Eyes that are the same as those of evil

Chapter 66 Strange Corpse 4
At seven o'clock in the morning, Tan Jia got into Tan Ming's car with a blank expression.

The breakfast bread in her hand was extremely dry and shriveled. Paired with yogurt, it evoked a sense of sorrow and the impermanence of life in her.

Tan Ming drives with a steady pace. By the time he arrived at the hospital, Zheng Yan had already taken one of the people's statements.

Upon seeing her arrive, Zheng Yan tapped his notebook: "Oh dear, I thought you'd stopped dreaming."

She chuckled twice: "I thought so too."

"But don't worry, this dream of yours isn't about a new case, it's a turning point. Both sides are still alive, so you don't need to dwell on it."

Fortunately in misfortune.

Tan Jia, munching on his bread, asked, "So what exactly happened?"

"The murder case at the Aurora Borealis Hotel, the one where the cause of death has still not been found. The two men who fought were Zhong Xiaoyang, the victim's boyfriend, and Zheng Heng, Zhong Xiaoyang's ex-boyfriend. Because the cause of death has not been found and there is no evidence to show who is suspected of committing the act, they were all released yesterday."

"And then there was almost another murder last night?" It caused her to be punched a few times in her dream, and she still feels that phantom pain when she drinks yogurt.

“These two lads didn’t tell the truth at all when they gave their statements before—” Zheng Yan sighed.

“They were ex-boyfriends and dated for five or six years. Zhong Xiaoyang believed that Zheng Heng still had feelings for him and that the victim’s death must be related to him. So after he was released, he went to find Zheng Heng that night to find out the truth. The key point is that he also recorded the conversation and wanted to use it as evidence to send the victim to jail. Zheng Heng found out and got into a fight. They even used knives. Zheng Heng stabbed him in the shoulder, but luckily he missed and didn’t hit the carotid artery.”

"Isn't there something wrong? Why would Zheng Heng prepare a knife?" Tan Jia asked, throwing her empty yogurt into the trash can.

"We haven't gotten to him yet. But according to Zhong Xiaoyang, Zheng Heng hated him for being with the deceased, and perhaps he wanted to kill the deceased with that knife, although we don't know why he changed the method of killing in the end."

"Wait, wait, I'm a little out of touch," Xiao Chen said, feeling dizzy after only a short while. "What's the relationship between those three again?"

Tan Jia: "Zhong Xiaoyang is the top, Zheng Heng is the ex-boyfriend bottom, and the deceased is the current boyfriend bottom. Zheng Heng is resentful that Zhong Xiaoyang dumped him and got together with the deceased and is doing very well, so he harbored murderous intent. Is that right?"

Zheng Yan nodded earnestly.

Xiao Chen then asked, "Then why did Zheng Heng harbor murderous intent just because of the breakup? Did Zhong Xiaoyang cheat on him? And why was Zhong Xiaoyang so certain that the victim's death was related to Zheng Heng? Was he very confident in his charm and believed that his ex-boyfriend would risk becoming a murderer to get back him?"

Before speaking, Zheng Yan sighed, lamenting that at his advanced age, he still had to sort out the love stories of young people.

"This story goes back to many years ago, when society was not so open."

It is said that Zhong Xiaoyang and Zheng Heng had been together for a long time. At that time, the social atmosphere was still relatively conservative, and most people regarded homosexuality as a disease.

They were very careful in their relationship, afraid that no one would find out.

They had kept the secret well, but feelings can't be hidden forever, and their classmates eventually found out.

Zhong Xiaoyang was worried that this would bring endless trouble to both of them, so he reluctantly broke up with him. After the college entrance examination, they went their separate ways and went to university in the south and the north respectively.

Unexpectedly, societal attitudes changed so quickly. In just a few years, homosexuals not only stopped being discriminated against, but also gained a lot of popularity and adoration online.

Zhong Xiaoyang and the deceased Qiu Chenxing became an open couple, showing their affection online every day.

