The Brain Science Case 30

Chapter 30: The Ulysses Contract – 6

Accepting the glass of water from the homeowner, Zhou Jinglin said, “Thanks,” and quickly took a photo out of her jacket.

“Do you know this woman?”

Tu Yanqing glanced at it and shook her head decisively. “No. Who is she?”

“Her name is Peng Weiru. She is Shen Shiyang’s wife. You should be very familiar with Mr. Shen, right?”

Tu Yanqing silently tightened her fists and nodded. “Yes, Mr. Shen is my boss. Of course I’m familiar with him.”

“Mrs. Shen was murdered in her sleep at home the day before yesterday, between two and four in the afternoon. In addition to being tragically killed, her house was also ransacked, and some valuables were missing.” She paused slightly and turned to Tu Yanqing. “You were at work yesterday, Miss Tu. Did Mr. Shen mention this to you?”

She covered her mouth. “I did notice he was in a low mood… I didn’t realize it was something so serious.”

“Mr. Shen didn’t reveal any details to you, his secretary?”

“Mr. Shen keeps his personal and professional lives separate. He generally doesn’t bring his personal matters to work. I only have professional contact with him.”

Zhou Jinglin raised an eyebrow. “I see.” As she took back the photo, she noticed a small bag of garbage by the door. “Am I interrupting you from taking out the trash? The garbage truck seems to be coming soon.” She gestured for her to go ahead.

“Oh, it’s fine. That’s not urgent.”

“Then let me ask you one more question. On the afternoon of the incident, what were you and Mr. Shen doing? Could you briefly explain?”

Tu Yanqing tilted her head in thought. “Mr. Shen had a meeting that afternoon, but he specifically asked me to organize another client’s file, so I stayed in the office and didn’t attend the meeting with him.”

“You were in the office the whole time? For about how long?”

“I left for a little while in the middle. About two hours, I think.”

“Can anyone else prove that?”

Tu Yanqing looked troubled. “Well… because my and Mr. Shen’s offices are separate from the other colleagues, so…” She gave an apologetic smile. “But I did send a few emails to clients during that time. I wonder if that can be used as evidence?”

“I’m afraid that would be difficult. Mobile phones and the internet are too convenient these days.”

“Oh, that’s true.” Tu Yanqing asked cautiously, “Excuse me… has the identity of the suspect been confirmed?”

“Not yet, but for now, the investigation is heading in the direction of a home invasion. But Miss Peng’s condition is really… sigh. As a woman, I really wish we could bring the killer to justice as soon as possible.”

Tu Yanqing nodded silently. “Are there any other questions?”

“No. Thank you for helping to clarify the details of the case.” She drank the water and stood up. “I’m so sorry for interrupting you from taking out the trash. Goodbye.”

“Not at all.” Coming to the door to see the female detective off, Tu Yanqing slammed the door shut.

“What do I do? I’m a suspect… I must be a suspect.” She tore open the garbage bag and took out a pair of sharp-pointed scissors. She held them and stumbled into the kitchen.

**

Zhou Jinglin had a colleague apply for a search warrant and went directly to Tu Yanqing’s house during her work hours.

The community security guard who helped open the door asked with trepidation, “Is something wrong with Miss Tu?”

She was vague, but after last night’s surprise visit, she was convinced that Tu Yanqing was the most likely suspect.

“There must be enough evidence in this house to prove she’s the killer,” she said to Fang Zijun over the phone. “When I arrived yesterday, she was very concerned about the garbage by the door.”

‘I hope your intuition is right. By the way, isn’t your mother being discharged today?’

“Yes.” She frowned. “How did you know, Chief…”

‘Don’t neglect your family for the sake of an investigation, you know?’

“Oh, I won’t.” The garbage bag by the door was still there. Zhou Jinglin opened it and carefully inspected it, but found nothing suspicious. “That’s all for now, Chief. I’m going to focus on the search.”

‘Okay. Don’t miss any details.’

Of the two colleagues who had come with her, one was searching the living room, and the other was in charge of the bedroom. “Little Zhou, are you sure it was a woman?”

“Didn’t the autopsy report already say the rape was just a facade? Even the teacher thinks it was likely a woman.” She put her gloves back on. “Have you checked the kitchen?”

“Not yet.”

The kitchen was almost spotless, which showed that Tu Yanqing didn’t cook much herself.

Zhou Jinglin glanced at the empty knife block and found a pair of sharp-pointed scissors on the counter.

She carefully picked them up to examine them. They were metal scissors with red plastic-covered handles, very common and could be bought anywhere.

The scissors seemed to have been washed very carefully, and there were even new sharpening marks on the blades.

Why would a woman who barely cooks go to the trouble of washing these scissors? She used a handkerchief to absorb the excess water, carefully examined the crevice of the pivot, and simulated the scene of the scissors stabbing into the victim’s chest.

Then, she saw the unsealed opening at the end of the plastic handle.

“Here…”

Suddenly, she had a flash of inspiration.

“Senior Big Head!” She ran out with the scissors and showed Lu Tingfeng her prize.

“I think this is it.”

**

Zeng Pingyun now regretted telling the people around her about Lu Zhiwei.

