Insights Chapter 132: Revenge

Chapter 132: Revenge

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Shen Junci listened to everything and bowed his head in contemplation. He recalled the Dream Master; he should be one of the children, carried out of that cage by a woman. So, did the Dream Master also know about these things? The Dream Master’s birthday was also on September 25th, not their actual birthdays, but the day they were reborn. So, when the Dream Master’s adoptive mother said, “I promised to raise him,” as his adoptive father wanted to kill him, it was because of this.

It was also because of this that He Wenlin envied Gu Yanchen, and paid attention to him. They had similar backgrounds, but because of their different mothers, they knew different things, leading to different lives. Just as they were discussing this, there was a sudden sound of the door opening.

Mo Xueqing hurriedly wiped her eyes. “Maybe it’s your dad coming back. I’ll go prepare dinner. Several main dishes have already been stewed in the pot, just need to stir-fry a couple of dishes.” As she stood up, she said, “Son, you’re usually busy with work and don’t come often. I’ve made your favorite grilled lamb chops for you.”

Indeed, the one coming in from outside was Gu Wenbin, a tall middle-aged man with a somewhat ordinary appearance, but he exuded an air of authority. He greeted Gu Yanchen as he entered, and Gu Yanchen introduced Shen Junci to him.

Gu Wenbin exchanged a few words with them before going into the kitchen to help Mo Xueqing. His gaze was entirely focused on the woman, and finally, a rare smile appeared on his face. Standing beside Gu Wenbin, Mo Xueqing seemed to have forgotten those painful experiences, and the two of them worked busily together in the kitchen.

Looking through the glass door of the kitchen, Shen Junci thought to himself that this was probably what marrying for love looked like.

At dinner time, Gu Yanchen’s younger sister, Gu Yanxiang, also returned home. She was thirteen years younger than her brother, and had just entered her third year of high school. Finally on vacation, she had spent the afternoon playing with her classmates.

The family sat around the dining table, chatting and laughing. Mo Xueqing prepared a table full of delicious dishes. Since Gu Yanchen had to drive back later, nobody drank alcohol and opted for juice instead. The TV was broadcasting the Mid-Autumn Festival Gala, creating a festive atmosphere.

Mo Xueqing warmly invited Shen Junci, “I’ve made some home-cooked dishes. Xiao Shen, why don’t you try them? Do they suit your taste?”

Shen Junci tasted some and politely nodded, “Auntie’s cooking is very good, it’s delicious.”

Gu Yanchen added from the side, “My cooking skills were taught by my mom.”

Shen Junci realized it had been a long time since he had enjoyed such a lively and abundant meal. Eating with them was completely different from dining with colleagues; it gave a warm feeling. This was what family felt like, the feeling of home.

Halfway through the meal, Gu Yanxiang heard that Shen Junci was a medical examiner and started bombarding Shen Junci with various questions. So the family found themselves discussing maggots, corpses, and giant worms over their reunion dinner, gradually wiping the smiles off Mo Xueqing and Gu Wenbin’s faces.

The parents wanted to intervene but were afraid of seeming to mind Shen Junci’s profession, fearing it might imply discrimination against the work of a medical examiner, so they let their daughter continue with her questions. Shen Junci sensed the awkward atmosphere but felt it wouldn’t be right to not answer. So, he responded as concisely as possible.

Later, Mo Xueqing couldn’t bear it any longer and smiled as she intervened, “Xiangxiang, let Dr. Shen enjoy his meal.”

Gu Yanxiang argued, “Mom, I’ve wanted to be a female medical examiner for a long time. Today, I finally met a real medical examiner. Shouldn’t I ask questions?”

Mo Xueqing, surprised by this, paused for a moment before continuing with a smile, “You, child. I don’t oppose you pursuing this profession, but being a medical examiner isn’t all fun and games. Make sure you understand it thoroughly before saying so.”

Gu Yanxiang, earnestly eating, replied, “I’m not joking. Dad, which schools offer a medical examiner program? What are the admission scores? And which ones admit female students? I’ve already researched it all.”

Gu Wenbin added, “Being a female medical examiner requires enduring a lot of hardships.”

Gu Yanxiang argued back, “Dad, being a doctor also requires enduring a lot of hardships. Besides, being a medical examiner is much simpler than dealing with doctor-patient relationships. I watched a promotional video from my brother’s City Bureau, and there’s a female medical examiner named Wen Wan among his colleagues. She’s my role model.”

Gu Yanchen didn’t hesitate to point out his sister’s flaw, “If you want to be a medical examiner, first improve your simulation scores.”

