Murder in a Secret Room B&B (23)

After listening to Long Shanwen's story, Meng Siqi felt a sigh. It was a fragmented and extremely absurd time.

During that time, Long Shanwen was young and full of yearning for the future and beautiful dreams, so she came to the textile factory. However, due to the closure of the factory, those sufferings that did not belong to her originally also came one after another.

Her life could have been better, but her uncle and aunt did not love her. The factory leaders did ridiculous and illegal things in the name of saving the factory. Gui Xiangyang was an extremely important person in her life, but he also became the guide of her sin.

She struggled desperately in the mudslide of time, just wanting to live the good life she pursued. She was kind and compassionate, always thinking of repaying every favor she received. It was also because of her kindness and compassion that she was shackled and could not move forward, and could never escape the dungeon drawn for her by others.

She was well aware of her misfortune, so even though she lived a different material life than before, she still envied her three sisters. Deep down, she probably thought that giving her money to them in the form of gifts was a way of repaying her kindness.

Maybe she also hoped that the gift she gave would bring good luck to herself, but Long Shanwen was undoubtedly kind, because how could she exchange other people's good luck for herself.

She may just want to give away all the dirty money she got in this way, or she may really want to help her sister change her life.

She was unfortunate, not because she was kind, nor because she was cowardly, but because of the ugly faces of the evil people of that period, those butchers who trampled on her kindness.

Those "butchers" are now either dead or suffering from dementia, and have never been punished by law.

Therefore, when closing the case, Meng Siqi wrote a sentence in his notebook: The soul is beautiful, but full of thorns.

The murderer of this locked room case, Xu Liang, also known as Kong Yang, who killed Long Shanwen, is the descendant of a textile factory worker. His father, Kong Qushan, is a model worker in the textile factory. He has been cared for by his father since he was a child and was even instilled with the idea of ​​becoming the future force of the textile factory. He often went to the textile factory to play. He was proud of his father and the textile factory was his childhood dream.

But he witnessed the textile factory closing down and collapsing, his father being murdered in front of him, and his mother being hunted down by factory workers. The world changed for him when he was nine years old.

His father used to be everything to him. He regretted not saving his father's life. He regretted not standing up to protect his mother and clarify the facts when the situation was most difficult. He was afraid, terrified and cowardly at that time.

That was the pain of his whole life. He couldn't go back to the past. He wanted to end it all, wanted to end himself, and chose the stupidest way, which he thought was the most worthy of his father.

Gui Xiangyang, who was at the center of the vortex of the textile factory eight years ago, has pleaded guilty, whether it was an accidental or intentional murder, and has been handed over to the court. As for how the sentence will be, Meng Siqi doesn't care too much.

In that turbulent period, Gui Xiangyang might have been forced to do what he wanted. He had a sense of heroism for justice, but also had dirty thoughts. He was determined to protect the factory, but also had the cunning to commit crimes. He was a contradiction. We dare not say that he was bad, nor could we say that he was good. He was very complicated and could not be defined simply by good or bad.

The law is merciless. All the wrong things he has done and the crimes he has committed will be severely punished by the law.

While in the detention center, Zhang Hui came to visit Gui Xiangyang specially, and the two faced each other from afar through the iron window.

Zhang Hui's eyes must have been swollen from crying, with purple eye bags. She didn't believe that her husband had killed someone, and she didn't believe that her husband was a bad man, because at home, he knew how to care for people and take care of children. He was the heart and soul of this family. When he left completely, this family completely collapsed.

Zhang Hui is not a strong woman. From the day she met Gui Xiangyang, she has been dependent on him and "sit back and enjoy the fruits of his labor". She hopes to rely on Gui Xiangyang for her entire life.

Therefore, after this incident, she was the one who least wanted to get over it, but no matter what, she had to face it.

She was conflicted; she didn't know whether she was facing a murderer or the husband who once loved her.

She opened her mouth with difficulty: "Are you...are you okay?"

"Zhang Hui," Gui Xiangyang said in a slow and weak voice, having long lost his former spirit, "I'm sorry."

This was the last thing Zhang Hui wanted to hear. She slowly lowered her eyes, not knowing how to respond.

"When I first met you," Gui Xiangyang paused, "I may not have really liked you."

Zhang Hui raised her head slowly, her eyes seemed to be wrinkled and wrinkled. She felt that it was impossible, as he had clearly put a lot of effort into pursuing her.

"In the beginning, I knew you because of your sister, or more precisely, because of your brother-in-law. Because of this relationship, I was able to get along better in the business world. To be honest, my brother-in-law is also a strange person. He has been my brother-in-law for seven years, but he has never had a meal with me alone, and has never accepted a gift from me. But I used his status to cheat and deceive him. I am sorry for him."

