Free Web NovelChapter 42: Chapter 42: The Missing Corpse
"Ah, yes, that’s what he looks like. Are you his relatives?"
The landlord looked at Jiang Li and Wu Ming. ’That Pi Ziyang looks so disheveled,’ she thought. ’How could he have such lovely relatives?’
’If they’re really his relatives and single, I have a nephew who’s thirty and still doesn’t have a girlfriend. Maybe I could introduce them.’
"Yes, that’s right," Wu Ming quickly nodded.
Lu Xingye, sensing something was off, had already messaged Huo Qing to bring his team over immediately. It was a necessary precaution in case the man really was a criminal.
The landlord was just about to leave when her sharp eyes caught sight of someone coming out. She stopped in her tracks.
"Hey, Pi Ziyang, your distant relatives are here to see you."
The man coming downstairs looked over in confusion. ’He’d killed all his relatives. What damn relatives could he possibly have?’
The expressions on Jiang Li and the others froze. ’What a coincidence.’
Xiong Wangtian immediately sensed something was wrong and turned to run, but Lu Xingye blocked his path in the next instant.
He quickly pulled a knife from his pocket. "Fuck! You old hag, why’d you have to run your mouth? You brought the cops here! I’ll fucking kill you!"
Xiong Wangtian glared viciously at the landlord, raising the knife to stab her.
"AH!" The landlord screamed in terror, her legs gave out, and she collapsed onto the ground.
Lu Xingye’s expression changed, but by the time he could rush forward, it was too late.
Just in the nick of time, Jiang Li lunged forward, grabbed the back of Xiong Wangtian’s shirt, and yanked him backward with all her might. She moved in a flash, and with a sharp CRACK, the knife fell from Xiong Wangtian’s hand. An intense, sharp pain shot through his wrist. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he stared at the seemingly frail woman before him.
’Who would’ve thought she’d be so strong?’
Lu Xingye reacted in a flash, rushing forward and pinning Xiong Wangtian to the ground.
The landlord was so frightened her eyes started rolling back in her head. Fearing for the woman’s life, Wu Ming hurried over and pinched the philtrum below her nose to rouse her.
Police sirens wailed outside the complex. Huo Qing and his team quickly got out of their cars and cuffed Xiong Wangtian.
"Shit!" Xiong Wangtian couldn’t help but curse as he watched the police swarm in.
’Fuck, everything’s been fine for so many years, why did something have to happen today? If I’d known, I wouldn’t have left this apartment, even if it meant starving to death!’
Huo Qing stepped forward to look at the captured Xiong Wangtian, his expression grave. ’To think he was this close all along.’
"Take him away!"
Huo Qing led his team upstairs to Xiong Wangtian’s apartment.
Wu Ming hurried to follow, but Jiang Li grabbed her arm. "Didn’t you say you couldn’t go up there?"
"Oh, it’s different now. There are more people, so I feel braver. Come on, let’s go have a look too."
As she spoke, Wu Ming pulled Jiang Li by the hand and headed upstairs. After giving a few instructions, Lu Xingye followed them.
As they reached the fourth floor, a wave of cold air washed over them. Jiang Li couldn’t help but frown. ’It really is cold. Bone-chillingly so.’
It was followed by a damp, musty smell. The sound of their footsteps, THUD THUD THUD, echoed in the silent corridor.
When they got to the sixth floor, the hallway was filled with a vile stench. A single glance revealed piles of garbage heaped in the corridor.
Lu Xingye stopped, his expression grave as he scanned the area. ’This smell isn’t right. There’s also the stench of death.’
Huo Qing kicked the door open, revealing the complete disarray within.
"Didn’t they say there was an elderly person in their sixties or seventies at home? This doesn’t look like an elderly person lives here."
Wu Ming remarked in confusion from the doorway.
Lu Xingye led his team inside and began a careful search.
"There are signs that an elderly person lived here." Lu Xingye held up some items that belonged to an elderly person. As he looked at them, his mind went back to the smell.
"Brother Huo, only Xiong Wangtian lives on this floor, and that stench from when we came up... it smells a bit like a rotting corpse.
I suspect he has already murdered his mother, and the landlord is unaware.
That leaves only one possibility: the body is somewhere nearby!"
Wu Ming gasped, grabbing Jiang Li’s arm and darting her eyes around nervously.
Huo Qing nodded and spoke into his radio: "Get Forensic Doctor Ning up here."
The team then began a thorough search of the apartment: the refrigerator, under the bed, the wardrobe...
They even had someone clear out the pile of trash in the corner, but the body was still nowhere to be found.
Huo Qing then asked the landlord to pull up the security footage.
The landlord looked at him timidly and whispered, "The security cameras are broken. I’m just an old woman, I don’t know how to fix them, so I just left them be."
Huo Qing’s brow furrowed. He had no choice but to send his team to check the surveillance cameras in the surrounding area.
"Captain Huo, according to the surveillance, the last time Xiong Wangtian went out was three days ago, and he wasn’t carrying a suitcase or other large items.
Also, the landlord, Zhao Chunmei, said she saw Xiong Wangtian’s mother a week ago."
Huo Qing watched Xiong Wangtian’s furtive figure on the monitor.
Jiang Li walked in and looked around. The degree of filth suggested that no one had cleaned up after the old woman’s death. The plants she had seen were likely planted by the old woman herself.
After ordering the area to be sealed off, Huo Qing took his team back to the station for the interrogation.
"Officer, I don’t really know. That’s a tenant’s private business, I don’t normally pry. This has nothing to do with me!"
Zhao Chunmei was frantic. ’I never should have rented to that man. I can’t believe it’s caused this much trouble.’
Lu Xingye looked at the file in his hands. "You took over this building two years ago. It has twenty-four units, and the rent is three hundred and fifty a month.
It should be easy to rent out, but our investigation shows you only have three tenants. Is there a problem with the building?"
Lu Xingye looked up at Zhao Chunmei. ’From the moment we got here, she’s been evasive. Is there something else she’s hiding?’
Hearing Lu Xingye’s words, Zhao Chunmei’s heart skipped a beat. She forced an awkward smile. "Oh, well, the reason... didn’t you see it for yourselves?
The tenants aren’t clean, and an old woman like me can’t do much about it. When prospective tenants come and see how filthy the place is, they decide not to rent."
Lu Xingye raised an eyebrow. "When did Xiong Wangtian move in?"
"At the end of the year before last. He moved in with his mom. I only let them rent because I saw his mother was getting on in years and I felt sorry for her."
Lu Xingye continued with his questions. ’An elderly woman living on the sixth floor?’ he thought sarcastically. ’This Xiong Wangtian is a real "filial son."’
"Officer, couldn’t you just seal off the sixth floor? Why block off the whole building? My other tenants are threatening to break their leases," Zhao Chunmei said, her face crumpled with worry.
Lu Xingye looked up. "Your building is a safety hazard. It’s filthy and in poor condition. You should go home and think about how you’re going to fix it. Otherwise, we can’t allow you to rent it out."
Zhao Chunmei sighed. ’Does this mean I won’t be able to collect rent for a while? The market is already bad enough, and now with this mess, who’s going to dare rent from me in the future?’
’I went through so much trouble to cover up that other incident, and now this happens.’
"Captain Huo, bad news! Xiong Wangtian has committed suicide!"
