"Name?"
"Fang Zheng."
"Gender?"
"...Male."
"Age?"
"Officer, I think I’m not the suspect under interrogation?" A slightly helpless voice sounded.
"Uh..." Officer Lin, sitting upright, had a slightly stiff expression. He stopped his actions and looked up at the man in front of him with an embarrassed smile:
"Sorry, it’s a habit. You’re here to claim the body, right?"
"Yes." Fang Zheng nodded, his eyelashes covering his eyelids, his face expressionless, making it hard to discern his emotional fluctuations.
"What’s your relationship with the deceased?"
"Fang Jian was my uncle."
"Uncle..." Officer Lin had investigated the case of the deceased and wasn’t surprised:
"The deceased should currently have only you as a relative, right?"
"..." Fang Zheng hesitated for a moment:
"Yes."
Actually, Uncle Fang Jian married early and had a pair of children, but after the divorce, the children were awarded to the mother, and since then, they lost contact.
That was a long time ago. In Fang Zheng’s memory, the appearance of his aunt has long been blurred.
"This way."
Returning to his senses, he followed Officer Lin along a narrow, dim corridor. The flickering light above created a backdrop, and only the sound of footsteps echoed in his ears.
The departure of a relative lingered in his mind, leaving Fang Zheng uninterested in other matters.
"Fang Zheng."
The keys twirled deftly on his fingers, and Officer Lin casually asked:
"Do you know what your uncle was doing?"
"Yes," Fang Zheng replied:
"Uncle rented a storefront at Seven Miles to trade antiques and also dealt in porcelain. Our Fang Family has made a living by making porcelain since my great-grandfather’s time."
Speaking of this, his voice inevitably carried a hint of pride.
The hundred-year-old noble family name of their Fang Family in porcelain is no fraud!
Of course.
Qu City, known as the porcelain capital, has many century-old noble families in porcelain, and the Fang Family is just one of them, having fallen into decline long ago.
It’s said that the ancestors flourished for a while, but unfortunately, the younger generation failed. Uncle Fang Jian couldn’t make a name for himself despite years of effort, and even the store was rented.
As for Fang Zheng...
He didn’t venture into this field since childhood.
"Porcelain..." Officer Lin was noncommittal, continuing to ask:
"Did your uncle mingle with any... unsavory characters?"
"No," Fang Zheng frowned.
Uncle Fang Jian, though tall, was actually simple and honest, and not eloquent, so he couldn’t have associated with any delinquent people.
He said firmly:
"My uncle was a good man!"
"Is that so?" Officer Lin, back facing Fang Zheng, smirked and said slowly:
"Let’s not rush to see the body; first, take a look at the photos from the scene. If you think you can handle it, then proceed to examine the body."
With that, he knocked on a small side door and requested a stack of photos from someone inside.
Fang Zheng took them, and his face turned pale the moment he looked down.
"The autopsy determined that the time of death was between 3 and 6 PM on July 3rd, due to excessive blood loss."
Officer Lin spoke:
"The deceased was surrounded and attacked by several individuals wielding sharp weapons; from the wounds, at least five different weapons were used, one of which was a long saber piercing the abdomen and left at the scene."
He paused here.
Even though the waist and abdomen of a human body are soft areas, piercing through in one stab isn’t easy; it requires not only great strength but also certain skills.
Even seasoned officers couldn’t help but be shocked.
Fang Zheng was looking at the weapon in the photo.
In modern society, it’s rare to see this cross-saber-shaped long saber, with its wide blade, curved tip, sharp front and slanted back, with a guard between the handle and the blade body.
The blade was sharp.
At a glance, it was obvious that this was not a fine, unsharpened display piece but a real lethal weapon!
In addition to the weapon, the photos depicted his uncle’s body, a scene of flesh and blood that was a heavy blow to him, new to society. It left him feeling suffocated and anxious.
"There are fingerprints on the handle, but we haven’t found the perpetrator yet." Officer Lin shook his head and continued:
"The deceased had no relatives nearby, and his relationship with neighbors was average. The body wasn’t found until three days after the incident."
"The strange thing is, aside from the injuries on the deceased, nothing around him was damaged, so we suspect that the primary crime scene was not at the residence. However, it’s puzzling why the perpetrator would kill and then transport the body back here, leaving the weapon behind."
With that, he showed a look of confusion.
Fang Zheng’s face was tense, veins bulging on his hands, filled with grief and indignation, his eyes already red, asking hoarsely:
"Why would someone want to kill my uncle?"
"We haven’t found out yet." Officer Lin leaned forward, assessing:
"But before his death, the deceased had borrowed high-interest loans from some people and bought some prohibited items capable of killing."
"Including things like crossbows..."
Purchasing a large number of prohibited lethal items and being attacked with sharp weapons suggests a situation not typical for ’ordinary people.’
Fang Zheng was stunned.
In his impression, Uncle Fang Jian was honest and reticent; even if he had some small plans, he would never dare to do anything illegal.
He hastily argued:
"That’s impossible!"
"My uncle was a good man! Even if he bought these... it was out of desperation!"
Despite saying this, he couldn’t help feeling a little panicked in his heart.
Since starting university, Fang Zheng hadn’t returned much, and even during the holidays, he often did odd jobs to earn money. Several years could indeed change a person’s character.
"Perhaps." Officer Lin shrugged, asking:
"Have you spoken with your uncle on the phone recently? Did he say anything?"
Fang Zheng opened his mouth but hesitated.
He suddenly remembered that a few days ago, late one evening, after wrapping up an event, he did receive a call from his uncle.
At the time, exhausted and sleepy, he just wanted to collapse into bed, so he dismissed the call with a few words.
Now, thinking back...
Uncle’s voice was unusually excited, as if he had discovered something remarkable, but he hadn’t given it much thought.
"Uncle said he recently found a way to make a fortune!"
Fang Zheng, face pale, muttered:
"He also told me to take care of myself, not to do night shifts, and to pay attention to my health, that we’d have good times ahead."
"Oh!" Officer Lin’s eyes lit up:
"Did he say anything specific about what this opportunity was?"
"No." Fang Zheng lowered his head, holding back tears:
"But Uncle would never do anything bad."
"..." Officer Lin stroked his chin, deep in thought. Once Fang Zheng regained his composure, he asked:
"Do you still want to see the body?"
"A word of warning, the body is much more shocking than the photos, and many officers couldn’t handle the sight back then."
"I will." Fang Zheng took a deep breath:
"Please, Officer, lead the way."
"Fang Jian’s family?"
"Yes."
"Here, sign here."
A document filled with densely packed text was passed through the window. Immersed in grief, Fang Zheng gave only a cursory glance at the terms before signing his name without comparing the contents.
"Here you go!"
The package wasn’t large, and there wasn’t much inside.
Aside from the familiar phone with a patina, there were personal items like a bracelet, cards...
And a rusty bracelet.
"Thank you!"
After expressing his gratitude, Fang Zheng, like a walking corpse, walked out the door with the package. The warm sunlight fell on him, making him squint and instinctively raised a hand to shield his eyes, looking up.
The scorching sun hung high, yet it couldn’t warm the chill in his heart.
"Alas!"
After a long while.
With a faint sigh, Fang Zheng took a step forward.