229 Interrogation
“Cut the crap.” Wu Zheng used the address provided in the dossier and dragged him to the door before letting go of his arm and letting him open the door with the key.
Zhang Nan was scared out of his wits by this situation. He took out the key with trembling hands. It took him several tries before he could insert it into the lock.
He turned to look at Wu Zheng in terror. “Are you really the police? You’re not here to break in and rob, are you?”
“What nonsense are you talking about? Didn’t I show you my police ID just now?” Wu Zheng took out his ID impatiently and showed it to him again. He knocked on the metal gate and said, “Can you open the door now?”
Zhang Nan carefully looked at the words on the ID. After confirming that there were no mistakes, he swallowed his anxiety and nodded ingratiatingly. “Yes, yes, of course. Please come in, Officers.”
Zhang Nan stayed behind and waited for the two of them to enter the house before closing the door softly behind them. He could not help but gulp after sneaking a glance at Shen Yin’s graceful figure.
“What are you looking at?” Wu Zheng frowned and glared at Zhang Nan.
It was rare for him to be so irritable, but this man was such a wretch. If he were not a police officer, he would have pulled Zheng Nan into a corner and beaten him up to teach him a lesson.
Zhang Nan did not dare to look anymore after Wu Zheng glared at him. He quickly lowered his head and slipped into the living room.
He poured two cups of hot tea for them before sitting on the sofa uneasily. He asked timidly, “What do you want to ask me? Let me first clarify that Zhao Lu’s death has nothing to do with me!”
Shen Yin sat next to Wu Zheng on the soft sofa and looked around Zhang Nan’s house. She asked indifferently, “You’re a supervisor at an insurance company? How many years have you been working?”
“Five years.” This time, Zhang Nan did not dare to entertain anymore lewd thoughts of Shen Yin and he answered honestly.
Shen Yin nodded. She took out a recording pen and placed it on the coffee table. She smiled and said, “Your salary should be fairly high, right? Your house is nicely renovated.”
“My family paid for the house and my mother did the renovations for me!” When Zhang Nan mentioned this, he immediately relaxed. He spoke more smoothly, and there was even a hint of smugness in his tone.
Although he did not earn much a month, his family was rich. His mother was in the real estate business. His family bought this house for him immediately after his graduation. The renovation was done by a one of the best companies in the city. The style was cool and intellectual.
This house did not match his character at all. If he met a simple young lady, she might really be deceived and think that he was a mature professional white-collar worker, so she would be willing to be his girlfriend.
Shen Yin saw that he was relaxed, so she calmly got to the point. “Did Zhao Lu come to your house? What time did you meet yesterday?”
“She never came. She refused to come. Yesterday, we arranged to meet at the mall. It was 4 pm.” Zhang Nan thought carefully and answered honestly.
Shen Yin nodded and continued to ask, “What time did Zhao Lu return to school yesterday?”
“Around 7 pm?” Zhang Nan frowned and took out his phone. He found the ticket stub from last night and showed it to them. “This shows the movie ended at 7:10 pm. After that, she went back to school. She wouldn’t listen to anything I said! If she had left with me, nothing would have happened last night!”
“Are you sure nothing would have happened?” Wu Zheng curled his lips mockingly and returned the phone to him. “If Zhao Lu had left with you last night, I’m afraid you would have taken her to a hotel to get a room!”
“Uncle, isn’t that human nature?” Zhang Nan said innocently, “Isn’t that normal for a relationship? I didn’t hook up with a prostitute. This isn’t illegal, right?”
“Don’t address me as ‘Uncle’.” Wu Zheng could help but reprimand him coldly, “Dot you know how old you are? Why are you still addressing me as ‘Uncle’?”
“I’m sorry, Comrade Officer. I used the wrong terms. Please don’t hold it against me.” Zhang Nan had long lost the arrogance he had displayed at the entrance of the neighborhood.
He must have experienced something the past that made him so afraid of the police. He acted like a mouse which had just seen a cat.
Shen Yin continued to ask, “Did Zhao Lu go back to school by herself last night, or did you send her back?”
“Why should I send her back? She didn’t want to come with me!” Zhang Nan was still a little angry when they brought up this matter, but when he remembered she was already dead, he awkwardly restrained himself and did not dare to complain in their presence.
Shen Yin nodded as if she expected this answer and continued to ask, “Then did she say anything to you on the way back? Did she say that she was being followed or something like that and ask you for help?”
“No! Absolutely not!” Zhang Nan patted his chest and promised, “Our chat history hasn’t been deleted yet! If you don’t believe me, you can look at it yourself!”
He switched his phone to the chat interface with Zhao Lu and was about to show it to Shen Yin when he suddenly saw something. His outstretched hand suddenly froze. He was terrified.