Three years ago, my sister-in-law ran off with another man right after giving birth. My brother went crazy looking for her for a long time, but eventually, he disappeared without a trace too. Recently, my niece fell into a dry well while playing. I quickly called an excavator for rescue, but my mom stopped me: "Don't dig! Something bad will happen!" Everyone thought my mom was just being superstitious. But unexpectedly, while rescuing my niece, they dug up a skeleton. 1 My mom's face turned ashen, and she trembled uncontrollably. I frowned, pulled her aside, and asked: "Mom, what's wrong?" The look she gave me was full of terror. "Chloe, this..." Seeing everyone's eyes turn to us, I smiled naturally. "Mom, don't be afraid. Who knows how many years this skeleton has been here. The police will investigate and find out." I motioned for her to relax. Then I handed my niece over to my mom and told them to go home first. As soon as my mom left, I heard the neighbors whispering behind me. "A few years ago, her daughter-in-law ran off with a man. Could that have been a lie? Did she die here?" "No wonder her son searched for so long without any news." Noticing me standing nearby, they immediately shut their mouths. Three years ago, right after my sister-in-law gave birth, she finished her confinement month and ran off with a man. My brother couldn't accept it and went crazy searching for her everywhere. He was gone for years, and his contact with the family was sporadic. Eventually, even he vanished without a trace. For these past few years, my mom and niece have been supported by the money I earned. Hearing these speculations, I felt a sudden tension in my heart. The police arrived very quickly and immediately set up a cordon. The forensic examiner was checking the bottom of the well. An older officer walked towards the crowd. "Who found this skeleton? Whose property is this?" Everyone pointed at me. His gaze fell on me, and he asked: "How did you find it?" I took a deep breath, gathered my thoughts, and said: "My niece was playing and accidentally fell into this dry well. I called an excavator to rescue her, and that's when we found this skeleton." The man nodded and took notes, continuing without looking up: "Has anyone gone missing in the past few years?" The onlookers instantly exploded, immediately bringing up my runaway sister-in-law. They described it vividly. The officer frowned and looked at me again. "Your sister-in-law ran away three years ago? And there's been no news of her since?" My face instantly froze, and I nodded stiffly. Just then, the forensic examiner at the bottom of the well reported: "Time of death: Three years ago." "Age: Around 25-30 years old." Suddenly he shouted in surprise: "I found something else." He picked up a wedding ring with tweezers and handed it to us. My face instantly drained of color. 2 "Do you recognize this?" I nodded. "This is my sister-in-law's wedding ring." In the interrogation room, I recalled my sister-in-law just after she gave birth three years ago. My dad sighed constantly at home. "Just a girl? And she ruined her body and can't have any more? Is our Su family line going to end here?" My dad, who was hoping for a grandson, was so angry he fell seriously ill. The illness came very fast and fierce. My usually strong and healthy dad didn't even last a week before he passed away. Before he died, he held my brother's hand and pleaded: "Son, you must have a boy to continue the Su family line." Hearing this, my sister-in-law, who hadn't even finished her confinement month, turned pale. After my dad's funeral, my brother started forcing himself on my sister-in-law, who was still recovering. It caused a huge scene, and my sister-in-law's family came over twice. But after finding out it was about having a child, they didn't ask much. Until one time my brother came home drunk and started beating my sister-in-law again: "If you can't carry on the Su family line, what's the point of keeping you around?" Hearing this, something different appeared in my sister-in-law's eyes. She started fighting back against my brother's domestic violence. But my sister-in-law had been malnourished since childhood and was relatively weak. Compared to my strong and healthy brother, the difference was significant. That day's domestic violence ended with my sister-in-law covered in bruises. The day my sister-in-law ran away, I happened to be running errands in town. By the time I returned to the village, I heard from the neighbors that she had run off with a man. When I entered the house, I saw my mom holding the child, cowering and sobbing uncontrollably. My brother was throwing things around, trembling with rage. A few close relatives were gathered around, all trying to console him: "If the wife runs away, let her run. She can't have kids anyway, so it's a good thing you can find another one." My brother was gritting his teeth in anger. "I won't let this matter go so easily." Then he took the child and went to my sister-in-law's family home to make a huge scene. He forcefully took back the three thousand dollar bride price he had given them. Hearing this, the officer in front of me frowned deeply. "So you're saying your sister-in-law was scared of being beaten