Red Bean Lives in the Republic of China - Chapter 50

Chapter 50

“On the night Boss Bai was performing at the He Mansion, others had been rehearsing here for most of the night. Yang Yutian was the only one in the troupe without a performance. While everyone else was busy up front, he was taking a break in the back. When the apprentice removed his makeup and went to the back garden to find his master around 9 PM, he discovered that Yang Yutian had hanged himself in the room. Boss Bai, is that what happened that night?” Wang Peter asked with a frown.

A flicker of horror crossed Bai Fengfei’s face as she nodded slowly.

Wang Peter glanced at He Yunqin, who seemed uninterested in interrupting, so he asked again, “The stage is set up in the front yard, while the bosses rest in the backyard. On regular performance days, can guests freely access the backyard?”

Bai Fengfei replied, “Aside from my yard, the other yards are always unlocked. Even though there are guards at the backyard gate, if there are many performances that night, the gatekeeper might become a bit lax. In the past, there have been instances where guests accidentally wandered into the backyard.”

Wang Peter nodded. “So, if there are too many shows, guests can enter the backyard at any time. Did Yang Yutian choose to skip the show that night, or was he scheduled to rest at your theatre beforehand?”

Bai Fengfei leaned on the chair and replied, “I’m the only one in the troupe who doesn’t plan the repertoire ahead of time. The others have pretty much booked their slots at the Keyu Theatre.

To help fans purchase tickets early, the theatre displays the repertoire list at the entrance a month in advance. When Boss Yang ran into trouble that night, it was supposed to be his turn to take a break.”

“So anyone who can check the playlist at the entrance can find out a month ahead if Yang Yutian is performing on a specific night…” Wang Peter bit his lip and stated.

Upon hearing that, Yu Hongdou frowned. ‘When Manager Xu from Langyuan Bookshop was killed, it seemed like the murderer had anticipated that no one would be home that night and chose that moment to take action. The patterns in both cases are the same…’

He Yunqin gazed at Bai Fengfei’s arm, which had inexplicably thinned out. Then he suddenly set down his teacup.

Wang Peter got the hint and smiled slightly. “Boss Bai, to be honest, He Yunqin was just at home on vacation today with nothing to do. I asked him to lend a hand temporarily. Ever since I took over Boss Yang’s case, I’ve been almost non-stop trying to catch the murderer. Unfortunately, the killer left behind very few clues. I’ve been on the case for a month, and the only thing I’m certain of is that Boss Yang didn’t take his own life. He Yunqin knows more about traceology than I do. Even though he heard me discuss this, he was too busy at the time to see it firsthand. I went in to check it out, worried I might have overlooked something, so I wanted to ask him to come help again. He was reluctant to get involved, but he couldn’t refuse my repeated requests. It’s all about solving the case as quickly as possible. If you don’t mind, Boss Bai, He Yunqin and I would like to revisit Boss Yang’s room to take another look.

Hearing that, Bai Fengfei’s gaze shifted towards the newlyweds, and she smiled as she said, “I sincerely hope that Inspector Wang can easily find the murderer. Why would I object to Inspector Wang seeking assistance? Furthermore, it is well-known in Shanghai that Mr. He possesses extensive knowledge. If I can enlist Mr. He’s helping, I would gladly do so.”

Wang Peter chuckled. “Boss Bai is quite an honest person. In that case, please guide us.”

Bai Fengfei offered a bitter smile and shook her head, saying, “I am not concerned about being ridiculed by Inspector Wang. Ever since Boss Yang encountered difficulties, I have scarcely spent nights at the theatre. I cannot refuse, so I occasionally visit during the day to perform. Each time I reflect on Boss Yang’s demise, my heart grows heavy. I am hesitant to go anywhere. Since you all wish to investigate, why not allow it?”

Without waiting for Wang Peter and the others to say any more, she called out to someone outside the door, “Someone, come in.”

When a servant entered, Bai Fengfei instructed, “Inspector Wang is going to examine Boss Yang’s yard. Be sure to greet him.”

The servant was reluctant to go into that unfortunate place, but since it was said by Boss Bai, who would dare to offend her? 

The servant escorted He Yunqin and the others to the entrance of the courtyard where Yang Yutian resided before his death but dared not to enter.

