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墨書 Inktalez
It was strange, I pondered silently in my heart. The reason I initially excluded the master from being the murderer was that I thought the frail old man couldn't have harmed me or jumped from the second floor.
However, during the police investigation, they must have known the identity of the deceased. The first suspect would surely be that young "master," so why would they shift suspicion onto an outsider burglar? Moreover, the electronic security system of this Mansion is highly sophisticated; it wouldn't be easy for a burglar to breach and infiltrate. How could the police overlook these factors?
Uncle Fu seemed to sense my confusion. He sighed and said, "I know you suspect our master might be the killer. To be honest, I had my doubts too. But the police don't seem to think like you and me; they haven't even listed the young master as a suspect, claiming it was the work of an outsider. But I know that's impossible because an outsider couldn't possibly break into this Mansion. I'm most familiar with this home's security system."
After hearing Uncle Fu's words, I began to vaguely perceive the truth of the matter. That young "Old Zhao" was undoubtedly the murderer, and this was not an accident but a premeditated murder aimed at eliminating competition for inheritance. The reason the police didn't suspect him, I believed, was that he had likely prepared in advance. Just by looking at his appearance, one could tell he was cunning and treacherous; he probably had connections with influential people long before this incident. Therefore, even if the police suspected him, they would abandon their investigation in light of the Zhao family's immense influence, redirecting their focus onto a nonexistent burglar. After all, besides the current "master," there was no one else in the Zhao family, so even if they couldn't find the murderer, no one would press for answers. Furthermore, during my hospital stay, I hadn't seen any reports about this "Zhao Residence" case in the newspapers; I suspected "Old Zhao" had used his connections to keep this matter under wraps.
For a long time, Uncle Fu and I stood there in silence.
Outside, the sky suddenly darkened as if another storm was approaching. I thought again of that kind old man who had passed away and couldn't help but sigh—why do good people not live long while bad ones seem to escape unscathed? Has society truly become as dark as the sky outside?
The rain began to pour.
It was noon again when I woke up naturally as usual. I turned on my computer and took advantage of its brief boot-up time to wash my face. When I returned to my desk, the Windows desktop with its blue skies and white clouds was quietly waiting for me. Nowadays, almost everyone with a computer sets their desktop to a favorite image—be it landscapes, celebrities, or photos of themselves or their partners—yet I still insisted on using the default system wallpaper.
Just as I settled down, my phone suddenly rang. Looking at the caller ID, it was an unfamiliar number.
"Hello..."
"Is this Xin Yu?" As soon as I pressed the call button, an elderly voice came through on the other end. Although it sounded familiar, I couldn't place it right away. Just as I struggled to identify who it was, the voice continued: "This is Uncle Fu."
"Oh, Uncle Fu! Hello." It dawned on me that this number was one I had given to Uncle Fu during my last visit to Zhao Residence after being discharged from the hospital; nearly half a month had passed since then.
"How are you? Is your injury completely healed?"
"Alright, thank you for your concern. By the way, how are you and Aunt Fu doing?"
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Uncle Fu revealed the purpose of his call. It turned out that Old Madam Zhao's will was announced yesterday. The original announcement was scheduled for fifteen days ago, three days after Young Master Zhao's murder, but due to the unexpected death of an heir, there were some issues to resolve, which delayed the announcement by half a month.
"What does the will say? Is it convenient to share?" I was quite curious about its contents.
"There's nothing inconvenient about it; I called to tell you precisely that because I knew you'd be interested. However..." Uncle Fu paused slightly, "the contents of this will are truly surprising."
"Oh?"
"The gist of the will is as follows: the assets under Old Lady Zhao's Zhao Group total four billion four hundred thirty-four million."
Hearing that figure left me stunned; my phone nearly slipped from my hand. I only knew that Zhao Group was a large conglomerate, but I never expected its assets to be so enormous.
"That number is indeed shocking. I remember when I followed Old Madam, her wealth was only in the hundreds of thousands," Uncle Fu continued, his tone tinged with sadness. "But that's not the most surprising part; what comes next is even more astonishing. Of these assets, both the old master and young master inherit two million each, while the remaining four billion three hundred forty million is donated to the International Red Cross Foundation."
"Damn..." I couldn't help but curse upon hearing this.
"By the way..." Uncle Fu continued on the other end of the line, "the will also bequeaths the Zhao Residence to us as a reward for our years of service to the Zhao family. Old Madam was truly considerate."
Hearing this made me genuinely happy for Uncle Fu: "Yes, you've worked for the Zhao family for so many years. This house being left to you for retirement must be Madam Zhao's final expression of gratitude."
"Indeed, but such a large mansion feels extravagant for just the two of us. The utility bills and maintenance alone will cost quite a bit. So we discussed it and decided to sell this mansion and buy a smaller place instead; the remaining money should be enough for our retirement."
"That's not bad either."
"Alright, once we find a new place, you're welcome to come over. We'll have a few rounds then. By the way, remember to bring Yuan Yun along; my wife gets along well with her."
"Sure. I'll contact you then."
"Yeah, goodbye... wait!" Just as the other party was about to hang up, it seemed they suddenly remembered something. "Oh right, there's one more thing I forgot to tell you. Our master has been arrested, and the police have confirmed that he is the one who killed the young master."
"What?!" This news shocked me even more than everything else combined.
"I guess this is what they call 'the net of heaven is vast and wide.' Alright, my wife is calling me now. Let's talk more when we meet." With that, Uncle Fu hung up the phone.
I stood there in a daze, holding the disconnected phone. Looking back at the contents of the will now, it indeed seemed reasonable and clever. Two million is neither too big nor too small in our northern city. While it isn't a fortune, if spent wisely, it could last a lifetime.
Old Lady Zhao knew her frail son wasn't fit to inherit the group, but he wasn't one to seek luxury either. Given his age, two million should be enough for him to live comfortably until his end. As for her successor husband, while he had the capability to manage the group, his cunning nature and initial intention of marrying in for her wealth were clear to Old Lady Zhao. Thus, she only left him two million as compensation for accompanying her these past years.
This shows that the will was carefully considered by Old Lady Zhao; however, her only mistake was underestimating human greed. She never expected her husband would kill her son in a bid to claim all her wealth.
The two million inherited by Old Zhao should last him for decades if spent frugally. However, it would be far from enough to maintain his current social status and relationships. Perhaps this was why he had been arrested by the police despite having lost power. All of this indirectly confirmed the old saying about the vastness of heaven's net.
I opened the window, and sunlight flooded the entire room. Suddenly, I missed Yuan Yun very much.
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