Feng Qiushi deliberately emphasized the last sentence, attempting to use the military personnel to corroborate his innocence.

Zhao Feng paused for a moment. "I'll verify that. Who gave you the medicine? Did Er Laizi have any unusual reactions when he took the medicine?"

“It’s the common cold medicine used at the clinic, a white pill. Dr. Li asked me to get it.” Feng Qiushi answered quickly, afraid that he would give himself away if he was slow. “I gave him the medicine, but the hot water was from his house. He didn’t say anything was wrong when he drank it, just that it was a little bitter. After drinking it, he said he felt dizzy and wanted to sleep. You know, cold medicine usually makes you sleepy, so I didn’t think much of it.”

"When you left, what was the state of their stove? Was the lid closed or open? Were the windows closed?"

This question made Feng Qiushi's heart skip a beat. She quickly composed herself and pretended to recall, "I didn't pay much attention... I was too busy watching him drink his medicine, and his house really smelled bad. I really didn't have the mind to pay attention to anything else. Besides, I was only in there for ten minutes in total."

She lowered her head, not daring to look Zhao Feng in the eye, and could only stare at the tips of her shoes, praying in her heart that the questioning would end soon.

Xu Xinghe, sitting in the corner, remained silent, quietly observing Feng Qiushi's reaction.

When she answered questions, although she seemed to speak fluently, her fingers kept twisting the hem of her clothes, her eyes kept darting around, and when she mentioned the stove and the window, her speech slowed down noticeably.

These things may seem suspicious, but they cannot be used as evidence.

What if Feng Qiushi is just timid? What if she's afraid?

Who can say they're not afraid when faced with something like this?

Suddenly, Feng Qiushi spoke up, "Oh, right, there's one more thing. I did come to deliver medicine to Erlaizi, but I didn't actually want to go in. Even the soldiers told me to just hand the medicine over to them. It was Erlaizi who insisted that I go in."

After saying that, she lowered her head again.

Xu Mingli taught her all of this.

Xu Mingli said that if Erlaizi saw her, he would definitely try to get her in so that they could be alone together.

The reason is simple: Er Laizi must be very flustered right now. He needs to communicate with his accomplices to help calm himself down.

In that case, Er Laizi became the one who actively let Feng Qiushi in, rather than the one who insisted on going in.

This would reduce the suspicion against Feng Qiushi.

Secondly, whether she actually touched the stove or not, nobody knows. As long as she insists that she doesn't know, that's fine.

Remembering some things too clearly can make you seem too deliberate.

This ambiguous attitude is the most appropriate.

Finally, when Feng Qiushi left, he specifically mentioned that Er Laizi's house smelled rather bad, and that the stench would mask the smell of coal smoke to some extent.

What if there was already soot before she left?

At this point, Feng Qiushi's suspicion was reduced even further.

Finally, those two soldiers would definitely go in to check on Er Laizi's condition. When Feng Qiushi left, Er Laizi was alive, so even if he died, what did it have to do with her?

They say she touched the stove?

There needs to be evidence, right?

Does anyone have proof that she did it? Why can't it be that Erlaizi messed it up himself?

The coal was recently given to Erlaizi by the military. He used to burn firewood. What if an accident happens because he's not used to it or doesn't understand it?

At this point, Feng Qiushi's suspicion has diminished even further.

Zhao Feng closed his notebook. "That's all for today. We'll verify what you said. Don't leave the village until the case is cleared up. Be available at any time."

"Okay...okay." Feng Qiushi felt as if he had been granted a pardon. His legs were weak when he stood up, and he almost staggered out of the house.

Watching her figure disappear through the door, Lian Xiao couldn't help but mutter, "There's definitely something wrong with that woman! She didn't even dare to look up; she's clearly guilty!"

Zhao Feng nodded. "Let's verify two things first. First, Dr. Li from the clinic, to confirm whether Feng Qiushi really delivered the medicine. Second, the soldiers who were guarding Er Laizi's house yesterday, to find out what happened yesterday."

