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Jiang Xiaochun chuckled softly and began, "Seven years ago, we were at least considered close friends, even though in her eyes, we were all fools. But the interesting thing about this world is that those who seem smart on the outside are often the biggest fools; the truly intelligent ones will pretend to be less clever than they are."
"I discovered her ambiguous relationship with her boss, and I could see that she was already in her thirties. If she wanted to get married, she couldn't continue like this," Jiang Xiaochun continued. "So I contacted her and told her that there was someone who wanted to introduce her for a blind date, wondering if she would be interested in chatting."
Jiang Xiaochun laughed again. "I pretended to be a man I had fabricated and chatted with her. She really believed that a handsome, wealthy guy was interested in her; all those photos were ones I found online. After two months of chatting, I started asking her out to meet. This was my last resort; if it turned out that Deng Xuemei was involved in a homicide, they would trace it back to the person I had invented."
Her cunning was remarkable; I never expected that even before we found Deng Xuemei's body, she had already considered a backup plan in case things went south with Deng Xuemei. Unfortunately, without Xu Man's involvement, we might never have uncovered the truth.
Sometimes the world is strange; it's clear that Jiang Xiaochun has high intelligence and emotional awareness, yet how could she not understand that murder comes with consequences? Perhaps when a person falls into extreme emotions, they cease to be rational.
"I told Deng Xuemei we should go sea fishing and set a location," Jiang Xiaochun continued. "I instructed her not to bring anything, but perhaps wanting to make a good impression on me, she bought a bait tray. At that moment, I realized that this bait tray might lead to trouble, but I had already thought it through; you probably wouldn't be able to trace that fictional man."
"But unexpectedly," Jiang Xiaochun shook her head, "you all arrived so quickly."
She added, "At that time, I used a voice changer to tell Deng Xuemei to meet in a more private place, and she happily agreed. It was a cliff by the sea, one of those cliffs found along the coastline. When Deng Xuemei saw me, she asked why I had come too. I told her that the guy was a bit shy and asked her to wait over there for him."
Jiang Xiaochun made a pushing gesture and said, "So I gently pushed her, and Deng Xuemei was forever buried in the sea. Perhaps still holding onto her beautiful fantasies as she sank beneath the waves; her body might have already been consumed by fish. Afterward, just like you did, I fabricated evidence to make it look like she was the murderer."
Shrugging her shoulders, Jiang Xiaochun continued, "I had her quit her job and arranged for my fictional character to send her money every month. This way, she would have time to commit the crime and could be summoned whenever I decided to pull back."
Jiang Xiaochun spoke in an even tone as if discussing something trivial like "a child scoring full marks on an exam." In reality, her plan was seamless; within just a few exchanges, she had ensnared Deng Xuemei. Perhaps when Deng Xuemei died, she didn't even understand what had happened.
However, just like Jiang Xiaochun's situation, we had no idea when Deng Xuemei's body would be found. Yet I had obtained the answers I sought; nearly all the clues regarding this matter were connected in my mind—only some irrelevant details remained. But none of that mattered anymore; even without knowing these things, it would still be fine.
Yet humans cannot control their curiosity; they always want to see through everything.
I raised a finger and said, "So here's the final question: how did you get that phone? If I'm guessing correctly, that phone must have been the trigger for your decision to kill. Although without it, killing would have just been a matter of time."
Jiang Xiaochun looked at me seriously and replied, "You might not believe it when you hear this: I actually found that phone."
"You found it?" I frowned and asked earnestly. "Wasn't it something you discovered during your years of investigation?"
"No," Jiang Xiaochun waved her hand dismissively. "This happened a few months ago when Hu Pei was on a business trip and Hu Xiaoxue was at school; I was home alone. Then I went out to buy groceries for dinner. When I opened the door to leave, I saw a phone lying quietly on the ground. There wasn't anyone around at the time, so I picked it up and took a look."
Hearing Jiang Xiaochun's words made me feel puzzled. From this description alone, it seemed impossible for the phone to have simply fallen there without reason. If we consider this point of view, then someone must have deliberately discarded it there—who could that person be?
"Then what happened?" I gestured for Jiang Xiaochun to continue.
Jiang Xiaochun went on, "At that time, I thought about casually flipping through this person's phone to see who had left it behind. I noticed that the phone was quite old, and the numbers on the buttons were almost worn off. This person must be financially strapped to keep using such a battered phone; they probably cared a lot about it."
