Chapter 7

Lu Jiu wasn't stupid, but I didn't believe he could have devised a plan this airtight.

Zheng Shaoming could.

“So you went to all this trouble just to turn Fu Sansheng's daughter, Fu Nuannuan, into a prostitute?”

“Yes. But that's not all.”

“What else?”

“Check your phone.”

I did.

A file had just arrived in my inbox. An audio recording.

The voices were Lu Jiu's, Fu Sansheng's, and mine.

Our conversation at the abandoned construction site.

Discussing how to change a dead person's identity.

“This evidence can hold Fu Sansheng criminally responsible for raping Luo Susu and fabricating evidence back then.”

“But...”

“Of course, he can deny it. He can say you and Lu Jiu forced him to say everything in that recording.”

“Yes.”

“If he does, his daughter will carry the name of prostitute forever. Forever!”

The man in front of me was terrifying.

This was a trap laid in plain sight. A trap aimed at Fu Sansheng.

To clear his daughter's name, he would have to admit raping Luo Susu and committing two acts of evidence fabrication.

If he refused to face legal punishment, the story of a billionaire's daughter being a prostitute would hit the newspapers. It would become major news and utterly humiliate him.

Zheng Shaoming's team would see to that.

“The choice is his. Whichever he chooses, I still find it very satisfying to think about.”

Zheng Shaoming smiled maliciously, like a demon.

“Where's the real Tao Yuan?”

“What do you think?”

Probably dead.

Her body simply hadn't been found yet.

“Was it worth killing three innocent people for your goal?”

“Innocent?”

Zheng Shaoming clenched his fists and slammed them onto the table.

“Which of them was innocent? Susu was innocent!

“Tao Yuan was the prostitute who testified that Susu was one too. Feng Xiaoling was the one who said Susu hadn't been drunk that day. Were those two innocent?”

Feng Xiaoling...

The owner of that head.

For a moment, I had no words.

Whether they were innocent...

Really was hard to say.

“What about Fu Nuannuan? What did she do wrong?”

“She was born into the wrong family.”

Zheng Shaoming took a cigarette from my pack and held it under his nose.

“If no one in this world cared about her innocence, then don't expect anyone to care about this one's.”

By now, the whole story was more or less clear.

Back then, Luo Susu had been falsely branded a prostitute.

I didn't know what had become of her, but it couldn't have ended well.

Zheng Shaoming had harbored his hatred and spent years planning revenge with Lu Jiu.

Only when they both had enough standing and power had they put the plan into action.

The supposed rape and murder in Room 1203 had been nothing but a smokescreen.

It was the beginning of the entire case.

The ultimate goal was to have the woman who died in Room 1203 firmly identified as a prostitute.

They had removed Fu Nuannuan's head and arms so the police couldn't identify her by her face or fingerprints.

It also bought them time for the next steps.

There had been obvious holes in what Zheng Shaoming told me at the start.

Not because he wasn't careful enough.

He was a lawyer who almost never lost. How could his account have holes?

He had deliberately let me see that something was wrong with the bar.

That led me to the meat-processing plant in Jincheng.

Where I found Feng Xiaoling's remains.

Her body served two purposes.

First, it delayed the police investigation and sent it in the wrong direction.

Second, it supported a lie prepared specifically for Fu Sansheng.

They falsely claimed Feng Xiaoling was the person whose identity needed changing.

That was why they had to bring me when they met Fu Sansheng.

I had seen her remains myself.

Without me, Fu Sansheng might not have believed Lu Jiu's word alone.

My other purpose was to break down Fu Sansheng's psychological defenses.

I knew the inhuman things he'd done back then.

Forced to repeat something similar, he couldn't deny it.

I was the witness.

As for Tao Yuan discovering a client's secret and using it to blackmail him...

Perhaps all of it was a lie.

She might already have been dead by then.

Fu Sansheng hadn't wanted to get too deeply involved, so he'd found an intermediary to help identify the body.

That only made Lu Jiu's secret switch easier.

The information he gave the intermediary wasn't Feng Xiaoling's.

It was Fu Nuannuan's.

