Chapter 289: Nanny

"Brother Fei, your suspicion was right. This matter is truly a bit strange," Wu Shanqiu said immediately after walking out of the Huantai Residential District.

"Oh? Tell me about it?" Qi Fei's eyes held a smile.

"Did you notice their front door? The renovation of the entire house is outdated, but the door is brand new. It's so strange," Wu Shanqiu said, lost in thought. "Also, the floor tiles aren't right; there are traces of repeated repairs on them..."

"Hmm, and Song Yun acted as if she knew I would ask for her alibi, immediately thinking of using a fitness app to prove it. Doesn't this method seem familiar?"

"That Fan Xin who was drinking with Ma Ziqiang used a ride-hailing app to prove he didn't have the time to commit the crime!" Wu Shanqiu couldn't help but raise her voice.

"It's as if they knew in advance that something would happen to Ma Ziqiang and deliberately kept this evidence," Qi Fei said, his brows furrowing.

Inside the police station, the footage on the surveillance monitors played like a montage. A black shadow appeared on different road segments and finally disappeared into a pitch-black abandoned construction site.

"This is all the footage we could find regarding the suspect. This person never appeared again after entering the abandoned construction site," said the officer in charge of the surveillance investigation.

"It's not that they didn't appear," Qi Fei said, opening the location map of the site. "This place is only a few dozen meters away from where Ma Ziqiang and Fan Xin were having late-night snacks and drinks. At this hour, there are few people elsewhere, but this snack street is still bustling. If the suspect changed clothes inside the construction site and blended into the snack street, it would be very difficult for us to spot them."

"Ah, yes. We considered many possibilities. We checked several surveillance cameras around the construction site; few people appeared at that time, and no suspicious targets were found."

"In other words, the suspect is very familiar with the surroundings or scouted the area meticulously. Check the period before the incident to see if any suspicious people appeared near this abandoned construction site," Qi Fei said immediately.

The surveillance footage began to be flipped back day by day. The pedestrians passing by the construction site were diverse. As the number of days flipped back increased, one person gradually drew everyone's attention.

This person entered the construction site almost every day. Moreover, as the footage was zoomed in, the facial contours revealed were recognized by Qi Fei at a glance. He was none other than Ma Ziqiang's elderly father, the good father-in-law who spoke up for Song Yun.

When Qi Fei and Wu Shanqiu appeared at Ma Ziqiang's home again, the fruit on the coffee table had been changed to seasonal ones.

Song Yun appeared very cooperative, taking the initiative to ask: "Is there anything else you need to understand?"

"This time, we are here to see your father-in-law, Ma Qingfeng," Qi Fei said.

No sooner had he finished speaking than an old, wheezing cough came from the bedroom. Shortly after, Ma Qingfeng shuffled into their view. Compared to the soft-spoken Song Yun, Ma Qingfeng was emotional from the start: "What is wrong with you police? My son was murdered, and instead of catching the bad guys, you come to our house every day asking this and that. If I knew who did it, what would I need you police for?"

"Dad!" Song Yun stopped him with a tearful voice. "They are just following procedure. Please, stop talking."

Hearing this, Ma Qingfeng sat down opposite Qi Fei and the others, huffing: "What do you want to ask this old man? Go ahead!"

Qi Fei was not angry. He took out several screenshots from the construction site surveillance and placed them on the coffee table: "In the days before your son's incident, we found that you appeared at this abandoned construction site every day. May I ask what you were doing there?"

Hearing this, Ma Qingfeng seemed to find the question ridiculous. He didn't answer immediately but walked to the kitchen, took out a dirty non-woven bag, and threw it in front of Qi Fei: "Doing this!"

Qi Fei opened the bag and saw some potatoes covered in mud. Before he could understand what it meant, Song Yun explained from the side: "Dad likes to farm. Seeing that the construction site was unattended, he planted some potatoes and went to check on them every day. This really has nothing to do with Old Ma's matter."

Just like before, this explanation came so naturally and so definitively.

"Excuse me, I would like to ask, why are you concerned about this matter?" Song Yun looked at Qi Fei and Wu Shanqiu, very puzzled.

Qi Fei did not intend to beat around the bush: "We tracked the killer's path and found that they entered this construction site. We suspect they scouted the route beforehand, and since we happened to see your father-in-law appearing in the vicinity frequently, we came to ask." As he spoke, he observed the expressions of Song Yun and Ma Qingfeng back and forth.

"This must be a coincidence. My father-in-law is so old..." Song Yun said.

"Yes, judging from the surveillance, the height and age of the person who killed your husband do not match Ma Qingfeng; we are just conducting a routine investigation based on the clues," Qi Fei said.

Song Yun nodded slightly: "My parents-in-law are old and have high blood pressure and diabetes. The medical expenses alone are a huge sum every month. If Old Ma weren't good at making money, they wouldn't be in such good condition now. You can suspect anyone, but you cannot suspect my father-in-law."

Everything seemed to be just like that. After this perfect response, Qi Fei and Wu Shanqiu stood up and prepared to leave.

Qi Fei reached the door, but just as he was about to leave, he stopped and asked Song Yun: "By the way, you and Fan Xin know each other, right? Are you familiar with him?"

Song Yun shook her head: "He is Old Ma's friend. I know him, but we have no private dealings."

"He is Old Ma's childhood friend; you should have known each other for many years, right?" A trace of suspicion flashed in Qi Fei's eyes.

"Old Ma has many friends, but he usually meets them alone. I have to take care of the house, so I don't participate. In the early years, Fan Xin and other friends would come to the house for meals or to play mahjong. In the last two years, the elderly have been older and need to rest early at night, so Old Ma doesn't invite friends over much. I haven't seen Fan Xin for a long time either," Song Yun explained.

The door closed slowly behind Qi Fei and Wu Shanqiu.

The elevator descending from the 18th floor stopped at the 15th. A nanny pushing a baby carriage entered the elevator. She recognized Qi Fei and Wu Shanqiu at a glance: "Are you the police investigating the death of that man on the 18th floor?"

Qi Fei was a bit puzzled, as if the residents of this building were all very concerned about Ma Ziqiang's death.

"Do you know this family on the 18th floor?" he asked.

The nanny waved her hand: "I don't know them, but I chatted with their former nanny a few times. It's a good thing she quit; otherwise, with the employer dead, it would be so unlucky, and it would be inconvenient to find the next job."

"Hmm? They had a nanny before?" Qi Fei's brows furrowed slightly. Song Yun had never mentioned this from beginning to end. ===== CHAPTER 290 =====