Blazing Armor

After a period of preparation, Gong Yingxian not only restored all the visual evidence from back then, but even built a perspective model of the house based on design plans, photographs, and memory.cjLOEZnJbpOnTgGqWOPOmMUbVcoeEZ

Ren Yi also brought all the materials he found from the fire department.SvKajwIaxoukBStXrgdBYuNMzNdETR

Qiu Yan circled around the model on the table. “It’s almost identical to my memory. Excellent restoration work.”sNyDOZjvCxTFtEtZdQFAIdKWrOYRPT

Gong Yingxian kept his head down, silently gazing at the model of the three-story villa, without saying a word.hOLJdGRyurPRHqIRvnaMqXNVNgcUSe

Across the table, Ren Yi looked at Gong Yingxian, his mind replaying the conversation they had not long ago.WolRPOfBTcncLGXVOavjCmgFeuSGoh

He was calmer now than he had been earlier, but the more composed he became, the sadder he felt. Every time he rekindled a glimmer of hope, believing they might at least rebuild their friendship, Gong Yingxian’s words and actions would remind him that it was nothing more than wishful thinking.eqbeClouwFBxErAtRvHtTDcnNrTnJj

He couldn’t even begin to imagine what kind of person he had become in Gong Yingxian’s eyes after that night.xSEzHPNRBstYuIwXHbviRdZSMrEACj

Right now, Gong Yingxian looked like a boy of about ten, one who, under the influence of hormones, was starting to take an interest in adult secrets, wanting to explore yet holding back. And he just so happened to be the perfect object of exploration: someone who wouldn’t reject him, wouldn’t betray him, wouldn’t make him feel guilty.thJHfJgbgqEwanItoHmBTABCrXxSBw

Yes, he’d fantasized, fantasized countless times about being close with Gong Yingxian, but none of those fantasies were under conditions like these. It made him feel…GauLglOcRPfUgdYBkIRKFYDHvkwUvZ

“Captain Ren? Captain Ren?”PVhseXuyKpnToBixwdKGMtXpDhDgOZ

Ren Yi snapped back to reality, looking blankly at Qiu Yan, who was calling his name. “Sorry, I think I…”IlyLqwrgzZwGnVlxcOJnLyOdSToUju

“Tired?”MLmwuGVmGTOnSEMErNMwSHVKTPeQRZ

Gong Yingxian looked at Ren Yi thoughtfully, but Ren Yi avoided his gaze.qLMXquRUgPuqWwQEyCsqvdKFayZMkg

Qiu Yan glanced at both of them, a trace of helplessness in his heart.tLzUsNMuNidOKDTOFHkeaNuHxwqcSr

“I’m fine.” Ren Yi moved to the side, masking his emotions by taking a sip of coffee. “Let’s get started.”jhpQHXXitOBiQGaxUqCXuHYlthLvuc

Qiu Yan began with the timeline: “Yingxian saw the masked person at around 2 a.m. He had woken up to go to the bathroom when he saw someone wearing a bird mask moving in the yard. Feeling scared, he hid under his blanket. Yingxian’s mother called the fire department at 2:36 a.m. You’ve all heard the contents of the call—she didn’t specify that there was an outsider setting the fire, nor did she imply that her husband was the one who started it. The first firefighting team arrived at 2:44 a.m., and rescue began at 2:48 a.m. Yingxian was rescued just three minutes before 3 a.m., and by 3:38 a.m., the fire was extinguished.”KKeYhuBtNWAybFzBAQNMzytGqHahuv

A short description of the timeline summed up the final moments of a family of four, struggling in their last hours, trapped in fear and agony.oufDUSYEfqiOOFzJJTANvdrhYPQcLF

Gong Yingxian stood motionless to the side, his face a frozen mask. He was intimately familiar with all of this, having revisited it thousands of times in pursuit of the truth—even his mother’s desperate cries for help. He’d grown numb to it all, and behind that numbness lay the broken, unfeeling nerves dulled by relentless pain.galbkXZxUiTCyJNVPdqJqdCOXXOnLc

Qiu Yan looked at Ren Yi and continued, “The first firefighting team to arrive on the scene back then was the Fifth Squad from Hongwu District. Yingxian told me that the firefighter who first entered the burning building to rescue him was the captain of the Fifth Squad—your father.”IMFPgjweHEBGknXDhRwZixEGccWgPZ

Ren Yi nodded. “The Fifth Squad was the predecessor of the Phoenix Squad. After some organizational restructuring, several new squads were added, and the jurisdiction was redefined. The original location of the Gong family home no longer falls within the Phoenix Squad’s territory.”yUquLGvQtErobNSmpHLsaCuqMhIGet

“Such a coincidence…” Qiu Yan paused, his expression hard to read.IVIebSeRuEDkGrcgwzodXNiUNSgWAD

“What?”nbwbzXdqQvcSrzxiVZyRETrOWoTkLF

“Nothing, just… too much of a coincidence,” Qiu Yan said, “It seems like there really is a connection between you two.”fuvmKdvCurHwPrsHvPgSAEFcafjiBe

