False evidence

Chapter 174 Treasure Hunt
For the next period of time, I spent most of my time in the hospital.

He claimed to be protecting Fang Ling, but in reality, he was accompanying Uncle Cheng.

The old man lost his wife early in life and raised his daughter alone.

Fang Ling was his sole source of emotional support.

During Fang Ling's time in the ICU, he seemed to have aged ten years, and due to exhaustion, he was also hospitalized.

That day, I was smoking by the window in the hospital corridor when a young nurse walked by and said:

"Hey, it's lunchtime, time to get food. You're not hungry, but your dad is."

"dad?"

Hearing that word sent a shiver down my spine.

The nurse pointed to a ward: "Aren't you Fang Cheng's family member?"

That's when it dawned on me, but I was too lazy to explain to her.

I hurriedly went to the cafeteria to get my food and returned to the ward. The first thing Uncle Cheng asked me, leaning against the bed, was, "How is Lingling?"

“I asked the doctor, and she should be able to be transferred to a regular ward in the next day or two.”

I spread the lunchbox out on the table. "Uncle, get up and eat. The head chef at the cafeteria is in a good mood today. The braised pork really is made with pork belly, and the gluten and bok choy are cooked just right. The only downside is that the sweet and sour tofu is a little too crumbly..."

"child."

Uncle Cheng interrupted me, and with trembling hands, pulled a bunch of keys from under his pillow and handed them to me: "These are the spare keys to my house, and all the shops on Shuangshan Road. Now, I'm giving them to you. My bankbook and all the property deeds are still here..."

"Stop!" I said, somewhat exasperated. "What nonsense are you thinking? You're just overreacting. I only arranged this room for you because the government is paying for it! My idea is that Ling-jie will be discharged from the ICU in the next day or two, and you two can stay together. Once Ling-jie has recovered, you can both be discharged and go back to doing what you were doing!"

Uncle Cheng wiped his eyes: "What else can I do?"

"What are you planning to do? How about I ask Pidan's mom to help you find a new partner these next few days?"

"You little rascal, only you would dare to say anything!" Uncle Cheng finally couldn't help but laugh. "Otherwise, you little rascal with a rotten mouth!"

I helped him sit up. He sighed again, "After this incident, I can't deny I'm getting old. Before, if any bastard dared to lay a finger on Lingling, I'd fight them to the death. Now…"

Son, when Gao He and his wife came this morning, they told me everything. Before they left, he asked me to advise you not to act too emotionally and to leave some room for maneuver in your actions.

Even if he hadn't said it, I would have seen it long ago: you're a good child, it's just... just that sometimes your mouth is too sharp. You're really good to us, father and daughter... I just thought..."

Seeing him about to hand me the keys again, I got really angry. "Uncle, you say I have a sharp tongue? I think you're the one who insults people without using any swear words! Are you treating me like I'm not even human being when you do this?"

Uncle Cheng shook his head: "I'm afraid that one day when I kick the bucket, there will be no one to take care of Lingling..."

"Uncle, have you ever heard of a beast in human form?" I said, twisting my neck. "I'm not afraid to tell you, I had a plan from the very first day I learned about your family's situation. I'll pretend to be honest and simple first, and once you hand over your family property to me, I'll find a way to poison you. After that, I'll go from a poor boy to a nouveau riche who makes a living off rent. Besides collecting rent, I'll spend my time eating, drinking, gambling, and whoring. And when I come home, I'll even abuse your daughter."

"roll roll roll!"

Uncle Cheng grabbed an empty plastic water cup and pretended to throw it at me.

I placed a box of rice in front of him and said dejectedly, "In this world, besides your own father who loves his daughter, you can't rely on anyone else. Stop thinking nonsense, eat and drink as usual, and wait until you see Sister Ling marry a good man before you kick the bucket!"

Uncle Cheng put down his water glass, but still tossed the keys into my lap. Before I could say anything, he said:

"How many days has it been? You know how damp this place is. If you don't go and keep an eye on the house soon, it'll grow mold!"

"You should have said that earlier. Alright, let's eat."

...In the afternoon, Meng Chao, who had received my call, came to the hospital to cover my shift.

I left the hospital and went home first.

As soon as you enter, you see Pidan and Xiao Shensan huddled together whispering to each other in the main room.

I quickly went over and pulled the preserved egg away. "This kid didn't take advantage of you, did he?"

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Pidan glared at me.

Little Shen chuckled mischievously: "You brat, don't get any ideas. I'm not afraid to tell you, when I was young, I was a servant for a wealthy family. My wife was one of their concubines. I truly loved my wife, but I wronged my employer. I've felt guilty about it my whole life. So, I'll never do such a despicable thing again."

I still want to remind Pidan not to think he's just a child. He's a shrewd old man, and he's almost at puberty.

Pidan asked me about Uncle Cheng and Sister Ling's situation.

I said they were both fine, and I had to go to their house later to help them tidy up.

Xiao Shen suddenly jumped in front of me: "This is really a coincidence, like a sesame seed falling into the eye of a needle!"

I glanced at him sideways: "Don't try to be cultured if you're not. What kind of trick are you up to now?"

Pidan tugged at me and said, "We've found one of those two places on the map."

I was taken aback, then realized what I meant and asked, "Where is it? Is it still there?"

Xiao Shen winked and said, "I reckon as long as it's not demolished, it'll still be here in a few decades. Ah, it's truly a case of 'the flowers you plant with care don't bloom,' or 'you can't plant them even if you don't want them to...'"

"Stop talking nonsense, I'll go help Uncle Cheng tidy up the house first, and we'll talk later."

Xiao Shen and Pi Dan said at the same time, "This place is right at Uncle Cheng's house!"

I was stunned.

Pidan said, "You said the map's scale is wrong. The most obvious landmark on it is Shuangshan. But those two places... at least one of them isn't a building at all!"

"Alright, stop talking nonsense." Xiao Shen pulled me outside. "It's hard to explain with words. You'll know what it is when we get there."

On the way to Uncle Cheng's house, Pidan asked me a question: Was the woman who went to Yan Fengwei's shop to sell rings that day Fang Ling?

I'm sure I say yes.

Pidan hadn't met Fang Ling yet, but Yan Fengwei and Meng Zhen had brought the blue cat named Lao Si to the clinic.

The store's security cameras didn't capture the mystery customer's face, but by combining the footage from various angles, one could still recognize a person.

However, Fang Ling's outfit that day was completely different from usual; she also changed her hairstyle and put on makeup.

This is quite a contrast to her usual attire.

So much so that even I felt like I'd seen that fashionable female customer somewhere before, but I just couldn't connect her with Fang Ling.

"Does she really have intellectual disabilities?"

Xiao Shen blinked and asked.

I said, "It's not that he has any major defects, but he's slower to react than the average person and has a bit of autism."

Xiao Shen chuckled: "Now, do you still believe what you said?"

(End of this chapter)