Chapter 58: The Truth — I didn’t do it on purpose!
♕
It was a long, twenty centimeter knife, with the blade covered in a thin layer of dirt. In the sun’s glare, however, it still sparkled with a cold light.
Practically the split second this knife was dug up, Wang Er Gou turned around with lightning speed and ran away. Li Xin Ran swiftly tackled him to the ground, and the other police surrounded the duo immediately.
Wang Er Gou struggled on the ground for a while before gradually giving up. Zuo Yi nonchalantly walked up and looked down. “Why were you running away?”
Wang Er Gou gritted his teeth and remained silent for a moment. Then, tears streaked down his face without any warning. “I really didn’t do it on purpose! I didn’t deliberately stab Master!”
Although Wang Er Gou didn’t look as tall as an ox or as large as a horse, he was still a rugged man. Such heart-rending sobs from a man with such tyrannical strength caused the expressions of all the police officers to twitch.
Zuo Yi signaled Li Xin Ran with his eyes, and Li Xin Ran, catching on, pulled Wang Er Gou up from the ground, placing Wang Er Gou’s hands behind his back. “What’s a big man like you crying for?! Come with us back to the police department and explain!”
Wang Er Gou heard this and cried even more viciously.
Li Xin Ran escorted Wang Er Gou over to the police car. Zuo Yi glanced to the side at Hou Zi and said, “Bring housekeeper Zhou as well. I have more questions to ask her.”
“Roger!” Perhaps finding the murder weapon had caused everyone to inwardly sigh in relief. Hou Zi’s response was especially resounding. Zuo Yi laughed and followed Li Xin Ran to the police car.
♕
Inside the interrogation room, Zuo Yi patiently waited for Wang Er Gou to stop crying before beginning the questioning.
“Just now, you said that you didn’t deliberately stab Ye Hong Sheng. Specifically explain what had happened.”
Wang Er Gou used a tissue to wipe away his snot. His voice was still choking with sobs. “That day, I originally planned to meet up with some friends in town, but I discovered that I had a fever. I had been feeling unwell, but didn’t want to go to the hospital to see the doctor. I thus went to casually find some fever reducers. I thought that if I felt better in a few, I would still go out.”
Zuo Yi nodded and hinted for him to continue.
Wang Er Gou sobbed and continued, “I fell into a deep sleep. I don’t know how long I slept for. Afterward, I dazedly heard a shriek; it seemed like the Young Miss’ voice. I woke up; by then it was already eight. My temperature had gone down a bit, but I hadn’t eaten anything all day, which made me thirsty and hungry. I went to look for something to eat in my room. After that, I was worried about that shriek I just heard. Although I naturally thought that I dreamt it, I still went to take a look. When I got to the drawing room, I saw…saw Young Miss unconscious beside the staircase. Furthermore, she was in a pool of blood!”
“What time was that?”
“I don’t know. Probably ten or twenty minutes after I woke up.” Wang Er Gou messed up his hair, further confusion appearing on his face. “I was really scared at that time, so I immediately rushed down. Young Miss’ complexion was very pale, but she was still breathing. I originally wanted to make a phone call to call the ambulance, when I heard a voice come from upstairs.”
Zuo Yi’s brows jumped. At that time, Wang Er Gou had seen Ye Zhen Zhen who had not yet died. He pursed his lips and asked, “And then?”
“I was shocked and thought the person who pushed down the Young Miss had stayed upstairs and hadn’t left yet.” Wang Er Gou took a deep breath after he said this. “There just happened to be a paring knife beside Young Miss. I easily grabbed it for self-defense and went upstairs. As I neared the second floor, that voice became clearer. Moreover, it sounded like it came from Master’s room. When, when I entered Master’s room, a shadow suddenly jumped me. I subconsciously used the knife in my hand to stab him.”
Wang Er Gou stopped here, and the interrogation room fell silent. Then, Zuo Yi’s voice rang out. “That person was Ye Hong Sheng?”
Wang Er Gou pursed his lips, a look of suffering on his face. “Yes…I really didn’t know that it was Master! Officers, you must believe me!”
Wang Er Gou began sobbing after he shouted this.
