Chapter 122: Chapter 121: Back to the Beginning_1
Xu Dayuan said reflectively,
"You’ve always been proper, completely flawless. Whenever I assigned you a task, you always managed to complete it 200 percent beyond my expectations, better than I could have imagined. Although these are all impressive qualities, they aren’t your greatest strengths. What’s truly commendable is your sincerity. Don’t forget that, even years from now—this very sincerity of yours!"
Zhou Ning didn’t ask any more questions; he wasn’t the kind of person who was bursting with a sense of justice.
However, he understood why Xu Dayuan had chosen to act this way—he hoped that Zhang Guoqing’s reputation would be ruined. Although Zhang Guoqing wasn’t the murderer of Zhang Min’an, he was indirectly one of the causes.
After all, if Zhang Min’an had money and didn’t have to struggle for a livelihood, who wouldn’t want to take good care of their health and enjoy their twilight years in peace?
Exhaustion, anxiety, self-blame, guilt—these things wore him down until he became sick.
They even forced these two elders to confess to crimes they hadn’t committed, to live a lifetime consumed by guilt, blaming them for the death of Zhang Guoqing’s mother, and to torment Zhang Min’an and Luo Suqin endlessly with it, even coveting Luo Suqin’s house. This was truly despicable.
And it’s the kind of person who, having acted like a prostitute, still wants the respect accorded to a virgin, taking all the benefits while criticizing those who provided them, always standing on the moral high ground, presenting themselves as the embodiment of justice.
Such people are the scum of humanity, and they teach and educate others—how could we possibly let them poison the minds of young students?
Zhou Ning nodded and looked at Xu Dayuan.
"We can directly send a letter of inquiry to the school, providing a detailed account of Zhang Guoqing’s behavior to the Southwest University of Political Science and Law, including the amount, time, and reason for each sum of money that Zhang Guoqing extorted from his father. We hope the school can provide any form of proof, as well as Zhang Guoqing’s personal information, including that of his family members, for comparison."
Xu Dayuan grinned and patted Zhou Ning.
"That’s a good idea. There’s not a single word of condemnation, but every sentence is a moral indictment. I’ll handle it right away. Instead of sending it directly to the Southwest University of Political Science and Law, we’ll go through the Southwest City Government and then forward it to the university. It doesn’t matter if it’s slow; it must be passed up through the ranks and be widely known. After all, we can detain him for a few days."
"Mr. Xu, is this your way of complimenting me? It doesn’t sound like it to me," Zhou Ning said.
Xu Dayuan gave Zhou Ning a pat, his smile unchanged.
"Stop your nonsense. You’re cultured, and you speak to my heart."
Before Zhou Ning could argue, the door opened, and Officer Liu walked in.
"Mr. Xu, the editor-in-chief and the lawyer have arrived. Should I bring them over?"
Xu Dayuan waved his hand, pressing down on Zhou Ning’s shoulder to signal him to sit and wait, and followed Officer Liu out. In a moment, four people entered the adjacent interview room, clearly the two individuals from the video will.
Both men were somewhat nervous. Xu Dayuan smiled at them, trying to keep his expression from being too stern.
"I’ve asked you both here today to verify a matter. Do you know Zhang Min’an?"
The two men exchanged looks and nodded in unison.
"When was the last time you saw Zhang Min’an? Do you remember?"
"At the end of last June," said editor-in-chief Guan Aijun, speaking first.
"June 27, 2010—that’s what I have on record. Additionally, he made a notarization on April 30, 2010. I have a photocopy of the notary document here."
Lawyer Zhang Jungang placed a piece of paper on the table, and Xu Dayuan glanced at it.
"Do you know why I’m looking for you?"
Zhang Jungang nodded.
"When the police contacted me, they asked about Zhang Min’an, so I brought the documents with me. I have a copy of his video will with me, which he also entrusted to me for safekeeping. Don’t tell me it’s about his son fighting over the inheritance. Is he... is he still around?"
At his words, Guan Aijun also looked at Xu Dayuan.
From their expressions, it was clear that they were both quite concerned about Zhang Min’an, but also unaware of his circumstances.
"He’s no longer with us. Right now, it’s not clear whether it was suicide or homicide. His remains were found in the wilderness."
Both were taken aback, and Guan Aijun moved forward.
"I was transferred to work at the National Publishing Administration in July last year and haven’t been in touch with Zhang Min’an since, but his condition is very bad. I’ve talked to him, and his attending physician said he now has widespread cancerous cells and not much time left. However, his translation work continues to come in every month; I don’t know if it’s his translations or those of his partner."
