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A Chinese PhD student in the US, rejected by his advances, beheaded a woman in a coffee shop, and appeared smug when arrested!

On January 21, 2009, US police received a report of a knife attack in a Virginia Tech coffee shop. Four minutes later, officers arrived at the scene, where a gruesome sight greeted them.

The assailant didn't flee; instead, he stood there, holding a severed head, covered in blood, and expressionless. A headless female corpse lay on the floor, and the coffee shop reeked of blood.

The assailant offered no resistance and readily entered the police car, remaining silent, his eyes cold and resolute.

According to six or seven witnesses, the assailant and victim had been chatting calmly without any apparent argument. Suddenly, the man pulled out a knife and attacked the woman, slamming her head against the table and decapitating her.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the perpetrator was Zhu Haiyang, a 25-year-old doctoral student, and the female victim was Yang Xin, a 22-year-old master's student.

The two met only 13 days before the incident. What happened during those two short weeks?

Why did Zhu Haiyang commit such a cruel and cold-blooded act? Let's delve into today's case.

Zhu Haiyang was born in 1984 into a scholarly family in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. Both his parents were university professors. With this excellent educational background, he excelled academically, was gentle and refined, a top student in the eyes of his classmates, and a source of pride for his teachers.

Zhu Haiyang was not only academically gifted but also very sociable. He never acted arrogantly and was easy to get along with, thus having many friends.

In his junior year, he passed the TOEFL exam with a high score of 663 (out of 677). In his senior year, he took the GRE and achieved a perfect score in math and only lost 1 point in the essay.

That same year, he won first prize in the National College English Competition. He also received scholarships every semester. Such a bright student was recommended for graduate studies before even graduating with his bachelor's degree.

In 2008, Zhu Haiyang received an acceptance letter and scholarship from Virginia Tech, inviting him to pursue a doctoral degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics.

That autumn, Zhu Haiyang traveled across the ocean to the United States to begin his studies. Due to his diligent studies and friendly demeanor, Zhu Haiyang was quickly selected as a teaching assistant.

After the incident, everyone around him was shocked and couldn't believe it. The Zhu Haiyang they knew was polite, meticulous, and considerate; it was hard to believe he would commit such a cruel act.

So why did this seemingly normal and sunny person suddenly undergo such a drastic change? Was the problem with the victim, Yang Xin? What kind of girl was she?

In fact, the victim, Yang Xin, was also a top student. Born in Beijing in 1986, those who knew her described her as a sunny and beautiful woman.

Indeed, she is almost always smiling in every photo. Yang Xin's family was of modest means, but she came from a cultured background; her parents and grandparents were both teachers and principals, and they raised her with strict discipline.

At 18, Yang Xin went to Canada alone to study at Memorial University of Newfoundland.

To graduate early, she completed six courses in her final semester. To ease her family's financial burden, she also worked two on-campus jobs.

After graduating with excellent grades, Yang Xin worked at a local fast-food restaurant, quickly rising to assistant manager. Simultaneously, she took the GMAT and was accepted into a Master's program in Accounting at Virginia Tech in the United States. She also obtained Canadian permanent residency.

Her English teacher later said in a media interview that Yang Xin was an exceptionally bright student who completed a four-year university business program in less than three years.

And she was also a lovely and outgoing girl. According to Yang Xin's friends, she lived a frugal life, never wore makeup, disliked shopping, and brought all her clothes and skincare products from China.

It's fair to say that such a simple and ambitious girl, if not for this horrific case, would undoubtedly have had a bright future.

Perhaps influenced by her family, Yang Xin once told friends that she wanted to complete her master's degree in the United States, then pursue a doctorate, and eventually become a university professor. Unfortunately, her dream of becoming a teacher was cruelly nipped in the bud.

On Yang Xin's social media page, Zhu Haiyang can be seen as one of her friends. Later media reports stated that Zhu Haiyang met Yang Xin on a Chinese social networking site.

On January 8, 2009, Yang Xin arrived in the city where Virginia Tech is located. Being in an unfamiliar country made her somewhat nervous.

Fortunately, Zhu Haiyang, a fellow Chinese alumnus from the same university, picked her up at the airport. Although it was their first meeting, it made her feel very welcome.

Because Zhu Haiyang had enrolled a year early, he was quite familiar with the school and its surroundings. With his help, Yang Xin quickly completed her enrollment procedures.

According to a later media interview with a school staff member, Zhu Haiyang appeared rather assertive when accompanying Yang Xin to the college for registration, while Yang Xin seemed rather docile and somewhat nervous.

Afterwards, being new to the area and knowing few people, and trusting Zhu Haiyang, Yang Xin listed his name along with her mother's in the emergency contact section of the school registration.

After completing enrollment, Yang Xin faced a very specific problem—where to stay. Since it was winter break and the freshman dormitories were not yet open, and Yang Xin had no local friends, staying in a hotel would be too expensive.

Therefore, Zhu Haiyang generously suggested that Yang Xin stay temporarily in his off-campus apartment, so they could look after each other and save money.

