National Forensic Doctor-Chapter 1082 - 1013: Journey of the Heart

Ding.

The elevator chimed as Xu Juan stepped inside carrying a box, surprised to find three people already in the elevator.

"Heading out so early?" A female neighbor inside greeted Xu Juan in a friendly tone. Everyone living upstairs or downstairs occasionally bumped into each other.

"Yes." Xu Juan replied briefly, then felt it seemed out of character and forced a smile, adding, "Are you heading to work?"

"That’s right. We have to start two hours earlier than you guys. You’re still quite comfortable." The female neighbor smiled.

"How could us private sector workers possibly be more comfortable than you government employees?" Xu Juan responded with a similar line she’d likely repeated numerous times before. As neighbors, their conversations rarely went deeper than exchanging workplace details, something the female neighbor initiated.

Xu Juan didn’t like this female neighbor. She often deliberately or subtly bragged about her cushy government job—short hours, plenty of vacation time, things like that.

Before, Xu Juan would just go along and say a few perfunctory words. After all, at work, she had to flatter people too.

But today, clutching the spring dismantled from the mattress, Xu Juan suddenly felt she didn’t need to hold back anymore.

Having said her piece, Xu Juan lifted her chin, ready to strike back properly.

Ding.

The elevator doors opened. More people got in.

Xu Juan froze for a moment before having to step back to make some room.

The elevator descended.

It stopped again, and more people entered.

Before she realized it, Xu Juan was standing next to the female government-worker neighbor.

"Haven’t seen your husband around these past few days." The chatty female neighbor naturally struck up another topic upon noticing Xu Juan at her side.

Xu Juan’s heart skipped a beat. She instinctively tightened her grip on the box in her arms and replied, "He’s been busy these past few days."

"His company sure works long hours." The female neighbor smiled, then added, "You two make a good pair—one working hard outside, the other keeping things together at home."

Xu Juan immediately refuted the comment on instinct: "Working hard at what? He barely earns anything, comes home every day acting all high and mighty..."

The female neighbor raised an eyebrow, her lips curling into a knowing smile, and wisely changed the subject: "Lots of people heading out early lately. The buses seem so crowded."

"You don’t drive to work?" Xu Juan asked.

"No need. The bus is quite convenient, just a few stops." The female neighbor smiled again.

"Still, driving would be easier. I assumed all you government folks drove to work." Xu Juan felt a slight psychological upper hand.

The female neighbor casually replied, "It varies. I personally don’t like driving. If my husband’s free to drop me off, I’ll take the car."

As they chatted, the elevator arrived at the ground floor.

Everyone exited in turn, seeing several police officers outside the building posting notices on the neighborhood road.

"Police have been coming around a lot lately," the female neighbor muttered, then bid Xu Juan goodbye before sauntering off to work.

Normally, Xu Juan would’ve pulled out her phone to complain, but today her hands were trembling slightly.

In her arms was the mattress spring she had torn out earlier. Her plan was to dispose of the blood-soaked mattress in pieces. The mattress was heavy and difficult to cut apart, so Xu Juan had purchased a hydraulic cutter and a box of tools online.

If not for worrying about disturbing the neighbors and drawing a noise complaint, Xu Juan had even considered buying a cutting saw or similar equipment.

She didn’t know how to use one, but she could learn. Though she was never skilled at housework, let alone repair tasks, Xu Juan knew very well the difference between doing household chores for free and saving her own life.

Xu Juan was confident that as long as she cleaned up thoroughly, she could move to another city and start anew. She believed she could escape.

In the first two or three days after killing her husband, she had been extremely anxious. But now, her only concern was whether her cleanup was meticulous enough. Reflecting on ways she could have done better: if on that night she had forced her husband to sleep on the sofa, cleanup would’ve been simpler, or laying down a floormat—disposing of bedding was far easier than a whole mattress.

As she mentally noted improvements, Xu Juan raised her head and walked briskly outside, dumping the box into the trash bin. On her way back, she deliberately glanced at the notice the police had just posted.

It was still the same sketch, sort of resembling him and yet not accurate enough.

