Controlled Experiment Chapter 31

Game of Death – 7

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How exactly did Chen Xin die?

Du Yusheng looked into Li Yao's eyes, and a few images suddenly flashed through his mind.

He pulled out a chair and sat down opposite Li Yao.

Du Yusheng toyed with the disposable wooden chopsticks on Li Yao's desk with one hand while lifting his eyelids to keep glancing at Li Yao's expression, "I suddenly remembered something." Aligning the two chopsticks, Du Yusheng went on, "Do you remember Luo Daheng's case? You appeared on the surveillance footage outside the crime scene. And now, with this case, the time and place are different, but you still show up on the footage."

"What are you trying to say?" Li Yao stared at the bowl of beef noodles in front of him.

Du Yusheng shook his head and fell silent for a few seconds. He was debating whether to tell Li Yao about that matter.

Taking a deep breath, Du Yusheng held up two fingers and said, "Roughly two months ago, I received an email. There was a photo attached. It showed two children, twins, identical in every way. Strange, right? What's even stranger is, those two kids looked exactly like I did when I was young."

Du Yusheng noticed a slight twitch at the corner of Li Yao's lips. Looking at Li Yao, he continued, "The problem is, I'm not a twin, I've got a certificate proving I'm an only child. That anonymous email, combined with the surveillance footage I just recalled, suddenly sparked an idea."

Plonking himself down on Li Yao's desk, Du Yusheng leaned over and finished his sentence, "Have you ever considered that, you, might be two people?"

Beneath the desk, Li Yao suddenly clenched the corner of the book he was holding.

He hadn't expected Du Yusheng to come up with such a thought. Li Yao wanted Du Yusheng to know about Jing Mo's existence, but definitely not now.

Fortunately, this scene had played out countless times in Li Yao's mind, so he handled it with ease.

Li Yao smiled politely and shook his head. "You've looked into me, you probably know more about my family situation than I do."

"That's true." Du Yusheng yawned and scratched his head. Turning to glance at Li Yao, he saw that the latter still looked stern and solemn. Du Yusheng walked over and gave him a hearty slap on the shoulder, grinning as he said, "I have no idea how I suddenly came up with such a daft idea, but then again, why do you think someone sent me that email? I still don't know. I've had my fair share of spam, but a photo of myself? That was a first."

With that, Du Yusheng gave a few awkward laughs, then picked up the glass of water on the desk and downed it in one go.

Du Yusheng was one of those people who wasn't exactly foolish, but you couldn't quite call him clever either. Watching his retreating figure, Li Yao couldn't help but think, What if Du Yusheng is just pretending?

Zhuang Hao's fax arrived two hours later. By that time, Li Yao had already returned home. After his shower, he sat on the sofa reading the case notes for the patient scheduled for surgery the next day, with a thick stack of Chen Xin's files beside him. From six months before Chen Xin's hospitalisation up until his death, Li Yao had gone through everything related to him and still found nothing. He had to admit Jing Mo had found himself an expert this time. Or rather, Jing Mo himself was an expert.

Looking at the list Zhuang Hao had sent, Li Yao let out a long sigh.

There were over a dozen names on the list, and five of them were now gone. Li Yao picked up a black marker and crossed their names off one by one. As for the remaining few, he stared at their names and truly couldn't tell who would be next.

It seemed what Jing Mo had said that night was right, Chen Xin hadn't come to register as a patient, he had come to ask him for a favour.

Pity he hadn't had the chance to explain his intentions before he died.

Li Yao's identity has always been a secret, how did Chen Xin find out? Now that he's dead, it's hard to know.

The apartment was a little warm, so Li Yao picked up the air conditioning remote and switched on the cooling.

Li Yao tossed the list into the shredder and suddenly felt a strong urge to smoke. Zhuang Hao was currently in some godforsaken backwater, where there were only two hours of signal each day to connect with the outside world. Remote, but safe, Li Yao had chosen well. He took a deep breath and felt as though he too had stepped onto a path of no return.

Ten minutes later, another fax came through the machine.

It was from Zhuang Hao again.

It was just one page, and on it were two sets of codes along with a single line:

"The identities on here are usable, one's for you, the other's for Du Yusheng."

Looking at the page, Li Yao smiled. A matter that could've been settled with a single fax, and he'd insisted on sending two. Clearly, Zhuang Hao's contact with the outside world had dwindled so much that even sending a fax had become a luxury, and sending two gave him a sense of joy.

He only had himself to blame.

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After leaving Li Yao's office, Du Yusheng went straight back to the bureau.

He was still preoccupied with the results of Qin Yan's autopsy.

But with less than twenty-four hours since the time of death, some superficial injuries wouldn't show until after that window had passed. Du Yusheng knew he was being a little impatient.

