Chapter 31 You Can Just Call Me by My Name

Chapter 31 You Can Just Call Me by My Name

After Guan Xia asked, Xu Nian didn’t respond right away.

After waiting for two seconds, Guan Xia noticed the slight surprise in Xu Nian’s eyes and suddenly realized her invitation might have been too abrupt and forward.

After all, including today, they had only met three times. Their only two calls were both related to the case. They weren’t even friends—just people who knew each other.

Feeling a bit awkward, Guan Xia rubbed her cheek and was about to say something to smooth things over when she saw Xu Nian glance at his wristwatch and calmly say, “I have to go back to the precinct tonight. I need to leave by seven.”

It took Guan Xia a moment to process what he meant. Surprised and pleasantly surprised, she quickly stepped back to clear the way. “I won’t keep you long, Captain Xu. Please come in.”

After a brief hesitation, Xu Nian followed Guan Xia inside. As he walked, he said, “My name is Xu Nian. You can just call me by my name.”

Guan Xia put down the plate of dumplings she was holding on the table and almost immediately understood the implication of Xu Nian’s words. He meant that, although they weren’t exactly friends yet, they were no longer strangers—they were familiar enough to call each other by their first names.

Following his lead, Guan Xia said, “Xu Nian.”

Xu Nian nodded, glanced at the dining table, and pulled out a chair opposite Guan Xia to sit down.

Guan Xia quickly went into the kitchen to fetch an extra bowl and chopsticks, poured a glass of water for Xu Nian, and then settled into her own seat.

Xu Nian thanked her but didn’t start eating right away. Instead, he asked, “What did you want to know?”

Guan Xia happily picked up her chopsticks. “Let’s eat first. You have to leave by seven, so we can talk after we’ve eaten.”

Xu Nian waited until Guan Xia had taken a bite, confirming she wasn’t ready to talk yet, before picking up his own chopsticks and starting to eat.

Guan Xia had thought having a meal with someone she wasn’t very familiar with would inevitably be awkward. To her surprise, even though they ate without talking to each other, it felt completely natural and comfortable. What surprised her most was how quietly Xu Nian ate—there was no sound apart from the slight clinking of bowls and chopsticks.

This reminded Guan Xia of her university cafeteria days. It seemed like all the guys would smack their lips and talk loudly while eating. Even if they were sitting across from a stranger, they’d ask all sorts of random questions, which eventually led Guan Xia to only sit with other girls.

It only took them about twenty minutes to finish their meal. Xu Nian was the first to set down his chopsticks, took a few sips of water, and said, “You can ask whatever you want now.”

Guan Xia dabbed her mouth with a napkin and handed one to Xu Nian. After a moment’s thought, she asked, “That abusive husband in Building 7—I only know his surname is Liang. Is he still alive?”

Guan Xia hadn’t initially considered the worst possibility, thinking the man named Old Liang might have just gone fishing. But later, she realized the killer impersonating Old Liang was wearing his clothes, which meant Old Liang must have fallen into his hands.

Sure enough, Guan Xia saw Xu Nian shake his head and say, “He’s dead. Since yesterday morning.”

Guan Xia opened her mouth slightly and asked, “Was it done by the killer I saw?”

Xu Nian shook his head again. “No.”

Although he denied Guan Xia’s guess, Xu Nian didn’t offer any further explanation. For Guan Xia, though, this was enough—it confirmed her theory, based on the system’s settlement time, that there were two killers.

After thinking for a moment, Guan Xia asked another question, trying not to put Xu Nian in a difficult position. “Is it okay to tell me why the killer wanted to murder Old Liang and his wife and daughter? Did they have some kind of grudge?”

Wiping out an entire family—what kind of deep hatred could drive someone to such a heinous act?

Guan Xia’s mind raced through countless scenarios of love and revenge, but Xu Nian fell silent for a moment before saying, “He wasn’t trying to kill Liang Xinhua’s wife and daughter. He was there to kill Liang Xinhua’s wife, Ye Lan.”

“Huh?” Guan Xia was confused. “Then what about the other people the killer murdered before…”

Xu Nian looked surprised. “You know about that?”

Only then did Guan Xia realize she had slipped up. She smiled awkwardly. “I only know that much. I heard he was a serial killer who dismembered his victims. That’s all.”

She finished dryly, afraid Xu Nian would ask where she got the information.

Fortunately, Xu Nian didn’t press further. He thought for a moment, as if weighing his words, and a few minutes later said, “This case is somewhat complicated. The killer’s initial target was indeed Liang Xinhua, but for certain reasons, he took out his anger on Ye Lan and added her to his list of targets.”

Guan Xia found Xu Nian’s choice of words odd. “Took out his anger? Wasn’t Ye Lan just an ordinary, poor woman who was a victim of domestic abuse? What could she have done to deserve his anger?”

Xu Nian hesitated for a moment. Considering Guan Xia was a witness who had provided crucial clues several times and, given her talent, was likely to collaborate with them again in the future, he said, “Because Ye Lan’s ex-husband, Tian Shaohui, was the killer’s second victim in Yongquan City.”

This answer was completely unexpected. Guan Xia was so shocked her voice rose slightly. “What? What did you say? Ye Lan’s ex-husband was also killed by the killer? So both of her husbands were killed by him? Wait, no—not by him, but by his accomplice. Still, it’s essentially the same. This killer’s logic is bizarre. What did Ye Lan do to make him target her?”

