Chapter 690 - 572: Facing the Sea, with Spring Blossoms

Chapter 690: Chapter 572: Facing the Sea, with Spring Blossoms

But no matter how tired they were, some things still had to be done.

Like notifying the family.

Lu Weihong had been taken to the hospital by ambulance. There was no chance of a miracle; upon arrival, he would simply be pronounced dead.

They left people behind at his company to search and process the scene.

In a small drawer inside Lu Weihong’s office safe, they found an envelope.

Inside was a notarized will and a letter addressed to Ruan Jia.

Judging by the notarization date, the will was from October 2017.

That was just after his daughter’s one-month-old celebration.

Perhaps at that moment, holding his daughter—his own flesh and blood—Lu Weihong had finally begun to truly consider how to make amends and whether he regretted what he had done.

Hence the will, which left a portion to his parents and the rest to Ruan Jia and their daughter.

As per regulations, the letter was also opened and read.

It was written to Ruan Jia.

In the letter, Lu Weihong didn’t mention the murders he had committed. The entire text was about arrangements for after his death.

He wrote that he didn’t know when an accident might happen. If it came too soon, Ruan Jia would still be young, and he urged her not to get stuck in the past.

He said he himself had been too obsessed with the past.

People need to look forward; he wrote that he only truly understood this after his daughter was born.

Therefore, he hoped Ruan Jia could have a better future. He said that emotionally, he wished she would remain a widow for his sake, but rationally, he knew that wasn’t fair. If Ruan Jia met a good man, she should boldly pursue a new life.

But most of the letter was dedicated to his daughter, who had not yet grown up.

He wrote whatever came to mind, expressing his hope that his daughter would exercise and stay fit, as a healthy body was the foundation for everything.

He told her to take it easy with her studies and not to push herself too hard, or she would get too tired.

In the face of life and death, everything else is trivial.

He also wrote that he didn’t know if he would be able to see her grow up, and urged her to be strong on the inside. She shouldn’t ignore what others thought, but she shouldn’t care too much either; she had to have her own judgment.

When she grew up, she should marry a man who truly loved her and not just settle.

And more than anything, there were apologies. He said he would likely miss many moments of her growing up and hoped she could forgive him.

On and on he wrote, about so many things.

After reading it, the gloom in Shen Xin’s heart deepened.

According to procedure, they not only had to notify the family but also had to search Lu Weihong’s home for evidence.

But when the group arrived at Lu Weihong’s residential complex, they all hesitated, finding the task difficult.

Although the outcome was set in stone, this unexpected turn of events had caught everyone off guard.

Chang Zhigang sighed and gestured for the others to get out of the car.

Shen Xin glanced at the lit-up apartment across the way, hesitated, and decided not to follow.

From the outside, you couldn’t actually hear anything.

But Shen Xin could almost hear Ruan Jia’s loud sobs, mingled with the frightened cries of a child.

It was as if Ruan Jia was interrogating Chang Zhigang and the others, demanding to know why.

Why the man who slept beside her had suddenly become a murderer.

About half an hour later, Ruan Jia emerged.

Behind her, Lu Weihong’s mother clutched her granddaughter, constantly wiping away tears.

It was dark, so it was hard to tell if Ruan Jia had been crying, but she wasn’t crying now. She just followed Chang Zhigang and the others into the police car.

Outside, she subconsciously reached for her car keys, then suddenly realized and quickly got into the police car waiting outside.

Then the group hurried to the hospital to see Lu Weihong.

Lu Weihong’s mother, holding her wailing granddaughter, stood at the door and watched them go, not returning inside for a long time.

"Brother Xing, let’s head back."

Zhao Tianxing started to drive after them, but Shen Xin suddenly spoke up, stopping him.

’What’s the point of going to the hospital? To watch Ruan Jia wail over her husband’s body?’

The case was already clear, the evidence conclusive. For Shen Xin, the case was over.

Shen Xin felt tired. He didn’t want to deal with what came next.

Zhao Tianxing glanced at the rearview mirror and said, "Shen Xin, don’t overthink it. Everyone has their own fate. It’s not your fault."

From the passenger seat, Yang Zeran added, "Exactly. You can’t just focus on the bad side. Think about the good, like Hu Zeyang and the others."