Yang Xin, at that point, didn't have any better options, so she accepted the suggestion and moved into Zhu Haiyang's apartment. Over the next few days, they gradually became acquainted.

Four days later, Yang Xin still felt that the two of them were too different as men and women, and that their lives would be inconvenient. So she suggested that she rent a separate apartment and live alone.

Unbeknownst to her, in those few short days, Zhu Haiyang had already fallen deeply in love with her. Despite this, Zhu Haiyang felt her request was reasonable and that he had no reason to refuse.

Therefore, he even helped her find an apartment, specifically asking his landlord if he could rent out a room for Yang Xin. However, due to incomplete paperwork, this plan didn't work out.

After Yang Xin found an apartment and moved out, the two still met frequently. After getting to know each other, Zhu Haiyang felt that they shared similar values ​​and lifestyles; Yang Xin was practically his soulmate.

Based on previous details, he believed that Yang Xin's actions, such as setting him as her emergency contact and moving into his apartment temporarily, indicated that she had feelings for him.

With this in mind, he quickly confessed his feelings to Yang Xin. To his surprise, Yang Xin was initially taken aback by his sudden confession, but then decisively rejected him.

In Yang Xin's mind, Zhu Haiyang was just a kind and approachable senior. Their relationship, aside from being alumni and online friends, was at best that of friends. Frankly, Zhu Haiyang wasn't the boy Yang Xin was interested in.

Faced with Yang Xin's rejection, Zhu Haiyang believed it stemmed from her modesty and that since they had only known each other for a short time, Yang Xin might be testing him.

Therefore, he didn't give up and continued to frequently ask Yang Xin out. Finally, Yang Xin had to confess to Zhu Haiyang that she already had someone she liked back in China.

This was a huge blow to Zhu Haiyang. From childhood, he had always been able to achieve what he wanted through hard work. But with Yang Xin, he felt an unprecedented sense of defeat.

On January 21, 2009, Zhu Haiyang again invited Yang Xin for coffee. Yang Xin politely declined, but Zhu Haiyang persisted, making over a dozen phone calls to insist on meeting her. As evening approached, Yang Xin, unable to bear the harassment any longer, finally told him she was at a restaurant. She intended to take this opportunity to make things clear and sever all ties completely.

When they met at the coffee shop, Zhu Haiyang appeared calm, and there was no argument during their conversation. Yang Xin thought today's communication could end amicably; after all, how deep could thirteen days of love really be?

When Zhu Haiyang pulled out a kitchen knife hidden on his person and slashed at Yang Xin, she was completely unprepared. She instinctively raised her hands to block, sustaining defensive wounds on her arms and hands, but ultimately couldn't escape Zhu Haiyang's vicious attack.

After the incident, the case caused a huge uproar online, with various forums, online communities, and social media platforms discussing it.

Soon, netizens discovered Zhu Haiyang's account on a website called "Metropolis." On January 7, 2009, he published a blog post mentioning that he had lost money in the stock market and wanted to kill and commit suicide.

Furthermore, this account published several articles expressing suicidal thoughts and a desire to vent anger through murder.

However, astute netizens quickly discovered the account was fake and suspected the website of manipulating time and user data for publicity.

Due to Zhu Haiyang's dramatic change before and after the crime, and the incomprehensibility of his behavior, many people fabricated stories and muddied the waters with this incident, influencing many people's emotions and judgments.

Numerous individuals claiming to know Zhu Haiyang or Yang Xin frantically shared what they considered to be "objective facts."

One post, titled "I Know This Girl," went so far as to portray Yang Xin as a slut, describing her as having questionable morals and being unfaithful, even giving her the nickname "Socket."

Whether this author truly knew Yang Xin is unknown, but her description of the two as not being friends, merely having attended a few classes together, and much of her information being hearsay.

It's clear she didn't truly understand Yang Xin, and her hearsay directly triggered a wave of online bullying against her.

Although media outlets interviewed Yang Xin's classmates and teachers, their portrayals of her differed drastically from the online rumors.

Her friends also posted tributes online, but these obviously didn't spread as quickly as posts containing such explicit content.

The girl who posted the initial post on January 26th deleted it and issued a clarification, but few saw it; instead, the label and nickname stuck.

Later, based on this initial post, someone further amplified the story. A person claiming to be a student at Virginia Tech released an article online.

This article, written from an insider's perspective, described how Yang Xin had a relationship with Zhu Haiyang while staying at his apartment, and afterwards, she allegedly blackmailed him for tens of thousands of yuan under the pretense of "non-consensual" sex.

Many netizens speculated that the two were negotiating the blackmail issue at the coffee shop, and that Zhu Haiyang killed her in a fit of rage after the negotiations broke down.

We can see that the prevailing public opinion at the time portrayed Zhu Haiyang as a sunny, handsome, and promising individual. He was lured into a trap by the promiscuous Yang Xin, leaving him with no other option but to commit this tragedy.

It must be said that online bullying depicted the simple and positive Yang Xin as a "power outlet," while the cruel murderer was hailed as a "hero" who rid the world of a scourge.