Lian Xiao immediately agreed, "I'll go right now!"

Only Zhao Feng and Xu Xinghe remained in the office.

Xu Xinghe couldn't help but ask, "Comrade Zhao, do you think we can catch the murderer?"

To be honest, although Feng Qiushi didn't look too well, her answers were actually quite correct.

"It's uncertain." Zhao Feng spoke frankly. He wasn't one to beat around the bush. "Let's wait for the experts to examine the body. If it really was caused by coal smoke, then it's probably an accident."

“It wasn’t an accident!” Xu Xinghe frowned. “You…”

Zhao Feng interrupted her, "I know it might not be an accident, but do you have any evidence? If Er Laizi's death was indeed due to coal smoke, then who did the coal smoke? Feng Qiushi? But when she left, Er Laizi was still alive, and she even mentioned that the house smelled bad, and our people even went in to check. The final conclusion can only be that Er Laizi was unlucky and we were negligent, not that Feng Qiushi killed him."

No matter how carefully you check, who will actually check the stove?

Besides, the soldiers were only guarding Er Laizi; as long as he was safe, that was enough.

They only stare at the people, not the stove!

Seeing that Xu Xinghe's expression was not good, Zhao Feng softened his tone, "But there is also a good thing. At least we know that Feng Qiushi may be a suspect, but she doesn't seem to be such a smart person. I suspect that someone must have instructed her."

"Shen An!" This was the only person Xu Xinghe could think of!

Did he really do it?

Why did he do that?

He clearly has no grudge against Jiang Linchuan!

Xu Xinghe sat in the chair, silent.

For the first time, she felt powerless, a powerlessness that defied description.

Since arriving in Heilongjiang Province, she had never felt this way, not even when facing Wang Zhizhi and Li Xingzhou.

Xu Xinghe bit her lower lip tightly. "No matter what, we must keep a close eye on Feng Qiushi's family! I don't believe they can hide their true colors so well; they'll eventually slip up!"

Zhao Feng nodded in agreement, his tone calm and steady, "That's what I think too. The military and the police are all about evidence when handling cases. Even if they know the other party has a problem, they can't just arrest someone without solid evidence. The only way right now is to keep an eye on them 24 hours a day. This will prevent them from killing anyone again and also wait for them to make a mistake on their own."

As soon as he finished speaking, several soldiers carried a stretcher covered with a white sheet past the courtyard.

Er Laizi's body was on top; it was to be sent back to the military headquarters and handed over to Expert Chen for further autopsy.

Xu Xinghe stood up and followed them back to the military headquarters.

The autopsy results came out the next day.

It has been confirmed that Erlaizi died from acute carbon monoxide poisoning.

The cause of his father's death has also been more clearly determined: there was an irregular depressed fracture at the back of his head with radial bone cracks at the edges. Based on the shape of the injury, the murder weapon should be a hammer, a hard object with a blunt surface, such as a stone hammer, which caused a fatal injury with a single blow.

The only thing we can do now is to investigate the murder weapon and see if we can find the killer.

When Xu Xinghe returned home, she glanced at the food on the table but didn't even have the heart to pick up her chopsticks.

Jiang Linchuan, who was opposite her, took in her disappointment, walked up behind her, and gently embraced her.

His palm rested on her back, gently stroking it. "Don't rush, relax. The military and the police are investigating with all their might. Since the murderer left traces, they can't escape. It just takes some time. When I'm on missions, many situations are similar to this. You can't rush, you have to wait. Waiting is the norm most of the time."

Xu Xinghe buried her face in his clothes, the familiar scent of soap filling her nostrils. Her tense nerves finally relaxed a little, and her voice was a little hoarse, "I'm just afraid... afraid that someone else will get into trouble."

"No, we've already stationed a team of soldiers there to keep an eye on any suspicious individuals. They won't escape our notice if they make any unusual moves."