The Brain Science Case 55

Chapter 55: The Lonely Killer – 4

While on their way to Ou Anpo’s house, Zhou Jinglin reported their progress to Fang Zijun in real time.

‘Is that so…’ Fang Zijun was clearly tired. ‘The precinct police have already gone to her tutoring center to investigate. I’ll let you know if there’s any new information.’

“Okay… by the way, Chief, we didn’t see Senior Big Head and the others at the school.”

‘They went somewhere else,’ it seemed Fang Zijun knew where they had gone. ‘Maybe they’ll report back later.’

Somewhere else? She and Cai Yuwei looked at each other, and he, who had also heard the conversation, pouted and shook his head. “Understood.”

Before they arrived, Fang Zijun had already notified Mrs. Ou. When they arrived, Mrs. Ou’s face was haggard, and she seemed to be extremely worried.

But after all, they were guests, so Mrs. Ou still prepared hot tea for them. “I’m sorry, I was just resting… I don’t have much to offer.”

“Don’t worry, ma’am. We’re here to investigate. You don’t need to go to any trouble.”

But at the host’s enthusiastic invitation, she and Cai Yuwei still reluctantly sat down.

“We just went to the school to investigate, and we’d like to ask you a question, ma’am.”

“Please.”

“The homeroom teacher said you and the director restrict Anpo’s social circle… how do you restrict it?”

“And she doesn’t have a phone,” Cai Yuwei added.

“She was the one who said she didn’t want to bring it,” Mrs. Ou quickly responded. “She would bring it to the tutoring center, but she said that students at school often lose their phones, so she doesn’t bring it. As for restricting her social circle, it’s like this… you know, even at the First Girls’ High School, there’s no guarantee she won’t come into contact with bad classmates. Rather than let Anpo risk being led astray by her peers, it’s better to just forbid her from having deep contact with her classmates. She only interacts with our friends’ children.”

“Friends’ children?” she was so surprised she couldn’t speak.

“Yes, only then can we be at ease. Anpo is also very obedient. She almost always follows the rules we set for her. Besides her studies and music, she occasionally reads some extracurricular books. She doesn’t play video games or go out casually. Her life is very simple.”

“So that’s why she has no contact with her classmates.” Cai Yuwei shook his head in disapproval. “Do you know how they view Ou Anpo’s disappearance? And no one can provide any useful information. This method is a bit too…”

“Anpo is my child.”

Her attitude quickly turned firm. “You don’t understand her. I know her personality best… I know how to educate my child.”

“I’m sorry, ma’am. You may have a point.” He clenched his hands, trying to soften his tone. “But in any case, getting along with classmates is very important. Now that something has happened, none of her classmates know where your daughter is… without a phone, we can’t track her. The situation now is… very dangerous.”

“I know. Anpo’s disappearance was a complete surprise to me…”

“Excuse me.”

At the abrupt interruption, Mrs. Ou looked over and saw Yingli staring at a photo on the wall. “What’s wrong?”

“Is this a photo from your wedding?”

“Teacher,” Zhou Jinglin called out in a low voice.

“It’s fine.” She smiled calmly. “Yes, it was taken at our wedding.”

The filter was deliberately yellowed, and the background was not a scenic spot. “It has a very retro feel.”

“That’s my parents’ house. The wedding photographer suggested we choose a memorable location. Our friends all said it was very special when they saw it.”

“Huh?” Yingli’s brow furrowed, and she stared at a certain point in the photo. “It doesn’t add up. Strange…”

“Are there any other questions?”

“Ma’am.” Zhou Jinglin hurried to Yingli’s side. “I forgot to introduce you properly. This is a neuroscientist we’ve specially invited to our division, Tang Yingli. She assists us in investigating difficult criminal cases… the previous serial child murder case was solved smoothly thanks to Teacher Tang’s help.” She smiled, and the hand behind her back accurately grabbed Yingli and pinched her twice, a clear warning.

“Oh, oh, so it’s her.” Mrs. Ou’s confusion was swept away. “I’ve heard so much about you. The reason the director asked the Criminal Investigation Division for help was also because of you.”

“Yes, you’re too kind,” Yingli nodded lightly.

The scene was a little awkward. “Ma’am.” Zhou Jinglin pulled her away from the wall of decorations. “Although it’s sudden, can we see Anpo’s room? There might be some clues hidden there.”

“I’ve thought of that too. I searched twice this morning, but I didn’t find anything.” She readily agreed. “Officer Zhou, Teacher Tang, please follow me.”

“Thank you.”

After Mrs. Ou had walked a few steps away, “Can you let go now?” Yingli complained in a low voice, shaking her right hand. “You were too rough. It hurts.”

“Who told you to ask such a strange question?” She glanced at the photo. “Let’s go, let’s go see.”

“How was I ignored again?” Cai Yuwei sighed, put down his tea, and followed.

Ou Anpo’s room was on the third floor, separate from the rest of the family’s living space. The entire floor was mainly divided into two parts, a living room and a practice room.

“This is her room. I’m sorry, it’s not in its original state.”

“It’s fine. Your daughter suddenly went missing. You must be anxious to find clues.” Zhou Jinglin comforted her, and what came into view were rows of skeleton puzzles, including dinosaurs, airplanes, and other mechanical devices. “Did Anpo put those together?”