But is this truly the truth? After the incident, police found a $40 check in Yang Xin's apartment, written to Zhu Haiyang as payment for a few days' stay. A girl who didn't like to take advantage of others would hardly have the audacity to threaten and extort money.

And Zhu Haiyang wasn't entirely a gentle and harmless honest person. His landlord, Will, stated in a media interview that Zhu Haiyang was rude and aggressive; he had previously frozen the heater's water pipes, piled matches on the carpet, and clashed with the landlord.

The apartment manager also described him as having an "eccentric personality," and Zhu Haiyang had accused them of stealing his shoes without cause.

Ultimately, the court, through various pieces of evidence after the incident, reconstructed Zhu Haiyang's motive for the crime, directly refuting the various rumors circulating online.

In fact, Zhu Haiyang's academic and mental state had already begun to deteriorate before he met Yang Xin.

During his studies in Shanghai, Zhu Haiyang did indeed achieve excellent grades. When he first arrived in the United States, he was full of confidence, brimming with curiosity and anticipation for this unfamiliar country. He actively participated in school activities and watched American football games.

During winter break, he traveled to several cities in the United States and meticulously recorded his observations. However, as the pressure of his studies increased, he began to show regret about going to the United States.

He felt like he was living through his senior year of high school every day, and the job prospects for his major were not optimistic. Because he had too much fun in his first semester, Zhu Haiyang's GPA fell below 3.0. At the end of 2008, the department announced that he would be placed on probation for the following semester.

This meant that although he could continue attending classes, if he did not make progress during the probation period, he would face suspension or even expulsion. Even if he wasn't expelled, it would affect his eligibility to apply for teaching assistantships later.

After learning of this situation, Zhu Haiyang and another student who was on probation reported the issue to the school administration, but it remained unresolved.

They then researched other schools, considering transferring. These changes were a huge blow to Zhu Haiyang, who had always had a smooth life.

During the holidays, he didn't return home. He called his father, expressing his desire to drop out and mentioning suicide, but his family didn't take it seriously. While opposing his withdrawal, they simply told him to see the school's counselor.

However, after several counseling sessions, he felt worse because they only listened without offering any substantial help. Afterward, he closed himself off from his family.

Psychologist Daniel Murray, who interviewed Zhu Haiyang, his parents, and classmates multiple times after the incident, said that Zhu Haiyang's grandmother and mother both suffered from schizophrenia, and Zhu Haiyang himself suffered from depression. When he experienced repeated setbacks in a foreign country, his sensitive nerves collapsed.

If the setbacks in his studies plunged Zhu Haiyang into a slump, then another event that followed pushed him to the brink of despair.

In December 2008, Zhu Haiyang's classmate, Joseph Needham, invited him to his wedding. That day, Zhu Haiyang caught a garter thrown by the bride, signifying that he would be the next to get married.

Zhu Haiyang seemed particularly happy that day. Soon after, he met Yang Xin online, believing it was all fate.

When Yang Xin came to the school, she injected new vitality and hope into the previously depressed Zhu Haiyang, giving him a new anchor in life.

Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned; his repeated confessions of love were rejected. This outcome also greatly troubled Yang Xin. Her mother later recalled that during that time, her daughter told her that a boy was constantly harassing her, causing her great distress.

A few days before the incident, Yang Xin told Zhu Haiyang that she had found someone she liked and that they were at the point of discussing marriage. Later, police found an unmailed letter in Yang Xin's room. The envelope had a lipstick mark on it, clearly intended for her sweetheart.

The disruption to his studies coupled with the heartbreak completely devastated Zhu Haiyang. According to his confession, he resolved that day to kill Yang Xin and take her with him to the afterlife.

Two weeks after the crime, Zhu Haiyang attempted suicide in prison but was rescued. He then began receiving psychological treatment.

While we cannot confirm that he committed suicide to escape punishment, we can at least be certain that he did not truly want to end his life and go to the afterlife with Yang Xin.

During the trial, Zhu Haiyang admitted his crime and expressed his willingness to accept any punishment. After the trial, he briefly apologized to the victim's family, school, and community.

On April 19, 2010, Zhu Haiyang was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole.

Looking back at the entire case, although Zhu Haiyang had a high IQ, his resilience was extremely low. Rather than saying he loved Yang Xin too much and wanted to go to the afterlife with her,

it's more accurate to say that he couldn't handle life's setbacks and gave up easily when faced with adversity. Yang Xin, on the other hand, was once an outstanding girl, yet she was brutally murdered by him and even suffered cyberbullying after her death.

A young woman, new to the area, was pursued by a man she didn't like. Instead of getting entangled with him, she firmly rejected him. It could be said that she was entirely blameless in the entire incident; it was purely an undeserved misfortune.

Perhaps we should reflect more on how to properly cope with setbacks.

In fact, everyone experiences low points in life. Only through persistent effort and maintaining a positive attitude can we ultimately overcome ourselves and see a better tomorrow.