Auntie Feng sat directly across from Old He.
She was a middle-aged woman, unassuming and simple, who hadn't seen much of the world.
Old He had long since investigated Feng Xiangping. She was now 48 years old, originally from a rural village over two thousand kilometers away. After marriage, she followed her husband to work in the city. Not long after giving birth to their son, her husband tragically died in a construction site accident. His family blamed her for his death, calling her a jinx. After receiving the compensation money, they heartlessly kicked her out, along with her infant child.
Her own family, typical of those who favored sons over daughters, also refused to take in their married daughter who had "cursed" her husband and was now burdened with a "deadweight" child.
Left with no options, Feng Xiangping carried her son back to the only city she knew, desperately seeking work to survive.
It was while she was kneeling outside a restaurant, begging the owner to give her a dishwashing job to feed her child, that Xu Ruyi's parents happened to pass by. That chance encounter led to over twenty years of master-servant bonds.
When Old He investigated in Jiayuan Residential Complex, neighbors all said Feng Xiangping was honest, fiercely loyal, and utterly devoted to the Xu family. She had raised Xu Ruyi single-handedly and doted on her unconditionally.
Moreover, since joining the Xu household, Feng Xiangping had almost completely severed ties with her hometown. Neighbors said apart from two trips back for her parents' funerals, she never returned.
Naturally, she treated the Xu home as her own, and Xu Ruyi's parents treated her only son, Feng Zhi, with genuine care and responsibility—as if he were their own. From the moment Feng Xiangping moved in, the child came with her. Strictly speaking, he grew up in the Xu household. Later, the Xu family helped him register for residency, enabling him to attend nearby kindergarten, primary school, secondary school, and university. Throughout his upbringing, the Xu family spared no effort or expense in supporting him.
Qin Guan wasn't wrong—Feng Xiangping and Xu Ruyi had long surpassed the typical relationship of employer and nanny.
Though unrelated by blood, they were, at their core, family—closest kin.
Faced with Old He's questioning, Feng Xiangping naturally denied ever meeting "Zeng Demei."
"Yesterday? I did go to the western suburbs. Is it called Bell Sound Alley? I don't know the street's name. I don't read much, you see. I only know there's a big supermarket there, called… oh, Sam's Club. Usually, the young lady drives and takes me there to buy things the household needs."
"Yesterday, the young lady wasn't feeling well. You know, with everything happening at home… how could she withstand such a blow? Her health was never great to begin with. Illness? Not exactly an illness. It mainly started after she gave birth. When the mistress suddenly passed… the young lady collapsed, was hospitalized, and had to stay on bedrest until delivery. She never fully recovered. She's tried all kinds of tonics, taken every supplement… but she just doesn't get better. We saw a traditional Chinese doctor who said her foundation was damaged. I know, it breaks my heart… but how could she not grieve under those circumstances?"
"Ah, I'm no good at talking—I always end up rambling off topic. That's why before I came, the young lady reminded me: just answer what they ask… See? I'm talking too much again."
Feng Xiangping's plain, honest face was etched with the expected timidity, nervousness, and self-consciousness.
"I went to the supermarket to buy things. I used the young lady's card—a secondary card. The purchases are recorded. You can check if you don't believe me! Where I was standing? Right next to the supermarket entrance! I took a taxi there, so of course I got off right there!"
"I don't know any 'Zeng Demei.' I only heard that name for the first time when the young lady told me. She only mentioned it a couple of days ago because your people went to question her… otherwise, she probably wouldn't have known either…"
"She was in Bell Sound Alley too? Then I really don't know why. She saw me? Well, I certainly didn't see her. We don't know each other at all! I'm just a nanny. Look, I can't even speak proper Mandarin. Would she claim she knows me?"
That was the problem.
In the brief surveillance footage, "Zeng Demei" appeared at the mouth of an alley, looking around. Immediately afterward, Feng Xiangping emerged diagonally across the street.
"Zeng Demei" spotted Feng Xiangping, quickly crossed the road, and walked toward her location.
Then, after a blind spot in the surveillance coverage, neither woman was seen again in the footage.
With such a short clip showing no direct interaction, it was difficult to conclude they had "arranged to meet."
Yet, suspicion lingered.
"Zeng Demei"—a witness of critical importance to the case—just happened to "coincidentally" cross paths with Xu Ruyi's nanny, Feng Xiangping, near a suburban supermarket?
So coincidental?
But there was no concrete evidence to prove otherwise.
It was like the figure outside the aquarium—the one wearing Feng Zhi's jacket, looking exactly like Feng Zhi, yet absolutely confirmed not to be him.
Seemingly yes, yet definitively no.
Like the silhouette of a tree in thick fog: its outline clearly visible, yet upon approaching, finding nothing there—nothing at all.
Time and again, it was like this.
Old He narrowed his eyes, studying the unassuming nanny before him.
Somewhere along the way, everything concerning Xu Ruyi had become shrouded in this kind of dense fog. Impossible to sweep aside, impossible to see clearly. Vague, elusive, drifting in and out of focus.
Could that young woman, who appeared so fragile and gentle, truly be as Qin Guan claimed—a wolf in sheep's clothing, feigning weakness while manipulating everything from behind the scenes, playing an intricate, high-stakes game?
"He asked me about going to the supermarket yesterday. Something about a Bell Sound Alley nearby… I didn't even know that place existed! He asked if I'd seen 'Zeng Demei.' Seems like they found her there!"
By the time she returned to Guanlan Court, it was already dark. Auntie Feng reported truthfully to Xu Ruyi while preparing dinner.
Truthfully—Xiao Zhi had advised her: "Act like you don't know." Show surprise. Vent frustration. If she stayed completely silent about such a major case out of fear of possible surveillance devices in the house, that would be abnormal. That would be suspicious.
Auntie Feng "truthfully" complained: "He asked me so many questions! About Qin Guan, about you, young lady… Ah, I really don't get it. Qin Guan's the one who killed someone, who did such a terrible thing. Why grill me, a nanny?"
"Oh, and he asked about Xiao Zhi too! Showed me a video. The boy in it looked just like Xiao Zhi! I said it was him. He said it wasn't. I said, 'Isn't it?' Then he actually asked me, 'You're not sure? Can't you recognize your own son?' Later, he asked, 'Didn't your son Feng Zhi say he was coming to see Xu Ruyi? Why did he change his mind?'"
"I just don't understand! What does any of this have to do with my Xiao Zhi?"
Xu Ruyi listened quietly. She understood Auntie Feng's meaning—the police were seriously investigating Xiao Zhi now.
Regarding that, Xiao Zhi had always been confident: "Don't worry, Sis. On my end, they won't find a thing."
But Xiao Zhi had his own concern. His concern was "Zeng Demei."