Chapter 10: The Truth Revealed

With the discovery of the murder weapon, the identity of the killer was clear! Perhaps due to the urgency, the weapon had not yet been moved. Not only did the police find large amounts of the victim’s blood on the chainsaw, but the murderer’s fingerprints were all over it as well.

The police immediately launched a manhunt. Although the suspect had fled the city, he could not escape the vast net cast by law enforcement. In the end, he was captured while on the run in a hotel two hundred kilometers away.

After a series of interrogations, the suspect initially tried to resist, but confronted with overwhelming evidence, he confessed to everything and admitted his crime.

It turned out that the murderer had been imprisoned with Li Cuiying’s husband, sharing the same cell. Their similar tempers made them close friends in prison—like brothers.

As his release approached, Li Cuiying’s husband grew envious and promised a generous reward if his friend could help him get out early.

The money would come from Li Cuiying herself, the victim. Tempted by greed, the suspect lied, claiming he had a distant relative who had been a high-ranking official, and that he could ask for help once released.

Li Cuiying’s husband gave the suspect all her details and address, promising to explain the arrangement to her during his next visit.

After his release, the suspect immediately contacted Li Cuiying, seeking the promised money. She didn’t trust him right away and claimed she was short on cash, telling him to wait.

Unable to force the issue, he temporarily moved into a rented apartment with Li Cuiying’s current boyfriend, at her introduction.

Li Cuiying’s husband had always said he would not divorce her unless he was released. So, for the sake of freedom, Li Cuiying was willing to help him get out, despite their lost affection.

“Since Li Cuiying agreed to give you the money, why did you kill her?” Su Tianmu’s gaze was sharp as blades, making the suspect unable to raise his head.

“She tried to fool me,” the suspect, locked in by evidence, showed no sign of remorse. “We agreed she’d bring the money to the apartment, but she insisted I write her some kind of note!”

The suspect muttered with his head down, as if answering Su Tianmu’s question, or perhaps talking to himself. Occasionally, he shook his head and glanced sideways, as if someone else was present.

Su Tianmu and Officer Wang exchanged a look, suspecting the murderer’s mental state was unstable—perhaps years of prison had fractured his mind.

“So, I chopped her up! Piece by piece! She deserved to die, she betrayed my brother—I was cleaning house for him!”

Suddenly, he lunged forward in agitation, the handcuffs clattering wildly.

“How did you dispose of the body?” The police officers quickly restrained him.

Seeing clearly that they were police, he seemed to sober up instantly.

“I’ll tell you everything, sir...”

After leaving prison, he never settled down, scraping by with odd jobs on the streets. During this time, he befriended a garbage truck driver, sometimes secretly driving for him to earn a bit of money.

On the day he killed Li Cuiying, he intended to dump the body parts in the moat outside the city. But the company was suddenly checking up on the garbage truck drivers. The driver, fearing inspection, called him to switch back trucks.

So, halfway to the outskirts, he received the call and hurriedly dumped the body in a public restroom.

The driver was rushing him, and sanitation workers were about to start their shift. Afraid of being discovered, he managed to dispose of most of the body parts, but two bags remained. He rushed back with the truck.

Luckily, it was just a routine inspection, so no one noticed what was inside the truck and the remaining body parts escaped detection.

Later, he sneaked into the garbage station, found the remaining pieces, and tossed them in another restroom.

His account was corroborated by Li Cuiying’s husband and the garbage truck driver.

Thus, the public restroom dismemberment case was solved.

No one expected the real killer to be half-mad at best.

Despite his unstable mind, he could not escape the law’s punishment.

When Su Tianmu told Xia Wuyou the outcome, she was so shocked she couldn’t close her mouth for a long time, only snapping back to reality after Su Tianmu called her repeatedly.

“What a mess! That woman suffered horribly. No wonder she couldn’t rest until her grievance was resolved.”

Xia Wuyou was so angry she leapt high in the air.

“If it were me, I’d scare that bastard to death first!”

As soon as she spoke, she caught herself.

“Forget it! I’ll never have such rotten luck!”

The whole thing disgusted her so much that Xia Wuyou didn’t want to hear any more details. Eager to inform the wronged soul that the case was closed, she hurried to Uncle Tian’s house without even asking her boss for leave.

Sure enough, the ghost in the old house shed tears upon hearing the murderer had been caught.

Though those tears were streaked with blood, Xia Wuyou found the scene anything but frightening.

At that moment, the sunlight was gentle, the breeze soft. Xia Wuyou slowly drew aside the sheer curtain on the second floor, unopened for ages.

Soon, the ghost was no longer terrifying. Perhaps her old appearance returned—she wasn’t particularly beautiful, but her face was gentle and serene.

She smiled softly at Xia Wuyou, and with a wisp of wind from the window, faded away.

Xia Wuyou turned around and stood on the spacious terrace, gazing at the lively street below.

Cars streamed by, the bustle returned. It was as if everything had gone back to the way it was.