Red Bean Lives in the Republic of China - Chapter 40

Chapter 40

He Yunqin understood it was not a good time to meet his parents, so he returned to his room.

He had to meet Wang Peter, but as he had not yet discussed the engagement announcement with his parents, he couldn’t go there either.

Yesterday, a martial artist named Yang Yutian passed away at Keyu Theatre. When his body was discovered, it was hanging from the beam in the bedroom. The police arrived, took a quick look, and initially ruled it a suicide. However, after a forensic examination, it was found that something had been stuffed down the throat of the body, which turned out to be a glutinous rice ball.

After the police left, the owner of the troupe, Bai Fengfei, couldn’t stop thinking about the shocking incident. She recalled Inspector Wang Peter, whom she had met at a birthday party, and decided to call him that night to ask for help in solving the case and hopefully catching the murderer quickly.

Later that afternoon, while He Yunqin was writing an article at school, he got a call from Wang Peter. Wang Peter mentioned that the beam where the body was found seemed a bit odd and asked him to come over and check it out.

When He Yunqin arrived at the scene, he quickly understood why Wang Peter thought something was off.

The dust traces on the beams indicated that Yang Yutian had put up a fierce struggle before his death, and it seemed to have lasted at least seven or eight minutes.

Even though Yang Yutian was a martial artist, considering his build, it would take a minimum of three minutes to kill him through mechanical asphyxiation. If he had been hung on the beam while in a coma and then struggled to survive after regaining consciousness, the rope around his neck would have made it impossible for him to stay aware for more than seven or eight minutes.

In other words, he was hanged from the beam while he was conscious.

‘But this man is 5 feet 11 inches tall. Who has the physical strength to hang him alive from the beam with a rope?’

Thinking of this, he paced back and forth in the room. It was so late, he wondered if Wang Peter had returned from the Keyu Theatre and whether he had made any new discoveries tonight.

There seemed to be some noise outside. Thinking about the tone of the Duan family just now, he didn’t want to cause any misunderstandings. He went to the bathroom to take a shower. Just as he came out, he heard someone knocking on the door.

The servant said, “Second Young Master, the Master and the Madam want you to come over.”

He touched his eyebrows. ‘It seems to be related to the Duan family’s affairs.’

When he went to his parents’ room, there were only his parents in the room. Mr. Duan and Mrs. Duan had left, and his eldest brother was not there either.

His father had a frowning expression, and so did his mother.

When Mrs. He saw her son come in, she first glanced at her husband and then said to him, “I heard from Zhujun that you went to send Miss Yu to school this morning?”

Engagement was engagement, but He Yunqin did not want to let his parents know the main reason for the engagement. He did not mention the current situation of the Yu family at all and only nodded as a sign of tacit agreement.

Mrs. He breathed a sigh of relief as if a heavy stone had been lifted from her heart. Her son had now officially admitted in front of his parents that he was in love with Miss Yu. Her previous doubts could finally be put to rest.

He Mengmei’s face also brightened a little, and he hummed and said, “Since you like Miss Yu so much, why don’t we meet Mrs. Yu this week? If both parties are satisfied, it would be best to settle the marriage as soon as possible.”

Compared to yesterday, his father’s attitude was a little more anxious. He Yunqin remembered what Master Duan had said in the room just now and frowned, “Did Uncle Duan say something just now?”

He Mengmei showed a little surprise, turned around with his pipe in his mouth, and sat down heavily on the chair.

Mrs. He was also somewhat embarrassed and said, “The news that your eldest sister-in-law was drugged at the birthday banquet reached Mr. Duan and Mrs. Duan. In order to seek justice for their daughter, Mr. Duan personally came to the house and severely reprimanded your father and your eldest brother. He said that the reason the He and Duan families got married was to find a good match between a man and a woman and that the children liked each other. His daughter was a good lady, but even with such a good daughter, the He family still did not know how to cherish her. According to him, we have allowed her to be slandered twice, causing an uproar in the whole of Shanghai——”

After all, she knew her son had done nothing to be ashamed of, and she had always protected her son. When she said this, she showed her dissatisfaction. “It is said that outsiders say that you and Mingyi have an affair. Rumours are terrible. If Mingyi hadn’t been determined, she might have committed suicide long ago. Mingyi is outstanding in every way. Your second son has been reluctant to get married. They asked whether you are really thinking about your sister-in-law. If so, they should take their daughter back to her parents’ home immediately to avoid being implicated by you sooner or later. In order to protect you, your father was furious and said in a tough manner that you are dating. The girl is both talented and beautiful and is not inferior to Duan Mingyi at all. Not only are you satisfied, but we are also satisfied. You are going to get married soon.”

