"This case is mine," Lü Qingqing volunteered, not only because of Gong Tishi's predicament but also because she wanted to prove her capabilities.
Hu Jia didn't refuse, directly instructing Luo Wenwu to report and transfer the case according to procedure.
After reporting the case, Gong Tishi returned directly to Nanto, while Lü Qingqing was slightly delayed due to the transfer procedures and paperwork.
"Sister Qingqing, these Yang family members are not honest," Li Yang said.
Lü Qingqing nodded. Indeed, it was easy to determine if a person died normally, let alone violently. The Yang family's concealment of facts clearly indicated their involvement in Yang Xiaohong's death.
She just didn't know what role they played in this murder case.
"Sister Qingqing, seeing how you analyzed the bloodstains on the clothes earlier, you must have dealt with many murder cases before, right?"
"My father was an imperial coroner in the previous dynasty, so I saw a lot since I was young."
"Hmm, no wonder. The boss has a keen eye for people. We haven't had a new recruit in our team for five years. You're the first."
"Five years? That means no new members have joined since Hu Jia lost his memory?"
"It's not that no one came. A few joined intermittently in the early stages, but due to the boss's memory, none of them ended up staying."
Hearing this, Lü Qingqing could only sigh inwardly. Li Yang and the other two had been with Hu Jia since they were eighteen. Hu Jia retained his memories up to the age of twenty-two, so his amnesia didn't cause too many issues in their interactions. However, it was more problematic for newcomers.
Like herself.
As a subordinate, every week you wake up, you are a stranger in your leader's eyes. He doesn't trust you, nor does he have any affection for you. Forget about being friends; you're not even acquaintances.
Indeed, it was quite disheartening to think about.
"Although he hasn't forgotten us, he has no memory of everything we've experienced in the past five years. At first, we were also very upset, but we adapted later," Li Yang said thoughtfully, gazing ahead. "Sometimes, adapting is more unbearable than forgetting."
Lü Qingqing fell silent. A certain figure appeared in her mind.
The person was still the same person, and yet, the person was no longer the same person.
An hour later, Lü Qingqing and the other two arrived at Nanto Village. The Yang family was easy to find; after all, one could find out which house was holding a funeral with a simple inquiry.
As they entered the Yang residence, they saw Gong Tishi blocking a coffin, struggling with a group of people. A slightly plump old woman was particularly active, jumping and scolding Gong Tishi.
"You heartless man, my daughter married you and had a bitter life. Now that she's gone, you won't even let her rest in peace."
Gong Tishi stood firm like a rock. Even though the old woman's fingertip was at his nose, he didn't move an inch.
"What are you doing?" Li Yang's sharp voice interrupted the old woman's wailing.
Seeing Lü Qingqing and the other two, Gong Tishi felt he had found his pillars of support. "Officer Lü, Officer Li, you've finally arrived. If you were any later, I wouldn't have been able to stop them."
This was Hu Jia's task for Gong Tishi: to return ahead and prevent the coffin from being buried. The two Nanto police officers also stepped forward to greet them. Lü Qingqing nodded slightly at them, knowing that these two must have put in considerable effort to help block the coffin, otherwise, Gong Tishi alone would not have been able to stop them.
"Who are you?" Seeing the approaching Lü Qingqing and the other two, Yang Xiaohong's mother was very impolite.
"They are leaders from the municipal bureau, specifically here to investigate your daughter's case," the two Nanto police officers introduced them briefly.
"What case? We don't have any case here! My daughter died of illness. What are Gong Tishi's intentions in blocking the coffin and preventing my daughter from being buried?" The old woman pointed her finger at Gong Tishi, as if this son-in-law were a great villain.
"Yes, esteemed officials, my brother-in-law cannot accept my sister's sudden departure and is a bit distraught, causing you trouble," a man in plain clothes stepped forward. Judging by his address, he was likely Yang Xiaoren, whom Gong Tishi had mentioned as his brother-in-law.
Yang Xiaoren put on a mournful face, his expression filled with sorrow. "Brother-in-law, please try to endure. My sister left too suddenly, not even having a chance to see you one last time. But you can't stop her from being buried and resting in peace because of this." Tears streamed down his face.