Zuo Yi asked, “Why didn’t you call the police?”
“I, I didn’t dare…I haven’t married yet. I didn’t want to go to jail…” Wang Er Gou couldn’t stop crying, his tears dotting his face like raindrops on a pear blossom. 1
Li Xin Ran was stunned speechless upon seeing his expression. Zuo Yi, on the contrary, didn’t react and simply stared him down. “After that, you buried the murder weapon in the garden?”
“Mn…I had just turned over the ground, so no one would suspect.”
“Did you run into housekeeper Zhou?”
“No…”
Zuo Yi didn’t continue questioning him and had Hou Zi lead him out. When Wang Er Gou was escorted out, he shouted himself hoarse, sobbing, saying he didn’t do it on purpose.
Only when his voice was thoroughly cut off by the door did Li Xin Ran sigh. “Leader, what he said should be the truth.” According to their investigation of Wang Er Gou, this person’s character was truly well mannered…indeed, not only was he the sole person not benefiting from the Ye family inheritance dispute, he didn’t have a motive to kill either.
“Mn.” Zuo Yi nodded and said, “Call in housekeeper Zhou.”
Once again sitting in the interrogation room, housekeeper Zhou was still as composed as before.
Zuo Yi looked at her and asked, “That night on March 13th, did someone really knock you unconscious?”
Housekeeper Zhou didn’t reply. Zuo Yi smiled and continued, “We questioned Qin Kong and Wang Er Gou. Neither of them admitted to hitting you—this is indeed very strange. Compared to murdering Ye Hong Sheng, knocking you unconsciously truly wouldn’t be considered a big deal. They had no need to cover up the truth. I have grounds to suspect that you lied. Therefore, if you hadn’t been knocked out by someone, during that hour of time, where were you and what were you doing?”
Housekeeper Zhou didn’t say anything, so Zuo Yi adopted a contemplative appearance. He speculated, “Perhaps you didn’t do anything? After you returned, you saw Qin Kong murder Ye Hong Sheng and then saw him push Ye Zhen Zhen down the stairs. You saw Ye Kang Ping and his wife arrive at the scene and saw them deal with Ye Zhen Zhen’s corpse. You even saw them push the fake Ye Zhen Zhen down the stairs. Oh, in this timeline, you would even see Wang Er Gou pick up the murder weapon in the drawing room and stab Ye Hong Sheng on the second floor. From start to finish, you saw it all, but you didn’t say anything. Why?”
Housekeeper Zhou raised her head to glance at him. Zuo Yi’s smile, for the first time, sent a chill down her spine.
“On this earth, there is a type of person who always likes to know everything before taking action.” Although housekeeper Zhou didn’t reply, Zuo Yi kept on talking, as if he was minding his own business. “Too many things happened that night. You were momentarily unable to determine the best course of action. Additionally, what had shocked you the most was seeing two Ye Zhen Zhen’s. Due to the circumstances being too complicated, you chose to watch it develop——naturally, you should do something. At the very least, you must take advantage of this time to research into inheritance laws. Having grasped all the information at hand, you determined the optimal course of action——not only could you not get involved, you could even maximize the benefits. Therefore, your testimony about Qin Kong led us to suspect Wang Er Gou. You wanted to make us believe that Ye Zhen Zhen had died before Ye Hong Sheng. Like this, Zhou Wen could inherit.”
Once Zuo Yi finished speaking, housekeeper Zhou stared at him for a long time before saying, “Officer Zuo, is there evidence to anything you have just said, or are these all just conjectures of yours?”
Zuo Yi smiled and replied, “Regretfully, these are all conjectures of mine.”
Although he implied that he had no evidence, housekeeper Zhou did not expose a joyful expression. “Even if Young Master Qin and Wang Er Gou did not knock me unconscious, that does not rule out others who may have done so.”
“So you still stand by your previous statement?”
“Yes.”
Zuo Yi nodded slightly and said to her, “I still want to say something, though. Your plan requires Ye Zhen Zhen to be dead. If that girl is not Ye Zhen Zhen, then Mr. Ye Hong Sheng’s will still goes into effect.”
