The Scheming Ex-Husband's Courtship-Chapter 609 - 528: Close Your Eyes if You’re Scared

Chapter 609: Chapter 528: Close Your Eyes if You’re Scared
On the way back, Jian Si indeed did not speak to Nan Zhan at all, but was engrossed in studying the shopping list in her hand.
Nan Zhan looked at her through the rearview mirror for the Nth time, seeing her still focused on that tattered piece of paper, and feeling somewhat stifled, he couldn’t help but step on the gas pedal.
Jian Si, unprepared, suddenly lurched forward, and fortunately, the seatbelt prevented her from hitting the seat in front.
After stabilizing herself, Jian Si glared angrily at the man driving and he nonchalantly remarked, "A dog."
Jian Si looked outside the window, on the smooth road, there wasn’t even a shadow of a dog, she snorted: Childish.
Having teased Jian Si, Nan Zhan was in a good mood, and his constantly furrowed brows also relaxed.
"By the way, how did you know that Li Ronghua used to trade stocks?" Jian Si suddenly thought of this question; he had been so certain about it, and Li Ronghua didn’t deny it either.
"I guessed." Nan Zhan said with a straightforward face.
"Just a guess?"
"Just a guess."
No one would believe that!
Once home, Zhengzheng was doing homework in his room and hurriedly ran out when he heard them.
"What’s for dinner tonight?"
"Snowflake mutton." Jian Si raised the shopping bag she was holding, "And your favorite, stir-fried shrimp."
Zhengzheng licked his lips, his face full of anticipation.
Jian Si entered the kitchen, while Zhengzheng sneakily sidled up to Nan Zhan, tugging at his sleeve, and said in a low voice, "When shall we go take a look?"
Nan Zhan knew he was referring to going to this complex to find the third corpse, although he was entrusted by someone to investigate the case,
"After dinner, we’ll go have a look."
"Mhm." Zhengzheng excitedly returned to his room and soon peeked his head out again, "Can you help me with a question?"
Nan Zhan, having just washed his hands, didn’t hesitate and walked over, "What question?"
"English."
The procedure for making the snowflake mutton was very meticulous, and after finishing, Jian Si put the dish into the steamer, while on the other side of the stove, the preparations for the stir-fried shrimps were also ready.
She wiped her hands and wanted to remind Zhengzheng to do his homework. Just as she stepped out of the kitchen, she saw his room door was only half-closed. Through the crack, the little guy sat on the floor with his workbook sprawled on the bed, and sitting where the workbook was placed, was a person with a slender body slightly bent, talking to him with his head lowered.
It must have been a very interesting talk, as Zhengzheng lifted his little face and chuckled at him, and that usually stern-faced man unexpectedly curled his lips slightly, his gaze revealing a stream of tender azure.
Jian Si thought she was seeing things; this harsh, arrogant man being so patient with a child?
Just then, Nan Zhan looked up, their startled gazes colliding. He narrowed his eyes, suddenly stood up and approached. Jian Si felt a bit flustered and awkward, while he walked to the doorway, directly closing the room door in front of her eyes.
Left with the door slammed in her face, Jian Si was stunned. Hey, what could those two possibly have that they need to hide?
After dinner, when Jian Si heard the two of them were going out, she curiously asked, "Where are you going?"
"A place you wouldn’t want to go." Nan Zhan took a pair of white gloves and stuffed them into his pocket, picking up a bag of tools.
Jian Si could guess that the two were going to investigate a case, and although she disliked the terrifying crime scenes, having just experienced the horror of a corpse hidden in the wall, the thought of staying alone in the room made her skin crawl.
"Do you need a flashlight?" Jian Si giggled, raising the flashlight in her hand.
Nan Zhan and Zhengzheng looked at each other; Zhengzheng said, "Then you better not scream in fear."
"I... I’ll try." Jian Si was actually a bit curious about what they were going to see, and she didn’t quite believe that they would indeed find another terrifying corpse.
"Saying one thing but meaning another." The chilly man almost buzzed the words through his nose.
Jian Si lifted her head, puffing out her chest as if to say "mind your own business".
The trio quickly boarded the elevator, where Nan Zhan placed a ’Do Not Operate’ sign at the entrance and got the elevator door key from the security guard.
Jian Si’s previous rental was quite old, while the towers where Nan Zhan rented were relatively newer, totaling four high-rises situated at the corners of the complex, though the elevators were already quite worn-out, squeaking as they operated.
Once inside, the two began inspecting all around, tapping here and there.
The sound of knocking on the elevator walls made Jian Si’s skin crawl again, "What are you knocking for, you can’t knock out another corpse from the elevator walls, can you?"
The elevator kept rising until it reached the top floor, then Nan Zhan, with a large and a small tool in hand, opened the door. He peered through the gap of the door to see the elevator descend to the appropriate position, then he pressed the emergency stop switch and finally took out a key to unlock the door, causing the elevator to come to a halt.
