Chapter 223: Zhang Lifang Who Can’t Let Go, and the Overbearing Jiang Sumei

Bang—

With the loud sound of the door slamming shut—

Zhang Lifang had already hurriedly left the mediation room with Yu Ruyi in tow.

Seated in his chair, Lin Tian looked at Chiefs Huang Qiang and Wang Qi beside him and asked in a calm voice,

“Chief Huang, Chief Wang, what do you think?”

“Do you think there’s anything off about Zhang Lifang? Or rather, is she hiding something from us?”

Upon hearing Lin Tian’s question—

Huang Qiang and Wang Qi exchanged a look. After a moment of serious thought, Wang Qi, head of the Fengze Criminal Investigation Brigade, gently stroked his chin and spoke first.

“Chief Lin, I don’t think there’s anything unusual?”

“Maybe I’m overlooking something, or maybe it’s just instinct, but my personal impression…”

“Zhang Lifang doesn’t seem to have any problems. I specifically observed her microexpressions and didn’t notice any signs of lying.”

“Most importantly, everything she just did and how she behaved was no different from what you’d expect from a regular nanny.”

“For example, when Yu Ruyi wet herself, Zhang Lifang instinctively reached for tissues to wipe the floor. That didn’t look staged at all.”

“Besides, with Yu Ruyi being incontinent due to severe dementia, there’s no way she could control her bodily functions. If Zhang Lifang hadn’t been caring for her for a while and lacked that experience, it’d be hard for her to react so naturally.”

“Just making that kind of instinctive cleaning motion on the fly would be extremely difficult. It basically rules out the idea that she was putting on a show to earn our trust.”

“But we should still check with Dr. Lan. She might have a different opinion.”

Clearly—

Having been away from frontline criminal investigations and gradually preparing for retirement, Wang Qi was already inclined to believe that Zhang Lifang wasn’t part of the drug trafficking organization or a planted observer for Yu Ruyi.

In his view—

Zhang Lifang’s deep familiarity with caregiving made it highly unlikely that she held any other identity.

If someone had been impersonating her, even if the background checked out, the little behavioral details would’ve been impossible to fake.

Huang Qiang didn’t say much in response, but he nodded in agreement.

He also felt that, based on Zhang Lifang’s behavior and state, there was indeed nothing suspicious.

At least to him, she didn’t seem like someone who could be involved with a drug trafficking ring.

Sitting in the center, Lin Tian slowly closed his eyes, his fingers tapping lightly on the table as he recalled the details of the earlier interrogation.

Though his initial impression…

Was exactly the same as Wang Qi and Huang Qiang’s—he didn’t notice any problems.

Every action Zhang Lifang displayed was indistinguishable from a typical nanny.

Even the small, seemingly inconsequential details were the kind that only a longtime caregiver would naturally exhibit—definitely not something easily faked.

However, after dealing with the drug trafficking organization connected to K for so many days—

Lin Tian’s once-rigid thinking had started to change. The Butcher, who managed to escape under their noses with expert counter-surveillance skills, and Zhou Shirui, who committed suicide without hesitation, had both taught him one lesson.

That is—when dealing with anything related to this drug trafficking organization, you can never be too cautious.

With that thought—

Lin Tian decisively pulled out his phone and dialed Lan Jing’s number.

After two dial tones, the call was answered.

Without hesitation, Lin Tian asked,

“Dr. Lan.”

“From your monitoring of the mediation room—did you notice anything unusual about Zhang Lifang?”

“Or… could there be a way to further verify her identity, to determine whether she really isn’t a nanny but instead a planted observer for the drug trafficking organization?”

“Even though I didn’t notice anything wrong, I still don’t feel completely at ease.”

“Would K really… not monitor the Priest’s mother at all? Or does he truly think that Yu Ruyi, with her severe dementia, doesn’t need any surveillance?”

“But considering the unusual situation Yu Ruyi just had, we really couldn’t justify detaining them solely based on our gut instincts. That wouldn’t align with our investigative protocols.”

It was clear—

To avoid any mistakes or misjudgments during the questioning, Lin Tian had not only brought in Huang Qiang and Wang Qi, two Chiefs from different criminal investigation brigades, to conduct the interrogation together, but had also specifically assigned Lan Jing to observe from the surveillance room.

The reason for placing her in the surveillance room rather than having her present in the mediation room was to lower Zhang Lifang’s guard as much as possible and prompt her to reveal any behavior that didn’t match her supposed identity.

At the same time, it allowed for detailed, repeated observation of her movements—so not a single detail would be missed.

After a few seconds of silence—

Lan Jing’s solemn voice came through the phone.

“Chief Lin.”

“I’ve reviewed the footage once, and for now, I haven’t found any particularly obvious flaws or issues.”

“Based on my expertise in criminal psychology and human behavior norms, Zhang Lifang does appear to be a qualified nanny.”

“Her tone, gaze, and micro-movements while speaking just now didn’t suggest any signs of lying—everything she said was truthful.”

“From a rational standpoint, given this was our first encounter and considering the first few minutes of questioning, we can basically rule out the possibility that Zhang Lifang is a member of the drug trafficking organization.”

“But from an emotional perspective, I think it’s perfectly reasonable for you to be suspicious, Chief Lin. After all, this involves a key lead related to the Priest—this could very well be the starting point for uncovering the entire organization.”

“So my suggestion is… let’s set her aside for now and interrogate the Priest’s older sister—Jiang Sumei. While trying to find a breakthrough with her, we can also cross-check and verify some of Zhang Lifang’s statements.”

“In the meantime, I’ll continue reviewing the surveillance footage to see if I missed anything.”

After hearing this—

Lin Tian nodded thoughtfully, clearly agreeing with Lan Jing’s proposal.

Since he couldn’t let go of his suspicions about Zhang Lifang, then the next step was to dig deeper—perhaps starting with Jiang Sumei to see if any inconsistencies surfaced.

After sorting out his thoughts—

Just as Lin Tian was about to speak, the door to the mediation room was knocked on once more.

A police officer from the Fengze Administrative Team walked in slowly, followed by a clearly anxious Jiang Sumei. The officer gestured and said,

“Chief Wang, leaders—”

“This is Jiang Sumei. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be heading out.”

Wang Qi waved him off, signaling that he could leave.

Lin Tian glanced at Jiang Sumei, then spoke calmly into the phone.

“I’m hanging up now, Dr. Lan. She’s here.”

With that—

Lin Tian hung up without hesitation, pointed to the chair in front of him, and looked at the anxious Jiang Sumei standing at the door, his tone firm and unquestionable.

“Sit down. No need to stand.”

“We’ve got quite a few things to ask you… Jiang Sumei…”