With the mention of scores, Gu Yanxiang finally quieted down for a while, and everyone collectively changed the topic. After a while, the girl, still persistent, lifted her head and asked, “Medical examiner Shen, do you take apprentices? I heard that medical examiners usually have mentors. If I get into the medical examiner program and return to the City Bureau, can you be my mentor?”

From his unrelated sister’s words, Gu Yanchen sensed a hint of crisis. Both raised by Mo Xueqing, the siblings’ tastes and aesthetic preferences strangely coincided. Gu Yanxiang had been snatching things from him since she was two, whether it was stationery or snacks, even fruits he liked. With her eyes gleaming, the girl awaited Shen Junci’s response.

Glancing at Gu Yanchen, Shen Junci replied, “I’m from the Special Criminal Division as a medical examiner. Everything will be arranged by your brother.”

Gu Yanchen added, “Medical examiner Shen already has an apprentice. If you really want to learn, I’ll have his apprentice teach you when you get there.”

Gu Yanxiang felt a blow to her pride and lowered her head to focus on her food.

Later, in their room, watching Gu Yanchen, Shen Junci, sensing his thoughts, reached out and placed a hand on Gu Yanchen’s leg, whispering softly, “We can’t choose our birth or parents, but we can choose who we are.”

A person’s destiny is determined by their choices. So, Gu Yanchen is Gu Yanchen, and Dream Master is Dream Master. Even with similar backgrounds and experiences, they can’t become the other. Suddenly, Gu Yanchen felt relieved and pulled Shen Junci in for a kiss.

Beside him, there were loving parents, a lively and intelligent sister, and the person he loved. So, who he was, whose blood flowed through him, seemed less important. After kissing for a while, Shen Junci got up and placed the bunch of hibiscus flowers given to him by Mo Xueqing into the vase.

Meanwhile, Gu Yanchen went to his desk and opened the police platform on his computer.

Shen Junci asked, “Are you working overtime tonight?”

Rubbing his temples, Gu Yanchen replied, “Thinking about today’s case, I feel like something’s missing, like we’ve overlooked some clues.”

Understanding Shen Junci nodded, “Then you better get busy. I’ll go downstairs to walk the dog.”

Gu Yanchen began organizing his recent work documents. After the supervisory team arrived in Penang, there had been significant progress regarding the cleaning company’s involvement. This morning, the supervisory team called him for a meeting.

Based on Li Yiyang’s testimony, they had traced a middle-aged couple who appeared to be ordinary but were actually the top cleaners within the cleaning company. The corpse of Xia Tian’en had been handled by them personally. The supervisory team arrested the couple, and they confessed to the crime.

Subsequently, the police sealed off several villas under the cleaning company’s name. Currently, apart from the elusive mastermind behind the scenes, the cleaning company has been dismantled.

After sorting through these documents, Gu Yanchen began reviewing the interrogation records for today’s case. When he returned from the meeting at noon, Lu Ying, Bai Meng, and Yu Shen had already questioned all the workers and related personnel they could summon. After their investigation, they concluded that these individuals had no criminal suspicion, and the case was still in the evidence-gathering stage.

In the evening, Gu Yanchen received new information from Mo Xueqing. He opened all the testimony files and prepared to verify them. His expression turned serious as he reviewed the materials.

In the group chat, Gu Yanchen asked, “Is the person in charge of the cold storage named Zhang Yunwei?”

He had briefly met the young man this morning.

Lu Ying replied, “Yes, we questioned Zhang Yunwei this morning and detained him for a while. However, he was probably not born yet or only a few years old when the female corpse was murdered, so he couldn’t be the killer. He claimed to have no knowledge of the matter. By noon, we had to let him go.”

Gu Yanchen glanced over the testimonies, “Your investigation direction seems off. According to Zhang Yunwei and the workers’ testimonies, Zhang Yunwei is 29 years old this year and has been in charge of the cold storage for only seven years. Most of the workers have been working here for three to five years. You shouldn’t focus on the current workers; instead, you should inquire about the former employees and the previous managers of the cold storage. Have you contacted Zhang Yunwei’s father?”

Lu Ying hastily replied, “When we called at noon, the phone number we had was switched off. Zhang Yunwei said his father had gone back to their hometown. Maybe the signal wasn’t good, and he said he would tell his father about this and ask him to come to the City Bureau tomorrow.”

Hearing this, Gu Yanchen frowned, “Something doesn’t add up. The son inherited his father’s cold storage and found a corpse inside it, yet he’s so indifferent? Shouldn’t he have contacted his father immediately and clarified the situation? Why didn’t you reach out to his father first thing?”

