Chapter 5
According to the information provided by Director Wang from the Subdistrict Office, Chen Jialuo’s family address was located in a high-end villa district in the southern part of the city. Murong Shui immediately drove a few people over to the location.
Before becoming Xu Tiannan’s assistant, Murong Shui had aspired to become a great detective like Sherlock Holmes. So, during her university years, she made up her mind to apply for a graduate program in Criminal Investigation Science at the Political Science and Law University. At that time, Xu Tiannan was already a renowned graduate advisor at that university.
Therefore, after Murong Shui finally graduated from her unremarkable university by any means necessary, she confidently took her transcript to Xu Tiannan and told him, “I want to apply for your graduate program.” She would never forget the look Xu Tiannan gave her at that moment-a look that was hard to describe even among carbon-based lifeforms, as if his face was saying, “When mountains crumble and the earth meets the sky, you still have no chance.”
Although the path to becoming his graduate student was completely blocked, Murong Shui chose a “roundabout way to save the nation”-by relying on her extraordinary thick skin to stay by Xu Tiannan’s side, of course, in the role of an “assistant,” which, to put it bluntly, was just a “contract worker.”
Even though she was only a contract worker, this was her first step toward her life’s goal. It was precisely because of this assistant position that Murong Shui had the opportunity to learn at Xu Tiannan’s side.
At this moment, Murong Shui gripped the steering wheel with one hand, impatiently asking, “Boss! Was that really the first time you met Director Wang just now?”
Xu Tiannan nodded. “Of course it was the first time. Otherwise, do you think I’d have any dealings with a Subdistrict Office Director?”
Murong Shui’s eyes sparkled, eager to know the reason. “Then, then, then… how did you know so much about her? Tell me!”
Xu Tiannan said, “Do you remember, when she first saw us, she immediately noticed the women’s clothing boutique shopping bag in your hand?”
Murong Shui replied, “I noticed that. When she saw me holding the shopping bag, she instinctively glanced up at the surveillance camera above her head. Although the action was brief, just a split second, I could tell she was worried about the gift-giving being caught on camera.”
Xu Tiannan said, “You’re right. And based on the conversation we overheard outside the office, Chen’s factory relies on the Subdistrict Office Director to send them targeted poverty alleviation workers. In this kind of targeted placement, the factory only needs to pay very low wages to these workers, so naturally, this becomes a coveted opportunity for several factories.”
After a pause, Xu Tiannan continued, “So, Chen’s factory would certainly hope the Subdistrict Office could assign these targeted poverty alleviation workers to their factory. To achieve this, the Chen family would inevitably have to give gifts. Since gift-giving is unavoidable, I believe Chen Jialuo’s father must have taught him the first rule of gift-giving.”
“What’s the first rule?”
Xu Tiannan said, “When giving gifts to important people, you must do it yourself to minimize the number of people who know about it. But I believe that with Chen Jialuo’s father’s status, he wouldn’t do it himself. So, the person who directly interacts with Director Wang can only be Chen Jialuo, representing his father.”
“Oh!” Murong Shui drew out the sound, nodding thoughtfully. “Looks like you have a lot of experience with gift-giving… No wonder you deliberately said that Chen Jialuo ran into Director Wang and her spouse arguing while delivering a gift.”
Xu Tiannan added, “That’s purely a big data probability event (note). Maybe Director Wang wasn’t actually caught by Chen Jialuo while arguing with her husband, but people tend to be suspicious. It’s possible that right after she had a fight with her husband, Chen Jialuo showed up. Naturally, she’d wonder if he overheard anything.”
After speaking, Murong Shui suddenly thought of something and asked, “But that’s not right! How were you so sure that Director Wang often argues with her husband? And how did you know they have a dog and her husband is into photography?”
Xu Tiannan said, “A person’s appearance can reveal a lot of useful information. Do you remember I once told you that?”
Murong Shui nodded, and Xu Tiannan explained again, “From the moment we entered her office, I noticed the coat hanging on the rack by the door. Tell me, do you remember what that coat looked like?”
