บท 33: The Listener

บรรณาธิการ: Atlas Studios

This was a handsome and charming man.

He had the same stature as Zhao Jiahang, tall and had an elegant and noble disposition. However, he was much younger than Mr. Zhao. When he glanced back with a smile, his eyes had an indescribable glint. There was complacency in being frivolous and carefree, yet they seemed to understand thoroughly about the ways of the world.

Mrs. Zhao turned to looked at Xiao Cheng. "You betrayed me…?"

Xiao Cheng flinched his neck and lowered his head. He daren't look at her.

The eminent monk sitting on the cattail cushion stood up slowly as he removed the bald headgear and said loudly, "Amitabha."

"Say early, say later, it's still about saying it. You don't tell us, or mislead us, why not just tell us. Mrs. Zhao, just come clean!"

…

"My goodness! This is totally…"

This scene totally refreshed the three outlooks¹ of Xiang Wan who was watching the "live broadcast" in the security room of the Criminal Investigation Unit.

Quan Shaoteng had disguised as Mr. Zhao to deceive Mrs. Zhao but why did he shout "Tian Xiaoya"? She had freaked out earlier.

"Senior, is there something wrong with my ears?"

Xiang Wan looked so incredulous that Zhan Se couldn't help laughing.

"Of course not."

"So…"

What a turn of events!

The amazing logic!

Such a scary scheme!

A chill rose from the soles of her feet. Xiang Wan lowered her head and asked Zhan Se softly, "Whose idea was it?"

Zhan Se stifled a laughter as her gaze landed on Bai Muchuan. "… Make a guess?"

Her eyes had already given away the answer. Was there still a need to guess?

Precisely! Besides Detective Bai, who else would do that?

Xiang Wan huffed a sigh as she felt a weight lifted off her mind.

No matter who was the murderer, at least the case was being accounted for. Her being a suspect should have been cleared, right?

Xiang Wan cleared her throat, "Detective Bai… could you tell me what's going on?"

Bai Muchuan's knuckles were tapping on the table leisurely as he looked toward Huang He.

"Time to wrap up! Let them bring her back for interrogation!"

"Yes, Boss!" Huang He gave him a thumbs up. He had a smile of appreciation when he left to make arrangements.

The computers inside the security room was flashing with a faint light.

Zhan Se gave a yawn, then said that she was tired and needed a rest so as to prepare for the overnight interrogation.

With that, she left the room, leaving behind Xiang Wan and Bai Muchuan.

Both of them had been alone together rather frequently, and had already been accustomed to each other's presence. Xiang Wan was now less restrained with Bai Muchuan around and could raise her questions more naturally.

"Why did Mrs. Zhao turn into Tian Xiaoya?"

Bai Muchuan's eyebrows were raised. He almost couldn't contain the urge to show his arrogance on his nonchalant dashing face.

"She stood up on both feet."

Stood up on both feet? What does that mean?

Bai Muchuan replayed the video again. "Your powers of observation, sigh!"

That sigh made Xiang Wan's face burn slightly.

It was not that she did not notice, but the eerie atmosphere that Quan Shaoteng had created had overwhelmed her and grabbed her attention, that she did not think too much about it.

"Mrs. Zhao had long since been disabled. She had never left her wheelchair wherever she went, and it's really impossible for her to stand up." Xiang Wan analyzed the case by herself, ignoring Bai Muchuan's expression. "But how did you know that she is Tian Xiaoya and not some other person?"

Bai Muchuan tilted his head, his eyes seemed to contain a lot of emotion. "Ain't you the one who told me that?"

"Me?" Xiang Wan pointed her finger at her nose. "… I don't understand."

"You've seen the 'supposingly dead' Tian Xiaoya numerous times. If she's not alive, then you must be suffering from some mental illness?!"

"…"

Xiang Wan could not refute that.

By now, the case was basically clear.

Nevertheless, there were still some suspicious points that were not resolved.

"If so, after Zhao Jiahang's death, Er Niu should be the one who discarded the dead cats in the trash bin outside Zhao Jiahang's home? If she copied the plot from my story, then she must have seen my plot outline… No, maybe it was even earlier when she suggested the name and character traits of 'Ah Sheng' in my story, she might have already bore a murderous intent. But, I still don't understand, why did the rest of the readers denied that they've seen the plot outline?"

Bai Muchuan did not answer.

The two of them looked at each other for a while.

He suddenly gave a sneer, "You've never suspected yourself?"

"Will you suspect yourself?"

Xiang Wan had a disdainful frown and replied with another question.

"Moreover, in this case, Er Niu being a delicate woman, how would she be able to do everything by herself?

"Therefore, she has accomplices!