Housekeeper Zhou’s expression finally shifted. “Officer Zuo, what do you think of this matter regarding the two Young Misses.”
Zuo Yi said, “I do not believe that two people who have no relation to each other can look exactly the same. The two of them should be twins.” He paused and then asked, “You have been with the Ye family for so many years. Have you heard that Ye Zhen Zhen has a twin?”
Housekeeper Zhou shook her head and said, “I have never heard this before. Madam and Master never mentioned such a thing.”
Zuo Yi frowned. It would seem that the mystery was not as simple as a ‘long lost twin’ scenario.
He still hadn’t figured out the main threads of this issue when someone hurriedly knocked on the door of the interrogation room. The person outside pushed the door open. Hou Zi rushed inside. “Leader! D City police sent over news; Someone called Li Su surrendered herself to them!”
Although Hou Zi whispered this, his eager tone and violently fluctuating emotions were very powerful. The light within Zuo Yi’s eyes sharpened slightly. He first made someone lead housekeeper Zhou out before turning to ask Hou Zi, “What did she say?”
“She said, she took advantage of the car accident six years ago to switch her adopted daughter with the eldest daughter of the Ye family!”
While Li Xin Ran had been on this case, his three worldviews had been shattered continuously, so in comparison to Hou Zi, he was far from being so excited. He simply thought, Leader truly does prophesy with supernatural accuracy. He had previously mentioned that Ye Zhen Zhen might have been switched around twice.
Ye Kang Ping probably never imagined that he would be switching the real Ye Zhen Zhen back.
Hou Zi gave Zuo Yi a document, which was the faxed over statement from Li Su. This statement was the final piece of the jigsaw puzzle for this case.
Li Su was originally an employee at Ye Zhi Conglomerate. Because her womb had been injured, she could not get pregnant. As a result, she could not reach the final destination with whoever she dated. She originally thought that she would be alone for her entire life, but then one day, things took a turn for the better.
A mysterious man walked up to her with a baby. The man gave her generous conditions, allowing her to adopt this child with the only condition being that she must stay far away from A City. Li Su had been very hesitant at that time, but the man’s imposing ‘you cannot refuse’ aura subconsciously made her nod her head. He gave her a bank card and a phone number, saying that she was to be wired money periodically. If something was wrong, she was to contact this number. That night, she left A City with the baby.
She named the child Li Jia Jia. The man revealed the baby’s birthday to be January 5th. Five years serenely passed, and like the man had said, the bank card regularly received money. This continued until Li Su had to go to A City one time for work. She coincidentally saw a young girl that looked identical to Li Jia Jia. After asking around, she learned that it was Ye Hong Sheng’s granddaughter, Ye Zhen Zhen. She connected the dots and roughly guessed what had happened, but she never knew why the Ye family abandoned a child.
She buried this matter deep in her heart and never mentioned it to Li Jia Jia. So, on that day when Li Jia Jia suddenly came to ask her if she had a twin sister, she had been stunned. Li Jia Jia was eight at that time, but the look in her eyes had made Li Su subconsciously speak the truth. After that day, Li Jia Jia seemed to have suddenly changed. She no longer got along with other children and would study extensively every single day.
The year Li Jia Jia turned fifteen, the two of them had their first rage-fueled argument. Li Jia Jia had stormed off in fury. Although Li Su was angry, she still chased after her in worry. Li Jia Jia had sprinted toward the nearby Dancing Sun Hill. When she ran across the street, a car suddenly came through. Although the car immediately changed directions, it still ran into Li Jia Jia before crashing into Dancing Sun Hill.
When Li Su arrived, Li Jia Jia laid on the ground beside the car, but she hadn’t lost consciousness yet. She originally planned to call the police right away, but the back door of the car suddenly opened. A girl crawled out of the back seat.
Li Su only remembered just now the flash in Li Jia Jia’s eyes as her adoptive daughter let her take away that girl instead.
♕
Kiseki: I…I really question Chestnut’s choice of phrase, as 梨花带雨 means ‘like raindrops on a pear blossom.’ It’s an idiom…to describe a tear-stained face of a beauty. Wang Er Gou was just described as a really buff man. Yea, uh, too much gap moe, Chestnut. Too much.