Murong Shui recalled, “Um… blue, with a row of buttons on the chest… and the buttons were… I think they were gold?”
Xu Tiannan added, “If you observe more carefully, you’ll notice that there are two different colors of pet hair at the collar of that piece of clothing. These two types of hair are slightly curly and stiff, so it’s more likely to be dog hair. This means Director Wang keeps at least two pet dogs of different colors. And since the dog hair is near the collar, it shows that these two dogs are very close to her. Every time Director Wang comes home from work, the dogs rush to her, and she hugs them to her chest before even taking off her coat. That’s why there’s dog hair on the chest area of her outerwear. This is what we often call inferential reasoning: from the height of the dog hair, you can judge the intimacy between a person and their pet.
“I see! Haha! Now I remember!” Murong Shui seemed to have an epiphany, but then suddenly thought of something and asked, “By the way, regarding the gift-giving issue you mentioned earlier, I just thought of another possibility. Chen Jialuo could have just put the gift in her car, so he wouldn’t need to go to her house at all.”
Xu Tiannan replied, “Are you silly? Can’t you tell that Director Wang doesn’t drive and commutes on foot?”
“Huh?”
Seeing Murong Shui confused again, Xu Tiannan flicked the keychain stuck behind the steering wheel, making a jingling sound, and asked, “Would you usually keep your car keys separate from your other keys?”
Murong Shui thought for a moment. “Of course not! I’m not a middle-aged man who likes to hang keys on his belt and hide his ID in his phone case!”
“Exactly.” Xu Tiannan said, “Back in the office, I noticed that Director Wang’s keychain didn’t have a car key. Plus, there was an umbrella and a pair of sneakers ready for changing in her desk cabinet. This further proves that she often walks to and from work.”
Murong Shui seemed to understand, nodded, and asked again, “Then… how did you know her husband likes photography, and that the two of them have conflicts because of it?”
Xu Tiannan explained, “Did you notice earlier that there was a white corrosive stain under the sleeve of Director Wang’s shirt? This stain has two characteristics: first, its surface is granular and powdery; second, the granules are slightly corrosive to the fabric. The height of this white stain is exactly at her hip bone, which matches the height of a desk. So I deduced that the stain was caused by contact with photographic developer, which is commonly used when developing photos.”
Xu Tiannan continued, “Now, that’s strange. Only photography enthusiasts develop photos at home, but the chemicals and powders used in photo development are highly toxic to both humans and pets. These are two very conflicting hobbies. So it’s easy to deduce that Director Wang likes keeping dogs, while her husband is into photography. When their hobbies clash, and considering the unique characteristics of women in menopause, it’s inevitable that there would be some friction in their marriage.”
“Hmm… that’s possible,” Murong Shui nodded thoughtfully, but Xu Tiannan continued, “But my analysis is a bit subjective. After all, besides photographic developer, other chemicals like lithium hydroxide monohydrate can also leave corrosive white powder. However, I found the most direct evidence of the conflict between her and her husband!”
Murong Shui asked, “What is it? Tell me!”
Xu Tiannan said a bit awkwardly, “When Director Wang sat down earlier, I accidentally saw… uh, saw her shapewear through the collar of her shirt.”
Murong Shui exclaimed in surprise, “Wow! Boss, where exactly is your attention? You even notice things like that about a woman Director Wang’s age!”
“Hey, hey, hey! Don’t accuse me!” Xu Tiannan quickly made a circle with his hands to explain, “I really didn’t mean to look. The shapewear was sticking out from her collar, and the two steel rings at the chest were this big! It was hard not to notice!”
Murong Shui and Li Xianglan were both so embarrassed they didn’t know what to say, and Xu Tiannan, eager to change the subject, quickly added, “Director Wang is the type who leaves the cap off her hand cream after using it, doesn’t bother changing her shirt even when it’s stained with developer, and still has shampoo residue at the edge of her hair in the morning. So why would such a careless woman wear shapewear? It’s definitely not to show off her figure at work, since she needs to maintain a good professional image. The only possibility is that she wants to gradually restore her figure and regain her husband’s attraction. Think about it: a woman in her prime, if she’s not in sync with her husband in that aspect, it’s inevitable that there will be friction in their life. That’s the real reason why she and her husband often argue. In summary, Director Wang is a woman in her prime who likes receiving gifts, has some marital friction but still loves her husband.”