In the past, Ren Yi might have joked about this, but now he merely responded with a half-hearted smile.cvDlqlsgxkytqqEyRsIUhlDxoXEFIV

Gong Yingxian took over the explanation: “This model is a scaled reconstruction. The villa has four levels: three above ground and one basement. The basement housed the garage and storage rooms. The first floor had no guest rooms, only functional spaces. On the south side of the second floor was my parents’ master bedroom, and next to it, the guest room and study.” He pointed to each area with a laser pointer. “My sister and I stayed on the third floor, in these two rooms lined up on the south side. The arsonist poured accelerant on the first and second floors. The fire started on the first floor and spread upward rapidly. With the flames blocking the stairs, and my sister and I on the top floor, my parents must have gone up to get us. By the time they found us, we were all trapped on the third floor, and every window had security bars.”tVzNCqliCZjwisFlnjQdAvILRkMMPu

Ren Yi let out a sigh.ntjrVsVegfmHMKeAjpwpiXqfOcRtqf

Back then, every household had security bars on their windows. It was only in the last decade or so, as tragedies due to these bars preventing escape increased, that security bars began to include escape doors.fPfTgpFVQWqyhJShtfECclWaMyEBHe

“In the end, we hid in the bathroom of my room.” Gong Yingxian’s voice grew deeper. “My memories of that time are very hazy. Even when a psychologist tried to help me recall, I felt a strong aversion, but the image of the masked person remains relatively clear.”zHfjhBxgANESMbNLvZxMTCzJGariuX

Ren Yi asked, “What did you tell the police back then? Did you mention the masked person?”nbacKAPBlGAUfNEGrRYwBgzaLjNDbk

Gong Yingxian shook his head. “For nearly six months after the incident, I refused to speak. Treatment in the country wasn’t effective, so my grandfather sent me to the U.S. By the time I could remember fragments of it, the case had been closed for years.”zJPIBlVertluiUPUfprJyBLemfgzIu

“So, you never gave the police any testimony.”ZTrbuErzDAmpkRfIbecyRiFicwtvOL

“Even if he had,” Qiu Yan added, “testimony from a six-year-old wouldn’t have held up in court. The case was ruled a suicide due to insufficient evidence proving arson by a third party.”NVAjecujODFLiSwAeYVWFVRyvtIMBg

Ren Yi circled around the model again, carefully comparing the documents before inserting a marker beside the sofa in the living room. “According to the report, the fire’s point of origin was here. However, the explosion of the kitchen’s gas tank left significant burn and explosion marks as well.”MQsdOtlxcKeoQkWSwRiKpKyuifQKEz

Qiu Yan pointed at a charred object nearby. “This is a remnant of the sofa from that time, and there are traces of alcohol on it.”BBWpGDAvuqzBPeYCJoEHdcMICJWGRJ

“Are you sure the sofa was positioned here at the time? Near the window?”QmZoAtiPQHjCgTvCYhSsDYMvgpqPzp

“Yes.”MkBXReVbrNfABYrIMWVgiHffpxWAYV

“If the sofa was the ignition point, and the accelerant trailed from the sofa all the way to the door, kitchen, stairway entrance, and up the stairs, the fire would have spread across the first floor and then moved upstairs…” Ren Yi mused, “It’s feasible, but something feels off.” He continued sifting through photos.VEllCwswpnTNjnonnGBUohwPcdJJOX

“Look at this one.” Gong Yingxian handed him a scene photo. “For a fire that big, the curtain didn’t suffer much damage. Is that normal?”UKJUZbrtNNxQlRImgnpjEbNuDfsVTq

“While curtains are highly flammable, an accelerant is definitely more attractive to fire,” Ren Yi frowned. “However, even if the fire spread along with the accelerant, with the curtains so close to the sofa, logically, they should have been completely burned. Yet, only half of them were…” A thought flashed through his mind. “Wind.”UdaawTuYVwtqoXqMaskelvYlEeMftP

“Wind?” Qiu Yan asked. “Are you saying wind direction?”bAlmrXIQtLWeqBPXWOnUMflQGneaXU

“Yes, wind direction is crucial in a fire; it can completely control the spread of flames. Suppose there was wind pulling the fire away from the curtains; that would explain why half of the curtains survived. This wind direction would be…” Ren Yi examined the model of the villa, “from the east, the kitchen window?”sdYOGntvTecHwFLihuJNBPCafIPBEa

Qiu Yan’s eyes widened. “The culprit opened the kitchen window? It was late autumn; no one would leave a window open at that time.”ITupaZxmuliKTyEqyZCfZaZmnKwaem

Gong Yingxian pulled out a photo of the kitchen. Post-explosion, it was severely damaged, with only the wooden frame of the window remaining open, though it was unclear if it was due to human interference or the impact of the blast.lrcGoCNZXgbZZDfqrBhPymSUxxCTvB

“There’s one problem,” Ren Yi frowned deeply. “I can understand why the culprit would want to direct the fire toward the kitchen, given the numerous appliances and gas there. But based on the accelerant traces—the gasoline trail—if the fire was directed eastward, and they ignited it in the living room, then considering the layout of the first floor, wouldn’t they have trapped themselves in the fire?”dRPkaRfZQAFauglpPzNXRwVHpEllzt

