Yue Dingtang could not answer this question.

Because he also had the same question.

But at the time of the forensic autopsy, the family of three, as well as the owner of Xiao Ji Noodle House next door, were all burned to death.

It is unknown whether they encountered any accident before their death.

Unless Boss Xiao never closes his eyes and entrusts them with a dream, it will definitely remain a mystery for a while.

While they were talking, they had arrived at No. 36 Hengtong Road.

This is a residence, a typical Shanghai private house.

In a private house like this, there is usually not one family living in it, but several families living together. Often the owner may live in one of the rooms and then rent out the remaining rooms. Most of the tenants are out-of-towners.

At this time, Shanghai almost gathered the most luxurious pleasures in China. Its economy was more developed than other cities in the south, and its folk customs were more open than those in the north. A decade or two ago, there were still debates in the north about whether women could wear short-sleeved cheongsam.

, Shanghai's fashionable women have already appeared in the streets and alleys one by one.

Therefore, there are many foreigners who come to Shanghai to study, seek wealth, and seek power. Even if they cannot become a master, they still want to give it a try. Therefore, there is no need to worry about no one renting these houses. Naturally, the rent will not be cheap.

On New Year's Eve, every family was having a family reunion dinner, but there were also naughty children who came out to set off firecrackers.

The sound of firecrackers was heard one after another, accompanied by the shouts of children and the occasional flash of fireworks, which made Ling and Yue seem out of place.

Yue Dingtang was originally worried about how to find an opportunity to go in and take a look, but when he came to the house, he found that their children had also eaten and drank and slipped out to play. The door was half open, and he crossed the threshold with one step.

"Who are you looking for?"

A middle-aged woman came out to welcome him.

"Hello, sister-in-law, I would like to wish you a happy birthday. Is there a gentleman named Hong here?" Yue Dingtang said politely.

"What are you doing with the man surnamed Hong?" The woman looked sad. She just looked at their clothes and didn't get angry for a while.

This sentence has two meanings.

First, they came to the right place. The man surnamed Hong who associates with Du Yunning really lives here.

Second, the behavior of the man named Hong here made this woman dislike him.

"We are his friends. The Chinese New Year is coming soon, so we came here to see him. You can take these snacks and give them to the children."

Yue Dingtang took the snack box from Ling Shu's hand, handed it to him, and did it in one go without stopping for a moment.

Ling Shu:......

He packed this in the cafe and was going to take it back as a late night snack!

The woman looked at the exquisite snack box and couldn't help but try to force out a smile.

"I really didn't expect that Mr. Hong... Mr. Hong actually has friends. He hasn't been back for two or three days. I'm afraid you are looking for the wrong place."

Yue Dingtang: "Then do you know where he went?"

The woman looked sarcastic: "If it's not a casino, it's a dance hall. Where else could it be?"

Yue Dingtang was gentle and polite: "Then do you know where to find him?"

The woman sighed: "I don't know. He hasn't paid his rent this month. I also want to find him. How about you guys go up and sit down first? Maybe he will come back soon."

The landlord went back to the house to get the key, and took Yue Dingtang and Ling Shu upstairs.

The wooden stairs of some era creaked, and light filtered in from the outside, reflecting the uneven edges of the windows.

"Speaking of which, how do you know someone like him?" the landlord asked curiously, "It doesn't seem like someone named Hong can befriend someone like you."

Ling Shu: "We met on the train to Shanghai. Mr. Hong was very enthusiastic and helped us carry our suitcases. We chatted a little more. Later, through a reply, he told us that he lived here.

"

The woman muttered: "If he helps you carry your suitcase, I'm afraid it's a weasel giving New Year's greetings to a chicken. He's unkind and has ulterior motives!"

Ling Shu smiled and said: "After all, we are all strangers, and we don't keep in touch with each other at ordinary times. This is not because the Chinese New Year is coming soon, so I came to see my fellow villagers. If I had known that he lived in such a lively place, and that there is such an enthusiastic and helpful eldest sister.

With the responsible landlord and such cute children, I would have moved here a long time ago!"

The woman smiled brightly at his praise.

"His lease term is about to expire. If you want to move here, I will keep the house for you."

Ling Shu: "Okay, I will discuss it with my wife when I get back. She always thinks that the place we live in is not good, and she also said that I teach and educate people, so I have to live in a place with a scholarly atmosphere. I think your place is very good."

