Eyes that are the same as those of evil

Chapter 139 Fourteen Years of Pursuit 5
The clues started to appear.

They now have two directions for their investigation—

First, there's Sister Qin's cake decorating shop, where she was both cheated out of her knife and robbed. Perhaps she saw the murderer's face and even knew information about the person who bought the knife on credit.

Secondly, in Wu Yang's hometown, past investigations have never linked the murderer with the knife-selling peddler; they only knew the murderer was a robber. Now, if we go back and ask the people from back then, perhaps the families who were robbed or burglarized also bought knives on credit. Who knows, we might find some new clues.

The first place we investigated was still the cake decorating shop.

Sister Qin is already a fifty-year-old grandmother. She is helping her grandson learn to walk, making sucking noises to amuse him.

Wu Yang suppressed his anxiety and didn't mention finding the murderer. Instead, he asked about the knife seller, who said that the owner of the scrap yard had introduced him.

Sister Qin thought they were like her back then, their prophecy had come true and they wanted to find the knife seller to pay back their vows. She said mysteriously, "There are very few knife sellers nowadays, and they rarely come out of the mountains. If you sincerely want to make a vow, you might as well go to the temple and offer a lamp. I know a few masters who charge very little."

"...Thank you. I was looking for the knife seller from back then. I heard he eventually came to your area. It's said that the prophecy he gave you was that someone in your family would get into university. When the prophecy came true, did you find him and give him the money to buy the knife? I'm really worried that if we don't hand over the money to him, something bad might happen. We're doing well now, and we don't want any accidents to happen."

Sister Qin glanced at Tan Jia and Lin Zhiyue behind her. Hmm, they did seem to be living a good life. Even ordinary wealthy people couldn't raise two such good juniors.

She was knowledgeable; the wealthier a person was, the more they believed in these things, especially those whose prophecies by the knife sellers came true. Even if it was just for good luck, they would still have to fulfill their vows and wouldn't want to break any taboos.

“I understand,” Sister Qin said with great empathy. “I understand completely. I had the same thought back then. My family was full of idiots. We finally had a child who got into university. We couldn’t let God think we were stingy just because we didn’t pay for the knife. What if something happened and the child couldn’t go to school? So the person who bought the knife on credit didn’t come to us for money, but I followed up and inquired about it.”

Judging from his expression, he truly believed it without a doubt. Zheng Yan's statement, "Feudal superstition is the beginning of being scammed," stuck in his throat, neither coming out nor going out.

Wu Yang also showed a particularly moved expression, almost shaking hands with Sister Qin: "Yes, my family thought the same thing. So did you find him back then? Where is he? I prepared a red envelope, but I don't know if the money inside for buying the knife is enough."

Tan Jia glanced sideways, surprised that Wu Yang was such a good actress, much better than Xiao Chen and Tan Ming.

The effect was good enough; Sister Qin actively shared information about the knife peddler with them.

"It took me a lot of effort to find him back then. I asked around and gave him gifts..."

“I can’t use your information for free. I know the rules of this business.” Wu Yang stuffed two bills into her hand, and the red figure quickly slipped into Sister Qin’s pocket amidst their polite refusals.

Sister Qin: "Oh, you understand. It's not that I insist on taking this money, it's just the rules. Back then, I found someone in Baicaoba, and I gave them a big red envelope before they agreed to come out and see me. I didn't let anyone else know."

"Is he from there?"

"It seems not. They said they have relatives there, and that they've been making too many prophecies over the years, which has shortened their lifespan. They said they won't be doing this anymore and told me not to contact them again. They wouldn't even reveal their name."

What do you mean by "stopping work"? It's probably because he killed someone in another city, was terrified, and fled back to hide after throwing the knife.

As a result, it happened again because Sister Qin insisted on giving a generous sum of money to buy a knife.

but--

“He first committed theft and robbery here, then went to Sister Wu Yang’s hometown, injured someone, and then returned here to sell the knife. This shows that even if this is not his hometown, he must have some other connection, such as having a relative living around here,” Tan Jia said to Zheng Yan in a low voice.

