The Mystery of the Inner Demon

Chapter 252 Who is the bad guy?
“Don’t worry, this was drawn by an adult.” Zhong Kui seemed to sense Qi Fei’s worry. “It’s just deliberately imitating a child’s brushstrokes. But this pose…”

As Zhong Kui spoke, a kind of inspiration flashed through Qi Fei's mind. In the distant past that Xu Tong recounted, something seemed to have been overlooked, and this painting that suddenly appeared, although sent to everyone, seemed to be silently conveying useful information only to him.

The little figure reached out and shoved another person. Qi Fei stared at the contents of the painting, then suddenly grabbed her phone, rushed out of the meeting room, caught up with Xu Tong who was leaving, and showed him the contents of the painting: "Old Xu, can you help me recall what the hand gesture of the person I saw shoving the other person was like?"

Xu Tong, not understanding, repeated the gesture he had made while explaining: "That's how it is." He pushed his hand straight forward as he spoke.

Qi Fei looked around and suddenly pulled Jiang Tianyi out from among the people who had followed him out, making him stand in front of him.

Qi Fei reached out and made the same gesture as Xu Tong, placing both hands on Jiang Tianyi's chest to confirm again: "Is that right?"

Xu Tong nodded.

Qi Fei let Wu Shanqiu stand in his position and asked her to push Jiang Tianyi.

Jiang Tianyi and Qi Fei were about the same height, but Jiang Tianyi was a head taller than Wu Shanqiu. When Wu Shanqiu pushed him, she unconsciously raised her arm and exerted force diagonally upwards.

"Old Xu, which posture do you think is closer to the pushing motion you saw that person do back then?" Qi Fei asked seriously, as this question seemed to be of great importance.

Zhong Kui stood behind him, her gaze intense, as if pleased that he was getting closer to the correct solution.

Without hesitation, Xu Tong pointed at Qi Fei and said, "Your action just now was correct. The person I saw back then just pushed forward like that without raising his hand."

"You said that person isn't tall, how does he compare to Qi Dongjun?" Qi Fei pressed on.

“Well, our boxes are all about 1.5 meters tall. That person is about half a head taller than the first box, so I think he's at most 1.6 meters tall. So, the height difference between him and President Qi should be about the same as the other two,” Xu Tong said, pointing to Jiang Tianyi and Wu Shanqiu.

Qi Fei took a deep breath. Xu Tong was just answering questions and hadn't realized the strangeness of the situation. But Qi Fei already knew that since the mysterious man in the hat was only about 1.6 meters tall, if the person standing behind the box talking to him was Qi Dongjun, the mysterious man wouldn't push Qi Dongjun with his hands straight forward, but at an angle, just like Wu Shanqiu pushed Jiang Tianyi. Unless, the person standing opposite the mysterious man and hiding behind the box was about the same height as this short mysterious man—which means that the person arguing with the mysterious man was not Qi Dongjun, but someone else.

This discovery left him with mixed feelings—his father had once again been cleared of suspicion in that dark past, but those dark elements were spreading towards the person he loved more—his mother, Xi Ziyun. "Qi Fei? Qi Fei?" Someone was calling his name, as if it were an anchor thrown into a dark vortex, allowing him to grasp the reality that brought him back to the light.

When he came to his senses, he found that the person who called him was Jiang Tianyi.

Before Jiang Tianyi could say anything more, Zhong Kui had already stepped between them, facing Qi Fei, with a slight smile on her lips: "Whether it's a 50/50 split or a 30/70 split, it's all about the middleman making the difference. Maybe this mysterious person's push gave the other person an idea. Is there another option besides these two splits? For example, what if the middleman disappeared? Wouldn't that mean 100% of the profits would be theirs?"

“Putting personal interests above others and rationalizing extreme harmful behavior…” Jiang Tianyi’s voice came through, “This is a prominent feature of antisocial personality disorder.”

His words seemed to be a comment on the person who hid behind the cardboard box back then, but his gaze was fixed on Zhong Kui, and his eyes held a complex expression.

"But who exactly is this middleman?" Qi Fei frowned. It's rare to find a case where the suspect and motive are so obvious, and the cause of death is clear, yet the victim's identity remains elusive. Twenty-seven years ago, who was the body that disappeared in the kiln where the Feng family burned ashes?
In the dim and damp room, the phone was tossed in front of Qi Dongjun. Before the screen went out, he saw a notification that the message had been successfully sent.

Xi He's voice, like crimson vines climbing through the dark space, entered Qi Dongjun's ears: "You know my biggest weakness is that my memory is far better than others. Those memories that others only vaguely recall from when they were two or three years old, I'm very certain they existed and happened. Unlike Qi Fei, the mother in my memory wasn't just a housewife. When I first met you, you and my mother were a perfect team. Although I don't know what you were busy with, I haven't forgotten how enthusiastic and happy you were. Hehe, you didn't expect that, did you? I remember it all. But the year I became pregnant with Qi Fei, you suddenly wouldn't allow my mother to get involved in the business. I was right there when you two were arguing. I haven't forgotten the way you looked, your face flushed and hesitant to speak."

As Xi He spoke, he approached Qi Dongjun, the only place in the room with light. His gloomy yet handsome face appeared in Qi Dongjun's sight, half in light and half in shadow.

Qi Dongjun's cheeks twitched, it was hard to tell whether it was from anger or something else.

Xi He seemed to enjoy seeing Qi Dongjun like this, and pressed on as if it weren't enough: "At first, I didn't think too much about why you suddenly wanted my mother to withdraw from business matters. I thought it was just an ordinary man with ordinary male chauvinism."

Heh, I really underestimated you—no, I underestimated all of you.

When Xi He got to this point, Qi Dongjun's face twitched even more violently, but his lips remained tightly closed, and he continued to respond to Xi He's question with silence.

"Hmph, you go around telling people that I'm a born bad seed, that I'm sickly, but only I know what you're trying to hide. You know very well why I'm like this. When you asked my mother to quit the business, you already understood everything."

"This is very interesting, Qi Dongjun..." Xi He picked up his phone from the ground, using the corner to prop up the other person's chin, forcing them to look at each other. "Biologically speaking, shouldn't I call you 'Dad'? So, my Dad, tell me, who exactly is the bad guy?"