Chapter 348: Branded as Villains (Third Update)

The following task required no technical skills: the police arrived at the orphanage and meticulously searched every inch of the place, inspecting all of Yi Qing’s clothes, shoes, and personal items.

During the police’s stay, Yi Qing remained in her room, looking out the window. From afar, she appeared like a cold, distant figure framed by the window, resembling a beautiful woman in a painting.

The children showed resistance, hostility, and indifference towards the police. To them, the officers were the bad guys trying to take their beloved Teacher Yi away. They played small pranks on the police, like throwing mud at them or deliberately knocking over tools.

During a break, Peng SiJue sighed to Chen Shi, “If one day a director makes a movie about Yi Qing’s story, we police will be the villains, right?”

“Feeling conflicted about your role?” Chen Shi asked.

Peng SiJue smiled faintly and pulled out a cigarette. “I heard you quit smoking.”

Chen Shi gave him a look. Peng SiJue was about to light up but then put the lighter away and patted his leg, saying, “Let’s wait until this mission is over!”

“How about going for a meal afterward?”

“No.”

“Got a date?” Chen Shi chuckled.

Peng SiJue was about to respond when the sound of a child crying interrupted them. They rushed over to find Yi Qing kneeling on the ground, holding a little boy whose head was bleeding, seemingly from hitting an open window.

Other children surrounded a policeman, punching him with their little fists and shouting, “Beat the bad guy! Beat the bad guy!”

The officer looked innocent, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender.

Lin QiuPu came in with his team, dispersing the children. “What happened?” he asked.

The officer explained, “The boy threw mud at me. I turned around to scold him, and he ran off and hit the window.”

An older child said, “If you guys weren’t here every day trying to catch Teacher Yi, he wouldn’t have hurt himself.”

Peng SiJue brought a first aid kit. “Let me check his injury!”

“No! Don’t touch him!” The children pushed Peng SiJue away with all their might. Thin as he was, he nearly fell, saved only by Chen Shi catching him.

“Get out! All of you, get out!” The older child led the chant, and soon the yard was filled with their cries. The police huddled together, unsure what to do, their eyes pleading for guidance from Lin QiuPu, who just frowned.

In a corner, Zhao PuYang watched expressionlessly from a swing set.

“It doesn’t feel good to be the villain,” Lin DongXue whispered.

“Children, stop it,” Yi Qing said as she walked over. Her words immediately worked, and the children made way for her. Yi Qing turned to Peng SiJue, “Please bandage his wound.”

Since Yi Qing had requested it, the children did not object further. Peng SiJue checked the injury and found it wasn’t serious, though it looked alarming with all the blood.

Yi Qing looked around at the police officers. “Could you please go outside? I’ll come with you.”

Lin QiuPu nodded slightly, and they all moved to the flower-covered hillside in front of the orphanage. Yi Qing stopped and turned to face the orphanage. “Let’s end this here.”

“We’re not quitting. Maybe these children will always see us as villains, but it doesn’t matter. Upholding the law is our duty, and duty involves sacrifice,” Lin QiuPu said.

Yi Qing smiled. “You haven’t found any evidence, right? These days, the orphanage has been in chaos because of you. The children can’t sleep or eat well. Is this your silent threat to me? Fine, you win… Revenge used to be my only motivation to keep living. The flame of revenge was so bright, but now that it’s extinguished, my world is left in darkness…”

Everyone was shocked. Was she confessing?

Chen Shi noticed her hand reaching into her pocket. He rushed over, but Yi Qing quickly put something in her mouth, smiling, “Remember, you didn’t win. I chose to leave first.”

She chewed the pill and collapsed. When Chen Shi reached her, she was convulsing, her jaw clenched, pupils dilating, and a bitter almond smell filled the air.

Chen Shi withdrew his hand, ready to pry her mouth open, and said, “It’s too late.”

The officers gathered around, staring in disbelief at Yi Qing’s body. Lin DongXue said, “Did she commit suicide out of guilt?”

“No, it’s the emptiness after revenge, and her last bit of conscience… She didn’t want us to disturb the orphanage anymore,” Chen Shi said weakly. He had hoped to get information on Zhou Xiao from Yi Qing, but now that lead was gone.

To spare the children from seeing Yi Qing’s body, Lin QiuPu had it taken away by police car immediately.

Seeing a police car leave suddenly and Yi Qing nowhere in sight, the children sensed something was wrong. They swarmed out, many falling and crying as they chased after it, shouting, “Teacher Yi!”

After the police car left, the children vented their anger on the police, kicking and hitting them. That half hour felt both heartbreaking and endless for everyone.

There was no need for an autopsy. During Zhao PuYang’s second interrogation, she harshly told her lawyer to shut up and confessed everything to the police.

The whole process matched the police’s previous deductions. On the night Zhao PuYang was molested, she didn’t see who it was. Later, Yi Qing cared for her selflessly, offering her some solace. To Zhao PuYang, Yi Qing was like a mother.

One day, Yi Qing told her a secret: she had found the man who hurt Zhao PuYang and who had also wronged Yi Qing years ago. Enraged, Zhao PuYang said, “I want to kill him.”

Yi Qing smiled. “Do you really want to kill him? Killing is scary, you know. You’ll go to prison.”

“I’m not afraid!” Zhao PuYang said.

Yi Qing held her fist. “I have a plan. We can kill him without anyone going to prison.”

On May 20th, Yi Qing began to execute the plan. She sent Zhao PuYang to a parking lot to talk to a man, pretending she had lost her parents. That day, Yi Qing had dressed the tomboyish Zhao PuYang to look very cute.

Zheng GuoHao, unsuspecting, took the bait and smiled. “I’ll help you find your parents!” Then he took Zhao PuYang to his car.

All the way, Zhao PuYang suppressed her anger, knowing this was the bad man.

At Zheng GuoHao’s house, he asked her intrusive questions, inquiring if she ever slept with her father and saying he often slept with his daughter. He poured her a drink, confirming her suspicion that he was the bad man.