"Nonsense! Your sister did not die of illness at all!" Gong Tishi glared at Yang Xiaoren resentfully. "Otherwise, why would you stop me from seeing her one last time?"
Indeed, as Gong Tishi said, by the time he returned to the Yang family, his wife's coffin had already been sealed, and he hadn't even seen Yang Xiaohong's face.
"The coffin has already been sealed. Opening it again will disturb my sister's spirit," Yang Xiaoren hastily explained.
"Bah! Do you even believe that yourself when you say it?" Gong Tishi spat.
He then turned to Lü Qingqing and the other two, saying, "My wife has always been disliked by her maternal family. To speak a falsehood, if she had truly died of illness, they probably wouldn't even have bought her candles, let alone held a funeral for her!"
Lü Qingqing had remained silent, preferring to observe first.
Lü Qingqing didn't refute Gong Tishi's statement. After all, she had clearly seen who paid for the coffin. A family that was unwilling to pay for a coffin for their daughter, yet lavishly organized an entire funeral, was indeed strange.
Furthermore, the old woman was constantly wailing. She had the sound of crying, but no sadness.
"Are you saying Yang Xiaohong didn't have a good relationship with her family?" Li Yang asked Gong Tishi.
"Yes! In my mother-in-law's heart, she only has a son, not a daughter," Gong Tishi said, overwhelmed with grief when speaking of his wife.
He explained that although Nanto was only a little over two hours away from Tongyuanmen, Yang Xiaohong rarely visited her maternal home after marriage, solely because she had a younger brother, and her parents were particularly partial to males.
Her brother, Yang Xiaoren, had been spoiled rotten since childhood. The old saying goes that indulged children are useless, and Yang Xiaoren was precisely that. He had failed miserably in his studies and was incapable of any other trade. In his twenties, he was still a failure, doing nothing at home but mooching off his parents.
Every time Yang Xiaohong returned home, her mother never inquired about her well-being with her husband's family. Instead, she would immediately say, "Your brother doesn't have a wife yet; you, as the elder sister, must find one for him; your brother needs to get married, and you, as the elder sister, must prepare some silver to help him out."
They treated their male heir like gold and their daughter with indifference. Over time, even Gong Tishi couldn't stand it. If not for the news that his mother-in-law was critically ill, Yang Xiaohong probably wouldn't have returned to Nanto.
Initially, Gong Tishi didn't suspect anything when his wife suddenly passed away. However, on the night he returned home for the funeral, he discovered blood-stained clothes and embroidered shoes discarded under the bed.
"My daughter vomited blood and died. It's normal for her clothes to have bloodstains. We don't have any of her belongings at home. Is it wrong for me to wash them and preserve them?" the mother-in-law shouted loudly. If not for her son holding her back, she looked like she would have kicked her son-in-law.
"Enough! What are you arguing about in front of the deceased!" Lü Qingqing shouted, her head pounding from their bickering. "Since we have received the report, this procedure is unavoidable."
Lü Qingqing, abandoning the decisive manner Li Yang had come to associate with her, appeared particularly accommodating. "Since you claim Yang Xiaohong died vomiting blood, why did Gong Tishi, as her husband, never notice anything abnormal about Yang Xiaohong's health?"
"Officer, my daughter has had a heart condition since she was a child, which hadn't recurred for many years. We all thought she had recovered, so her son-in-law naturally didn't know. Who knew that upon returning and seeing me critically ill, she would panic and her condition would relapse," the mother-in-law said, then began to wail again. In short, if they opened the coffin, she would commit suicide in front of her daughter's spirit.
Seeing this, Yang Xiaoren stepped forward to add, "Officer, my brother-in-law suspects my sister was stabbed to death. But look at these clothes, where are the tears?"
Lü Qingqing looked at the old woman and then at the clothes, nodding. "You make a valid point. Gong Tishi indeed has no proof and is making a false accusation." With that, she instructed the two Nanto police officers, "You two, take Mr. Gong away. I see he's indeed stimulated, so we won't delay the Yang family's daughter's burial here."
After speaking, Lü Qingqing turned and left.
This neat and decisive action directly cut off the old woman's dry wailing. Everyone was taken aback. This woman? Was that how she handled things?