CHAPTER 513: CHAPTER 94

"Brother Xiao Yuan, this is all I know, when I saw that stack of files, I just happened to glance at that photo and then my dad briefly told me a few things.

Or should I go to the station now to ask my dad to lend me that stack of files?"

Li Zhiyuan tapped his fingertips on the desk, quickly organizing his thoughts in his mind.

Without a doubt, "Granny Yu" was the topic he chose.

The river, as he had thought, had brought her forward to him.

Logically speaking, his primary task now should be to give his all in investigating, analyzing, planning, and resolving this evil spirit.

However, there are still two hidden threads that must be addressed.

The high heels of Tang Qiuying and the murderer who killed Qiu Minmin.

These two threads may not seem serious, but they have not been concluded, which means there is still the possibility to unearth more complications.

The worst-case scenario is that both these threads would erupt during his handling of the Granny Yu incident, catching him off guard.

Thus, they must be resolved quickly.

"Brother Binbin, go call Uncle Tan now and have him come to school. Make up a reason or hint to Uncle Tan to bring the files about Granny Yu."

"Brother Xiao Yuan, my dad will definitely respect your face; no need for any hints, just tell him directly."

"This is for your dad’s good, to let him continue to maintain a stance of breaking the case for both public and private reasons, that way he won’t be affected."

"Alright, I understand, Brother Xiao Yuan."

"Tell Uncle Tan that we have found Tang Qiuying’s skeleton."

"Brother Xiao Yuan, you figured it out already?"

"How can I figure it out just by sitting in the room? Come back after the call and we will start searching nearby this dormitory building."

"Alright, then I’ll go to the store to make the call."

"Remember to bring back the incense burner you left with Run Sheng when you return."

"Understood."

Tan Wenbin dashed out of the dormitory.

Li Zhiyuan then took out the pair of high heels and placed them on his desk.

Then he opened the drawer, pulled out a piece of yellow paper, and wrote down Tang Qiuying’s name and date of birth with a brush.

After completing these tasks, Li Zhiyuan began pondering the latest findings in the Qiu Minmin case provided by Tan Yunlong.

Tan Yunlong was indeed a superb police officer.

His investigation revealed that before her murder, Qiu Minmin had secured an excellent job placement which seemed exceptional at that time, but Qiu Minmin’s academic performance wasn’t even average, and her family background was also modest, lacking such influential connections.

Furthermore, revisiting Qiu Minmin’s former roommates revealed that she seemed to have been in a relationship but had deliberately kept the identity of her partner a secret.

Li Zhiyuan had "seen" the letter Ran Qiuping wrote to her daughter Qiu Minmin, in which she mentioned getting her daughter to try dating Mao Zhushan after reviving her.

Given Ran Qiuping’s level of hysteria at the time, if she had known her daughter had a partner before her death, she surely wouldn’t have been unresponsive. At minimum, she would have clung to that partner or described him in the letter.

This implies that Qiu Minmin had kept this matter hidden not only from her roommates but also from her mother.

Combining this with the premise that the murderer likely belonged to the school staff, the possibility that this mysterious partner was the murderer was high.

Moreover, this narrows down the possibilities considering the manipulative power over job placements, Qiu Minmin’s reluctance to disclose this relationship publicly, and the perpetrator’s choice of brutal action in a bathroom... The person should have been an aged faculty leader with a family on campus.

Seven years have passed; he should have retired by now.

If this prime culprit had already met his demise due to age or illness, it would be good news for Li Zhiyuan, effectively severing this hidden thread.

But if he hadn’t died, then he must be unearthed, because even if he was just an ordinary person, under the river’s influence, he could still implicate Li Zhiyuan in a major undertaking.

It’s like some math puzzles which sometimes play scenarios as seen in elementary math problems, starting with "Xiao Ming" or "Xiao Jun" as an introduction, leading to the type of problem that unfolds.

Li Zhiyuan stood, scooped water from the bucket into the washbasin, and wetted a towel with cold water to wipe his face.

He started reflecting on some of his past actions.

The entire Qiu Minmin incident originated from an unprovoked assault on Run Sheng by the faceless Corpse, which was an unavoidable confrontation.

The issue, though, was that he should’ve only exacted simple revenge, and should never have brought back that evil book.

Due to this evil book, the thread involving Qiu Minmin was still tightly bound to him.

Considering the value of the evil book, picking it up wasn’t a loss as it could later aid him in deriving secret manuals and Cultivation Techniques.

Yet, keeping Tang Qiuying’s high heels was a result of his lapse in judgment.

When she entangled with Lu Yi, he should’ve directly eliminated her.

As it turned out, having her as a dormitory guard had proven quite ineffective.

Ordinary people didn’t need her protection, and she wasn’t able to stop the likes of people similar to Lin Shuyou.

Li Zhiyuan even suspected that Tang Qiuying’s high heels had already brought him a bout of tribulation.

That night when Lin Shuyou sneaked into the dorm was because of their earlier encounter in the teaching building; he wanted to gauge Li Zhiyuan’s capabilities to sleep peacefully, so he didn’t bring weapons.

He had been blocked by the high heels when climbing through the window, and upon discovering that Li Zhiyuan harbored a ghost, he decided to enlist the White Crane Child.