Cheng Zheng led his disciple, Mei Xin, and they entered the room together.
Tang Yuanchu looked like heâd seen his savior when he spotted Cheng Zheng. He rubbed his hands and grinned at him. âCaptain Cheng, we were waiting for you.â
Cheng Zheng frowned when he looked at the messy state of the room. âWhat happened? Why wasnât the scene preserved and protected?â
Preservation of the crime scene was the most important task for detectives.
As Bai Muchuan was the one whoâd stayed at this hotel, he shouldâve been the first one to arrive at the scene. Therefore, the one that Cheng Zheng was reprimanding was him.
Tang Yuanchu laughed awkwardly. âMiss Xie didnât know about thisâŠâ
Xie Wanwan chimed in before Tang Yuanchu finished his words.
âThis is where Iâm staying for now,â she said with a snort of contempt, âI can do whatever I want to this room, so itâs none of your business.â
Cheng Zheng: âSince itâs your thing that got stolen, then why did you look for the police? You should just get it back yourself!â
Xie Wanwan raised her chin up haughtily. âIâm exercising my right as a citizen by looking for the police. Itâs your duty to come and help me with my case.â
Cheng Zheng stared at her coldly. âIf this sentence were to leak out on the internet, your image would collapse in an instant!â
Xie Wanwan acknowledged his remark with a condescending sneer. âWhy not give it a try?â
This battle seems really intense?!
They were clearly at daggers drawn, but it was surely puzzling for the outsiders.
Did Xie Wanwan know that both Cheng Zheng and Bai Muchuan didnât get along with each other, so she was helping him diss Cheng Zheng?
Or maybe, they already knew each other from way back?
Otherwise, why didnât Cheng Zheng react after seeing such a beautiful celebrity? His attitude was completely calm unlike Tang Yuanchu and Mei Xin.
Xiang Wan was just a bystander who sat back and observed; she watched the show and pondered over it.
However, Cheng Zheng obviously didnât want to continue this meaningless argument.
He was a man, after all. He shouldnât bicker with a woman the entire time.
Thus, he ignored Xie Wanwan and asked Bai Muchuan directly. âWhat is the stolen item? Where was it when it got stolen?â
Bai Muchuan looked at him and motioned Tang Yuanchu with a sideway glance to give an account of what happened.
âŠ
The hotel room suite was now quiet.
When Tang Yuanchu disclosed that the stolen item was a doll, Cheng Zhengâs eyes showed a glint of impatience. When he finished speaking, Cheng Zheng took his toolbox and moved to leave.
âMei Xin, you stay and coordinate with Captain Bai on this case. I have something to doââ
âStop right there!â Bai Muchuanâs face was as black as thunder. The atmosphere started to get colder as he said, âWhoâs the one in charge of the whole team?â
ââŠâ
In terms of rank, they were actually the same.
But Bai Muchuan had more authority as he was the one who coordinated and oversee the tasks of every team.
Cheng Zheng halted his steps and turned around slowly. âCaptain Bai, what else do you need?â
The two of them met each otherâs gaze. Bai Muchuan didnât say anything.
That continued for a while before he narrowed his eyes and walked towards Cheng Zheng.
âCome with me!â
âŠ
The two of them walked out of the room to the corridor.
No one knew what they talked about in private.
When they returned after two to three minutes, their expressions were back to normal.
Yes, they were back to their working modes.
No one spoke a word. Cheng Zheng opened his toolbox, put on his gloves and started to get to work.
Xiang Wan looked at Bai Muchuan.
He stood by the door, hands in his pockets, looking like a wolf patrolling his territory; his sharp eyes scrutinized the room as if he were mulling over somethingâŠ
A while later, he suddenly walked towards the window.
Swoosh! He pulled the curtains open and called for Xiang Wan.
âYou! Come over here!â
Xiang Wan walked over to him without a word; she had no idea what he wanted.
