Chapter 79: Leniency for Confession

Faced with Ms. Chen’s provocation, Song Changfeng didn’t react. He simply repeated her answer silently in his mind, then looked over at the captain.

“Captain Li, may I take a look at their statements?”

Captain Li nodded. Song Changfeng was part of the same system as them, and now that he was assisting with a police dog, it was only natural that some basic information about the case could be shared with him.

An officer brought over a stack of written statements, all printed after the earlier questioning and signed by the individuals. Song Changfeng flipped through them one page at a time, head lowered. He frowned now and then, occasionally pursed his lips, his expression focused and serious.

Watching him, Song’s mother seemed momentarily dazed. Over twenty years ago, there had been someone else like this, standing in front of her, gently and patiently offering advice. But back then, that man had worn a crisp police uniform, standing tall and straight like a poplar tree¹ by the roadside, full of spirit.

Their meeting had been rather cliché, the classic “hero saves the damsel” scenario, which might seem trite now, but for the one who was rescued, it was unforgettable.

Back then, Song’s mother had still been a naïve young girl. One day while out, someone suddenly rushed toward her and they collided. By the time she realized what had happened, there was a shattered jade bracelet² on the ground. Its owner, a sharp-tongued old woman, was glaring at her furiously. Song’s mother was at a loss. Just as she was about to speak, the old woman launched into a tirade, claiming the bracelet was a family heirloom and demanding ten thousand yuan in compensation.

Ten thousand yuan was a hefty sum, even today. Even though Song’s family was well-off, she didn’t have that kind of cash on her at the time. Besides, it was clearly the old woman who had rushed over and caused the bracelet to break. Why should she be the one to pay? Outraged, Song’s mother argued back. But she had underestimated the public’s tendency to side with the “weaker party.” As the old woman wept and wailed, the surrounding crowd began to scold Song’s mother.

Overwhelmed by the criticism, she didn’t know what to do. The old woman seized the opportunity, grabbed her hand, and dragged her out of the crowd, saying she was going to call the police. Then she claimed she couldn’t handle a young person on her own and called over a man from the crowd to come along. Song’s mother thought, fine, let’s go. She believed the police would handle things fairly, so she followed them.

But halfway there, she realized something was wrong. The road they took grew more and more remote. It clearly wasn’t the way to the police station. Though the old woman and the man hadn’t spoken again, Song’s mother had a gut feeling they knew each other.

She was panicking inside but kept a calm facade. When they reached a bend in the road, she suddenly broke free from the old woman’s grip and ran back the way they’d come. The two quickly gave chase, and just as they were about to catch her, a figure appeared from around the corner. From that moment on, every time she saw his face, she felt utterly safe. Back then, she thought having a police officer as a boyfriend was the happiest thing in the world.

When did she start resenting this profession?

Song’s mother thought for a moment. Maybe it was all those nights she woke up to an empty bed, the holidays spent watching other families reunite while she sat alone, the times she was sick or injured and had to sit in the hospital by herself, watching others being cared for in loving arms…

Finally, just when he was about to retire from the front lines, that accident happened. And she never saw him again.

She knew full well that her son had always dreamed of becoming someone like his father. But she just couldn’t bear to watch him walk into the same kind of danger.

“Officer, are you done yet? Or are we supposed to sit here with you until sunrise?”

A voice snapped Song’s mother out of her thoughts. She turned to see that it was Ms. Chen speaking. Though her face still wore that gentle smile, her words dripped with sarcasm.

“No need,” Song Changfeng replied, glancing at her. “May I see your phone?”

“My phone?”

“Yes, that yoga video.”

Ms. Chen curled her lips slightly, then calmly pulled out her phone and opened a livestreaming app. On screen, a graceful woman was demonstrating a basic yoga move. Song Changfeng took the phone, casually scrolled through the video, then handed it back.

“Chen Wenli, are you still refusing to admit your crime?”

The moment he said this, everyone stared at Song Changfeng in shock. How had he figured out in just ten minutes that Ms. Chen was the killer? Was it just because the German Shepherd was lying at her feet? Or had something in the livestream revealed the truth?

Even Aofeng was a little confused. He was sure this woman was the culprit, but he hadn’t even started looking for evidence yet. Did Song Changfeng really trust him that much? Or had Song actually discovered something?

Chen Wenli froze for a moment, then smiled. “Officer, what are you talking about? I don’t quite follow.”

“Do you really not understand, or are you just pretending?” Song Changfeng shot back.

“Trying to trick a confession? Is that how you police solve cases?” Chen Wenli chuckled coldly, her eyes full of mockery.

“If that’s how you want to play it, then let me spell it out for you. First of all, you slipped up in your very first statement,” Song Changfeng said calmly.

