Chapter 58 Red Leaves 19
In the main interrogation room where Luo Siwei was, Qi Moxue wiped away her tears and continued to tell the story between her and these old people.
"I eventually took them in. The nursing home was already dilapidated and uninhabitable. I had just paid off my debts and was broke, so I had no choice but to find some vacant factories and house the elderly people there. I then found some of the former caregivers and tried to convince them to continue working."
"Auntie An is one of them. She's not young anymore, 64 this year. She was already in her fifties when I found her. Ge Wenfeng is also a caregiver there. He's 58 this year and has been with me since he was in his forties. The terms I negotiated with them were to provide their food and accommodation and a small salary. They take care of the elderly today, and I'll find someone else to take care of them tomorrow."
She paused and explained, "I've considered hiring younger caregivers, but they won't last long. It's a cycle. Only the elderly will care for the elderly wholeheartedly, because they always think about their own old age and hope that someone will treat them the same way when they grow old."
Luo Siwei asked, "How long have they been taking care of those elderly people?"
Qi Moxue said, "It's been more than ten years."
In other words, those people had been accompanying her since before the Hongye Nursing Home closed.
"Aside from two caregivers, the elderly do everything else themselves. They live together, with those who can move taking care of those who can't. A few of the healthier elderly are responsible for buying groceries and cooking."
"I went to look for my current job. My boss was impressed by my overseas experience and asked me to lead a team. I used a small portion of my salary to buy some cheap daily necessities, and I also used most of my salary to subsidize the team."
Qi Moxue's clothes and jewelry were mostly bought during her years abroad, and her makeup consisted mostly of samples. On the surface, she maintained the life of a high-class white-collar worker, but out of sight, she lived with these elderly people. The strong perfume she wore was also to cover up the stench she picked up from being with the elderly.
"To solve the accommodation problem, I later contacted Zhai Yifei and rented two shared houses from him as a place for the elderly to live."
"At first, we were able to maintain this, but as time went on, more and more elderly people fell ill, some passed away, and some homeless elderly people came to us. Gradually, the money was gone. Some elderly people sold their last assets, and those who were eligible applied for the old-age allowance. Aunt An or Uncle Ge would collect it for them, but it was all a drop in the bucket."
"Old people often have various financial problems. To maintain a balance between income and expenditure, I kept putting money into the system. At first, it was my salary, then I used my credit card, and later I borrowed some online loans. The elderly are also suffering. To avoid arousing suspicion, many of them can only go downstairs to get some fresh air in the dead of night."
At this point, Qi Moxue lowered her head and sighed, "Mr. Zhai, he's a good man who often helps me. Sometimes when the elderly are sick, he'll help me carry them downstairs and take them to the hospital. He has a car and once helped me dispose of a body, but that was all he did. I lied to him and those things were all accidents."
Luo Siwei asked, "Just because you said that to him, did he believe it?"
Qi Moxue lowered her head and wiped her hands with a tissue: "Maybe he guessed it, but he didn't say anything."
Luo Siwei continued to ask: "How did you know about the well where the bodies were dumped?"
Qi Moxue took a deep breath and looked up at the policewoman in front of her: "It was Aunt Qiao, also known as Qiao Xiangjun, who told me. When she was young, she worked nearby and knew that the deep well was left behind for exploration of the terrain."
"Aunt Qiao was dying at the time. She said that according to the custom in her hometown, the dead must be buried and not cremated. She also knew that we needed her share of the old-age allowance. As long as her body was not found and we didn't issue a death certificate, she could continue to live in the system, and her allowance could be used by other elderly people."
"I'm very kind to the elderly. Other elderly people would call 911 when they were dying and die in the hospital. There were formal procedures for cremation. But Aunt Qiao was the only one I kept the allowance card for, according to her wishes."
Luo Siwei continued to ask: "What about the second person who was thrown in? That was Shen Lili."
"She was the first landlord I killed. She was a middle-aged woman with a somewhat peculiar temper. Although she rented the house to Mr. Zhai, she was always worried. One day, she took the key and came to check it out herself, and she saw the old people living there."
