Red Bean Lives in the Republic of China - Chapter 17.2

Chapter 17.2
When the brother and sister arrived at Fuhua Lane, He Yunqin was already there.
Yu Chongyi stopped the bicycle and greeted him. “Mr. He.”
Seeing Yu Hongdou carrying a heavy bundle, he asked if they had brought Wang Meiping’s autopsy report.
Yu Chongyi said, “Yes.”
At that time, Yu Hongdou also asked whether He Yunqin had found out something about Wang Meiping at Wang Peter’s place.
He Yunqin said, “No.”
Hearing that response, Yu Hongdou felt He Yunqin was telling lies on purpose, so she looked to the other side with a pout.
He Yunqin saw the girl’s attitude and thought it was funny. He pretended he didn’t notice that Yu Hongdou looked upset. “We shouldn’t talk here. Let’s go to the café across the street,” he said.
The three of them went to the cafe and sat in a corner.
Yu Chongyi gave the bag to He Yunqin and said, “Here are the papers about Wang Meiping’s examination after she died and what everyone said about Chen Baidie before and after she went missing. Everything is here.”
He Yunqin opened one file and said, “Wang Meiping had died last week.”
“What?” Yu Hongdou was surprised. “She went missing three months ago. Why did those people take three months to murder her?”
He Yunqin looked at Yu Hongdou and said, “Miss Yu, those people may know something we don’t know.”
Realising something, Yu Hongdou took out a book called “Xuanzong Yelu” from her bag and handed it to He Yunqin, saying, “Have you read this book before? And did you talk to Detective Wang? What did he tell you?”
He Yunqin looked at her for a moment, then smiled and said, “Peter Wang is not at home, and I couldn’t find any information. I promise I will visit his house again tonight. If Miss Yu doesn’t believe me, you could come with me.”
Yu Hongdou was surprised at first, and then she turned to a specific page in the book and pointed to something there. She made a sad face and said, “It looks like they are similar.”
“Where did you get this book?” Ye Chongyi asked in surprise.
He Yunqin took the book and looked at it.
Yu Hongdou pointed and said, “Look at the words next to it. It means that by using wooden nails on a dead person’s body, they can get rid of their spirit. Do you think this murderer is very strange? And it seems they don’t plan to kill one person, because another two are still missing.” Yu Hongdou took a sip of her water before continuing her words. “Why did they take away Wang Meiping as soon as she arrived in Shanghai? That was her first time visiting here, so why do they hate her so much to kill her in such a cruel way? Hey, have you heard anything about Wang Meiping in Shaoxing? Did she have any enemies there?”
Yu Chongyi: “Wang Meiping’s parents said she was honest and responsible. She had come to Shanghai to ask for help from her uncle to find a job. First, to have money for the wedding, and second, to help the family. Her uncle and aunt also said that Wang Meiping is very nice and kind. She didn’t argue with people very often.”
Yu Hongdou was silent for a bit, and then she said, “My cousin Yuqi was last seen at the jewellery store owned by Yuan Ruoli’s ex-wife on Saturday. Wang Meiping was last seen at the train station. The Yuan family owns a clothing store at the train station. In short, the two missing people are somehow related to the Yuan family. Hey, did you check if the clothing shop at the train station belongs to Yuan Ruoli or his ex-wife?”
“I haven’t had time to check this yet. The Yuan family’s divorce was settled quietly. We didn’t read it in the newspaper, so we didn’t know how they divided their things. Why do you want to learn about this?”Yu Chongyi asked.
He Yunqin looked at the paper and said, “She may have doubts about these things. Maybe the cases are connected to Yuan Ruoli’s former wife.”
Upon hearing that, Yu Chongyi was surprised. “She is a person who doesn’t worry about having enough food and clothes, so why would she harm other people?”
Yu Hongdou thought that He Yunqin was more thoughtful than her brother. ‘The thoughts started moving quicker, and we got a lot of information about the case very quickly.’
She paused and copied how Peter would speak. “I’m trying to find what these missing people have in common. Brother, did you find out why Yuan Ruoli got divorced from her ex-wife?”
Yu Chongyi replied, “I investigated it. After being married for ten years, the ex-wife didn’t have any children, so Yuan Ruoli decided to get a divorce so that he could have children.”
“Oh! Then that’s why he gave a lot of money and property to his ex-wife,” Yu Hongdou said thoughtfully. She continued to try to find the common things related to three people. “Have you checked the relationship between Chen Baidie and Yuan Ruoli? Did she know Yuan Ruoli?”
Yu Chongyi showed a frustrated expression. “Chen Baidie’s relationships are very complicated. There are a lot of people who have contracts with her. Yuan Ruoli is also a decent, wealthy businessman. Even if Chen Baidie knows him, it is not surprising. As for other personal relationships, we will have to interrogate the people around Chen Baidie in detail.”
He Yunqin said, “There is no need to check; I know Chen Baidie’s current benefactor. They have been together for more than two years, and Yuan Ruoli only divorced last year. Before and after that, he didn’t have anything to do with Chen Baidie. By the way, Miss. Yu, do you still remember when Lu Jingheng from Nanbao International Co., Ltd. appeared at the tea party that day?”
Yu Hongdou ignored He Yunqin’s question and asked, “Who is Chen Baidie’s benefactor?”
He Yunqin avoided answering that. “This has nothing to do with this case.”
Yu Hongdou wondered. “How do you know it must be irrelevant?”
He Yunqin looked up at the girl with a curious look and was about to answer her when the door of the cafe was suddenly pushed open and a group of people came in.
The two people in front talked while walking.”The matter of Chen Baidie made our police department go up and down. People are on their backs, and they dare not even sleep to find her. Those foreigners in the consulate are talking nonsense, and they can’t help at all except to make trouble. I wanted to go there just now, but after thinking about it, I might as well ask you to come out and discuss it.”
‘Director Bai!’ Yu Chongyi and Yu Hongdou looked at each other and hurriedly hid the autopsy sheet on the table under the table as quickly as possible.
When the man saw Yu Chongyi, he was stunned for a moment. “Yu Chongyi?”
Yu Chongyi stood up and said, “Director Bai.”
When Director Bai saw Yu Hongdou, he became very interested. With a cigar in one hand, he pointed at the girl and asked Yu Chongyi in an extremely elegant tone, “This is your sister?”
Yu Chongyi’s face was a little ugly. “Yes.”
Director Bai stared at Yu Hongdou with a smile, squinted his eyes, and was about to say something when he suddenly caught a glimpse of He Yunqin on the opposite side of Yu Hongdou. He recognised the young man and asked, “Isn’t this Mr. He’s second son? Why, you also know this brother and sister?”
End of chapter 17
Have a nice day!