Chapter 3: An Interruption at the Wedding

  Lü Cong did not participate in the inquiry himself, but sat next to the hearing room staring at the surveillance screen, wanting to see what level Xu Nuo was.

  Xu Nu entered the house and first poured a cup of hot water for Zhang Xin, then sat down opposite her. Li Kexin opened his notebook and sat beside Xu Nu.

  Zhang Xin didn't speak for half a day, quietly holding the cup of water, as if trying to absorb some warmth. It wasn't until much later that she timidly opened her mouth and said: "Thank you, you can ask now."

  "Would you first introduce the members of your family to us?" Xu Nuo had not spoken, and waited until Zhang was calm before softening her voice and asking slowly.

  Upon hearing this question, Zhang Xin seemed to let out a sigh of relief: "My father passed away early, probably when I was five years old. My mother raised my sister and me..."

  Zhang Xin paused for a moment, and then Xunuo spoke up: "I just called the police officer who went to the hospital. Your mother is now in the ICU, her condition is stable, don't worry."

  Zhang Xin nodded gratefully and continued: "My sister's name is Zhang Wei, she's 26 years old and works as an accountant in a foreign trade company. My sister got married on New Year's Day last year, her husband is a designer at an architectural firm, you just saw him earlier. Last week, my sister found out she was three months pregnant, because her husband is busy with work, they sent her back home for my mom to take care of. I'm 18 years old and in the second year of high school. My sister is seven years older than me, since we were young, she's always taken care of me, played with me, when there was good food at home, she would always let me eat first. But never thought...". She started to tear up again.

  Xu Nuo handed her a tissue and asked, "Tell me about the situation when you found the body this morning," after watching her wipe away tears.

  After the previous introduction, Zhang Xin's emotions relaxed a lot. She nodded: "En, this morning I was like usual, getting up at 7:10. After my sister moved in, she usually wakes me up, but today I was woken up by the alarm clock. At that time, I didn't think it was strange and thought my sister slept late. But when I walked out of the room to wash up, I felt that something was not quite right at home." Zhang Xin paused here and picked up her water cup again.

  "What's wrong?"

  "Sister usually gets up at 6:30, plays prenatal education music and walks around in the living room. Today when I went out, I found that my sister was not in the living room, nor did she play music, most importantly, the anti-theft door was open."

  "Is the anti-theft door open? Are you sure?" Xu Nuo asked again.

  "Yes, I thought it was my mom who forgot to close the door when she went out, so I walked over to close it and called out to my sister while heading towards the master bedroom. As soon as I entered the room, I saw my sister lying in a pool of blood. I was scared and quickly ran back to the living room to call the police, and then you all arrived." Zhang Xin still seemed shaken, her hands tightly grasping the cup.

  "Is your family's daily routine regular?"

  "Some of my family's daily routine is very regular. My mom gets up at 5:00 in the morning, washes up and goes to the park on the east side of our community for morning exercise around 5:15. The elderly Yangge team has been preparing for the May Day performance recently. After finishing the practice at 6:30, my mom will go to the nearby early market to buy breakfast and vegetables, and then return home before 7:00 to wake me up. I leave for school at 7:30, and my sister leaves for work at 8:30. During the day, only my mom is at home, and my sister and I return home for dinner in the evening."

  "Is it like this every day?"

  "Yeah, Monday to Friday is basically the same, only a few minutes apart. On weekends, my sister and I will get up more than an hour later, but my mom's schedule is the same every day, it's been a habit for many years."

  "That is to say, people who are close to your family or neighbors, as long as they pay attention, will know the rest time of your family?" Xu Nu asked tightly.

  Zhang Xin hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said: "It's impossible that it was done by someone she knew. My sister has been very obedient since childhood, it's impossible that she would have any enemies, let alone relatives or friends. My sister is clever and agile, all the relatives at home like her."

  "Don't be nervous, we're just making routine inquiries. We have to consider all possibilities." Xu comforted him and then asked: "Who in your family has the keys?"