Chen Wenli’s pupils contracted slightly, but she quickly regained her composure. “Oh? And what exactly did I say that made you suspicious?”

Captain Li and the other officers quickly flipped open her statement, eager to see what they might have missed.

“In the initial round of questioning, the police asked all six of you the same question—the one I just asked: between 9:10 and 9:40, what were you doing? Everyone else answered, ‘When the power went out, I was doing this or that.’ But your answer was, ‘At the time of the crime, I was doing this.’”

Captain Li and the others flipped through the records and found that the statements did indeed differ, just as Song Changfeng had said.

“So what?” Chen Wenli’s expression darkened.

“During questioning, people tend to focus on the most memorable part of that time period. For most of the guests, the power outage was the most striking event. But for you, it was what had just happened.”

As soon as he said that, everyone suddenly understood. That actually made a lot of sense!

Chen Wenli, however, replied, “I’m just a more sensitive person. Of course the incident that just happened left a deep impression on me, so I mentioned it during the statement. What does that prove?”

She had a point. That one sentence alone clearly wasn’t enough to serve as evidence. Everyone turned to Song Changfeng, curious to see what he would say next.

“You just said that during the incident, you were doing yoga?” Song Changfeng suddenly changed the topic.

“I’ve already said that twice!” Chen Wenli was clearly getting angry.

“Then let me ask you this. How did you manage to open a livestream and follow a yoga session when the entire villa had no power or internet?” Song Changfeng asked.

“What a joke, I used mobile data, of course—” Chen Wenli’s expression changed drastically, like a palette of paint had just been knocked over.

Some of the others were confused. Using mobile data to stream a video was perfectly normal. Why make such a fuss?

Just then, Captain Li, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly let out a gasp, immediately drawing everyone’s attention.

“I get it now!” Captain Li said excitedly. “When a phone uses mobile data, the data usage for each app is recorded. Just now, when Comrade Song Changfeng asked to check her phone, he was trying to see whether she had actually used data for the livestream, wasn’t he?”

Song Changfeng nodded and said, “Exactly. I just checked, and your short video app has no data usage recorded. That proves you’ve been lying. And the reason you’re lying is to cover up your crime.”

Everyone present was stunned. Some, after snapping out of their shock, even secretly checked their own phones and found that there really was usage data feedback. They couldn’t help but admire Song Changfeng. He had figured out the real culprit based on just those two points.

Chen Wenli’s face turned ashen, her beautiful features twisting slightly. Then, all of a sudden, she laughed. “Your so-called evidence only proves that I wasn’t being truthful just now. Fine, I lied. I was actually sleeping at that time. I just thought it wouldn’t be convincing, so I changed my story. But you, Officer Song, right? You’re accusing me of committing a crime. I’d like to know, what evidence do you have that proves I killed someone?”

At that moment, Aofeng slowly stood up, shook the fur on his body, deliberately drawing everyone’s attention. Once all eyes were on him, he started barking furiously at Chen Wenli’s shoes. On her feet were the footwear provided by the villa.

“Ms. Chen, please take off your shoes so we can inspect them,” Captain Li said, his expression turning grim. Song Changfeng’s earlier analysis had already made him consider Chen Wenli the prime suspect.

Chen Wenli tensed for a moment, but then her expression gradually relaxed, as if she’d thought of something.

“Go ahead, check. A clear conscience fears no accusation. But I expect an apology from all of you if you find nothing.”

With that, she sat down on the sofa in the lounge and took off both shoes.

The villa’s footwear were gray and white. Captain Li picked them up and examined them closely. When he looked at the heel of the left slipper, his expression suddenly changed. The other officers came over to take a look, and each of them turned to Chen Wenli with shocked expressions, as if saying, “You really dare to lie with a straight face?”

Panic began to rise in Chen Wenli’s chest. To stay calm, she clenched her fists tightly, her semi-long nails digging into her soft palms until they left bloody marks. But the looks on their faces were too strange, making it impossible for her to stay composed.

“Ms. Chen, how do you explain the bloodstain on this shoe?” Captain Li asked, pointing to a spot about the size of a soybean. It had already turned dark red, possibly because some time had passed.

“Impossible, impossible! I wasn’t even wearing those shoes when I went in!” she screamed hysterically. The moment the words left her mouth, she realized something was wrong. Seeing the stunned expressions around her, her body instantly collapsed onto the sofa like a deflated balloon.

“Ms. Chen, confess and you’ll be treated more leniently.”

Captain Li stared coldly at Chen Wenli. Her last sentence had already been recorded by the law enforcement body camera.

Translator’s Notes