The Mystery of the Inner Demon

Chapter 309 Those Who Do Art
Qi Fei leaned over Wu Chongyue's shoulder and looked at the dog behind him: "We've come all this way, won't you invite us in for a seat? Otherwise, this dog will bark again next time we come."

Qi Fei's words left Wu Chongyue speechless, so he could only lead them inside.

The dog was chained up, and the closer they got, the louder it barked. The chain around its neck clanged as it was pulled, making a particularly loud noise in the early morning.

"That dog is pretty fierce," Wu Shanqiu muttered.

Wu Chongyue immediately explained, "We live in a place where there are no neighbors around. We bought this dog because it barks a lot, to keep an eye on things. Don't be fooled by its fierce barking; it's actually incredibly timid when let out and wouldn't dare bite anyone."

Wu Shanqiu pouted. These words sounded strange, as if dogs were supposed to bite people.

But that didn't matter. After walking through the cement courtyard, they entered Wu Chongyue's home.

Perhaps because it was a self-built house, the ceiling height on this floor was higher than that of ordinary buildings. The design was neither traditional nor modern, and the upper part of the white walls was covered with streaks of dust due to its age, making one's nose itch and want to sneeze. Only the black and white photograph hanging on the wall was new; it was a portrait of Wu Xingzhou in his memory.

Compared to his younger brother Wu Xingyang, Wu Xingzhou was clearly more handsome, and even strangers who saw his portrait would feel sorry for his passing.

However, right below Wu Xingzhou's portrait, Zhu Haitang and her son Wu Xingyang were sitting at a round table in the living room having a meal.

The round table was placed against the wall, just big enough for three people to sit. Watching the mother and son wolf down their food with such a hearty appetite, the three policemen were even more convinced of what Zhong Kui had said last night. They really didn't look like they had lost a loved one; they were cold and indifferent without any reservation.

Zhu Haitang didn't forget to serve food to Wu Xingyang, showing concern and care as if this son wasn't twenty years old, but only two.

Seeing the three people enter the house, Zhu Haitang put down her bowl and chopsticks and looked at Wu Chongyue uneasily. No one would believe that the couple wasn't hiding something.

As if to reassure Zhu Haitang, Wu Chongyue straightened his chest and said to Qi Fei, "Let's get down to business. Xingzhou wasn't home when the accident happened. We didn't know where he went. I only found out because Wu Shulan called me."

Cai Ding was surprised: "You didn't tell me about this before?"

“I know you’re convinced I killed your son, but telling you won’t change anything. The police from the city are worldly-wise; they’ll know I’m not lying,” Wu Chongyue said sarcastically, still holding a grudge about being imprisoned.

Qi Fei was unmoved by his flattery and condescension: "We will verify what you said. Wu Xingzhou is your son. He didn't come back all night, and you don't even know where he went?"

Before Wu Chongyue could speak, Zhu Haitang interjected, "It's not that we don't want to know, but this child has been rebellious since he was little. We just can't do anything about him. Sigh, I knew that his association with those shady friends would lead to trouble sooner or later."

“We men are talking, what are you, a woman, doing interrupting…” Wu Chongyue suddenly scolded Zhu Haitang.

Qi Fei interrupted Wu Chongyue: "When facing a police investigation, you must tell the truth." He then turned to Zhu Haitang, "What friend?" Zhu Haitang was stunned by Wu Chongyue's reprimand and hesitated to speak, looking at him for a long time. It seemed that Wu Chongyue not only had prestige in the clan, but also at home.

The atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Suddenly, Wu Xingyang, who was eating breakfast, slammed down his chopsticks and shouted at Wu Chongyue, "What are you yelling about? My brother has some shady friends, so what's wrong with telling the police?"

Judging from his disobedient attitude, Wu Chongyue should have started to lose his temper by now, based on how he treated Zhu Haitang earlier. Unexpectedly, Wu Chongyue held back, his face flushed as he suppressed his anger: "From now on, you are the eldest grandson, so watch your attitude."

"Ha, how could my eldest grandson be worse than my brother?" Wu Xingyang raised his head, not even glancing at the portrait on the wall. "If you won't let my mother say it, then I will. My brother is an artist, so what? All the people he associates with are lunatics, spending all their time in rented rooms tinkering with who knows what. If it weren't for the Wu family elders insisting on the order of seniority, he wouldn't deserve the position of eldest grandson at all."

"A rented room? So Wu Xingzhou doesn't live here?" Qi Fei asked.

“No, that’s not entirely true. He still comes back to sleep most of the time. The main problem is that he rents a place with his friends in town. Whenever those shady friends come to town, he disappears. Our family knows he’s definitely in that rented room fooling around with them. When he’s having fun, he won’t come home for days. You can’t really blame my parents. At first, my dad went to town to look for him and we had a huge fight, but then we just stopped caring. The rent for that house was paid for with our family’s money. You can go and see for yourselves; it’s full of the smell of paint. He might have been there the day the accident happened, and he got paint poisoning!” Wu Xingyang’s words were full of disdain.

Upon hearing this, Qi Fei looked at Wu Chongyue and Zhu Haitang, and the two of them lowered their heads in embarrassment.

It's ironic that she showed such embarrassment, even after her son's death, that she was ashamed because of her son's strange behavior during his lifetime.

Qi Fei looked around the old-fashioned self-built house with a feeling of bewilderment. Apart from the portrait of the deceased, there was no trace of his son, who was "in the arts," ever living there.

"Since he's coming back tonight, why don't you take us to his bedroom?" Qi Fei said.

The family readily agreed to Qi Fei's request, making no attempt to hide anything, and led them upstairs.

This self-built house, neither traditional nor modern, had a spiral staircase. When you reached the second floor, it turned directly into a suite next to the staircase. Qi Fei peeked into the door facing the staircase and saw a huge living room inside, with two bedrooms opposite.

"Your house is quite big," Qi Fei said, pointing to the opposite side of the living room. "Is that where the three of you live?"

“Yes, this is how the rooms have been assigned since we were kids.” Wu Xingyang’s tone carried a sense of superiority, as if he were being favored.

“That kid often comes back in the middle of the night. My wife doesn’t sleep well, so letting him stay here won’t disturb our rest,” Wu Chongyue explained.

Wu Shanqiu bluntly retorted, "Didn't your youngest son say that this house was allocated by the landlord? Wu Xingzhou has never come home at night since he was a child?"

Wu Chongyue realized he had said the wrong thing and went to open Wu Xingzhou's room in silence.

Qi Fei was somewhat surprised when he saw Wu Xingzhou's room. According to the Wu family's description, he thought the room would be messy and have the "casualness" of an artist, but the reality was quite the opposite.