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CHAPTER 10
PART 1
After Tan Yong and Li Bin left, the members of the "big family" returned to their respective homes. Su Xiaotong and Gu Lei had promised Gu Xiaoliang that if he behaved well, they would take him to KFC for lunch. While the adults chatted in the living room, Gu Xiaoliang obediently played with toys in his room. So, the couple took their son out and arrived at a nearby KFC restaurant.
Gu Lei ordered a "family bucket," and Gu Xiaoliang enthusiastically ate fried chicken legs and drank cola, getting oil all over his mouth and hands. However, Su Xiaotong seemed to have no appetite; she only watched Gu Lei and their son eat. Gu Lei handed her a grilled wing and said, "Have some, it's delicious."
Su Xiaotong shook her head. "You guys go ahead."
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing, I've just never liked this kind of Western fast food."
Gu Lei was stunned for a moment and said, "Right, I remember now. For Western food, you like the steaks from those classy high-end restaurants."
Saying that, he took out his phone and opened Meituan to search. "Let me see if there's a better Western restaurant nearby."
"Let it go, no need."
"It's okay, I found one... group purchase price, 489 yuan for a meal for two. Let's go there later."
"Gu Lei, I said no need." Su Xiaotong said firmly.
Gu Lei put down his phone, fell silent for a moment, and asked, "Why?"
"You're not making money easily now, and I see you staying up late often. Let's save some money."
Glancing around, Gu Lei whispered, "Won't we be able to get a huge inheritance soon?"
"Let's really get it before we talk about it."
Gu Lei was taken aback. "Why wouldn't we get it? Are you worried..."
"Don't talk about this here, let's discuss it at home." Su Xiaotong took out a grilled wing from the paper bag, ate some fries, considering it as their lunch.
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Back home, Gu Xiaoliang was napping in the master bedroom while the couple went to the adjacent room. Su Xiaotong said, "You also heard what Tan Yong said this morning. He's worried that the killer might still commit murders. In this situation, can we still live here at ease?"
"It's just the police's concern, it doesn't mean the killer will definitely continue to kill."
"But now it's already confirmed one hundred percent that the killer is someone from the 'big family.' The key is, I can't understand why he would kill. That's the most disturbing part."
"How could you not understand? Isn't the answer obvious? Clearly, it's for money, by killing some members of the 'big family,' he can get a larger share of the inheritance."
"On the surface, it seems so. But upon closer examination, the killer's actions don't align with ordinary logic."
"How so?"
"Think about it, Gong Yamei left more than 27 million to the nine people in the 'big family', let's just count ourselves as one person. This is already a huge sum, like a pie falling from the sky. Would a normal person find it inadequate? Forget about the 27 million, even if you picked up 200,000 for free, wouldn't that make someone happy enough?"
Gu Lei smiled bitterly, "Of course, for me, finding 2,000 yuan would make me happy for several days, let alone 27 million."
"Yes, that's the logic of a normal person, since the money is essentially free, what difference does a little more or less make? Just quietly enjoy it."
"Yeah, that makes sense."
"But this killer doesn't think that way. Upon knowing that he's about to inherit over 27 million, he wasn't content or happy. Instead, within just two days, he schemed to poison other members of the 'big family.' No, perhaps this scheme wasn't spontaneously conceived, it might have been prepared earlier. Killing Gong Yamei, then plotting to kill other 'big family' members, perhaps from the beginning, this was the killer's plan."
"Then why do you think he would do this?"
"I just said, I can't figure it out."
"It's just greed, isn't it? Human desires are limitless. Upon knowing that he will receive a large sum of money, he's thinking if there's any way to get even more. Maybe that's how the killer thinks."
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"I've considered this possibility too, and I guess the police also think so. But from the killer's perspective, the risks of doing so are too great. Poisoning and killing someone is a capital offense. Once caught by the police, not to mention money, even one's life could be lost. Gu Lei, think about it, for a normal person, when they're about to gain such a huge wealth, is there any necessity to take the risk of murdering someone?"
"Perhaps this killer's plan is that poisoning the chicken soup is a method that the police won't be able to find any flaws in. It's what's called a 'perfect crime,' with no risk of being caught."
