Courtyard House: Starting with handing over the keys, the state helps me abuse birds.

The night grew deeper.

Xie Weihong closed the door, leaving only a dim light bulb in the room. The filament emitted a slight electrical hum, as if reminding him that the words "I'll kill your parents" from earlier that day hadn't disappeared with the Jia family closing the door.

It was like a thorn, piercing the weakest spot in my memory.

Xie Weihong leaned against the edge of the bed, closed his eyes, and slowly spread his consciousness. He could clearly hear the sound of the wind, the cracking of wood, and the rustling of someone turning over next door within a meter radius. But his attention was not on the outside world; he was digging deeper, into the original owner's memories.

That was something he hadn't actively tried to touch since he transmigrated.

Because the original owner's life was too stifling, the more he looked back, the more frustrated he became. All he found was humiliation and anger, and he would drag himself into that feeling of powerlessness.

But today is different.

Today, someone threw the word "parents" out like a knife.

Then it must be flipped.

Xie Weihong silently said in her heart, "Open."

The next moment, images surged up from the depths of my mind like old film reels.

In winter, the wind is so strong it can blow a person away.

Xie Weihong sat on the threshold, her nose red from the cold, but she kept looking towards the alley entrance.

His mother knelt down and pulled his cotton hat down a little, smiling as she said, "When your parents come back, they'll bring you candy."

The father stood at the door, wearing the uniform issued by his workplace, the buttons neatly fastened, his shoulders ramrod straight. He patted his son's head and said, "Be good, don't cause trouble. I'll take you to the movies when we get back."

Then the screen suddenly jumped.

It's like someone forcefully snapped the film in half.

The next scene is at the entrance of the workplace.

A car.

His father, mother, and two colleagues were in the car. The car window was dirty. His parents waved to him, and he ran a few steps after them, almost falling. His mother laughed in the car and made a "come back" gesture with her finger.

The car drove away.

A cloud of soil was swept up.

They never came back after that day.

Xie Weihong felt a slight tightness in her chest, as if someone had blown the winds of her childhood back into the present.

He continued scrolling down.

The visuals became cluttered, and the sound became intermittent.

People in the courtyard gathered together and said, "Something has happened."

Some people said, "He didn't return from his official duties."

Some people said, "The person is gone."

Yi Zhonghai stood in the courtyard, frowning, and said with a heavy heart, "Wei Hong is such a pitiful child. From now on, the courtyard will have to take care of her."

While cracking sunflower seeds, Jia Zhangshi muttered, "What's there to take care of? It's better if there's one less person to eat."

Qin Huairu was still young then, holding her child in her arms, her eyes darting around, as if she hadn't heard anything, yet also as if she had heard it all.

At this point in the video, the screen should have displayed "Representatives from the Organization", "Compensation", "Commendation", and "Certificate".

No.

There was nothing there.

Turning the pages of memory, all that remains is a long, blank space.

The blank space is interspersed with several recurring details.

Xiao Xie Weihong was standing at the entrance of her workplace when she was chased away by the security guard.

Who are you looking for?

"I'm looking for my parents."

The security guard glanced at him and said, "Your parents? Your parents are long gone. Don't cause trouble."

He stood shivering in the cold at the entrance of his workplace, waiting all day, but no one came. When he returned to the compound, no one mentioned "compensation" to him, and no one gave him a single penny.

Later, he started to support himself.

At first, the people in the compound treated him as an "orphan who was easy to bully."

He began to be twisted into a spineless coward by Yi Zhonghai's repeated "It's for your own good" statements.

Xie Weihong opened his eyes, and the light shone into his pupils, making them look like a layer of cold ice.

He slowly exhaled, having already reached a conclusion in his mind.

Not right.

Logically speaking, if someone dies while performing official duties, their work unit should take appropriate action.

There will be a pension, condolences, and at least a formal notification.

Moreover, since their parents worked in the same unit, went on missions together, and didn't return together, it's impossible for such a thing to happen quietly.

However, the original owner never received any compensation.

He never even saw a formal death certificate.

This is not a case of "the organization forgetting".

It's more like someone withheld what was due to be given.

Or, to be even more ruthless.

Someone was setting this up from the very beginning.

Xie Weihong gently swept his divine sense towards the outside of the door. The courtyard was very quiet, but he could hear the suppressed whispers inside the Jia family's house, the sniffling sobs of Bang Geng, and the panting of Jia Zhangshi, who was "the more afraid she was, the more she wanted to suppress it."

That sense of guilt was palpable even through the walls.

Xie Weihong's eyes grew even colder.

Bang Geng's line today, "like killing your parents," was definitely not something he made up on the spot.

Children may be malicious, but they rarely create such "murderous" sentences out of thin air.

Such words are mostly hearsay.

Who do you listen to?

Jia Zhangshi.

Or those behind Jia Zhangshi who "know the inside story".

Xie Weihong tapped the edge of the bed lightly with her knuckles. The sound was soft, but it seemed as if she was setting rules for herself.

"The compensation... is the key."

"The unit... is a line."

"These people in the hospital... are all in the same line."

He suddenly remembered something even more important.

Yi Zhonghai.

This person is the best at "playing the good guy," the best at using morality to pressure people, and the best at pushing everyone onto the track he has set.

After the original owner's parents had an accident, Yi Zhonghai was the first to stand up for justice, the first to announce that "everyone should take care of them," and the first to bring the original owner into the "community in the compound."

But where is the "care" provided?

When the original owner was being bullied in the courtyard, Yi Zhonghai never truly protected her even once.

He simply taught the original owner to endure, to back down, and to swallow her grievances.

This is very similar to a certain operation.

It cultivates a personality that "does not ask questions and dares not ask questions".

As long as the original owner doesn't dare to ask further, the matter of the compensation will never be brought up again.

Thinking of this, Xie Weihong's lips twitched slightly, with a hint of sarcasm.

"The original owner didn't receive any compensation, so he was poor."

"He was poor, so he bowed his head."

"He bowed his head, so you could control him."

"The longer you maintain control, the less afraid you are of the truth coming out."

This chain is so perfect it's disgusting.

Just then, a familiar mechanical voice rang in my mind.

[System notification: Fluctuation detected in "Old Case Bloodline"]

[Hint: The host has triggered the hidden clue "Missing Compensation"] [Danger Level: Extremely High]

[Warning: The old case involves the aura of a powerful demon. Host is advised to investigate with caution.]

Xie Weihong's eyes narrowed.

Bloodstains from an old case?

A demonic aura?

In other words, the parents' "performing official duties" may not be a simple accident.

Xie Weihong sat down on the edge of the bed, her gaze frighteningly calm.

He wasn't in a hurry.

He is now at the second level, possessing divine consciousness and a system.

More importantly, he had already figured out what these people feared most.

They were afraid of his strength.

I was also afraid he would ask.

As long as he continues to grow stronger, continues to question, and continues to treat these beasts as demons, they will eventually reveal their weaknesses.

Xie Weihong slowly closed her eyes, a slight smile playing on her lips.

"Since you hid the original owner's parents in the mud."

"Then I'll dig it out."

"It was dug up completely."

The wind outside the window grew colder.

Few people could sleep in the courtyard.