Chapter 154 Torture

◎The loud noise tortured Xiang Dong's ears◎

Xiang Dong sat in the interrogation room, his hands cuffed and the iron chair cold.

All the policemen in front of him were wearing olive green uniforms, with cold faces and a strong sense of oppression in their seriousness. The eight big words "Leniency to those who confess, severity to those who resist" written on the snow-white wall made him feel breathless.

At this moment, Xiang Dong truly realized the power of the police.

Originally, Xiang Dong thought that he did not kill the person, nor did he authorize the murder. He had a perfect alibi, and no matter how powerful the police were, they could not do anything to him.

However, Xiang Dong is now sitting in the iron chair, looking at the policeman sitting majestically in front of him, his heart starts to beat, and he is no longer so sure - could it be that he is just going with the flow and is also breaking the law?

Huo Zhuo slammed the documents on the table.

"Bang!"

There was a noise, and Xiang Dong was startled, and his shoulders trembled.

Huo Zhuo started asking questions with a cold face.

"Name?"

"Age?"

"Nation?"

"Work unit?"

…

Obvious questions were raised one after another, and the voices of Huo Zhuo and Xiang Dong took turns echoing in this empty interrogation room.

Xiang Dong's heart was getting more and more anxious.

Huo Zhuo narrowed his eyes and stared at Xiang Dong closely.

At this moment, Huo Zhuo seemed to have transformed into a tiger, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Zhao Xiangwan sat aside, holding his breath, concentrating, and paying full attention to Xiang Dong's every move.

Huo Zhuo asked: "You and Cheng Xinru have an improper relationship, right?"

Xiang Dong lowered his head to look at his toes and replied in a low voice, "No."

Huo Zhuo raised his voice: "You are lying!"

Xiang Dong was forced to raise his head and meet Huo Zhuo's eyes: "Officer Huo, this is my personal matter. It has nothing to do with the case, right?"

Huo Zhuo sneered, "Private matters? In the interrogation room, you must answer every question I ask seriously! Otherwise..." He raised his hand and pointed at the eight big words on the snow-white wall, "Did you see it?"

Xiang Dong took a look at the eight big characters.

It was clearly the most common Fangsong font, and clearly just eight ordinary words, but it seemed to carry a tremendous force that made people shudder.

"I saw it." Xiang Dong spoke with a trembling voice, obviously a little flustered.

Huo Zhuo repeated what he had just said: "You and Cheng Xinru have an improper relationship, right?"

Under Huo Zhuo's gaze, Xiang Dong responded reluctantly: "I was dating Cheng Xinru for a while, but it ended after Yanyan found out."

Huo Zhuo shook his head with contempt in his eyes: "Xiang Dong, if you dare to do it, you must dare to admit it. You are sitting in the interrogation room and you are still lying! Do you know what this means? Deceiving the police is aggravated."

Xiang Dong didn't know what the police knew. He looked at Huo Zhuo guiltily and began to tell him the details of his relationship with Cheng Xinru.

"Xiao Cheng is young and pretty, and she adores me. At first, I just thought it was a pity for such a capable girl like her to work as a custodian in a warehouse, so I helped her a little and transferred her to the publicity department to become an announcer. I didn't expect that she would cling to me from then on, knitting sweaters for me, sending me hot soup, and asking about my well-being. She even said she wanted to marry me even though she knew I had a family. I admit that I am a man and I have vanity. Facing her gentle offensive, I quickly gave in. But...we are just dating normally, and we definitely didn't cross the line."

Huo Zhuo sneered: "Xiang Dong, your lies may be enough to win money and charm, but there is no need to tell them in front of the police. If you hadn't promised a woman and hadn't had skin-to-skin contact with her, how could she be so devoted to you that she would be content to stay at that shabby sales point in a small county for five years?"

Xiang Dong was still stubborn: "You have to believe me. Xiao Cheng and I really don't have any improper relationship between men and women. Everything is her will. If she has any problems, it has absolutely nothing to do with me."

In one word, it was said cleanly.

Huo Zhuo was furious when he heard this: "Xiang Dong, you are still lying to the police now! Let me ask you, who renovated Cheng Xinru's rental house in the small county? Who bought the TV and VCR? Who gave her 300 yuan a month for living expenses? Whose men's clothes are in Cheng Xinru's closet and shoe cabinet? And...who used the condoms in the trash can?!"

