UD | Chapter 9 – It Wasn’t an Accident, It Was Murder
by North_SkyDongning City was only a second-tier city, but its cost of living rivaled that of major metropolitan areas.
After browsing multiple rental platforms, Rong Leying managed to find only a few listings that were reasonably priced, conveniently located, and rented directly by landlords.
She was just about to start contacting them and arranging viewings when she overheard Auntie Wu in the neighboring hospital bed say:
“I live alone these days. I just collect rent from my properties.”
Collect rent?!
This auntie was a landlord!
Rong Leying immediately perked up.
“Auntie, do you have any affordable rentals available?”
Auntie Wu and Grandpa Rong both turned toward her at the same time.
“You want to rent a place?”
Rong Leying nodded repeatedly.
“I’m looking for something cheap that allows short-term rentals.”
Grandpa Rong frowned deeply.
“Aren’t you staying at your father’s place? Why are you looking for an apartment? Did they bully you?”
Rong Leying had never told her grandfather about the agreement she’d made with Rong Mingda.
Back then, she’d only told him she was staying there because it was convenient for taking care of him during his surgery and for working part-time.
She’d never mentioned any of the unpleasant things that had happened in the Rong household.
She didn’t want him worrying and affecting his recovery.
She planned to tell him everything after he had fully recovered.
“No.”
She shook her head.
“It’s just that their place is too far away. The taxi fares alone cost a fortune.”
The Rong family villa was located in the suburbs.
Every trip into the city hospital cost dozens of yuan, and even getting a taxi wasn’t always easy.
Public transportation was even worse.
How could a family as wealthy as the Rongs not be able to provide a car?
Grandpa Rong immediately understood.
His granddaughter had been suffering grievances in that household.
Inside, he silently cursed his ungrateful adopted son.
Auntie Wu’s gossip instincts instantly activated.
“Your son doesn’t live with you?”
Grandpa Rong shook his head.
“No.”
“My son and his wife live in Dongning.”
“I live in the countryside in Shunzhou.”
Years of consuming neighborhood gossip allowed Auntie Wu to detect hidden drama within a single sentence.
She opened her mouth, eager to dig deeper.
Before she could ask another question, a nurse entered to change their IV drips.
After the nurse left, two young men entered the room.
The man in front had sharp brows, bright eyes, sun-kissed skin, and a military-style buzz cut.
He exuded righteousness and authority.
The man behind him was thinner and more ordinary-looking, but his energetic eyes suggested he wasn’t an ordinary person either.
The two men showed their identification.
They were officers from Dongning City’s Criminal Investigation Division.
They were responsible for investigating Rong Leying’s traffic accident.
The handsome man introduced himself.
“My name is Tang Chengyun, captain of Criminal Investigation Team One.”
The thinner officer added,
“Li Yingzhe.”
Tang Chengyun got straight to the point.
“Miss Rong, we’d like to ask you some additional questions regarding the accident.”
“Of course.”
Rong Leying stood up.
“Let’s talk outside.”
This was her first time meeting them.
The accident had originally been handled by ordinary traffic police officers.
Over the past few days, she’d repeatedly insisted that it wasn’t an accident but a deliberate murder attempt.
Yet the police had continued treating it as a traffic accident.
Both the truck driver’s family and the taxi driver’s family had maintained that it was accidental and were willing to proceed with normal compensation procedures.
She had already assumed the matter would be quietly buried.
She’d even begun thinking she’d have to take revenge herself.
She never expected the Criminal Investigation Division to get involved.
Suppressing her excitement, she informed her grandfather she’d be right back before following the officers out.
After they left, Auntie Wu immediately leaned toward Grandpa Rong.
“Did the driver who hit you run away?”
Grandpa Rong shook his head.
“I don’t know.”
He had only recently been transferred out of intensive care.
That morning was the first time he’d felt truly clear-headed.
He hadn’t yet had the chance to ask about the details of the accident.
Looking toward the doorway, a vague sense of unease settled in his chest.
He had a feeling this wasn’t an ordinary traffic accident.
Tang Chengyun led them into an empty doctor’s office.
The two officers sat beside Rong Leying.
Unable to contain herself, she immediately asked:
“Officer, did you find something?”
“You finally believe what I’ve been saying!”
Officer…
Tang Chengyun was only in his early thirties.
Li Yingzhe wasn’t even thirty yet.
Being called “uncle” by a twenty-year-old college student felt rather strange.
Still, both men were accustomed to such things and ignored the title.
Tang Chengyun looked directly into her eyes.
“We did uncover some things.”
“But there’s something I’m curious about.”
“Why were you so convinced from the beginning that the accident wasn’t accidental?”
Rong Leying answered honestly.
“The case was transferred from traffic police to criminal investigations.”
“That means you found something.”
“And since you investigated me, you probably already know I don’t get along with the Rong family.”
She paused briefly.
“Besides…”
“I’m kind, innocent, optimistic, and always willing to help others.”
“Growing up, the only thing that disliked me was the big black dog in our village.”
“The Rong family are literally the only humans who hate me.”
The young woman sat there with fair skin, a trace of baby fat still lingering on her cheeks, and bright grape-like eyes full of confidence.
“Pfft—”
Li Yingzhe couldn’t help laughing.
This girl was incredibly confident.
Tang Chengyun shot him a glance.
Li Yingzhe immediately straightened up.
Turning back to Rong Leying, Tang Chengyun found himself increasingly impressed.
She was bold, intelligent, and surprisingly self-assured.
“You’re not wrong.”
“We did find some things.”
“However, we still can’t determine whether the Rong family was involved.”
Behind the Rong family stood Zhang Yan’s family.
The Zhang family’s network of influence was extensive and deeply entangled.
They were already targets in several investigations Tang Chengyun was handling.
Although Rong Mingda hadn’t publicly announced bringing Rong Leying back into the family, Tang Chengyun had been monitoring the Rong and Zhang families for some time.
That was why he personally took over the case.
Reaching into his pocket, he handed her a photograph.
The moment she saw it, Rong Leying recognized the man.
The truck driver.
Tang Chengyun spoke calmly.
“Bao Laosi is dead.”
“He got drunk yesterday and accidentally fell into a river and drowned.”
“Dead?!”
Rong Leying stared in shock.
Her first thought was immediate.
Was he silenced by whoever planned everything?
Tang Chengyun continued.
“We discovered that Bao Laosi received a large sum of cash two days before the accident.”
“And the taxi driver was diagnosed with terminal stomach cancer last month.”
Bao Laosi had indeed been a truck driver.
But he was also a gambling addict.
He owed a massive gambling debt.
The day before the accident, he carried a bag full of cash to a casino and paid off everything he owed.
As for the taxi driver—
He was the sole breadwinner of his family.
At home, he supported an elderly, seriously ill mother and young children.
After receiving his terminal diagnosis, the burden on his family became even heavier.
His wife was famously frugal.
She would argue with vendors over a difference of a few cents.
Yet after her husband’s death in the accident, she not only refrained from causing trouble, she actively cooperated with compensation procedures.
That alone was suspicious.
There was more.
Before the accident, five million yuan had been deposited into her bank account.
According to her explanation, the money came from an insurance payout following her father’s death.
The payment did indeed originate from an insurance company.
Her father had passed away in an accident the previous year and had held a substantial accident insurance policy.
The problem was—
That insurance company belonged to the Zhang family.
Tang Chengyun briefly summarized everything they had discovered so far.
Afterward, he began asking detailed questions about Rong Leying’s life inside the Rong household during the past month.