  "There are six sets of keys in total. My sister, brother-in-law, my mom and I each have one set. There is a spare set at home and another spare set at my aunt's house." He immediately added: "Officer, it must not be them, it must be a thief who broke in to steal things and was discovered by my sister, that's why they killed her."

  "Oh? How did you know it was a thief?"

  "I...I see that the room seems to be in a mess..." Zhang Xinyin stammered.

  "How is your sister and brother-in-law's relationship?"

  "Of course it's great! The two of them were high school classmates, and my sister liked her brother-in-law since high school, but they didn't start dating until their sophomore year in college. Then they got married a year after graduation. That jade lotus flower on my sister's neck is the token of love that her husband gave to her, she treasures it so much!"

  "Has your sister been emotionally abnormal recently?"

  "Sister has been a bit irritable these past few days, but mom said that's normal when you're newly pregnant, so I didn't pay much attention to it."

  "Well, then recall, has your sister ever had any special days, did she ever tell you?"

  "No, my sister has been an excellent student since primary school, with good grades and a good attitude towards her classmates. She never had any conflicts with anyone. After graduating from university, she worked as an accountant in her current unit and got along well with her colleagues. I've never heard of her having any conflicts with anyone."

  "What about your sister's ex-boyfriend or someone who secretly had a crush on her? You two sisters must have shared some private conversations, right?"

  "My sister's husband was her first love, I've never heard of anyone else pursuing her... maybe it's because my sister didn't have any feelings for others, so she never mentioned it to me. She's been talking about him nonstop since high school." Zhang Xin furrowed her brow in thought.

  Xu Nuo suddenly spoke up: "You really like your brother-in-law, don't you?"

  "Yes, brother-in-law..." Zhang Xun replied smoothly, then suddenly became flustered, "I, my brother-in-law is very good to my sister, and also very caring towards me and my mom, I, of course, like him, just as a brother-in-law should be liked, nothing else, I..."

  Lü Cōng subconsciously rubbed his chin with the back of his hand, it seemed that this Xú Nuò still had a few tricks up his sleeve!

  Xu Nuo smiled faintly: "Don't be nervous, I didn't mean anything else anyway."

  Zhang Xin bit her lower lip, looking somewhat annoyed. Suddenly, as if she had thought of something, she said: "I remember when my sister and brother-in-law got married, they had a conflict with someone else, I don't know if it's useful."

  "Speak up, any suspicious clues can be said."

  "When my sister and brother-in-law got married, they invited many of their high school classmates. Among them was a woman who I remember wore a bright red coat with a white embroidered cheongsam underneath, her long hair styled nicely, looking very pretty and attracting the attention of many people at the wedding banquet. At that time, I felt a bit annoyed, wondering why she had to dress up so elaborately for someone else's wedding. However, she seemed completely unaware of the attention from others, her face pale and her eyes slightly red and puffy, which even makeup couldn't cover up. When my sister and brother-in-law saw her, their expressions also became somewhat unnatural. Halfway through the banquet, my sister pulled me over to that woman's side and said, 'I heard you can hold your liquor well, let me toast you.' She then poured a full cup of white wine for that woman, but handed me a cup of clear water that I had prepared beforehand. That woman was taken aback for a moment, seeing my sister down the drink in one gulp, and could only pick up her own cup. My brother-in-law came over to stop her at this point, saying to that woman, 'You have stomach problems, don't drink anymore.' My sister got very angry and glared fiercely at my brother-in-law. That woman didn't say a word, looked at my sister and brother-in-law, sighed, picked up the cup and downed it in one gulp, then suddenly burst into tears and left early with another woman. After the wedding ended, I heard my sister and brother-in-law arguing in the back room, but couldn't make out what they were fighting about."

  "Have you seen that woman again?"

  "I've only met her once, but I know the person who left with her. She came to my home to play with my sister, named Zhao Ying. My sister's phone should have her number."

  "Alright, thank you for your cooperation, if you remember any other clues, please contact us in time."