"She was cursing loudly, saying those elderly people were immortal and had made her house dirty. She also said that the elderly people would die and would turn her house into a haunted house, and she told them to get out. She started hitting them with a broom and yelled for the property management and the police. I happened to be visiting the elderly woman after get off work and saw this. I was afraid that her noise would alarm the neighbors, so I covered her mouth to stop her from shouting."
"When she fell, her head hit the corner of the table. At first she was still screaming, 'Murder.' I sat on top of her and covered her mouth with a pillow. After a while, she stopped moving. I wanted to save her, but it was too late. I called Zhai Yifei to discuss it with him. He was the sub-landlord, and if the news of Shen Lili's death got out, he would also be responsible. I thought of the deep pit, so I asked Zhai Yifei to help me throw her in as well."
"We moved out overnight because we were worried that her disappearance would be discovered. During that period, I was always in a state of panic, afraid that these things would be discovered by others, and often couldn't sleep at night."
Qi Moxue sighed at this point: "But later, no one came to ask us, and no one noticed that Shen Lili had disappeared. I was busy with work and tired of life, and gradually, this matter didn't torment me as much as before."
“That was my first murder experience.”
In the observation room, Chi Li was also paying attention to the progress in other interrogation rooms.
During this period, Ge Wenfeng answered some of the questions, but he could not mark the geographical location of the place where the body was dumped.
"If you were the murderer, you wouldn't have forgotten this crucial question," Ni Xiang questioned him. "You must tell the truth. Who is the real murderer?"
Just like Shi Yingcui before, Ge Wenfeng hesitated for a long time before moving his mouth: "It's... Qi Moxue."
Ni Xiang was visibly relieved when the suspect confessed.
In addition to Qi Moxue, the second landlord Zhai Yifei is also currently being interrogated.
Huo Cunsheng was a policeman used to playing the bad guy. He soon began to become friends with Zhai Yifei in the interrogation room.
Huo Cunsheng said earnestly: "I can see that you like that woman. Yes, she is a beautiful, capable and kind woman. You two are both single, so I think this is understandable."
"No, I'm not that superficial. I helped her because when I first arrived in Donglan, I was cheated by the contractor and kicked out by the landlord. It was winter and I had nowhere to live. I walked to the door of the Hongye Nursing Home and heard the elderly people inside singing. I listened for a long time and thought the singing was simply heavenly music, incomparable to any choir or choir."
"Dean Qi came out and saw me, and let me stay for a while. If it weren't for him, I would probably have frozen to death that winter. Later, Qi Moxue found me, and I wanted to repay her kindness."
Zhai Yifei smoked silently: "Of course, I don't deny that I like her. Whatever she wants to do, I will help her. Two people are always better than one."
As Zhai Yifei spoke, his eyes gradually turned red, with sin on one side and love on the other.
"I'll tell you everything I know. I was the one who killed everyone. The first one was the landlady, Shen Lili. I was afraid she would leak the news about the elderly group renting a house, so I killed her. I held her down with a pillow, and she kept pulling at my arms, trying to break free, but I still killed her."
Huo Cunsheng sighed and said, "I guess even if the landlord agrees to let you rent the house to a group of elderly people, he won't be willing to let you rent the house to such a group of elderly people."
The elderly's sanitary environment is relatively poor, and they may die in the house at any time. So when the landlord discovered this problem, he would definitely quarrel with the elderly and the sub-landlord.
This is an irreconcilable conflict between the landlord and the user of the house.
In the fierce dispute, the first killing occurred.
Huo Cunsheng asked, "Where was the body dumped?"
"Qi Moxue told me about that cave." Zhai Yifei took another puff of his cigarette. "She said that when an elderly person died in the past, she threw the person down there, and no one ever found them. So she helped me throw Shen Lili down there."
Huo Cunsheng took out a map and said, "Then draw the spot where the body was dumped on the map."
Zhai Yifei picked up the pen without hesitation and drew a circle on the map.
Chi Li listened carefully. Huo Cunsheng and Qi Moxue were telling different stories. In his story, he was the one who committed the crime and murder, while Qi Moxue was the one who assisted in disposing of the body.
