Lu Zheng told Fang Youzhen to stay in the car while he looked around to ensure no one was there, then quickly jumped into the courtyard.
The modest square courtyard, not large, had snow cleared up against the wooden fence abutting the neighbor's property.
Lu Zheng strode toward the house and discovered upon arrival that the door wasn't locked; the lock was simply hung on the latch.
This saved him the trouble; Lu Zheng took down the lock, opened the door and entered the house, finding it not as cold inside as if it had been uninhabited for a long time.
In the kitchen, there were some firewood next to the stove and hearth, but the water tank had very little water in it.
When he entered the bedroom, he saw nothing but simple red brick flooring and a set of luggage on the kang bed.
After searching around and not finding any useful clues, he went back the way he came and jumped out.
Lu Zheng then learned from the neighboring residents that a man did move in recently.
