102 Collapse

(Page 1/3)

"Well, well, if it isn't Officer Han. You have to speak up for me—I'm innocent," Tang Yu said.

Han Bin closed the door of the interrogation room and walked in. "Miss Tang, Xiang Hongbo has already confessed. Stop holding out."

"You don't have to bluff me. I don't know anything. I'm clean."

"Xiang Hongbo really did confess, and he gave us the full details of the case. If you keep refusing to cooperate with the investigation, you'll only make things worse for yourself."

Tang Yu bit her lip. "I thought you were different from the others."

"Then let me remind you of something." Han Bin paused for a moment, then said:

"That night after dinner, you and Xiang Hongbo went back to your room, showered, and were just about to do what couples do when your phone rang. It was He Shirui calling. Am I right?"

Tang Yu's expression turned unpleasant. Those details were known only to her and Xiang Hongbo. She had never told anyone else, nor would she ever speak of such things.

"What else did he say?" Tang Yu asked.

"He's said everything that needs to be said. If I have to spell it all out, you won't have any chance left," Han Bin said.

"Tang Yu, with Xiang Hongbo as a witness, there's no point in trying to talk your way out of this," Zeng Ping snorted.

Tang Yu covered her face with both hands and was silent for a moment. "What do you want me to say?"

"Who killed He Shirui?"

"Luo Xinghua," Tang Yu said.

"How do you know?"

"He Shirui called us, and we heard the whole thing as she was being killed. Afterwards, Luo Xinghua admitted it himself."

"Why did you cover for Luo Xinghua?"

"Xiang Hongbo and he were close friends. We were just trying to help a friend," Tang Yu said.

"And what about He Shirui? Wasn't she your friend?" Tian Li countered.

"She's dead. What's the point in bringing that up now?" Tang Yu said.

"When did He Shirui die?"

"Around nine in the evening."

"Around ten that night, the woman in the blue sleeveless dress pretending to be He Shirui—that was you, wasn't it?" Han Bin pressed.

"Did Xiang Hongbo tell you that?"

"Just tell me—yes or no?"

Tang Yu hesitated for a long while. "Yes."

"Extorting five hundred thousand from Luo Xinghua—that was your idea too?" Han Bin probed.

"We didn't extort Luo Xinghua. He gave us the hush money voluntarily," Tang Yu said.

"That's not what Xiang Hongbo says."

"You don't have to bluff me."

"Xiang Hongbo definitely said it that way," Tang Yu asserted.

On this point, the interests of the two were aligned.

"You were He Shirui's friend. She was killed by Luo Xinghua, and not only did you not report it to the police, you helped Luo Xinghua give false testimony. Can your conscience live with that?" Tian Li demanded.

Tang Yu let out a long sigh. "Everyone has to answer for what they do. He Shirui is no exception."

(Page 1/3)

(Page 2/3)

"What did she do?"

"She came with us to Qingdao and barely spent a cent—Luo Xinghua paid for everything. Spending a man's money is fine, but only if you intend to be with him. She took his money and didn't want to be with him—there's no such thing as that kind of deal. Who else can she blame when things go wrong?" Tang Yu snorted.

"There's no such thing as a free lunch in this world. That goes for everyone."

...

By the time they had Tang Yu's statement, it was already midnight.

With her testimony and Xiang Hongbo's, it was more than enough to convict Luo Xinghua.

Han Bin and the others had been working all day, exhausted in both body and mind, with no energy left to continue interrogations.

Zheng Kaixuan simply sent everyone home to rest.

The next morning, after Han Bin had regained his full energy, he brought Luo Xinghua in for questioning.

"Name, gender, age, place of origin..."

"Luo Xinghua, male, twenty-four, local."

Han Bin got straight to the point. "Luo Xinghua, did you kill He Shirui?"

"No."

"Between eight and ten o'clock on the night of August 24th, where were you?"

"I can't remember."

"Can't remember, or don't dare to say?"

"I can't remember."

"Then let me help you remember. On the night of August 24th, you rented a yacht and took He Shirui out to sea. You got into an argument, and you pushed her overboard and drowned her," Han Bin said.