Xiao Bai was yawning in the large office, with two cups of strong coffee on the desk, one for himself and the other for Du Yusheng.

The moment he saw Du Yusheng returning, striding in with purpose, Xiao Bai immediately stood up and obediently handed him the cup, which was neither too hot nor too cold.

Taking a sip, Du Yusheng asked, "Has the person who reported the incident been questioned?"

Xiao Bai nodded and yawned. "Yes, it was the same as what we saw this morning, the ward nurse called him a few times and got no response. Also, the nurse said she checked on him around eleven last night and saw Chen Xin get up to use the toilet. Based on what Brother Qin said, the time of death was probably between eleven and twelve, about an hour."

"What about those surveillance feeds I mentioned?"

"Checked those too." Xiao Bai flipped through the footage on his computer and continued, "Aside from the section in front of Chen Xin's room, there's nothing of value."

Might as well have said nothing at all.

Du Yusheng rolled his eyes.

"What about Chen Xin's family?"

Xiao Bai sighed, tilted his head, and pointed to the adjoining break room.

There were three relatives in total, Chen Xin's wife, his father, and his daughter.

His wife still seemed highly emotional, her face flushed red as she kept muttering angrily under her breath, most likely still cursing the hospital. The elderly man, Chen Xin's father, sat there with a blank look. He was quite old, motionless, and staring at the floor with completely lifeless eyes. Dressed neatly, he looked like a man who'd lost his soul. On the far side was the daughter, who appeared to be in junior high school. She too sat frozen in place, holding her mother's arm with one hand, tears streaking down her cheeks, it was a heartbreaking sight.

Straightening his clothes, Du Yusheng opened the door and stepped into the break room with Xiao Bai.

"Hello, my name is Du Yusheng, I'm in charge of investigating Chen Xin's case."

As soon as he spoke, Mrs Chen suddenly stood up. Her daughter tried to hold her back, but Mrs Chen forcefully shook her off.

"I'm telling you, it's the hospital's fault!" Mrs Chen snapped. "Our Old Chen was in perfect health, how could he just die after being hospitalised? He was perfectly fine at home! If it's not the hospital's fault, what is? We're not letting this go! I'm going to sue, take them to court!"

Mrs Chen's face turned scarlet, and saliva splattered everywhere.

Du Yusheng glanced at Xiao Bai, who gave a small wave and leaned in to whisper in his ear.

Softly, Xiao Bai said, "Mrs Chen has been a housewife for years. The family lived off Chen Xin's business, but it's been losing money in recent years, there's not much left behind. Dying in the hospital, they can file a lawsuit for compensation."

Du Yusheng understood.

It seemed the couple didn't share much affection, only mutual calculation.

This Mrs Chen placed all the blame squarely on the hospital. No matter how he questioned her, nothing useful would come of it.

With a wink, Du Yusheng signalled for Xiao Bai to escort Mrs Chen and her daughter to another break room.

The noisy room instantly fell silent. The elderly man in front of him remained in the same posture as before, unmoved, as though everything that had just taken place had nothing to do with him, as if he were numb to it all. Du Yusheng called out to him twice before the old man finally returned to himself, staring blankly at him.

He seemed still unable to accept the fact that his son was dead. His eyes remained fixed on one spot, as if all connection with the outside world had been severed. He looked much older than he had moments ago.

"Hello, sir."

Looking at the old man's face, a tightness formed in Du Yusheng's throat. He didn't quite know how to begin.

Chen Xin was more than a decade older than him, but Du Yusheng felt that no matter how old the child is, a parent's heart remains the same.

For some reason, Du Yusheng suddenly thought of himself.

"Sir." Du Yusheng poured a cup of hot water and placed it into the elderly man's hands. "Please don't let grief take a toll on your health."

The old man took the cup with trembling hands and the tears he had been holding back finally flowed.

"I... Officer, what did my son die of?" His voice shook as he gripped Du Yusheng's hand. "She said it was a medical accident, is that true, officer? What illness did Chen Xin have? I wish I could've been the one sick. I've lived for decades, I've had enough of life. Let me die in his place. I'd suffer any illness if it meant my son could come back. Or give him my life instead. A parent burying their child, how am I supposed to go on living?"

The old man spoke intermittently, overcome with sorrow, his tears welling uncontrollably in his eyes.

Du Yusheng took a deep breath and bit his lower lip.

"I heard from Mrs Chen that your son's business hasn't been doing well lately."

The elderly man wiped the corners of his eyes and slowly returned to himself.

He nodded slowly. "He lost quite a bit. I don't really understand business matters, but he used to complain to us at the dinner table. Every year, it was loss after loss. He finally had one big payment due back to him, Chen Xin went to ask for it several times, but they never paid up. The money never came through. Chen Xin was very anxious about it." After a pause, he added thoughtfully, "Do you think Chen Xin's illness had something to do with that? Was he worrying about the money and fell ill because of it?"