by your brother, and that's why she ran away?" "Isn't it? If she stayed any longer, my sister-in-law really would have been beaten to death by my brother. Isn't it normal for her to find a chance to run?" But the police officer's next sentence made my entire body go cold instantly. "Your sister-in-law had no chance to contact the outside world. How did she connect with the man who took her away?" 3 The atmosphere instantly dropped to freezing point. "According to our investigation, your sister-in-law is traditional in her thinking and hasn't seen much of the world. So how did she plan such a detailed escape?" I hadn't thought deeply about this, and was stunned. "Then maybe someone else helped her make contact?" Just then, someone knocked on the door and handed him a few documents. After reading the contents, Officer Zhang, the older officer, changed his expression slightly. He glanced at me and said: "The skeleton was examined and found to be male. It's not your sister-in-law." This time it was my turn to be surprised. "If it's not my sister-in-law, who else could it be?" "My sister-in-law always treasured her wedding ring. Even I haven't touched it." He then continued reading the rest of the documents, his expression growing more solemn. "We took DNA from the skeleton and your niece. It confirms a father-daughter relationship." Hearing this, I was so shocked I stood up abruptly. Then I said in disbelief: "What? This skeleton is my brother?" "But that's impossible. When my brother went looking for my sister-in-law, he still contacted the family." Ever since my sister-in-law ran off with that man, my brother couldn't swallow his anger. I don't know who he heard it from, but he found out someone had seen my sister-in-law down south. My brother went crazy, took all the money in the house. He also said he wouldn't come back until he found my sister-in-law. Then he took two sets of clothes and left the house. From then on, my brother never came back. My mom was worried sick and asked all the villagers who came back from working outside. But there was no news at all. Officer Zhang's eyes were full of scrutiny. He glanced at me and continued: "But the DNA test between the skeleton and your mom does not support a mother-child relationship." Hearing this, my mind went completely blank. My first reaction was that my sister-in-law had cheated. "I didn't expect my sister-in-law to look so honest. After marrying my brother, she always managed the household chores at home, but behind our backs, she did such a shameless thing." I was instantly filled with anger. But why would this man die in that dry well? 4 Officer Zhang shook his head and explained: "Your mom said your brother wasn't her child, but the identity of the skeleton still needs to be confirmed." I immediately got anxious. "That's impossible. Since I was little, my parents always said I was picked up, and my brother was their biological child. They told me to repay them well when I grew up." Officer Zhang's eyes were a bit complex. "According to your mom's confession, you are her biological child." In an instant, my mind felt like it exploded again. Since I was little, I was instilled with the idea that my brother came first in everything. So every time I came home from school, I would work non-stop. On the other hand, my brother didn't have to do anything, and it didn't matter if his grades were poor. My parents doted on him very much. If he wasn't their biological child, how could this be? Seeming to see my confusion, Officer Zhang spoke up: "When your mom had her first child, she gave birth to a girl. Your dad favored boys over girls, so he secretly swapped the baby with someone else's." I was instantly stunned, taking a long time to process this. No wonder my parents, who favored boys over girls, would agree to let me go to college. At the time, my aunt even pointed at me and said: "Brother, sister-in-law, I really don't understand you. Why let a girl go to college? It's better to marry her off early and collect a bride price." A look of conflict flashed in my parents' eyes, but they ultimately didn't do that. Even though I paid for my tuition and living expenses with loans and part-time jobs. Their willingness to give me this opportunity to go to college moved me for a long time. Thinking about it now, it wasn't my parents discovering their conscience. It was because I was their biological child, and they just happened to awaken a tiny bit of parental love at that time. Officer Zhang continued to flip through the identification materials and said: "The skeleton's right leg has a traumatic bone injury, and the cause of death is a severe impact to the head. But traces of poisoning were also found on the skeleton." "And your brother injured his right leg when he was twenty. The injury and location are consistent." I was so nervous my hands trembled slightly, trying hard to keep my face calm. "So this skeleton is my brother?" My relationship with my brother has never been good. When we were young, he caused trouble, and I got beaten; he stole money, and I got scolded. Because of his framing, I was punished by kneeling on the ground for 2 hours in 100-degree weather. He just treated me like a servant to be ordered around. Officer Zhang didn't answer me. Instead, he changed the subject and brought up the runaway sister-in-law again: "You helped your sister-in-law escape, didn't you? Otherwise, how could a rural woman who doesn't know anything leave so smoothly?" 