, Lu Chengze, Zhou Mingsheng was also the criminal defence lawyer in the Meng Xiangyu’s case. Zhou Mingsheng was also Lu Chengze’s university tutor. The two masters and apprentices joined forces and overturned a seemingly iron-clad case on the spot, saving Meng Xiangyu from jail.

　　Normally Zhou Mingsheng and Lu Chengze were both benefactors of their family, but Meng Zhao had stayed in touch with Zhou Mingsheng over the years, and they would always go out and about during holidays. As for Lu Chengze, Meng Zhao always feels that the man was similar to his Lu Shichen. Lu Shichen’s temperament was probably inherited from his father. It always made people feel a sense of distance.

　　Meng Zhao went to the supermarket near the city bureau to buy nutritional supplements. Just as he was about to start the car, he received a message from Meng Ruoshu: “Brother, Lao Meng stewed fish tonight and asked you to come back for dinner.”

　　He really didn’t know since when Meng Ruoshu changed to calling Meng Xiangyu from ‘Dad’ to ‘Old Meng’. However, it was not a strange thing. In front of Meng Xiangyu, Meng Ruoshu had always been used to being lawless.

　　”I’ll be back later. You guys eat first and leave some for me.” Meng Zhao replied, then threw the phone aside and started the car.

　　It was already past the rush hour, but there were many cars on the road. Meng Zhao drove slowly, recalling the case of Meng Xiangyu back then.

　　Meng Zhao remembered clearly that it was the first day of high school. He played basketball with his former junior high school classmates on the playground, and it was already dark when he got home.

　　Because he was worried that his uncle and aunt were waiting for him to eat, Meng Zhao ran all the way back, but he didn’t expect to hear Meng Ruoshu’s crying as soon as he entered the house. At the same time, the gloomy atmosphere at home also made Meng Zhao sensitively aware that there was something wrong in the house.

　　Meng Zhao closed the door and then noticed that in the bedroom next door, the crying seemed not only from Meng Ruoshu, but also from his aunt. Meng Xiangyu was pacing back and forth in the living room, looking anxious.

　　”Uncle,” Meng Zhao subconsciously lowered his voice and pointed to the back room, “What’s wrong?”

　　Only then did Meng Xiangyu notice that Meng Zhao had entered the house. He didn’t say anything clearly, but just shook his head and asked Meng Zhao to go to his room to do his homework.

　　That night, Meng Zhao sensed that something was wrong in the atmosphere at home, so he wisely didn’t ask any more questions. Unexpectedly, the next day, his uncle was taken away by the police, who said he was suspected of committing a crime.

　　Meng Zhao only guessed what happened later, because Meng Ruoshu, who had always been close to him, suddenly resisted his approach. He tried to ask her what happened, but Meng Ruoshu screamed in horror.

　　When Meng Zhao went to visit Meng Xiangyu in the detention centre, Meng Xiangyu thought about it and chose to confess the truth to Meng Zhao, saying that Meng Ruoshu had been molested by an adult man.

　　Meng Ruoshu had just started an extra class that day and was not familiar with her classmates. When school was over, the other students had almost left, but Meng Ruoshu still stayed in the classroom doing homework. Because Meng Xiangyu got off work late, he asked Meng Ruoshu to stay in the classroom and wait for him to pick her up.

　　At that time, a boy came over and said that the head teacher had asked Meng Ruoshu to go somewhere to talk about something. Meng Ruoshu mistakenly thought that the boy was her classmate, so she followed him there. It was only after she arrived at the abandoned storage room that she realised something was wrong. There was an adult man and he pulled her in without any reason.

　　Meng Xiangyu went to pick up Meng Ruoshu after getting off work. After discovering that his daughter was not in the classroom, he hurried out to ask if anyone had seen Meng Ruoshu.