Xu Ruyi's hand shook, nearly spilling the tea in her cup.
This tiny movement didn't escape Old He's notice.
He narrowed his eyes, watching Xu Ruyi quietly—she set down the cup, deliberately slowing her movements, but her rapidly blinking eyes still betrayed the turmoil within.
What was she panicking about?
"My parents did sponsor some students, children from families too poor to afford tuition. Their intention was simple: to help, to offer kindness, thinking a small gesture might change a child's life. I don't know those people; actually, my parents hadn't met most of them either. My dad stopped the sponsorship once they went to university, and contact gradually faded. Some sent postcards, others called to say hello. Postcards? They're all at my dad's place, in Jiayuan Residential Complex."
Xu Ruyi brushed over it lightly, shifting the topic back to Qin Guan. "How could my parents have imagined that someone they sponsored would later cheat and commit murder? It's something no one could foresee. No choice, it's fate—Little Pear!"
She quickly called out to her daughter.
"Look how dirty your hands are! Go wash them now, it's time for dinner!"
She was clearly trying to end the conversation and begin the process of "seeing the guest out."
Which also indicated she was starting to panic.
Interesting.
Old He naturally had no intention of leaving now. "I'm actually quite hungry myself. Mind if I join you for dinner?"
Seeing the guest staying for a meal, Auntie Feng hurriedly added two more dishes to the menu, bustling away in the kitchen.
Old He stood up, looking around with interest—he'd actually been here quite a few times already.
"The location of this place is great. Quiet amidst the bustle. The layout is excellent too—spacious, bright, well-proportioned rooms. New apartments these days rarely have rooms this large."
"This study is emptied out too? Qin Guan's belongings…" He stood at the study door—the room was almost completely bare.
He turned his head, his gaze landing on Xu Ruyi's face.
Before the first trial, the vast majority of Qin Guan's clothes and books had been thrown by Xu Ruyi into another, unfinished apartment. She was just waiting for the verdict to be finalized, the gavel to fall, so she could burn them all.
She didn't want to see anything of his.
She wanted to burn every trace of him to ashes.
"His parents are gone, and he has no close relatives left. Since I'm selling the place, I've cleared out my own things. Naturally, his stuff couldn't stay. It's been moved out temporarily. I'll burn it whenever you say it's okay to handle."
Xu Ruyi spoke while helping her child wash her hands. Her answer was natural and earnest.
Laced with a bit of helplessness, a touch of pain, and a measure of disgust and ruthlessness—Xiao Zhi had said this was exactly the state a betrayed wife should be in.
"Indeed, if you're selling the house, the belongings naturally need to be cleared out," Old He nodded, showing agreement.
He walked over from the study door and stood by the bathroom entrance, still making casual conversation. "A few months ago, I handled a case similar to yours. The person involved was about your age, a mother of two. The case was straightforward: the husband cheated, killed his lover's husband in a fit of passion. Got seventeen years in the first trial."
He sounded like he was just chatting.
"That wife, naturally, divorced him and dealt with the property. I happened to be nearby that day and went to her place. I saw her tearing up her husband's clothes, cutting them to pieces, making a huge mess of the house. Then she sat on the floor and cried, cried so bitterly, so heartbroken."
Xu Ruyi was washing her daughter's hands. Water splashed noisily. She kept her head down, but her attention was entirely focused on Old He's words. She didn't even notice Little Pear's sleeve getting soaked.
Old He took this detail in with a single glance.
"But, cry as she might, make a mess as she did, in the end, she still packed up her husband's things and sent them to the old house. She said she couldn't bear to be utterly ruthless. After all those years together, and with two children... I still remember how she looked after calming down. She stared out the window and said, 'He'll come back eventually. He's still the children's father.'"
Old He chuckled lightly as he spoke. "I think, in similar situations, you hate your erring husband far more than she hated hers."
He definitely wasn't here just for a meal.
The moment the words "you hate... far more" left his mouth, Xu Ruyi's heart gave a lurch.
He was here to probe her.
To probe whether her hatred for Qin Guan exceeded the scale expected of a betrayed wife.
It naturally had long surpassed it. She didn't just want to burn his clothes and books; she wished she could burn him alive!
The water still flowed, its coldness slowly pressing down the surge of hatred rising in her heart.
She lifted her head, offering a sorrowful smile. "Hate? Of course I hate him. My parents treated him so well, and he still betrayed our marriage, betrayed me... Growing up, I thought everything in the world was beautiful. I never imagined people could be like this..."
This was also something Xiao Zhi had coached her to say—having lived a privileged life since birth, her reaction to betrayal should be more intense than others. It was normal. In front of Old He, expressing her feelings, her grievances, was more likely to elicit sympathy.
After all, he had a sister-in-law in a similar situation.
"Yes, you've had a smooth life since childhood, stable," Old He was indeed moved by the scene. He sighed, said nothing more, and strode back to the dining table.
Auntie Feng was bringing out the dishes.
His gaze shifted to Auntie Feng and suddenly brightened. "Huh, Auntie Feng, your hand's cut. Just now? Did you nick it? What's wrong? Are you nervous?"
Auntie Feng was nervous.
She'd been cutting fruit in the kitchen, her ears straining to catch the conversation outside, her mind not on the knife. Her finger had slipped and been cut.
"People working in the kitchen, it's unavoidable. It's nothing," Auntie Feng smiled as if it were nothing. "Didn't know Captain He was coming today, didn't prepare much. My cooking isn't great either, Captain He, please make do."
As Auntie Feng spoke, she started to retreat back to the kitchen. "There's still a soup, I'll go check..."
"Auntie Feng, your son, Xiao Zhi, is really quite remarkable," Old He sat down. With just this one sentence, he halted Auntie Feng's steps.
"I've chatted with him a few times. I like this young man. Smart, driven. His best subject is math, you know? Kids who are good at math usually have very strong logical reasoning skills."
Auntie Feng froze. Xu Ruyi froze too.
But Old He picked up a small tangerine and started peeling it, as relaxed and natural as an old friend. "Kids with strong logical reasoning skills often consider things very thoroughly, meticulously. Almost all those seemingly perfect high-IQ crimes are committed by people like that."
"He's a child with deep loyalty and affection," Old He looked at the dazed and rigid figures of Xu Ruyi and Auntie Feng beside him. "Last time he came over, he visited your parents' graves, and went to Jiayuan Residential Complex too, right? Xu Ruyi, do you have time? Take me to Jiayuan Residential Complex after dinner?"
Xu Ruyi could only nod—she was completely at a loss about what this man's real purpose was anymore.