CIATB Chapter 185: Searching for the Truth at the Post Office
Chapter 185: Searching for the Truth at the Post Office
Zhang Lei nodded in satisfaction, seeing that He Daqing was already interested. Placing Qin Huairu in the He family would definitely liven up the courtyard. He Daqing could easily handle the Jia family. The only question was whether Yi Zhonghai would be able to stay in the courtyard after this trip back.
The three of them boarded the train back to the courtyard house. With He Daqing present, they chatted particularly happily on the train.
Soon, the three returned to Beijing.
As soon as he got out of the car, He Daqing was eager to return to the courtyard house, but Zhang Lei grabbed him.
Zhang Lei looked at He Daqing and said, "Uncle He, now is not the time to go back to the courtyard house."
Upon hearing Zhang Lei's words, He Daqing angrily retorted, "I'm just so angry at Yi Zhonghai and that old deaf man!"
Seeing He Daqing's impulsive behavior, Zhang Lei patiently said, "Uncle He, even if we go to them now, they can easily deny everything and say they don't know Widow Bai. After all, it happened so many years ago, and even if there was evidence, it's long gone."
Hearing Zhang Lei's words, He Daqing sighed helplessly.
Seeing He Daqing's expression, Zhang Lei continued to persuade him, "Uncle He, we need to go to the post office now."
He Daqing followed Zhang Lei toward the post office with some confusion, muttering, "What are we going to the post office for?"
Zhang Lei nodded and said, "Yes, let's deal with the matter of intercepting your letters and money to Sha Zhu and Yu Shui first. I believe Yi Zhonghai and his group are definitely involved, otherwise it's impossible that Sha Zhu and Yu Shui haven't received a single letter or a single penny in all these years."
He Daqing listened to Zhang Lei's words and nodded in deep agreement, his eyes becoming even sharper.
Soon, the group arrived at the post office. When the post office staff heard that He Daqing had come in person to inquire about the whereabouts of the letter and money he had sent to Beijing many years ago, they were startled and their expressions became somewhat unnatural.
The staff member didn't dare to delay and quickly said, "Please wait a moment, I'll go report to the manager right away."
After saying that, he hurriedly ran towards the manager's office.
Soon, the post office manager came to the front desk, saw He Daqing, and quickly asked, "Are you He Daqing?"
He Daqing nodded and said, "It's me. I've come to check the letters and money I sent to my son and daughter. Why can't I find a single letter or a single penny?"
Upon hearing He Daqing's words, the manager was immediately startled and exclaimed, "That's impossible!"
At this moment, He Yushui stepped forward and said, "My brother and I really haven't received a single penny or a single letter in all these years. Moreover, we have always lived in the courtyard house at No. 95 Nanluoguxiang and have never left. If it were just a missing letter or one or two letters, it could be because we were away at school or work, but it's definitely unreasonable to not receive a single letter or a single penny in all these years."
Upon hearing this, the post office manager was startled and said, "Don't worry, let me go and call the mail carrier over to get some information."
Soon, the post office manager found Ma Shangfeng, the postman responsible for delivering mail in the Nanluoguxiang area.
The post office manager looked at Ma Shangfeng and asked sternly, "Ma Shangfeng, what exactly happened with the letters from He Yuzhu and He Yushui at No. 95 Nanluoguxiang? Do you know anything about them?"
Upon hearing the manager's question, Ma Shangfeng's heart skipped a beat, but he pretended to be completely unaware and said, "Manager, what are you talking about? I deliver the mail to Nanluoguxiang on time every day without fail."
Seeing that he was still trying to argue, the manager became furious and said, "If you haven't made any mistakes, then why did the owner come looking for the lost letter? The sender and recipient are both here. Tell me, where did the letter go?"
Hearing this, Xiao Ma was startled and instinctively glanced at Zhang Lei and the other two in the lobby, immediately realizing he could no longer hide it. He knelt down in front of the manager with a thud, his voice trembling with tears, and said, "Manager, I'm sorry, I was confused. Please forgive me this time!"
Seeing Ma Shangfeng's appearance, the post office manager's heart sank completely; the matter was already quite clear.
The post office manager, looking at Ma Shangfeng kneeling on the ground, said angrily, "You! You've got some nerve! Do you know what you're doing? You're committing a crime!"
Hearing the manager's words, Ma Shangfeng kept kowtowing and said, "Manager, I was wrong, please forgive me! I was just confused for a moment, it was...it was an old man from their compound, Yi Zhonghai, who came to find me!"
Upon hearing the name "Yi Zhonghai," He Daqing could no longer contain himself. He angrily walked over, grabbed Ma Shangfeng by the collar, and shouted, "Explain yourself! What exactly happened?"
Ma Shangfeng was startled by He Daqing's sudden action, his body trembling uncontrollably. The manager quickly reprimanded him, "Ma Shangfeng! Now that things have come to this, aren't you going to tell the whole story? Try to make amends!"
Ma Shangfeng, with a mournful face, quickly said, "Yes...yes! Uncle Yi Zhonghai from courtyard number 95 told me that Sha Zhu and his sister weren't home, and asked me to give him the money and letter I sent them directly. At first, I really thought they weren't home, and every time Yi Zhonghai saw money in the envelope, he would take out a dollar and give it to me as a tip."
He swallowed hard and continued, "But then I realized something was wrong. I often heard people in their courtyard say that He Yuzhu and He Yushui were clearly in the courtyard. When I asked Yi Zhonghai, he threatened me, saying that I must not tell anyone about this, otherwise he would also expose that I took the money, and then I would be implicated. I was very scared at the time, so... so I never dared to say anything about it."
Hearing this, the post office manager was furious. Pointing his finger at Ma Shangfeng, he yelled, "Ma Shangfeng! You've been so greedy for that little bit of profit that you've ruined your future and everything you have! You've completely ignored our post office's employee code of conduct!"
Standing to the side, Zhang Lei calmly said, looking at He Daqing who was about to explode with anger, "Uncle He, this matter is already very clear. Let's call the police."
Upon hearing the words "call the police," He Daqing thought for a moment and nodded heavily.
But Ma Shangfeng, who was standing to the side, was terrified. He immediately knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly to Zhang Lei and He Daqing, crying and pleading, "It's my fault, please forgive me! I have elderly parents and young children to support, please give me a way out!"
Zhang Lei looked at him coldly and said, "You have elderly parents and young children to support, but do you know that your actions almost killed He Yushui and her brother? You withheld the letters and money Uncle He sent them, nearly causing them to sever their father-son relationship with him!"
Zhang Lei continued, "Moreover, at that time, He Yuzhu and He Yushui, brother and sister, were penniless and survived by scavenging garbage every day, almost starving to death. Who could they tell about their suffering?"
Upon hearing this, He Yushui couldn't help but cover her face and burst into tears.
Looking at his crying daughter, He Daqing felt as if his heart was being torn apart. He kicked Ma Shangfeng violently and roared, "I'm calling the police! No matter who it is, it won't matter what they say!"