Chapter 58: The Truth — I didn’t do it on purpose!
♕
It was a long, twenty centimeter knife, with the blade covered in a thin layer of dirt. In the sun’s glare, however, it still sparkled with a cold light.
Practically the split second this knife was dug up, Wang Er Gou turned around with lightning speed and ran away. Li Xin Ran swiftly tackled him to the ground, and the other police surrounded the duo immediately.
Wang Er Gou struggled on the ground for a while before gradually giving up. Zuo Yi nonchalantly walked up and looked down. “Why were you running away?”
Wang Er Gou gritted his teeth and remained silent for a moment. Then, tears streaked down his face without any warning. “I really didn’t do it on purpose! I didn’t deliberately stab Master!”
Although Wang Er Gou didn’t look as tall as an ox or as large as a horse, he was still a rugged man. Such heart-rending sobs from a man with such tyrannical strength caused the expressions of all the police officers to twitch.
Zuo Yi signaled Li Xin Ran with his eyes, and Li Xin Ran, catching on, pulled Wang Er Gou up from the ground, placing Wang Er Gou’s hands behind his back. “What’s a big man like you crying for?! Come with us back to the police department and explain!”
Wang Er Gou heard this and cried even more viciously.
Li Xin Ran escorted Wang Er Gou over to the police car. Zuo Yi glanced to the side at Hou Zi and said, “Bring housekeeper Zhou as well. I have more questions to ask her.”
“Roger!” Perhaps finding the murder weapon had caused everyone to inwardly sigh in relief. Hou Zi’s response was especially resounding. Zuo Yi laughed and followed Li Xin Ran to the police car.
♕
Inside the interrogation room, Zuo Yi patiently waited for Wang Er Gou to stop crying before beginning the questioning.
“Just now, you said that you didn’t deliberately stab Ye Hong Sheng. Specifically explain what had happened.”
Wang Er Gou used a tissue to wipe away his snot. His voice was still choking with sobs. “That day, I originally planned to meet up with some friends in town, but I discovered that I had a fever. I had been feeling unwell, but didn’t want to go to the hospital to see the doctor. I thus went to casually find some fever reducers. I thought that if I felt better in a few, I would still go out.”
Zuo Yi nodded and hinted for him to continue.
Wang Er Gou sobbed and continued, “I fell into a deep sleep. I don’t know how long I slept for. Afterward, I dazedly heard a shriek; it seemed like the Young Miss’ voice. I woke up; by then it was already eight. My temperature had gone down a bit, but I hadn’t eaten anything all day, which made me thirsty and hungry. I went to look for something to eat in my room. After that, I was worried about that shriek I just heard. Although I naturally thought that I dreamt it, I still went to take a look. When I got to the drawing room, I saw…saw Young Miss unconscious beside the staircase. Furthermore, she was in a pool of blood!”
“What time was that?”
“I don’t know. Probably ten or twenty minutes after I woke up.” Wang Er Gou messed up his hair, further confusion appearing on his face. “I was really scared at that time, so I immediately rushed down. Young Miss’ complexion was very pale, but she was still breathing. I originally wanted to make a phone call to call the ambulance, when I heard a voice come from upstairs.”
Zuo Yi’s brows jumped. At that time, Wang Er Gou had seen Ye Zhen Zhen who had not yet died. He pursed his lips and asked, “And then?”
“I was shocked and thought the person who pushed down the Young Miss had stayed upstairs and hadn’t left yet.” Wang Er Gou took a deep breath after he said this. “There just happened to be a paring knife beside Young Miss. I easily grabbed it for self-defense and went upstairs. As I neared the second floor, that voice became clearer. Moreover, it sounded like it came from Master’s room. When, when I entered Master’s room, a shadow suddenly jumped me. I subconsciously used the knife in my hand to stab him.”
Wang Er Gou stopped here, and the interrogation room fell silent. Then, Zuo Yi’s voice rang out. “That person was Ye Hong Sheng?”
Wang Er Gou pursed his lips, a look of suffering on his face. “Yes…I really didn’t know that it was Master! Officers, you must believe me!”
Wang Er Gou began sobbing after he shouted this.
