Chapter 18

Lu Siyu sighed, and since last night, Song Wen had been watching him even more closely, especially after the free meal they had together. He knew he couldn’t get away with being vague. So, he organized his thoughts and began by analyzing the backgrounds of the individuals involved.

“The Civil Engineering department had its heyday over a decade ago, but now there are fewer female students choosing it. This major often involves going to construction sites, dealing with a lot of dirty and strenuous work, and interacting with contractors and laborers. The reasons these girls chose this major seem to differ. From my inference, Dong Fang’s family might be related to real estate, and her family wanted her to study a civil engineering-related field, probably to inherit the family business. Ma Aijing comes from an intellectual family, and her parents might be professionals in a related field. Guo Hua and Lin Wanwan come from less affluent families. The Civil Engineering department in Nancheng offers substantial scholarships, which may be why they chose this major.”

Fu Linjiang listened attentively on the side. Song Wen nodded, motioning with his fingers for Lu Siyu to continue.

Lu Siyu continued, “Among these four, Dong Fang and Ma Aijing had a closer relationship. Dong Fang felt like she was bestowing favor upon Ma Aijing, but Ma Aijing doesn’t seem very grateful. She admires and envies Dong Fang for being wealthy.”

Fu Linjiang was stunned by these revelations, “How did you figure all this out?” If Lu Siyu hadn’t arrived at the scene recently, he would have suspected that this guy had investigated behind their backs.

Lu Siyu didn’t answer, and instead, Song Wen spoke up to explain. While talking, he kept his eyes on Lu Siyu, seemingly dissecting his reasoning process, “The reasoning here is quite simple. They have many identical items—matching tissues, matching slippers, and even matching sanitary napkins. Obviously, they purchased these together during a shopping trip as best friends.”

After saying this, Song Wen pointed to the cosmetics of the two girls, “Dong Fang likes using high-end cosmetics. The cosmetics she buys usually come with samples, and those samples ended up in Ma Aijing’s collection. It’s clear that Dong Fang gave them to her. Dong Fang uses a well-known brand of lipstick; she has four, and there’s also one on Ma Aijing’s table. I checked Taobao earlier; this brand has released a set of five lipsticks. Ma Aijing’s color is unique, so the lipstick must have been a gift from Dong Fang after she found the color unsuitable for herself.”

Fu Linjiang, showing his straight male nature, walked over to look at the lipsticks, “I can’t see any… What’s the difference in the colors of these lipsticks?”

“That particular lipstick is basically unused. Probably, not even a beauty could pull off the Death Barbie Pink.” Song Wen commented as he opened Ma Aijing’s computer. Her QQ was set to auto-login, “Ma Aijing has some chat records related to the game, mentioning her rich and unrestrained roommate, not as pretty as her, but she envies and is jealous of Dong Fang. She is taking advantage of her while pretending to be her close friend.”

After listening to Song Wen’s analysis, Fu Linjiang finally understood, and Lu Siyu nodded beside him, implicitly agreeing with the deduction process.

Song Wen continued to inquire, “What about the others?”

“In the dormitory, Guo Hua is isolated,” Lu Siyu continued.

Fu Linjiang remained surprised, “I noticed that Guo Hua has differences in grades and family background compared to the other girls, but being isolated to this extent? How did you figure that out?”

Song Wen raised the documents in his hand, “Probably because of this grade sheet. I also noticed that in the freshman year, their elective courses were relatively normal, with some overlap between them. However, in the third and fourth years, Guo Hua’s elective courses completely avoided the courses the other three were taking. Usually, when choosing elective courses, there are only a few options, and most roommates would choose to go together. It allows them to remind each other and share information. However, Guo Hua’s chosen courses are completely different from the others, indicating a deliberate avoidance of interactions with her dormmates.”

Upon hearing this, Fu Linjiang took the grade sheet and examined it. Now that Song Wen had pointed it out, he realized that such a list of elective courses was indeed abnormal.

“Also, eight months ago and half a month ago, there are two records of Guo Hua visiting the school clinic in her medical history, both times with multiple abrasions and subcutaneous bleeding. She claimed it was due to falling, but I suspect she was assaulted.” Song Wen pointed to Guo Hua’s medical record book. The school clinic prescribed some medicine for treating bruises, and they might have suspected the truth but chose not to intervene.

