Chapter 54: The House of Eden
"Meng Changan? Are you trying to tell me that he is the killer?" Han Fei didn't have time to ask more questions before the bodies of the seven victims were torn apart, slowly combining to form that terrifying monster.
Without reason, hope, or benevolence, the monster only wanted to destroy everything in front of it.
"Do these seven victims have to experience that dismemberment-like pain every night?" Han Fei left the bedroom. He glanced at the digital clock on the wall—it was already four in the morning, the time the eighth victim died. "They have been resisting all this time..."
The monster was about to appear, so Han Fei silently closed the bedroom door.
The ominous house was no longer safe. The monster would indiscriminately attack everyone.
"The seven victims are separate individuals, but they have been forcibly stitched together. What can I do to save them?"
Han Fei was exhausted. He went to the corner of the living room and chose to exit the game.
Taking off the gaming helmet, Han Fei grabbed the cup on the table and took a few sips.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, he gazed at the wall covered in crime scene photos, finally focusing on a particular picture.
"Meng Changan."
As drowsiness and fatigue swept over him like a tide, Han Fei could no longer resist. He lay down on the bed and fell asleep.
...
In the late morning, Han Fei was awakened by the sound of his phone ringing. He picked up his phone and quickly answered, "Li Xue? What's happening?"
"I'm outside your door. Can we meet?" Li Xue's voice sounded urgent.
"Outside?" Han Fei hung up the phone, quickly got dressed, and rushed to the door. "Why did you come to my place so early? Don't you have work?"
"I'm actually at work right now. Let's talk inside." Li Xue's expression was serious, as if something major had happened.
After closing the door and drawing the curtains, Li Xue pulled Han Fei to sit on a chair. "Last night, the municipal public security bureau deployed a large number of police officers and conducted a thorough search of the New Hu Ecological Nature Reserve Forest. They found a black wooden house within an hour of the search."
"That was easy."
"They searched inside and outside the house, even digging up the surrounding land for forensic examination, but they found no traces of bodies or human activity."
"Impossible!"
"Don't worry." Li Xue motioned for Han Fei to continue listening. "It seems that the black house was intentionally used to mislead the police. At the insistence of my professor, the police expanded the search area. After four hours, a lucky police officer fell into a depression, and near that depression, they found another black wooden house."
"I remember, Wei Youfu had also entered the New Hu Ecological Forest twice. The first time, he returned empty-handed, but the second time, he found fragments of the child's clothes." Seeing the grim expression on Li Xue's face, Han Fei asked in a low voice, "What did you find in that house?"
"The deepest part of the black house is devoid of modern communication devices, very primitive. The above-ground level is ordinary, like a shack built by a forest ranger for themselves. But once you enter the underground through a secret passage, you'll discover a different world." Li Xue's face grew even worse. "In the underground level, they found many daily necessities and children's clothes, all neatly organized. However, in one specific room that the killer called the House of Eden, the police discovered something."
Eden refers to a paradise, a mythical land created by God, filled with beautiful flowers, plants, and various birds and animals. People live there carefree, in harmony and happiness.
"What was in that room?" Han Fei had a sense of foreboding.
"When experienced investigators entered that room, they couldn't help but start vomiting." Li Xue took out her phone and showed Han Fei a few pictures. "The room was completely occupied by blood and strange symbols. In the soil beneath the room, they discovered multiple child corpses. The earliest corpse, identified through forensic examination, dates back twenty years."
"Can the identities of those children be determined?"
"They are all abandoned orphans, most with incomplete information. However, the identity of the earliest corpse has been determined." Li Xue scrolled through her phone and found another picture. "He Yuehuai. At the age of six, he donated his own kidney. His father is He Shouye, the director of the New Hu North Street Private Welfare Institute."
"Wait, I'm confused. The director of the homeless shelter who took in the old lady from the refrigerator case is He Shouye? And his own child's body is in that black house?" Han Fei asked, voicing his doubts.