Zheng Yan agrees with this conjecture.

Baicaoba might be the breakthrough point.

After asking enough questions, Wu Yang took out Lin Zhiyue's painting and showed it to Sister Qin.

"Big sister, do you think that knife seller looks like this? It's been so many years. I was still in school back then, and I almost forgot who he was. I could only try to recall him with my elders and draw a rough sketch, hoping to find him as soon as possible. After all, we're busy with work and don't have much time."

“I understand, I understand perfectly,” Sister Qin picked up her grandson, stood back and squinted at him. “He looks just like him, very much like him. He’s thin, his head is quite distinctive, and he has an air of otherworldly wisdom.”

Tan Jia couldn't quite agree with the description of "ethereal and otherworldly," as the painting clearly depicted a villain with ill intentions. However, she simply touched her eyebrows, gave Lin Zhiyue a look, and gestured for him to listen to the praise for his painting skills—wasn't it quite good?

Lin Zhiyue miraculously understood what she meant, and gave a faint smile. His hand, which was hanging down, was very close to the hand of the person next to him, and for a moment he seemed to be able to feel the warmth of her skin.

Wu Yang obtained a useful clue and bid farewell to Sister Qin with satisfaction.

As she walked out of that street, she took a deep breath and said, "Baicaoba must be a place he frequents."

She is very close to finding the murderer who killed her grandfather.

Xiao Chen looked at her and said, "You did a really good job just now. How did you come up with the idea of ​​carrying two hundred yuan with you as a stepping stone?"

Wu Yang smiled helplessly: "My grandma gave it to me before I left, telling me not to forget to buy something to eat when I'm busy."

“Your grandma also helped with this, no wonder it went so smoothly,” Zheng Yan said with a smile. “Let’s go, buy some food for the road, and head to Baicaoba.”

Baicaoba is actually a fairly large village, with a large area of ​​two-story buildings and greenhouses at the foot of the mountain.

There was a small shop, not quite a convenience store, by the roadside at the village entrance, selling cigarettes, alcohol, and snacks. Many villagers gathered there chatting. When they saw a group of strangers get off the bus and approach, they all stared at them.

Even up close, they didn't recognize them. Someone asked, "Who are you? Who are you looking for?"

Wu Yang held up the portrait: "We're here to find this person, to pay for the knife we ​​bought on credit. Does anyone know where he is?"

Mysteries don't need much explanation; those who understand will understand.

No need to look at the portrait, just hearing the words "selling knives on credit" will bring out an old man to provide information.

"He's looking for that guy from the Guanyin Temple again. It's been so many years, and people are still looking for him. How many knives did he sell on credit back then?"

"Guanyin Temple? Is this person at Guanyin Temple? What's his name?"

Several elderly people chatted amongst themselves.

"Guanyin Temple? Cui Si'er's brother-in-law?"

"That's him. He was idle all those years ago. Didn't someone ask him to lend him knives a few years ago? I don't know how he ended up in this line of work."

“When Cui Si’er was dying, Cui Liu’s sister didn’t come back to see him even once. Her husband made a fortune and built a three-story house. Why would she care about him?”

After saying all that, I've finally gotten to the point—

"His surname was Jiao! I think his name was Jiao Hua'an. He was as thin as a bamboo pole. We all said he was a bad guy back then..."

Jiao Hua'an is from Guanyinmiao, and Baicaoba is his wife's hometown.

After confirming this information, they rushed to Guanyinmiao Village, more than ten kilometers away, and found the Jiao family.

The three-story villa had two cars parked in the yard. A thin man in his fifties was holding a child and eating zongzi (sticky rice dumplings). A smile appeared on his aged face, and his gloomy eyes seemed much more kind.

Enjoying a peaceful old age surrounded by children and grandchildren, one is truly blessed.

Seeing a group of people approaching through the door, he cheerfully asked, "Who are you looking for?"

Tan Jia turned her head and saw the hatred in Wu Yang's eyes for a moment.

(End of this chapter)