These deductions sounded mysterious, but once explained, the reasoning was quite simple. Fu Linjiang quickly grasped the concept.

“Anything else?” Song Wen asked again.

This time, Lu Siyu shook his head. His handsome face resumed its frosty expression, either because there was nothing more to say or he was unwilling to disclose further.

These relationships were too superficial, both he and Song Wen could see that. However, among four roommates, the relationships could be much more complex than what they observed.

Lu Siyu’s gaze fell on Lin Wanwan’s clean bed. It was spotless, almost too clean to be the bed of someone who had suddenly fallen ill and was taken away by an ambulance. Among these four, Lin Wanwan was the least affected by the poisoning. He awaited news of her waking up, hoping to ask her for more information.

Song Wen and Lu Siyu were both clever individuals, and during the search, they demonstrated some unspoken understanding. Their recent exchange, one asking questions and the other answering, was seamless, as if they could read each other’s minds.

After listening to their analysis, Fu Linjiang sorted out the portraits of the four girls in his mind. He felt sleep-deprived and mentally fatigued, sighing, “With these four girls, they probably need to create more than ten WeChat groups.”

Lu Siyu corrected him expressionlessly, “Deputy Captain, you need at least three people to create a group, so at most, there would be five groups.”

At half-past three in the morning, after finishing the search, they began the investigation and questioning. To save time, the detectives split into two groups. Song Wen and Lu Siyu interviewed the person who reported the incident, while Fu Linjiang and the first duty detective talked to their dormitory head.

The so-called interrogation room was a temporary space they requisitioned in the dormitory building. The room was filled with dust, and corners were stacked with miscellaneous items such as disinfectant and old chairs.

Song Wen chose to question the thinner of the two girls first. The girl’s name was Bai Xiaoxiao, and she looked just as her name suggested—short in stature, with a small nose, small eyes, and a small face. She wore a white nightgown and had thrown on a robe, trying to conceal her figure. She hadn’t had time to change clothes yet. She sat in front of the two detectives, carefully picking at the dusty table with her fingernails.

Both this girl and her dorm mate Deng Jia were majoring in Communication Engineering, unlike the four girls from Room 108, who were studying Civil Engineering.

Song Wen cleared his throat and began with the usual introductions. After asking about her name and age, he cut to the chase, discussing the events of that night. Bai Xiaoxiao hadn’t seen much, and she and Deng Jia had quickly called the dormitory administrator after recognizing the girls outside the door.

After a brief description of the sequence of events, Bai Xiaoxiao whispered, “I knew it. Something was bound to happen in their dormitory sooner or later.”

Song Wen’s interest was piqued, and he asked, “Why do you say that? Don’t they get along in their dormitory?”

“Well, to put it plainly, they were bullying Guo Hua, isolating her,” Bai Xiaoxiao muttered softly. She looked up at the two young and handsome police officers in front of her, mustered the courage to speak up, and continued, “Guo Hua and I are from the same hometown, both from Dong’an Town nearby. She excelled in our town, ranking third in the town-wide exams. She ended up coming to our school because of issues with filling out her college application. She’s different from the other girls in her dormitory.”

“How is she different?” Seeing that Bai Xiaoxiao hesitated in her speech, Song Wen asked again, adding, “This information is very helpful for us to find the perpetrator.”

Bai Xiaoxiao still hesitated a bit, “Um… what I’m telling you, the others won’t know, right?”

Song Wen nodded, “That’s certain. Our conversation here is confidential.”

Bai Xiaoxiao picked at the tabletop again and then continued, “I heard that Dong Fang’s grades weren’t enough to get into our school. She got here because her family paid, but I don’t have any evidence for that. You can check it yourselves. Ma Aijing is nicknamed ‘Bootlicker.’ She always follows Dong Fang around, plays games every day, collects gifts from guys, and gossips a lot behind people’s backs. Both of them consistently rank at the bottom of their class in every exam.”

The basic relationships were clarified, aligning with the deductions made at the scene. Song Wen asked her to continue.

“The second thing happened in our sophomore year. In their dormitory, only Dong Fang had a laptop. As you probably know, when living in the dorms, we sometimes pick up things and put them aside temporarily. That day, Dong Fang was holding her laptop when the girl next door suddenly called her for something urgent. She hurried out and casually left her laptop on Guo Hua’s desk. Dong Fang’s table and chair were usually messy, and Guo Hua’s desk was closest to the door.”

