Chapter 259: Old House

This was an old house nestled among many self-built homes. Compared to the two- or three-story buildings surrounding it, this old house appeared low and dilapidated.

A seal from the Qinghe Branch Bureau was pasted on the dark wooden door.

Luo Fei removed the seal, and the wooden door was pushed open with a grating "creak." Although it was broad daylight, the lighting in this type of self-built house was not ideal, and this old house appeared even more dark and damp.

When Gu Changzheng stood at the entrance, he felt a chill mixed with a strange odor rushing from inside to outside, hitting his face. He couldn't help but shiver, thinking: This place has such heavy yin energy!

The body had already been transported away by the forensic team. At this moment, except for some markers made by the police, the old house was no different from an ordinary residence, just particularly old and dark.

Gu Changzheng frowned slightly, standing at the door and looking inside. This house was indeed rare in today's Zizhen City; it was too old!

This also indirectly indicated that the owner's economic situation was not good. Moreover, it seemed there were no obvious traces of daily life. However, it did match the identity of Jiang Feiyang (oh, the deceased in this case) as a left-behind child.

With the help of the high-intensity flashlight in Luo Fei's hand, Gu Changzheng carefully observed the wear marks on the house beam; that was left by the rope used to hang Jiang Feiyang. Apart from the marks left by the rope, the rest of the beam was covered in a thick layer of dust.

A square table with peeling paint inside the house was empty, with one end of a power cord hanging under the table and the plug still inserted into the wall socket.

And there were two very clean spots on the tabletop, completely different from the dust-covered surface!

Gu Changzheng walked to the front of the table, assumed a semi-squatting posture, and after a while, he spoke: "If there was someone else at the scene, that person was a short individual. Could it be that they were a minor like the deceased?"

He seemed to be talking to himself or asking Luo Fei.

Seeing the way he placed his arms on the table, Luo Fei immediately understood. The two clean spots on the tabletop were left by the person operating the computer. Based on the traces, it could be inferred that it was someone with relatively slender arms who had to struggle to reach the tabletop.

"The one who discovered the body was the deceased's uncle?" Gu Changzheng asked.

"Yes. The deceased Jiang Feiyang's father, Jiang Dahong, and his wife, Yu Guizhi, have been working away for years. Their only son, Jiang Feiyang, attends a boarding middle school and usually doesn't come home. The Jiang family are outsiders here and have no relatives or friends in Zizhen. Jiang Dahong has a cousin from the same clan who also lives in this community (Qinghe District is a district established after the original Qinghe County was abolished; these communities used to be villages and towns), and Jiang Dahong entrusted this cousin to look after Jiang Feiyang."

Luo Fei continued: "However, Jiang Feiyang's uncle is not in good health, and since Jiang Feiyang usually lives at school, he only comes to his uncle's house for a meal on weekends, still living alone."

"After returning home this weekend, the school found he didn't return to school on time. After contacting Jiang Dahong, Jiang Dahong called his cousin again. By the time the old man broke down the door, Jiang Feiyang had been dead for a long time!"

"Hmm!" Gu Changzheng gave a light grunt, squatting on the ground, his eyes scanning the floor everywhere like a radar.

Suddenly, his gaze stopped. Following his line of sight, an imprint the size of a soybean appeared inside the table leg.

"Luo Fei!" he called out without raising his head.

Hearing this, Luo Fei hurriedly bent over and leaned in. "There's something strange here," Gu Changzheng said, pointing at the imprint.

"It seems to be the residue of some liquid?" Luo Fei said after careful observation.

"Take an evidence bag, collect it, and take it back for testing. If my judgment isn't wrong, it should be a trace left by semen," Gu Changzheng said lightly. "It seems the person operating the computer was a male. Anyway, invite Jiang Feiyang's uncle over. I know how that person disappeared."

Luo Fei looked at Gu Changzheng in disbelief: "Master, it wouldn't be that old man, would it?"

"What are you thinking?" Gu Changzheng glanced at him. "You call that old man over, and you'll understand in a moment. Go, go!"

Luo Fei responded and looked at Gu Changzheng with some doubt, but still obediently went to Jiang Feiyang's uncle's house to call him.

Gu Changzheng stood up and backhanded his lower back. Luo Fei had called him at 10:07 AM today. The body was discovered by the old man at 9:00 AM yesterday. It was now 11:45 AM. More than a day had passed since the old man discovered the body and reported it, but when he just entered the door, he felt a strange odor. At the time, he thought it was the moldy smell of the house, but now he understood: that smell was not just the strange odor of an old house, but mixed with a hint of fishy stench and a faint smell of alcohol!

He deduced that Jiang Feiyang's uncle must love to drink and was a chronic alcoholic; otherwise, he wouldn't have failed to notice someone slipping away from beside him!

This was a bold deduction, but apart from this, he had no reasonable explanation for how the other boy who appeared at Jiang Feiyang's death scene disappeared from this old house, which was like a locked room.

Not long after, Luo Fei returned with a dark-skinned, tall old man of about sixty.

"Master, this is the deceased Jiang Feiyang's uncle, Jiang Dajun." Luo Fei turned back and said to Jiang Dajun: "Mr. Jiang, this is our Municipal Bureau's Detachment Captain Gu."

Compared to "Director," Luo Fei and the others who had been following him were still used to calling him "Detachment Captain." Gu Changzheng had already quickly sized up the other party while Luo Fei was introducing Jiang Dajun! It was indeed as he had deduced: Jiang Dajun's cloudy eyes, unsteady gait, and slightly trembling hands that he couldn't control indicated that this was a person who drank alcohol year-round.

Sure enough, although it wasn't lunchtime yet, there was a strong smell of alcohol on Jiang Dajun.

Gu Changzheng seemed not to notice this at all and said gently: "Mr. Jiang, hello! I asked you to come over because I wanted you to recall the scene when you discovered Jiang Feiyang's body yesterday."

The old man's cloudy eyes revealed terror and sorrow. He twitched his nose rapidly and said in a low, hoarse voice: "Sigh! This child was usually a bit introverted and didn't like to talk. After eating dinner at my place the day before yesterday, he hurried back to this old house. He was used to living alone, so I didn't think much of it..."

Once the old man opened his mouth, he started rambling. Seeing that he was talking about irrelevant things from the start, Luo Fei was about to remind him to talk about discovering Jiang Feiyang's body, but was stopped by a look from Gu Changzheng.

Gu Changzheng seemed to be listening to his rambling with great interest.

Seeing that this high-ranking official was listening to him with a smile, the old man seemed encouraged and told everything about Jiang Feiyang's usual affairs! ===== CHAPTER 260 =====