Chapter 87.2: Xishan Residential Area (7)

The man glanced at the dirty rat in the corner, then looked at the ‘clean’ small knife in his hand, and let out a slight sigh of relief.

That was close. He almost dirtied his precious little knife. If he had really killed the dirty rat, he wouldn’t have been able to eat dinner.

Wait, in the future, the small knife wouldn’t be his treasure anymore. His treasure would be his beautiful wife.

It was just dinner, whether to eat or not was fine.

With a cheerful mood, the man took out the knife sheath, reinserted the small knife into the sheath, placed it back in his pocket, and then leaned down to lick the bloodstains off his hand.

After the wound on the man’s hand mysteriously disappeared, he casually picked up the kitchen knife on the cutting board next to him. Without even glancing behind him, he threw it towards the rat in the corner with a very casual motion.

The rat probably sensed a hint of danger and let out a ‘squeak’ as it tried to escape the corner.

However, its escape route was not ideal, as it directly intersected with the kitchen knife that the man had casually thrown.

The small body of the rat was mercilessly cut in half by the kitchen knife, and blood instantly splattered out, staining the snow-white wall.

Subsequently, the blood slowly dripped down the wall, leaving behind crimson streaks that were incredibly horrifying.

The kitchen knife, after slicing through the rat, embedded itself straight into the wall. Against the backdrop of the crimson bloodstains on the wall, it gave off a somewhat eerie feeling, sending a shiver down one’s spine.

Ruan Qing also heard the ‘squeak’ of the rat; evidently, the earlier sound had come from the rat.

Did the original owner’s house have rats?

Weren’t rats supposed to only appear in dirty places?

Ruan Qing remembered that Zhou Qing was very clean, keeping the three-room apartment spotless. There shouldn’t be creatures like rats around, right?

Ruan Qing wasn’t too certain. He hadn’t really done any housework since he was young; he mostly had maids and servants around him. He had basically never seen a real rat and wasn’t sure if they could appear in clean places.

However, the original owner hadn’t cleaned the apartment for the past few days.

Ruan Qing searched through the memories of the original owner. Although Yang Tianhao was skilled at cooking, it seemed he hadn’t done much housework and probably wasn’t good at it.

Yang Tianhao’s lack of thorough cleaning might have attracted rats, which was normal.

Ruan Qing suppressed the strange feeling in his heart.

The man glanced at the rat’s body with a faint expression, then walked out of the kitchen.

The man didn’t notice that even after the rat’s death, its eyes hadn’t closed. The rat’s small eyes carried a red light, eerily staring at the man’s back.

After leaving the kitchen, the man looked towards the beautiful neighbor at the door. His eyes brightened, completely devoid of the earlier cold indifference.

As he walked towards the neighbor, he spoke with a gentle tone, “Ah Qing, don’t be afraid. It’s just a rat. I’ve taken care of it.”

Ruan Qing hesitated for a moment, no longer focusing on the rat but asking, “And Xiao Mu?”

The man originally intended to leave with the neighbor, but upon hearing Ruan Qing’s question, he averted his gaze and looked at the child on the couch who seemed to be sleeping. His voice remained calm. “Xiao Mu might have played too much at kindergarten today and has fallen asleep.”

“Asleep?” Ruan Qing furrowed his brows slightly. The child had been very energetic just a while ago; how could he fall asleep so quickly?

Could it be... the child was killed?

Seeing that Ruan Qing seemed skeptical, the man took his hand and led him to the couch, allowing Ruan Qing to touch the supposedly “sleeping” child.

Ruan Qing didn’t believe for a moment that the child was asleep, but the child was still breathing, so he was probably just knocked unconscious.

Once the neighbor believed him, the man wanted to leave with him before the murderer returned. However, the next moment, the man’s gaze fell on the neighbor’s left hand.

The neighbor had a very attractive hand—well-defined knuckles, fair and slender, perfectly manicured nails, sparkling with translucent redness, like a delicate work of art.

On his ring finger, he wore a wedding ring.

A wedding ring.

The man looked at the ring on Ruan Qing’s ring finger, then glanced in the direction of the bedroom. He abandoned the idea of leaving immediately. He thought for a moment and said to Ruan Qing, “Ah Qing, please sit here for a while. I’ll go to the bedroom to get something.”

Without waiting for Ruan Qing’s response, the man walked towards the bedroom. He wanted to find the husband’s wedding ring.

Since they were wedding rings, they must have been worn by the husband.

However, due to the limited view from the small hole in the wall, the man only knew that the murderer had hidden the husband’s body but didn’t know where.

He could only search slowly.

In the master bedroom, the man didn’t find the husband’s body, but he found the neighbor’s and the husband’s ID cards, household registration book, and marriage certificate.

Although a fake ID could work, it could never compare to the real thing. Since he had to leave with his neighbor, it’s definitely better to have the genuine one.

The man picked up the identification card and tucked it into his pocket.