“Unexpectedly, when Dong Fang came back, she found water on Guo Hua’s desk, and her laptop was wet. Later, after an inspection, the motherboard was burned, and it cost more than three thousand yuan to repair. Dong Fang admitted her mistake, saying she shouldn’t have left things lying around, but she insisted that when she put it down, the desk was dry. It was Guo Hua who intentionally poured water on the laptop to retaliate. Guo Hua said the desk was hers. She found a laptop on her desk and did go to fetch water, but she didn’t touch the computer, let alone intentionally pour water on Dong Fang’s laptop.”

“This incident became quite a big deal. Both sides insisted on their version of events, and it escalated to the class teacher and even alarmed their department head. In the end, because Dong Fang’s attitude was more stubborn, and there was even pressure from her family, the teacher made Guo Hua pay five hundred yuan as a gesture and had Dong Fang promise to take better care of her valuable belongings.”

Listening to this story, Song Wen frowned slightly. Without surveillance cameras in the dormitory, it was impossible to judge who was telling the truth and who was lying. The final resolution seemed like a fifty-fifty punishment. Guo Hua felt wronged, and Dong Fang couldn’t swallow this injustice, leading to them physically fighting for the first time afterward, which should be the first time Guo Hua went to the school clinic for treatment.

“After that, they’ve been bullying Guo Hua constantly, sometimes excessively. Guo Hua often has to help them with laundry, shoe cleaning, and watering the plants in the dormitory. Once, I saw Guo Hua washing their lacy underwear, crying while doing it,” she whispered softly.

Song Wen furrowed his brow; it was indeed very unfair for a girl to be bullied like this.

“There’s another incident that happened recently…” Bai Xiaoxiao lowered her head, “One day, Guo Hua came to have a meal with me, and I saw marks on her arms that looked quite severe. At first, she claimed it was accidentally self-inflicted, but after I asked for a while, she started crying, saying she was kicked by Dong Fang…”

“As we’re nearing graduation, many students are looking for job opportunities. On that day, Guo Hua was waiting for an important interview call. If successful, she would have gotten an interview opportunity with a planning institute. During that time, Guo Hua went out to get water, leaving her phone on the dormitory table. Later, when the call came, Dong Fang was sleeping, so she cursed at Guo Hua and hung up the phone. Then, she muted Guo Hua’s phone. When Guo Hua found out she missed the call and called back two hours later, the person on the other end told her the phone interview was over, and they had already found a suitable candidate. Guo Hua was furious and confronted them, but instead of sympathy, she received verbal abuse and physical assault from Dong Fang…”

A lost piece of clothing, a damaged laptop, a missed phone call—each incident on its own wasn’t significant, but when added together, it created a frustrating situation that eventually led to a conflict between the girls.

“Do Guo Hua’s teachers and other classmates in her class know about the things they did to her?” Lu Siyu asked softly, interjecting into the conversation. Song Wen turned to look at him, and under the lighting, Lu Siyu’s skin was as white as if it were transparent, his expression extremely focused. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and he attentively awaited the answer.

Bai Xiaoxiao blinked, “Of course, they don’t know. It’s a bit embarrassing. We’re all university students, not children. How could we resort to telling the teacher? Even if there’s some dormitory conflict, the teachers at most will mediate. Guo Hua initially didn’t want to tell me, fearing that it might affect me. We’re close friends, and even though we’re not in the same class, they still bully me. Once, when I was having a meal in the cafeteria, they intentionally spilled soup on me…”

Song Wen asked, “So, did you already know that something bad was going to happen in their dormitory? Were there any signs?”

On this topic, Bai Xiaoxiao’s complexion changed slightly. There was a hint of hesitation in her eyes, as if she had undergone some internal struggle before speaking, “Right after the phone incident, Guo Hua didn’t return to the dormitory that day. She stayed at my place overnight. The next noon, she… she told me she didn’t want to live anymore… At that time, I thought she was a bit depressed. I even… I even comforted her, saying it wasn’t her fault, but those who bullied her. But, I said those words to comfort her without thinking… I didn’t expect things to develop into what they are now…”

Clearly, in Bai Xiaoxiao’s mind, she seemed to have already concluded that Guo Hua poisoned them to retaliate against Dong Fang and Ma Aijing. When discussing this, her eyes teared up. As a fellow villager, she had heard about Guo Hua while growing up, and they became dormitory neighbors in college, occasionally returning home together. They could be considered good friends. With the situation escalating to this extent, with such a major incident and Guo Hua being poisoned, she was worried and, more than anything, afraid.

