Gu Nianzhi carefully recalled her first visit to the Huo family compound at the end of the year before last year.
At that time, Luo Jialan was still called Huo Jialan. She was the good daughter and butler of the Huo family.
Song Jinning had been mentally deranged for more than a decade. The grandmother of the Huo family had passed away, and Huo Guanchen hadn’t taken another wife, whileGrandfather Huo’s head nurse, Zhang Feng, had an ambiguous status. Therefore, on the surface, she was the only female heiress of the Huo family.
Song Jinning was completely taken care of by her two housekeeping staff, Auntie Xing and Auntie You.
Gu Nianzhi frowned slightly and said, ” … When Mrs. Song’s condition was exposed, Luo Jialan wailed loudly, then pointed at Mrs. Song, and yelled at me. ”
“She said, ‘I won’t let you take her away! I won’t let you take that bitch away! Do you know that my mother killed herself by swallowing sleeping pills because of her? ! Why does she have the audacity to pretend to be mentally insane after doing all those shameless things?? —— Isn’t she just mentally insane? ? Hasn’t she lost her memory ? I’ll make her stay mentally insane for the rest of her life ! Lose her memory for the rest of her life! Pay for what she did to my mother! ‘
“Could these words be her subjective motive for intentionally killing someone?”
Gu Nianzhi added, “There were also two housekeeping staff who took care of Ms. Song at the time, Auntie Xing and Auntie you. These two must know more about the truth.”
He Zhichu’s expression didn’t change as he pointed out in a professional manner, “Based on this sentence alone, at most, it was ‘intentional injury’, and not ‘intentional murder’.”
Gu Nianzhi raised her eyebrows, “The distinction between intentional injury and intentional murder is still in the defendant’s subjective consciousness. If she knew that her actions would cost the other person’s life, then it would be intentional murder. If she knew that her actions would only cause the other person to suffer a certain amount of harm, then it would be intentional injury. We just need to prove that her actions would’ve caused Mrs. Song’s death, and not just harm.”
“Yes, that’s a good starting point, but how do you prove that her actions had the direct effect of causing Mrs. Song’s death? ——After all, Mrs. Song hadn’t died. She had been ill for more than a decade and had even recovered.” He Zhichu’s words are always so rational and precise.
After discussing the case with a veteran professional like He Zhichu, Gu Nianzhi felt inspired.
She continued to follow this line of reasoning. “The direct consequences of Luo Jialan’s actions would’ve resulted in the death of Madam Song. Whether or not Madam Song is really dead isn’t relevant. Just because Madam Song isn’t dead doesn’t mean we can completely rule out the motive and possibility of her killing intentionally.”
He Zhichu smiled and nodded. “That’s interesting. Continue.”
“I’ll gather information to prove that Luo Jialan’s ‘care’ for Ms. Song all these years wasn’t to facilitate her recovery, but to murder her with a soft knife. Her real motive was to murder her.”
Gu Nianzhi still remembered the narrow and low bedroom she had seen on the top floor of the Huo family’s mansion. Song Jinning had lived in that oppressive environment for more than ten years.
For a woman who had suffered severe physical trauma and shock to her brain and had suffered a complete mental breakdown, such an environment would definitely make things worse. It was impossible that it was actually for her psychological treatment.
He Zhichu took out his phone and wrote a few notes on the memo. He asked again, “Alright, even if a subjective motive is established, what about the physical evidence and the witness?”
“I’ll seek out Major General Huo for the physical evidence. The most important witnesses are Auntie Xing and Auntie You. Those two are the housekeepers who have been taking care of Ms. Song for many years.”
“Yes, Auntie Xing and Auntie You are the key. If you use them well, they will be very important witnesses, but if you don’t use them well, your accusation will not stand up in the absence of physical evidence.” He Zhichu tried to fill in the gaps in Gu Nianzhi’s thoughts, and quickly helped her formulate a complete plan.
If they followed this procedure, they would at least be able to settle the case with the police and the courts. They would be able to successfully file a case and file a public prosecution.