This was precisely what He Yunqin and Wang Peter wanted. 

Wang Peter: “Why trouble yourself by entering and being frightened unnecessarily? Just wait outside, and we will return after our inspection.”

The man nodded with a grin as if he had been granted a reprieve.

As they went towards the courtyard, He Yunqin held his wife’s hand. After the servant was left behind at some distance, he asked 

Wang Peter, “Didn’t you mention that Bai Fengfei was the one who requested you to look into the case? Why did she seem so indifferent when you questioned her earlier?”

Wang Peter let out a cold snort before replying, “I am also convinced. That night, Bai Fengfei called me, appearing extremely frightened. She insisted that Yang Yutian would never take his own life and offered me a substantial reward, urging me to find out the murderer quickly. Yet, only a few days have passed, and there is still no trace of the killer. She even arranged for the reward to be delivered to my apartment ahead of time, which indicates her desire to conclude matters. If I hadn’t said on the phone that I had found someone to help with the investigation and come to Keyu Theatre so early in the morning, I’m afraid she wouldn’t even see me.”

Thinking for a moment, Yu Hongdou inquired, “Was Bai Fengfei this slender over a month ago? Her cheongsam appears to be newly tailored; how could it fit so loosely?”

He Yunqin turned to Yu Hongdou and replied, “More than a month ago, she visited the He family for a performance. I saw her before she applied her makeup. She was indeed considerably fuller than she is now.”

Yu Hongdou was taken aback, then nodded before saying, “It is evident that she has been quite anxious in recent days.”

Wang Peter opened the door and stated, “First, she was eager to uncover the murderer. However, once the investigation concluded, she hesitated and refused to cooperate. Moreover, she has lost a significant amount of weight in just one month. I do not believe that Bai Fengfei is innocent in this case.”

The three of them entered and explored the outer room. 

Yu Hongdou remained at the entrance to the inner room, while He Yunqin and Wang Peter went there where Yang Yutian had hanged himself.

As soon as Wang Peter entered the room, he said, “I have already looked at the walls and windowsills before.”

But He Yunqin acted as if he didn’t hear it and walked straight to the window.

Yu Hongdou looked up at the beams. ‘Just imagine… Hanging a grown man up there, then calmly watching him die, and then pretending it was suicide. Could one person do that?’

He Yunqin also seemed to have deep doubts about this and always held the view that the crime was committed in collusion.

‘If Bai Fengfei and Gu Yun had not found Wang Peter, who has experience in foreign trace investigation, the murderer’s plan would probably have been difficult to uncover for a while, and in the end, these two cases would naturally have been treated as ordinary suicide cases. Just like what happened to my aunt back then…’

Her heart skipped a beat as some thought came to her mind. 

Suddenly, He Yunqin sarcastically asked, “Inspector Wang, I advise you to drink less. What’s under the windowsill?”

Wang Peter took a few quick steps, squatted down and took a look. When he saw what it was, his face turned red.

He Yunqin stood up and held the thing up to the window for a closer look. 

Yu Hongdou stood on tiptoe but still couldn’t see clearly what it was. She said in a curious voice, “He Yunqin.”

He Yunqin heard Hongdou’s anxious voice, so he handed the thing to Wang Peter and said to Yu Hongdou in a gentle voice, “Come in.”

As he spoke, he took out a tape measure from his trouser pocket, squatted down, and measured the distance between the horizontal line under the beam and the window.

By this time, Wang Peter had put the thing into a palm-sized paper bag. He seemed to be dumb and said nothing. He took out a flashlight from his arms, half bent over, and tried his best to open his eyes wide to carefully search for the traces that had been missed on the wall before.

Yu Hongdou took the thing from Wang Peter’s hand, and it turned out to be a light yellow silk-like fibre. Upon closer inspection, it looked a bit like the hemp ropes usually used to tie things. Then, she bent down to look at what Wang Peter was studying. It turned out that there was an inconspicuous and very deep hole under the window sill, and the fibre must have been stuck in the hole. This hole was specially selected where the window edge and the wall were inlaid. If you didn’t look carefully, you would never find that there was a hole hidden in the crack of the wall.

