Chapter 5

"You want to say that person is the real murderer?" Qi Fei asked.

Zhong Kui didn't commit, revealing a contemptuous smile: "The interesting thing is, you caught the person who killed Chen Xiaojing, Zhu Qi, an old man in his fifties, who doesn't seem to be the same person as the young Zhu I met."

"Zhu Ming'en?" Qi Fei blurted out a name. This person was Zhu Qi's son. All the original evidence pointed to Zhu Qi being the murderer, and coupled with his fleeing from justice, no one had paid attention to this person who had been under their noses all along. He suddenly realized, "So you went to the police station to see this person, Zhu Qi?"

"Heh, I just wanted to verify my guess."

"Such an important clue, why didn't you say anything when you came to the police station?!"

"I took the money. The Chen family's request was to have Zhu Qi confess, but they didn't say anything about helping you solve the case."

"You?!" Qi Fei couldn't help but be indignant when he heard this.

But Zhong Kui ignored his anger and turned to another topic: "I heard Chen Xiaojing's body was well-preserved soaking in wine. Was it cut beautifully?"

Using the word "beautifully" to describe dismemberment made Qi Fei uncomfortable, and he replied irritably: "The cuts were neat, so what?"

"Oh, Zhu Qi didn't spill much when he was drinking the soup; his hands weren't very steady!" She said it as if it were a casual remark, and flicked the wind chime by the tea table again. The crisp sound rang out once more, "If you don't leave, it'll be dark soon. After drinking the tea, you should be on your way."

Clang, an iron axe was thrown in front of Zhu Qi.

Wu Shanqiu looked worriedly at Qi Fei, who was acting out of character, and whispered: "Brother Fei, what if he goes crazy and hacks someone?"

Qi Fei, however, stepped forward to unlock Zhu Qi's handcuffs and pointed to the wooden stake at his feet: "Chop the wooden stake for me."

Zhu Qi's look at Qi Fei wasn't one of camaraderie, but surprise, followed by gritting his teeth. He stepped forward, picked up the axe, and used all his strength to chop down at the wooden stake. As a result, the axe seemed to slip, only knocking the stake over without leaving even a mark.

"Do you recognize this axe?" Qi Fei asked.

"I recognize it, it's the same kind I used to dismember the body," Zhu Qi answered without hesitation, as if a good student was rushing to answer a question. Ever since Zhong Kui came, he had been very cooperative, even overly cooperative.

"You were able to cleanly sever Chen Xiaojing's cervical spine, so logically, chopping a wooden stake should be a piece of cake, right?" Qi Fei said coldly.

"I, I'm not as young as I was, I can't compare to when I killed her." Zhu Qi was indeed a habitual fraudster; he answered without the slightest panic.

"Is it that you're older, or that your shoulder was injured and you can't lift an axe?" Qi Fei stared at Zhu Qi, saying every word clearly, "We checked your medical records. You had surgery for an injury to your right shoulder when you were twenty-five. Don't talk about dismembering a body with an axe; even holding a soup bowl is difficult. You're still lying to us about Chen Xiaojing's death."

"Fine, fine, I confess. I asked my second uncle for help with the dismemberment, and my second uncle also helped me bury it in his yard," Zhu Qi said immediately.

"You really don't make drafts when you lie. Your second uncle is already dead, so there's no proof, right?"

"I've already confessed, why are you still asking questions? Chen Xiaojing was killed by me."

"Say it again, how did you kill Chen Xiaojing?"

"I used a pillow to cover her face, like this." Zhu Qi demonstrated.

"Your right hand has no strength at all. A pillow requires force from both sides, and Chen Xiaojing was 1.68 meters tall; her build wasn't much smaller than yours." Qi Fei looked straight into Zhu Qi's eyes, pressing step by step.

Zhu Qi avoided Qi Fei's gaze and defended himself: "It's, it's been too long, I forgot. I put sleeping pills in her wine. It's, it's been so many years, it's normal that you can't detect this, this ingredient."

"You're quite knowledgeable about our investigative work." Qi Fei's eyes were like torches, "I'm asking you, Zhu Qi, didn't you tell me about the presumption of innocence? What are you doing now?"

"What do you mean?" Zhu Qi was clearly panicked.

Qi Fei stepped close to him: "You're desperately trying to prove you're guilty. Don't you think this is abnormal? You know that once this murder and dismemberment is convicted, it's hard to escape the death penalty. Who is worth you using your life to protect?"

The answer was about to come out. Zhu Qi's chapped lips trembled, his voice dry: "I'm not protecting anyone. I deserve to die, I should go to hell. You kill me, let Chen Xiaojing take me away..." He suddenly opened his eyes wide, realizing, "It must be that woman, did Chen Xiaojing come back again? What did she tell you? Even, even ghosts can lie. Didn't you say the evidence is sufficient and I am the murderer!"

Looking at the babbling Zhu Qi, Qi Fei interrupted him with extreme calmness: "Chen Xiaojing is dead. There has never been a ghost of her. We only believe in evidence. Now the evidence shows you are not necessarily the real murderer. Presumption of innocence, we will continue to investigate and return your innocence."

Never had anyone been so desperate upon hearing the word "innocence" like Zhu Qi.

The door to the Zhu family home was knocked open.

A young man who looked somewhat similar to Zhu Qi opened the door. He was not yet thirty, but much stronger than Zhu Qi. He recognized the people who came and said politely: "Are you here to notify me about my father's situation?"

"Zhu Ming'en, we suspect you are involved in the murder of Chen Xiaojing. Please come back with us to assist in the investigation." Qi Fei had been here several times, but this time he still showed his credentials and said.

"Did you make a mistake? When that woman went missing, we told you police that neither my son nor I knew what that beast did." Zhu Qi's wife, Xu Li, appeared behind Zhu Ming'en, nervously taking off her apron and standing beside Zhu Ming'en.

"Mom, don't be nervous. You have to trust the police. It might just be to verify some situations. We haven't broken the law, we're not afraid." Zhu Ming'en actually had an open and honest appearance, but the next sentence couldn't hide the gloom in his eyes, "It's all that person's fault."

"What else do you want to know? My dad kept a mistress, committed murder, my mom and I have suffered enough grievances. I just hope you can end this matter quickly!" Zhu Ming'en said as soon as he sat down.

Qi Fei waited quietly for him to finish and said in a deep voice: "Thirteen years have passed. Do you think it's impossible to have evidence that will expose you?"

Zhu Ming'en looked blank: "Officer, what are you talking about? I don't understand."

"I'll ask you one last time, do you have anything to do with Chen Xiaojing's death?"

"Of course not! My mom and I are also victims! That person is not my father, he's a beast. You can do whatever you want!" Zhu Ming'en said righteously.

"But Chen Xiaojing told us that you are the real murderer." Qi Fei suddenly said. Wu Shanqiu, who was on the side, looked at him in surprise. This tone of playing god made her think he had been possessed by Zhong Kui.