"Wang Tongsheng or Xiao Cheng? Or maybe… some other people?"

Bai Muchuan stretched himself, his long legs rested on a stool, then took a book and covered his face.

"If I were you, I'll seize the time to write more. Time is money."

"…"

The long, melodious voice reminded Xiang Wan of a problem.

Time was indeed, money. If she were to write her update now, and rush to publish the chapter before the police released news of the murder case, how "scary" would that be?

Her book… would shoot to fame?

And money, surely more money would be rolling in?

She would most probably be amongst the ranks of the famous authors?

Xiang Wan felt her cheeks burning slightly again as she thought of taking advantage of the situation.

Meh! It was true that she wanted to be famous as well as earn more money, but she also has her own integrity.

Bai Muchuan had underestimated her.

She sat in a daze for a long time, then she finally opened the laptop she brought along with her.

For the sake of the pride that resided in her heart, as well as upholding the integrity of a well-learned person, she did not follow the "true story behind the scenes" that she witnessed, rather, she decided to stick to her original outline…

"In the first place, Er Niu did not die. When the tycoon's wife learnt of the affair between him and Er Niu, she flew into a rage. She made the tycoon choose between losing all standing and reputation or get rid of his lover and the illegitimate child. The tycoon paid lip service that he would deal with his lover. At that time, he hid Er Niu secretly and forged the death certificate to appease his wife.

"Ah Sheng was the only one who knew this secret. Why did Ah Sheng admit to the murder? Firstly, it was because his loved one had died. Secondly, he did that to protect Er Niu so that the tycoon's wife would not continue to exact vengeance and harm her."

… At the end of the chapter, maybe it was because she was subconsciously upset about something, Xiang Wan specifically modified her plot outline to pave her way for the next case in a series of cases in "Murder The Dream Guy".

"Rong Xiaonuan gave a summary of the case in the book. In this story, there's no good or bad, everyone's just an ordinary person where they possessed good and evil within them. Each of them had their reasons, but they were not innocent. People who did wrong will ultimately get punished—of course, this also applied to the liars."

…

Xiang Wan's new chapter was written smoothly, and after uploading to the website, Zhan Se knocked on the door and came into the room.

The two women started to make some small talk about their campus, their life at University of Zhong Zheng, when Quan Shaoteng, Huang He, and the rest of detectives came back.

Huang He came in a huff, reporting in a joyous tone that Tian Xiaoya did not put up any resistance and allowed herself to be taken away by the police. However, she had not spoken a word since.

Zhan Se stood up. "I'll go take a look."

Bai Muchuan nodded. "Together."

As he said that, he turned to give Xiang Wan a glance.

This very glance had a subtle meaning to it.

Although he had said nothing, Xiang Wan seemed as if she had received a special permit. Her eyes lit up, and like a little mouse, she followed them gingerly.

…

Inside the interrogation room, the air-conditioning was freezing cold.

Xiang Wan let out a sneeze and hurriedly covered and wiped her mouth.

Everyone was now present.

Bai Muchuan walked over and patted Quan Shaoteng on the shoulder. "You've done well! I'll make a suggestion to Boss Leng of Red Thorn Squad to let you switch profession so we can work together!"

Quan Shaoteng got worried upon hearing that. "Don't do that, brother, you're repaying kindness with ingratitude?"

The corners of Bai Muchuan's lips turned upward. "It's peacetime. Only I can give you the excitement you wanted."

Excitement? Quan Shaoteng liked guns and weapons, liked going on adventures as well as extreme sports. He enjoyed challenging and nerve-racking tasks. A simple sentence like this, after coming out from Bai Muchuan's mouth, somehow became a little ambiguous.

Quan Shaoteng let out a cough and put his hand on Bai Muchuan's shoulder. "Little Bai, did you f*cking have… designs on me?"

Bai Muchuan narrowed his eyes and took a close look at him.

Two seconds, in just two seconds, Quan Shaoteng retreated in fear by taking a step back.

Bai Muchuan punched a fist on his chest conveniently.

"Watch your conduct! Get cracking!"

Quan Shaoteng had a spurious smile. He touched his nose and sat idly on one side.

"Fine, I'll see what kind of excitement you can give me!"

"Lazy intelligence!" snorted Bai Muchuan coldly.

"Mentally retarded behavior!" rebutted the other.

Seeing the two adult men squabbling could make one at a loss of words.

Throughout their petty bickering, Xiang Wan maintained the consciousness of being a little mouse, not uttering a single word. Even so, she was almost simmering with laughter.

In the end, just when she revealed a smile, she got choked when Detective Bai shot a cold glare over at her.

Cough!

Hence, she sat there quietly in a corner, playing her role as a good listener.

…