"Lately..."
As if knowing what Nan Yue was about to say, Zhu Xi Ning interrupted her.
"I can take care of myself."
Nan Yue said no more; neither of them were the type who needed others to look after them.
To say anything further would be more of an insult than a show of concern.
Nan Yue nodded. "Get some sleep."
Jiang Siyan went to Xie Hui's place for dinner that evening, and Nan Yue followed along.
Jiang Siyan had gone by himself the day before, and while Xie Hui had indeed dropped many verbal hints, she had remained somewhat restrained.
Today, with Nan Yue present, those hints turned into blatant declarations.
Because Nan Yue and Jiang Siyan had claimed they weren't together yet, Xie Hui's words became much bolder, like a smitten, outspoken girl baring her heart to the boy she liked.
That was, if one ignored the fact that Nan Yue was sitting right there.
Jiang Siyan's smile was charming; he neither rebuffed nor encouraged her, instead keeping Xie Hui on the hook until she was flushed red.
Nan Yue ate quietly to the side, wondering if Xie Hui's problem had started after she dropped out of school or if it had been there before.
If it was the latter, her dropping out might not have been entirely voluntary.
She could tell that Xie Hui didn't actually like these men; it was more of a competitive streak.
If she had been like this at school, it could have easily triggered some conflicts.
Did her adoptive father, Uncle Zhong, know about this issue?
Did the previous couples who lived in the demolition building and later left have anything to do with her?
Once the meal was over, Xie Hui wanted to keep Jiang Siyan a bit longer, but he pulled his hand from her grasp and patted her shoulder.
"Don't you have a program tonight? I'd like to listen to it."
Xie Hui's cheeks turned crimson, and only then did she agree.
Once the door closed, Jiang Siyan's expression turned cold. He had been watching all day, and the people in the building seemed fine; at least, no one had appeared to dispose of a body.
Jiang Siyan intended to keep an eye on Uncle Zhong. Relying on his healing ability, he didn't plan to rest and intended to pull an all-nighter after a quick wash.
He was alone in the room, as Jiang Haoyu had moved in with Gu Xiang Kai. Jiang Siyan turned on the bathroom faucet and began washing his hands.
He washed them for a long time, even using points to exchange for something he could buy within the mission.
A steel brush.
Twenty minutes later, Jiang Siyan stopped. The entire sink was splattered red. Expressionless, he looked down and tossed the steel brush into the trash, continuing to wash his raw, mangled hands.
During the night, Old Wu went out. Nan Yue followed him and saw him take a bus to a shady-looking shop on the far outskirts of the city.
He bought some expired medicinal ingredients and some ginseng that was clearly a fraudulent patchwork.
Then, clutching the bundle, he took a winding route to a nearby residential complex.
This complex wasn't as high-end as Oasis Community, but it had a security gate. Nan Yue struck up a conversation with the security guard at the entrance.
Nan Yue bought a drink and handed it over, asking if there were any apartments for rent.
The guard was a man in his fifties, and after some coaxing, the information came out.
According to him, Old Wu wasn't there to treat anyone; he lived there!
This was quite unexpected.
Although this complex wasn't on par with Oasis Community, it certainly wasn't a place someone living in the demolition area could afford.
"I thought he was a fraud,"
Nan Yue wrinkled her nose. "I saw him on the street telling people he could cure terminal illnesses."
The guard laughed loudly. "Yeah, the old man loves to brag. He's actually just a quack doctor, but he really made some money a few years ago. He keeps a woman here and had a son last year."
"A few years ago? How did he make that money?"
The guard scoffed. "Who knows? Probably some sucker got scammed. Anyway, he doesn't come back often, maybe once every week or two."
Nan Yue asked a few more questions and even left a fake number, telling him to contact her if a room opened up, before heading back.
Sitting on the bus, Nan Yue thought to herself: Old Wu lives in that hellhole of a demolition building, so where did he get the money to buy a place here?
She thought of someone.
The woman who had died of illness in their rental room.
She remembered... that woman had received a large settlement money because the neighboring village was being demolished, and she was staying there temporarily while planning her future.
Unexpectedly, she had fallen ill and died a miserable death.
Nan Yue had a hunch that the woman's money had ended up in Old Wu's pockets.
It couldn't be such a coincidence. With Old Wu's skills, he could only scam fools; how could he suddenly come into a fortune?
Only...
Only the woman's illness was something even hospitals couldn't treat, yet Old Wu had managed to extend her life for a month. How did he do it?
Old Wu wouldn't be returning tonight, so Nan Yue planned to visit his clinic later.
She bought a pancake on the way back to fill her stomach. As soon as she got off the bus, she saw Jiang Siyan sitting in front of the demolition building.
In a way, he looked like a dog waiting for its owner to come home.
It was a bit pitiful.
"How long have you been sitting here?"
Jiang Siyan stood up. "Not long."
He brushed the dust off his pants. "Why did you go out alone?"
Nan Yue looked over, somewhat surprised. At first glance, Jiang Siyan seemed the same as usual, but his gaze was different.
It was darker and more restless than usual, like a monster rising from the deep sea to the surface during a storm, silently watching through the torrential waves with blood-red eyes.
"Are you okay?"
Jiang Siyan curled his lips. "I'm fine."
Fine, my foot.
Perhaps seeing Nan Yue helped, as Jiang Siyan regained some normalcy, seemingly unaware of the abnormal thing he had just said.
"Uncle Zhong has been in his room all day. He doesn't have many hobbies; he just reads the newspaper and lies in bed watching TV."
"Xie Hui called him for lunch and dinner. In the afternoon, she dragged him to the church to water the flowers."
Nan Yue nodded. The bond between the father and daughter was quite strong; they truly relied on each other.
Nan Yue couldn't help but wonder if Uncle Zhong, as the landlord of the demolition building, knew that one or more serial killers were hiding here.
If he knew, for the sake of protecting his daughter, they wouldn't continue to stay here.
So, could the suspects on the second and third floors basically be ruled out?
Not necessarily.
Xie Hui and Uncle Zhong had a special status. If Nan Yue were the killer, she wouldn't easily target them either.
If a few lone tenants went missing, no one would care, but if the landlord or his daughter disappeared, someone would definitely notice something was wrong.
"How is everyone else?"
Jiang Siyan thought for a moment. "Not very motivated."
The mission seemed to have hit a bottleneck. Everyone was either irritable or depressed.
Nan Yue tilted her head. "You're supposed to watch Uncle Zhong tonight. Didn't you rest this afternoon?"
Daytime wasn't a good opportunity to dispose of a body; such shady business was usually done at night. Nan Yue had assumed Jiang Siyan would have taken a nap.
Jiang Siyan looked at Nan Yue with a heavy gaze and let out a smile. "It's not like I'll die."
Nan Yue frowned. She didn't like the way Jiang Siyan felt right now.
Rate on N.U.
