SFTD -Chapter 178 A Severed Thumb (Part 8)

The woman froze for a moment. “No, he works for some company or something. He’s really busy with work and usually doesn’t come home. He rents a place outside.”

Seeing the look Chu Menghan gave him, the local officer smiled and waved at the woman.

“Mind if we come inside and sit for a bit? It’s pretty chilly out here.”

The woman hurriedly opened the gate wider, looking embarrassed.

“I got scared when I saw the police uniforms just now. Sorry about that, come in quickly!”

Chu Menghan entered the courtyard with Wang Man and the local officer. The south-side room in the yard looked old and worn down, while the four large rooms behind it had not even been painted yet. White streaks of lime still showed on the cement walls, making it obvious the main house had only recently been built.

“A newly built main house? It’s pretty spacious,” Wang Man remarked.

The woman immediately smiled and nodded.

“Yeah, we built it last year. The old house collapsed halfway, so we had no choice but to rebuild.”

Chu Menghan did not sit down. Instead, she motioned for Wang Man to check the rooms.

“What’s your name? And what relation are you to Wang Yanming?”

The stern tone of Chu Menghan’s questioning made the woman nervous.

“My name is Wang Yuling. I’m Wang Yanming’s younger brother’s wife.”

“Do you have Wang Yanming’s phone number, workplace, or address?”

Wang Yuling tried to recall.

“My husband knows those things. My brain’s useless—I can never remember no matter how many times I hear it. I can’t remember the full company name either, just that it’s something Steel… something Group. As for where he lives, we’ve never been there. The old man lives with us, and Wang Yanming only comes back once every few months, sits for a bit, then leaves again.”

Chu Menghan narrowed her eyes slightly. The answer sounded flawless on the surface, yet it was strangely puzzling. How could family members not know where he lived or even clearly remember where he worked? Either they rarely interacted, or the relationship between them was extremely strained.

“Where’s your husband, Wang Yanzhi?”

Chu Menghan abruptly changed the subject. Wang Yuling froze, then quickly forced a smile.

“My husband took the old man to the market. We had too many chicks to raise, so they went to sell some. They should be back after noon, but probably not soon.”

By then, Wang Man had already finished checking the rooms on both sides. Wang Yuling couldn’t stop him anyway. As she glanced back at him, Wang Man casually asked:

“What about your eldest brother-in-law?”

“He died before he became an adult.”

“When did your second brother-in-law’s wife die? Didn’t they have children?”

The smile on Wang Yuling’s face grew stiffer and stiffer. At this point she had no idea what these police officers were really trying to ask.

“My second brother-in-law’s wife died about ten years ago. He had some illness that made him unable to have children. I didn’t feel right asking about it.”

At once, Chu Menghan understood what Wang Man was getting at and immediately followed up: “What about your own child?”

Seeing how persistent the two officers were, Wang Yuling pressed her lips tightly together.

“My husband’s the same. But years ago we adopted my older brother’s son. He studies at Ludong University, so he’s not home.”

“What’s his name? How old is he? Do you have a photo?”

Wang Yuling turned and went into the room. Wang Man handed his phone to Chu Menghan. Several photos were displayed on the screen—some individual shots, some group photos.

“This man is Wang Yanming. Look at the family photo—the men in their family all have thumbs like this, shorter than normal by one segment. From the father all the way down to the child, they’re all the same.”

“Send the photos to Zhou Hai. Try to get the adopted child’s DNA as well.”

Wang Yuling came back carrying a photo album.

“This is my son, Wang Xisheng. He’s twenty-one this year. His grades are excellent too. He even got some kind of scholarship. He’s got a bright future ahead of him.”

As she talked about the child, her face filled with pride. For a family without biological children, placing all their hopes and future on an adopted son was heartbreaking to witness.

Wang Man took the photo and passed it to Chu Menghan.

“Where’s your son’s room? Take me there.”

Without hesitation, Wang Yuling stood and led Wang Man outside.

Chu Menghan turned and entered the east room. Wang Yuling had retrieved the photo album from there just now, so it was likely the couple’s bedroom.

The entire south side of the room was occupied by a long heated brick bed platform. A small table sat atop it. On the north side stood a square table with four chairs, along with several trunks and cabinets. In one corner of the bed platform were stacked quilts and pillows, and Chu Menghan immediately noticed strands of hair on the pillow.

Taking out an evidence bag, she separately collected several long and short hairs. Influenced by Zhou Hai, she now tried to gather DNA from relevant individuals wherever she went.

When she stepped out of the east room, Wang Yuling had already returned. Behind her, Wang Man gave Chu Menghan a slight nod.

“You—”

Just as Chu Menghan was about to speak, the door to the main house opened and two figures walked in. Wang Yuling quickly went over to them.

“Why’d you come back so early?”

Chu Menghan immediately recognized the middle-aged man before her as Wang Yanzhi, and the elderly man behind him as his father.

Wang Yanzhi glanced at the police officers in the room, and his expression instantly became tense.

“We sold everything, so we came back. Why are the police here?”

Wang Man walked over.

“We’d like to ask about Wang Yanming. Do you know his phone number or workplace address?”

Wang Yanzhi did not answer immediately. Instead, he had Wang Yuling escort the old man back to his room. The old man seemed hard of hearing and couldn’t make things out clearly. Even though he saw the police, he didn’t dare ask questions and simply followed Wang Yuling inside.

“Can I ask why you’re looking for him?”

After a moment’s thought, Chu Menghan opened a photo of Victim B’s severed finger and handed it to Wang Yanzhi.

“We matched a victim’s fingerprint to Wang Yanming’s identity information, so we came here to investigate. Can you answer my questions now?”

Wang Yanzhi stared blankly for a moment. The look in his eyes changed when he saw the finger in the photo. When he looked up again, his cloudy eyes carried a trace of tears.

“This finger… it kinda looks like my second brother’s.”

Then, trembling, he pulled out an old-fashioned mobile phone. After searching through it several times, he finally found a number and looked up at Chu Menghan.

“This is my second brother’s number.”

“Call it once.”

Wang Yanzhi nodded and dialed the number, but after more than ten rings, nobody answered.

“No one picked up.”

“Where does Wang Yanming work? Where does he live?”

Wang Yanzhi thought for a moment.

“He used to work at Southeast Steel Factory, but after the company restructured into a group, he took a buyout and got laid off. Now he works somewhere else… he told me before, but the more anxious I get, the less I can remember. As for where he lives, he rents a place near his workplace. I visited his old place before, but after he moved last October, I don’t know where he lives anymore. What was the company called again…”

The harder Wang Yanzhi tried to remember, the more flustered he became, pacing in circles anxiously. From the look of it, both Chu Menghan and Wang Man could tell his worry was genuine. It seemed the family truly knew nothing about Wang Yanming’s affairs.

“Tell me where you were the last two nights. Who can verify it?”

The sudden question caught Wang Yanzhi off guard. After thinking for a moment, he answered:

“The night before last, our kid went back to school. My wife and I were busy all afternoon and got tired, so we went to sleep around eight. Last night, the Pan family in the east house held a soup-rice banquet. We all went over to help.”

Chu Menghan glanced at Wang Man.

“Go verify that.”

Just then, Chu Menghan’s phone rang. On the screen, the three flashing words read:

“Stinky Fahai.”