The Scheming Ex-Husband's Courtship-Chapter 637 - 551 So Cruel

Jian Si knew that Nan Zhan would definitely not go to Jian Hedong’s home for dinner without a reason; he probably had the idea to make a secret visit after hearing her mention that Jian Hedong opposed Jian Chuan’s association with Feng Piaopiao.

Jian Si also thought that her uncle would surely oppose it, because he had high hopes for her elder brother. Jian Hedong, who was mediocre in his own life, naturally hoped that Jian Chuan would achieve startling success, yet Jian Chuan took a fancy to the ’cool’ girl he disliked the most, how could he not be angry.

However, as angry as he might be, she could not truly believe that her uncle would commit murder over this; he has always been timid and afraid of getting into trouble, muttering prayers for blessing even when he slaughters chickens or fish, how could he possibly kill someone.

"Jian Si, have you ever thought about a problem?" Nan Zhan suddenly pulled the car over to the side of the road, looking at her with intense eyes: "In the serial car arson cases, you were able to accurately draw the suspect only based on a witness’s testimony and a blurry surveillance tape, so why this time, with several eyewitnesses, are the portraits you provided continually unsatisfactory?"

Jian Si looked at him, somewhat startled, "What do you mean?"

"Deep down in your heart, you’ve been deliberately avoiding the real likeness, but you yourself do not realize it." Nan Zhan lit a cigarette, "As Sherlock Holmes said, eliminate all the impossibilities, and whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth. Do you understand, Jian Si?"

"Am I deceiving myself?" Jian Si shook her head vigorously, "That’s impossible."

"Have you finished looking at the materials from the medical school?"

"Not yet."

"You go home and review the materials first. Nan Yu said there are two new testimonies for your portraits. Jian Si, I hope you can draw the suspect with a clear mind, it will be good for your future."

Jian Si was in a daze all the way, there were some things she didn’t even dare to think about.

When she got home, she locked herself in her room and first received the email from Nan Yu, which contained suggestions from the two eyewitnesses for the portraits she had previously provided.

Jian Si took a deep breath, trying hard to cast aside all the miscellaneous thoughts in her mind.

This was originally her forte, with tens of thousands of faces in her mind, each with different characteristics, and she always managed to depict their faces starting from a key point.

As Nan Zhan said, she could initially draw the killer accurately based on just one person’s testimony and a blurry video, so why was she stuck this time?

Perhaps this work is difficult for other people, relying solely on descriptions to determine someone’s appearance, and when this person doesn’t have any particularly obvious features, the difficulty level of this task is enormous, even experts can’t guarantee results.

But she was different, she possessed almost superhuman facial memory, so when she depicted these people, it was also more vivid and concrete. So, what exactly was distracting her?

Jian Si closed her eyes, recompiling everyone’s testimonies in her mind, eliminating all other thoughts, no longer caring about what’s possible or impossible, just following her instincts to gather these details together.

The surroundings were so quiet it felt as if she was cut off from the world, her hand moving swiftly with the paintbrush over the canvas.

Jian Si continuously told herself to stay focused; Nan Zhan was right, no matter how unbelievable it might seem, it could turn into that one-in-a-million possibility in the end.

As time ticked by, the person under Jian Si’s pen slowly came to life on the paper, and when she finished the final stroke, she stared at the person on the canvas, her pen dropping to the floor, breaking in two.

Her brain vehemently denied the possibility, but this portrait she had drawn without distraction combined all the features mentioned by the witnesses, without mixing in any emotional elements.

In this instant, as if many things suddenly became clear, events once thought unbelievable now seemed to have a rationale.

Jian Si quickly started to review the materials from the medical college. Nan Zhan said that the killer was hidden among these faculty members; if his reasoning was correct, then surely she would find the person from her portrait among this information.

With a target in mind, Jian Si flipped through the materials quickly, and as she didn’t see that face, the hope in her heart grew bit by bit. She silently prayed that it was a coincidence, it must be just a coincidence, he definitely wouldn’t appear here.

But results are always disappointing, on the third to last page, she saw a name all too familiar to her and a face equally well-known.

Jian Si was like a marionette whose strings had suddenly been cut, collapsing onto the chair with her mind blank.

It wasn’t until the knock on the door sounded that she found her way back to some semblance of thought, albeit numbly.

Soon, a crisp breath approached from behind; she knew Nan Zhan had come in.

Nan Zhan glanced at the document picture on the computer screen, then his gaze fell on the sketchpad in front of him, but he didn’t speak immediately.