” … You have to be careful. The prosecutor for this kind of case is the prosecution office. You have to follow the legal procedures very strictly. You can’t let Huo Shaoheng get involved. Once he makes a move, I believe that Luo Jialan’s lawyers won’t let this go. They will attack you for “abusing your power for personal gain’ and ‘using your power to bully others.”
Huo Shaoheng was in a high position of power, and the victim on the plaintiff’s side was his biological mother. If he spoke, the people of the prosecution side wouldn’t dare disobey him. It was even possible that they would immediately file a case and a lawsuit.
However, in a modern Internet society where news spread rapidly, such a method was simply too foolish.
If the other party caught them in the act and stirred up negative sentiments on the internet, even falsehoods would appear like the truth.
Therefore, Huo Shaoheng had to stay out of it. Other than providing Gu Nianzhi with the evidence in his hands, he couldn’t interfere in any other aspect.
Gu Nianzhi thought about it carefully and smiled, then said, “We won’t do anything illegal, but I won’t pretend that Major General Huo has nothing to do with this just to avoid suspicion. After all, she is his mother. If he really stayed out of it, those people would also attack him for being ‘inhumane’. “—— If they want to launch a cyber war on me, hehe, the netizens will teach them how to behave… ”
When He Zhichu saw Gu Nianzhi’s sly and fearless expression, he felt ambivalent inside.
He was eager to see Gu Nianzhi in high spirits and charge forward courageously, but she was acting like this because of another man, so He Zhichu felt very bitter inside.
..
The two of them discussed the matter for the entire morning. He Zhichu looked at his watch and said, “Are you hungry? I’ll go make dinner.”
Gu Nianzhi was surprised. “Professor He can cook?!”
Didn’t he always order takeout and drink red wine?!
He Zhichu: ” … ”
“It’s just cooking. How hard can it be? ” He had secretly read many tutorials online and had wanted to give it a try for a long time…
He Zhichu’s expression was unsightly. He stood up from the sofa “Wait here.”
He strode towards the kitchen on the first floor.
How could Gu Nianzhi just wait there?
She had to watch as He Zhichu cooked.
Gu Nianzhi smiled as she stood up and followed He Zhichu into the kitchen.
She walked back to He Zhichu’s side and carefully observed his expression. She asked with a smile, “Professor He, what do you want to cook?”
“… Egg Fried Rice. ” He Zhichu didn’t even look at Gu Nianzhi. He continued, “Don’t follow me. How am I supposed to cook if you come in?”
He Zhichu glared at Gu Nianzhi and blocked her from entering the kitchen.
Gu Nianzhi saw that He Zhichu was adamant about not letting her into the kitchen, so she thought about it and decided not to insist.
She stopped at the kitchen door and turned around to say, “Then I won’t go in. Good Luck, Professor He!”
He Zhichu: ” … ”
Gu Nianzhi returned to the living room and sat down. She took out her phone and looked at the workflow that He Zhichu had prepared for her.
She had to admit that He Zhichu’s plan was very well thought out and complemented her own plan very well.
She was so focused on her work in the living room that she lost track of time.
Gu Nianzhi waited until her stomach was growling with hunger before she turned to look at her watch.
It had been almost an hour and a half since He Zhichu had entered the kitchen.
What kind of egg fried rice taked an hour and a half to make?
Egg Fried Rice in sumptuous Manhan style?
Gu Nianzhi couldn’t suppress her curiosity. She put away her phone and stood up. She tiptoed to the kitchen door to get a peek.
Just then, the shrill sound of the smoke detector alarm sounded throughout the villa.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
It sounded like police cars and ambulances were racing down the street with sirens blaring and all coming towards this house.
Gu Nianzhi felt as if her ears were about to go deaf.
Panicked, she quickly ran to the kitchen.
Before she even reached the door, she was shocked to see the thick smoke coming out of the kitchen.
“Professor He? Professor He?!” Gu Nianzhi rushed through the thick smoke and saw He Zhichu holding a spatula while wearing a grey apron. He stood in front of the induction cooker with a flustered expression.
Gu Nianzhi pulled him away and quickly glanced into the pot.
What were those dark blobs?!
Where was the egg-fried rice?!