"But when I opened the phone, I saw that image—Lu Zhiqiu's image." Jiang Xiaochun's voice grew angry. "You must have seen it; it's the photo of Lu Zhiqiu dismembered. At that moment, my mind went blank. I looked at the grocery basket in my hands and suddenly felt contempt for myself. I understood why I married Hu Pei, but now, how did I end up as a housewife?"
If that were the case, this person must have known Jiang Xiaochun's habits very well. The phone was definitely meant for her to find; if this person didn't want it to be picked up by someone else, they would have left it just before Jiang Xiaochun went out to buy groceries—that would make the most sense.
Jiang Xiaochun continued, "So two months ago, I started planning the entire case. I spent a week devising a feasible plan that would allow me to escape while eliminating everyone involved. From that moment on, everything was set in motion. Perhaps someone came to tell me that I had strayed from my true self."
I tugged at my hair, slowly contemplating. The investigation had reached this point, and it seemed to be coming to an end. However, within the grand mystery of this case, there were still more enigmas that left one feeling dizzy. Yet the biggest question remained: who was the murderer of Lu Zhiqiu?
Suddenly, a name popped into my mind.
I recalled something else and asked, "Since you were so close to Lu Zhiqiu, you must know about that dog incident from back then. What happened afterward? I know Wang Xin posted false information online; did that affect you in any way?"
"It did," Jiang Xiaochun replied. "I remember clearly that after Lu Zhiqiu bought that dog, we were interning at a construction site, so we kept it there. A month passed after that incident when suddenly someone who wanted to kill the dog confronted Lu Zhiqiu aggressively."
Jiang Xiaochun continued speaking while I listened intently. She said, "He rambled on about a lot of things and seemed very angry, but we didn't really understand what had happened. Oh right, it was just the two of us there at the time. Not long after, that worker disappeared; we heard he was fired, but we weren't sure."
After a pause, Jiang Xiaochun added, "We all breathed a sigh of relief afterward. However, eventually that dog went missing; it probably ran away on its own. After that, no one ever mentioned it again."
I tugged at my hair again as I seriously considered this matter. From Jiang Xiaochun's description, it seemed like the worker got fired after that incident. I wondered if this was related to Wang Xin spreading rumors about him online; it seemed someone had doxxed him.
Could this worker harbor any hatred towards Lu Zhiqiu because of this? That was uncertain. I glanced at Zhao Mingkun; he looked back at me. I felt this matter warranted further investigation.
Having asked everything I wanted to know and confirmed many of my suspicions, it was time to find out what Jiang Xiaochun intended to do next.
I said, "I've finished asking my questions; now you should do what you want."
Jiang Xiaochun seemed relieved and looked at me gratefully before saying, "Alright, I want to see Lu Zhiqiu one last time."
"Do you know where she was buried?" I asked.
Jiang Xiaochun nodded heavily.
I asked again, "Was it you who collected the body? I remember that Lu Zhiqiu's family didn't go to collect it because they were afraid of spending money."
"Yes," Jiang Xiaochun replied helplessly. "It was me. The body was at the funeral home for a long time, and Kori Chiu's family didn't come to collect it either. In the end, I had no choice but to go myself, including the cremation and burial. I did all of that. What I used to love most was going to Lu Zhiqiu's grave to talk to him. This might be the last time I can do that. I hope you can fulfill this wish of mine. I promise I won't leave."
I nodded and said, "That's fine, but we must be present."
Jiang Xiaochun provided an address.
In the meantime, I sent a text to Gu Chen, signaling him to have the police come to the grave site in an hour to apprehend someone.
I looked at Jiang Xiaochun, and he looked back at me. For a moment, neither of us knew what to say.
We opened the door, and Hu's Mother sat dazed on the sofa, seemingly unaware of Jiang Xiaochun's earlier bowing. Upon seeing us come out, she immediately stood up and asked, "Murderer, who is the murderer?"
I couldn't bear to tell this elderly woman the truth, so I slowly said, "We need to take Jiang Xiaochun away first. In about an hour, the police will notify you. Please be prepared."
Upon hearing our words, Hu's Mother immediately knelt on the ground, crying out, "As long as you catch the murderer! As long as you catch the murderer! My son and granddaughter can finally rest in peace..."
Her wailing echoed through the air, a sorrow that had been suppressed for far too long.
In this world, everything ultimately revolves around one word: emotion.
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