"As we continued the investigation, He Shouye, the director of the North Street Welfare Institute, became a major suspect, and the black house in the ecological forest is related to him. His child's kidney donation wasn't entirely voluntary but the result of some undisclosed transaction. The first money He Shouye earned was in exchange for his own child's kidney."
"He is truly despicable!"
"But he disguised himself very well. Almost everyone who has met him thinks he is a good person. After his child's death, he even personally funded the renovation of the North Street Welfare Institute to commemorate his child."
"What a noble reason." Han Fei's eyes filled with coldness. "This person is now where? Have you arrested him?"
Li Xue shook her head. "He Shouye does have significant suspicion, but he has clear alibis during the deaths of Wei Youfu, Ah Mei, and Gu Ye. Furthermore, He Shouye himself died in a car accident a few years after the body puzzle case."
"He's dead?"
"Yes, Jiang Jiang and He Shouye, the two people most directly related to the case, are both dead. It seems like there is another hand behind the body puzzle case." Li Xue's expression became even more serious. "Although the killer hasn't been caught yet, there has been a major breakthrough. We now believe that there is more than one perpetrator, and even 'assisted' killings have occurred in this case."
"Assisted killings?"
"He Shouye's involvement with the deaths of Xiao Qing, Cui Caiyi, and Cui Tianci is significant. The police have gathered more and more clues, and with advancements in forensic technology, it won't be long before the truth of this case is revealed!" Li Xue's expression turned grave. "I came here today mainly to tell you another thing. The killer is cruel, cunning, and vengeful. It's highly likely that he will come after you."
"Come after me?"
"Yes, the drama you recently filmed will also attract his attention. You must be careful and stay safe."
After Li Xue finished her explanation and prepared to leave, Han Fei stopped her. "Li Xue, I've been thinking at home for a long time these past few days. There's someone the police need to pay special attention to!"
"Who?"
"The little adopted son from the refrigerator case, Meng Changan." Han Fei opened his computer. "I know he has received great praise online, and people around him think highly of him. However, he might be a severely twisted and insane individual deep down."
Without reason, hope, or benevolence, the monster only wanted to destroy everything in front of it.
"Do these seven victims have to experience that dismemberment-like pain every night?" Han Fei left the bedroom. He glanced at the digital clock on the wall—it was already four in the morning, the time the eighth victim died. "They have been resisting all this time..."
The monster was about to appear, so Han Fei silently closed the bedroom door.
The ominous house was no longer safe. The monster would indiscriminately attack everyone.
"The seven victims are separate individuals, but they have been forcibly stitched together. What can I do to save them?"
Han Fei was exhausted. He went to the corner of the living room and chose to exit the game.
Taking off the gaming helmet, Han Fei grabbed the cup on the table and took a few sips.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, he gazed at the wall covered in crime scene photos, finally focusing on a particular picture.
"Meng Changan."
As drowsiness and fatigue swept over him like a tide, Han Fei could no longer resist. He lay down on the bed and fell asleep.
...
In the late morning, Han Fei was awakened by the sound of his phone ringing. He picked up his phone and quickly answered, "Li Xue? What's happening?"
"I'm outside your door. Can we meet?" Li Xue's voice sounded urgent.
"Outside?" Han Fei hung up the phone, quickly got dressed, and rushed to the door. "Why did you come to my place so early? Don't you have work?"
"I'm actually at work right now. Let's talk inside." Li Xue's expression was serious, as if something major had happened.
After closing the door and drawing the curtains, Li Xue pulled Han Fei to sit on a chair. "Last night, the municipal public security bureau deployed a large number of police officers and conducted a thorough search of the New Hu Ecological Nature Reserve Forest. They found a black wooden house within an hour of the search."
"That was easy."
"They searched inside and outside the house, even digging up the surrounding land for forensic examination, but they found no traces of bodies or human activity."
"Impossible!"
