Chapter 29

The next day, Mu Mian brought the small green cake to work.0Chen Xue noticed the cake in Mu Mian's hand and said with surprise, "Mian Mian, what a beautiful cake! Is it for me?"0

Mu Mian hesitated for a moment, quickly hiding the cake behind her back. She smiled apologetically, "I'm sorry, Chen Xue, it's not for you. If you like it, I can buy you one next time."0

"Oh, I see. Did Fang get this cake for you? No wonder you're so protective of it. Tsk tsk, Mu Mian, I never thought you'd prioritize romance over friendship," Chen Xue teased, leaning in closer.0

Chen Xue didn't understand! Mu Mian found Chen Xue's words strange, not quite grasping the meaning of each sentence.0

Mu Mian clarified, "Fang Rui didn't buy it. The bakery owner gave it to me. But Fang Rui did take me to the bakery."0

"Mian Mian, there's been a lot of gossip lately. People are saying you and Fang are together. I've noticed you two have been inseparable recently. Are you really dating?" Chen Xue's eyes sparkled with curiosity.0

Chen Xue had observed that Mu Mian's gaze rarely lingered on living people, as she seemed uninterested in most things. However, whenever Fang Rui appeared, Mu Mian's eyes would lock onto him with radar-like precision.0

After much observation, Chen Xue realized she had become invested in their potential relationship.0

The interactions between Mu Mian and Fang Rui were intriguing. Often, only Fang Rui could understand Mu Mian's train of thought. They shared a strange kind of chemistry. Moreover, Fang Rui displayed exceptional patience with Mu Mian.0

In the past, other female officers had pursued Fang Rui, but he had remained aloof. With Mu Mian, however, he was always accommodating.0

Mu Mian nodded, "Together? Yes, we've been together recently."0

"Ah! I knew it! You really are involved with Fang!"0

"Chen Xue, your guess is incorrect. Fang Rui and I don't have a leg."0

"...Wait, what do you think 'being together' means?"0

"Frequently appearing in the same place, commuting to and from work at the same time. I'm often together with you too, aren't I?" Mu Mian opened the cake box, took out a small piece, and placed it in a glass container.0

Chen Xue suddenly realized that Mu Mian might not have understood her meaning.0

"Mu Mian, don't you like Fang?"0

Mu Mian turned to look at Chen Xue: "Your question is too vague. You should add more specific details. I suppose I do like Fang Rui. I really want to obtain his remains."0

"Remains? What do you want his remains for?" Chen Xue's eyes widened in shock.0

So, every time Mu Mian's eyes sparkled while looking at Fang Rui, was she seeing a corpse? Chen Xue suddenly felt a pang of sympathy for Fang Rui.0

"For research, of course. I had initially planned to slice Fang Rui's brain and preserve it, discarding the rest of the tissues and keeping only the skeleton. But I've changed my mind now. I want to immerse him in formaldehyde solution, so his remains won't decay, and I can see him every day..."0

"You haven't told Fang Rui about your plan, have you?"0

"Of course not. I'm afraid if I did, Fang Rui might think I'm a pervert."0

"..." At least she's self-aware!0

"Chen Xue, you have higher emotional intelligence. Do you know any way to make Fang Rui willingly donate his remains to me? It has to be through legal means. I've asked him many times before, but he always refuses. I've tried hinting at it, but that didn't work either."0

"He just refused? He didn't hit you?" Chen Xue couldn't believe that Mu Mian had actually expressed her desire for Fang Rui's remains, and multiple times at that.0

Mu Mian's expression turned dejected: "He told me never to mention it again!"0

"Have you considered marrying Fang Rui? That way, when he dies, wouldn't his remains be yours?" As soon as she said it, Chen Xue regretted it. She must have been infected by Mu Mian's thinking; otherwise, how could she suggest such a morbid idea?0

Even more disturbing was Mu Mian's response:0

"Chen Xue, I've actually thought of that method."0

"..."0

"But I can't get married."0

"Why not?"0

Mu Mian didn't answer that question.0

"Well, you could try to gain more favor with Fang. Maybe then he'd be willing to donate his remains to you." Chen Xue skipped over that topic and offered a new suggestion.0

