Chapter 308: Suburban Villa

"Then can we take this Shiva statue away?" Cai Ding asked cautiously.

Zhong Kui raised an eyebrow: "Didn't I just say it was left for you?"

"Then what if Wu Chongyue and the others find out the statue is gone tomorrow?" Cai Ding asked worriedly.

"Haha." Zhong Kui suddenly laughed. "In the entire Sanwu Town, you are probably the only one who takes this statue seriously. Wu Chongyue and the others are just putting on a show for the clan members. Wu Xingzhou, this eldest grandson, died inexplicably; now it can all be attributed to disrespect to the gods, and no one will delve into secular reasons anymore.

They spent the money, and their goal was achieved. Do you think they will really come back to worship it?"

Cai Ding nodded slightly upon hearing this, muttering: "What you say does make sense."

"Alright, you have the things you want. Let's go our separate ways; don't say I'm in cahoots with you. This Great Immortal only associates with ghosts and gods, not with the police." Zhong Kui yawned lazily, and she and Meng Apo left the Huang Daxian Temple in the middle of the night, disappearing into the mist-heavy bluestone streets.

Cai Ding looked at the place where they disappeared and muttered: "Can she really communicate with spirits?"

"Ha, another one who has been bluffed." Wu Shanqiu laughed on the side. "Who was it that said they were a materialist earlier?"

"But this Zhong Kui is really different from everyone I've ever met; she doesn't look much like a real person."

Cai Ding's words made Qi Fei look at him twice more. Indeed, in a sense, Zhong Kui was not a real person.

Qi Fei reached out and patted Cai Ding on the back: "Stop thinking about it, focus on the case. Tomorrow we will go and meet that Wu Chongyue family."

"Eh? When was it packed up?" Wu Shanqiu asked in surprise.

Following where she pointed, the other two saw that the Shiva statue had already been packed in a wooden box, with a seal on it. The characters on the seal were crooked and no one could understand them, but Qi Fei remembered the style of these characters; they were the Sanskrit that had appeared in the "Demon Mirror Case."

Early the next morning, Cai Ding led Qi Fei and Wu Shanqiu toward the outskirts of Sanwu Town. The residential houses on both sides became increasingly sparse, gradually turning into vast fields. After autumn, the rice had matured, and golden waves rose with the wind in the morning sun, which was quite beautiful.

"Isn't this Wu Chongyue the eldest brother of the Wu family clan? Why don't they live in the town?" Wu Shanqiu asked while brushing away the hair blown messy by the wind.

"I heard about this situation from the seniors at the station. The Wu Chongyue family's ancestral home is indeed in Sanwu Town, but when dividing the family property, Wu Chongyue generously gave his share of the mansion to his poorest third younger brother. He bought another piece of land and built a house himself.

This matter is well-known within the Wu family, and Wu Chongyue's prestige in the family is very high because of it.

Oh, come to think of it, Wu Xingzhou was born not long after the house was built. Everyone says it's because he was generous and good people get good rewards."

As they were speaking, a row of houses with blue tiles and white walls appeared ahead, standing out in the fields. It looked like the house Wu Chongyue had built back then.

"Looking at the mountain makes the horse run to death"—the house looked like it was right in front of them, but the three of them still walked for twenty minutes before arriving.

It could be seen that the house had been built for some years; the iron gate of the courtyard was mottled and rusty. Before they could even knock on the door, dog barks came from inside the wall.

"Who is it?" A young man's voice came. Through the hollow fence under the iron gate, one could see a person wearing slippers walking toward the gate with a "pitter-patter."

The iron gate opened with a "clatter." Appearing before them was a young man in his early twenties, wearing plaid pajamas. His permed and dyed hair was flattened on one side, looking as if he had just woken up and hadn't washed or groomed yet.

Before the three of them could explain their purpose, as soon as he saw the uniform Cai Ding was wearing, he immediately turned back and shouted: "Dad, Mom, the police are here to find you again." His words revealed a hint of impatience.

"Are you Wu Xingzhou's younger brother, Wu Xingyang?" Cai Ding reacted immediately.

Wu Xingyang lifted his chin and said: "Yes, I am Wu Xingyang. My brother is already dead, so don't mention him together; it's so inauspicious."

This made Qi Fei and Wu Shanqiu look at each other. It seemed this younger brother didn't have much respect for his older brother.

The sound of slippers came from inside again, and two sturdy elderly people, a man and a woman, rushed out in a hurry.

The man's hairline had receded to the top of his head, and a circle of graying crew cut stuck to his scalp like a brush, forming a sharp contrast with his dark skin. It looked like Wu Chongyue. Beside him, Zhu Haitang was plump and fair, looking like a wealthy lady who had been pampered.

Wu Chongyue pulled Wu Xingyang behind him as soon as he came up and dismissed him: "Don't get involved in this matter, hurry back and eat your breakfast!"

His tone was overbearing, but anyone with a discerning eye could see he was protecting his calf and didn't want Wu Xingyang to face the police.

According to the process Cai Ding had mentioned earlier, Qi Fei thought he would have to spend a lot of effort with Wu Chongyue today. Unexpectedly, his attitude was not bad. Seeing Cai Ding, he took the initiative to say: "Officer Cai, we didn't know each other before, but we do now. I was too rash that day; let me apologize to you first."

Cai Ding was also a bit stunned by his attitude. He paused and said: "I didn't come today to make you apologize. These two are Qi Fei and Wu Shanqiu from the Criminal Police Brigade of the Nancheng Public Security Bureau. They want to learn about the situation before Wu Xingzhou's accident."

As soon as Cai Ding finished speaking, Zhu Haitang on the side couldn't hold back anymore and blurted out: "People are already gone, let him rest in peace. We parents don't want to pursue it anymore; why do you still have to bite and not let go?"

Cai Ding insisted on his principles: "We have the responsibility to investigate every non-normal death in Sanwu Town to the end."

"We have already asked the Great Immortal. It was that child Xingzhou who was ignorant and brought a god from outside without properly settling it. This is divine punishment, he suffered divine punishment!" Zhu Haitang became excited. However, Wu Chongyue on the side grabbed Zhu Haitang's arm with his large hand and whispered: "Stop talking, go into the house first, I will talk to the police here."

Zhu Haitang looked back three times for every step she took as she returned to the house.

Wu Chongyue looked at the three people in front of him and put on a righteous appearance: "I know, you think my son died suspiciously. That's because you don't understand my son's physical condition. He was weak and sickly since he was a child, and he was also timid. Fortune tellers had said before that he wouldn't live past thirty. We didn't believe it at the time, but now that I think about it, it was all fate.

Xingzhou was not only my son but also the eldest grandson of the Wu family clan. He left so suddenly, and I am more heartbroken than anyone. However, the dead cannot be brought back to life. We don't want people in the clan to think our family is unfortunate. Our family has always been the leading household of the Wu family, and prestige is very important."

"Prestige?" Qi Fei couldn't understand. "Is prestige more important than human life?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the dog in the courtyard barked wildly again. ===== CHAPTER 309 =====