"Don't worry." Li Xue motioned for Han Fei to continue listening. "It seems that the black house was intentionally used to mislead the police. At the insistence of my professor, the police expanded the search area. After four hours, a lucky police officer fell into a depression, and near that depression, they found another black wooden house."
"I remember, Wei Youfu had also entered the New Hu Ecological Forest twice. The first time, he returned empty-handed, but the second time, he found fragments of the child's clothes." Seeing the grim expression on Li Xue's face, Han Fei asked in a low voice, "What did you find in that house?"
"The deepest part of the black house is devoid of modern communication devices, very primitive. The above-ground level is ordinary, like a shack built by a forest ranger for themselves. But once you enter the underground through a secret passage, you'll discover a different world." Li Xue's face grew even worse. "In the underground level, they found many daily necessities and children's clothes, all neatly organized. However, in one specific room that the killer called the House of Eden, the police discovered something."
Eden refers to a paradise, a mythical land created by God, filled with beautiful flowers, plants, and various birds and animals. People live there carefree, in harmony and happiness.
"What was in that room?" Han Fei had a sense of foreboding.
"When experienced investigators entered that room, they couldn't help but start vomiting." Li Xue took out her phone and showed Han Fei a few pictures. "The room was completely occupied by blood and strange symbols. In the soil beneath the room, they discovered multiple child corpses. The earliest corpse, identified through forensic examination, dates back twenty years."
"Can the identities of those children be determined?"
"They are all abandoned orphans, most with incomplete information. However, the identity of the earliest corpse has been determined." Li Xue scrolled through her phone and found another picture. "He Yuehuai. At the age of six, he donated his own kidney. His father is He Shouye, the director of the New Hu North Street Private Welfare Institute."
"Wait, I'm confused. The director of the homeless shelter who took in the old lady from the refrigerator case is He Shouye? And his own child's body is in that black house?" Han Fei asked, voicing his doubts.
"As we continued the investigation, He Shouye, the director of the North Street Welfare Institute, became a major suspect, and the black house in the ecological forest is related to him. His child's kidney donation wasn't entirely voluntary but the result of some undisclosed transaction. The first money He Shouye earned was in exchange for his own child's kidney."
"He is truly despicable!"
"But he disguised himself very well. Almost everyone who has met him thinks he is a good person. After his child's death, he even personally funded the renovation of the North Street Welfare Institute to commemorate his child."
"What a noble reason." Han Fei's eyes filled with coldness. "This person is now where? Have you arrested him?"
Li Xue shook her head. "He Shouye does have significant suspicion, but he has clear alibis during the deaths of Wei Youfu, Ah Mei, and Gu Ye. Furthermore, He Shouye himself died in a car accident a few years after the body puzzle case."
"He's dead?"
"Yes, Jiang Jiang and He Shouye, the two people most directly related to the case, are both dead. It seems like there is another hand behind the body puzzle case." Li Xue's expression became even more serious. "Although the killer hasn't been caught yet, there has been a major breakthrough. We now believe that there is more than one perpetrator, and even 'assisted' killings have occurred in this case."
"Assisted killings?"
"He Shouye's involvement with the deaths of Xiao Qing, Cui Caiyi, and Cui Tianci is significant. The police have gathered more and more clues, and with advancements in forensic technology, it won't be long before the truth of this case is revealed!" Li Xue's expression turned grave. "I came here today mainly to tell you another thing. The killer is cruel, cunning, and vengeful. It's highly likely that he will come after you."
"Come after me?"
"Yes, the drama you recently filmed will also attract his attention. You must be careful and stay safe."
After Li Xue finished her explanation and prepared to leave, Han Fei stopped her. "Li Xue, I've been thinking at home for a long time these past few days. There's someone the police need to pay special attention to!"
"Who?"
"The little adopted son from the refrigerator case, Meng Changan." Han Fei opened his computer. "I know he has received great praise online, and people around him think highly of him. However, he might be a severely twisted and insane individual deep down."
Comments
Post a Comment