Perhaps out of dissatisfaction or resentment, Zheng Heng traveled a long distance to Zhong Xiaoyang's city and, without his knowledge, joined his friends' group to attend the birthday celebration. Zheng Yan added, "Zhong Xiaoyang thinks Zheng Heng is a very stubborn person. Such people are prone to losing their rationality in relationships and doing bad things."

Tan Jia listened without any reaction, not even raising her eyelids, and said, "If Zhong Xiaoyang were as good-looking as Lin Zhiyue, I would believe what he said was true."

Zheng Yan, Tan Ming, and Xiao Chen all looked at her.

She didn't think there was anything wrong with her aesthetic sense, but seeing how strange their gazes were, she added, "Or maybe it's some kind of rural homosexuality, then I'll believe it. All that love and hate is suppressed under the mountain of society, condensed day after day into a great flood that breaks through reason."

However, Zhong Xiaoyang's story doesn't include either of the two possibilities. It sounds like a plot device from a popular online novel, mostly empty and unrealistic.

"Let's ask Zheng Heng again."

Zheng Heng's injuries weren't as severe as Zhong Xiaoyang's, who had been stabbed.

But when they saw him, they were still startled by the bruised and swollen wounds on his face.

Tan Jia's eyes seemed to say to them: "You hit so hard, what have you ever loved?"

Zheng Yan seemed to understand her meaning perfectly and coughed.

Zheng Heng leaned back weakly in the chair, his legs stretched far apart, looking down at the ground, ignoring their arrival.

Following procedure, Xiao Chen explained the purpose of the interrogation, and when he recounted Zhong Xiaoyang's story, asked him, "Do you agree with the above statement?"

Zheng Heng sneered: "He's quite good at avoiding the important issues."

"What do you mean?"

He was silent for a moment, then turned his head to look at the hospital wall and said calmly, "There's not much to say, just some messy stories."

Seeing that he didn't seem to have the same desire to confide in Zhong Xiaoyang, Xiao Chen asked directly, "Why did you bring a knife to see Zhong Xiaoyang? Was it because you wanted to take revenge on Zhong Xiaoyang?"

"Yes," he readily admitted.

"Why? Because Zhong Xiaoyang wronged you, so you want revenge? But you don't seem like the kind of person who would act impulsively."

“He really wronged me. He turned me gay, then transferred schools and left after our relationship was discovered, leaving me to endure the verbal abuse from the outside world alone, which indirectly led to my family’s troubles and left me unable to go home… Of course, he can’t be blamed alone. But society is changing too fast.”

Having paid such a painful price, in just two years, homosexuality, once universally condemned, has transformed into a mainstream phenomenon blessed by all. The stark contrast is causing Zheng Heng even greater pain and torment than when he silently endured the stigma.

Seeing that he was lost in his own emotions, Tan Ming tentatively asked, "So you felt resentful and jealous, so you traveled all the way to join Zhong Xiaoyang's group of friends to attend his birthday party, hoping to kill this heartless man and his new boyfriend?"

Zheng Heng came to his senses: "Of course not. I only want to deal with Zhong Xiaoyang."

Seeing their disbelief, he sneered, "Have you seen his and Qiu Chenxing's couple account? There are many gay couples online now. Their looks aren't the most attractive thing. The reason they became popular at the end of last year was because he fabricated a very eye-catching story of enduring love, using my past experiences and the love letters he wrote to me. It's so despicable. I messaged them privately, but Zhong Xiaoyang completely ignored me. He still wants to use this story to make money. I came to him initially just to warn him and, incidentally, to get an apology for what happened back then."

He wouldn't have resorted to a knife if Zhong Xiaoyang hadn't beaten him so badly. As for Qiu Chenxing, she wasn't within the scope of his revenge.

Zheng Yan and the others exchanged glances. If it really wasn't him, then who killed Qiu Chenxing?
(End of this chapter)