Chapter 55: The Man from the Happy Inn

"Uncle Tan, are we sure it's Zhu Changyong?"

"Can't say for certain, but most likely, yes.

He submitted documents showing he used to work with Zheng Haiyang’s mother, including photos of them together."

"Did the psychiatric hospital keep any records?"

"No."

Psychiatric facilities are indeed stricter about internal monitoring, but not about outsiders. Plus, visits from family members to mental patients are exceedingly rare.

Many families, after sending someone in, prefer to forget they exist.

"Uncle Tan, confirmed it was suicide?"

"She slit her throat in public."

Li Zhuiyuan pulled his collar up.

Then it really was suicide. If someone had orchestrated it, they wouldn’t have chosen such an overt method.

"Uncle Tan, is there any suspicion of incitement or coercion from Zhu Changyong?"

"Legally, it's possible. But how do you judge that? Zheng Haiyang’s mother was mentally ill to begin with. All the local precinct could do was call him in for questioning. He did leave an address and phone number on the visitation form, but it was for a hotel."

Li Zhuiyuan looked up at Tan Yunlong, suddenly understanding the real reason for the officer’s visit.

"Uncle Tan, you're looking for Zheng Haiyang."

Tan Yunlong nodded, relieved. Talking to Xiaoyuan was so much easier than dealing with his own dim-witted son.

"Xiaoyuan, the hotel Zhu Changyong listed is right here in our town—Shigang."

Just then, Zheng Haiyang came out of the school gates. He’d had lunch with Tan Wenbin and Li Zhuiyuan, but since Tan Wenbin had evening self-study with Li Zhuiyuan, Zheng was walking back alone.

"Bin-ge, you guys still here?" Zheng greeted Tan Wenbin first.

Tan Wenbin jerked his head in another direction.

"Oh, your dad’s here too."

Tan Yunlong also noticed him, turned his head, pointed at Tan Wenbin, and called out, "You and Haiyang, go eat dinner at the canteen and then head to evening study together."

"What?" Tan Wenbin froze. Eating with a buddy was fine, but he prided himself on skipping morning and evening self-study.

Tan Yunlong’s gaze turned sharp.

Tan Wenbin’s knees nearly buckled. He instantly snapped to attention:

"Yes, sir!"

A son knows when the tiger's anger is a bluff and when it's real. The saying goes that a tiger won’t eat its cubs, but only if the cub knows how to read the room.

"Come on, Haiyang, let’s eat."

"Bin-ge, if we go now, the canteen will be packed and probably out of good dishes..."

"Quit whining. Worst case, we’ll hit the school store and grab some packs of Monk Meat. If you don’t move now, my dad might whip off his belt and flog me right here at the gate."

As they headed in, two plainclothes officers followed them—clearly assigned to protect the target.

At this time of day, school security doesn’t stop students, but they do keep an eye on adults. So the guards warmly greeted the officers—everyone knew each other in this small town, and these two officers often gave legal talks at the school.

It also helped smooth things over with teachers to prevent any misunderstandings.

Soon, two PE teachers, Luo Jinwen and Luo Wenhui, were pulled in to assist the police. They were cousins. One had planned to buy groceries and cook for his wife’s birthday; the other had a movie date—both canceled now.

The head teacher tried to ease their frustration by reminding them how vital they were to school operations.

It was true. These were the same two sent to Beijing to sort out Li Zhuiyuan’s academic record. They’d also installed curtains and a spring mattress in the principal’s office.

"Let’s go, Xiaoyuan. We’ll check out the hotel."

"He hasn’t checked out yet?"

"We called earlier. He checked out this morning, but we still need to look. Also, I’ve posted officers to protect Zheng Haiyang’s home."

"Uncle Tan, wait a moment."

Li Zhuiyuan ran over to Runsheng’s tricycle and explained things to Ah Li. She nodded.

Except for the time she walked away after discovering Zhuiyuan had cut his palm, she’d never once complained about his actions.

Runsheng offered to drop Ah Li home and then bring equipment over, but Zhuiyuan declined.

After saying their goodbyes, Zhuiyuan ran back and hopped onto Tan Yunlong’s motorbike. They soon arrived at the hotel.

It had a generic name—Happy Inn.

To the left was a breakfast shop; to the right, a hair salon.

Most salons would at least have a metal barber chair. This one didn’t even have that. There weren’t any scissors or combs on the desk either—just a worn-out sofa inside with two garishly dressed women knitting.

The glass door was plastered with signs: “Haircuts, Shampoo,” and oddly, “Cupping, Foot Massage, PSA.”

That last one, Zhuiyuan guessed, was a typo.

The hotel entrance was narrow, with a stairwell leading up. The reception was on the second floor.

Tan Yunlong showed his badge and asked for the guest log.

They had confirmed earlier that Zhu Changyong had stayed there, and had instructed them not to rent out the room again.

The owner led them down a hallway and unlocked the door.

Inside was cramped: a bed, a nightstand, a small table—no TV.

Tan Yunlong began inspecting and noticed wet patches on the floor. “What’s this?”

“No idea. It started leaking last night. The shops downstairs already complained. We came in and checked—the bathroom plumbing is fine. But there was so much water, we thought maybe it was leaking from somewhere else.”

Li Zhuiyuan knelt down to get a closer look at the water stains.

Though someone had tried cleaning, the residue was still sticky.

That matched the fluid typically seeping from a Dead Sinker.

Tan Yunlong looked at the hotel owner. “Since he checked in, did anyone else come into this room besides him?”

Li Zhuiyuan also looked up.

The owner waved it off. “No, no one came to see him.”

Zhuiyuan could tell he was lying from his microexpressions.

But he was sure Tan Yunlong had caught it too. His question had a trap: how could someone at the front desk, so far away, be certain no one had entered unless he had a direct role?

The correct answer should’ve been “I don’t know,” not a confident denial.

Tan Yunlong’s tone hardened. “One more chance. Think carefully. Do you know what he’s involved in? If we find out later you lied, you could be charged with obstruction or even aiding a crime.”

The owner panicked, hesitated, then finally confessed. “Amei came in.”

“Who?”

“The one from the salon downstairs. She came in.”

“You set it up?”

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