How could she let the relationship she had just started shipping end badly?0

"Do you know how to gain favor?"0

Chen Xue grinned at her and then forwarded several files: "I think these novels would be perfect for you. You should study them carefully."0

Mu Mian felt that Chen Xue might not be entirely reliable, but she agreed to read the files when she had time.0

Fang Rui and his team had spent a long time finally pinpointing Liu Jiale's approximate location. He had rented a house in the urban village of the East City district.0

Just as Fang Rui was about to go bring Liu Jiale in for questioning, he received a phone call:0

"Fang, it's terrible! Someone tried to kill Ye Zeling! The attacker has been subdued, but he seems to be mentally unstable."0

When Fang Rui arrived at the scene, he saw that the female officer protecting Ye Zeling had been slashed with a knife, her entire right arm covered in blood. Ye Zeling was unharmed, but she appeared to be in shock.0

The assailant was pinned to the ground by several concerned citizens.0 S~eaʀᴄh the novelF~ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"Ye Zeling, pay up! Your brother swindled my money, you have to pay it back for him! If you don't pay, I'll stab you to death!" The criminal was still struggling, glaring at Ye Zeling with murderous intent, as if he might lunge at her at any moment.0

Zhang exclaimed, "Boss, isn't that Liu Jiale?"0

Liu Jiale looked like a vagrant, with long beard and hair, disheveled and wearing tattered clothes. His eyes were sunken, and his overall mental state appeared to be in terrible condition.0

Fang Rui brought them all back to the station.0

Ye Zeling was emotionally distraught, continuously crying and pleading, "I don't know why Liu Jiale wanted to kill me! We don't have any conflicts, we used to be good friends. My brother was so kind to him, how could he have swindled his money? He's lying!"0

"According to our investigation, it seems your brother owed a lot of money. Do you know why he was in debt?" Fang Rui asked.0

Ye Zeling vehemently denied it: "Impossible! My brother couldn't possibly be in debt!" But her tone didn't sound very confident.0

Fang Rui then took Liu Jiale's statement.0

Liu Jiale had calmed down by then: "Officer, I wasn't trying to kill Ye Zeling. I just wanted to scare her into paying me back. Her brother is dead, so all his money is hers now. She should repay me!"0

"We haven't released the investigation results yet. How are you so certain that the deceased at the fire scene was him?"0

Liu Jiale hesitated for a moment, then replied, "It was in the news. They said Ye Zeming had died and reminded everyone about fire safety."0

"How much money did Ye Zeming borrow from you, and why did he need to borrow from you?"0

"Six months ago, he got addicted to online gambling and lost a lot of money. At first, he could manage by selling his artworks, but later when he couldn't sell them anymore, he turned to me. He said if I gave him all my money, he'd let Zeling marry me. But he lied to me. Not only did he not repay me, but he also made Zeling ignore me!"0

"Then why did you go into hiding?"0

Liu Jiale looked bewildered: "Hiding? I didn't hide!"0

"Why did you lie to your roommate about going to stay with your cousin?"0

"I did intend to go to the Northeast to find my cousin, but I didn't have enough money for the plane ticket. I could only rent a place in the urban village and continue with my artwork. I've been working on a piece these past few days that I can enter into a competition!"0

"If that's the case, why did you suddenly attack Ye Zeling instead of focusing on your work?"0

"I saw in the news that Ye Zeming had also bought accident insurance, so Ye Zeling would get a large compensation. I went to ask her for the money, but she refused to acknowledge the debt and accused me of slandering her brother! I got angry and tried to stab her, but I ended up stabbing someone else by mistake."0

Fang Rui asked, "If you were just going to ask her for compensation, why did you bring a knife?"0

Liu Jiale fell silent.0

"Is Ye Zeling your girlfriend?"0

"No, I've been pursuing her, but she never accepted my confession. She said she would only be with me after I became famous. Later, I realized she had been lying to me all along. She would never like me. Because..."0

"Because she likes her brother?"0

Liu Jiale's eyes widened suddenly: "How did you know that?"0

"Did you attack Ye Zeling in the street because you couldn't accept this fact?"0

"No! I just wanted money!" Liu Jiale's fingers kept fidgeting with the cross he wore on his chest. He seemed a bit nervous, his hand trembling slightly.0

"Where were you on the day of the fire, which was June 12th?"0