Chapter 10

Zhao Suifang stood for a long time outside the Zhan family's home. Ever since her husband's death, she had been living in a daze, unable to believe that her once-happy family had fallen apart overnight.

She had not even dared to tell her daughter, who was studying away from home.

It was only when her family brought her daughter back that the girl, upon hearing how her father had died, refused to believe it was a natural death and dragged Zhao Suifang to the police station to report it.

What good would reporting it do? Would the police really believe them?

But as she recounted everything that had happened over the past few days at the station, she became more and more certain that her husband's death was no simple matter.

And that was when she realized the company was already in chaos, with Zhan Hongye benefiting the most.

It was a simple matter of deduction: set aside all external factors, and whoever benefited most after her husband's death was the prime suspect in his murder.

To outsiders, she probably looked crazy, making wild accusations with no evidence. But she just knew that Zhan Hongye was the one who had harmed Old Qin.

A while later, Madam Qin finally turned stiffly and headed home.

When she opened the door, she was surprised to find several strangers sitting in her living room with her daughter.

Seeing her return, one of them stood up. "Hello, Ms. Zhao. We're officers with the Special Case Investigation Section of Qingcheng Public Security Bureau. Here are our credentials."

The man handed over his credentials with both hands. Zhao Suifang took them in a daze, looked down at the badge number and photo, then turned to her daughter.

Her daughter, Qin Suisui, came over and said softly, "I called 110 to check. They're real."

She had never heard of this department, and had never known the police to come investigate at night, but 110 wouldn't make a mistake.

Zhao Suifang nodded, returned the credentials, then looked at them expectantly. "So, you're here now to...?"

The young, close-cropped officer said, "The police have opened a case into your husband, Qin Kai's, death and transferred it to the Special Case Investigation Section. We're here today to ask you a few questions."

"Of course, of course." Zhao Suifang's voice trembled. "Ask me anything. I'll tell you everything."

An hour later, the officers took their leave of the Qin family.

After they got in the car, the officer in the back asked the close-cropped officer driving, "Captain, should we notify Consultant Yan about Qin Kai's case?"

Fang Chuan shook his head. "Not for now. Consultant Yan's in the capital for a conference these next few days. Even if we tell him, he can't come back. Ms. Zhao gave us a lead, didn't she? It's only a suspicion, but it's worth looking into."

The officer in the back agreed. "Besides Zhan Hongye, Dong Zhenghao is suspicious too. He's Zhan Hongye's brother-in-law, but also Qin Kai's business partner. What a tangled mess. As soon as Qin Kai got into trouble, Zhan Hongye snatched up most of the Qin family's resources. Wouldn't the remaining benefits go to Dong Zhenghao?"

Fang Chuan grunted. "Of course, we can't rule out the possibility that the Qin family staged the whole thing. When we get back, go through Qin Kai's social connections. Don't overlook a single detail."

These special cases were harder to investigate and more difficult to detect. People with special abilities had all sorts of bizarre motives for murder, sometimes so absurd they seemed laughable. But no matter how much crimes varied, they all had a purpose. The police could always trace them back to their source.

Madam Qin told no one that the police had opened a case. Even Dong Zhenghao, who had once been closest to the family and came by to visit her twice, never heard a word about it from her.

That day happened to be Qin Kai's funeral. Dong Zhenghao had attended two funerals in less than a month, both for people close to him, and it was hard not to feel low.

Once most people had left, he slowly walked out of the cemetery.

Not far from the gate, he suddenly saw someone approaching with a bunch of white chrysanthemums. Dong Zhenghao took a closer look. Wasn't that Mr. Zhuo?

Mr. Zhuo had been quite cold toward him at the banquet at the Zhan family's home, so Dong Zhenghao had assumed he had little chance of working with him. Still, out of courtesy, he greeted him. "Mr. Zhuo."

"Mr. Dong, are you here to pay your respects to Mr. Qin?"

Dong Zhenghao nodded and sighed wistfully. "Yes. One moment someone's here, and the next they're gone."

Mr. Zhuo was silent for a moment, then said, "I'm late. Could I trouble you to show me the way?"

"Of course."

After Qin Kai's funeral, Dong Zhenghao was as radiant as the August sun.

He even managed a smile when he saw Liu Mumu, his troublesome eldest daughter, which showed just how pleased he was.