"They died such wrongful deaths, completely dragged into it. From that perspective alone, Lu Weihong deserves no pity."

"You saw the video. Hu Zeyang and the others begged for their lives. Did Lu Weihong spare them? And Cao Hui was hacked nine times! How horrible! At that time, Lu Weihong was blinded by hatred."

"They say, ’Lay down the butcher’s knife and become a Buddha on the spot,’ but you can’t pity the man just because he felt remorse. If you ask me, at best, his motives might be understandable, but his crimes are unforgivable."

Shen Xin waved a hand dismissively. "Alright, I get what you’re saying. I just feel..."

Shen Xin frowned, still unable to find the right word.

It wasn’t that he didn’t understand the reasoning.

It was simply that seeing too many tragedies like this had taken a toll on his mental state.

After returning to the hotel, Xu Jinguang called. He hadn’t seen Shen Xin, and upon learning he had gone back to the hotel alone, he called to ask what was wrong, sounding a little worried.

On the phone, Shen Xin didn’t say anything was wrong with him.

But Xu Jinguang must have guessed the reason. He finally said, "Shen Xin, every criminal detective might go through a phase like this. I’m not going to feed you any empty platitudes."

"Reality is what it is. We’re all only human, so we empathize and get bogged down by our emotions."

"My advice is to take some time off. Spend it with your family. Besides, this case started last November, and it’s already April. That’s almost half a year. Give yourself a break and get some proper rest."

With that, he hung up.

Shen Xin clutched the phone. He had actually wanted to mention something else.

With Lu Weihong’s current situation, there would be no public trial. But there would definitely be a case briefing later, and maybe even public interviews.

So, during the briefing, could they perhaps downplay things a bit to reduce the impact of the incident?

It would be for the sake of Lu Weihong’s daughter.

But after thinking it over, he decided against it.

Shen Xin knew, rationally, that some things were protocol. From a legal standpoint, they couldn’t be skipped.

Because you couldn’t encourage this kind of behavior, nor could you allow Lu Weihong to choose this method of revenge. He had to pay the price as a warning to others.

Not to mention, this was a cold case that had lasted nine years.

So many police officers had invested so much manpower and resources into it.

Didn’t they deserve a resolution that validated all their efforts?

Shen Xin sighed, put down his phone, and once again felt trapped between his emotions and his reason.

Ding Yuwei pushed open the balcony door, a can of beer in her hand, and asked Shen Xin if he wanted a drink.

Shen Xin glanced at it, thought for a moment, and shook his head. "No, thanks. I haven’t reached the point of drowning my sorrows in alcohol yet."

Despite his words, Shen Xin took it, opened it, took a couple of sips, and set it aside.

He beckoned to Ding Yuwei, pulled her into his lap, and gazed out at the bustling city lights. "Yuwei," Shen Xin said, "let’s take a break for a while."

Ding Yuwei snuggled deeper into Shen Xin’s embrace and nodded.

After a moment’s thought, Shen Xin added, "You know, I saw some people on TikTok who rent a house with a yard, renovate it themselves, and live that kind of leisurely life. Why don’t we rent one too?"

"Preferably facing Li Lake, the kind where we can see it as soon as we wake up in the morning. Wouldn’t that count as ’facing the sea, with spring blossoms’?"

"And let’s get a bigger place, so we can bring Da Mei, Evil Bully, and Celestial Skill over. Oh, and Yi Wan, too! He’s the donkey who saved my life."

"We can build a shed for him, walk the dogs and feed the cats every day, let Teddy fly around... and when we have time, we can invite friends over for a barbecue or something. That would be a really nice life."

’We could just get a place in Nanzhu, by Li Lake. That fits the bill.’

’And I could even train some police dogs on the side.’

’I have to keep the promises I made.’

Shen Xin even thought that from now on, he might as well just focus on training police dogs.

’As for cases... I’ll see how it goes.’

’I’m a "criminal investigation expert with special talents" now, after all. There’s no need for me to handle ordinary cases.’

The only regret was that he felt he was drifting further and further from his dream.

’That white shirt...’

’Don’t tell me I’ll have to get it by just putting in the years and waiting for seniority?’