The Brain Science Case 56

Chapter 56: The Lonely Killer – 5

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

Seeing the three of them staring at him, Cai Yuwei gave an awkward smile. “Haha, I’m sorry. I just couldn’t help myself when I saw the piano.” He stuck out his tongue and gently closed the keyboard cover.

“You’ve played before?” Mrs. Ou couldn’t help but ask, seeing the way he had pressed the keys.

“I used to.”

Zhou Jinglin pursed her lips in surprise. “I’ve never heard you say that.”

“I don’t usually talk about it. I used to play a lot. I would play… and my ex-girlfriend would sing along.”

“You have a girlfriend? No way.” Another new piece of information.

“Y-Yes, I do.” His smile instantly stiffened. “Haha, don’t say that. I’m very popular with the opposite sex.”

“She really likes W.B. Yeats’s poetry, doesn’t she? I saw a collection in her room.” Yingli held out the note and handed it to Mrs. Ou. “It was on the music stand. Her handwriting.”

Mrs. Ou quickly read it to herself. “This… is a love poem?”

The poem was as follows—

“Had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,

Enwrought with golden and silver light,

The blue and the dim and the dark cloths of night and light and the half-light,

I would spread the cloths under your feet;

But I, being poor, have only my dreams;

I have spread my dreams under your feet;

Tread softly;

because you tread on my dreams.”

Zhou Jinglin and Cai Yuwei both leaned in, but the pencil writing was faint and light, and they couldn’t understand it.

“Let me confirm one more time,” Yingli said, coming before Mrs. Ou, “Ou Anpo does not have a boyfriend, right?”

She was adamant. “Absolutely not.”

Her index finger pressed firmly against her glasses. “Mm… I see.”

They went downstairs one after another, and just as they were about to leave, someone came in.

“Mom, why is there a police car parked at the door…” A little girl in an elementary school gym uniform pointed at Cai Yuwei. “Who are they?”

Her socks and clothes were covered in mud, and she was holding a soccer ball. It was three in the afternoon, and she must have just finished practice.

“Ou Xinrui.” Mrs. Ou quickly walked past the three of them. “How did you get so messy? What time is it, and you’re still in the mood to play?”

Ou Xinrui was stunned by her mother’s shouting. “We have practice after school. Have you found my sister yet?”

“Of course not. Otherwise, why would the police be here?”

“Oh, oh…”

“Look at you, you’re all dirty. Go take a shower.”

Ou Xinrui looked innocent, gave a quick nod, and ran upstairs. “Walk. Honestly.” After her younger daughter had disappeared from view, Mrs. Ou finally stopped scolding her. “I’m sorry, my younger daughter is a bit wild… I’ve made a fool of myself.”

“How old is she?” Yingli asked, her eyes wide.

“She’s in the sixth grade this year.”

“Mm, that’s just right.” Yingli nodded to herself. “How is her relationship with her sister?”

“It’s pretty good, although there’s a bit of an age gap. My younger daughter often pesters Anpo to talk, and Anpo isn’t very talkative, but she’s very patient with her.”

“I see.” She pushed up her glasses. “By the way, that little note with the love poem, can I take it with me?”

“Oh, sure. But what’s the use of it?”

“It might lead to other discoveries.” She said vaguely and turned to Zhou Jinglin. “We still have to go to the tutoring center, right?”

“Um…” Zhou Jinglin’s eyes flickered. “Yes.”

**

The search came to an end, and Mrs. Ou saw them out. “If you find anything, please let me know.”

“I will.” Yingli gently held her hand and said in a warm voice, “It’s not too bad yet. Don’t worry, the director and I will do our best to find her.”

“Please.” Mrs. Ou choked out, clutching her hand as if it were a lifeline.

Zhou Jinglin looked inside and didn’t see Cai Yuwei. “Huh, where’s Ah Wei?”

“Officer Cai went to the restroom,” Yingli answered.

They got into the service vehicle first. Yingli was still staring at the love poem, and Zhou Jinglin lowered her voice. “Tell me, why were you staring at the wedding photo?”

“Of course it’s because I found something interesting.”

“Huh?” she frowned.

“That photo was taken at her parents’ house. A small corner of a calendar was captured in it. It was June 2007.”

“2007…”

Yingli crossed her legs. “Don’t you think something is strange?”

“What’s strange…” Halfway through her sentence, Zhou Jinglin suddenly stopped. “Ah.”

“Ou Anpo is a high school sophomore, so she was born around 2002. They got married five years later?” It was impossible.

There was only one possibility for such an age gap—the precinct director was remarried. “So that’s why you asked about her younger daughter’s age.”