Hey, no one can stand up to a woman who is so arrogant. If she were as reasonable as you, eldest sister, I wouldn't have such a headache."

Yue Dingtang:......

He thought that his ability to adapt to changes was quite good, but he didn't expect that there was a mountain higher than the mountain, and here was a master of lying with his eyes wide open. He made up a wife out of thin air and turned into a teacher.

After a few words back and forth, Ling Shu even figured out his family name and what his husband's family did.

The woman was so complimented by him that she was almost confused. When she heard that they were teachers, she became even more enthusiastic.

"Oh, look what you said, you go back and talk to your wife properly, bring her over to have a look, the eldest sister will keep her safe, she will like it at first sight, but you married a wife at such a young age?"

"Yes, it was the order of my parents at home. We got married early, but I have never heard that Mr. Hong is married. Does he live alone?" Ling Shu brought the topic back without leaving any trace.

"It's true that I didn't see him bring a woman back. Oh, don't mention it. He told us before that he worked as an editor at a newspaper. I thought this monthly income would be enough to pay the rent. He has lived here for almost half a year.

In addition to paying the rent on time for three months, he started to default on the rent until the deposit was all gone. He was still in arrears for one month, and he didn't come up with even a cent!"

The woman's nagging complaints and dissatisfaction echoed in the stairwell.

"The rent here is not expensive. He came back excitedly two days ago. He even brought me a roast chicken for the first time and changed a whole outfit for himself. I thought he was about to get rich. Who knew he would rather spend the money on shopping?

He refuses to pay rent even if he doesn’t have clothes. It’s really unreasonable. I’ve never seen a more reliable old man than him! With his virtues, how can he be considered a cultural person? I think he is no different from a street gangster!”

"Well, this is it!"

The woman took them to the door of the room at the end of the second floor, took out the key and opened the door.

"Since you know him, go in and sit for a while. If he comes back later, I will tell you."

"That's not good, after all, I didn't get the master's consent." Ling Shu said politely.

The landlord didn't take it seriously: "That's okay. He doesn't have anything valuable here anyway. You guys sit down for a moment and I'll make you two bowls of tea."

Since she said this, the two of them naturally stopped trying to be polite. After the landlord left, they began to look around the room.

Ling Shu is a policeman. He knows how to look through things and then return them to their original positions without letting the owner notice.

Yue Dingtang walked around the room, up and down, left and right, in every corner, keeping his eyes busy.

The layout of the room is very simple, almost shabby.

There is paper and pen on the desk, and underneath is a library card from Wusong University.

The library card is very new. On the back is a record of the number of times it has been used. The word "正" is only written three times.

At the same time, Ling Shu saw the name on the library card.

Hong Xiaoguang.

There are three books next to it.

One is a collection of poems written after the European Renaissance.

One is Rabindranath Tagore's "Fruit Gathering".

There is also a work by Shakespeare, the most famous of which is "Romeo and Juliet".

About half of the notebook was used, and most of them were copied verses, mostly from Shakespeare.

"What did you find?" Yue Dingtang came over.

"The handwriting on the front is more serious, while the handwriting on the back is more sloppy and has graffiti."

Ling Shu turned to the next few pages, and Yue Dingtang discovered that those graffiti were just the words in the poem that he had been copying repeatedly.

"A wise man turns into a fool, and is the easiest fish to take the bait; because he relies on his talent and knowledge, but cannot see his own arrogance." Yue Dingtang read it again. "Who wrote this?"

Ling Shu: "Shakespeare. When Du Yunning was in school, he liked to read his works the most and knew these lines by heart."

Yue Dingtang: "So, this Mr. Hong is doing what he wants?"

Ling Shu: "What's interesting is that these three books are all foreign works, and none of them are from China. Du Yunning's love for poetry during his lifetime also had this bias. Maybe she couldn't recite Bai Letian's most famous three works.

He can write half of Shakespeare's lines silently."

"I also have some interesting discoveries here, come and take a look."

Yue Dingtang walked to the bed and gently lifted the pillow.

There is a book underneath.

"Jin Ping Mei".

Ling Shu picked up the book and opened it.

Yue Dingtang found that he still had two white gloves on his hands: "Where did you get those gloves?"

Ling Shu lowered his head to read the book and said casually: "Ask Shen Renjie for it, pull your tiger skin, and he will give it to you quickly. This thing is not valuable, but it can come in handy at critical moments to avoid leaving fingerprints on the book cover.

, careful people discovered that someone had moved here. Look -"
To be continued...