Chapter 210: Greed, Hatred, and Ignorance

Lin Dongxue jotted down the notes. “We can start by checking the churches. There shouldn’t be many in Long’an City from thirteen years ago.”

Chen Shi asked, “What about Ruihua Factory where your father worked?”

“If I remember correctly, it was a pharmaceutical factory. My father always smelled like medicine when he came home.”

“Ruihua? Ruihua? Huashui? I think there’s a Huashui Pharmaceutical in Long’an. Could that be it?”

The young monk scratched his head, looking confused.

Chen Shi asked, “Did your father have an accent?”

“Yes, I’ve heard a visitor at the temple speak with an accent similar to my father’s. He was from Henan.”

“That’s it then. He must have had an accent and pronounced the factory name wrong. We’ll follow this lead,” Chen Shi said.

“How many days did Captain Lin give us?” asked Peng Sijue.

“Seven days.”

“Seven days? You might not even find the crime scene in that time. Even if you do, it’s unlikely you’ll solve the case.”

“How will we know if we don’t try?” Chen Shi saw the waiter bringing food. “Here’s our meal, let’s eat.”

But the waiter set the dishes on another table. Lin Dongxue slammed the table, “Hey, we were here first! They’ve only been here for five minutes. Why are they getting their food first?”

The waiter replied curtly, “I don’t know. Ask the kitchen.”

“What an attitude!” Lin Dongxue took out her phone. “Bad review! Bad review!”

Chen Shi pressed her hand down, “Have some sense. Give the bad review after we eat.”

After a while, the waiter came back, smiling apologetically, and moved the dishes to their table. “Sorry, wrong table.”

Lin Dongxue looked shocked. “They’ve already eaten some of this.”

“Why so petty, beautiful? They hardly touched it.”

“You’re so generous!”

Peng Sijue added, “What if they have an infectious disease?”

“Impossible. They’re regulars,” the waiter said with a forced smile.

“What’s their last name?” Peng Sijue asked.

“How should I know!”

“If you don’t even know their name, how can you be sure they don’t have an infectious disease?” Peng Sijue said seriously. The other table’s customers looked annoyed, making a lot of noise with their dishes.

“Forget it. I’m not eating here!” Lin Dongxue stood up to leave.

Chen Shi and Peng Sijue followed, and the young monk, feeling awkward, also stood up. The waiter called the manager, who shouted after them, “Guests, we can give you a 20% discount! How about 30%? 50% off, okay?”

Lin Dongxue walked out without looking back, feeling a sense of victory.

The young monk put his hands together, “Miss, it’s not worth getting angry over such things.”

Lin Dongxue’s brief feeling of satisfaction disappeared.

Chen Shi asked, “Where should we eat now?”

Peng Sijue said, “I’m not hungry. I’ll go back to work.”

The young monk offered, “If you don’t mind, I have some dry rations and pickles.” He started to unpack his bag.

“No, no,” Chen Shi said quickly. “I promised to treat you. Let’s go back and grab a bite.”

“Then I’ll eat on my own.” The young monk took out steamed buns and pickles, and began eating.

Chen Shi remarked enviously, “Monks are so carefree. We secular people argue over trivial matters every day. We seem so petty compared to the young master.”

“Not necessarily,” the young monk said while chewing. “Some of my senior brothers are quite chubby. Although they eat vegetarian meals, they’re very content and thus gain weight.”

Chen Shi said, “Young master, you don’t have a place to stay, right? How about you stay at…” Lin Dongxue suddenly pinched the back of Chen Shi’s hand, making him raise his voice, “At a guesthouse near my place, so we can stay in touch easily.”

“Thank you!”

After getting in the car, Lin Dongxue whispered, “Having a young boy stay at your place with Tao Yueyue and me there would be inconvenient.”

“I didn’t think it through.” Chen Shi smiled.

They found a guesthouse and settled the young monk. He thanked them sincerely, “Thank you both so much. Just do your best with the investigation. Everything will follow its course.”

Chen Shi replied, “I believe justice will be served.”

“Thank you for your kind words!”

Back home, Tao Yueyue was already there, reading. She had eaten at a friend’s house. Chen Shi borrowed her computer, and she asked, “Another case?”

“Yes. Can I use the computer for the night?”

Chen Shi set up the computer in the living room and started researching on Google Maps, getting so absorbed that he forgot about dinner.

Lin Dongxue initially wanted to remind him but decided to surprise him by cooking. She opened the fridge, which was always stocked with ingredients, but her cooking skills were limited. She settled on cooking noodles, adding a couple of fried eggs and some leftover meatballs, with some fresh greens.

As the noodles cooked, Lin Dongxue checked her phone and saw a response to her question on Zhihu: “I’m staying at a friend’s place and don’t want to find my own. Will my friend think I’m overstaying my welcome?”

The top answer, from a user named “Soy Sauce Master,” advised clear communication, suggesting that if the friend didn’t mind, staying together could be fine. It emphasized the importance of discussing such matters openly to avoid misunderstandings or regrets.

Reading this, Lin Dongxue felt reassured and awarded the answer the best response.

She added, “The friend is a guy, and I’m a girl. I like him a bit. Is it inappropriate to stay together suddenly?”

The sound of boiling water snapped her back to reality. The pot was overflowing, and steam filled the kitchen. She screamed, and Chen Shi rushed in, swiftly turning off the stove and lifting the lid. “You shouldn’t cover the pot while cooking these noodles,” he said.

Lin Dongxue pouted, “I wanted to make you dinner. I was supposed to treat you.”

“Thanks,” Chen Shi reached out, then awkwardly pulled his hand back. “I’ll handle it.”

“Next time, I’ll do it!”

“Sure, next time.”

Lin Dongxue walked into the living room. On the computer screen, Google Maps was open alongside other webpages. She curiously peeked and found it was Zhihu, with an account named “Soy Sauce Master.”

She nearly screamed, but Chen Shi walked in with the noodles just then…