Chapter 2: Was It Truly Just an Accident?

Lin Wei scanned her surroundings with a look of terror. The concern in the eyes of the workers did not seem feigned, and when she met their sharp gazes, they showed no trace of guilt. Most people in the 1990s were still honest and simple-minded; had they been responsible for the act, it was highly unlikely they could remain so composed while facing the victim's family.

"Have you called the police?"

The workers looked bewildered. "Weiwei, why call the police? Your father fell by accident. We all saw it; there shouldn't be any mistake."

"Surely you don't suspect that your father's death wasn't an accident, and that we were the ones who did it?"

Lin Wei shook her head. "You are all uncles and aunts who watched me grow up. We may have had our petty squabbles as neighbors, but not to the point of committing such a heinous act. It's just that now that my father is dead, I need to know exactly how it happened."

"Isn't it just a fall from height? How else could he have died?"

Lin Wei fought back tears. "There are many ways to die from a fall. Was it an accidental slip, or was there a safety hazard on the site? Doesn't that need to be investigated?"

"I'm not cursing any of you, but if there was indeed a safety failure at the site, and we don't find the cause and resolve it, it was my family today, but it could be someone else's tomorrow."

Hearing this, Uncle Liu, their neighbor, found her words quite reasonable. "That's true. Usually, there are safety ropes for high-altitude work. We all have families to feed; no one would gamble with their lives. If it is a construction safety issue, it really should be investigated."

Uncle Liu’s words carried a hidden meaning, which Lin Wei grasped immediately. However, despite understanding, no one moved. Once the police were involved, it would not only be difficult to answer to the foreman, but if a serious safety hazard were discovered, the construction might be halted. If they had no work, how would their families eat?

But Lin Wei had never been one to rely on others to fight her battles. Wiping the tears from her face, she stood up and turned to head toward the police station.

Just then, a man darted out from nearby and blocked her path. "Girl, you can't call the police. You really can't."

Lin Wei stepped back, her eyes sharp. "Who are you? Why stop me from calling the police? Could it be that you are the one who pushed my father?"

"No, no! I wasn't even up there, how could it be me?" the man explained hastily. "I am the person in charge of the site. My surname is Li. The foreman sent me here to supervise. Ask the others; they all know me."

Uncle Liu nodded quickly. "That's right. Engineer Li is the site manager; he is in charge of everything here."

"So? Why can't I call the police?"

"Girl, your father's death really was an accident. We all saw it. It was likely a safety issue, but if you call the police and the site gets shut down, how many people will be left without a livelihood?"

"What does that have to do with me? As his daughter, I must seek justice for my father."

Lin Wei pushed past Engineer Li and ran toward the police station. Seeing that he hadn't stopped her, Li gritted his teeth and ran in the opposite direction.

-

Just as Lin Wei was about to reach the police station, her mother suddenly emerged from a small path and blocked her.

"Weiwei, what are you doing?"

Seeing her mother’s panicked face, flashes of her previous life before her death flooded her mind. She recoiled in disgust, but remembering that those events had not yet come to pass and fearing complications, she put on a mournful expression. "Mom, Dad is dead. When I went to find him, he had fallen from the building and died."

"I know. The workers already told me. What are you doing now?"

"Calling the police! Dad died under unclear circumstances; of course, I have to report it so the police can investigate. Mom, let's go together."

Lin Wei grabbed her mother’s arm and, ignoring her resistance, dragged her into the station. Regardless of what the officers were doing, Lin Wei cried out and spilled the entire story.

"Officer, I want to report a death. My father fell from a construction site and died. They were working at a great height, and there should have been safety ropes, but my father is dead."

Her mother was powerless to stop her. She shook off Lin Wei's hand, trying to explain, but it was too late.

Hearing the accusation, the officer set aside his work and asked, "Young lady, is what you're saying true?"

"Yes! The men at the site said it was an accidental fall, just now. When I arrived, his body was already cold. He died so miserably. Please, you must find out the truth about my father's death."

The officer frowned, sensing something amiss in her account.

-

He turned to the adult standing by. "And you are?"

"I'm her mother. I just received the news that my husband fell to his death, and before I could even get there, my daughter dragged me here. I don't even know what's going on."

The officers consulted briefly. Two of them gathered their equipment and said, "Let's go. Take us there to see."

They didn't waste a moment and returned to the construction site. Behind them, the look of hatred on her mother’s face toward Lin Wei was impossible to hide.

-

When they arrived, the workers were still gathered around the body. Engineer Li, who had run in the opposite direction, had also returned.

Seeing the police, Li offered them cigarettes politely. "Hello, officers."

The officer declined and pointed to Lin Wei. "This young lady reported that her father fell from a height and died on the spot. We are here to investigate."

Li pointed behind him. "That is Master Lin. But this really was an accident. Out of respect, we have already covered him with a white sheet."

"Why wasn't an ambulance called?" The officer took out a notebook and asked as if it were a casual remark.

Li choked. "Well... because he passed away on the spot, so..."

"You still should have called an ambulance. Even if he wasn't breathing, the hospital isn't far. What if he could have been saved?"

The officer continued, "From which floor did the deceased fall?"

"The eighth floor."

In the 1990s, high-rise buildings were a novelty. Without elevators, most buildings stood between seven and thirteen stories tall. The building under construction was an eight-story structure, and it was during the topping-out phase that the father had fallen.