As she spoke, she raised her arm and pointed to a large wet mark on it to her son. “Look, Mrs. Duan came and hugged me and said that her daughter was wronged. She cried so hard that I couldn’t move. Later, after hearing what your father said, she finally let me go. I was about to leave, but when Mr. Duan and Mrs. Duan went downstairs, they happened to run into the father and son of the Lu family. Because of what happened the day before, Mr. Lu was carried up by his father to apologise. Although Mr. Lu was better, he was still not fully awake. He was lying on the stretcher and said a few words. Your eldest brother’s face fell at that time. Mr. Duan and Mrs. Duan heard it and thought you really liked Duan Mingyi. One went to trouble Mr. Lu, and the other came back to ask you in person. Seeing that it was about you, I had a headache and said that the wedding date was set for next month. My son now has only Miss Yu in his heart and eyes, and he has no thoughts about Mingyi.”

He Yunqin listened to this patiently. Although he didn’t mind getting married early, he didn’t like the fact that he was forced to do so by these things. He still felt uncomfortable. He raised his eyebrows and said, “The daughter of the Duan family is precious, but the daughter of the Yu family is not precious? Just to get rid of the eldest sister-in-law’s reputation, we hastily dragged Miss Yu to the rescue?”

He Mengmei was a little embarrassed and snorted.

Mrs. He sighed. “Speaking of this matter, it’s all your mother’s fault for losing patience. I was easily pestered by Mrs. Duan and Mr. Duan for a while and was interrupted. But then again, since she is your wife, even if the wedding date is a little earlier, your father and I will never neglect Miss Yu.”

She had a very good impression of Yu Hongdou. She was actually quite happy to see her son get married as soon as possible.

He Yunqin didn’t say anything. He originally came to discuss the engagement with Yu Hongdou. Once the news was published, the whole of Shanghai would know that Yu Hongdou would be his wife. It didn’t make much difference whether they got married early or late. He also knew that compared with the Duan family, his father cared more about his eldest brother’s opinion. He saw that his eldest brother had a hard time since the scandal broke out. In order to avoid a rift between brothers, his father wanted him to get married as soon as possible. He understood this, but when he thought about the fact that the Duan and Lu families were involved in the matter and the wedding date was hastily set, he felt that Yu Hongdou was wronged. Then he thought that if he hadn’t insisted on investigating the case and then caused Yu Chongyi to fall into Bai Haili’s hands, he and Yu Hongdou would not have been forced to do it.

This feeling was similar to heartache as if a small thorn had been pierced in the flesh, and it was extremely difficult to let go. He was lost in thought for a while, and his parents did not speak, obviously waiting for him to express his attitude.

He stood up and thought about it. His parents’ attitude had softened, so it was a good time to fight for it. He said in his usual casual tone in front of his parents, “If Miss Yu marries here for these reasons, our He family will be disrespectful. I remember that when my eldest brother and his wife got married, the wedding was very grand. In order to compensate Miss Yu, your son would like to make a few requests.”

Among all the thoughts, the only thing he could be sure of was that he had no aversion to marrying Hongdou.

So he paused for a moment and said seriously, “In short, your son wants Miss Yu to marry into our He family in a grand manner.”

He Mengmei was afraid that his youngest son would hesitate before, so he secretly breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this. He laughed and said, “Little b*stard, I knew you would take the opportunity to make a request. Tell me what you want to buy for Miss Yu. Your mother and I will agree to everything and will never let Miss Yu suffer any grievances.”

End of chapter 40