Chapter 585: To Raise Without Teaching Is the Father

What's going on?

Even with psychological preparation, the master and disciple were still left bewildered by the old man's reaction.

Even if it's an adopted child, you should cry at least two tears when they die.

Even if the relationship was bad, the worst you'd get is no reaction—not joy like this.

To them, the old man's current reaction was like hearing an enemy had died horribly, as if he wanted to set off firecrackers to celebrate.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have said, "Heaven has opened its eyes."

"Old man, you…"

Lu Zhongxin had wanted to console him, but halfway through, he swallowed his words.

How do you console?

Telling him to control his grief is out of the question—it doesn't fit.

He isn't grieving at all; what's there to console?

There are appropriate things to say, but…

"Old man, don't get too excited."

"Old man, take care of your health—laughing so loudly can damage your body."

Those words would fit, but he couldn't bring himself to say them.

For a moment, the master and disciple didn't know how to speak.

Fortunately, the old man only laughed for a while, then regained his composure. He looked at the master and disciple and said sincerely:

"Thank you both, officers. I truly appreciate it."

Your son wasn't killed by us… The master and disciple dared not accept such thanks and quickly waved their hands.

"Don't say that—it's our duty… No, what I mean is…"

Lu Zhongxin realized the old man before him was utterly unpredictable; the usual polite phrases he always used now wouldn't come out.

Seeing the old man's emotions had stabilized, he decided not to respond at all and went straight to the point:

"Today, besides having you identify the person, we also want to learn more about your two sons."

The current situation is equivalent to a major breakthrough in the case.

Not only have we confirmed that the van was the suspect vehicle, but we've also identified the identity of the anonymous corpse in the unfinished building.

Both brothers are suspects, and one of them was killed by his accomplice.

Then why didn't the older brother, Qi Jiandong, stop it?

They're blood brothers, and they committed such a serious crime together—surely their bond should have been strong.

This was what Yu Dazhang couldn't yet understand.

Why are we certain Qi Jiandong didn't stop it?

The reason is simple.

If he had tried to stop it, there would have been two other outcomes:

One: Qi Jianhua wouldn't have died—that's a successful intervention.

Two: Both brothers would have died in the unfinished building—that's a failed intervention.

But the reality is, only Qi Jianhua died there, while Qi Jiandong left the scene with the others in the van.

"My two sons… sigh…"

The old man sighed, his eyes filled with helplessness and sorrow:

"It's my fault, really. When I was young, our family was poor; as I grew older, I had no money to marry. Even in the 60s and 70s, we were among the poorest."

His words carried the pain of memories from the past:

"I didn't manage to marry until I was 38. The next year, my first son, Qi Jiandong, was born; two years later, my second son, Qi Jianhua."

"Having my first child near 40, I suppose I was an old father. That's why my wife and I doted on them excessively."

The old man's voice was heavy with self-blame:

"And these two sons became utterly unruly because of our indulgence."

"When they grew up, whenever something didn't go their way, they beat and cursed us."

His eyes shimmered with tears—disappointment and heartbreak for his children:

"When there was nothing left in the house for them to waste, they finally stopped."

"If the village committee hadn't banned land sales, we wouldn't even have a place to live now."

This kind of thing would never appear in official records.

Especially in the countryside, where reputation matters deeply, such matters are rarely spoken of publicly.

Family shame must not be aired outside.

Often, parents swallow their teeth whole and never speak out about their children's filial impiety.