The small meeting room was nearly full.
Old He sat in his chair, eyes closed, his hands anxiously rubbing his cheeks—up and down, down and up, inside out, then outside in. His ears strained to block out the "urging" sounds around him—someone feigning a cough, someone rhythmically tapping the table with their fingertips.
"Captain He…" Qi Zhifei spoke first, softly prompting, "Let's discuss the case…"
He was Old He's superior, but not the highest authority in the room. On one side sat leaders waiting to hear the case details; on the other was his stubborn mentor, the very man who'd personally guided him when he first joined the force. Caught in the middle, he felt deeply conflicted.
"The situation has changed. It must be reported promptly," a leader stated sternly. "This case is under intense public scrutiny. There's no room for error."
Old He knew he couldn't avoid it.
And he hadn't been trying to.
His delay in reporting, his stubborn insistence on working alone and keeping the case close—some might see it as a bid to claim all the credit. But only he knew the truth: that wasn't it.
He needed a definitive truth. An ironclad fact. A result that, once handed over to the procuratorate, would leave no doubt about nailing that fenghuangnan (gold-digging man).
But now, that outcome was growing murkier by the day.
"Captain He, no matter how complex this case is, we have to follow the evidence, right? All these years, I've remembered what you taught me: the biggest taboo in handling cases is letting personal feelings interfere. We must proceed with reason, not emotion, and move forward step by step with the evidence!"
Seeing Xiao Wu enter with a cup, Qi Zhifei took it, filled it at the nearby water dispenser, and placed it before Old He.
Up close, he could clearly see the white hair now covering nearly a quarter of Old He's head—streaks mixed with black, messy, greasy, dirty. He probably hadn't gone home to shower in a week.
Qi Zhifei's heart clenched. The words of persuasion on the tip of his tongue froze in his mouth.
He understood this old detective's pain all too well. Years ago, in that case, he'd been Old He's right-hand man, involved from start to finish. If not for that case, Old He would undoubtedly be the captain today.
That case was a lifelong wound in Old He's heart.
His sister-in-law—his closest kin. When Old He married, the girl was still in middle school. He was both brother-in-law and elder brother to her. Her parents ran a large business and were busy, so Old He and his wife transferred her to a local school to care for her. She lived with them all through college.
After graduation, she owned her own apartment, yet she still chose to live with her sister and brother-in-law.
"My little sister loves staying at our place," Old He often boasted proudly at the station. "Says it's comfortable. Truth is, she and my wife both love my cooking! I'm not bragging—my cooking beats most restaurant chefs. My little sis said when she finds a partner, step one is making him learn to cook from me, her brother-in-law!"
Old He had lost his parents young, and his own sister died in childhood. His wife and this gentle, obedient sister-in-law filled the void of family in his heart.
He tried to find her a match among colleagues. He screened her suitors like a dutiful brother. Yet, in the end, he could only watch helplessly as she chose a fenghuangnan the whole family vehemently opposed. He watched her throw herself headlong into the relationship, watched them defy all objections to date, get engaged, and marry.
Then, Old He—in uniform—walked into the scene of her death. And still in uniform, he stood numb and powerless as that man walked freely out of the police station gates.
...
"I'll report," Qi Zhifei took the stack of documents from Xiao Wu. Though the case was fully assigned to Old He, Qi Zhifei had kept abreast of every development since Qin Guan's arrest.
"On the surface, the case seems straightforward. The crime scene, the motive, all the evidence—everything points to Qin Guan."
Qi Zhifei glanced at the leaders and added, "Qin Guan comes from a poor, lowly background. He relied entirely on the Xu family's support to study and attend university. He got into the law firm through his father-in-law's connections, but his own ability is genuinely strong. He rose quickly in the firm, won many cases these past few years, and is highly regarded professionally for his skill. However—"
His eyes filled with disdain. "The man's character is rotten. Our investigation found he takes cases without principles, motivated solely by money. He's repeatedly defended local thugs and ruffians, often using unscrupulous—even ruthless—tactics. He's suspected of fabricating evidence in several cases, but we've never been able to pin it on him."
"In short, the man is extremely cunning and highly specialized—a criminal defense lawyer who knows our procedures like the back of his hand. So, Captain He needs more time to verify every detail. It's to leave him no loopholes, to ensure the entire case process is legally watertight…"
"Enough. I'll take it from here." Old He finally lifted his head. He patted Qi Zhifei's arm, silently thanking him for his defense and understanding.
He took a deep breath. Don't let personal feelings interfere. Stay calm. Be detached. That was the fundamental requirement for investigators.
"If I'm being honest," Old He said, "this suspect, Qin Guan, is a highly intelligent, exceptionally capable piece of scum."
But much of the "truth" this scum had confessed was real.
Starting with "Zeng Demei."
"The Lakeside Charm Hotel—there really was someone by that name. She checked in using the ID of Qi Min's mother, Zeng Demei. She worked for five days, then suddenly left. There are no photos, but the surveillance footage captured her."
Xiao Wu projected the surveillance image of "Zeng Demei" onto the large screen on the wall.
"This same person also worked a few days as a temp at Spring Beauty Cleaning. Simultaneously, she booked Room 201 at the Lotus Hotel. The timing matches Qin Guan's statement exactly."
"After the incident, we circulated her photo to all major transit hubs immediately. We received no leads. We suspected she'd fled to another city and gone into hiding. But yesterday—"
Old He nodded. Xiao Wu swiftly pulled up a new clip on the screen—a very brief surveillance video. In it, a woman wearing a hat and mask appeared furtively at the mouth of an alley, looking around nervously.
"Employees from Lakeside Charm identified her. Her build and posture closely match 'Zeng Demei.' Enlarging the image reveals the injury on her hand. We can confirm it's the same person."
"And at the exact same time—" Xiao Wu adjusted the video. Another face flashed in the corner of the frame.
A face everyone recognized.
Auntie Feng—Feng Xiangping, the nanny who'd worked in Xu Ruyi's household for over twenty years.