"Okay, setting aside the risks, the cost for the killer to do this would also be extremely high. First, to stage the trick, he himself has to drink some poisoned chicken soup, bearing the risk and pain of poisoning. Secondly, this incident will evidently destroy the trust among the group, making the members of the 'big family' wary of each other. But the killer has to live with them in this community for twenty years! By doing this, he's essentially abandoning all friendships. Will life be happy after that? And the most crucial point, isn't the killer worried that his actions might trigger a chain reaction? People who never thought of murder might, due to self-defense or a 'preemptive strike is better' mentality after experiencing this, develop the idea of killing. If the situation escalates like that, it's clearly disadvantageous for the killer. So, think about it, isn't the cost of doing this too high? Risking such great danger and loss just to make oneself, who is already wealthy, a bit wealthier, does that make sense?"
After listening to Su Xiaotong's analysis, Gu Lei nodded repeatedly, saying, "You make a lot of sense. A normal, rational person would definitely not do this. But what if the killer didn't consider all of these factors?"
Su Xiaotong shook her head, "Considering the killer's meticulous murder method and the solid psychological composure without revealing any flaws, he must be someone who is careful in his thinking and keeps calm in situations. Moreover, this is murder, not something one decides on whimsically. I don't believe he would overlook the scenarios we just analyzed."
"Listening to you, I'm also confused," scratched his head, Gu Lei said, "If the killer is really that cunning and rational, why would he have to resort to murder?"
Su Xiaotong pondered for a moment before saying, "There are only two possibilities."
"What are the two possibilities?"
"First, the killer is not a normal person but a psychopathic murderer. His motive might not necessarily be money but rather to satisfy a thrill; second, he has some kind of reason that compels him to kill. What that reason is, I don't know."
"A psychopathic murderer..." Gu Lei seemed to recall something. "Two years ago, there was a murder dismemberment case in Li Xueli's house."
"I mentioned it to you back then, the culprit who wasn't caught might have been in this community all along, even a member of the 'big family'."
"It couldn't be that you're right, could it?"
"I don't know. If this person is truly a psychopath who finds pleasure in killing, after lying low for so long, he finally found an opportunity for a killing spree - that possibility is not without merit."
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"But even so, he won't have another chance to kill, right? We won't be dining at Li Xueli's house anymore."
"Does that mean his only way of killing is by poisoning?"
Gu Lei shifted uncomfortably. "Then we can only rely on the police. Wasn't it said that from tonight, Lao Tan will move into the Yuehai Bay community? That should be a deterrent to the killer."
Su Xiaotong sighed, "Lao Tan used to frequent this community as a member of the 'big family,' but the killer still committed the crime right under his nose."
"This time should be different. Lao Tan plans to move into the community; he should be determined to catch the killer."
"Let's hope so."
"By the way, Xiaotong, do you want to call Lao Tan and tell him about your analysis just now?"
Su Xiaotong shook her head. "In Lao Tan's mind, each one of us is a suspect. Maybe I'm even his number one suspect. If I tell him these things, he might think I'm deliberately misleading him. Let's leave it. Besides, what I can think of, Lao Tan probably can think of too."
"Speaking of the number one suspect, it shouldn't be you. Currently, isn't Xia Qi the most suspicious one?"
"Why? Because Fan Lin said Xia Qi had previously gone to see Gong Yamei alone and seemed to be intentionally pleasing her?"
"Don't you think what she said makes sense? Only those closest to Gong Yamei could possibly know about her huge inheritance and her intention to leave it to the 'big family.'"
Su Xiaotong pondered for a moment. "But I don't think Xia Qi would be the culprit. At least not the one who killed Gong Yamei."
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"Why do you think so?"
"The night Gong Yamei was murdered, Xia Qi and I came out of the bar, and she suggested going for supper, but I declined. She tried to persuade me, saying the lamb skewers at that place were authentic, if she planned to murder Gong Yamei that night, why would she invite me for supper?"
"Perhaps she guessed you wouldn't go, so she deliberately said that. Deliberately showing that she had no intention of harming Gong Yamei."
"But she couldn't have guessed my inner thoughts. What if I had agreed to go for supper?"
"In that case, she could have planned to harm Gong Yamei another day. It didn't necessarily have to be that night."
Su Xiaotong pondered for a moment.
"That's also possible."
"In any case, for now, Xia Qi seems to be the most suspicious person in the 'big family.' Let's be cautious around her," Gu Lei suggested.
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