"Of course the person I feel most sorry for is you. My intentions were not pure from the beginning..."

When Gui Xiangyang said this, Zhang Hui couldn't help crying. She lowered her head and sobbed softly. It turned out that she understood that even though Gui Xiangyang was an unforgivable sinner, she still cared about him.

"Zhang Hui, take Tiantian with you and remarry!"

She suddenly raised her head, "Gui Xiangyang, have you really never liked me? What have you thought of me for these seven years? Now you say you want to remarry. Do you think you are a saint? You are treating me as a tool that you can throw away at any time!"

"I didn't," Gui Xiangyang was a little emotional, "I did have more than just a purpose, but after you gave birth to Tiantian, we took care of him together, went to school together, went to the park together, I liked this kind of life... I can't let it go. If I were allowed to choose again, I would never make that mistake back then. I look forward to meeting you earlier and living with you earlier, then I would be the real Gui Xiangyang."

Gui Xiangyang sighed with red eyes. But Zhang Hui could no longer listen. She walked out of the detention center with blurry eyes and burst into tears outside.

She regretted meeting him, otherwise her second half of life would be complete and Tiantian would have a good father. If she were allowed to choose again, she would never marry Gui Xiangyang without hesitation just to compare with Zhang Ya.

She will definitely look at a person's character, even if he is not rich, as long as he works hard, loves his family and loves every day.

*

During this time, Han Changlin also returned to the police station. We hadn't seen each other for a while, and because of Gui Xiangyang, everyone didn't know how to greet each other for a while.

Han Changlin no longer had the usual calmness and smile on his face. He greeted everyone in the office very cautiously: "Thank you all for your hard work."

Before he could even get comfortable in the office, Han Changlin went to Director Liu's office. Director Liu was also looking for him, so this was a good opportunity for the two of them to have a talk.

Han Changlin said: "Director Liu, I feel very sorry for this work. Because of Gui Xiangyang's matter, I have been suspended for a long time and delayed my work. I must apologize to you."

Director Liu smiled calmly: "No need to apologize, Changlin, you had no choice but to suspend your duties this time. The matter has passed. You should return to your post in time and work hard."

"I came here for another thing today," Han Changlin handed the prepared letter paper to Director Liu's desk and said solemnly, "Director Liu, this is my most sincere thought. I hope you will approve it."

"What is your most practical idea?" Director Liu picked up his letter paper. "Is firing the captain your most practical idea?"

His tone was a bit disdainful, but also intimidating: "What traditions do you have in Team Two? Feng Shaomin did this back then, and you're doing it again now. How come you take your job at the police station as a daily routine?"

Han Changlin swallowed and said, "Director Liu, that is not what I meant. I am the captain of the criminal police team, but I have been with a murderer for seven years. It is my fault that I did not discover him and lack awareness. It is my fault as a captain."

"Why, is it that you, Han Changlin, lack the golden eyes, or that Gui Xiangyang has the ability to become invisible? What kind of thinking is this? Is it feudal thinking of collective punishment? If everyone thinks like you, then we have no business doing our job as a police station."

"Director Liu, please stop trying to persuade me. I have made up my mind. Please arrange the work for Team Two as soon as possible. I'm leaving first." Han Changlin was very determined and turned around and walked towards the door.

"Stop!" Liu Maoping shouted, "If you dare to walk out of this door, you can't even be a policeman anymore."

At that moment, Korean Chief Lin stood still.

He turned around slowly, his tone tearful: "Director Liu, this is not the same thing."

Han Changlin's dream is to be a glorious policeman. This is not only the mission in his heart, but also the wish of his wife Zhang Ya and the pride of his daughter Duoduo. He must forge ahead on this path. He feels guilty as a captain, but if no one wants him to be a policeman, what is the point of living?

"That's exactly what happened." Liu Maoping said firmly, "I wanted to commend you for doing a good job avoiding suspicion in this case, but I didn't expect you to ignore the police regulations and treat your position as captain as a joke. I now order you, Han Changlin, to write a 5,000-word self-criticism, or you pack up and leave the police station."

"Director Liu, I was wrong." Han Changlin panicked. "I will write it right away. I will write 10,000 words. Please take back your order. I will never mention the captain again."

"Why are you leaving this piece of paper here with me?"

Han Changlin walked over carefully and picked up the captain's resignation application on the desk. Facing Director Liu's intimidating tone, he didn't dare to breathe. He walked to the door and saluted solemnly to Liu Maoping.