The two of them examined the model. “Right, the main door is along the path from the living room to the kitchen. How would they escape?”OkXcnmSoaKqtrWHDwXvKBCkdIhBxPk

“They’d only be able to go upstairs.” The red dot from Gong Yingxian’s laser pointer paused on the staircase.WqVfTlljAeWPUefzaPSnTPiQmOUBiY

“That’s not realistic. The staircase also had accelerant on it. Lighting the accelerant in the living room and then running upstairs? No way, they’d never outrun the spread of the fire. If they poured the accelerant after igniting the living room, it’s like adding fuel to the flames—any arsonist with some common sense wouldn’t dare do that. Even if they avoided burns, what then after reaching upstairs? All the windows are sealed; they’d be trapping themselves in the fire.”ZWqBJYSmgQCGZUqQinpgkOdajeObgO

“Doesn’t this create a paradox? Could the ignition point not be in the living room?”hauWLpWVkzHjGBXsmpThTkNwkHDtTp

“Even if the ignition point was in the kitchen, he still wouldn’t be able to get out.”YtLUuqAGbxfAjBGSPTaUOwCIefpanN

The three of them fell into a deep silence, as if something was on the tip of their tongues but just out of reach.MuoQxBAUhFUsLclJjqRqHimTevlBoB

After a long while, Gong Yingxian finally spoke, “We’ve been assuming things. What if the culprit didn’t ignite the fire from inside the house?”gnfWmZXoJkvEBMocXBAbJjdnenfHLq

Ren Yi’s eyes lit up, “Right! He could have poured the gasoline, left the villa, and then ignited the fire through the kitchen window!”CcvDtGPqyzPnVSkMrIvymkIroHmsSb

Qiu Yan flipped through the photos of the kitchen and living room. “But then, how do we explain the V-shaped burn marks in the living room and the scorch pits on the floor? Aren’t these all evidence of the fire’s starting point?”vtqTEBAfZykgRKGuSiYJwBxEHavSbX

Ren Yi’s heart sank as he hesitated. “I have a theory, but…”VgXNzznCEYFiyLjsiZhNWlCTwsSwfO

“Forget the ‘but,'” Gong Yingxian interrupted decisively. “Just say it.”ERdkZicDOgvVbAXCohIYCfVNGamuOr

“Imagine I’m the culprit. I know fire well, and I understand fire investigation techniques. I want to stage this as a suicide by the male homeowner who set the house ablaze to escape his guilt. What’s the first thing I need to do? I need to erase all traces of my presence in the house, making it look like everything was done by someone inside. In short, it needs to be a sealed fire scene. So how would I pull it off?”XWGAFZPwVQCOGeiBGFTHQQBSCDjcfU

The two of them looked at him gravely.JzcwEaKeDPcrklrHWHCcnmsDmTYCdz

“First, I’d pour gasoline in the kitchen, hallway, and staircase, all the way up to the second floor, and open the kitchen window. Then, I’d leave the house, ignite the fire from outside through the kitchen window, causing the flames to spread instantly from the kitchen to the second floor.” Ren Yi’s eyes narrowed, his gaze chilling. “Then, I’d re-enter the house, pour gasoline on the living room sofa, and ignite it.”PxVqCGreVzOBLNDeQHAEeWHZZvvuPR

Qiu Yan’s eyes widened. “Two ignition points!”UFpkRHfncoYUNkSNZpWRUzTAkhfJoj

“It’s the most plausible explanation I can think of. First, a gas explosion in the kitchen would destroy a lot of evidence, like whether the window was open and other traces of the ignition point. The kitchen would still look like an ignition point, but with a clearer and more obvious fire origin in the living room, investigators would likely focus on the living room and overlook the possibility of two ignition points.”TEsheMJCmjmWrzZOFxvnogZinKtGIH

“You’re right,” Gong Yingxian said in a low voice. “However, although the kitchen window was destroyed, the living room door remained mostly intact. According to the report, the lock was forcibly broken by firefighters during the rescue. So, it’s impossible to prove whether the lock was intact before the firefighters broke it, which means there’s no evidence of forced entry.”lwpoLFkWfLFhDquPaptsEZSEkgLESd

Qiu Yan sank wearily into a chair, muttering, “Except for the suspicious curtains, everything else makes sense. The kitchen explosion means we can’t prove the window was opened. The front door being broken by the rescue team means we can’t prove forced entry. Whether the fire started in the living room or kitchen, once the fire started, the arsonist would have no choice but to go upstairs, pointing to the person trapped inside the house—the male homeowner under tremendous pressure from an industrial accident, legal issues, debt, and public scrutiny, with ample motivation for suicide!”NKjxNtWUuqAjTJtIXFkMLkZEygSycv

The more they analyzed, the more they felt a chill running down their spines. If Ren Yi’s theory was correct, the culprit had crafted a near-perfect setup, staging a murder as a suicide. If someone inside helped destroy evidence and mislead the investigation, coupled with the homeowner’s apparent suicidal motive, it would indeed be a flawless setup.tipVxNmUfpHCYmngZKOGUMgjrIBMNt