Chapter Forty-Four: Tacit Understanding

"But there’s still a problem here," Ning Shuyi said, pulling out Chang Junchao’s personal information from the side and placing two forms side by side on the table. "Look at Zhang Guanghui’s birthdate, then look at Chang Junchao’s."

Huo Yan focused intently. "Calculating by their birthdates, Chang Junchao was born less than nine months after Zhang Guanghui. That doesn’t make sense."

They looked at each other, both silently harboring some suspicions. Yet, none of the guesses could be confirmed at this stage. After all, before determining whether there was any blood relation between Zhang Guanghui and Deng Qingrong, there was still too much information to verify.

They had to avoid preconceived notions, lest it cloud their judgment going forward.

After a brief discussion, they decided to proceed cautiously. First, they took Zhang Guanghui’s photo to find the elderly man they had spoken with the day before, asking him to help identify whether the woman in the picture was the one he had seen arguing with Deng Qingrong and her son.

Considering the elderly man’s wife was timid and cautious, they wisely refrained from knocking on their door outright. Instead, they parked downstairs and observed quietly.

Unexpectedly, within just a few minutes, the elderly man came down himself and headed straight toward their car.

"I saw your car from the window upstairs!" he greeted warmly. "Having you around yesterday really put my mind at ease! Knowing the police were out there made me feel so much safer! And indeed, the corridor was completely quiet all night—except for the neighbors across from us coming home—there was no unusual activity at all!"

Ning Shuyi couldn’t help but smile bitterly. She and Huo Yan rather wished for some commotion so their long vigil wouldn’t have been in vain.

After looking at Zhang Guanghui’s photo, the elderly man was absolutely certain she was the woman who had shouted from upstairs all the way down the stairs that day.

With this eyewitness identification, they felt more confident. They decided not to beat around the bush and planned to confront Zhang Guanghui directly to see what kind of reaction she would have.

Since they had Zhang Guanghui’s workplace information, finding her was not difficult. The two drove to the prestigious high school where she worked. At this hour, she should have been at school—unless she was busy teaching or had free time.

However, upon inquiring at the school, they learned that Zhang Guanghui had taken a half-month sick leave due to health reasons and hadn’t been to work for nearly ten days. She was expected to return in about a week to formally end her leave.

Given this, their only option was to visit Zhang Guanghui’s home. For Ning Shuyi and Huo Yan, this was not difficult—and perhaps even more convenient for communication than at the school.

Zhang Guanghui lived with her parents. Judging by the location, their residence was not among the city’s most prestigious, but certainly belonged to a well-off family, noticeably better off than Deng Qingrong’s household.

The community was gated, with separate pedestrian and vehicle lanes, offering a quiet and comfortable living environment. The green spaces were well-maintained and spotless, and the facilities were comprehensive.

Compared with Deng Qingrong’s place, it was like heaven and earth. Even with the fifty thousand yuan compensation that Deng Qingrong still held, it likely couldn’t bridge such a gap.

When they knocked on Zhang Guanghui’s door, it was answered by a petite, slender woman in her seventies.

"Who are you looking for?" she asked with a puzzled look, her accent somewhat similar to Deng Qingrong’s—probably a lasting effect of their rural origins.

"Hello, Auntie. May I ask if this is Zhang Guanghui’s home?" Ning Shuyi greeted the elderly woman politely with a smile.

The woman paused briefly, then realization dawned. "You must be Huihui’s colleagues, here to visit her. Oh, I thought you’d come in the afternoon, didn’t expect you so early! Please come in, come in! Old man, Huihui’s colleagues are here to see her! Hurry and wash some fruit and brew some tea to welcome our guests!"

"Auntie, no need to trouble yourself. We’ll be leaving soon," Ning Shuyi quickly interjected, suspecting that colleagues were already scheduled to visit today and that her arrival had unintentionally caused some misunderstanding.

She chose not to explain further, knowing the elderly woman was frail and thin, and worried that learning the visitors were police officers from the Criminal Investigation Department might cause unnecessary panic.

Since the misunderstanding wouldn’t affect anyone else, there was no need to add more worry.

Zhang Guanghui’s father was of similar age and stature—also in his seventies, slight and lean. He was kind-hearted and smiled while nodding to them, ignoring Ning Shuyi’s formalities as he hurried to the kitchen to boil water.

Zhang Guanghui’s mother led them through the living room to her daughter’s bedroom, and Ning Shuyi quickly took in the room’s furnishings.

It was roughly a hundred square meters, simply but warmly decorated. They could tell it wasn’t a wealthy household, but comfortably middle-class.

Her mother knocked on the bedroom door, then cracked it open slightly, motioning for them to wait outside as she squeezed inside. "Huihui, are you asleep? Your colleagues are here to see you. Can I let them in?"

Standing by the door, Ning Shuyi could only sense the dimness inside; the room itself wasn’t visible.

Perhaps because the windows were closed, the air felt stuffy and a bit unpleasant.

Zhang Guanghui apparently got up at her mother’s prompting. The elderly woman deftly drew back the curtains, and sunlight flooded the room.

Her mother then stepped out, beaming, signaling Ning Shuyi and Huo Yan that they could enter.

Pushing open the bedroom door, they saw Zhang Guanghui sitting propped up on the bed. Both Ning Shuyi and Huo Yan involuntarily froze.

Ning Shuyi had seen Zhang Guanghui’s registered photo before and had a mental image of her appearance, but seeing her in person startled her.

Zhang Guanghui was noticeably thinner than her official photo, her face drawn and haggard, truly resembling someone who had suffered a serious illness.

Zhang Guanghui, too, immediately recognized these two complete strangers and paused briefly in confusion. Her eyes flicked to her mother standing by the door, then she nodded at Ning Shuyi and Huo Yan, gesturing toward a chair at the foot of the bed.

"Please sit."

Then she turned to the doorway. "Mom, could you close the door for us? No need to keep coming in to bring tea and snacks. They won’t be staying long."