Murong Shui burst out laughing, then asked, “Well, I think… I think after all that effort, maybe… maybe she’s trying to make herself more attractive to her lover? Haha…”
Xu Tiannan frowned and said, “Be serious! She doesn’t have a lover at all!”
“Oh?” Murong Shui managed to hold back her laughter and asked, “How do you know she doesn’t have a lover?”
Xu Tiannan answered without thinking, “If you want to know whether someone is having an affair, you should first observe their close-fitting clothes and accessories, like rings, earrings, necklaces-their shine and wear-and also underwear, panties, socks, those garments that aren’t usually visible. Just now, when Director Wang bent down to open the door, I saw the underwear peeking out from the back of their pants…”
At this point, Xu Tiannan suddenly felt something was off. He turned his head and, sure enough, saw Murong Shui looking at him with a gossipy expression, so he shut his mouth and said no more.
“Sorry to interrupt.” Li Xianglan, who had been listening from the back seat, finally couldn’t hold back her curiosity and asked Xu Tiannan, “May I ask, who exactly are you? Are you an undercover police officer?”
Xu Tiannan smiled, “Me? I’m just an ordinary university lecturer, definitely not a police officer.”
Li Xianglan said, “But I think you seem more like a police officer.”
Xu Tiannan suddenly looked out the car window and murmured, “A police officer? Ever since I graduated from Public Security University, no one’s called me that in a long time.”
Li Xianglan exclaimed, “Ah? So you really are a police officer!”
Xu Tiannan replied, “Just because I went to Police Academy doesn’t mean I have to be a police officer, does it? Sitting next to me is someone who graduated in crayfish farming and now works as an assistant in Criminal Investigation Science! Shui Gen, am I right?”
“Don’t call me by my full name!” Murong Shui protested sternly, “And! Don’t mention my old major ever again!”
Xu Tiannan ignored her and suddenly muttered, “Actually, I really wanted to become a detective back then. It’s just a pity that my wish never came true.”
Li Xianglan asked, “Why is that? I think you’re really impressive, even more so than many police officers!”
Xu Tiannan looked out the window and gave a bitter smile, “After all, man proposes, God disposes. No one expected that just as I was about to graduate, my old man got into trouble and went to jail, and I was eliminated at the political vetting stage.”
“Alright, alright!” Murong Shui suddenly switched from her sidekick persona to that of a caring big sister, comforting him, “Listen to me-there’s a saying, ‘Misfortune and fortune are intertwined… uh, what was the rest?'”
Xu Tiannan said, “Misfortune is where fortune rests, fortune is where misfortune lurks.”
“Yes, yes, yes.” Murong Shui nodded eagerly, “Misfortune is where fortune rests, fortune… what was it again?”
Xu Tiannan looked at Murong Shui, “Stop showing off. Even though I didn’t become a police officer, I still ended up meeting you in a roundabout way, which is kind of saving the world in its own way.”
Murong Shui said proudly, “Exactly! If you hadn’t been eliminated during the political vetting, you wouldn’t have thought to apply for graduate school at Political Science and Law University, and you wouldn’t be where you are now. More importantly, you met me! Even though neither of us became what we wanted to be, our partnership now is still a kind of saving the world.”
Xu Tiannan shook his head, “That’s not what I meant by saving the world…”
“Then what do you mean?”
Xu Tiannan gave a bitter smile, “I mean… not letting someone like you become a mentor in Criminal Investigation Science and mislead future students-that’s saving the world, haha…”
Murong Shui burst out laughing along with him, and after a while, she suddenly realized and turned to ask, “Wait? Were you just… insulting me?”
“Hey, hey, hey!” Xu Tiannan quickly tried to calm her down, “Watch the road, watch the road!”
After Xu Tiannan gave Murong Shui a thorough lecture on traffic safety regulations, the car finally quieted down.