Hair, skin cells, bodily fluids...

All Fu Nuannuan's.

Fu Sansheng could never have dreamed...

That the evidence he replaced with his own hands...

Came from his own daughter.

He had turned her into a prostitute himself.

Exactly as he had done to Luo Susu.

The identity switch was complete.

The trap in plain sight was set.

In the end, whatever Fu Sansheng chose, Zheng Shaoming and Lu Jiu had achieved their goal.

“I have one more question.”

“Go ahead.”

“Why did you have to choose me as your lawyer?”

“Three reasons.

“First, you have the courage to question your own client. What matters to you isn't winning a trial, but the truth. Just as it did with Susu.

“That's why you insisted on investigating despite your client's objections. You actually surprised me. You found the Jincheng processing plant much sooner than I expected.

“Second, Susu's case had a huge impact on you. I wanted to make it up to you on her behalf. This case would certainly let you return to the profession. You could have the best cases at my firm.

“Third... I simply like you.”

I laughed and shook my head.

What kind of bullshit reason was that?

“I may have to disappoint you. I don't intend to practice law again.”

“What will you do?”

“Keep grilling skewers.”

“Why?”

“It's simple. No brainpower required. Whether they're raw or burnt, the customers still enjoy them. Gives you a sense of accomplishment.”

He smiled and nodded.

“Fair enough. You're really not suited to being a lawyer. Always wanting to hit people. Not a good habit.”

I sighed.

“We're both lawyers. We both know how this ends for you. This may be the last time we meet.”

There was no fear in his eyes. Only the pleasure of a man who had taken his revenge.

“Barring any surprises, yes.”

“All right. Fuck. Thanks. I've been out of the profession for years, and you still managed to put me through all this.”

“Thank you too. If you ever need help, go to my firm. There will always be someone there for you.”

I stood and patted his shoulder.

“Impressive.”

He patted my arm in return.

“Take care.”

Zheng Shaoming chose to defend himself.

He had never intended to survive.

All he wanted was to expose the truth of what had happened back then, in front of everyone.

Whatever Fu Sansheng ultimately chose, whatever the truth had been, everyone would make their own judgment.

In a way, it would clear Luo Susu's name.

Lu Jiu remained on the run.

Unfortunately, in this day and age, with the methods available to the police...

It was only a matter of time before they caught him.

Honestly, I quite liked that rough fellow.

Without what had happened back then, perhaps we could have been friends.

But...

There was still one question I couldn't work out.

And I hadn't had time to ask Zheng Shaoming.

How had he left the hotel?

The front desk was staffed twenty-four hours a day. No one had seen him go.

And how had Fu Nuannuan's body been brought inside?

Zheng Shaoming hadn't carried a large suitcase, a travel bag, or anything of the sort.

It was the twelfth floor.

Had they hauled it up on a rope?

...

To answer that question, I returned to the Yunduan Hotel.

This time, I didn't say I was investigating.

I simply booked a room for the night, intending to study the hotel's layout.

I discovered that besides the guest elevator, there was a staff elevator leading directly to basement level B2, used for transporting garbage and the like.

But it required a staff card.

And I'd heard of no employee losing one.

That meant they still had an accomplice among the Yunduan Hotel's staff.

Who exactly, I certainly couldn't investigate.

Nor did I need to.

The hotel was pleasant. The bed was comfortable.

I slept straight through until noon.

I hadn't had such a good night's sleep in a very long time.

When I checked out of the room, the cleaner was already waiting outside.

She said another guest would be checking in soon, so she had to get on with cleaning.

By coincidence, she was the same cleaner I'd questioned before.

“Oh, it's you again. What a coincidence.”

“Yes.”

“What's your surname?”

“Mu.”

“All right, Ms. Mu. I'll let you get on.”

Mu...

Not a particularly common surname, was it?

If I remembered correctly, Luo Susu's mother was also surnamed Mu.

I lightly patted Ms. Mu's cleaning cart.

It really was quite large, full of clean sheets, bedding, and cleaning supplies.

If someone wanted to fit a person inside...

It probably wouldn't be difficult.

(The End)