Qin Guan sat on the prisoner's chair in the interrogation room, feeling every pore in his body relax with pleasure. It was well past lunchtime; the plain steamed bun and boiled cabbage he'd eaten in the morning had long been digested, yet his body seemed brimming with inexhaustible energy.
He had done it.
After his second narration, He Zhisheng's superior had entered.
By the time he finished the third retelling, the bureau leadership had arrived.
Everyone listened intently to his words. Everyone solemnly examined the evidence laid out before He Zhisheng.
Finally.
The case had finally reached the crucial turning point Qin Guan desired—from his experience, the case could no longer be hastily wrapped up and submitted. Instead, a seismic shift was imminent.
Xu Ruyi had killed Qi Min.
Yes, a few days ago, this conclusion would have been unthinkable to them. They wouldn't even have listened, dismissing it as Qin Guan's ridiculous nonsense.
But now, they would investigate. They would verify every detail he mentioned, scrutinizing, cross-checking, seeking the truth.
And then?
Then they would discover Qin Guan hadn't lied, while Xu Ruyi was full of lies.
Then Xu Ruyi's suspicion would steadily deepen—that bitch lacked the skill to clear her name.
This was the true purpose behind Qin Guan's initial plea for a "polygraph" test. This was the outcome he had been meticulously guiding and plotting towards.
He had laid so much groundwork, confessed so many facts, all to steer the result here.
He had truly succeeded.
Qin Guan was alone in the interrogation room. Outside the tightly closed door, shadows of hurried footsteps flickered past. He knew without thinking that the bureau was likely holding an emergency meeting right now, discussing this intricate case.
They would take it extremely seriously. They would assign tasks to meticulously verify every detail he had mentioned.
They would arrest that overconfident bitch and bring her in for questioning.
Thinking of this, Qin Guan's heart was supremely soothed. If it weren't for the cameras, he might have clapped his hands and sung a triumphant song right there.
Xu Ruyi, ah, Xu Ruyi—naive and foolish. Did she really believe that with just her, an illiterate nanny, and that nanny's stupid son—three insignificant pieces of trash—they could deceive the heavens and escape the eyes of the police?
And even defeat him, a professional, undefeated criminal defense lawyer?
Pure fantasy.
Qin Guan sat quietly in the chair, taking a sip of the cold water from the simple disposable cup before him. The icy water, carrying the clarity of victory and the chill of reason, slipped smoothly through his teeth and into his very core.
He tilted his head slightly, casting a cold glance at the camera in the corner of the ceiling. As he lowered his head, the corner of his mouth lifted in an imperceptible, cold smile.
Currently, he held at least three winning cards in his hand.
First, "Zeng Demei." That woman impersonating Qi Min's mother couldn't have appeared out of thin air, nor could she vanish without a trace. For Xu Ruyi to complete the "Lakeside Murder" narrative, she needed to control this woman's appearance.
How could she possibly control the movements of a living person?
Unless… she had ended that person's life.
Second, Feng Zhi.
Feng Zhi was indispensable to Xu Ruyi's entire plan. All the execution must have been done by that kid. Did she think hiding him in Jiayuan Residential Area meant no one would find him?
This was also the most fatal flaw in her plan. Feng Zhi was a university student. To carry out the tasks, he must have taken time off—how utterly stupid to overlook such a basic point? Did she think a simple lie to the police would cover everything?
Of course, regarding Feng Zhi, He Zhisheng hadn't explicitly stated what he'd found, but Qin Guan didn't need to ask to know the answer.
Besides Feng Zhi, Xu Ruyi couldn't have found anyone else willing to help her with this.
The third point, and the most crucial one in this entire case—the time of death.
Qin Guan closed his eyes, slowly and relaxedly twisting his neck—he still hadn't figured out exactly when or how Xu Ruyi had moved Qi Min's body to the lakeside villa, miles away. But it didn't matter. None of it mattered. What she did was ultimately futile.
She had stupidly mimicked the form, gathering so-called "criminal evidence, motive, scene, and process." It was useless—she couldn't change the time of death.
And the time of death would overturn everything she had personally orchestrated.
Because Qi Min didn't die during her business trip. Her time of death was a full two weeks later.
Two weeks! Did that idiot know the vast difference a corpse exhibits after two weeks? Did she know forensic pathologists weren't just for show?
Qin Guan lowered his head, the profound relaxation making him truly want to laugh—this point alone was enough for him to overturn the case.
His victory meant the stupid mastermind behind the scheme was about to be locked up.
Qin Guan drained the cup of water in one gulp—that bitch must be celebrating at home right now, thinking she'd won. Little did she know her days of freedom were numbered.
The interrogation room door opened. Xiao Wu hurried in, grabbed the thermos cup from the table, and left.
As the door opened, fragments of sound from outside rushed in.
"Suspect's family member..." "Xu Ruyi..." "Feng Zhi..."
Qin Guan listened calmly to these fragments, watching quietly as Xiao Wu closed the door again.
His fingers, trembling with suppressed excitement and anticipation, lightly tapped the wooden armrest of the prisoner's chair.
Xu Ruyi and Feng Zhi would be brought in soon.
Very soon—if the police seriously looked for "Zeng Demei," it wouldn't be difficult. Once they found this woman, Xu Ruyi's private dealings with her would be fully exposed.
Feng Zhi should also be on his way here. That foolish boy, choosing to meddle with Xu Ruyi instead of focusing on his studies—stupidly repaying a debt was one thing, he'd most likely taken Xu Ruyi's money too.
Incredibly short-sighted. The Xu family's sponsorship could have been repaid later with money. Was it worth sacrificing his own future? As for money, once he graduated, stepping into a good industry using the Xu family's connections, wouldn't he have earned plenty?
Now it was over. Feng Zhi tailing him, tailing Qi Min—all of it would come to light. The omnipresent surveillance cameras would capture his figure.
The most crucial piece was the Xinhe Hotel.
Thinking of this, Qin Guan truly wanted to clap his hands and laugh out loud—that ignorant bitch, trying to be clever, had actually cleaned the room, wiping away all traces of Qi Min!
She wanted to cement the fact that Qi Min had been missing, never realizing this move inadvertently gave him, Qin Guan, a massive advantage.
Because she had also wiped away all traces of his crime.
Utterly stupid.
Therefore, naturally, Qi Min must have been killed by Xu Ruyi. After all, she had ample motive and an accomplice to carry out the act.
Even if they both remained suspects, his chances of winning were far greater than Xu Ruyi's.
Because he was professional.
Qin Guan felt refreshed, his mind clear. He took a deep, confident breath, surveying his surroundings. His cold eyes gleamed with lucid determination—this place, the interrogation room, the detention center, even prison—that was where Xu Ruyi was destined to reside. Once she was arrested, Qin Guan wouldn't need to hire another lawyer; he would apply to represent himself.
He would face that bitch directly. Then, inch by inch, he would tear away her flimsy, laughable disguise. He would personally send her to prison. And then, holding their daughter as his shield, he would step by step devour every last bit of the inheritance left by her parents.
He would definitely succeed.