Yu Shen had a sudden realization, “Could it be intentional on Zhang Yunwei’s part? What does he know? Is he trying to prevent us from contacting his father?”

Now thinking about it, how could the person in charge of a cold storage not know about a corpse hidden inside it? Perhaps this corpse was left there by Zhang Zhaoxin. He used to come to work every day. He intentionally piled up the old goods in the corner, thinking that the cold storage managed by him wouldn’t be thoroughly investigated.

Gu Yanchen instructed, “Bai Meng, retrieve Zhang Zhaoxin’s personal information and then try contacting him again.”

Bai Meng immediately retrieved his personal information and sent it to the group.

Gu Yanchen frowned as he looked at the file, organizing the information within. Transforming a cold set of data into a story was a basic skill for a detective.

Zhang Zhaoxin was Zhang Yunwei’s father, but he was seventy-two years old this year.

Zhang Yunwei was their third child. Before him, they had a son and a daughter. The daughter tragically died in a car accident at the age of eight, and the son passed away due to illness at the age of sixteen. After these losses, in their forties, they finally had Zhang Yunwei. 

Experiencing the loss of their children, the grief-stricken parents now had a child in their old age, and they doted on their youngest son. Gu Yanchen looked at the information, picking out the keywords and hidden details, then combining them with the clues obtained from the corpse frozen for several years.

Parents who lost their children, a woman frozen in the cold storage, the former boss who had a child in his old age, and the current young manager… It seemed like the answer was becoming clear.

Bai Meng stated in the group chat, “I called Zhang Zhaoxin, but his phone is still off. Zhang Yunwei’s phone is also off, and his mother can’t be reached either.”

Gu Yanchen quickly stood up and calmly said via voice message, “Contact the detectives and get ready to move!”

Before the group members could fully understand the situation, Gu Yanchen added, “The murderer may be Zhang Zhaoxin, and the child born to the female corpse is Zhang Yunwei. Zhang Zhaoxin might not have gone back to his hometown. Regardless of the situation, let’s go to Zhang Zhaoxin’s house now.”

Zhang Yunwei, he was also a child of a container.

Gu Yanchen quickly made a judgment, “He may want to find out everything and seek revenge for his mother.”

While sending messages to Shen Junci, Gu Yanchen went downstairs. Shen Junci had just finished walking the dog and put him back inside before getting into the car. Gu Yanchen’s car left the neighborhood and headed towards Zhang Zhaoxin’s house.

.

Half an hour ago, on this night of reunion, the person in charge of the cold storage, Zhang Yunwei, also returned home. His mother, Ji Meiying, handed him his slippers, asking chattering, “Why are you working overtime on the Mid-Autumn Festival until now? Aren’t the workers all off?”

His father, Zhang Zhaoxin, had already prepared food and alcohol on the table, asking, “What’s the matter with the call you made to me today? Why did you ask me to turn off my phone? Don’t answer unfamiliar calls?”

He had received a message from Zhang Yunwei in the morning. At that time, his son hadn’t explained the situation clearly, just urgently asked him to turn off his phone.

Zhang Yunwei hadn’t changed his shoes yet. He looked at his parents, who had raised him for over twenty years, and a faint smile appeared on his lips, a smile that was somewhat cold. “Today, there were a few things happening at the cold storage, and I went to see Aunt Qin in the afternoon.”

Aunt Qin was Ji Meiying’s friend and their former neighbor. Ji Meiying would confide in Aunt Qin about anything.

Curious, Ji Meiying asked, “What did you go to Aunt Qin for? Why bother her during the Mid-Autumn Festival?”

Zhang Yunwei replied, “I went to ask her about the past. She said that after your daughter and son passed away one after another, you two sought medical advice for a long time, always wanting another child. You even went to pray to the Goddess of Fertility and considered assisted reproduction, enduring a lot of hardships. Eventually, one day, your wish was fulfilled, and you had another child.”

“Ah, it’s all in the past. Why are you bringing this up now? Hurry up and eat with chopsticks,” Ji Meiying said.

Only then did Zhang Yunwei continue, “The police went to the cold storage today.”

Hearing this, Zhang Zhaoxin paused, and he slightly lowered his head. The light cast deep shadows on the wrinkles on his face.

“Why would they suddenly go to the cold storage?” Ji Meiying stood up straight, her gaze flickering. “Did they find anything?”

“They found a corpse in the cold storage,” Zhang Yunwei said as he approached the two elderly people step by step. “Do you know whose corpse that is? My dear father, mother…”