Huo Zhuo's voice became louder and louder. At the end, he slammed the table and stood up, his eyes wide open: "In the rental house you and Cheng Xinru shared, your fingerprints, hair, and dandruff are everywhere. Your DNA information is everywhere in the house. Do you still have the nerve to deny your relationship with Cheng Xinru in front of us?"

Xiang Dong was frightened by Huo Zhuo's aura and hunched his shoulders inward. He obviously did not expect the police to be so well prepared.

He lowered his head again, looked at his toes, and stammered for a long time, "Yes, Cheng Xinru and I are lovers."

Huo Zhuo pressed on: "Why are you lying?"

Xiang Dong felt like a bird trapped in a cage, flapping its wings for a long time but being knocked down by the cage again and again. One lie required countless lies to cover it up, which made him feel very passive.

"I... after all, I am a man with a family. It is not decent for me to have a mistress."

Xiang Dong's answer did not satisfy Huo Zhuo.

Huo Zhuo sneered, "Unseemly? Just unseemly? You cheated on your spouse during marriage, that's immoral!"

There were seven or eight policemen sitting in front of Xiang Dong, all staring at him with burning, mocking eyes. Even though no one spoke, Xiang Dong felt like he was sitting on pins and needles.

He suddenly raised his head and looked at Huo Zhuo: "Morality? What is morality? Using kindness to hold me back and force me to stay in that suffocating marriage, is this moral?"

Huo Zhuo was so angry that his lungs were about to explode!

The kindness is as heavy as a mountain, and in Xiang Dong's mouth it becomes a gratitude.

To Xiang Dong, forgiveness and tolerance are merely prolonging one's life.

Qian Yanyan accommodated Xiang Dong in every way, and the Qian family took care of Xiang Dong in every way, but all was in vain!

Huo Zhuo was a straightforward person. He slammed the table heavily and said, "Does your cheating on your wife make sense? This is simply robbery logic!"

Bang!

The sound of slapping the table was very loud. Xiang Dong shook his shoulders and glanced at Huo Zhuo: "Officer Huo, you are just telling the truth."

Huo Zhuo did not continue to discuss whether there was any reason for the extramarital affair, and turned the topic back to Cheng Xinru: "You and Cheng Xinru have been lovers for a long time, right?"

The evidence was irrefutable, so Xiang Dong had to admit, "Yes."

Huo Zhuo asked: "Do you want to be a long-term couple with Cheng Xinru?"

Xiang Dong firmly denied: "No, in my eyes, Cheng Xinru is just a little lover who can relieve stress and emotions. I am so much older than her, and her personality is undetermined. I have never thought of marrying her."

Zhao Xiangwan exchanged glances with his teammates.

Cheng Xinru wanted to marry Xiang Dong, and she even let her second brother kill Qian Yanyan. She thought that as long as she could clear the biggest obstacle on the road to marriage, she could marry Xiang Dong, but she never knew that in Xiang Dong's eyes, she was just a little toy.

Huo Zhuo also realized at this moment that Xiang Dong was an extremely selfish person.

He obviously took advantage of Cheng Xinru's feelings and let her be the first to take the initiative to deal with Qian Yanyan's affairs, while he himself reaped the benefits.

In Xiang Dong's future, there is no place for Cheng Xinru at all.

At first, Cheng Xinru was young, beautiful, innocent and lovely, which really made Xiang Dong's heart beat, but after a long time, he gave up. Cheng Xinru's cultural level was not much higher than Qian Yanyan, and her knowledge and family background were not as good as Qian Yanyan.

At most, it's just a little bit of novelty.

However, Xiang Dong made Cheng Xinru fall in love.

Cheng Xinru gave up too much for Xiang Dongshe, and she can't let go of this feeling.

Facing Cheng Xinru's deep affection and persistence, Xiang Dong dated her intermittently. He rented a house for her, gave her living expenses every month, and came to see her several times regularly. He made vows to her, but in his heart he was thinking about how to get rid of her.

After meeting Ai Linglan, Xiang Dong began to think about divorce and remarrying.

Ai Linglan was his first love, they spoke the same language and had a foundation of affection. More importantly, Ai Linglan was in a high position and had a bright future with the support of her uncle, a Hong Kong businessman.

Ai Linglan promised that if he could successfully get rid of Qian Yanyan, her original wife, she would use her power to transfer him to the provincial automobile machinery factory as deputy director.

