Chapter 399: I gave you a chance, but you're useless

"Regarding this, do you have anything to say?"

Xu Mo was staring at the man before him.

The man was momentarily stunned, thinking to himself, "Am I being set up?" For a brief moment, his heart was filled with dread.

But soon, he figured it out.

This is a trick on him!

He recalled the conversation between the two officers he had heard before being taken into the Interrogation Room.

He hadn't thought it through before and even felt that he was doomed, but upon closer reflection, it was clear that the two officers had teamed up to stage a performance for him.

As for the purpose… it was most likely to trick him into confessing!

When he thought of this, the fearful expression on the man's face vanished, replaced by a feigned bewilderment.

"Comrade Police, I don't understand what you're saying."

"Still being stubborn…" Xu Mo shook his head helplessly. "Murder is already a serious crime; deceiving or coercing others to assist in murder is an even greater offense."

As he spoke, Xu Mo tapped the Confession Statement on the table: "Ren Qin has already confessed everything. I urge you to be honest as well; we are fully aware of the crimes you and Ren Qin committed. Refusing to cooperate will also result in a heavier sentence."

Xu Mo truly wasn't acting.

These were not prearranged by him.

Xu Mo had only discussed with Han Fei beforehand about staging a scene in front of the man before interrogating him, so that he would know his accomplice had already been captured and that his emotional state was unstable, making him likely to confess.

In this way, the man's psychological defenses could be broken, prompting him to voluntarily confess for a lighter sentence.

Who would have thought the man hadn't confessed yet, while Ren Qin, who had been left hanging in the next room, couldn't hold back any longer.

She had been locked in the Interrogation Room for a long time without any officer questioning her. Sensing something amiss and believing the Police likely already possessed evidence of her crime, her anxiety grew. After much deliberation, she decided to confess before the Police could present concrete evidence.

Even when she shouted loudly in the Interrogation Room, attracting an officer, before the officer could ask anything, she gave a full confession.

Active cooperation can be considered for a reduced sentence.

The officer who just brought the document to Xu Mo was delivering Ren Qin's Confession Statement; she had already admitted guilt.

In her Confession Statement, Ren Qin mentioned she was coerced; she did not want to kill her own son, but her life was threatened, so she complied to save herself.

According to Ren Qin's Confession Statement, she was merely a subordinate who, under threat to her personal safety, was forced to cooperate with the mastermind, trying to distance herself as much as possible from the murder.

"I really don't know what you're talking about," the man continued to be stubborn.

He firmly believed Xu Mo was deceiving him.

He couldn't speak; if he spoke, it would be over!

The next second, Xu Mo shrugged.

"Fine, if you won't speak, that's that. We already have a Confession Statement, and combined with the physical evidence and clues we've gathered, we can still convict you."

Without solid evidence, the Police can only rely on a suspect's confession to close a case; if a suspect refuses to speak, even if the Police know the suspect is the true murderer, they have no recourse.

But when there is definitive evidence proving the suspect is the killer, his confession becomes irrelevant.

Concrete evidence alone can convict.

Ren Qin, that is, the other killer's Confession Statement, is the strongest evidence.

Of course, the Police wouldn't take Ren Qin's word at face value; the evidence they've gathered aligns perfectly with her Confession Statement, at least confirming she didn't lie about the method and timing of the crime.

The victim was indeed poisoned to death in an airtight kitchen, and later his wrist was cut to stage a suicide.

The handprint on the sliding glass door, the rag in the kitchen soaked with a strong natural gas odor, and the victim's autopsy report all corroborate this.

Although the man was the murderer, Xu Mo still wanted to give him a chance to reform, but the man flatly refused, stubbornly denying any guilt.

He's like a stone in a filthy latrine—stinky and hard.

"I gave you a chance, yet you're useless..." Xu Mo rose slowly and left the Interrogation Room.

A short while later, he returned to the Interrogation Room, carrying several evidence bags and an autopsy report.

In front of the man, Xu Mo reconstructed the events.

"You and Ren Qin were lovers, but Ren Qin's son... the victim, was at odds with you. Last night, while the victim was away on a business trip, you stayed over at Ren Qin's house. This morning, the victim returned unexpectedly and happened to catch you living in his home."

"You two got into an argument and began to wrestle. Ren Qin stepped in promptly to separate you. The victim went into the kitchen, brandished a kitchen knife, and threatened to slash you. Ren Qin tried to intervene again, and at that moment you entered the kitchen, opened the gas valve, and, catching the victim off guard, pressed him face‑down onto the gas stove..."

At this point, the man's face turned ashen and his body trembled uncontrollably like a sieve.

What Xu Mo said matched exactly what had happened this morning... It seemed he hadn't been deceiving him; Ren Qin had indeed confessed everything.

The Police have already grasped the entire course of his murder.

Xu Mo didn't look at the man and continued speaking.

"After you pressed the victim onto the gas stove, he inhaled a large amount of carbon monoxide, causing his movements to slow and his limbs to weaken. You left the kitchen and locked him inside the sealed space until he fainted and died. Afterwards, to cover up the murder, you cut the victim's wrist to fabricate a suicide scene and also threatened Ren Qin, demanding she keep silent about it."

Carbon monoxide poisoning manifests as headache, dizziness, ringing in the ears, and limb weakness, among other symptoms.

Having ingested a large amount of carbon monoxide in a short time, the victim lacked the ability to smash the glass door and escape the kitchen; even reaching out to grope the door for help was the limit of his capacity.

The faint handprint left on the sliding glass door was the victim's final plea for help.

But his plea was in vain.

As soon as Xu Mo finished speaking, the man exclaimed angrily, "I didn't threaten her! She's lying; the idea to cut the wrist and fake a suicide was hers!"

He hadn't said a word earlier because he thought Xu Mo was deceiving him and didn't want to take the bait.

But now, Xu Mo had laid out the events of today in full, meaning Ren Qin had already confessed; even if he denies guilt, the Police can still prosecute him.

He may have killed the person by mistake, but he didn't forge the suicide or threaten anyone; if those charges stick, they'd be an additional offense warranting a heavier sentence!

The man wasn't foolish; he knew that if he didn't speak up now to clarify, he'd lose any chance.

"It was only accidental homicide; I didn't do the rest!"