After searching all three bedrooms, the man couldn’t find the body of the husband anywhere. The husband’s body must still be in the house, but where could it be hidden?

It’s early summer now, and the weather had started to get hot. If the body wasn’t stored at a cold temperature, it would surely decay and become foul-smelling.

The man thought he probably knew where the murderer had hidden the body.

He walked straight into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Sure enough, there was a body hidden inside.

The man didn’t notice the bloodstains and scratches on the refrigerator door that looked like it had been forcefully scraped. His gaze fell directly on the left hand of the husband.

There, a blood-stained ring was worn.

The style was simple and elegant, clearly a match with the ring on the neighbor’s hand.

The man reached out and grabbed the husband’s left hand, attempting to pull the ring off.

Only after he grabbed the hand did he realize that the husband’s fingertips were blurred with blood, as if they had scratched something.

Probably from a struggle with the murderer.

Ignoring this, the man tried to pull the ring off immediately.

However, maybe because the husband had been dead for too long, the body had already stiffened. The fingers were slightly bent, making it difficult to pull the ring off.

Without hesitation, the man tried to straighten the husband’s finger by force. But due to the body’s rigidity, he couldn’t achieve it; the finger remained crooked.

Getting frustrated and losing patience, the man used too much force, resulting in him accidentally breaking the husband’s finger.

Nevertheless, he successfully removed the ring.

The man didn’t bother to look at the husband’s body. Instead, he closed the refrigerator door, walked to the sink, rinsed the ring with water, and then happily put it on his own finger.

He extended his left hand and looked at both sides, very satisfied.

Well, it looked much better on him than on the husband.

From today onwards, he would be Yang Tianhao!

The man showed a brilliant smile, but in the next second, he withdrew the smile. He imitated Yang Tianhao’s demeanor, revealing an elegant and calm smile.

To be gentle as jade, to be suave, to be like an elegant young nobleman!

After glancing several times, the man walked out of the kitchen and sat down next to Ruan Qing. He gently rubbed Ruan Qing’s left hand, touching the ring on his hand.

The wedding ring sparkled under the light, looking very beautiful.

The man became more pleased the more he looked at it.

The man’s touch made Ruan Qing uncomfortable. He pulled his hand back, as if still concerned about what had happened before.

Seeing this, the man paused and gently spoke, “Ah Qing, are you still mad at me?”

“I’m sorry. I was wrong this time. I shouldn’t have given others the chance to hurt you, and I shouldn’t have taken that job at that company.”

“I’m resigning now. Can we leave together?”

The man didn’t wait for Ruan Qing’s response and continued, “We can find a place with just the two of us, where no one will disturb us anymore, and no one will hurt you again.”

After finishing his words, the man lifted Ruan Qing horizontally and walked toward the door, paying no attention to the child who had fainted nearby or the suitcase Ruan Qing had packed.

He seemed eager to leave.

In fact, the man was indeed eager. He couldn’t wait to hold the beautiful neighbor and fly away. He suppressed his excitement, not wanting the neighbor to notice anything amiss.

Ruan Qing didn’t expect the man to suddenly pick him up. He was startled and struggled to get down, saying, “Let go.”

However, his struggles were weak and insufficient to break free.

The man didn’t want to go against the neighbor’s wishes, but he had already wasted a lot of time. The murderer might come back at any moment, and it wouldn’t be safe to leave the neighbor behind.

The man didn’t put down Ruan Qing; instead, he spoke softly to soothe the neighbor in his arms, “Ah Qing, can we leave together? I can’t live without you. I was wrong before, and I’ll change. Please give me another chance.”

“I swear, this time, I won’t disappoint you again.”

Yang Tianhao’s voice that the man imitated was very pleasant, like the melodious sound of a grand cello. His voice carried an indescribable allure, like the most beautiful words of love, making people unconsciously indulge in them.

It also made it hard not to believe what he said.

However, Ruan Qing didn’t believe in the man’s nonsense. His peculiar disposition had never attracted any good people, and no one knew what would happen if he got involved with the man.

Without knowing the man’s intentions, or even who he was, Ruan Qing naturally couldn’t follow him. He struggled with all his might to try to get away.

“Let go! Yang Tianhao, let go of me!”

However, the man’s embrace was just too tight, as if he was truly afraid of losing him.

The man passed by the door without even a glance, heading straight for the direction of the elevator, preparing to leave.

As the man walked, he continued to comfort the neighbor in his arms, “Ah Qing, you like cats a lot, don’t you? How about we raise one in the future?”

“I was wrong to disagree before. I was too selfish and didn’t consider your thoughts. From now on, whatever Ah Qing wants to do, I’ll support it—!!!”

The man’s optimistic thoughts about the future were only halfway spoken when his voice abruptly stopped.

The man looked at the murderer, who walked out of the elevator and collided with him head-on. He instinctively stopped in his tracks while holding Ruan Qing, and the words he wanted to say got stuck in his throat.

Murderer: “???”

Man: “...”

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