“Yes. From their appearances, Ou Xinrui is her biological daughter, but Ou Anpo is not.”

“So she’s the stepmother.” Zhou Jinglin felt a rush of blood to her head. “Could it be that she’s been… to Ou Anpo…”

But Yingli shook her head. “Strict is strict, but I don’t think it’s abuse.”

“Then the little dress, was it bought by her biological mother?”

“That’s the only thing that makes sense.”

Because she misses her biological mother, she kept the little dress that was already too old for her in the back of her closet? If that’s the case, then Ou Anpo must have learned the violin because of her biological mother.

“I’ll ask the chief if he knows about this.” Zhou Jinglin immediately reported it on her phone. “Wait, then where did her mother go? Did they divorce? Did Ou Anpo go to find her biological mother?”

“I don’t know what happened to her mother. As for whether she went to find her mother, we still need to confirm.”

Zhou Jinglin sent the message. “Then what are you planning to do with the note?”

Yingli quickly put it in her pocket. “To compare the handwriting.”

“Compare? Didn’t you say…”

“I lied to her.” Yingli shrugged, and Zhou Jinglin’s eyes widened in surprise. “I noticed that the writing was very slow. Usually, when you’re imitating someone’s handwriting, you slow down to get it right. At first glance, it looks like Ou Anpo’s handwriting, but… something just doesn’t feel right.”

“Let me see.” Zhou Jinglin turned on the car’s interior light. “The writing is so faint… can you tell the speed from this?”

“Look at the tail of the characters. The faster you write, the more natural the ending, and the smoother the strokes, with less shaking. Handwriting analysis is a profession in itself. I’m just making a rough judgment.”

“I don’t understand at all…” As she handed it back, she read a hint of teasing on Yingli’s face. “What are you laughing at? My English is just bad.”

Yingli smiled. “I just think your pouting expression is very cute.”

Zhou Jinglin turned her head and ignored her. “Strange, Ah Wei is taking so long. I’ll send him a message.”

“Oh, no need. He’s coming out.”

She looked up and saw Mrs. Ou personally seeing Cai Yuwei out. They were talking, and the atmosphere was relatively peaceful when they parted.

“Did you go to the restroom?”

“Yes, I drank too much tea.” He wiped his face with a smile.

She tilted her chin up. “What were you talking to the director’s wife about?”

“Nothing much, just some words of comfort, and to apologize for my rudeness earlier.” He started the engine. “What’s next?”

**

The precinct police had already gone to the tutoring center and the music teacher, so they went back to the station first.

The results of the investigation had been reported on the way back. After returning to her seat, Zhou Jinglin looked at the test report and made a call. “…Okay, we’ll meet in fifteen minutes.” She stood up gracefully. “I’m going out to investigate.”

This startled Cai Yuwei, who was taking a break. “Investigate? Didn’t we just get back…”

“To investigate this.” She waved the test report and patted his shoulder with a smile. “Let’s go.”

Looking at her long, swinging ponytail, Cai Yuwei seemed to see another person in her back.

‘Yuwei, hurry up, hurry up. If we’re late, we won’t get a good spot.’

He still remembered her excited expression when they had gone to a concert together.

‘Oh, don’t be in such a hurry… wait for me.’

Why was such a vibrant girl left there, to die alone?

How many years had it been? The image of her death was still vivid in his mind. Even though he had worked hard to become a detective and had received psychological treatment, that scene was like a brand, strongly imprinted in his mind, and he couldn’t get rid of it.

This also led to him being reminded of her pale, helpless face whenever he was near a female corpse.

What did she feel before she died?

How much pain did she suffer before she died?

Did she ever resent him?

The missing Ou Anpo today was a complete replica of her from back then. He rubbed his hands, sincerely hoping that things would not turn out for the worst.

The desk was knocked on. He glanced at the black-painted nails, and when he looked up, the person handed him a note with a string of numbers. “Officer Cai, please give Teacher Wu a call.”

“The one who teaches Ou Anpo the violin?”

“Yes. I think we still need to make a trip there ourselves.”

He took a deep breath. “I understand.”

“Where’s Officer Zhou?” The seat next to him was empty.

“She went to investigate her mother’s case. I don’t know who she contacted just now.”

While they were talking, Lu Tingfeng and another detective also returned. “Teacher, Ah Wei, you’re back too?”

“Senior Big Head, where did you go?”

“Of course, to find that little girl’s mother.” Lu Tingfeng seemed a little discouraged. “I’ll report to the chief. We’ll talk later.”