Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Huh? There’s really an express delivery?” Zhao Yu was surprised. Although he was the one who first came up with the idea, he had been merely guessing. He hadn’t expected that there would really be one!
“Apparently, clients would sometimes go on a long journey, so the delivery company began promoting a delayed delivery service!” Zhang explained. “The anonymous letter was set to be delivered, three months after the postage was paid, to the tailor shop where Xin Xiaoru works! In fact, the recipient is noted as being Xin Xiaoru! So, I reckon that the letter was most likely written by Le Chao himself! I have informed the police in Yunzhou, instructing them to transfer the express delivery to us immediately!”
“Alright!”
After Zhao Yu hung up the phone, his mind was in turmoil.
Zhang was right. The letter that was supposedly sent to Xin Xiaoru should obviously have been written by Le Chao!
Then… What would be found in the express delivery?
The truth of Falling Off Building Case? Le Chao’s last words? Or, who knows what other items?!
And….Why would it only be sent after three months?
Oh…
Suddenly, Zhao Yu thought of a possibility. Le Chao was a police officer back then. Thus, he was very familiar with the procedures of the police authority. He knew that the Falling Off Building Case would be all done after three months! By then, no one would be watching over Xin Xiaoru’s comings and goings at all! If that was his logic, this meant that the letter must be very important!
At that moment, there was something stirring in Zhao Yu’s mind. He felt as though he had finally caught wind of something, from the many scattered details of the shocking conspiracy within a scheme. After that, Zhao Yu returned to the office to continue interviewing Li Chen about the situation in Chen’s family.
Actually, the reason why Zhao Yu wanted to understand the situation from the general manager’s point of view was firstly, because of his close relationship with Chen Bingguang. As the two were close, that meant that he knew many insights into the Chen family.
Secondly, Li Chen had once intended to hire Zhao Yu to protect the sisters. So, that at least signified that he cared about the sisters’ welfare. However, when he was making an appointment, Zhao Yu didn’t reveal the true intentions of his visit. He only mentioned that he was coming to learn more about the situation, on behalf of the police.
But, Li Chen was a clever man. He quickly realized that there was something wrong, especially after all of the questions. So, he asked, “Police Officer Zhao, this is all not quite right. Regarding the sisters’ Falling Off Building Case, isn’t it a closed case already? I was told that the culprit who hired the killer was Chen Bingxian. But, the questions that you’ve been asking seem to go beyond the normal scope. So, is there something wrong about the case, after all?”
Zhao Yu looked at Su Jinmei, then nodded lightly. He then lowered his voice to answer Li Chen. “The truth is, regarding the Falling Off Building Case, we do have a few facts that we need to clarify. Although there is conclusive proof that Chen Bingxian was the one that contracted the killer, the case isn’t as simple as it first seemed!”
“Oh?” Li Chen was stunned. “Chen Bingxian already pleaded guilty, what other suspicion is there? No wonder you wanted me to keep this meeting a secret! But, I still don’t understand. Again, what’s the suspicion?”
“I’ll just be straightforward with you!” Su Jinmei saw that Li Chen was panicking, so she quickly explained, “We suspect that Ai Lili hired Le Chao at first, then Le Chao intentionally approached Chen Bingxian, luring Chen Bingxian to contract a killer. Then, she seized the opportunity to frame him!”
“Huh?!” Li Chen heard this and gawked. He then muttered to himself, “Ai Lili? She… Is it possible? This is like some dramatic Hollywood movie!”
He continued, sobering up now. “No. This can’t be, as I’m always in contact with the chairman’s wife. Although the way she works is fast and resolute, she wouldn’t be so cunning, as to be able to plot such an unfathomable strategy! You must have gotten it wrong. It just can’t be her!”
“Manager Li Chen, why do you say this?” Zhao Yu asked.
