“It’s understandable that the boss would voluntarily choose not to get involved in this case.”

Xie Kui nodded, “No wonder.”

“It was quite a coincidence,” Xiao Meng said. “If the boss hadn’t received that tip-off letter back then and insisted on investigating, he wouldn’t be in such an awkward position now.”

Xie Kui was an outsider; his wife was from Yishi City. His family had some connections with the local leadership, and after his marriage, for the convenience of taking care of his wife and child, he was transferred from another province to Beiyan District Public Security Bureau in Yishi City at the beginning of the year.

So he wasn’t aware of the case from two years ago.

Although Xiao Meng had participated in that case with Si Hang, he was reluctant to discuss it: “It involved too many important people, and to avoid negative social impacts, it was ordered not to be made public, so I can’t disclose it. But since you’re now handling her case, you can look it up in the database.”

This was within Xie Kui’s expectations. Ruihong Group was a well-known big enterprise in Luo Province, but when the former chairman was suddenly imprisoned for criminal charges years ago, it didn’t cause much of a stir outside, and the media barely reported on it. Considering the case’s special nature, he didn’t press further.

Because he was out on duty all day yesterday, he hadn’t had a chance to look at Zhuang Zi’s record.

After returning to the office, he specifically turned to the family situation column, which briefly stated: “Mother died early, father is serving a sentence for a major accident caused by serious violations.”

He closed the file and walked into the meeting room.

Combining the preliminary investigation at Nanxin Apartment conducted by Xiao Meng and the others yesterday with the statements from Zhuang Zi and Jiang Zhihao, everyone summarized the situation.

The officer who went to the scene yesterday reported, “The lock cylinder of the living room’s security door shows signs of abnormal tampering. We can confirm that someone indeed broke in illegally.”

“From the initial survey, no suspicious traces were found at the scene—perhaps the intruder has sharp counter-investigation skills and cleaned the scene,” Xiao Meng continued. “There are no surveillance cameras in the hallway of the building where Zhuang Zi lives. We reviewed the 24-hour footage from the day before yesterday at the unit’s entrance in the security room. The security guard said they only saw residents, no strangers or suspicious individuals. We preliminarily ruled out the possibility of vagrants and home invaders.”

Someone added, “The fact that they avoided the community’s surveillance suggests this person lives on the same floor as Zhuang Zi or is hiding in another resident’s home on the same floor. Maybe she had some conflict with a neighbor; we should ask Zhuang Zi about this.”

Xiao Meng continued, “Two years ago, Zhuang Zi’s father was imprisoned for a major accident. I think it’s very likely that the victim from back then is now seeking revenge on his family.”

After listening to everyone’s summary, Xie Kui pondered for a few seconds, looked up from Zhuang Zi’s statement, and addressed his colleagues, “I agree with everyone’s views. Based on the preliminary analysis, we’ll act in groups next. One group will investigate the residents on Zhuang Zi’s floor to eliminate alibis. Another group will confirm if there are any abnormalities with the victims from the accident case. Also, Xiao Zhang and Xiao Zhao, you two will take turns ensuring Zhuang Zi’s safety during this period.”

Xie Kui closed the file and stood up, “I’ll talk to her again.”

…….

Having just been discharged from the hospital after a major ordeal, her colleagues at the company treated Zhuang Zi with a sympathetic attitude. Her superiors were also particularly considerate, not assigning her any heavy work tasks.

So when she received Xie Kui’s call, she immediately asked her boss for leave and rushed to the police station.

Xie Kui first explained their current speculations to her: “You said your social circle is very narrow and you’ve never had any grudges with anyone. Is it possible that you offended someone unintentionally and didn’t realize it?”

Zhuang Zi was silent for a moment, then shook her head, “I really don’t know.”

Not to mention conflicts, she didn’t even know who lived across the hall from her in her building, so there couldn’t be any grudges. It was also unlikely to be a colleague; she was just passing time at her job and never had any conflicts of interest with them, certainly not enough to provoke someone to want to kill her.

She had always preferred to suffer a little herself, as long as she had a clear conscience, rather than feel guilty for owing or wronging someone else.

So, who could she have offended?

“What about your romantic relationships?”

“That’s even less likely,” Zhuang Zi’s expression remained calm, her tone steady, as if she were discussing something trivial.

“How so?”

She said indifferently, “There was never much of a relationship to begin with. Besides, they’re all married now and have long since lost contact, so they wouldn’t remember me.”

“How long since you lost contact?”

Zhuang Zi thought for a moment. The last person she dated, introduced by her family, was Jiang Tianchen. It had been at least two years since they broke up.

…

After finishing the statement and leaving the reception room, she passed by the large office of the criminal investigation department and glanced inside.

The door was open, and someone was there.

She turned and walked over.

The little girl sitting on the sofa heard the sound and immediately turned her head to look at her.

Zhuang Zi was a bit stunned.

“Uncle’s not here,” the little girl told her. “He’s gone to interrogate the bad guys.”

“Oh.”

The little girl ignored her and continued reading her comic book.

Zhuang Zi’s gaze swept around the room. The office was very neatly and simply arranged. There was a long solid wood desk with a military green trench coat casually draped over the back of the chair. Behind the desk was a whole wall of black bookshelves, filled with books and awards in neatly arranged squares. On the other end of the bookshelf, near the balcony, were various model cars and a cool, miniature humanoid robot, currently charging.

The entire room was decorated in simple black, gray, and white tones, clean and organized. It was clear that the office’s owner was a principled, knowledgeable, and unique person.

But since the owner was not there, she left.

…