Since there were many people involved and Chen Yuanwei's residence was small, the search proceeded quickly. After collecting sufficient evidence, Xu Nian said, "Let's wrap it up. Captain Yang and the others should have returned from the crime scene by now. We’ll take the evidence back and hand it over to the forensics team for testing."
Guan Xia glanced at the sky outside the window. The sun had already sunk below the horizon, and though the sky was still bright, only a dim, golden afterglow remained.
"Let’s head back then," Guan Xia agreed, then turned to Xu Nian. "I still have some doubts about Chen Yuanwei’s case. Should we come back tomorrow?"
Xu Nian also had questions and nodded without hesitation. "We’ve been working nonstop for two days and a night, barely getting any sleep. Let’s go back, rest well tonight, and return tomorrow with fresh minds."
First, they delivered the evidence collected from Chen Yuanwei’s home to the Tong’an District Police Station. After checking in with Captain Yang, they returned to their hotel.
Guan Xia had many questions on her mind, but the exhaustion from the work kept them at bay. The moment she lay down on the bed, she fell asleep instantly.
When she opened her eyes again, it was already broad daylight.
Pang Le was already up, swiftly applying a full face of makeup. Guan Xia gave her an admiring glance before slipping on her slippers and heading to the bathroom to freshen up.
Afterward, Guan Xia casually dabbed on some moisturizer and slathered on sunscreen, carefully checking her reflection in the mirror to ensure she hadn’t tanned too much. Satisfied, she asked Pang Le lightly, "What time is it? Has Sister Ji called?"
Pang Le, busy applying blush, replied offhandedly, "It’s past 9. Sister Ji hasn’t called, but Xu Nian sent a message in the group earlier. Apparently, Captain Yang and the team pulled another all-nighter, and one of the field officers even fainted from low blood sugar—almost had to be hospitalized. Director Tian from Tong’an District stepped in and gave everyone half a day off to rest before returning to work in the afternoon. Since both suspects are either dead or arrested, the remaining tasks are just tying up loose ends, so there’s no rush."
Guan Xia thought about the intensity of the past two days and nodded in agreement.
She hadn’t pulled many all-nighters in recent years, and her physical stamina was still good. But the others weren’t so lucky—most veteran detectives had their share of health issues.
Her thoughts drifted to Xu Nian and the others. Xu Nian and Wang Yu were still relatively young, but Jiang Yingyao was in his forties. After days of relentless work, she wondered if his body could handle it.
Guan Xia finished getting ready quickly, and by then, Pang Le had also completed her makeup, tying her hair into a flawless bun and slipping into her most comfortable pair of flats before they left the room together.
Since they’d missed the hotel’s breakfast hours, they had to eat out.
After sending a message in the group chat, Guan Xia knocked on Ji An and Zhong Xiaoyu’s door.
Zhong Xiaoyu answered, greeting them with a bright smile. "My aunt just called to thank you all for traveling so far to help solve my uncle’s case. She wants to treat everyone to dinner tonight."
Guan Xia and Pang Le were both surprised. After stepping inside and closing the door, Guan Xia asked, puzzled, "Chen Yuanwei only died two days ago. How did your aunt find out so quickly? That’s some impressive intel."
Zhong Xiaoyu shrugged. "Ever since my uncle died, my aunt has been obsessed with his case, throwing money everywhere. I don’t know where she got the news, but I’m guessing it’s from the connections she’s built over the years. Anyway, it doesn’t matter—she knows, and she’s treating us to dinner. She said she understands that cops might be wary of mingling with people like her, so she won’t attend. We just eat, and she foots the bill."
Zhong Xiaoyu’s aunt was not only well-informed but also unexpectedly considerate.
Since Guan Xia and the others were indeed here for Zhong Xiaoyu’s uncle’s case, they didn’t hesitate long before agreeing.
It was just a meal, and with the aunt absent, there’d be no awkward socializing—just a team outing.
Originally, Guan Xia had planned to visit Tong’an District Station after breakfast to exchange updates with Captain Yang. But since they were all on break—likely still asleep—she and the others headed straight to the urban-rural fringe where Chen Yuanwei had lived.
Accompanying them again were the two officers from the local police station. After hearing Guan Xia’s idea, the older officer pondered for a moment before saying, "If we’re looking for an additional residence Chen Yuanwei deliberately hid—one not rented under his name—it won’t be easy to find."
Xu Nian thought for a few seconds. "What if we focus on the dumpsters where the abused cats and dogs were found? Since Chen Yuanwei went to great lengths to hide his activities, he probably didn’t follow the usual ‘dump far, bury near’ pattern. It’ll be tough, but there’s a good chance we’ll find something."
The older officer nodded after a moment’s consideration. "That could work. Hold on—I’ll call the station and get the records of animal abuse reports from recent years. We’ll map out the locations and split up to search. We might even find something today."
As the officer stepped aside to make the call, Guan Xia surveyed the cramped, labyrinthine surroundings and sighed inwardly. Today was going to be another long, shoe-destroying day.
Nearly half an hour later, the older officer returned. "Got the records—plenty of locations. I also asked the community director, and she sent me contacts for several landlords whose properties are near those spots. We’ll split up and call them to see if any match our criteria."
The group huddled in the shade to divide tasks before dispersing to work.
Guan Xia and Pang Le paired up again, taking turns making calls.
By noon, everyone regrouped.
After compiling the list of potential addresses, Xu Nian said, "We’ve made good progress. So far, we’ve narrowed it down to 32 likely spots. Let’s move fast and try to cover them all this afternoon."
Since they only had one set of keys, they couldn’t split into smaller teams and had to stick together.
The rest of the afternoon was a blur of walking, climbing stairs, and trying key after key to unlock doors.
