Chapter Fifty-Seven: The Tragedy at the Tower Block

The room was gloomy, with the curtains drawn. Under the beam of the flashlight, the floor was a chaotic mess. A corpse lay beneath the dining table, overweight, covered in knife wounds, its mouth sealed with tape, eyes bulging as if about to pop from their sockets. The twisted, ferocious face sent chills down the spine. Especially disturbing were the hands on either side of the body: all ten fingers had been severed, blood soaking both fingers and palms, which were neatly arranged together.

"Wang Jiu, who did you cross? The killer was ruthless," Xu Bin stepped forward for a look and said.

A few people clustered nearby, shaking their heads. One remarked, "Old Wang was always decent to people, got along well at the market. Who would want to hurt him?"

"Exactly. Old Wang's wife was nice, too. How could they have offended anyone?"

"Have you called the police?"

"Yes, they should be here soon."

There was a large freezer in Wang Jiu's living room, used for storing fish.

Two or three people stood at the bedroom door. Suddenly, someone shrieked, threw down their flashlight, and scrambled out of the bedroom, face pale as death. The two still standing at the door, startled by his reaction, rushed out as well.

Looking again, the person who crawled out of the bedroom was howling, violently shaking his leg, as if something clung to it.

Someone aimed their flashlight at the scene. Cheng Che turned and ran over to help, along with a few others, and Zhang Qinglin followed. At that moment, the flashlight swept across his eyes; blinking, he followed the beam and saw, attached to the man's leg, a woman whose face was covered in blood. Her white coat was instantly dyed crimson, arms locked tightly around his leg, her agonized gaze fixed on Zhang Qinglin.

Zhang Qinglin’s brow furrowed, his temples throbbing, dizziness washing over him as he watched the woman struggle to rise.

Suddenly, the overhead lights flickered, then blazed to life, illuminating the entire room. The scene inside was shocking: furniture toppled in disarray, blood splattered across the walls, two vivid trails leading from the bedroom to the freezer in the living room. Dead fish lay scattered, all stained red by blood.

"Stop screaming! It's just a coat—how can you be so terrified?" A gruff man pulled the heavy coat from the person crawling on the floor, tossed it aside, and barked.

Everyone looked over. A red heavy coat lay on the floor. Zhang Qinglin stared at it, realizing what he'd seen earlier was just a coat, but its color seemed unnaturally bright.

Staring at the chaotic scene, memories flooded Zhang Qinglin’s mind—hiding in his grandmother’s arms, watching his mother stabbed, blood spraying everywhere. It felt as if it were happening again, his head throbbing as he clutched his forehead.

Cheng Che came close and whispered, "We always stumble into trouble. This place is creepy. Let’s not hang around, we should leave!"

He glanced at Zhang Qinglin and noticed something was wrong. Zhang’s gaze was fixed to one side, his head and body moving slowly as he followed the blood trail toward the freezer. Cheng Che tried to stop him, but couldn't.

When Zhang Qinglin halted in front of the freezer, everyone turned to look. Xu Bin ran over to intervene, but Zhang had already opened the freezer lid.

Eyes wide with shock, all saw inside the freezer a frozen corpse: Wang Jiu’s wife, completely naked, her beautiful face slashed and ruined. The freezer was awash in red. Who could imagine such a cold-blooded killer—murdering someone and storing them in a freezer? The sight was unbearable.

Outside, police sirens wailed. Zhang Qinglin’s eyes flashed as he stared at the curled corpse inside, his face went pale, and he collapsed in a faint.

The police entered the scene, immediately scolding everyone for disturbing the crime scene and asking who first discovered the bodies. They tracked down the initial witness for a detailed statement; everyone else was questioned briefly.

News of the murder in the apartment building spread quickly. After Zhang Qinglin fainted, Xu Bin and Cheng Che carried him home. When he finally woke up, it was already noon.

Xu Bin had gone out, investigating not only the murder but also news about Jiang Xinyue. From Xu Bin, Zhang learned that a special task force had been formed to investigate.