In order to leave Zhu City and enter the provincial capital, Xiang Dong must be ruthless.

So Xiang Dong came up with an idea that killed two birds with one stone.

On the one hand, he intentionally or unintentionally tells Cheng Xinru about the pain of his marriage, exaggerating Qian Yanyan's tyranny and power, as if it was because Qian Yanyan threatened to die that he could not divorce. He keeps hinting that if Cheng Xinru wants to be a long-term couple with him, the only way is to kill Qian Yanyan.

On the other hand, he told Cheng Xinru that Qian Yanyan played mahjong in Building 3 in the West District every night, and scolded Qian Yanyan for being addicted to mahjong and returning home late at night. If she encountered a robber on the way, her life would be in danger.

With such a hint, Cheng Xin really had some ideas.

In order to make it easier for Cheng Xinru to find someone, Xiang Dong gave her nearly 5,000 yuan over the past few months. He said that he was buying her gold jewelry for the New Year, but in fact he was just giving her a helping hand.

In Xiang Dong's plan, after Cheng Xinru hired someone to kill Qian Yanyan, he would break up with her on the grounds that Cheng Xinru was cruel and cold-blooded. Cheng Xinru had the leverage in his hand, so she naturally didn't dare to make trouble and could only suffer the consequences.

In this way, he got rid of Qian Yanyan and Cheng Xinru at the same time.

After the scandal died down, Xiang Dong could marry someone else and no one would be able to find fault with him.

Cheng Xinru did not disappoint him.

On a winter night in March, Qian Yanyan was killed while he was drinking and bragging with his friends.

The police investigated and questioned Xiang Dong, and he had a perfect alibi.

What Xiang Dong didn't expect was that Min Chenghe would feel something was wrong and keep following Qian Yanyan.

When Cheng Yong took action, Min Chenghe appeared too quickly and he had no time to snatch the money from her.

Because no money was lost, the police did not classify the case as robbery. Instead, they focused their attention on Xiang Dong and were suspicious of him. The more they investigated, the more serious the case became, which made him feel something was wrong.

——It is obvious that Qian Yanyan’s death could have been caused by murder for money, revenge, mental illness, or passion, so why did the police insist on focusing on him alone and classifying it as a murder caused by emotional entanglement?

It can be said that if Min Chenghe had not had a premonition dream, if Zhao Xiangwan had not listened to Min Chenghe's voice patiently and quickly locked the target, I am afraid that the comrades of the Zhu City Public Security Bureau would still be running around to track down the enemies of the Qian family. As time goes by, all clues are cut off, and Qian Yanyan will really sink to the bottom of the sea unjustly.

Xiang Dong now had only one thought in his mind: since Cheng Xinru was being targeted by the police, he absolutely could not have anything to do with her. Whether it was murder or incitement to murder, Xiang Dong would never admit to the crime.

Seeing the policemen's suspicious eyes, Xiang Dong hurried to prove his innocence.

"Comrade police, I can't give up my own family for Cheng Xinru. When Yanyan and I met, I had nothing. No money, no house, and only a washbasin and a kettle in the single dormitory. When Yanyan and I were together, she didn't seek fame or wealth, but only me. Why would I want such a good wife, but a snobbish woman who is attracted by my status and position?"

Huo Zhuo felt that Xiang Dong was divided.

Sometimes he said he was grateful for Qian Yanyan's kindness, and sometimes he said she was repaying him with kindness; he said Qian Yanyan was a good wife, but secretly he and Cheng Xinru built another love nest.

Huo Zhuo's brain was about to explode, so he simply got straight to the point and shouted, "Xiang Dong, Cheng Xinru has confessed everything! It was you who instructed her to hire someone to kill Qian Yanyan."

After finding out the police's background, Xiang Dong became more relaxed.

He spread his hands and looked innocent: "Officer Huo, this is a complete frame-up. Cheng Xinru is possessed by a demon and wants to be my wife all the time. I have explained many times that I can't give up my family for her, but she won't listen."

When he was moved, Xiang Dong even covered his face and said with a choked voice: "I didn't expect...it was me who harmed Yanyan! I was wrong, I shouldn't have cheated, I shouldn't have betrayed Yanyan. Cheng Xinru looks weak and pure, but I didn't expect her to be such a black-hearted bad woman. In order to be married to me, she was so vicious that she hired someone to kill Yanyan!"