At first, Guan Xia felt a thrill of anticipation, even a nervous tension each time Xu Nian inserted a key—like the suspense of opening a mystery box. But as time wore on, her legs grew sore, and her enthusiasm dulled into exhaustion.
Fortunately, their efforts weren’t in vain. As the sun began to dip in the sky, a soft click finally signaled a successful unlock.
Guan Xia, who had been standing listlessly to the side, perked up instantly at the sound. To her ears, it was nothing short of heavenly.
The others were the same, their faces showing a hint of anticipation. Almost the moment the tightly locked door was pushed open, they eagerly stepped inside.
Even with some preparation, Guan Xia couldn’t help but be stunned the moment she got a clear look at the room. Photos—photos covered every inch of the walls, so many that Guan Xia almost felt her trypophobia acting up.
Most of the photos were taken secretly—enlarged shots of profiles, backs, some even just half a face, a forehead paired with a pair of dark, gleaming eyes. At a glance, it almost felt like those eyes were staring right at you.
As she looked, Guan Xia couldn’t help but mutter under her breath, "Disgusting. Chen Yuanwei is truly disgusting."
It took her a while before she could finally tear her gaze away from the photos and start examining the rest of the room.
Compared to Chen Yuanwei’s usual living space, this room was noticeably cruder and messier.
Aside from the four walls plastered with photos, the corners of the floor were littered with cages—roughly made from twisted wire, each stained with splotches of blood and unidentifiable clumps of fur.
Guan Xia could easily imagine countless cats and dogs, covered in wounds, locked inside those cages, perhaps unable to even scream.
Given the densely populated nature of this urban-rural fringe area, if there had been any animal cries, the local police station would have definitely received reports.
Since the officers accompanying them hadn’t discovered anything yet, it was likely that the animals’ vocal cords had been destroyed the moment they were brought here.
Her eyes skimmed over the cages, landing on the scattered tools strewn across the floor—scissors, utility knives, pliers, hammers—all without exception coated in dried, blackened blood.
"Seems like this place has been around for a while," Xu Nian said, crouching down and picking up a pair of scissors with gloved hands. After a careful look, she set it back down. "Chen Yuanwei probably kept changing residences because he was afraid this place would be traced back to him."
"Then his other keys," Guan Xia speculated, "might mean that besides here, there are similar places in other urban villages he’s lived in. If he moved back, he’d keep using them. If he left, they’d just sit empty."
"In that case, his daily expenses must be huge," Pang Le remarked. "Even if he moved every six months on average, and even if he could reuse a lot of things without buying new ones, the cost would still add up. Not to mention, he’d have to keep renting these hidden rooms long-term. But then again, if this place has existed for so long, how come the landlord never noticed? If no one was living here regularly, wouldn’t they get curious and check?"
The older officer standing nearby spoke up, "I just asked the landlord. She remembers this room. According to her, this place was rented out five or six years ago. The tenant was a very thin young man, seemed like he had some kind of illness—really weak, wearing a mask. He said he often came to Jianyang City for business trips. His company gave him a travel allowance, but since he needed money, he didn’t want to spend it on hotels, so he just rented a cheap place to stay during his trips. The landlord did worry at first that the guy might be up to something illegal—she even suspected his thinness might be from drug use. But there were surveillance cameras installed in the hallway. A few times when she passed by, the cameras seemed to move as if someone was watching in real time, tracking her. It creeped her out. Plus, she figured it was better not to stir up trouble. Since the guy barely stayed here anyway, she assumed it was just being used as storage and didn’t bother investigating further."
Five or six years ago… Guan Xia pondered. That was likely around the time Wu Xiaozhen discovered Chen Yuanwei and started stalking him.
Seems like Wu Xiaozhen’s actions back then had scared Chen Yuanwei badly—enough to make him move overnight and even fall ill.
Imagining the scene, Guan Xia’s face twisted into a mix of scorn and disgust. Just as she was about to continue examining the room filled with evidence, Zhong Xiaoyu suddenly asked curiously, "Hey, come look—who are these two people?"
Guan Xia walked over and stood beside Zhong Xiaoyu, who pointed at a few photos on the wall. "Look, this one, this one, and these—they’re all frontal shots, and they’re much smaller than the others. The edges don’t look like they were properly cut; more like they were torn off from a larger photo. Most importantly, I don’t recognize either of these people."
Zhong Xiaoyu added, "After agreeing to help my aunt investigate my uncle’s case, I made sure to look into it. I’ve seen photos of all the victims Chen Yuanwei killed—except these two. If they’re on this wall, does that mean before the four known victims, Chen Yuanwei might have killed two others, but it was never discovered?"
Listening to Zhong Xiaoyu’s speculation, Guan Xia leaned in to study the photos closely.
They were indeed different from the others. These two didn’t look like they were secretly photographed—they seemed to be posing naturally, smiling, their body language relaxed.
From their posture, it looked like at least one other person had been standing beside them in the original photos. Another thing—Guan Xia couldn’t shake the feeling that these two looked familiar.
Just as she was racking her brain, Wang Yu spoke up, "I recognize this man. I saw his photo last night while going through records. That’s Chen Yuanwei’s father, Chen Maofeng."
Guan Xia suddenly understood—no wonder they looked familiar. The man bore some resemblance to Chen Yuanwei.
But it left her puzzled. "Why would Chen Yuanwei mix his father’s photo in with the victims’? And if this man is Chen Maofeng, then this woman… could she be his mother?"
Guan Xia couldn’t make sense of it. A wild guess crossed her mind—could it be that Chen Maofeng hadn’t actually committed suicide back then? Could Chen Yuanwei have been so cruel as to kill his own mother too?