Zuo Yi asked, “Why didn’t you call the police?”
“I, I didn’t dare…I haven’t married yet. I didn’t want to go to jail…” Wang Er Gou couldn’t stop crying, his tears dotting his face like raindrops on a pear blossom. 1
Li Xin Ran was stunned speechless upon seeing his expression. Zuo Yi, on the contrary, didn’t react and simply stared him down. “After that, you buried the murder weapon in the garden?”
“Mn…I had just turned over the ground, so no one would suspect.”
“Did you run into housekeeper Zhou?”
“No…”
Zuo Yi didn’t continue questioning him and had Hou Zi lead him out. When Wang Er Gou was escorted out, he shouted himself hoarse, sobbing, saying he didn’t do it on purpose.
Only when his voice was thoroughly cut off by the door did Li Xin Ran sigh. “Leader, what he said should be the truth.” According to their investigation of Wang Er Gou, this person’s character was truly well mannered…indeed, not only was he the sole person not benefiting from the Ye family inheritance dispute, he didn’t have a motive to kill either.
“Mn.” Zuo Yi nodded and said, “Call in housekeeper Zhou.”
Once again sitting in the interrogation room, housekeeper Zhou was still as composed as before.
Zuo Yi looked at her and asked, “That night on March 13th, did someone really knock you unconscious?”
Housekeeper Zhou didn’t reply. Zuo Yi smiled and continued, “We questioned Qin Kong and Wang Er Gou. Neither of them admitted to hitting you—this is indeed very strange. Compared to murdering Ye Hong Sheng, knocking you unconsciously truly wouldn’t be considered a big deal. They had no need to cover up the truth. I have grounds to suspect that you lied. Therefore, if you hadn’t been knocked out by someone, during that hour of time, where were you and what were you doing?”
Housekeeper Zhou didn’t say anything, so Zuo Yi adopted a contemplative appearance. He speculated, “Perhaps you didn’t do anything? After you returned, you saw Qin Kong murder Ye Hong Sheng and then saw him push Ye Zhen Zhen down the stairs. You saw Ye Kang Ping and his wife arrive at the scene and saw them deal with Ye Zhen Zhen’s corpse. You even saw them push the fake Ye Zhen Zhen down the stairs. Oh, in this timeline, you would even see Wang Er Gou pick up the murder weapon in the drawing room and stab Ye Hong Sheng on the second floor. From start to finish, you saw it all, but you didn’t say anything. Why?”
Housekeeper Zhou raised her head to glance at him. Zuo Yi’s smile, for the first time, sent a chill down her spine.
“On this earth, there is a type of person who always likes to know everything before taking action.” Although housekeeper Zhou didn’t reply, Zuo Yi kept on talking, as if he was minding his own business. “Too many things happened that night. You were momentarily unable to determine the best course of action. Additionally, what had shocked you the most was seeing two Ye Zhen Zhen’s. Due to the circumstances being too complicated, you chose to watch it develop——naturally, you should do something. At the very least, you must take advantage of this time to research into inheritance laws. Having grasped all the information at hand, you determined the optimal course of action——not only could you not get involved, you could even maximize the benefits. Therefore, your testimony about Qin Kong led us to suspect Wang Er Gou. You wanted to make us believe that Ye Zhen Zhen had died before Ye Hong Sheng. Like this, Zhou Wen could inherit.”
Once Zuo Yi finished speaking, housekeeper Zhou stared at him for a long time before saying, “Officer Zuo, is there evidence to anything you have just said, or are these all just conjectures of yours?”
Zuo Yi smiled and replied, “Regretfully, these are all conjectures of mine.”
Although he implied that he had no evidence, housekeeper Zhou did not expose a joyful expression. “Even if Young Master Qin and Wang Er Gou did not knock me unconscious, that does not rule out others who may have done so.”
“So you still stand by your previous statement?”
“Yes.”
Zuo Yi nodded slightly and said to her, “I still want to say something, though. Your plan requires Ye Zhen Zhen to be dead. If that girl is not Ye Zhen Zhen, then Mr. Ye Hong Sheng’s will still goes into effect.”