Seeing her cry, Song Wen kindly handed her a tissue. Bai Xiaoxiao took it, wiped her tears, and then twisted the damp tissue in her hands, “Actually, Guo Hua had the opportunity to move out of that dormitory. In the third year, a girl in our dormitory had to leave school due to illness, leaving an empty bed. I asked Guo Hua if she wanted to move in, and she was quite happy about it, saying she would consider it and apply to the teacher. However, after half a month, when I saw her again, she said she changed her mind about moving. At the time, she seemed quite cheerful, and I thought everything was fine. However, not long after, I saw her being bullied again. The same thing happened a few days ago; I asked her if she wanted to move in, and she was obviously hesitating, but later, she rejected me again.”

“Why didn’t she move out?” Song Wen asked. Considering today’s situation, Guo Hua still lived in Room 108. He also didn’t know if the outcome would have been different if Guo Hua had moved at that time or if, back then, Guo Hua had already made up her mind to stay in the dormitory to carry out her plan.

“I’m not sure either. This time, she had a few days off during the May Day holiday, and then suddenly said she wouldn’t move there.” Bai Xiaoxiao’s voice grew softer, “I asked her about the situation in the dormitory, whether they were still bullying her. She said it was okay and told me not to worry. At that time, I was busy with my graduation thesis. I didn’t expect…”

Bai Xiaoxiao paused here and asked, “Officer, they’re not in big trouble, right?”

Lu Siyu’s pen, recording the details, paused for a moment. He looked up at her. Due to the terrifying scene and the gravity of the situation, as the reporter, they had only seen Guo Hua and hadn’t seen the bodies of Dong Fang and Ma Aijing. The information from the school and the detectives who arrived earlier only mentioned a collective poisoning in the neighboring dormitory. They hadn’t been given exact details. It seemed that Bai Xiaoxiao still didn’t know that Dong Fang and Ma Aijing had already passed away.

Song Wen cleared his throat and said to her, “The school should provide updates on the situation later.”

“What about Lin Wanwan?” Lu Siyu reminded her. After all, there were four people in the neighboring dormitory. Song Wen remained silent, as if telepathically sharing the same thought about inquiring about Lin Wanwan’s situation.

Bai Xiaoxiao recalled, “As for Lin Wanwan, her grades are also good, and she’s a nice person. Yeah, she looks like a little squirrel—round-eyed, petite, and small. She’s usually quiet, but she’s friendly and hasn’t had any conflicts with anyone. However, she doesn’t have much presence outside, often going out to work. Sometimes, she’s not in the dormitory.”

“Can you tell us more about her?”

“I don’t know much about her, but I know Guo Hua treats her well, considering her a friend. Once, when Lin Wanwan came back from outside and got caught in heavy rain at the bus stop, Guo Hua didn’t hesitate to take an umbrella to pick her up. When they returned, both were almost soaked. Normally, Guo Hua helps Lin Wanwan with things like getting food.”

From the description, Lin Wanwan seemed to be a very kind girl who hadn’t participated in the exclusion and violence against Guo Hua by Dong Fang and Ma Aijing. Guo Hua treated her well in return.

“Where does Lin Wanwan work? Do you know?”

“At first, it was in a coffee shop near the school. Later, she switched to a Western restaurant. After that, I don’t know where she went. I only know she goes out several times a week.”

“Do you know why she changed her workplace?”

“It seems she said it was too close to the school, and she often ran into acquaintances, making it a bit awkward.”

“Do they have boyfriends?” Lu Siyu asked another question.

Bai Xiaoxiao hesitated for a moment before saying, “I… I don’t attend classes with them, and I’m not familiar with other people. I’ve only heard Guo Hua and other classmates talk about it. Ma Aijing had several boyfriends. The last one got dumped by her about three months ago, and I haven’t heard about the ones after that. Some people say she seems to have a boyfriend, but no one knows who this mysterious boyfriend is; maybe he doesn’t even exist. Guo Hua has always been single. I haven’t heard about Lin Wanwan having a boyfriend, maybe because I don’t know. As graduation is approaching, everyone’s focus is on their theses.”