I See Murders Before They Happen

Chapter 292: Chapter 290: Looking for a Breakthrough

After leaving Tian Dajiang’s house.

They went to look at the village well, the same one Tian Dajiang had fallen into.

"A lot of villagers used to come here to draw water. Ever since Tian Dajiang drowned in it, very few people come by anymore," Zhao Yongliang said.

Su Miaoyi peered inside. There was still water in it.

The well was located somewhat toward the edge of the village.

Tian Dajiang had likely encountered the killer in the shed in the orchard. After being drugged with a hallucinogen, he must have walked from the mountain to the side of this well.

In the vision she had seen, there was only a ghostly face injecting a drug; she hadn’t seen where it happened.

The four of them stood around the well, looking.

Su Miaoyi asked again, "What are the specifics of what happened to Tian Min?"

Zhao Yongliang thought for a moment. "At first, her family didn’t report it, so naturally, we didn’t know. It’s been almost twelve years now. I hadn’t been transferred here back then. We only found out after this business with Tian Dajiang happened three years ago."

"Tian Min was only fifteen back then," Chu Xingrou said, shocked and furious.

Zhao Yongliang frowned and nodded. "I heard many versions three years ago. When Tian Dajiang was murdered, we had to investigate if he had any enemies. It was his parents who brought this matter up, saying they suspected Tian Min’s family was behind it. And in everything they said, they implied it was Tian Min’s fault."

A trace of disgust appeared on Su Miaoyi’s otherwise calm expression.

Su Miaoyi couldn’t help but say, "She was only fifteen. How could it possibly be her fault?"

"We definitely had to investigate this from all angles. We can’t let a killer go free, nor can we frame an innocent person," Zhao Yongliang said. "So we went to Tian Min’s home. Her parents said that Tian Dajiang had assaulted Tian Min in the fields. Tian Min’s family didn’t call the police. The two families negotiated, and in the end, Tian Dajiang’s family paid Tian Min’s family over ten thousand yuan."

Chu Xingrou took a deep breath.

"The night Tian Dajiang was murdered three years ago, Tian Min’s entire family was in Chang City. They didn’t have time to commit the crime, so they were ruled out," Zhao Yongliang continued. "Besides, it involved Tian Min’s privacy, so we only questioned the two families and didn’t ask anyone else in the village."

"But later, when we were asking the neighbors about Tian Dajiang, someone brought up what happened to Tian Min again. That’s when we learned that practically the whole village knew about it. So we asked some of the other villagers, and they were all cursing Tian Dajiang, saying he was a real piece of work."

Zhao Yongliang fell silent for a moment, then added, "This might be unprofessional to say, but after I met Tian Min’s parents, I never suspected them."

"Why?"

"A father who loves to gamble, a mother who neglects the home—they don’t care about their children at all. Tian Min basically raised her two younger brothers herself. I just don’t think they’re the kind of people who would do something like this for their child’s sake." Zhao Yongliang sighed. "She was just unlucky, being born into a family like that."

"Where’s her house?" Su Miaoyi asked.

"Over there." Zhao Yongliang pointed to the other end of the village. "In the southeast corner. Third house in the second row from the south."

"That’s pretty far from here," Chu Xingrou said.

"It is," Zhao Yongliang said.

They spent some more time in the village, randomly questioning a few more households.

Around noon, they started heading back.

When they reached the little shop, they found it was closed.

A note on the door read: "Away for a few days. Closed."

Zhao Yongliang went to knock on the neighbor’s door.

The main gate was locked. No one was home.

A neighbor said that Tian Liu had taken her child out of town to find the child’s father, feeling that the village wasn’t safe.

It wasn’t just Tian Liu’s family; several other households in the village had also left, saying they were going to stay elsewhere for a while.

After something like this happened, everyone was naturally afraid.

It was just as Tian Liu had said.

If it really was the Sheep Horn God delivering divine punishment, that would be one thing; she hadn’t done anything to feel guilty about.

But this was the work of a person.

No one could say for sure if the killer would start killing randomly.

The households they questioned today were most concerned about safety.

So after returning to the village committee office, they first discussed the case.

Duan Wenrui and his team had found nothing new.

Su Miaoyi also reported on what she had found out.

In truth, Duan Wenrui’s team already knew almost everything she reported.

It was just that the case file wasn’t very detailed, so only Su Miaoyi and her team had been in the dark.

After discussing the case, they arranged the evening patrols.

They had to ensure the villagers’ safety.

In the afternoon, Su Miaoyi didn’t go out again, instead staying in to organize the information they had gathered so far.

Wan Shuang’s autopsy results weren’t back yet. The music player that played the children’s song last night had been sent to the city for analysis. The piece of cloth taken from the branches at Tian Dajiang’s house had also been sent for testing.

The cloth wasn’t from the clothes of Tian Dajiang’s parents, and neither of them had crawled through the hollow opening under the branches. In fact, they hadn’t even gone near that pile of branches in days.

This meant someone had been hiding in their home.

Su Miaoyi thought about the clues, connecting all the cases together under the assumption that there was only one killer.

Then she went through all the cases individually, assuming they were committed by different killers.

If it was related to crime and punishment, what kind of crime and what kind of punishment?

What was the motive?

Su Miaoyi reviewed everything all afternoon until she felt like her head had swollen to three times its normal size.

In the evening, the sun sank in the west. The sunset was beautiful.

Yanjing Village was actually a very beautiful place.

But with the case weighing on her mind, even the beautiful scenery looked gray and dreary.

Su Miaoyi watched the sunset. She looked very calm, her expression placid, sitting upright and motionless, but in her mind, she was frantically pulling at her hair.

She looked perfectly normal on the outside, but inwardly she was already at her breaking point.

’Wake up. Stop slacking and get to work. Although our two personalities can communicate, I’ve only ever offered occasional ideas or reminders when it came to solving cases in the past. I’ve never taken the lead on an entire case like this. I’m good when it comes to action, but I always feel my mind isn’t as quick as hers.’

"Sister Miaomiao, have some water." Chu Xingrou poured her a glass.

Su Miaoyi took it and had a couple of sips. "Thanks."

"Sister Miaomiao, I have an idea," Chu Xingrou said to her in a low voice.

Su Miaoyi looked at her.

"It’s about the Blood-sealing Throat found in Gao Hui’s body. Weren’t we suspecting that this case might be related to Lu Xian or Mia?" Chu Xingrou leaned in close and whispered to her. "So, maybe we could take photos of Lu Xian, Mia, and those people we arrested who worked for Mia, and ask around the village?"

Su Miaoyi felt the pressure in her swollen head vanish instantly, as if Chu Xingrou had just reconnected a snapped string in her brain.

Chu Xingrou continued, "Although I can’t imagine what Lu Xian or Mia would be doing here—I even feel like they have no business being in a place like this, since there’s nothing here for them, after all—but we don’t have any leads right now. Shouldn’t we at least give it a try?"

...