Not only her usual classmates, but even the underclassmen in her club, after seeing him with her at the club room once, had naturally assumed they were a couple.

“Senior hasn’t accepted me yet. We’re just friends.” Although he had clarified, the expression on his face was one of smug satisfaction.

Some people said her rejection wasn’t firm enough, but she didn’t want to burn her bridges with Lu Zhiwei either. Besides… during his pursuit, she had already experienced his extraordinary persistence several times. If he were to stop being so nice to her and seek revenge instead, she would be the one to get hurt.

Some people advised her to just accept him. After all, a gentle, considerate guy who was always at her beck and call was not something you encountered every day…

But she really, really didn’t like him.

A deep sense of helplessness enveloped her. Even though Lu Zhiwei had immediately volunteered to protect her after learning she was being followed, she couldn’t help but feel that something was not right, that the whole thing was too coincidental, too strange…

“…There is an interpreter in the brain that can explain or integrate external information. The left brain is good at explaining and making up stories, while the right brain is specialized in different tasks, such as some visual processing.

“Because our left brain likes to make up stories, lawyers in court often take advantage of this, first misleading witnesses into giving false testimony, and then using that to question the credibility of the testimony.”

The lecturer paused and tapped the blackboard. “There is still a lot to say about this interpreter that we both love and hate, including that it will also tell you what things are worth your suspicion and attention. You will feel anxious, and through that, you will become more alert and avoid danger. In this sense, the interpreter can greatly influence our thoughts and will…”

“Pingyun… Pingyun!”

The classmate next to her nudged her. “What are you spacing out for? Aren’t you going to take notes?”

She finally snapped back to reality. “Oh… okay.”

This time, after class, Zeng Pingyun did not go up to ask questions as she had before, but sat quietly in her seat, slowly packing up her things until almost all the other students had left.

Before leaving, her eyes met the lecturer’s, and she nodded with a smile. But to her surprise, the teacher took the initiative to ask her a question.

“How was today’s class?”

“Um, it was… okay.”

“Your name is Pingyun, right?” Tang Yingli walked down from the podium. “If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can always ask. I noticed you weren’t as focused in class as you were before. It seems like you have something on your mind.”

Zeng Pingyun’s heart skipped a beat. Yingli’s finger gently traced the left side of her head. “That’s what my interpreter is telling me. I wonder if I’m right?”

So she was reviewing what we just learned in class? She smiled and walked out of the classroom with Yingli.

“Actually…” Zeng Pingyun began, not expecting much. “You’re right, Teacher. I have run into some trouble, and I don’t know how to talk about it…” She couldn’t help but burst into tears, and the more she cried, the sadder she became.

Yingli stood quietly beside her until she had calmed down a little. “If you want to talk to someone, why don’t you tell me? I’m not in a hurry.”

The next class was not a free period, but for Zeng Pingyun, class was not the most pressing matter.

She told Yingli about her situation with Lu Zhiwei. “…The people around me either advise me to accept him, or they think it’s no big deal… they don’t understand how I feel at all.”

“It is indeed very frustrating, and your guess is probably right.” After listening to her story, Yingli let out a small sigh.

“Huh?”

“The guy who’s been following you, I think he’s in cahoots with the guy who’s pursuing you. They might be cooperating in some way.”

Zeng Pingyun didn’t expect this almost far-fetched speculation to be met with agreement. “Teacher… do you really think so?”

“Yes. Otherwise, how would he know which route you’re taking? Did he install a tracking app on your phone?”

Zeng Pingyun gasped and immediately grabbed her phone to check. “In any case,” Yingli pushed up her glasses, “it’s not your fault. You have clearly rejected this person, but he continues to pursue you, and he’s using all sorts of methods. To me, he is an out-and-out dangerous person.”

Zeng Pingyun’s eyes welled up. “Teacher…”

“But I want to confirm one more time. You and he, have you really never met before?” Yingli rested her chin on her hand. “During your school years, could it be that he had contact with you and secretly admired you, but you were completely unaware?”

“A-Admired? No way. I’m so ordinary, and my figure isn’t anything special…”

Yingli shook her head in disapproval. “Figure and appearance are not the only conditions that attract the opposite sex. Sometimes a warm word or a thoughtful gesture can leave a deeper impression on someone. Otherwise, what he said when he first met you wouldn’t make sense.”

‘We meet again. I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time.’

That sentence was like a spell, tightly binding her and Lu Zhiwei together.

‘…been waiting for a long time.’

Zeng Pingyun clenched her fists. “I have all my yearbooks from kindergarten to high school. I’ll go look for him.”

“Okay. If you can’t find the exact same name, at least pay attention to the surname. It’s very common to change names now. He might have changed his name, which is why you have no impression of him.”

She hadn’t thought of that. “Okay, I understand.”

Yingli smiled. “Next, we need to find a way to catch that ghost who’s been following you.”

“A ghost…” Zeng Pingyun was amused by her choice of words.

“You have my number, right? You can call me if you have any news. As long as I’m near the school, I’ll come and help you as soon as I can.”

“Thank you, Teacher. If it weren’t for you, I really wouldn’t know how to handle this…”

“Don’t be so moved so quickly. You can thank me after we’ve gotten rid of that creepy suitor.” Waving her hand, she strode away with composure.