Eyes that are the same as those of evil

Chapter 143 Fourteen Years of Pursuit 9
At the police station, everyone summarized today's investigation results and tried to reconstruct the events of the case from fourteen years ago.

Through the confessions obtained from the investigation, the case files from fourteen years ago, and the confession of the murderer Jiao Hua'an, we can deduce the scene at that time, when, who was present, where they were, who rushed into the rapeseed field first, who first discovered Grandpa Wu, and who acted strangely afterward...

Tan Jia and Zheng Yan had a lively discussion, and when they talked about whether Grandpa Wu had any unusual behavior before he died, she even turned to look for Wu Yang.

"Sister Wu Yang specifically asked about this. I think if the third party deliberately refused to help, Grandpa Wu would have left a message. Sister Wu Yang, Sister Wu Yang?"

The two shouts drew everyone's attention to Wu Yang, who looked distracted and absent-minded, her fingernails digging into the gaps in her notebook, seemingly a little anxious.

"Wu Yang, what's wrong?" Zheng Yan asked.

“…Huh? It’s nothing,” Wu Yang forced a smile. “I told my family about the third person back then, but they all said to forget it, they didn’t want to investigate any further. They said that even if they found out, they couldn’t convict him, and life would be even more miserable, so it’s better to just live in the dark. I suddenly realized that I might be being too stubborn. After the investigation, it was them who continued to live with the villagers. I was here, filled with righteous indignation, without considering whether they were suffering even more than I was…”

Zheng Yan and the others exchanged glances and said gently, "Their views are not without reason, but you have your own filial piety to fulfill. When everyone else disagrees and you are the only one who insists, it's understandable to feel lost. It depends on your own thoughts. If you still want to investigate, we will continue to help you; if you don't want to investigate anymore, we understand."

Xiao Chen and Tan Ming both nodded in agreement, and Tan Jia also blinked at her.

Wu Yang's eyes welled up with tears. She exhaled and said, "It's quite late. You guys didn't sleep well last night because of this. Go back and rest first. I'll think about it some more."

Xiao Chen immediately tried to lighten the mood: "Oh, that's great! I was just getting sleepy and my eyelids were drooping."

They packed their things and went home, without asking Wu Yang if she wanted to stay. What she needed now was some private space where she could space out.

As he walked out of the police station, Xiao Chen shook his head and sighed again.

"That's why they say even an upright official finds it hard to settle family disputes."

"Is that how it's said? You illiterate person who doesn't understand," Zheng Yan slapped him on the back, "It's that when you grow up, you'll one day have to accept filial piety that isn't so simple."

Tan Jia slowly kneaded the dough and casually asked, "What kind of filial piety is not simple?"

"You're all too young; you haven't thought deeply about family relationships. Let me ask you, if your eighty-year-old grandmother said she wanted an electric scooter, would you buy it for her?"

Xiao Chen: "Buy it! We should fulfill the wishes of the elderly. I didn't expect to enjoy these things when I was young, but now that I have the ability to take care of them, I'll buy it."

"You won't admit you're simple-minded. You bought the electric scooter, but who will guarantee her safety? If she falls, at best she'll be paralyzed and bedridden. Who will take care of her? Will you quit your job to take care of her? In the end, it will fall on someone else. At worst, she could die. Can you bear that responsibility?"

"If you don't make proper arrangements for the follow-up, your well-intentioned but overzealous intervention will only cause trouble for others, and this applies to matters of filial piety towards the elderly as well. When you realize this, you'll feel a sense of self-loathing, thinking, 'Why do I have to worry about everything when I'm being filial to my elders?'"

Seeing their stunned expressions, Zheng Yan said earnestly, "Although this example may not be entirely accurate, Wu Yang's current predicament is similar."

"For her grandfather's sake, she wanted to find the person who stood by and did nothing to confront him, but her family believed that even if they found out the truth, they couldn't bring that person to justice. They would continue living in the same village as that person, constantly running into each other. They would suffer, and if anything happened to the other person, it would likely lead to further complicated troubles. All of this is something Wu Yang doesn't have to go through. She only needs to find out the truth, while others bear the pain and trouble. We can't say their thinking is wrong; couples who have suffered the death of their only child eventually prefer to reconcile with the past..."

The voices faded into the distance with each step.

Wu Yang was the only one left in the office.

What she was thinking about wasn't self-loathing, but rather disbelief at the truth.

With all the clues in front of her, and considering her mother's strange reaction that afternoon, she could easily deduce one thing—the person who had stood by and watched her grandfather die was in their house.

Once she understood this, it felt like she'd been hit on the head with a club, and her vision blurred.

Who could it be? Her mother?
That's unlikely. My mother wasn't home at the time; she got back even later than her.

Is it her dad?
That's impossible, her father wasn't there at the time.

Eldest uncle? Second uncle?
It's possible, because they had a bad relationship with their grandfather, and he was indeed present at the time.

She knew that her father and his two brothers didn't get along well. Her grandmother favored her eldest and second eldest brothers and ignored her father, while her grandfather favored her father and was cold to her eldest and second eldest brothers. The only one whom both her grandparents liked was her.

And...and Grandma.

Grandma was also in the field at the time, rushing into the rapeseed field a few minutes after Grandpa, but by the time she found Grandpa, he was already on his last breath.

Of course, it's possible that it was just a coincidence, that people couldn't see anyone in the rapeseed field, and that they really couldn't find Grandpa no matter how hard they searched.

But her mother's reaction was strange when she heard that they were going to investigate this person. Someone a mother would instinctively want to protect must be someone very close to her.

Of all the family members, the one with whom my mother had the best relationship was not her other two sisters-in-law, but my grandmother.

Wu Yang sat in the office for a long time until the sweltering heat was dispelled by the raindrops that pattered against the glass, bringing her back to her senses.

My mind was further confused by the sudden downpour, like the muddy roads in the village.

But her years of police experience made her keep thinking, and she realized there was still an issue that could not be ignored: motive.

If it really was Grandma, why would Mom have thought of it immediately? Is there some secret she doesn't know? And that secret is the motive.

After a long while, Wu Yang stood up, packed his things, and went home.

The rain came and went quickly that night. By the time she got home, only a light drizzle remained, along with a cool breeze.

The lights were off, but she knew Lin Chunzhi was still awake, so she knocked on the door and went in without any hesitation.

"Mom, I have something to tell you."

Lin Chunzhi lay on the bed, avoiding her gaze, and said, "Let's talk about it tomorrow. Aren't you tired? Go to sleep."

She pursed her lips and didn't leave, her voice deep: "I'll tell you tonight."

Wu Yang's father looked around blankly: "What kind of riddle are you two playing?"

Lin Chunzhi suddenly threw a pillow at his face, clearly in a bad mood.

He was hit in the face and became even more bewildered.

"What are you doing? Why did you hit me?"

Wu Yang suddenly felt annoyed by him. If it really was her grandmother, if her mother, as her daughter-in-law, had noticed the problem, then did her father, eldest uncle, and second uncle know?

She didn't want to find another place to ask secretly, so she decided to do it here.

Just as I finished rehearsing in my mind, the lights in the living room behind me suddenly turned on.

A calm, aged voice rang out.

"Yangyang, you just got off work? Why aren't you going back to your room to sleep?"

Wu Yang froze, his heart leaping heavily.

My heart skipped a beat. It was really raining heavily outside the window. I was just waiting for an old lady behind me to ask me why I wasn't asleep yet...

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(End of this chapter)