The scene before my eyes seemed like a Rashomon.
One of the two people must be lying.
Luo Siwei's interrogation is still going on.
"Later, another elderly man died before he could be taken to the hospital. I remembered what happened to Qiao Xiangjun, and took advantage of the night to throw his body into the well..."
As Qi Moxue spoke, her voice gradually became hoarse.
"Are you talking about the old man named Liang Wenyi?" Luo Siwei asked, "The forensic examination proved that he was poisoned."
Qi Moxue lowered her head and said in a trembling voice, "Poisoned? No way... We thought he had an acute illness at the time." Then she asked cautiously, "What kind of poison was it? Those elderly people live in houses and rarely come into contact with poisons. Or could it be that he was suffering so much from his serious illness that he accidentally ingested some medicine?"
The medical examiner didn't provide much information, and the specific toxicology report was still being confirmed. Luo Siwei skipped the question: "What about the next victim? How did he die?"
"Then there was our second landlord. I remember his name was Niu Liangyu. When he found out we were renting the house to the elderly, he went to see Mr. Zhai. We sat down to discuss whether we could either let the elderly move out or pay them more to stay. To resolve the matter, Mr. Zhai said a lot of good things; I even begged him..."
At this point, Qi Moxue adjusted her hair, choked up a bit, and then continued, "But I didn't expect that he would actually..."
Luo Siwei asked: "What did he do?"
"He threatened me that he had kept evidence of the elderly people living there, and if we didn't listen to him, he would tell the story, sue me in court, and spread the news to the media. Of course, I couldn't let him do that. I said I was willing to pay any price to make amends, so he..."
At this point, Qi Moxue reached out and grabbed her collar. "He wanted me to sleep with him. I thought I could solve the problem by doing what he said, but he started to deny it. So, I took advantage of the night when he was sleeping and strangled him with a rope." She looked up at Luo Siwei and said, "What I said is true. I have kept some recordings of the negotiations with him, as well as relevant evidence."
"After Niu Liangyu died, we stayed in his house for a while. Later, Zhai Yifei told us that Niu Liangyu's relatives had come looking for us, so we quickly left."
"Niu Liangyu is my nightmare, but I didn't expect the same thing to happen to the landlord surnamed Bao... He used those elderly people to threaten me. I was really scared of this situation and didn't want to be so passive anymore. That day, I called him over, saying there was something wrong with the house, and then I stabbed him with a knife. Then I called Zhai Yifei and asked him to park his car outside the community and carry the body out at night..."
"We lived in those two houses for more than half a year, but we moved out a few months ago for fear of being discovered."
After recounting the crime, Qi Moxue emphasized again, "I really killed all the people. It has nothing to do with anyone else. I will cooperate with your work. I will tell you anything you want to know."
Luo Siwei began to question Qi Moxue according to the test questions: "When were these people killed and their bodies disposed of?"
Qi Moxue thought for a moment and then answered. The date and even the weather she mentioned matched one by one.
"Where is the exact location of the well?"
Luo Siwei opened the map and Qi Moxue pointed at it.
"What weapon was used to kill those people? Where exactly are the wounds?"
Luo Siwei watched Qi Moxue answer the questions. She marked them on the paper: correct, correct, and correct. She could describe all the details of the murder and had a reasonable motive.
Could she... be the culprit in this case?
During this time, Guo Zhengyao and Ni Xiang had already dealt with their side and also came to the observation room to listen.
Zhai Yifei's interrogation continued. Like Qi Moxue, Huo Cunsheng also confessed the murders of several landlords.
"Of course I had to kill that guy called Niu Liangyu. He actually had evil intentions towards Moxue. I lied to him and told him I had a contract I needed him to look over. Then I went to his house and strangled him to death."
"And Bao Hongyuan, he wants to use this incident to threaten us. I've found out that he has a bad relationship with his family. Even if he's away for a few months, no one will look for him."
Huo Cunsheng asked, "How did that old man Liang Wenyi die?"