*

After the case was over, Meng Siqi could finally have a good rest for two days. She had been very busy before and was always in a tense state. She had no time to rest and couldn't rest. Now she could finally relax.

There was just one more thing she had to finish before her vacation. The heavy rain last time took away Lu He's shirts and trousers from his house. She went back and washed them, dried them, ironed them and packed them up, but she never had time to return them to him.

If she didn't return it, Lu He might think that she was withholding his clothes.

In the morning she packed her clothes, carried a bag to a team office, and decided to hand them over to him in person.

However, at this time, the office was empty. She stood at the door and looked around, hesitating whether to put the bag on Lu He's desk.

As he was hesitating, a man's voice came from behind the door: "Are you... Xiao Meng?"

She turned around and remembered this man, a police officer named Cai Shuangxi. It was his wonderful description of the game that helped her grasp the details of the time of the crime, and was the key clue to solving the case.

Cai Shuangxi had a very happy expression on his face. Since that time, Meng Siqi had some understanding of his personality. He was a cheerful and generous person.

"Oh, Xiao Meng, it's so rare to see you again. I was looking forward to discussing football with you. Do you like Maldini too?"

Meng Siqi really didn't know anything about football, and her impression of it was just eleven people kicking a ball. But she couldn't discourage Cai Shuangxi's enthusiasm. She should have been grateful to him. She smiled deeply, "Officer Cai, thank you so much this time. If it weren't for your description of the game, we might not have solved the case."

Cai Shuangxi smiled and gestured, "I heard that the murderer used just fifteen minutes during the halftime break to complete the murder. This is a locked room case. Xiao Meng, since I know that you identified the murderer based on the game schedule, I sincerely admire you. You are really amazing!"

It turns out that Cai Shuangxi is not only outgoing, but also eloquent. Meng Siqi didn't know how to respond for a moment, so he could only say, "Thank you, Officer Cai."

"It's strange to call you Officer Cai. I've been particularly optimistic about you since last time. Just call me Xiao Cai."

Seeing that Cai Shuangxi was seven or eight years younger than her, Meng Siqi thought it was inappropriate to call him that. She said, "Thank you, Brother Cai."

"Let's call him Shuangxi. Brother Cai doesn't like it."

Meng Siqi felt that the conversation would never end. "Brother Shuangxi, where is the team? Why can't I see anyone?"

"I'm in a meeting." Cai Shuangxi slapped his thigh. "I came back to get the materials, and I forgot about it while chatting. Xiao Meng, I'll have a good chat with you about Martini some other day."

Cai Shuangxi went in to get the materials and saw that she was still there. "By the way, are you looking for Team Lu? Then follow me to the conference room."

"No, no." Meng Siqi didn't want to return his personal belongings in that situation, so he said hurriedly, "I'll do it next time. You go ahead and do your work."

Cai Shuangxi turned around and reminded her as he walked: "Martini, Xiao Meng, we have a deal."

Meng Si looked forward to his back, swallowed, and wondered in her heart who this Martini was and how he could drive a person so "crazy". She should go back and look up some information.

*

After Lu He finished the meeting and went back to the office together, Cai Shuangxi said, "Captain Lu, Xiao Meng came to see you just now."

"Hmm?" Lu He paused slightly.

"How could you forget about her? She's the pretty girl from Team 2, she's really nice and smart."

Luo Xiaoguo smiled and said, "Cai Shuangxi, you've only known him for a few days, yet you're praising him to the skies."

The man named Yan Chun said: "As far as I know, Meng Siqi and Shuang Xi should both like Martini."

"Hahaha..." Everyone laughed.

Cai Shuangxi could tell that the laughter was quite light-hearted; it was just the usual banter among the team members. Normally, everyone loved to make fun of each other's hobbies. The case handling process was too boring and tense, and no one could stand it without some fun.

Except for Lu He who is more serious, the atmosphere of the whole team is actually relatively balanced. Although Lu He is cold, the teammates are enthusiastic, which offsets the effect.

"Shuangxi, does she want to talk to me about something?" Lu He asked.

Cai Shuangxi replied: "I don't know, I just saw that she was carrying a bag."

At this time, a policeman came over and said, "Captain Lu, Director Liu wants to see you."

"Okay, you guys go back first." Lu He handed the notebook to Luo Xiaoguo and asked him to take it with him.

On his way to the director's office, he was guessing what Director Liu would ask him to do. Based on his experience in detective work, he was sometimes right nine out of ten times.

But this time he miscalculated.