Xiang Dong put down his hands, tears in his eyes, and a face full of grief: "Comrade police, you must severely punish the murderer, Yanyan can't lose her life in vain. But, I swear to God, I really didn't instruct Cheng Xinru to kill people. This is all her lies. She wants to destroy me because she can't get me."

Watching Xiang Dong's performance, all the police officers present showed contempt on their faces.

Huo Zhuo looked for help at Zhao Xiangwan who was sitting quietly beside him: "Officer Zhao, come here."

[Damn it, if you keep asking, I want to slap him twice! ]

Zhao Xiangwan bowed and said, "Okay."

Zhu Kang and Zhu Feipeng held their breath at the same time. Great! Xiang Wan is finally going to make a move. Listening to Xiang Dong's broken mouth and watching his poor acting skills again, I'm really going to have a heart attack.

Zhao Xiangwan turned his gaze to Xiang Dong, who was brewing emotions: "How do you balance the relationship between them when you are playing with two boats, oh no, three boats?"

Xiang Dong was interrupted and was stunned for a moment: "You, what do you mean?"

Zhao Xiangwan smiled, but the smile did not reach his eyes: "Qian Yanyan is the original wife, Cheng Xinru is a plaything, what about Ai Linglan? What is she?"

Xiang Dong never thought that the police would trace his affair with Ai Linglan. His first reaction was to reject it: "Director Ai, she is just the leader of a provincial investment promotion bureau, nothing more."

Zhao Xiangwan threw Ai Linglan's resume on the table.

Bang!

The sound made Xiang Dong's shoulders tremble again.

Xiang Dong is afraid of sudden noises?

Zhao Xiangwan has observed three times that Xiang Dong has a subconscious reaction to this kind of sound: shaking his shoulders.

For the first time, Huo Zhuo threw the information on the table.

The second time, Huo Zhuo slammed the table.

The third time, I threw my resume on the table.

Every time, this sound would cause Xiang Dong to overreact.

“Bang!”

Zhao Xiangwan stared at Xiang Dong's expression, then raised his hand and slammed the table.

As he slammed the table, Zhao Xiangwan suddenly raised his voice: "You're lying! Ai Linglan told me that you were her first love, a love she has never forgotten."

Xiang Dong shrank his neck and his mind went blank for a moment.

Did she tell the police?

【Why do you want to say it? 】

[Didn’t we agree not to make it public now? She and I are just colleagues and superiors.]

Finally, Xiang Dong's voice was heard.

It is true that "after searching everywhere, you can finally find it without any effort."

Having grasped the key to unlock Xiang Dong's heart, Zhao Xiangwan's lips curled up into a faint smile.

This smile, in Xiang Dong's eyes, was pure mockery.

He tried to explain: "When we first fell in love, we didn't understand love. Although I did have some feelings for Ai Chu when we were sent to the countryside as educated youth, we later went our separate ways and didn't keep in touch, so the feelings naturally faded."

Zhao Xiangwan asked, "Has it really faded? I heard from the waiter at the Wilvis Hotel that you would show up at the hotel every time Ai Chu came to Zhu City? Is it appropriate to secretly meet with your first love without telling your wife and lover?"

Xiang Dong's neck stiffened, and he tried to control his facial expression: "It's just work. She is just my superior to me."

"Superior, leader?" Zhao Xiangwan slowly stood up, walked in front of Xiang Dong, and looked down at him.

Zhao Xiangwan is tall and her police uniform makes her look even more heroic, which makes Xiang Dong, who is looking up at her, feel very pressured.

Because Zhao Xiangwan's words only questioned but did not provide any direction, Xiang Dong did not know how to respond and could only repeat her words: "Superior, leader."

"You're lying!"

Zhao Xiangwan suddenly approached Xiang Dong and gave him a clear shout, which made him shudder.

【What did Linglan say? 】

[I don’t believe in others, but Linglan has remained a virgin for me for more than 20 years, so I believe in her.]

[She wouldn't be fooled by this policeman and tell him all my plans, right? ]

Sure enough, as long as Xiang Dong was frightened with a sudden noise, his inner thoughts would be revealed.

Zhao Xiangwan narrowed his eyes, folded his hands over his chest, and stared at the shameless man in front of him.

It seems that Xiang Dong told Ai Linglan about his plan to kill his wife.

But he certainly didn't make it clear.

He couldn't be stupid enough to tell Ellen that he had another lover.