He sat on the bed close by, lit a cigarette, and started smoking.

Jian Si was not used to the smell of smoke before and found it suffocating. However, she did not feel repelled by the smell of Nan Zhan smoking, yet the smell of others smoking still made her avoid it.

"Give me one," Jian Si suddenly extended her hand. "I see you like to smoke when you’re thinking about problems. Does smoking make one more clear-headed?"

Nan Zhan looked at her outstretched hand, very small, the palm was like white jade.

"No," he replied slowly, "Tobacco only numbs people."

"Is that so? Then please give me one anyway."

Without a word, Nan Zhan suddenly grabbed her hand and pulled it towards him. Under her somewhat panicked and attentive gaze, he took a drag of his cigarette and blocked her mouth with it.

The smoke he had just inhaled was all exhaled into her mouth, and since she couldn’t spit it out, she had no choice but to swallow it down forcefully.

The suffocating taste of tobacco burned down her esophagus, penetrating deep into her windpipe and stomach.

Jian Si coughed from the choking, and even the tears she coughed up seemed to carry the taste of the smoke.

She glared at him with a mix of embarrassment and anger, but he continued to smoke calmly, his eyes and expression cold: "Not everything is for you to try. How is it,

Jian Si turned her face away, unwilling to look at him, but had already dismissed the thought in her mind.

She had heard that tobacco can numb a person’s brain; right now, all she wanted was to numb herself, thinking that perhaps it would ease her sadness.

"I sympathize with your feelings right now, but first, we need to clarify the truth of the matter."

It took a long time for Jian Si to find her voice: "Have you found anything today?"

Nan Zhan put out his cigarette, "First, he is not purely left-handed, I deliberately handed him a plate and he took it with his right hand, and he also used his right hand when cooking. However, when he was cutting beef, he held the knife with his left. This means he used his left hand only when doing something extremely strenuous or detailed, such as cutting or eating; second, he frequently enters this neighborhood, so the guards consider him familiar since he often brings them seasonal fruits, and they also know that he has a relative here, so his presence doesn’t raise any special suspicion, and he is very familiar with the area; third, he has a tricycle, which is large enough to transport an entire person; fourth, he fits the psychological profile I have of the murderer, he has been emotionally hurt,

Jian Si remained silent, everything Nan Zhan had said matched closely with the murderer, and her portrait decidedly pointed to that person.

"Send your portrait to several eyewitnesses, they will give you feedback," Nan Zhan said, staring at her now pale face, enunciating every word: "Jian Si, there’s no denying, the murderer is your uncle... Jian Hedong."

Before meeting Jian Hedong, he had suspicions about him only to the extent of one in a thousand for the Feng Piaopiao case.

The third person entertained by Feng Piaopiao could have been Jian Chuan’s father, who might have confronted Feng Piaopiao because he opposed their relationship. But, is it reasonable for someone to kill a person just because they oppose their son’s girlfriend?

This clearly did not make sense. So, the best explanation was that this person was determined to kill her from the moment he went to find Feng Piaopiao. At first, he did not understand the reason, but then he realized - Feng Piaopiao had had several boyfriends, her private life was chaotic. In most people’s eyes, she belonged to the type of woman with a loose reputation, and Jian Hedong had an extreme and twisted prejudice against women who did not conform to traditional virtues. When such a woman suddenly became his son’s girlfriend, the violent tendencies buried in his heart were once again provoked, giving rise to murderous thoughts.

Jian Si was still silent; even now, she couldn’t associate her kind, timid, and cowardly uncle with those dead bodies, one of them being her best friend.

"Jian Si, you’ve made a critical mistake," Nan Zhan said, pointing it out candidly. "You were severely influenced by your emotions while drawing the portrait, your subconscious did not want to portray this person as Jian Hedong. Thus, while your portrait seems to be getting closer to the truth, in reality, it’s only getting further away. This self-hypnosis and delusion is a very unprofessional attitude. If you could have set aside personal sentiments and drawn the suspect earlier, perhaps your best friend wouldn’t have died."

Every word from Nan Zhan was like a knife, each utterance lacerating Jian Si’s heart, yet she knew that despite the harshness, each sentence was the truth.

If she could have cast aside Heart Demon earlier and drawn the real murderer, Feng Piaopiao might not have died.

Jian Si slowly lowered her head, covering her face with her hands.

Her life was already in ruins, why did it have to take away the people around her one by one?

What did she do wrong, for heaven to punish her so cruelly.