Chapter 6 The Father’s Fury
Dou Hongfei arrived after being summoned.
He thought it was good news. He tried to discuss compensation with the girl's parents right away.
"Mr. Li, Ms. Li, I am very sorry about your daughter. I apologize on behalf of my wife."
The girl's father was furious.
"You killed my daughter. You think an apology is enough?"
Dou Hongfei explained quickly.
"Do not worry. We will not run from responsibility. I came today to talk about a settlement."
"You can name any price. As long as I can accept it, I will pay."
The words stabbed the couple like knives.
They had raised their daughter with care. Now she was gone. The killer wanted to avoid jail and solve everything with money.
A life could be bought off.
"Do we look like we need money? You will not escape the law."
Dou Hongfei's face turned red.
He no longer looked confident.
"Then what do you want if not money?"
"The girl is gone and I feel bad too. But revenge will not bring her back. Do you want my wife to sit in prison for two years?"
"Bastard!"
The girl's father saw no remorse and punched Dou Hongfei in the face.
The girl's mother also cursed him.
"You can rest assured. We do not want your money. We only want both of you to suffer the same fate."
"Since we cannot agree, there is nothing more to say. We will meet in court!"
The girl's parents ran a land contracting business with properties across many towns. They were wealthy.
They sent their daughter to the local school so they could visit easily.
They also wanted to see her from time to time.
After divorcing me, Dou Hongfei used Liao Wanru's old connections to open a small express delivery station in town.
He made some money over the years, but the gap between their wealth was huge.
The couple did not take Dou Hongfei and Liao Wanru seriously at all.
They only acted tough in front of people like me.
The case could have been solved in one day.
The girl did not attend class that afternoon. The teacher called her home.
The couple was busy with work, so they left pick-up and drop-off to the grandparents. The grandparents answered the phone.
They did not take it seriously. They thought the child had gone off to play.
The girl had skipped class with bad classmates before, so the family assumed she would turn up.
Later the teacher told them to check because a student seemed to have died in a car accident. The grandmother felt a shock and went to see if it was their granddaughter.
By then Dou Hongfei and Liao Wanru had already moved the body to my door. The grandparents found nothing.
The intersection was quiet at noon. No one knew the girl's features. They only knew someone had died. The grandparents became more certain, or perhaps they hoped, that the dead child was not their granddaughter.
They searched all day and asked her friends. No one knew where she had gone. Only then did the grandparents grow anxious.
By the time they learned the truth it was too late. More than grief, they feared their son and daughter-in-law's blame.
The couple had only one daughter. They had handed her over safely, and now she was gone. The grandparents had no way to explain.
So when the parents asked about the girl, the grandparents hid the truth. They hoped to delay the scolding as long as possible.