The Same Fate Awaits All Sins Chapter 50

Mind Control – 06

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"Keep investigating this so-called QQ group, and find Cheng Yu for me!" Gu Yanta said to Chen Chen. "I want him to tell me the truth!"

"Got it, boss!" Chen Chen replied.

"I'll go with Consultant Lu to the deceased's homes. Since you said that thousands received the text message but only those three understood its meaning, there must be some clues at the deceased's homes," Gu Yanta said.

Lu Zheng nodded. "Let's go to the high school student's house first."

The victim, Sun Chao, lived in the Anyi neighbourhood, not far from the city bureau. The two of them drove there and arrived in less than ten minutes.

As soon as Sun Chao's mother heard the police had come to investigate, she grabbed Gu Yanta, crying and sobbing. "Officer, I swear to the heavens, my son would never commit suicide! Someone must have harmed him! My son was always well-behaved! Wuwuwu..."

"Auntie, please calm down and listen to me first," Lu Zheng said gently. "We are deeply sorry for Sun Chao's passing, and we understand how you feel. Your son did indeed take sleeping pills at home to commit suicide, but there are many suspicious points, we hope you will cooperate with our investigation."

"O-okay..." Mother Sun sniffled. "I... will definitely... tell you everything I know..."

"How much do you know about your son's illness?" Lu Zheng asked.

"Illness? What illness?" Mother Sun looked puzzled. "My son wasn't ill!"

"I'm referring to the depression he was diagnosed with at Ren'ai Hospital at the beginning of the year," Lu Zheng said.

"That's not an illness! He was just under a lot of academic pressure and feeling down. The hospital prescribed some medication, and after taking it, he was fine," Mother Sun replied dismissively.

Lu Zheng shook his head helplessly. When someone suffers from depression, those around them often refuse to acknowledge it as a real illness. Many were even labelled as overly sensitive. Without proper treatment or family support, they would ultimately fall into the abyss of despair! With this attitude from Sun Chao's parents, it was no wonder his depression had worsened so severely.

"Did he meet anyone between May and June? Or experience any incidents?" Lu Zheng asked. Sun Chao's left kidney had been missing for about three months, something must have happened during that time.

"Now that you mention it, I remember! Because he didn't do well in his midterm exams, Chao Chao ran away from home once in May." Mother Sun recalled. "We reported it to the police and put up missing person notices, but nothing came of it. A few days later, he just came back on his own."

"He came back on his own?" Lu Zheng was full of doubts. Sun Chao's disappearance was likely when he lost his left kidney, yet Mother Sun described it as if he had simply left and returned as if nothing had happened.

"Then was there anything unusual about him after he returned home?" Lu Zheng continued asking.

"Let me think... Ai... Because of Chao Chao's personality, he rarely talked to us. After school, he would lock himself in his room, and at school, he always kept to himself. His father is a teacher at his school, but even he couldn't do anything about it..." Mother Sun replied. "As long as he came back home, that was enough for us... We didn't dare ask too much... But during that time, I did hear him sobbing in his room late at night. I thought he was talking in his sleep, so I didn't pay much attention to it..."

"It seems your relationship with your son wasn't very good, right?" Lu Zheng's tone remained indifferent.

"Ai, it's a long story. To be honest, it's all his father's fault. His father is a teacher, very concerned about saving face, and far too strict with him. In his eyes, grades are everything! It's because of his father that the boy turned out this way!" Mother Sun complained. "School is about to start, and he was going into his second year of high school. He needed to choose between science and humanities. His science grades weren't good, so he should have chosen humanities! But his father insisted on forcing him into science..."

Behind every failing mother, there was often an even more failing father. The two of them spent their days blaming each other's parenting methods instead of genuinely trying to find a solution. That was what had built such an impenetrable wall between a family that should have been close.

"This is the police autopsy report," Lu Zheng took a file from his briefcase. "The results show that between May and June of this year, Sun Chao lost his left kidney. The other two victims also had similar features. In other words, the time Sun Chao ran away from home is very likely connected to this case, and it's crucial for solving this case. Please try your best to recall any details, don't let go of even the slightest detail!"

"Lo... lost what?" Mother Sun could hardly believe her ears. "Didn't the hospital say that the ventilator stopped working because of a power outage and system failure?"

"To be precise, the cause of Sun Chao's death was acute kidney failure due to a medication dosage error during resuscitation because the hospital was unaware of his actual physical condition," Gu Yanta added from the sidelines. "This was an error on the hospital's part. But regarding the case of Sun Chao's missing organ, we need more clues, otherwise, more people will suffer the same fate!"

"Lost... a kidney? My son, he..." Mother Sun murmured, before suddenly breaking down into uncontrollable sobs. "Ahhh... My poor child!!!"

It took a long time before Mother Sun's emotions stabilised a little.

"Mother Sun, please calm down for now. May I have a look at Sun Chao's room?" Gu Yanta could tell that Mother Sun knew very little about her son, so there was unlikely to be any valuable information from questioning her, so he suggested searching Sun Chao's room for clues instead.

Mother Sun nodded.