Luo Xinghua lowered his head and gritted his teeth. "I didn't."

"We found debris under He Shirui's fingernails. Lab results confirmed it was yacht paint. We sent people to inspect the yacht you rented, and the scratch marks on the bottom match perfectly," Han Bin said.

Luo Xinghua took a deep breath. "She fell in herself. It had nothing to do with me."

"Where did the bite mark on your left arm come from?" Han Bin asked.

"A dog bit me."

"Nonsense."

Li Hui barked: "When we brought you into the precinct, our forensic examiner already ran the tests. The mark on your arm matches He Shirui's dental records exactly. It's obvious she bit you."

"Oh, now I remember. I think she did bite me once."

"Why did she bite you?"

"Hitting shows affection, scolding shows love. Maybe she just liked me too much," Luo Xinghua sneered.

"Luo Xinghua, leniency for confession, severity for resistance. If you keep spouting nonsense and refusing to cooperate with the police, you're heading straight for a dead end," Li Hui warned.

"Heh." Luo Xinghua let out a cold laugh.

"Don't kid yourself with wishful thinking. Xiang Hongbo and Tang Yu have already confessed. Their statements are very clear—you killed He Shirui," Han Bin said.

"Impossible." Luo Xinghua shook his head, believing the two wouldn't dare testify against him.

"They also said that to cover up your crime, you voluntarily gave them five hundred thousand in hush money," Han Bin said.

"That's them—" Luo Xinghua almost blurted out that the two had extorted him, but he held his tongue.

(Page 2/3)

(Page 3/3)

"Compared to you, what they did isn't that serious. And testifying against you means they can earn merit to reduce their own punishment. They have no reason to keep holding out," Han Bin said, further breaking down the other man's resolve.

"Pah. Don't try to trick me into talking." Luo Xinghua spat.

"Luo Xinghua, watch your attitude." Li Hui snapped.

"Attitude, my ass. You're all just trying to destroy me," Luo Xinghua said.

"You don't believe Tang Yu and Xiang Hongbo have already talked?" Han Bin countered.

"No."

Han Bin stood up and walked over to the interrogation chair. "After you killed He Shirui, you met with Tang Yu and Xiang Hongbo by the seaside, begged them not to call the police, promised them favors, and had Tang Yu disguise herself as He Shirui to go to the bar and fake the impression that she was still alive."

"That's just your guess," Luo Xinghua snorted.

"Tang Yu said the hat she wore that night was one you originally intended to give to He Shirui. To avoid being recognized by surveillance cameras, you had Tang Yu wear that hat to pose as He Shirui. That can't be a guess, can it?" Han Bin said.

Luo Xinghua's face turned extremely grim. That detail was known only to the three people present. Which meant at least one of them—Tang Yu or Xiang Hongbo—had truly confessed.

Once someone came forward to testify, combined with the existing evidence, Luo Xinghua might really be finished.

"Luo Xinghua, at this point, what's the point in keeping this up?" Han Bin pressed.

Luo Xinghua lowered his head and said nothing.

"Are you going to talk or not?"

Luo Xinghua remained silent.

"Since you don't want to talk, let's listen to a recording." Han Bin took out Tang Yu's phone and played the call recording.

'Luo Xinghua, let go of me...'

'Shirui, what do you think I'm going to do...'

'Xinghua, I know you treat me well...'

...

'I'll ask you one more time—will you choose Mao Yiran, or me?'

'Ah, you bitch, you dare bite me!'

...

"Stop it. Turn the phone off." Luo Xinghua shouted.

"Are you going to talk?" Han Bin pressed.

"Pah."

"If you don't talk, the recording keeps playing. Let you relive it a little." Han Bin said.

The first time the recording played, Luo Xinghua clenched his fists, his face twisted with rage.

The second time, cold sweat poured down his face and his body began to tremble slightly.

By the time the recording played for the third time, Luo Xinghua could no longer bear it. He roared: "Turn it off. I'll confess—I'll tell you everything!"

Han Bin pressed his advantage. "How did He Shirui die?"

"I killed her."

(Page 3/3)