Bai Muchuan looked at her and asked, âTry and see if you can reach it?â
There was a small windowsill outside this glass window, about 20 centimeters in width that could allow a person to stand on one foot. The glass window was divided into two parts, upper and lower. The lower part was the main window which was a âpush and pullâ type. There were steel bars installed outside, presumably for safety reasons. Therefore, one couldnât get to the windowsill outside from the lower window. The upper row of glass windows could also be pushed and pulled open but wasnât protected by steel bars. However, the height of the glass window was very highâwithout the aid of tools like a stool or ladder, average people definitely wouldnât able to climb out from such a height.
At the moment, Bai Muchuanâs hands were placed on top of it, and he was looking at Xiang Wan lazily.
So is he mocking how short I am?
Xiang Wan kept quiet, raised her hand and touched the lattice window.
âCan you climb up?â Bai Muchuan asked again.
Xiang Wan looked at him from the corner of her eyes. âWhy should I climb up?â
âLetâs say youâre a thief; you stole something and you donât want to be caught by the surveillance cameras, so you decided to take a riskââ
âAssumption invalid,â Xiang Wan interrupted him casually. âIâm not a thief, and I wouldnât steal someone elseâs things.â
ââŠâ
Bai Muchuan continued to look at her. âDo you need to react like that? I only asked you to make an assumption. Iâm hoping you can set a limit on the height of the killer, then when we get hold of other material evidence, youâll be able to do a clear profiling analysis.â
âIâm not Conan. I canât do it.â
âWhat the hell is wrong with you?â
No, what the hell is wrong with you ?
Although Xiang Wan was talking back to him inside her head, there wasnât a hint of anger on her face. âIâm just taking the matter by its merits. First, letâs not mention whether this alone can be an argument for the height of the criminal. Captain Bai, I want to ask you, do you know which floor this is? More than thirty floors from the groundâŠâ
âWhich floor are we in now?â Bai Muchuan asked.
â⊠Iâve forgotten.â
âThirty-eighth!â
âHmph, of course I wouldnât remember as well as you do.â Xiang Wan smiled faintly and continued to say, âI just want to ask you: since weâre on the thirty-eighth floor, who can come and go freely through the windows at this height? I mean, heâs not Spider-Man! Iâm afraid only a fool would throw his life away just to steal a doll.â
Bai Muchuan looked at her without much emotion.
âIâve checked. There are no traces to suggest the door lock was pried open.â
âHow about with a room cardâŠ?â
âShe locked the door from the inside before she went to sleep.â
âWhat if she didnât lock it from the inside?â Xiang Wan laughed, âA humanâs memory can have deviations. Miss Xie said she did that, but that might not be the case. Itâs common to forget the things that one might have doneâŠâ
Bai Muchuan narrowed his eyes.
After mulling it over for a while, he said with confidence, âShe wouldnât.â
âYouâre so sure?â Xiang Wan felt somehow nettled by the certainty he displayed.
âPositive!â Bai Muchuanâs eyes were cold and allowed no room for doubt.
ââŠâ
Well, since heâd said so, what else can I say?
âIf thatâs the case, then I really donât know who would want to risk their lifeââ
âXiang Wan, not everyone fears death.â Bai Muchuanâs voice sounded colder than ever. âTo some people, living is tougher than death. There are people who not only experience pleasure when theyâre committing a crime, they can also feel relief and happiness when theyâre dyingâŠâ
Huh?
Xiang Wan wanted to laugh.
But when she saw Bai Muchuanâs indifferent face, she managed to suppress the urge to do so.
âYou sound as if youâve died before!â
Bai Muchuan pursed his lips slightly. âPerhapsâŠâ
âExcuse me!â A clear voice sounded from behind.
Xiang Wan turned around and saw Cheng Zheng holding a strange-looking camera.
âFingerprint records!â he explained.
The study of forensic science was very complicated. Gathering and collecting evidence could be a solemn scientific affair. Xiang Wan knew nothing about this, but with feelings of worship, she swiftly moved away to give Cheng Zheng her position by the window.
Bai Muchuan moved slightly aside. âDid you find anything?â
When they first came in, they had put on gloves and shoe covers in order not to damage the scene further. However, because Xie Wanwan had kicked up a fuss, there was hardly anything of use. From the moment they started to gather evidence, Cheng Zheng and Mei Xin hadnât found anything useful yet.
âI can only say this is not an ordinary case of theft. As for the rest, just wait for the reportâŠâ
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