Housekeeper Zhou’s expression finally shifted. “Officer Zuo, what do you think of this matter regarding the two Young Misses.”
Zuo Yi said, “I do not believe that two people who have no relation to each other can look exactly the same. The two of them should be twins.” He paused and then asked, “You have been with the Ye family for so many years. Have you heard that Ye Zhen Zhen has a twin?”
Housekeeper Zhou shook her head and said, “I have never heard this before. Madam and Master never mentioned such a thing.”
Zuo Yi frowned. It would seem that the mystery was not as simple as a ‘long lost twin’ scenario.
He still hadn’t figured out the main threads of this issue when someone hurriedly knocked on the door of the interrogation room. The person outside pushed the door open. Hou Zi rushed inside. “Leader! D City police sent over news; Someone called Li Su surrendered herself to them!”
Although Hou Zi whispered this, his eager tone and violently fluctuating emotions were very powerful. The light within Zuo Yi’s eyes sharpened slightly. He first made someone lead housekeeper Zhou out before turning to ask Hou Zi, “What did she say?”
“She said, she took advantage of the car accident six years ago to switch her adopted daughter with the eldest daughter of the Ye family!”
While Li Xin Ran had been on this case, his three worldviews had been shattered continuously, so in comparison to Hou Zi, he was far from being so excited. He simply thought, Leader truly does prophesy with supernatural accuracy. He had previously mentioned that Ye Zhen Zhen might have been switched around twice.
Ye Kang Ping probably never imagined that he would be switching the real Ye Zhen Zhen back.
Hou Zi gave Zuo Yi a document, which was the faxed over statement from Li Su. This statement was the final piece of the jigsaw puzzle for this case.
Li Su was originally an employee at Ye Zhi Conglomerate. Because her womb had been injured, she could not get pregnant. As a result, she could not reach the final destination with whoever she dated. She originally thought that she would be alone for her entire life, but then one day, things took a turn for the better.
A mysterious man walked up to her with a baby. The man gave her generous conditions, allowing her to adopt this child with the only condition being that she must stay far away from A City. Li Su had been very hesitant at that time, but the man’s imposing ‘you cannot refuse’ aura subconsciously made her nod her head. He gave her a bank card and a phone number, saying that she was to be wired money periodically. If something was wrong, she was to contact this number. That night, she left A City with the baby.
She named the child Li Jia Jia. The man revealed the baby’s birthday to be January 5th. Five years serenely passed, and like the man had said, the bank card regularly received money. This continued until Li Su had to go to A City one time for work. She coincidentally saw a young girl that looked identical to Li Jia Jia. After asking around, she learned that it was Ye Hong Sheng’s granddaughter, Ye Zhen Zhen. She connected the dots and roughly guessed what had happened, but she never knew why the Ye family abandoned a child.
She buried this matter deep in her heart and never mentioned it to Li Jia Jia. So, on that day when Li Jia Jia suddenly came to ask her if she had a twin sister, she had been stunned. Li Jia Jia was eight at that time, but the look in her eyes had made Li Su subconsciously speak the truth. After that day, Li Jia Jia seemed to have suddenly changed. She no longer got along with other children and would study extensively every single day.
The year Li Jia Jia turned fifteen, the two of them had their first rage-fueled argument. Li Jia Jia had stormed off in fury. Although Li Su was angry, she still chased after her in worry. Li Jia Jia had sprinted toward the nearby Dancing Sun Hill. When she ran across the street, a car suddenly came through. Although the car immediately changed directions, it still ran into Li Jia Jia before crashing into Dancing Sun Hill.
When Li Su arrived, Li Jia Jia laid on the ground beside the car, but she hadn’t lost consciousness yet. She originally planned to call the police right away, but the back door of the car suddenly opened. A girl crawled out of the back seat.
Li Su only remembered just now the flash in Li Jia Jia’s eyes as her adoptive daughter let her take away that girl instead.
♕
Kiseki: I…I really question Chestnut’s choice of phrase, as 梨花带雨 means ‘like raindrops on a pear blossom.’ It’s an idiom…to describe a tear-stained face of a beauty. Wang Er Gou was just described as a really buff man. Yea, uh, too much gap moe, Chestnut. Too much.