“Please, believe me, Police Officer Zhao!” Li Chen swore. “I have been in this business for so many years, so I am accurate when I judge a person! I admit that our chairman’s wife is decisive and bold, but to speak of her scheming, she isn’t even close to us old foxes! Put it this way, she is the kind of person that has her emotions written clearly on her face. Such a person wouldn’t be able to do anything so sly and underhanded! This is unbelievable!”
“Oh, is it?”
Zhao Yu’s eyebrows were raised now. This was because he had gotten in contact with Ai Lili before. The feeling that the woman gave off was exactly how Manager Li Chen had described. Depending on Ai Lili’s nature and personality, she wouldn’t be able to complete such a covert and meticulous conspiracy within a scheme!
In the past, Zhao Yu had been involved with other criminals that were highly intelligent, such as Li Dan from the Hand Chopped Case, Fang Yi from the Stamp Case, and Qiu Xinyang from the Hidden Corpse Case. These people were deeply dark and sinister, and their eyes were sharp and fierce. But, when it came to Ai Lili, he couldn’t see those characteristics at all.
Could it be…
What if, besides Ai Lili, there was another expert? Then, perhaps that expert was the real mastermind behind the conspiracy in a scheme?!
“Hey? Eh?! Wait…” Suddenly, Li Chen sounded as though he was shocked by something. He quickly stood up straight, holding his head with both of his hands.
“Why?” Su Jinmei asked.
“I… I just recalled something!” Li Chen suddenly clapped his hands, then said, “A month ago, someone messed with the chairman’s private account. I remember now, the person took ten million out from that account!”
“Oh? Ten million?” Zhao Yu and Su Jinmei were both surprised by this news.
“The chairman had his reasons for making me the general manager of the group! Because of that fact that I could take care of most all of the tasks in the company, I could help him with some household matters. So, in order to ensure the security of his account, he granted me the rights to the accounts. Part of those rights includes the facet where, if anyone touches his account, I would also be notified!”
“A month back…” Su Jinmei had her eyes wide open as she spoke, “Chen Bingguang was still in a heavy stupor! So, who took it?”
“Only three other persons would have had access!” Li Chen said. “Ai Lili and the Chen sisters! After all, it was the chairman’s personal account, so only the family knew the password.”
“The Chen sisters had already died. So, no doubt, it was Ai Lili?” Su Jinmei guessed. “She took the ten million. But, what was she planning to do with it?”
“Maybe the others wouldn’t understand…” Li Chen said. “But, in the Chen family, ten million isn’t a huge figure! So, I wasn’t bothered by the withdrawal back then. Then, I all but forgot about it. When the Ruyang Branch had me give my testimony, I totally forgot to bring this up!”
“Ah! Hero…”
At that moment, Zhao Yu’s phone rang again. It was Captain Zhang calling. As Zhao Yu had no need to avoid suspicion anymore, he answered the call on the spot.
Zhang was even more excited than before, as he spoke loudly, as though he was singing, “The Yunzhou police found the parcel! There was a letter that Le Chao had written, and there was also a key! There wasn’t anything special about the letter. It was merely his last words, telling his wife and children to live a happy life. At the end of the letter, he mentioned the key. He said that the key is the gift that he had prepared for his wife and children!”
He continued excitedly, “The police in Yunzhou are amazing, too. They found the tailor shop where Xin Xiaoru worked, discovering that it belonged to a huge free market. In order to make it easier for the customers to deposit their bags, the free market built a lot of storage cabinets at the door of the tailor shop! And, guess what? The key opened one of the storage cabinets!”
He was still talking quickly, the pride now revealed in his voice. “Brother-in-law, the photo was sent to my handphone! Guess what was in the storage cabinet?”
“Oh my!” Zhao Yu stood up from his chair, exclaiming excitedly, “Would it be ten million in cash?”
“Huh?!” Zhang was dumbfounded. He gasped in admiration. “Are you God? How did you know? You’re exactly right! It’s ten million in cash!”
