C7 The Headless Case

Upon reaching the office entrance, Lu Wangshu and Lin Xiangyi got out of the car. Zhou Henglv rolled down the window and addressed Lin Xiangyi, "Xiangyi, I'm heading back now. Please give some thought to what I discussed with you today."

Startled, Lin Xiangyi glanced at Lu Wangshu before nodding at Zhou Henglv, "You don't need to worry about it. It's getting late; you should head back."

With a look of disappointment, Zhou Henglv drove off. Lu Wangshu entered the office and casually inquired, "What was it he wanted you to consider?"

Lin Xiangyi, trying to gauge Lu Wangshu's reaction, shook her head and replied, "It's nothing."

"Okay." Lu Wangshu responded indifferently. He sat at his desk, pulled out some paper and a pen, and began meticulously reviewing the case details.

Seeing that Lu Wangshu didn't press further as she had expected, Lin Xiangyi felt a pang of disappointment. Nonetheless, she continued to assist him in organizing his materials with patience.

After a while, Lu Wangshu, engrossed in his notes, suddenly slapped the desk and exclaimed, "Someone has to be lying!"

Startled by his outburst, Lin Xiangyi approached and peered at the chaotic web of lines and text on the paper, puzzled. "Who are you talking about?" she asked.

With a serious expression, Lu Wangshu turned to her and slowly explained, "Zhou Yang and Yun."

Lin Xiangyi quickly countered, incredulous, "What are you talking about? Yun is just a seven-year-old child. How could she lie?"

"I couldn't ask Yun if she prefers her mom or dad, so when I asked if she liked you or me more, she answered. That indicates she favors Zhou Yang over Chen Rou and Zhou Yang," Lu Wangshu clarified to Lin Xiangyi, unruffled.

"And how does liking Zhou Yang relate to him being the culprit?" Lin Xiangyi questioned.

"I also asked Yun if she really liked plush toys, and she said she loved them," Lu Wangshu added.

Lin Xiangyi nodded, "Yun's room had lots of plush toys, gifts from others. Little girls adore such toys. I was fond of them as a child, and so were you, right? I remember us once squabbling over a teddy bear when we were kids."

"Where did you use to keep your toys when you were a child?" Lin Xiangyi responded without hesitation, "On the bed, on the sofa, on the shelves..."

Before Lin Xiangyi could continue, Lu Wangshu interjected, "But Yun's bed was completely devoid of toys, not even close to it. The toys were all placed far from the bed, which suggests she wasn't fond of stuffed animals at all."

"You can't possibly think a seven-year-old girl would lie, can you?" Lin Xiangyi asked, her eyes wide with alarm as she turned to Lu Wangshu.

Lu Wangshu remained silent for a while, effectively confirming Lin Xiangyi's statement. She quickly shook her head, "That can't be right... Oh, remember when you were talking to Yun inside, we were outside chatting with Dean Liu? He mentioned that this was the second time Yun had been returned to the orphanage."

"Second time? What does that mean?"

"Yun's first adoptive family had some misfortune, and she was sent back to the orphanage. Then she was adopted by Chen Rou and Zhou Yang," explained Lin Xiangyi.

Lu Wangshu thought for a moment, then hurriedly pulled out his phone and dialed Qiao Liang. As soon as the call connected, he said, "Qiao Liang, can you look into the family that previously adopted Yun?"

Qiao Liang sounded puzzled, "What? Oh, okay."

He didn't understand Lu Wangshu's intentions, but he knew there had to be a good reason behind his request.

"Have the results for that hair sample come back yet?" Lu Wangshu asked urgently.

Qiao Liang answered, "They have, but the hair didn't belong to Chen Rou or Yun."

Whose hair could it be, then?

Lu Wangshu found himself lost in thought, seemingly trapped in a deep quandary. Noticing his discomfort, Lin Xiangyi handed him a glass of water, speaking gently, "Have some water."

"Thank you." Lu Wangshu hadn't realized his thirst after a busy day, but upon seeing the water, he felt parched and drank deeply.

"Do you remember when I helped you tidy your father's office?" Lin Xiangyi asked tentatively.

Lu Wangshu's brow furrowed slightly. He had a good memory, but he couldn't recall such insignificant details.

"I found something there," Lin Xiangyi said slowly.

Upon hearing that Lin Xiangyi had discovered a secret basement in his father's office, Lu Wangshu immediately asked her to take him there.

Turning on the office lights, Lu Wangshu noticed that Lin Xiangyi had already tidied up the space. She approached the bookshelf, removed a thick dictionary, and revealed a hidden switch behind the book.

Lin Xiangyi pulled the switch, and with a click, the bookshelf moved aside, unveiling a staircase descending into the unknown. A sensor light automatically illuminated the way.

Lu Wangshu gazed at everything in disbelief, struggling to comprehend the existence of a secret basement in his father's office.

"Do you want to go down and check it out?" Lin Xiangyi asked tentatively.

Nodding, Lu Wangshu furrowed his brow and cautiously made his way downstairs, with Lin Xiangyi slowly following, clutching the hem of his shirt.

Reaching the basement, Lu Wangshu observed its modest size but noted the abundance of items. Bookshelves lined three walls, and an office desk sat squarely in the center, scattered with folders.

Lu Wangshu gingerly opened one of the folders and scrutinized its contents, reading aloud, "The Lee family's vengeful spirit case."

Hearing this, Lin Xiangyi shivered, her fear intensifying as she pressed closer to Lu Wangshu. "Vengeful spirit? Is this about a ghost?"

"No, this was a high-profile case in Yongzhou City a few years back, and it remains unsolved. It's no wonder my dad kept all these confidential files here," Lu Wangshu explained.

He then proceeded to examine other documents, one by one, "It looks like these are all unsolved cases my dad was working on. He never gave up on them, hoping to crack the cases someday."

The deeper he delved, the more exhilarated Lu Wangshu became. In that moment, he felt like he was in a treasure trove, akin to Alibaba entering the bandits' den of riches.

Lu Wangshu faced a multitude of bizarre and unsolved cases, each awaiting his keen insight. For someone who always sought out the extraordinary, this was an incredible opportunity. He was familiar with some of these mysteries from the files he'd encountered before, but had been unable to tackle them due to a lack of time and leads. Now, with the chance laid out before him, he was determined to unravel all the unresolved cases his father had left behind.