Chapter 603: Death for a House

Hearing this, Lin Qiupu was invigorated and asked, “Where did you find this out?”

“I went to the district bureau and checked unsolved cases in various jurisdictions. The earliest one was from June last year. The victim, surnamed Qin, was about to buy a house for his wedding. He purchased the house after it went on sale but was killed the next day, his skull smashed with a hammer. The murderer staged it as a robbery, taking all his valuable possessions. Since the payment wasn’t completed, the house remained unsold and was included in the B phase of the development. During the B phase, which opened in April this year, another buyer, Li, was killed just before payment. He died from an overdose of thiopental sodium, a potent anesthetic. The current case follows the same pattern, but this time the killer acted quickly, likely because Zhang Haichang planned to pay in full, and the killer couldn’t wait any longer.”

“The methods are all different.”

“The killer doesn’t want to be identified as a serial murderer. Otherwise, the victims’ commonalities would be exposed. They only wanted to keep the house available, perhaps hoping to buy it themselves but lacking the funds temporarily. Or they might be trying to scare away other buyers to lower the price, similar to the motive in ‘Dream Home’.”

“How did you find this out? Did you use illegal means?”

Chen Shi knew hiding this could cause problems later, so he subtly confessed, “When I went to buy the house, I took a glance at the customer files when no one was looking, then checked each one. It shows their customer data isn’t hard to get.”

“Just a glance and you remembered? Are you a genius?”

“A genius with a USB drive,” Chen Shi laughed.

Lin Qiupu raised a finger, “Good thing you’re not a cop, or I’d have you write a self-criticism!”

Chen Shi shrugged, “If I didn’t investigate like this, who knows how long it would take to find out, or how many more people would die before the police noticed this motive. You know I act on my thoughts immediately. I can’t wait.”

“I’m gathering everyone for a meeting.”

“No, I have an appointment with the saleslady. Let’s talk to her first and learn more.”

Lin Qiupu told everyone to temporarily halt their current leads and went with Chen Shi to a tea house. The saleslady hadn’t arrived yet, so they ordered tea and snacks. Chen Shi had picked the place, and the snacks included garlic-flavored green peas, pistachios, glutinous rice cakes, and dried fish. Chen Shi tasted each one, saying, “These are good. Try some!”

“Image! Focusing on food during an investigation… By the way, your friends’ agency must often do things like spying, stealing information, and trespassing, right?”

“They don’t trespass, but the rest… Private investigation is a gray area. My friends mostly catch cheating spouses. Give them a break, Lin. Here, a toast to you!”

“I don’t care about that, but tell them to be careful. Plenty of private detectives end up in jail.”

“If they don’t do this, what else can they do? Help find lost cats?”

“You sound like you’re defending them. You’re always breaking the rules too. Birds of a feather, huh?”

If Lin Qiupu knew KK was a former thief now reformed, who knows what he would think. Chen Shi just said, “I’ll remind them.”

Just then, Gong Jianqin arrived. “Sorry, Mr. Chen, the traffic was bad. What did you want to talk about?”

“Have a seat,” Chen Shi poured her tea. “We have some questions.”

Gong Jianqin tapped the table with her fingers to express thanks. “Please go ahead.”

“Do you remember Qin Yi and Li Xiaolei?”

Her expression changed slightly. “They were my clients…”

“And then?”

She glanced at Lin Qiupu. “You already found out?”

Lin Qiupu said, “So you did hide something from us!”

“It wasn’t intentional. The manager said if this got out, it would affect not just that house but the entire development’s sales. Our budget is tight, even a hundred yuan per square meter drop is a big hit.”

“That’s what your manager said?” Lin Qiupu scoffed. “Real estate profit margins are huge, which is why so many people rush into this business. Even if it affects sales, it won’t be much.”

“You wouldn’t understand unless you’re in this industry. Selling houses isn’t as easy as you think.”

“Alright, let’s get to the point!” Chen Shi asked, “When did you find out about their deaths?”

“Mr. Qin didn’t come to pay after buying the house. I got a call from his family. The same with Mr. Li, I found out when I went to his house and saw the mourning hall. So the house went back on the market.”

“So the designer moving abroad story is your manager’s lie?”

“Yes, the manager said we couldn’t let buyers know about the deaths. If asked why it wasn’t sold, that’s the story we were told to use.”

“Who do you think did it?”

Gong Jianqin smiled. “I have no idea. I’m not a detective!”

“Have you always handled that house?”

“Yes.”

Chen Shi borrowed a notepad and pen from Lin Qiupu and handed them to her. “Please write down all the names and contact details of people interested in that house.”

Gong Jianqin took out her phone and wrote them down one by one. When she finished, she looked up and asked, “Including you, Mr. Chen?”

Lin Qiupu asked, “You want to buy that house?”

“I’m not superstitious. It’s a great house. Solving the case and buying a home, isn’t that perfect?”

“I think you’re taking advantage of the situation!”

“How is it taking advantage? I’m using my own money!”

Lin Qiupu thought, considering the killer had murdered four people, the house price had indeed dropped. But maybe Chen Shi was testing something?

Lin Qiupu looked at the baby-faced saleslady. Could Chen Shi be testing her? Suspecting everyone during an investigation is normal. He asked, “Miss Gong, have you bought a house?”

“Yes, near my work.”

“I’m curious. Do employees get discounts?”

“No, same as others. We just know the market better and avoid overspending… If you’re buying, you can find me. Even if it’s not our company’s, I’ll charge a small consultation fee.” Always thinking about sales, even now.

“Thanks, I’ll consider it.”

Chen Shi took the notepad. It had at least twenty names, and Gong Jianqin marked them as phase 1, 2, or 3 buyers. She reminded them, “This is all confidential. I shared it for the investigation, so please don’t leak it. The competition is fierce.”

“Understood!” Chen Shi thought, all your customer data is on my computer now, and your security is quite lax.

“I have a small request. I hope this can be reported in the news. My clients keep getting killed, but I can’t warn others. If it makes the news, it might prevent more deaths.”

Chen Shi nodded. “We’ll consider it. But wouldn’t that affect your whole company?”

“I can always quit. But as long as I’m here, I have to follow the manager’s orders. I don’t want anyone else to die for a house. It’s not worth it.” She looked genuinely sad.