He also mentioned that the red coat had been taken by the police because it was stained with blood. Originally it was milky white, but blood had dyed it red.

Xu Bin added that the people who kidnapped Jiang Xinyue were a formidable group from Beijing. He suspected it was Young Master Chen, the second son of the Chen Group. Their whereabouts were uncertain; the exact location hadn’t been found. Xu Bin promised to keep searching and urged Zhang Qinglin to rest, saying he’d go buy some food before leaving.

After Xu Bin left, Cheng Che, sitting on the edge of the bed, suddenly asked, "Old Zhang, how did you know there was a corpse in the freezer?"

Leaning against the headboard, Zhang Qinglin replied, "I don’t know. I just felt compelled... There was a strange smell."

Suddenly, he recalled something and asked Cheng Che, "Did you see anyone wearing a mask and a hat when we arrived? He smelled of fish and had that same strange odor. Maybe he’s the killer!"

"Mask and hat? I didn’t see anyone. Where did you see him—in the building or outside?" Cheng Che asked curiously.

"In the corridor," Zhang Qinglin affirmed. "He was in a hurry—very suspicious."

"Well, it’s just a lead," Cheng Che mused.

Indeed, they couldn’t accuse someone based solely on suspicion.

But Zhang Qinglin had no time to dwell on unrelated matters—Jiang Xinyue was waiting to be rescued. He’d never dealt with Young Master Chen before and didn’t know what kind of person he was, but judging by the scramble for the Tang Bajitu last time, he sensed Chen was anything but simple.

There was also the secret of the white jade cup. What was hidden inside? He was eager to know, and wondered about the connection between his grandfather and Wu Shangfei.

Feeling much better, Zhang Qinglin sat by the coffee table. Cheng Che was already in bed, fast asleep.

Once more, Zhang Qinglin examined the two white jade cups on the table. He gently picked up one and inspected it closely, then replaced it and took up the other, scrutinizing it in turn. Under strong light, he noticed differences in the patterns—though both had cloud motifs, some parts curled in opposite directions, and at the base of one, a fine line appeared, not quite a crack.

Zhang Qinglin poured hot water into both cups. After a moment, the inner bottoms changed—red circles appeared, and within them, faint characters emerged, revealing hidden marks on the base. Picking up the cup on the right, he saw three characters; the other cup also had characters. In total, there were six.

What could those six characters mean? Zhang Qinglin pondered.

Just then, someone knocked, breaking his train of thought. He got up and went to the door, thinking it was Xu Bin. As he opened the door and began to speak, he was surprised to find two uniformed police officers standing there.

"Hello, may I ask if this is Xu Bin’s home?" the officer in front asked.

Cheng Che, hearing the voices, emerged from the bedroom yawning.

Zhang Qinglin hesitated, then replied, "Yes. Is there something you need? He’s out and hasn’t returned yet."

"We found a jacket at the crime scene downstairs with a set of fingerprints. We need his cooperation for the investigation. Also, we need to record a statement from the person who first found the female victim. Which one of you is Zhang Qinglin? Please step forward," the older officer said.

"I am," Zhang Qinglin responded. "How can I help?"

The two officers—one surnamed Li, round-faced and youthful but steady in speech, and the other surnamed He—prepared to take notes.

"We’ll just ask a few questions. Please answer truthfully. Who is the man behind you?" Officer Li asked.

Cheng Che stepped forward. "Officer, I’m his brother. Is there something you need from me too?"

"We’ll call you if necessary," Officer He replied.

"Alright. Did you know the two deceased?" Officer Li inquired.

Zhang Qinglin, of course, did not. Li then asked a few more questions, including how the corpse in the freezer was discovered. Zhang explained simply that he followed the blood trails.

After gathering information, the officers departed.

As soon as they left, Zhang Qinglin saw Old Zeng, leaning on his iron cane, standing at the stairwell and gazing downward. Then he heard Old Zeng mutter, "There’s a vixen hidden in this building. Who knows how many she’s deceived—retribution comes at last..."