It seemed that even this well-known car dealer on the island wasn't finding business easy.

Du Yusheng continued, "Do you remember who owed him that money?"

The old man shook his head. "All I know is his surname was Gu, he was a classmate of Chen Xin's."

Forced to make the payment and harbouring resentment, murder born of grievance.

A plausible theory surfaced in Du Yusheng's mind.

"Do you know if Chen Xin has been on the phone with anyone recently, met up with anyone, or had any falling-outs with anyone?"

The old man lowered his head and slowly shook it, "I don't know any of what you're talking about, I don't get involved in his work matters, you can ask my daughter-in-law."

His gaze shifted to the other break room, where his daughter-in-law was still stubbornly arguing, and he sighed.

"Without Chen Xin, it won't be easy for her raising the child alone. And besides, Chen Xin lost too much over the years, there's hardly anything left for her. She's like that, but don't hold it against her, she's actually hurting too."

A wealthy businessman who kept making loss-making deals again and again, something didn't sit right with Du Yusheng.

"There's one more question," he said. "How has Chen Xin been sleeping lately?"

The old man thought for a moment. "He used to sleep fine, but recently, because of that money, he just couldn't sleep. I get up in the night and always find him smoking in the living room. And he slept so lightly, even just a cough would wake him."

Du Yusheng nodded.

It seems that vent had likely been used to administer a sedative.

Before leaving, the old man stood at the door and made a request, he wanted to see his son one last time.

Du Yusheng took him to the morgue and pulled open the drawer. The moment the old man saw his son's face, he could no longer suppress the bitterness in his heart. He covered his face and sobbed uncontrollably. Though Du Yusheng had seen his fair share of tragedy, he couldn't bear it either. He stepped out and shut the morgue door behind him, a cigarette clenched between his lips.

Du Yusheng hadn't driven that day and didn't feel like taking a taxi back either, so he borrowed a small motorcycle from a colleague.

It had been years since Du Yusheng had ridden anything like that. Mounting the bike and putting on the helmet, the wind rushed past his ears and it felt exhilarating, as though it could blow away the stifling weight in his chest. Again and again, the image of the old man looking at his son flashed through his mind, his voice endlessly repeating stories about his child. Du Yusheng lifted the visor of his helmet and forced the wind to blow his tears back in.

He missed Old Master Du. Missed hearing him scold him. Missed hearing him talk about him.

But none of that was possible any more.

Du Yusheng parked the little motorcycle downstairs and hurried up the stairs, quickly unlocking his front door.

His living room had quite a large usable area, larger than it appeared, because there was a hidden door at the back of the room.

Du Yusheng opened it, revealing a black-and-white photo of Old Master Du.

That photo had been taken several years ago, on a trip they'd taken out to sea, and the old man had looked especially cheerful.

Du Yusheng forced his tears back and lit three sticks of incense for Old Master Du.

He respectfully bowed three times. When Old Master Du had gone missing, all he'd left behind was a car. That car had later been modified by Du Yusheng into a vintage ride, and even now, he couldn't bear to throw it away. It had been while tracking that car that Du Yusheng, by chance, had discovered the remote island, and on it, he'd found a watch identical to his own.

Du Yusheng pulled out the chair beside the photo and sat down to keep his father company.

"Dad," Du Yusheng said with a tight-lipped smile, "I missed you a bit today."

The old man smiled out from the photo. Du Yusheng leaned over to wipe the dust from the glass.

"Truth is, I'm pretty useless too. I couldn't bring your body back. I can't figure out the cause of the incident. I can't even find the killer." Du Yusheng picked up a colour print tucked behind the photo, the words 'Controlled Experiment' printed on it. Du Yusheng smiled at those two words and said, "But don't worry, I think I'm getting closer to him. Sooner or later, I'm going to end him myself." Du Yusheng smiled to himself and drew back the curtain behind the photo.

"Let's get some sun for the old man."

The warm sunlight shone down on him, and Du Yusheng felt like he had returned to the world of the living.

His phone buzzed in his pocket.

It was a call from Qin Yan.

Du Yusheng closed the hidden door and stepped out to answer.

"How is it going, any results yet?"

Qin Yan sighed on the other end. "We still need to wait for the cause of death, but I found something in Chen Xin's stomach, a slip of paper that says 'controlled experiment'. The packaging was exactly the same size as the one we found in Luo Daheng's stomach."

Du Yusheng's brain buzzed.

He had seen that controlled experiment note in two places before: in Luo Daheng's stomach, and in the car where Old Master Du disappeared. Now there was a third, in Chen Xin's stomach.

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Author's Note:

A bit of background on Father Du.

‿︵‿︵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: June 1, 2025 by Angel

Edited: June 24, 2025 by Angel