Compared to her initial fear when she had first seen the sketch, Xu Juan now felt a strange sense of pride, having just successfully discarded another box of junk. She credited her thorough bashing of her husband’s head during the incident—not just out of rage from seeing his familiar, loathsome face but as a fortunate side effect. The police were left with nothing but an inadequate sketch, which was useless.

Xu Juan hurried back, avoiding the patrolling officers who might question her. Face-to-face lying still made her a little anxious.

The rushed residents didn’t offer the officers any helpful intel. Most merely took a cursory glance and said they hadn’t seen him; those who showed hints of recognition were either groggy from sleep or preoccupied with catching their bus.

At the lobby, Xu Juan picked up the delivery she’d ordered yesterday and returned upstairs. The elevator was empty this time. At the apartment door, she looked around cautiously before swiftly unlocking it and entering in one fluid motion.

Bang.

The door shut, and Xu Juan instantly relaxed, slumping onto the ground to catch her breath.

After committing murder, Xu Juan’s worldview shifted uncontrollably. She used to fret over staining her pants, but now, none of that mattered anymore.

Clenching her fist, Xu Juan muttered to herself, "I’m terrifyingly strong now!"

Bzzzz...

Her phone began to vibrate.

Xu Juan took it out, glanced at the screen, furrowed her brows, hesitated for a moment, and finally answered: "Hello...?"

"Little Juan, is You Qiang there with you?" The caller was her mother-in-law, sounding slightly anxious.

"No, he went out." Xu Juan said.

"Where did he go? Why can’t I get through to him on the phone?"

"He went out with his friends hiking or something; I can’t reach him either." Xu Juan paused, then added, "He said he’d be out for half a month. I told him if he insisted on going, I’d divorce him, but he ignored me. When he gets back, I won’t let him off so easily..."

The mother-in-law immediately tried to console her: "You Qiang is being irresponsible. I’ll talk to him when he’s back. Don’t be angry..."

"Can’t make much money, comes home every day demanding emotional support. I don’t have to work, huh? Why should I provide him with emotional value? What right does he have for me to cater to him emotionally?" Xu Juan exploded with a mix of truth and exaggeration.

"Oh dear, this is... He must’ve been brainwashed by something he saw online..."

"Also, he’s been abusing me!" Xu Juan couldn’t help but add, "He and his buddies in their group chats laugh at their wives. I overheard a few things, and when I confronted him, he slapped me across the face!"

The mother-in-law panicked and quickly switched to comforting Xu Juan instead of asking about her son’s whereabouts.

Truthfully, Xu Juan hadn’t planned to bring up this topic—her husband was dead, after all, and saying too much risked exposure. But hearing her mother-in-law’s voice made her lose some restraint. "I put up with it for the sake of this family. If I’d reported him, he’d have been branded as an abuser!"

"You did the right thing! Oh, I feel so sorry for you. That little brat You Qiang—he ran off, didn’t he? When he comes back, I’ll give him a good talking-to. Please don’t be too upset. You need to take care of yourself..." The mother-in-law kept trying to appease her.

"Always busy, busy, busy. When he’s home, he just chats with his drinking buddies, plays games, and drinks. If they can’t meet, they video chat while drinking. Say a word to him, and he gets angry. Money, money—he doesn’t earn enough. People, people—I barely see him. I might as well be on my own..." Xu Juan vented freely.

Her mother-in-law kept offering her comforting words.

After several minutes, Xu Juan finally ended the call, letting out a soft snort through her nose.

Three or four years of marriage, nearly five years together—the time was enough for Xu Juan to not only learn how to control her husband but also how to handle her mother-in-law.

"Once I finish cleaning up your son’s blood, I’m going on vacation!" Xu Juan put down her phone and made a secret vow.

By now, most of the smell in the apartment had dissipated. Soon, as long as there were no obvious traces, even if her in-laws came for a visit, she might already be abroad by then.

Her job didn’t matter anymore; her family was gone. What was the point in caring about anything?

Ding-dong!

The doorbell suddenly rang.

Xu Juan instinctively glanced at the clock in the living room—9:01 in the morning, an entirely unexpected time for anyone to ring the doorbell. freewёbnoνel.com