Lu Zheng offered a few words of quiet comfort, secretly regretting not bringing Yu Tiantian along. After all, she was a young woman and good with words, especially when dealing with aunts. She must have been far more experienced than him.

Gu Yanta stepped into Sun Chao's room, immediately sensing a depressing atmosphere. The heavy curtains were drawn all year round. According to his mother, Sun Chao disliked sunlight, exposure to it made him anxious and unable to concentrate. His desk was piled high with stacks of reference books and revision materials, all focused on mathematics, physics, and chemistry. He was only in his first year of high school, yet the sheer volume of study materials reflected just how high his father's expectations had been. However, for Sun Chao, the pressure from his parents had not transformed into motivation. Instead, it had become the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Amidst the pile of science textbooks, a novel lay wedged in between, out of place, immediately catching Gu Yanta's attention. Its cover depicted a warm full moon hanging in the centre of a deep blue background, with two figures embracing and weeping beneath the moonlight. Gu Yanta pulled out the book and read the title printed in bold letters across the cover: Last Things by Marisa Moss.

Gu Yanta flipped open the book. On the title page, two lines of small handwritten text, penned in steel nib ink, stood out. The first line read: To live, one must first embrace death – only by truly approaching death can one understand the meaning of life. The elevation of the soul follows the same principle. The second line read: Devotion is elevation, death is rebirth.

The handwriting was clear and powerful, yet the words themselves were deeply unsettling. Who had instilled such an idea in a depressed teenager? Regardless of their motive, such an act was utterly reprehensible.

Gu Yanta placed the book into an evidence bag before carefully searching the rest of Sun Chao's room. However, he found nothing else suspicious.

Just then, a click, the sound of a key turning in the lock to the Sun family's house. Sun Chao's father had returned home. The moment he stepped through the door, he saw the two strangers. Mother Sun, upon seeing her husband, abruptly lost control once more. Though her emotions had gradually stabilised, she now lunged at him, wailing and beating his chest. Father Sun stood motionless, allowing his wife to strike him without resistance. His expression did not change in the slightest.

Only after Mother Sun had vented some of her grief did Father Sun politely inquire about the purpose of their visit. Upon learning the truth, he removed his glasses and wiped the lenses, his eyes briefly losing focus. But in the next moment, he put his glasses back on and returned to normal.

Seeing this, Gu Yanta and Lu Zheng decided it was best not to linger, so they rose and took their leave.

"Ai..." Outside the Sun family's house, Gu Yanta let out a long sigh. "Happy families are all alike, but every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

"You can't really put it that way," Lu Zheng remarked as he opened the car door. "Most of life's misfortunes are brought upon oneself. Mindset is what matters most. Over the course of a lifetime, anything can happen, you just have to believe that all bad things will eventually turn around. And if they haven't yet, that just means the story isn't over."

Gu Yanta got into the driver's seat and gave Lu Zheng a thumbs-up. "I told you, my Lu Xiaozheng has the best mindset!"

"Mhmm..." Lu Zheng responded, then pointed at the evidence bag in Gu Yanta's hand. "What's that?"

"I'll explain in detail later." Gu Yanta leaned in closer. "Let me kiss you first!"

"You..." Before Lu Zheng could say anything, Gu Yanta had already planted a kiss on his cheek. His handsome face flushed slightly with irritation. "Why can't you go three sentences without bringing it back to this?"

"Haha..." Gu Yanta laughed heartily. "My Lu Xiaozheng smells so nice! My mood just improved instantly! How's that for a good mindset?"

"This isn't about a good mindset any more, you're just shameless..." Lu Zheng hadn't even finished speaking before he instinctively covered his mouth, because Gu Yanta was clearly about to go in for another kiss.

It's broad daylight and with my overly sensitive reactions to being kissed... If he keeps teasing me, things might really spiral out of control! Not to mention, we are still in the car... Damn it! Stop! What the hell am I even thinking... Have I been infected by Gu Yanta, this shameless rascal, why do I also think about that anytime and anywhere... When Lu Zheng thought of this, he couldn't help but glare at Gu Yanta. This man seemed to have boundless energy, he hasn't let me rest two nights in a row now, and to make matters worse, a certain part of my body was still swollen and burning hot!

"Stop it!" Lu Zheng smacked away Gu Yanta's claws.

Gu Yanta had just been about to make another move when he was suddenly struck. Startled, he immediately backed down, his tone softening in an instant. "Alright, alright, I won't mess around... I'll wait until we're home tonight..."

"Not tonight either! I want to rest! I'm exhausted! My back and waist ache!" Lu Zheng snapped.

"Okay, okay, rest, rest, I'll just hold you while we sleep, I swear I won't do anything. Is that alright..."

"Fuck off!" Lu Zheng crossed his arms over his chest and shut his eyes. "Shouldn't the next sentence be, I'll just rub against the outside, I won't go in?"

"Eh... How did you know? Hahaha... Just kidding!" Gu Yanta fastened his seatbelt. "You're the only one I act like this with!"

———

Author's Note:

Gu Yanta: Don't misunderstand!!! I'm really not a pervy little dog, I only act this way with the person I truly love!!!

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: February 5, 2025 by Angel

Edited: February 25, 2025 by Angel