Ethan Taylor thought for a moment and said, “Little Brooks, you head back first. I’m going to Niujia Pu.”

Emma Brooks was taken aback. “Are you going to Li Wenhe’s house?”

Ethan Taylor nodded slightly. Godmother’s mind was still as sharp as ever.

Emma Brooks frowned in thought and said, “Let me go with you. It’s better to have two people—if anything happens, at least we can back each other up and there won’t be any misunderstandings.”

Ethan Taylor had actually intended to go with her, so he nodded in agreement. After all, he was now “under suspicion,” and if something happened and he was falsely accused again, it would be impossible to clear his name—just like what happened in the Li Wenhe case. That was a lesson right there.

Niujia Pu was not far from Chenjiatuo Town, just three or four li of dirt road. Emma Brooks somehow borrowed two bicycles. Ethan Taylor hadn’t ridden this old-style crossbar bike in ages, and felt a bit awkward at first, while Emma Brooks was quite skilled. As she pedaled, the hem of her white jeans revealed dainty black lace-up shoes and slightly rolled-up pale yellow socks. Seeing this, Ethan Taylor’s heart skipped a beat for no reason, because it immediately reminded him of how alluring and captivating godmother’s bare white feet looked when she wore her bathrobe. Strangely enough, godmother had always been the object of Ethan Taylor’s fantasies in the quiet of the night, but if it ever came to real physical contact, Ethan Taylor would never go through with it—not even if it killed him. That’s probably the difference between humans and animals; everyone has their own moral bottom line. So even now, facing Emma Brooks, Ethan Taylor didn’t dare have a single disrespectful thought.

Riding the bicycle, Ethan Taylor slowly recalled his adoptive father and godmother’s discussions about the Li Wenhe case. Clearly, even after more than a decade, the case remained an unsolved mystery in their hearts.

Li Wenhe was a villager from Niujia Pu. He was detained by the police station for allegedly posting reactionary slogans on the town government’s wall. The interrogation was conducted overnight by his adoptive father, who was in charge of political and legal affairs, and the town police chief Daniel Brooks. Due to insufficient evidence, he was released the next evening. Who could have guessed that not long after returning home, he hanged himself. The county police forensic doctor concluded it was suicide, nothing suspicious. But Li Wenhe’s body had many bruises. When his wife Lillian Moore was asked, she immediately made a scene, insisting that the police had tortured him for a confession, and that Li Wenhe, unable to bear the humiliation, went home and killed himself. The incident caused a huge uproar, and with the town party secretary David Harris, who had always disapproved of the young adoptive father, fanning the flames, the adoptive father—who was also present during the interrogation—became the target of public criticism.

Thinking of this, Ethan Taylor sighed. Luckily, this wasn’t the internet era; only the county party committee leaders paid attention to this “wrongful case.” Otherwise, if it had been online, his adoptive father would have been condemned by netizens as a villain.

His adoptive father and godmother didn’t hold a grudge against Lillian Moore. A few years later, they even inquired about her and her child, and only felt at ease after hearing she had remarried a young man named Chris Brooks. But they could never figure out Li Wenhe’s death. The adoptive father believed that most likely, after he left for a while, police chief Director Brooks used force—after all, everyone knew how police interrogations went in the 1990s. The adoptive father felt he hadn’t done his job well and bore some responsibility for Li Wenhe’s death, which was why he always felt deep remorse toward Lillian Moore. This was also the main reason he didn’t want to continue his political career.

Scene after scene from the past flashed through his mind, but there was not a single clue about the Li Wenhe case. Ethan Taylor sighed—he could only take things one step at a time.

Li Wenhe’s house was at the east end of the village. Like all northern rural homes, it was a three-room house facing south, with red brick walls all around and a green iron gate. The funeral had just been held, and there were still scraps of white paper on the gate that hadn’t been torn off.

Ethan Taylor and Emma Brooks parked their bikes. Emma Brooks walked over and knocked. Soon, there were light footsteps in the yard and a slightly hoarse woman’s voice: “Who is it?”

“Big Sister Ma, it’s me, Little Brooks.” Lillian Moore had been called in by Mr. Harris several times to resolve issues, so she was familiar with Emma Brooks.

With a creak, the iron gate was pulled open from inside, revealing a fair-skinned woman’s face—quite decent-looking, wearing a floral jacket, with a touch of charm.

Ethan Taylor didn’t recognize her, but knew this must be Li Wenhe’s widow, Lillian Moore. Given his current identity, he should have met her before, so he walked over and said, “Big Sister Ma, how have you been?”

Lillian Moore’s expression changed slightly. Ethan Taylor thought she would curse him out, but she only said coolly, “What are you here for?”

Emma Brooks quickly said, “Big Sister Ma, Mr. Taylor is here to check on you, to see if you need anything. Let’s talk inside.” As she spoke, she squeezed through the door. Lillian Moore couldn’t do anything about Emma Brooks’s persistence and had to step aside. Ethan Taylor found it amusing—good thing he’d brought Emma Brooks, otherwise he probably wouldn’t have even gotten over the threshold. Emma Brooks might be a bit blunt, but at times like this, it really worked.

Chapter Three: The Case (Part Two)

Li Wenhe’s yard wasn’t big, with a few rows of grape trellises. It was late winter, so the grapevines were buried deep underground, leaving only a few lonely wire frames.

“Who is it?” The bamboo curtain in the main room was lifted, and a sturdy man came out, looking honest and simple. When he saw Ethan Taylor and Emma Brooks, he froze, a bit at a loss.