No one else knew the reason, but Jiang Li, who shared his bed, knew it well.

The business deal he had thought was hopeless now seemed possible thanks to that chance encounter at the cemetery.

He had met privately with Mr. Zhuo over the past few days, and felt they had gotten along well. Maybe they could take things further.

Jiang Jia shared the news one evening while the family was having dinner.

When Zhan Hongye heard it, his brow furrowed briefly. Then he turned to his young wife and asked, "How did you hear about that?"

Jiang Jia gave a scoff. "My sister told me, of course. She can't help showing off whenever something happens. To her, Mr. Zhuo is a big shot."

Zhan Hongye said no more, seemingly unconcerned by the news.

After dinner, he called his son into the study.

As soon as the study door closed, Zhan Hongye's usually mild face twisted with fury. He demanded, "You're the one who arranged Mr. Zhuo's lodging and meals. How could you not know he was meeting Dong Zhenghao? That's a big deal!"

Zhan Huitian didn't dare argue. He lowered his head and admitted his mistake. "I was careless. I thought Mr. Zhuo had already made up his mind..."

He didn't get to finish before a loud slap cracked across his face.

His ears rang, and his cheek burned. Zhan Huitian's hand clenched, then relaxed.

"I really raised a useless son!"

Zhan Huitian kept his head down and said nothing.

"Keep a close eye on him. Tell me about anything that happens right away. There won't be a next time. Understand?"

"But... there was no way I could stop Dong Zhenghao from meeting Mr. Qin." Zhan Huitian hesitated.

"You don't need to worry about that. I'll handle it." Zhan Hongye waved him away in irritation. "All right, go."

More than ten minutes after Zhan Huitian left, Zhan Hongye finally emerged from the study, his expression calm.

Back in their room, he saw Jiang Jia chatting with someone on her phone. He walked over, put an arm around her, and looked down at her screen.

Jiang Jia didn't mind him seeing it. There was nothing incriminating in her conversation with Jiang Li. Oh, except for the one thing: her brother-in-law, since all they talked about was his difficult daughter.

"What are you talking about?" Zhan Hongye asked by her ear.

Jiang Jia leaned against him and grinned, shaking her phone. "It's that daughter of my brother-in-law's who just came back. My sister says there's something off about that girl."

Zhan Hongye thought for a moment. "The girl he brought over that day? She seemed all right to me."

"All right? She'd barely been in the house for two minutes when Dong Qi fell and broke his leg. I'd say she's probably bad luck for their family."

"Could be. Master Ning did say before that some people are born with such strong fates that they bring misfortune to their families."

Hearing Zhan Hongye agree, Jiang Jia turned to him. "Oh, right. I remember Master Ning is in Qingcheng these days. You're close with him. Could you ask him for a favor?"

"A favor? But this is all your guesswork. Maybe the girl's fate is perfectly fine." Zhan Hongye laughed.

Jiang Jia pinched his sleeve and gave it a gentle tug. "I'm not really asking him to tell her fortune."

It was a private gesture between husband and wife. Zhan Hongye understood at once, but still refused outright. "No. Wouldn't that be hurting the girl?"

"Honestly, why are you so stubborn?" Jiang Jia chided him. "We're not really going to abandon her. We just need to keep her from living in the house. You know my sister. She cares about appearances. Having to face the daughter my brother-in-law had with his ex every day, she can't lose her temper and has to treat the girl like royalty. How could she be happy? She might even make herself sick."

Even though she and Jiang Li weren't close, Jiang Jia still took her sister's side.

Besides, another outsider meant someone else might get a share of the property meant for her sister and nephew.

Zhan Hongye hesitated. "Well... I remember Old Dong doesn't believe in this stuff."

Jiang Jia gave a scoffing laugh. "Who cares whether he believes it? You can invite Master Ning another day, and I'll have my sister bring the whole family. Once they meet him and hear what he says, Old Dong won't have a choice but to believe it."

She had been skeptical of these so-called masters herself, until she and Zhan Hongye met Master Ning. There were always people more capable than you, and wonders beyond the world.

If Master Ning hadn't really been that good, she wouldn't have used this trick against her sister's stepdaughter.

Only after Jiang Jia had coaxed him for a while did Zhan Hongye reluctantly agree. "All right, but just this once."

Jiang Jia happily threw herself into his arms. Zhan Hongye held her, the corners of his mouth curling upward.