"hehe……"

Zhao Xiangwan suddenly laughed.

This laughter made Xiang Dong feel a chill on his back.

He looked at Zhao Xiangwan suspiciously, wondering why the female police officer in front of him was laughing, and why her laugh was so strange.

Xiang Dong thought about it and realized that there was nothing wrong with him at all.

Qian Yanyan was murdered by Cheng Xinru. What does it have to do with him? He never ordered her to kill anyone. He only hinted at it.

He had an improper relationship with Cheng Xinru, so what? At most, he could be condemned on a moral level, but the law could not punish him.

From Huo Zhuo's questioning just now, Xiang Dong knew that the police had not yet grasped substantive evidence. As long as he denied instructing Cheng Xinru to kill, everything would be under control.

Zhao Xiangwan spoke slowly: "Ai Linglan, we have invited her to the Public Security Bureau and arranged for her to be in the interrogation room next to yours. Do you want to meet her?"

Xiang Dong's heart began to beat wildly, and he almost cried out: "What do you want to do with her? I told you! Director Ai and I are just a leader and subordinate relationship, there is no love affair."

Zhao Xiangwan's phoenix eyes flashed with a bright light: "Xiang Dong, do you know that women are jealous?"

Xiang Dong had a bad feeling and leaned back unconsciously, trying to distance himself from Zhao Xiangwan.

He felt that Zhao Xiangwan's eyes were like a deep pool, deep, mysterious, and frightening.

Zhao Xiangwan said, "If Ai Linglan knew that you and Cheng Xinru had built another love nest, guess what she would do?"

Xiang Dong's heartbeat was getting faster and faster, his throat was dry, and he said hoarsely: "I, I don't have any affair with Ai Chu..."

Zhao Xiangwan raised his right hand high and then brought it down heavily.

“Bang!”

This muffled sound hit Xiang Dong's heart hard, causing his shoulders to tremble.

It's a secret.

Xiang Dong's psychological shadow.

Xiang Dong has had a keen ear since he was a child. Sounds that ordinary people find normal seem extremely noisy to Xiang Dong.

My father was a worker in a towel factory and my mother was from the countryside. After she was introduced to my father and married him, she always felt inferior and was humble and cautious in everything she did.

My mother's humility encouraged my father's arrogance, and he would order her around every day after get off work. If she drank a little, my father would be even more arrogant and even hit her.

Xiang Dong's childhood was accompanied by the sound of flesh hitting flesh, as well as the sound of enamel basins and benches hitting the ground.

“Boom!”

"Bang!"

"Bang——"

Whenever his father came home and heard the sound of the key opening the door, Xiang Dong would become nervous and prick up his ears to listen to what was going on outside.

Whenever Xiang Dong heard a sudden noise, he would be frightened and hide in the corner, covering his ears and trembling.

Therefore, Xiang Dong wanted to get away from his original home and never wanted to live a life of fear again.

He wanted to be in control of his life.

Originally, he had gotten rid of it.

He married Qian Yanyan as he wished. His father-in-law was the only eighth-level clamper in the factory. His two brothers-in-law had supreme authority and connections in the factory, and he had his own family.

However, all the members of the Qian family have loud voices.

In a working-class family, everyone talks quickly. When they are happy, they laugh. When they are unhappy, they slam the table and curse their mother. Xiang Dong finds such a hot and exciting life too noisy.

Xiang Dong fell in love with Cheng Xinru because of her soft and sweet voice.

Xiang Dong's ears felt comfortable when he was with Cheng Xinru.

Xiang Dong was afraid of sudden noises and loud noises, and Ai Linglan, who was also an educated youth, knew this.

Ai Linglan has a gentle personality. She speaks softly and moves gently and slowly. Xiang Dong feels happy both physically and mentally when he is with her.

In Ai Linglan's world, the fragrance, whispers, music... everything seems so elegant. Xiang Dong wants to enter her world.

However, this secret has now been discovered by Zhao Xiangwan.

Xiang Dong was tortured in the interrogation room.

"Bang!"

"What is your relationship with Ai Linglan?"

"Bang!"

"Why do you want to kill Qian Yanyan?"

"Bang!"

"Where did you get the 5,000 yuan you gave to Cheng Xinru?"

Problems came one after another like a storm, leaving Xiang Dong completely unable to cope.

Loud noises one after another tortured Xiang Dong's ears and brought his spirit to the brink of collapse.