Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The takeout arrived.

Using the only two fingers on my left hand that still worked properly, I painstakingly gripped the spoon and took small bites.

“Do you need some help?” Officer Dong asked, looking at me with a hint of pity.

I smiled and shook my head. “No, the fact that I haven’t starved to death all these years proves I can take care of myself.”

“Take your time. We’re in no rush.”

The three of us ate our takeout in a silence that was bordering on awkward.

After a moment’s thought, I decided to ask the question anyway.

“Officer Dong, why did you come looking for me? Does Sun Congjun’s death have something to do with my mother? Of course, if it’s confidential, just forget I asked.”

He hesitated for a moment, then finished the remaining third of his meal in a few quick bites.

He pulled out a tissue and wiped his mouth.

“I’ll tell you what I can.”

Sun Congjun was also from Mingshan Village.

Since he was a man from Mingshan Village, he had naturally worked at the mine.

However, during the peak years of Mingshan Mining’s business, he suddenly resigned.

The specific reason was unknown, but he moved to a neighboring province to live on his own.

There was nothing particularly unusual about that at first.

The day before yesterday, he traveled to Jingdu alone. Based on his itinerary and the belongings he brought with him, it appeared he was there for a vacation.

But yesterday, he died. He died alone in a hotel room.

Before he passed away, he used his own blood to write three characters: Shen Yufen.

By investigating Sun Congjun’s social circle, the police determined that the Shen Yufen he referred to was, in all probability, my mother.

“Just writing a name doesn’t necessarily mean anything, does it? Maybe he had a lifelong crush on my mother.”

“True, that’s a possibility. However, we found your mother’s hair and fingerprints in that hotel room.”

“Impossible!” I broke out in a cold sweat. “My mother was laid to rest a month ago. I saw the burial with my own eyes.”

Officer Dong immediately tried to calm me down. “Don’t get worked up. We’ve seen your mother’s death certificate; we aren’t saying she’s the killer.”

Right, I was overreacting.

My mother’s hair, her fingerprints-this information could all be faked.

One fact remained unchangeable.

On the day Sun Congjun died, my mother had already been cremated. It was impossible for her to have gone to Jingdu to kill someone.

Then what was the deal with the fingerprints and hair in that room?

How did the killer prepare them in advance?

And what was the purpose of doing all this?

Officer Dong didn’t speak; he simply watched the shifting expressions on my face with a calm gaze.

“You’ve realized it too, haven’t you? There are many suspicious points in this case. And in our line of work, whenever a life is lost, we have to investigate the full story. That’s why we came to find you.”