Just as Xu Nian was about to explain, Guan Xia suddenly remembered something and asked in surprise, “Because of domestic violence? I remember a couple of days ago, when I was buying groceries at the entrance of the neighborhood, I overheard some elderly women talking. They said Ye Lan’s second marriage was even worse than her first—her new husband started hitting her after just over a year. That means her ex-husband also abused her.”

Guan Xia looked at Xu Nian questioningly. Xu Nian didn’t speak, but his nod confirmed her suspicion.

Still shocked and somewhat unable to comprehend, Guan Xia asked, “But why would the killer want to murder Ye Lan? Just because she married another abusive husband? You said he held it against her—does that mean the killer felt he had given her a fresh start, but she didn’t cherish the opportunity and willingly fell back into the same situation, making him furious?”

Xu Nian nodded again.

Guan Xia’s expression turned complicated. “This killer…”

For a moment, she didn’t know how to describe her feelings. She sympathized with Ye Lan’s suffering but was also frustrated that she had repeated her mistakes. She was terrified of the killer’s brutality, yet felt a sense of justice that he targeted abusive men. But the thought that he had turned his violence toward the victims instead, and that the police had arrested him, left her with a lingering fear.

Although Guan Xia was an amateur, she had recently watched a few crime dramas and knew that serial killers with their own twisted logic and brutal methods, once their criminal psychology shifted, were like wild beasts escaping a cage—becoming increasingly reckless and unpredictable.

But no matter how vicious he was, he had been caught. Guan Xia was only frightened by her imagination for a couple of seconds before quickly reminding herself that he would soon be locked up.

Watching Guan Xia’s expression change several times in just a few seconds, Xu Nian almost smiled, though the corners of his mouth only lifted briefly before returning to neutral.

Checking the time, Xu Nian asked, “Is there anything else you want to know?”

Guan Xia thought for a moment and said, “Can you tell me who the killer is? I have a feeling I’ve seen him before—not just during the camping trip or when he was impersonating Old Liang.”

Xu Nian remained concise. “You have seen him. He used selling vegetables as an inconspicuous way to observe the victims over a long period.”

“The guy who sells vegetables?” Guan Xia’s mind raced, and she quickly realized who Xu Nian was referring to. “The man who sells vegetables at the entrance of the neighborhood? The one with a wife who sells vegetables at a nearby market and a ten-year-old daughter?”

Xu Nian said, “Yes, him.”

Guan Xia was stunned. Although she had only seen him twice, both he and his daughter had left a deep impression on her.

They seemed so ordinary. The father, though not tall or particularly strong, always had a smile on his face and was warm and sincere to every customer. Guan Xia remembered him advising her not to worry about what others thought—if she could eat, she should eat more, because health was the most important thing. And the ten-year-old girl, though young, was quick with weighing, bagging, and giving change, clearly used to helping out at home. She spoke like a little adult and was always well-dressed, showing her parents cared for her well. How could someone so ordinary be a serial killer who murdered and dismembered his victims?

Guan Xia couldn’t believe it. She felt dazed, unable to reconcile the image of the man she had met twice with that of the killer.

She fell silent for a long time, only snapping out of it when Xu Nian topped off her water.

Watching as Xu Nian placed the refilled glass beside her, Guan Xia instinctively gripped it, her mind replaying the scenes from the past few days when she had seen them. After a moment, she asked, “What about his accomplice…”

Xu Nian said, “It’s his wife, Jiang Chuntao. She sells vegetables at a fixed stall in the nearby market.”

Guan Xia was speechless. Although she had guessed as much, hearing it confirmed still left her with mixed emotions.

She had never been to the nearby market to buy groceries since moving in, so she had never seen that woman. But from the bits of conversation among the elderly women in the neighborhood, she gathered that Jiang Chuntao was a bit tough, able to handle her husband and hardworking enough to raise their daughter well. Now, this family of three had committed such a terrible crime, leaving only their ten-year-old daughter all alone.

Thinking of the little girl reminded Guan Xia of what she had seen from her study that afternoon. At the time, she hadn’t understood why the two girls were playing together. Now, it seemed likely the vegetable seller’s daughter had initiated the contact.

After a moment’s thought, Guan Xia told Xu Nian, “I remember it was around noon two days ago. I saw the vegetable seller’s daughter playing with Old Liang’s daughter from my study window. They seemed to have some kind of argument. Old Liang’s daughter threw the lollipop the vegetable seller’s daughter had given her on the ground and ran off without a backward glance. The vegetable seller’s daughter watched her run into the apartment entrance before picking up the lollipop and leaving.”

Xu Nian’s neutral expression changed a little. He furrowed his brow and asked, “Are you sure it was Luo Shun’s daughter, Luo Xiaoyun, and Liang Xinhua’s daughter, Liang Panpan?”

Guan Xia waited a few seconds, expecting some prompt from the system, but nothing happened.

She had to rely on her own memory again before nodding firmly. “I’m sure.”

Xu Nian tapped his fingers on the glass, deep in thought. After a moment, he glanced at his wristwatch, stood up, and said, “I should get going. Thank you for dinner today. Let’s meet again after this case is wrapped up. There are some things I’d like to talk to you about as well.”

Guan Xia’s curiosity was instantly piqued, but she didn’t ask any questions. She simply walked Xu Nian to the door.