Chapter 81: The Manager and the Agent

"Oh my, Captain Liu, you're actually appearing at a crime scene today?" Qi Fei smirked, knowing full well the bureau leadership had ordered him to be here.

Liu Tong held a cup of hot coffee, looking calm and unbothered: "With a major case like this, as the captain, I naturally have to show up."

"It's a good thing this is a private club deep in the mountains, otherwise the whole internet would know by now." Qi Fei stood up and looked down at the body.

The female celebrity, who looked radiant in front of the cameras, now lay face-up on the bed in a backless red dress. A pile of rose petals was mixed with blood; it was hard to say if it was filthy or beautiful. Her distorted features and terrified expression looked like nothing more than a scene from a horror movie she might have starred in.

"There are no airtight walls in this world. It'll get out sooner or later. You lot, hurry up." Liu Tong took a sip of coffee, speaking as he walked over to the club manager who was currently being questioned.

"You're Bao Chuchu, the manager of Yun Shen Secret Realm, right?" Liu Tong struggled to pronounce the awkward name of the club. Standing before him was Bao Chuchu, still in her service uniform, her makeup not even removed.

Unlike the usual people being questioned, Bao Chuchu was wearing a professional suit, her hair pulled back meticulously. She looked exceptionally seasoned. She answered calmly: "That's right, I am Bao Chuchu."

"This is Qi Fei, a backbone of our Nancheng Police Bureau. He has questions for you." After saying this, Liu Tong immediately took half a step back. Qi Fei had thought the interrogation was about to begin, but it turned out the opening was the conclusion. Liu Tong truly spared no effort when it came to slacking off.

Qi Fei was already used to it. He took the initiative to walk up to Bao Chuchu, took out his notebook, and asked routinely: "The police report says you were the one who discovered Hong Mei?"

Bao Chuchu nodded: "Hong Mei checked into our club last night. Because she was a VIP, I delivered her breakfast myself. I knocked for a long time with no response, so I used my manager's key card to open the door. When I walked in, I saw this. I was scared to death."

"Looking at you, you don't look like you were scared to death at all," Qi Fei said, watching the composed Bao Chuchu.

Bao Chuchu was quite proud of this: "Everyone we host here is a VIP. We are trained in all kinds of emergency responses. Staying calm is my professional standard."

Qi Fei looked around at the luxurious environment and the excellent mountain view outside the window. A heavy snow had just passed, leaving the world covered in white—it was exceptionally beautiful.

"When you came in, were the doors and windows closed?" Qi Fei asked.

"The weather is so cold, of course the doors and windows were tightly shut," Bao Chuchu said. "I said before, we are all professionally trained. Once I discovered the incident, I didn't let anyone else in. I kept it that way until you arrived."

"Who here was the last person to see Hong Mei?" Qi Fei asked, looking at the few waiters outside the door who were trembling in fear.

"Xiao Sun, come over here and tell the police the situation," Bao Chuchu called out immediately.

A female waiter walked out, trembling.

Qi Fei was deeply suspicious of Bao Chuchu's quick reaction: "Hiss, how did you know it was this person?"

A trace of impatience appeared in Bao Chuchu's eyes, as if Qi Fei's question was redundant: "It's very simple. Our villa is not open to the public; it's by reservation only. All the houses are independent. To prevent unnecessary disturbance, all visitors who need to see guests must be confirmed by our front desk before being allowed through. No one came to visit Ms. Hong last night.

At 12:00 midnight, Ms. Hong called the front desk and said she wanted red wine. It was Xiao Sun who delivered it."

Qi Fei turned to the obviously naive Xiao Sun: "You saw Hong Mei?"

Xiao Sun nodded: "Yes, when I delivered the red wine, I happened to run into Ms. Hong coming out of the bathroom after her shower. She was right there..." As she spoke, she pointed her finger toward the direction of the bathroom.

This hotel was a suite. The outside was a living room, and the bedroom was semi-open. Looking over from the living room, one could see exactly the space between the bathroom and the bed.

"I told her the red wine had arrived. She pointed at the coffee table and said to just put it there. I saw she was still wrapped in a bath towel, so I felt embarrassed to keep staring at her. I didn't dare stay long, so I quickly put the wine down and left," Xiao Sun said.

Qi Fei looked back at the direction Xiao Sun pointed, confirming again: "Are you sure that person was Hong Mei?"

"Yes, Ms. Hong spoke directly to me. I saw her face. That face was so beautiful, I am one hundred percent sure it was her," Xiao Sun answered very firmly.

"Didn't the internet say she joined a film crew? How did she end up here?" Wu Shanqiu asked the question Qi Fei had in mind.

Bao Chuchu responded smoothly: "I am just the manager of this villa, not Hong Mei's agent, so I cannot answer that."

Just as she was speaking, someone rushed over, communicating with the police outside the cordon, demanding to come in.

After asking about the general situation, an officer brought him over: "Hong Mei's agent has arrived."

The person who arrived was a short, chubby man with short hair, wearing plastic-framed glasses and a thick down jacket.

"I am Hong Mei's agent, Li Bite. I received a call saying she had an accident. Where is she?" Even in the dead of winter, his forehead was covered in sweat; it looked like he had gone through a lot to get here.

The way he asked the question made it clear he didn't know Hong Mei was dead.

Several people cleared a path so he could see the situation in the bedroom. The moment he saw the scene, the agent's legs went weak, and he collapsed onto the floor.

"This, what is going on?" Li Bite's glasses fell to the ground. He picked them up in a flustered state, and because he was so scared, it took him several tries to put them back on.

Qi Fei looked at his watch: "You're not a very qualified agent, are you? It's been several hours, and you're only just arriving?"

"I, I rushed over from Lian Hu. I took the earliest flight... It took me 2 hours just to get a taxi to this place!" Li Bite said, feeling wronged. "They told me Hong Mei had an accident, and I thought she was injured or sick... I sent her countless messages on the way, and she didn't reply, but... but I never imagined..." He was muttering to himself, as if this was the only way he could keep from panicking.

"Did Hong Mei come alone?" Qi Fei asked.

Li Bite nodded. He gathered his courage and looked inside again, then immediately shrank back in fear, as if he still couldn't believe that Hong Mei was already dead.

"With Hong Mei being such a popular artist, how is it that there isn't a single staff member accompanying her here?" Qi Fei asked, not without suspicion.

"This was Ms. Mei's private itinerary... I was supposed to pick her up tonight, and she has scenes to shoot tomorrow. Heavens, this film is already halfway done, and the entire crew is waiting for her to go back... How am I supposed to explain this to the producers..." Li Bite held his head in his hands, looking even more broken than when he first heard the news of Hong Mei's death. ===== CHAPTER 82 =====