Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Although Huo Shaoheng and Zhao Liangze were not professional police officers or detectives, they still had basic investigative training as members of the Special Operations Forces. With Little Zhao from the detective agency leading the way, they saw that the door to Tan Guiren’s dorm didn’t even have a notice on it and wasn’t sealed off with yellow police tape. The door was ajar, so anyone could go in or come out at any time.
Huo Shaoheng raised his hand to his lips to cough quietly and calmly asked Little Zhao, “Have they called the police yet or not?”
“Of course they did. The Tan’s have a relative in New York who was in contact with Miss Tan daily. This time, he called and texted Miss Tan, but she hadn’t been replying, so he got worried and came to check. He kept knocking on her door, but she didn’t come, so he asked her classmates and figured out she hadn’t come out or gone to class in two days.” Little Ze shook his head with regret. “I saw the photos. She’s a very pretty girl and looks like an angel…”
Huo Shaoheng stiffened slightly. “So by the time you discovered she was missing, she hadn’t shown up in two days already? In that case, shouldn’t the date Tan Guiren went missing be moved back by two days?” That meant she had been missing for eight days, not six…
Little Zhao scratched his head sheepishly. “Maybe. We were only informed two days ago that the Hua Xia Empire is sending personnel over to investigate the case.” If it wasn’t because Tan Guiren’s father, Tan Dongbang, is a popular candidate for the upcoming prime minister elections, her case wouldn’t be getting such attention from the Hua Xia Empire.
Zhao Liangze subtly took out his devices to scan the room and discovered that there were no eavesdropping bugs planted, but when he walked to the corner of the hallway, he saw a video camera that probably monitored the hallway. Zhao Liangze looked at it and pulled Hu Shaoheng’s arm to point out the camera’s location to him. Huo Shaoheng glanced at it casually and walked closer to the camera. “Right, Little Zhao. How did you determine she disappeared from the room?” Zhao Liangze put away his devices and asked the question on both his and Huo Shaoheng’s minds. If they only discovered she was missing after no contact for two days, then how was it determined that she had disappeared from her dorm?
Little Ze noticed Huo Shaoheng’s movements and quickly said, “You picked up on it, too? There’s a camera over there recording the hallway 24 hours a day. The police got evidence from the surveillance footage and said that Miss Tan didn’t come out again after going into her room. Then one of her relatives called the police, and the police used the campus spare key to open the door and found it was empty inside.”
Huo Shaoheng went back inside after listening to Little Zhao and replied, “Then can we have a look inside?”
“I’m here to take you in.” Little Ze opened the door to Tan Guiren’s dorm excitedly and ushered Huo Shaoheng and Zhao Liangze inside. Huo Shaoheng glanced around the room from the door. It was a very cramped single person dorm, about ten square meters in size. There was a twin size bed covered with clean sheets with skinny stripes, as well as several furry teddy bears. An exquisite pale yellow flower-shaped wall clock hung by the bed, and it was at the eight o’clock position. Directly across from the door was a window and under it a desk with a laptop that was already turned off. Next to the wall opposite the bed was an elegant vintage vanity. The wallpaper in the room was already very old, and the original rose pattern had faded to a shabby chic look. The room exuded the look of a dorm with over 100 years of history.
Inside the room was also a small storage space that had been converted into a closet. When they walked inside, they noticed luxury that was a stark contrast to the plainness of the rest of the room. Several Hermes Picotin bags were displayed on the shelves, and several pairs of Stuart Weitzman tall boots were scattered messily on the floor. High-end brand name dresses and pant suits hung from the rack. It appeared that Tan Guiren’s true identity of a wealthy socialite was revealed only by looking in the closet. Huo Shaoheng looked around the closet and left. Zhao Liangze remained behind to take photos of every corner.
Little Zhao took Huo Shaoheng around Tan Guiren’s dorm and gestured while saying, “Where do you think she could have gone? This is such a tiny place, a square room. Could she have disappeared into thin air?”
Huo Shaoheng kept quiet. He walked to the window to carefully study it and found it was sealed. To install central air conditioning in older American buildings like this, many windows were sealed because changing all the windows to new ones was a great expense. Juilliard certainly didn’t want to pay it, or couldn’t afford it, so all the windows were completely sealed. The sealed window was a benefit to the case, since that excluded the possibility of Tan Guiren leaving through it. Huo Shaoheng looked at the window a bit more and used his clear plastic gloved hand to gently wipe the window sill. Much dust had accumulated, and from the side it was evident that no one had touched it.
Turning around, he walked through the room again but didn’t see any signs of a struggle or fighting. Could someone have really disappeared into thin air there? That was ridiculous. But when he thought about how the mysterious magnetic field had been detected there, it didn’t seem so strange, after all. Huo Shaoheng crossed his arms and stroked his chin in thought as he stood by the door.
Zhao Liangze was using professional high-resolution cameras and camcorders to document the entire space, including the tiny bathroom. Just as the three men finished examining the room, a loud cacophony of footsteps and shouting sounded by the door.
“Move side! The police are here!”
“We need to clear the scene. All irrelevant people are to leave!”
“Hmm? Why is the door open? Did someone go in?” A stocky policeman opened the door to Tan Guiren’s dorm and was shocked to see three Asian men standing inside. “Who are you? Why are you inside a crime scene?” The policeman immediately darkened his expression and started shouting at them.
Little Zhao immediately came over to display his ID and business card. “Hello, I am from the detective agency retained by Miss Tan’s parents. We are here to find clues as allowed by law.”
The policeman’s expression eased a bit when he heard they were from the detective agency hired by Tan Guiren’s parents, but he still waved his arms, shooing them out like little chickens. “Get out, get out. We are sealing the crime scene today. The police are investigating, so you’d better not mess with the case.”
“The police are sealing off the room?” Little Zhao was perplexed. How many days had it been anyway? Sealing it today? Wasn’t that too late?
The policeman was flushed from the questioning so he pretended not to understand what Little Zhao was implying and shouted, “New clues have appeared, so we need to reopen the investigation!”
“New clues? What new clues? Can you give us a simple explanation?” Little Zhao instantly started questioning the policeman. “I was hired by Miss Tan’s parents, so I have a right to know what new clues you’ve discovered.”
Of course the police didn’t have any new clues at all. It was only a random excuse to kick them out. Their only clue was discovering that Tan Guiren’s parents were new dignitaries in the Hua Xia Empire.
“We aren’t able to share our intelligence with you for now. If you want to find out more, then you’ll have to watch the press conference tomorrow.” Sergeant A waddled inside with a group of rookie police officers who had just started training. He raised his finger and commanded, “Go inside and look carefully for clues! You’d better find something, even if you have to dig up the place!” The police officers swarmed inside and immediately crowded up the room.
Huo Shaoheng, Zhao Liangze, and Little Zhao instantly retreated. Looking at the police officers blundering inside like a swarm of flies, the originally tidy little room was instantly messy. Little Zhao couldn’t help grimacing and whispered, “How can they find any clues messing around like that?”
Huo Shaoheng and Zhao Liangze also shared the same thought, but they didn’t say anything as they quietly watched the group of police officers turn Tan Guiren’s dorm upside down. After about 15 minutes, there was nothing left for them to dig through and Sergeant A finally waved them out. He taped off the door to prevent anyone else from going inside the dorm.
Little Zhao went over to talk to him. “Sergeant, how are we to come back for more clues if this place is taped off?”
“The police are investigating now, so there’s nothing more for you to do.” Sergeant A didn’t want anyone else to intervene.
Little Zhao completely ignored him and sneered. “We have a power of attorney. Are you sure you want us to take this to the Intermediate Circuit Court?”