"Have you ever heard Zhang Min’an talk about his partner?"
Zhang Jungang spoke up first.
"I’ve asked since I had to record his will; I needed to understand his situation to prevent disputes later on. I just didn’t expect his family situation to be so complicated.
His partner didn’t go through marriage procedures with him, but their relationship was stable. We viewed it as a common-law marriage. He didn’t go through official marriage procedures mainly to protect Ms. Luo from his son’s harassment and to prevent his son from inheriting Ms. Luo’s assets later."
Xu Dayuan nodded; the lawyer’s words were very cautious.
"Mr. Guan, could you check whether, starting from May last year, the royalties for Zhang Min’an’s translations stopped appearing in his account? Is he still translating manuscripts, has he stopped working, or has he changed the payment account?"
"No need to check. I was helping with that. His son went to his house in March and injured Ms. Luo. Zhang asked me to change the account for the royalty payments. They had a book to translate, which was a huge task; I had finished only 10% when I left."
At this point, Guan Aijun made a phone call, using the speakerphone to answer directly.
"Mr. Guan, hello, what made you think to call?"
"Xiao Cai, I want to ask you something. You remember Zhang Min’an, right? Is his translation work still ongoing? What’s the progress on that document?"
"Zhang Min’an, yes, I remember. The translation is still ongoing and nearly complete. I estimate the last batch of manuscripts will arrive in the next couple of days, and then we can settle the payment. Are you looking to introduce him to other translation work? Please don’t; I already have people lined up here."
"How’s the quality of the translations?"
"Of course, the quality is consistently excellent. But how should I put it? The wording is slightly different than before, more... more poetic, especially the translations of poems. I think they’re as good as the best. Don’t worry, I have proposed increasing their payment due to the difficulty of these documents."
"That’s good, just wanted to ask that. By the way, are they still using Ms. Luo’s account for payments?"
"Yes."
Guan Aijun glanced at Xu Dayuan, saw him nod, and then hung up the phone to end the conversation.
"Thank you very much for your support; we have learned what we needed."
Guan Aijun grabbed Xu Dayuan’s sleeve with a worried expression on his face.
"Officer, I have called Zhang Min’an before, but Ms. Luo said he went back to his hometown for treatment and there was no follow-up. If possible, I would like to know the cause of Zhang Min’an’s death."
"Yes, I want to know as well."
Xu Dayuan let out a sigh, seeming troubled, but he explained nonetheless.
"We are investigating the cause of Zhang Min’an’s death. His skeletal remains were scattered over Xiaolong Mountain, the case reported in the news a few days ago. Currently, Luo Suqin and Zhang Guoqing are suspects, but no injuries indicating murder were found on the body."
The two shook their heads almost in unison.
"It can’t be Luo Suqin. Their affection for each other is beyond our imagination. You know, if it weren’t for Luo Suqin, Zhang Min’an would have frozen to death in the mountains. It was Luo who carried him on her back for a day and a night to the hospital for treatment.
Because of this, Luo lost four toes to frostbite and developed a chronic condition, leaving her unable to have children. She also suffers from chilblains every year. Hearing that Luo could no longer have children, Zhang Min’an’s father went so far as to threaten him with death, adamantly refusing their marriage. Luo learned of this and chose to leave without disturbing the elderly man.
Their reunion was also due to a chance encounter years later; by this time, Zhang Min’an’s wife had passed away for several years. The allegations of destroying the family made by his son are completely implausible."
Xu Dayuan nodded. Although their relationship with Zhang Min’an was only average, they spoke so highly of Luo Suqin; evidently, they were impressed by her character and moved by her commitment, as recounted by Zhang Min’an himself.
Zhou Ning frowned deeply. The more he investigated, the more perplexed he became. If it was a natural death, why dismantle the body? Could it have been Zhang Min’an’s request?
But this was utterly illogical. Zhou Ning couldn’t understand, and it made no sense, especially since people in Hua Country traditionally emphasized a proper burial. Even in the case of sky burials practiced by some ethnic minorities, they didn’t mutilate the body.
Inside the interrogation room, Xu Dayuan had stood up to see the two out. The door opened and Xu Dayuan walked in, noticing Zhou Ning frowning, as if he knew what Zhou Ning was thinking about.
"Forget it, pondering over this is pointless. Come with me to the Sixth Hospital to see Luo Suqin. The message from the guard suggests she is out of danger now, and perhaps she can give us an answer."
