Chapter 2175 - 1182: Innocence_5

"Second, send someone to find Zhou Wenqing’s ashes, do it quickly; it’s best to locate them by tonight."

"Third, how much do you know about Zhou Wenqing’s past romantic life?" Yang Xiao asked.

"I know a bit about this," Director Zhai spoke up, "He didn’t have the opportunity while at the factory, but he once had a romantic involvement in the countryside, though it ultimately didn’t work out. Why that was, I’m not clear."

"Investigate, start looking into this person immediately! I want detailed information on this woman, it’d be best to find her directly!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Xiao suddenly became interested; he vaguely sensed this could be a breakthrough.

"Alright, I’ll handle this now, finding her shouldn’t be difficult!" Director Zhai promised.

"I’ll arrange the search for Zhou Wenqing’s ashes. Although Qian Shouyi didn’t confess, his team’s militia members stated that on the night the ashes were discarded, Qian Shouyi was seen going out alone, and he returned with mud on his body." Chief Zhou said.

The three went about their separate actions, and Yang Xiao, who initially thought they would have to wait a long time, found Director Zhai notifying him within an hour that they had already located the woman once romantically involved with Zhou Wenqing, who still lived in the countryside, not far from their factory.

"Is one day enough for a round trip?" Yang Xiao pursued.

"It is, but you need to be quick," Director Zhai reminded.

Finally, under the arrangement of the two directors from the Security Section, Yang Xiao boarded a Liberation truck arranged by the factory, joined by Ye Zheng and two other Security Section officers, and the four of them set off like that.

Chief Zhou and Director Zhai stayed behind due to dealing with other affairs, so they didn’t accompany him.

The journey was indeed lengthy, as the truck jolted along all morning, nearing noon before they arrived at a small village.

Because it had rained the previous night, the paths around the village were muddy, so the truck couldn’t get in; Yang Xiao and his team had to trudge along the muddy road, struggling into the village.

On the way, Ye Zheng even slipped and fell on the muddy path, ending up in a state of disarray.

Director Zhai did an excellent job, already notifying them by phone in advance. Thus, once Yang Xiao and his companions entered the village, everything proceeded smoothly, with the village cadre leading them to the village’s office, where a woman was already waiting for them inside a small room.

"Leaders, this is Sun Ying from our village; we all call her Yingzi. Yingzi is an honest child. Feel free to ask anything, but please don’t give her a hard time." One leader among the village cadre instructed.

After promising, Yang Xiao and his entourage entered the room. Upon seeing Yang Xiao and the unfamiliar faces, the woman named Yingzi clearly showed signs of shyness.

The woman appeared to be around 30 years old, petite, with dark skin, sporting thick bangs on her forehead like a watermelon rind, and hands marked by years of farm work—a person who immediately looked very honest.

"Sun Ying, don’t be nervous; we’re just here to learn about some situations," Yang Xiao, quite amiable, smiled as he sat across from Sun Ying, appearing very compassionate.

Sun Ying nodded slightly and mumbled a soft "Mm," likely having been briefed by the village cadre beforehand.

"Do you know Zhou Wenqing?" Yang Xiao locked his gaze on Sun Ying’s eyes, questioning.

In the next instant, upon hearing the name Zhou Wenqing, Sun Ying’s face changed dramatically, her eyes revealing fear, and her hands involuntarily tightened around the hem of her clothing as if by reflex.

"Kno... know, we... we used to date, but then... then we separated and haven’t contacted since." Sun Ying said in thick rural dialect, her voice slightly trembling.

"What are you afraid of?" Yang Xiao pressed.

"Noth... nothing," Sun Ying denied hastily, but she didn’t know how to hide it.

"Why did you separate back then?" Yang Xiao continued asking.

"Didn’t like, j...just separated, he wanted to work in the city, but I didn’t want to go," Sun Ying whispered.

Recognizing Sun Ying’s hesitation, Yang Xiao knew that further questioning wouldn’t lead to results, so he signaled with his eyes.

The two Security Section officers accompanying them understood, stood up proactively, found an excuse, and led the two village cadre members outside, closing the door behind them.

Now the room only had Yang Xiao, Ye Zheng, and Sun Ying.

At this point, Ye Zheng took the lead from Yang Xiao, approaching Sun Ying herself. Both were women, with similar ages, and it achieved much better results than when Yang Xiao was asking.

And it was indeed effective; after playing the emotional card, Ye Zheng gained Sun Ying’s trust, easing her internal barriers. As if recalling something, Sun Ying pursed her lips, unable to hold back soft sobs.

Seeing this scene, Yang Xiao knew something was going on here—they were onto something.

"Yingzi, was Zhou Wenqing not good to you?" Ye Zheng worded carefully, asking cautiously.

"He’s a beast!" Yingzi said while wiping her tears, "He hit me, hit me really bad, he’s sick in the head, as soon as... as soon as he saw me talking to other men, he couldn’t stand it, indifferent and reckless, he’d go home and beat me."

"Once, a childhood friend got married, all us old friends went to cheer, I talked a bit more with a male childhood friend, and Zhou Wenqing wouldn’t let go after."

"He drank quite a lot that night, and the way he looked at me was terrifying, that kind of fixed stare. I was scared, scared he’d act crazy drunk, so I had someone from the village send him back first, and when the banquet ended, I lit a flashlight and followed the path back to the village alone. Unexpectedly... unexpectedly..."