After entering the room, Liu Maoping smiled, not as serious as usual. He waved his hand, "Lu He, sit down."

There was a chair opposite the desk. Lu He usually wouldn't sit down when talking about business. He knew the difference between public and private matters. But he could tell that Director Liu didn't seem to be here to discuss the case today.

He sat down, his posture very standard.

"Take a look." Liu Maoping handed him a piece of paper the size of a soap box.

Could it be a clue to some case? He took it hesitantly, held it with both hands and looked at it, and was stunned for a moment.

This is a movie ticket. The movie time is tonight at 7 o'clock. Judging from the name, it looks like a romance movie.

He didn't know what Director Liu meant, so he looked up and asked, "Director Liu, which case are you talking about?" He couldn't think of anything else.

"It seems that you need to balance work and rest. You are too nervous." Liu Maoping said calmly with a smile, "This was given to me by the trade union when I went there. I originally wanted to show it to my daughter, but she just got back to work, and the movie tickets can't be wasted, so go and see it."

Lu He was speechless for a moment. He had never watched a movie since he was a child, let alone the movie ticket about love given to him by the director. In his heart, love would not be considered for the time being.

He said, "Director Liu, this is not appropriate. You should give it to a younger colleague in the bureau."

"Why, you don't think you are young?"

“I’m not supposed to be young.”

"If you are not young, why does the situation still remain unsolved?"

Lu He has a lot of experience, but he can't beat Director Liu in this aspect. He pursed his lips slightly. He couldn't argue about his personal situation in front of Director Liu, because in the police station, personal life is also part of career.

"That's enough." Liu Maoping pushed him with his hand, as if to persuade him, "Watch a movie and relax. As the director, don't I have the right to order you?"

"That's not the case."

"In that case, don't be late tonight."

Lu He was thinking about giving the tickets to his colleague, but when he stood up to leave, Director Liu became more serious: "Lu He, you know I have spies outside. If you hand over the movie tickets without permission or leave at halftime, I will consider you a violation of discipline."

Lu He: “…”

"I understand, Director Liu. Don't worry, I will complete my mission."

Liu Maoping smiled and said, "You don't have to treat it as a task. Just go and relax and watch a movie."

"Well, I'll be leaving first then."

"Write a review."

"?"

Ten minutes later, Chen Jierong received a call from Director Liu in her office. She replied, "OK, Director Liu, I'll be right over."

Chen Jierong didn't think much about it. Director Liu seldom called her when there were no cases, but he would still communicate with her about the follow-up of the case. The door was open, so she walked in directly.

"Please sit down, Xiao Chen." Director Liu looked friendly.

Chen Jierong sat down, "Director Liu, is there any case?"

"You guys are always thinking about the case and not about yourself," Liu Maoping handed her the movie ticket, "It starts at 7pm. Remember not to be late."

"Hmm? Movie tickets." Chen Jierong took it in her hand and examined it for a long time. "Director Liu, are you..."

"Don't you girls like watching movies? This movie seems pretty good."

"Well, actually Director Liu..."

"Anything else tonight?"

Chen Jierong did have something to do, but it was inconvenient to say, so she could only say, "Nothing else. How about I show it to Xiao Tong and the others?"

"Pay attention to the balance between work and rest. Your work as a forensic doctor is very hard, and we must take your work experience into consideration. Don't postpone this matter."

Chen Jierong couldn't refuse Director Liu, so she nodded and said, "Okay, Director Liu, I'll go watch it tonight."

"Okay, the tickets are not cheap, don't waste them. Also, write a review tomorrow."

"Ah?" Chen Jierong understood that Director Liu was determined to let her see it. She said quickly, "Don't worry, I won't waste it."

Chen Jierong walked to the door with the movie ticket after get off work. She didn't know how to deal with the evening. She could either refuse Director Liu or refuse her mother. She couldn't offend either of them. When she was hesitating, her eyes lit up and she waved her hand quickly, "Siqi."

Meng Siqi turned around and said, "Sister Rong."

"Come on, Sister Rong needs help from you."

Meng Siqi walked back to her briskly and said with a smile, "Sister Rong, just speak frankly."

Chen Jierong took out the movie ticket and stuffed it directly into her palm. "It's quite expensive. I have something urgent tonight and I really can't go. You can watch it for me and tell me the plot tomorrow."

Meng Siqi took the movie ticket and looked at it. "Don't worry, Sister Rong, I don't have anything else to do tonight."

"My pretty girl, I'll treat you to dinner next time. I have to take a taxi first."

"Well, Sister Rong, take care." Meng Siqi waved to Chen Jierong who left in a hurry.