The two officers exchanged a thoughtful look. An eight-story fall might be fatal, but it wouldn't necessarily result in instant death. Furthermore, there was remarkably little blood on the ground. And Lin Wei had mentioned that when she touched her father’s body, it was already cold. Yet, she had arrived shortly after the incident—how could the body cool so quickly?

The officer asked suspiciously, "Time of death?"

Uncle Liu replied, "Just a short while before the girl arrived, about twenty minutes ago."

"The exact time," the officer turned to her. "Do you remember exactly when you arrived?"

"I do. The postman delivered my notification letter at 11:03 AM. Because it was a special item, I had to sign for it and note the time, so I remember it clearly. After receiving it, I wanted to show my father, so I went straight there. We live very close, so it only took a few minutes."

The officer nodded. "By that calculation, the time of death would be around 10:40 AM."

One of the officers lifted the white sheet to examine the body. After calling his partner over, the two whispered to each other.

A while later, the officer suggested, "We want to go up and take a look. Someone lead the way."

"I'll go," Engineer Li said quickly.

For reasons unknown, Lin Wei felt an instinctive distrust of Li, so she immediately spoke up: "I'll go too."

Her mother grabbed her. "Why are you going? You're a girl in a dress; isn't it dangerous to climb so high? Stay here."

The officer agreed, blocking her. "We know you're anxious to find the truth, but your mother is right. You stay down here."

Helpless, Lin Wei had to comply.

-

After Engineer Li accompanied the officers upstairs, they spoke for a long time. Lin Wei couldn't hear their conversation, but when the two officers returned, they told her:

"The safety ropes are intact, and there are no issues with the safety setup above. We asked around, and your father wasn't wearing a rope when he fell. It was most likely an accidental fall."

"An accident?" Lin Wei looked at the officers, asking with sincerity. "Are you sure? Is it really just an accident?"

The older officer remained composed. "Yes, we checked carefully. There are no issues."

The younger officer, however, remained silent, merely adjusting his uniform which had been disheveled during the climb.

Seeing Lin Wei’s disbelief, her mother finally let out her pent-up emotions. "You girl! Your father is dead and I'm already devastated—must you insist on making everyone restless? Why won't you believe it was an accident? Do you only feel at ease if someone murdered him?"

"I never said that, but he fell from the eighth floor—he must have been in so much pain. If there was any oversight, he won't be able to rest in peace," Lin Wei cried. "I am his daughter; I just want the truth. Is that not allowed?"

The workers were moved by her filial piety. Her mother wanted to scold her further, but in front of everyone, she held back.

"Now that it's cleared up, let's go back and handle the funeral so your father can leave with dignity."

-

With the help of the neighbors and coworkers, the funeral hall was quickly set up. Lin Yuan, confused, looked at the people coming and going, unable to grasp the situation.

Lin Wei knelt and explained gently, "Yuan, Dad has passed away. Kneel here and cry for him so he can go in peace, okay?"

Lin Yuan was stunned. He didn't understand how his father, who had gone out perfectly fine that morning, could be dead. "Dad is there! Dad is fine! Dad, get up!"

But his father would never get up again. Realizing the truth, Lin Yuan burst into tears. "Dad, Dad, get up! Yuan misses you, get up and hug me!"

His heartbreaking cries moved everyone present.

"What will they do now? With Master Lin gone, how will this family survive?"

"I remember Weiwei got her university acceptance letter today—Jiangcheng University. In this situation, I'm afraid she can't go."

"Why?"

"Don't you know? Since last year, universities started charging tuition. It's 200 yuan a year! They've lost their breadwinner, only expenses and no income. And it's a four-year course—who can afford that?"

"In that case, true. But it's Jiangcheng University—just give it up like that?"

The uncle, who had just arrived, heard the discussion and immediately spoke up. "Jiangcheng University isn't some elite school like Qinghua or Peking; if she can't go, she can't. What's the pity? There's no one to earn money, so as the eldest sister, shouldn't she work to support the family?"

Lin Wei looked up at her uncle, Ni Qingguo. "Who says I'm not going to university? My father's greatest wish was for me to study and get ahead. Since I've been accepted, there's no reason not to go."

Ni Qingguo scoffed. "Where will you get the money? Your father must have had savings, but are you going to let the whole family starve just to support you? How selfish! If not for yourself, consider your brother."

"Only by finishing my degree and getting a good job can I properly support my brother. What kind of good job can I get with just a high school diploma? Can that compare to a university degree?"

The neighbors nodded, understanding her foresight. But they still faced the reality. "The money—where will it come from?"

Ni Qingguo naturally didn't want her touching the savings; after all, with her father dead, the control over the family’s money would fall to her mother. And since her mother was obsessed with helping her own family, wouldn't that money just end up with them? The thought of money meant for him going to someone else made him irritable.

"There's money. There's money!"

Engineer Li squeezed through the crowd. "There is money. Master Lin had the accident on our site. Out of compassion and fairness, the company will provide compensation. Wait, our boss is behind me and will be here shortly. The pension will be handed to you soon."

Ni Qingguo didn't think much of it. "How much can the pension be? University is four years; tuition and living expenses are no small sum."

"Thirty thousand." A man pushed through the crowd and placed a brown paper bag accurately into the mother’s hands.

"This is the compensation for Master Lin—thirty thousand yuan. Although his death was an accident, the company, out of humanitarian concern, naturally provides compensation to the family."

Thirty thousand yuan was truly no small sum; everyone present widened their eyes.

Only Lin Wei remained still. As she caught sight of the man delivering the money, her body trembled uncontrollably.

It was him.

The stepfather who would eventually cause her death, Xiao Yuanbing.