“Sit.”
Guan Hongyu gestured with his hand.
“Alright.”
Wan Yunting nodded with a smile and sat down on a wooden chair in the living room. He rubbed the armrest and his gaze swept over Guan Hongyu’s living room, then landed on the room in the foyer facing east. Pointing, he chuckled, “I remember that’s your room, right?”
“Mhm.”
Guan Hongyu nodded.
Wan Yunting smiled, “Want to take a look inside?”
“Of course.”
Guan Hongyu smiled, stood up, and led Wan Yunting over. He pushed open his room door, “Come in.”
Wan Yunting readily entered the not-so-large room. There was a wooden bed, a desk, a cabinet, and a bookshelf. The walls were plastered with posters of various international football stars. “It really hasn’t changed a bit. The poster quality is good, they haven’t faded after so many years.”
Guan Hongyu looked at a poster of Kobe and smiled, “You said back then that you liked Kobe’s Black Mamba spirit the most.”
Wan Yunting turned to look at him and smiled, “I still do!”
Guan Hongyu smiled and nodded. Wan Yunting walked over to the desk and looked at the many photos pressed under glass. They were precious photos from their university days. He couldn’t help but laugh, “When we were in college, we were all fresh young men. Now, seven years have passed in the blink of an eye, and we’re both almost greasy middle-aged men.”
“Indeed.”
Guan Hongyu also looked at a photo of himself, Wan Yunting, and Fang Yanxi. Fang Yanxi stood between them. The woman in the photo was pure and beautiful, her smile gentle and captivating. “When this photo was taken, were you already together with Yanxi?”
Wan Yunting looked down at the time stamp in the bottom right corner of the photo. “Mhm, it must have been the night before, when I took her to the Pearl River to see the night view. That’s when I confessed to her.”
Guan Hongyu chuckled, “You guys kept it a secret from us back then, not showing the slightest clue.”
“Haha, you know how we were back then, the prominent figures of the school. If the news of Yanxi and I being together got out, wouldn’t I have been chased by her suitors?” Wan Yunting laughed heartily.
Guan Hongyu smiled, then immediately said, “If I said I had confessed to Yanxi, would you hate me now?”
Wan Yunting’s expression froze. Fang Yanxi had told him this before, but he hadn't expected Guan Hongyu to bring it up now. Wan Yunting could only play dumb, “You confessed to Yanxi? When was that?”
Guan Hongyu tapped on the photo on the table, “The day after this photo was taken, I asked her out and confessed to her.”
“Damn it.”
Wan Yunting playfully punched his arm. “Old Guan, you’re something else. If I had confessed to Yanxi a few days earlier, you would have beaten me to it.”
“Yes, that’s why I was very regretful at the time, that you made your move first,” Guan Hongyu chuckled.
Although he seemed indifferent now, Guan Hongyu’s heart had indeed cared deeply at the time.
Wan Yunting smiled, “I actually knew you had a crush on Yanxi back then, but there was nothing I could do. I liked her too.”
Guan Hongyu smiled, “It was a fair competition. Besides, Yanxi liked you back then, not me!”
Wan Yunting patted his shoulder and chuckled, “Don’t be sad. Who told me I’m a bit more handsome than you and a bit better at playing ball?”
Guan Hongyu walked out of the room, smiling, “Yes, who told you that you were the protagonist back then?”
Wan Yunting followed him out, laughing, “Are you jealous of me saying that?”
Guan Hongyu turned to look at him and nodded, “I was a bit jealous of you back then. After all, among us, your family’s conditions were the most compatible with Yanxi’s.”
“Alright.”
Wan Yunting shrugged, spread his hands, and pouted with a smile, “These are innate conditions, I can’t help it.”
Guan Hongyu smiled. Wan Yunting’s gaze fell on the room inside. “Is that your parents’ room?”
“Mhm,” Guan Hongyu nodded.
Wan Yunting sighed, his smile fading. “Can I go in and offer them some incense?”
“Sure.”
Guan Hongyu nodded and led Wan Yunting over. He opened the door to his parents’ room. Although the curtains were drawn, making the room a bit dim, everything inside had been restored to normal. Even the altar had black and white photos of Guan Hongyu’s parents, an incense burner, and two offerings. The table and floor were cleaned meticulously, showing no signs of anything unusual.
Guan Hongyu stepped forward, lit six sticks of incense, and handed them to Wan Yunting. He bowed three times to Guan Hongyu’s parents before inserting the incense into the burner. With a slight sigh, he turned to Guan Hongyu and said, “Let’s talk outside.”
Guan Hongyu nodded and led Wan Yunting out, returning to sit in the living room. Wan Yunting picked up a cup of water, took a sip, and placed it gently on the coffee table. He then turned to Guan Hongyu, who was sitting beside him, “Old Guan, can I ask if your parents really died in a factory fire accident?”
Guan Hongyu, who was drinking water, paused. He smiled, placed the cup on the coffee table, and nodded in affirmation, “Mhm.”
Wan Yunting raised an eyebrow and said, “But I heard that the factory fire that killed your parents was arson!”
Guan Hongyu slowly turned his head and looked at Wan Yunting, smiling, “You mean to say the arsonist was Tian Guofu!”
Wan Yunting’s expression faltered, and he remained silent.
A smile played on Guan Hongyu’s lips. “The news has reported these past two days that Tian Guofu has disappeared, and his wife and two sons were killed. So Yunting, you suspect I did it, right?”
Wan Yunting shook his head and smiled, “Old Guan, you misunderstand. I’m not here to suspect you. I’m just asking out of curiosity.”
Guan Hongyu smiled, “Yunting, I know you’re working with the police now, and I also know the police suspect me of being the murderer of Tian Guofu’s wife and sons. They’ve had people watching my every move downstairs for the past two days, so I’m not surprised you’re here today.”
Being laid bare like that made Wan Yunting feel a bit awkward. He waved his hand and chuckled, “Old Guan, don’t worry. The police only suspect, but they have no evidence to prove you did it.”
Guan Hongyu turned to look at him and smiled, “I thought you were here to interrogate me as a suspect.”
“Hey, come on.”
Wan Yunting smiled and rolled his eyes at him. Then he took out a bank card, placed it on the coffee table, and pushed it over. “Here, five million in the card. It’s the investment Yanxi agreed to give you. If you still need anything, just tell me. Don’t go to her for any more investments; it’s too formal.”
Guan Hongyu didn’t stand on ceremony, took the bank card pushed towards him, and smiled, “Thanks.”
Wan Yunting clapped his thighs and stood up, smiling, “Alright then, I need to get back to the hospital for work. Call me anytime if anything comes up.”
“Mhm.”
Guan Hongyu nodded and walked him to the door. Wan Yunting waved, “No need to see me off. I can go down myself. Let’s call Old Jin and get together some other day.”
“Okay.”
Guan Hongyu nodded and watched Wan Yunting go downstairs. He then looked down at the bank card in his hand, and his gaze suddenly turned grim.
It turned out Guan Hongyu had already moved Zhuoma to another location last night, which was why his parents’ room had been restored to its normal appearance.
He had anticipated that the police would send Wan Yunting to test him!
Meanwhile, Wan Yunting, who was going downstairs, couldn’t help but furrow his brow. He didn’t quite understand what Niu Qiuling and Zhou Dong had said about Guan Hongyu’s home being strange, especially his parents’ room.
But after observing everything, he found no abnormalities at all.
Furthermore, Guan Hongyu’s responses, and his own confession, made Wan Yunting wonder if he and Zhou Dong were being overly suspicious.