“Yes, a childhood hobby. She hasn’t played with them much since middle school.”

“Elementary school? She put together so many.” That’s so hard.

“Yes.” Mrs. Ou’s smile was mixed with a hint of pride. “I heard she liked to take apart and reassemble small toys when she was little, so the director bought her puzzles and models. Friends who didn’t know her well would think we had a little boy in the house.”

While the two of them were talking, Yingli put on her gloves and looked around the desk, which was piled with notes and extracurricular books.

“This… has it always been like this?” The bed was also messy with clothes and a quilt, but the bookshelf was neatly arranged.

Mrs. Ou blushed. “Yes, this child is good at everything, but her room has always been messy. She just can’t seem to change.”

“No, for a truly intelligent brain, this is normal.”

Cai Yuwei, who had just arrived, was about to join the search, but Mrs. Ou stopped him at the door. “Uh?”

She smiled brightly. “This is my daughter’s room. No men allowed.”

Her gaze was so sharp that he could only retreat. “She must still be holding a grudge from before,” he muttered.

“What did you say?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

The notes were mainly from class, and there were also handouts from the tutoring center.

“When did Ou Anpo start tutoring?”

“Middle school, only for English. Actually, her English was good enough, but she still insisted on it. The director and I discussed it for a long time, and in the end, we gave in to her wishes. She rarely asks for anything.”

“And it’s been going on until now?”

“No, only until the first semester of her junior year.”

Yingli flipped through a few pages and showed the handout to Mrs. Ou. “Her notes are very special. There are more drawings than words. Is she particularly interested in math and science?”

“Yes, she said she could do something similar in the future, although I still think art is more suitable for her.”

Yingli rested her chin on her hand and stared at the notes. “Do you often chat with your daughter?”

Mrs. Ou hesitated for a moment. “Not really. She’s usually in class, and after school, she’s either at tutoring or practicing the violin. In her free time, she reads or rests. This child is very self-disciplined and doesn’t need any special reminders or worries.”

She tossed the notes aside. “The violin, was that your idea or the director’s?”

“The director’s. He started her from a young age.”

Ou Anpo’s extracurricular reading was very extensive, ranging from mechanical engineering diagrams, sheet music, and science magazines to English poetry collections. She casually pulled out a few books, and the blank spaces were often filled with notes or thoughts.

The search by the bed yielded nothing, so Zhou Jinglin turned to the wall. “Can I open the closet?”

“Oh, sure.”

Inside, besides her uniform, there were mostly T-shirts, shirts, and pants. Even if there were skirts, they were already too old for her.

“Did you pick out her clothes for her?” she asked, showing Yingli a small dress with sequins.

“Most of them. Besides her performance costumes, the rest are all pants. It’s safer for girls to wear pants when they go out.”

“Worried about being assaulted by a man, right?” Yingli nodded silently and flipped through them. “I don’t see any performance costumes here.”

“They’re in the practice room. Do you want to take a look?”

Zhou Jinglin and Yingli looked at each other. “Of course.”

Compared to the bedroom, the practice room was larger and had soundproof walls. But the furnishings were simple, with only a dedicated closet for performance costumes and a piano for accompaniment.

There were two violins hanging on the wall. One was old but still clean, and the other had a beautiful wood grain and texture, and was clearly expensive.

She easily found rosin on the new violin. “Who does she learn from?” she asked, casually rubbing some of the rosin between her fingers.

“Teacher Wu Yingfan.”

“Oh, I know her,” she said with a faint smile. “I almost went to learn before, but I gave up in the end. My mother is very close to her.”

“Oh, your mother is?”

“Shao Wanjuan, a vocalist.”

“So you’re Teacher Shao’s daughter.” Mrs. Ou was overjoyed. “I heard her son is a doctor, but I didn’t expect her daughter to be a scientist… it’s a shame no one inherited her musical talent.”

Yingli smiled. “I don’t have much of a musical talent. Neither does my brother.”

“B-Brother?”

“The teacher means her brother when she says ‘senior’,” Zhou Jinglin explained.

“So she usually has her lessons here, or at Teacher Wu’s place?” Besides the piano bench, there were also two folding chairs in the corner.

“She used to come here, but later, because of a conflict with other students’ schedules, Anpo started going to the music studio for her lessons.”

While they were talking, Zhou Jinglin opened the closet for the performance costumes. “One, two… there are five in total?” Even the gorgeous performance costumes were conservatively cut.

“Huh? There should be six.” Mrs. Ou confirmed with a puzzled expression. “There really are only five… is it still at the dry cleaner’s?”

“Is one missing?”

“Yes, the newest one, a black and purple off-the-shoulder evening gown. It might have been sent to be cleaned.” She tilted her head in thought. “It should be. There was a music competition last week.”

There was sheet music and rosin on the music stand. Yingli picked up the dark green rosin and looked back at the violins on the wall. “Has the violin been repaired recently?”

“Repaired… you’ll have to ask Teacher Wu. She’s always been in charge of taking care of the violin.”

She searched the music stand and unexpectedly found a small piece of paper. “This is…”

Thud, a sudden sound drew the attention of the other three.