Chapter 38 Police Interview Part 2

Officer Tang shakes his head.

"Don't worry, the paramedics have already taken a look at her. Other than some bruising, she is fine. She's currently getting interviewed by my colleagues," he replies.

He did not say that Xiao Hui was a bit shaken and had taken to walking around with an officer for protection, and had outright screamed when she stumbled upon Xiumin outside the restaurant, when Xiumin was getting hauled to the police car.

She had only stopped shaking when she was sure there was no way Xiumin could escape from the car. Officer Tang thinks she's going to need that shock blanket for a little while longer.

"Oh good," Xue Ning says, heaving a sigh of relief.

"Shouldn't you be going to the paramedics too?" Jingwei asks Xue Ning, concerned. "You got more injuries that should be looked at. And yours are definitely more serious."

"It's fine, this interview is more important, and Officer Tang is already here and waiting," Xue Ning replies, giving Officer Tang a polite nod.

"But - "

"I'll try not to hold you then," Officer Tang says, only half-joking. "Now, back to the issue: what happened after the soup was spilled?"

"Oh, I got burned because the soup was fresh out of the kitchen," Xue Ning says casually, while Jingwei winces. "So I went to the restroom to clean up. This man just followed me and refused to wait outside, so I made him stay in the restroom cubicle to get some privacy."

"I see," Officer Tang says, writing it down. Sun Jingwei voluntarily hid in the toilet. That was news. "Then what happened next?"

"Oh then the server went to the toilet to apologise," Jingwei says. "She stuttered and stammered and said a whole lot of things, but her main point was to claim that she wasn't really at fault," Jingwei takes a deep breath and continues to rant loudly.

"She said it wasn't an accident and how she was made to do it because some woman in red paid her to do so. And then she didn't even remember what she looked like. Officer Tang, isn't this just ridiculous? Why is she trying to excuse her own actions? Bribery is a crime!" Jingwei finishes, throwing his hands in the air.

Officer Tang sighs and makes another note in his notepad. Sun Jingwei being upset over bribery was honestly ridiculous, seeing that it was one of his family's modes of operation.

He turns to Xue Ning to get her statement, which would hopefully go into more objective detail and less indignant feelings.

"What he said was true," Xue Ning says, nodding. "I thought it was an accident because she was clumsy and most likely tired, so I told her it was alright, but then she admitted that it wasn't an accident and someone paid her money to do it."

"And then this idiot" Xue Ning continues, pointing at Sun Jingwei, in case Officer Tang had any misconception who she was referring too, "came out from the cubicle despite me telling to stay inside, saying that I was his w-wife," Xue Ning only stumbles slightly over the words, while the junior officer next to Officer Tang choked.

"Just for the record, I'm not his wife," Xue Ning adds earnestly, leaning forward. "I'm not even dating him. Please note that."

Beside her, Sun Jingwei shakes his head and tugs at her jacket. "Xue Ning, is this so valid to the investigation that you must highlight it?"

"Yes," Xue Ning replies, and refuses to elaborate further while Sun Jingwei, the grown man he is, huffs and sulks like a child. She ignores him easily, giving both of them a polite smile. Lin Rui, Officer Tang's junior officer, flushes like a schoolboy with a crush.

Jingwei's face turns blacker almost immediately. He scowls at Lin Rui and wraps an arm around Xue Ning's shoulder, only for her to side-eye him and heartlessly push it away.

"What's with you? Stop being weird." Xue Ning scolds. "We're still getting interviewed. Focus!"

"I am focused!" Jingwei protests indignantly, half-glaring at Lin Rui who is now staring at the table like it's the most interesting thing in his life. "Someone else isn't though."

"Are you blaming me - "

Officer Tang had the strangest feeling that this was how other people felt when he argued with his wife. He makes a mental note to stop bickering with her in public in the future.

"Quiet, both of you!" he says, in the tone of a teacher that had to stop his two students fighting for the umpteenth time, "What happened next?"

"Then she told us that a woman in red paid her in cash to do this to me, and she even took out the wad of cash to show us! It was a lot, at least."

"Half of 650000 yuan, Officer Tang," Jingwei chimes in from the side, "Like that makes it justifiable to pour hot soup on a customer. Honestly bullshit."

Officer Tang continues to jot down notes, while Lin Rui sits there, riveted by the story and by Xue Ning.

"It's worth more than my rent for a year, which is why I got suspicious," Xue Ning continues easily. "Officer Tang, think about it, I am a normal person with a normal life, who would bother to spend so much money on injuring me? Not even killing me, mind you."

"Touch wood!" Sun Jingwei slams his palm on the wooden table, making all of them jump in surprise. "Do you want people to kill you? That's insane."

"Of course not! But that's why it's weird, right Officer?" Xue Ning turns to Officer Tang for support. Officer Tang nods mutely, which is all the encouragement Xue Ning needs to continue her tirade.

"If someone paid that much to injure Jingwei, it would make sense, it doesn't make sense to injure me, but -"

"And I told you rich people who want to hurt people don't care," Jingwei interrupts, "so we made Xiao Hui go find out who booked the room that the woman came from, so at least we'll have some idea."

"But then Xiao Hui never came back to see us," Xue Ning continues. "And it's not like we could have gone out to find her, but then that woman Xiumin came in instead."

"And then Xue Ning kicked her ass," Jingwei finishes proudly, to stunned silence.