A trace of surprise appeared on Zhai Yifei's face: "He... must have died of illness, right?"
A different answer emerged from the forensic examination.
Huo Cunsheng remained calm and continued to ask questions one by one according to the previous answers. Zhai Yifei's other answers were all correct. Then he asked about the process of Bao Hongyuan's death.
Huo Cunsheng handed him a forensic diagram and said, "You said you killed someone. Then please mark the location of the wound on this diagram."
Zhai Yifei took the picture, his hands shaking slightly.
Huo Cunsheng said, "Think about it. Killing so many people is a serious crime. If you did it, it's fine. But if you didn't do it, do you really want to take the blame for the real murderer?"
Seeing that Zhai Yifei didn't say anything, Huo Cunsheng continued, "Think about how difficult your life was when you first came to Donglan. Now that your life has finally improved, something like this has happened. Do you have any other relatives at home? You should think more about them. And what about those people who rent houses? After you are arrested, we will definitely have to clear out the houses you own. Where will they live? Women are important, but life is also important. And those are your own."
Huo Cunsheng was talking like Tang Monk on the side.
Zhai Yifei, a strong man in his late 40s, suddenly covered his face and burst into tears. He sobbed for a while and drew a mark on the paper: "The knife stabbed here."
Seeing this scene, Huo Cunsheng raised the corner of his mouth slightly.
In the observation room, Guo Zhengyao also became excited: "Wrong position, it appeared, another mistake..."
Thanks to the efforts of the police officers, the real culprit of the case seems to be about to surface.
Luo Siwei's "examination" of Qi Moxue was nearing its end, and Luo Siwei asked her a few final questions.
"What evidence can you provide to support what you are saying?"
Qi Moxue thought for a moment and said, "I have collected the identity information of those landlords. I can help you find those things."
Luo Siwei asked again: "Is there anything else that only you know?"
Qi Moxue frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "Chen Lili, the first female landlord I accidentally killed, I once gave her artificial respiration, but because I was too forceful, I might have broken her ribs. I remember she was wearing a gold bracelet on her hand."
This is consistent with the forensic autopsy findings.
Qi Moxue thought for a moment and added, "Also, the second landlord I killed, Niu Liangyu, before I threw him down, I suddenly realized that he was still breathing faintly."
This is indeed a detail that only the real murderer could know.
At this point, Qi Moxue smiled bitterly, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I hesitated for a moment, wondering whether I should kill him. But I was already a bad woman. I knew this, but I still threw him down without hesitation..."
Qi Moxue smiled as she cried, "I once regretted it, and I hoped no one would ever discover this secret. But I knew long ago that one day the police would come looking for me. I often had nightmares about that well. I thought about the people I threw into the well, and whether I would go to hell after I died. Now, that day has finally arrived."
"For a long time, I was burdened with heavy pressure. Those things were far beyond my ability. Being under such mental pressure for a long time almost made me collapse. Now I can finally take off this heavy shell."
"Perhaps, this is also a kind of relief for me. I finally have a legitimate reason and no longer have to worry about money and how to survive every day when I wake up."
Luo Siwei looked at the woman crying in front of him, but his brows furrowed even deeper.
Chi Li's voice came from her headset: "Captain Luo, suspend the interrogation. Come to the observation room for a moment."
Almost at the same time, Zhai Yifei next door also confessed under Huo Cunsheng's relentless pressure.
He covered his face and cried bitterly: "It was... Qi Moxue who did it. I helped her dispose of the body."
Huo Cunsheng finally finished the interrogation. He picked up the test paper and breathed a sigh of relief.
The murderer exam is finally over.
Submit the answer sheet and the answer will be revealed.
At this moment, he also received a message from Chi Li in his headset: "Old Huo, come to the observation room for a meeting."
Soon, several police officers involved in the interrogation all came to the observation room.
Luo Siwei handed Qi Moxue's confession document, which was also her "answer sheet", to Chi Li: "I think she is lying."
Chi Li nodded slightly. This was also the conclusion he had come to after watching the entire interrogation: "It's not just Qi Moxue who's lying, everyone else is lying too."
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