After measuring the ground, He Yunqin stood up again, looked up at the beam, and measured the vertical distance between the beam and the ground. When he finished that, he looked at the number and smiled meaningfully, “It seems that I guessed wrong before. If it was a crime involving a few, why would they design such complicated tools? They can kill people in such a sophisticated way. The murderer must be a very conceited person. How could he just bring in helpers to ruin his good deeds? There is one thing I can’t figure out. If the murderer is not someone from Keyu Theatre, how did he bring the tools to hang people on the beam into the backyard? Carrying tools with him in public… Wouldn’t he be afraid that others will get suspicious?”

Yu Hongdou now understood why He Yunqin wanted to measure those distances. She had seen this kind of tool in books before. It was simply used for farming. If it was designed in advance, not to mention a 160-pound person, even hundreds of pounds could be lifted up. “Maybe the murderer has been here several times,” she said after pondering for a while.

Upon hearing that, He Yunqin turned to look at Yu Hongdou and said, “I was thinking about this possibility as well. When the murderer came in for the first time, he placed the tools in a hidden place in the inner courtyard. After killing the person, he took the tools away.”

Yu Hongdou: “…”

He gestured roughly, “If I were to make this tool, I would first need to consider the thickness of the rope and the weight of the victim in advance; otherwise, there would be no way to compress the size of the tool. Even if it is smaller, judging from the height of the beam from the ground, the tool should be at least 50 cm by 50 cm by 50 cm. As for the shape, I don’t know how to make it obscure.” He looked up at Yu Hongdou and Wang Peter and asked, “When a person is watching a play in the theatre, what can he hold in his hand without attracting attention?”

Yu Hongdou tilted her head to think.

Wang Peter was probably still feeling frustrated because he missed a key clue, so he interrupted unhappily, “There are so many, such as birdcages and gifts wrapped in bundles. If he didn’t want to show them to others, others wouldn’t be so presumptuous as to force him to open them and have a look.”

Yu Hongdou was shocked and said, “If these assumptions are true, why would he use such a complicated method to kill people? Also, why did he choose Xu Yishan and Yang Yutian, who seem to have nothing to do with him?”

“We can slowly figure out the relationship between the victims after we catch the killer.” He Yunqin touched his chin. Realising the murderer was so smart, his competitive spirit was completely aroused. “What I am most interested in now is how to pry open Bai Fengfei’s mouth. Also, when Yang Yutian was murdered that night, did anyone in the troupe see anyone holding a birdcage to watch the opera?”

Since Wang Peter was paid a high salary to investigate this case, he should naturally be responsible for these things.

So He Yunqin and Yu Hongdou looked at Wang Peter together.

Wang Peter held out for a while, then gave in and said reluctantly, “I’ll go ask right away.”

He Yunqin still felt that it was not enough and reminded him again. “Inspector Wang, don’t forget to reinvestigate the scene at Xu Yishan’s house later.”

Before Wang Peter could answer, Yu Hongdou added in a crisp voice, “Inspector Wang, don’t forget to ask Mrs. Xu if Xu Yishan knew Yang Yutian in the past.”

Wang Peter snorted coldly. Before he knew it, he had once again become He Yunqin’s assistant. This time, it was not only him but also the sharp-tongued Yu Hongdou who was with He Yunqin. He couldn’t help but feel depressed. After a while, he said in a muffled voice, “Don’t worry. I won’t miss anything this time.”

The three people searched the house for a while, and when they found nothing, they came out of the inner courtyard.

On the way, Yu Hongdou thought about what happened just now. He Yunqin had clearly planned to visit Xu Yishan’s house last night, but just now he seemed to be too lazy to go to Xu Yishan’s house. She wondered if it had anything to do with the fact that the eldest sister-in-law specially sent the servants to ask He Yunqin yesterday. He Yunqin was usually kind to others, but for some reason, he always seemed extremely cold in front of Duan Mingyi. She had always thought that it was because of the news that he was deliberately avoiding suspicion. However, after spending these few days together, she always felt that He Yunqin seemed to be avoiding Duan Mingyi like the plague because of other things.

‘Should I ask him about it tonight? And about the bicycle… He Yunqin seems to be very frank in front of me, but if I really look into it, there are actually many things I don’t know.’

End of chapter 50

Have a nice day!