5 My heart almost missed a beat. I smiled awkwardly: "Officer Zhang, you need evidence when you speak. Besides, what does this have to do with that matter?" He paused slightly and voiced a shocking speculation. "Your sister-in-law's wedding ring was found at the scene. We suspect she is the criminal suspect. So if you helped her escape, you are an indirect accomplice." Hearing this, I deflated like a punctured balloon and slumped into the chair. I couldn't believe things would turn out like this. Officer Zhang's sharp eyes stared at me intently, and he continued: "You said your brother contacted the family after he went out? But we found no communication records at all. You're lying." Saying this, he clasped his hands together and leaned back in his chair. I instantly felt like I was sitting on pins and needles. He was right. I did lie about this. Since my brother went looking for my sister-in-law, he had never contacted me. But my mom was always very worried. To comfort her, I pretended to receive messages from my brother. It's been like this for the past few years, and my mom never suspected anything. "So, the last time you saw your brother was also three years ago?" I nodded in confirmation. "Did anything else special happen at that time?" I fell into deep thought, trying to remember. Suddenly I remembered a detail that I had overlooked all this time. "Before my brother left, he seemed to have a fierce argument with my mom. I was just coming back from outside holding my niece. When they saw me, they immediately shut their mouths." "That night, my brother unprecedentedly wanted to take care of my niece himself, snatching her from my hands. But he had never taken care of her before. I was worried and told my mom. She didn't say much, just told me to go to bed early, and then left the house alone." Officer Zhang quickly took notes, occasionally looking up to ask for details. But after three years, my memory was a bit fuzzy. Upon getting this information, Officer Zhang immediately contacted someone to verify. A moment later, news came from the other side. "Your mom said that day your brother drank too much and wanted to sell your niece, but she disagreed, and an argument broke out. So when she knew your niece was taken by him, she chased after him." "Your brother stepped on a bear trap near the dry well, and your mom snatched your niece from him. But after taking your niece home and going back, your brother was gone." 6 My brother had indeed said before that he wanted to sell my niece for money. At the time, I thought he was joking. I didn't expect him to actually do it. Just then, a female police officer hurried in. "The girl brought back earlier had an allergic reaction to something she ate and has been sent to the hospital." I immediately stood up anxiously. "Did you guys feed her peanuts just now? My niece is allergic to peanuts." The female officer immediately apologized, and then took us straight to the hospital. When we arrived, I saw my mom taking care of her nearby, followed by two police officers. Officer Zhang glanced at my niece, who was out of danger, and then kept looking at me. He asked: "Is your niece the only one allergic to peanuts in your family?" I instantly froze. It was my mom who answered for me. "Chloe is also allergic to peanuts. When she was little, she accidentally ate peanuts and had allergic reactions several times." I saw the officers exchange glances, and I felt a sense of dread. "Chloe Su, please leave a blood sample for testing." Under the guidance of the police officer, I was forced to leave a blood sample. Then my eyelids kept twitching wildly. I suddenly felt that some things really couldn't be hidden anymore. The next day, I was brought to the interrogation room again. Watching Officer Zhang walk in holding a report, I felt a bit restless. He sighed and stared at me, saying: "This report shows that you and your niece have a mother-daughter relationship. Can you explain this?" I involuntarily felt a bit panicked. I sighed deeply. It was finally discovered. Officer Zhang frowned and continued: "The DNA of that skeleton has been compared with the sample your brother left at the police station, and the result is out. If you confess now, perhaps there's still a chance for a reduced sentence." Hearing this, I suddenly laughed. "That's right, my niece is indeed my child. And my sister-in-law miscarried due to domestic violence shortly after confirming her pregnancy." Clang. The teacup in Officer Zhang's hand fell to the floor. "Then that skeleton must be my brother, right?" He nodded stiffly. "Compared with your brother's DNA sample, it's a match." Then he asked in disbelief: "Your niece is the child of you and your brother?" "Yes." I answered crisply, letting out a long sigh. "How did you get pregnant?" The voice asking the question was a bit shaky, and he involuntarily leaned back. That sentence ripped open another large gash in the bottomless darkness.
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