Once the door was open, they could see the top part of the elevator. Due to years of not being cleaned, the intricate equipment emitted a rancid oil smell, with a thick layer of dust accumulated on it.
"What do you suspect?" Jian Si, though slow to catch on, had guessed what these two were mobilizing to search for.
Nan Zhan said, "Both corpses were discovered in this apartment complex, indicating the murderer has some special connection with this place. They either lived here or frequented the area and were familiar with the layout. Besides the abandoned machine well and walls, another place to hide things is on top of this elevator."
"It seems there’s nothing in this elevator," Zhengzheng helped with the flashlight. "Let’s go to the next one."
Jian Si glanced at him; her face faintly flushed with no trace of fear. Then looking at Nan Zhan, who appeared as calm as if searching for a cat or a dog, it really was...
Four high-rise buildings corresponded to four elevators. After checking the one they resided in, the trio moved on to check the other three. As they reached the last one, Nan Zhan’s steps suddenly slowed down, his already bright eyes turning deeper.
The narrow space within the elevator confined them, and the light sensor of the top floor unexpectedly failed, no matter how Jian Si stamped her feet, it wouldn’t light up.
The only source of light came from the flashlight in Zhengzheng’s hand.
Standing on the top-floor staircase, Nan Zhan suddenly stood still, his expression solemn and indifferent, his thin lips tightly pressed together.
"Do you smell that?" He suddenly spoke, his voice sounding eerie in the darkness, seeming very distant.
Jian Si was startled. After searching three elevators with no findings, she began to think his conjecture was only a guess. However, hearing him speak in that tone, she couldn’t help but tremble lightly and moved back against the wall behind her: "Smell what?"
"The scent of sin." Nan Zhan’s expression became completely stern as he stared at the pitch-black elevator doors, "If you are scared, go down to the lower floor."
Jian Si detected a hint of mockery in his tone and immediately straightened her chest: "I’m not afraid."
Even such a young child like Zhengzheng wasn’t scared; if she fled now, it would be too embarrassing. She definitely wouldn’t tell them that her legs were shaking.
"Call the police," Nan Zhan instructed indifferently.
"But the elevator door isn’t even open yet, how do you know there’s something wrong inside?"
"Intuition."
Jian Si had no choice but to pick up the phone and dialed 110, watching as Nan Zhan used the keys to unlock the door while Zhengzheng provided light with his flashlight.
The moment the door opened, a strange smell rushed out. Jian Si was familiar with this odor—it was the same bizarre smell that emanated from the walls of her house when they were smashed, Formalin.
In the illumination, a large black plastic bag was thrown on the governor at the top of the elevator, tied tightly at the opening.
Jian Si instinctively retreated two steps, her back hitting the cold concrete wall. The sight reminded her of the same black plastic bags found inside her home’s walls, just the color alone gave her goosebumps.
"Hello, this is the 110 Command Center."
"Hello, hello, is anyone there? Please speak, hello hello."
Jian Si tried to calm down and regained her voice, though it was still uncontrollably shaky: "I need to an incident, the location is XX complex, yes, a homicide."
After hanging up the phone, Jian Si saw Nan Zhan had already climbed on top of the elevator. He crouched down and untied the black plastic bag. As soon as the opening was loosened, an arm emerged, its skin darkened from being soaked.
Like the other two bodies, this was also a naked corpse, female, with long hair, its face already blurred beyond recognition.
"Big brother, over here," Zhengzheng brought the flashlight closer, pointing at a spot behind the woman’s ear, "There’s a tattoo here."
Nan Zhan took the flashlight from his hand and looked closely, indeed spotting a black rose tattoo. Although it was somewhat blurred from long-term soaking, it was still distinctly visible.
This was a very important clue, as no obvious marks had been found on the first two bodies, which had been a stumbling block in progressing the case investigation since without identifying the victims, one could not pinpoint the murderer’s motives and intentions, nor continue the investigation.
"Cellphone." Nan Zhan extended his hand to Jian Si.
Jian Si swallowed and quickly took out her phone, placing it in his gloved palm. He looked up at her, then turned around and said: "If you’re scared, close your eyes."
His words lacked the usual sarcasm; his tone was mundane, as if he really meant for her to shut her eyes.
Having heard his words, Jian Si was not as frightened as before. She admitted she didn’t have the courage of these two men, but having already seen two bodies, what more could be scarier than those, as the saying goes, too many lice do not itch.
So, just watch, she didn’t want him to keep looking down on her.
"I... I’ll hold the flashlight for you," Jian Si summoned her courage, took the flashlight from Zhengzheng’s hand, glanced at the corpse, and quickly turned her head away.
After all, she had looked, and a glance counted as looking, so she wasn’t afraid of his mockery now.
～