Chapter 80:
In handcuffs, and with his suit replaced by a loose, long-sleeved cotton shirt and pants, George Miller was quite relaxed. In contrast, Yingli, who was waiting to question him, was expressionless.
“Although it’s a little damp, the environment here is quite nice.” He smiled and sat down across from her. “What method are you going to use to force me to talk this time?”
Yingli lowered her head, her lips pressed into a thin line. Under the white light, the shadow of her bangs covered half her face. “Are you still not going to talk? About the sender’s real identity.”
“I thought your interrogation methods would have improved after you developed a strategy, Charlotte,” Miller said with a hint of contempt.
“The contact for this conference in Taiwan has been going on for almost a year, and the earliest suspicious email was from six months ago. That is to say, you planned this whole process for half a year to a year. You deliberately chose the academic conference to carry out the whole plan, and besides killing Müller with someone else’s hands, you also intended to erase Chomsky’s status in the academic world, right?”
Chomsky had dedicated his life to using brain imaging to study criminals, and his real purpose was to understand the differences between the criminal brain and the normal brain. If his research results were to be used by criminals to screen their members, it would be contrary to Chomsky’s original intention.
In other words, this was Miller’s real plan.
“Is this the result of your so-called behavioral profiling?”
“Pretending to avenge your childhood sweetheart was just an excuse. At some point, you had long been dissatisfied with Chomsky, and in the end, you colluded with an unknown organization to get rid of him, and used this incident to permanently remove him from the academic world.”
Yingli shot up from her folding chair. “Ha, unfortunately, the plan failed.” She smiled.
At her verbal provocation, Miller’s eyes were unusually calm when he looked up.
“Chomsky personally deleted all the research data in his database and scheduled the publication of his last paper before his death,” she said, tapping the table, her eyes fixed on his face. “The organization didn’t get the data. Although the murder became a stain on his career, it was also the result of his CTE. Compared to your meticulous planning, the reason for Chomsky’s crime is more sympathetic.”
Miller squinted, and the right corner of his mouth and the right corner of his eye twitched a few times. She noticed, but it was only for a fleeting moment.
Then, he smiled. “Are you done?”
Yingli’s eyes widened slightly, and she continued to have a silent standoff with him.
This was the last thing he said in this interrogation.
**
The clock hands slowly moved toward five in the afternoon.
When Zhou Jingxun came out of the director’s office, she didn’t expect to meet the gazes of the entire Criminal Investigation Division.
Her eyes were red and swollen, and she lowered her head, at the same time putting on a mask to cover her injured face. The reason she had been able to escape Zhou Zengxiang’s scolding was all thanks to her mother, who had rushed over—but now it was their turn to argue.
This time, she had really embarrassed herself.
“It’s all your fault. If you hadn’t spoiled the child so much, would she have ended up like this today?”
“Me? I spoiled the child? You’re the one who never paid any attention to them.” A cold laugh came out. “Let me ask you, ‘Director Zhou,’ where were you when Xiao Xun was in the hospital after her car accident in Korea… oh, I forgot. Not only where you were, but you didn’t even know she had been in a car accident.”
That’s enough. A wave of shame and loss suddenly washed over her, and she walked forward blankly.
Her two assistants also looked worried, but it was better not to see them. As soon as she saw them, Zhou Jingxun’s anger flared up. One of them had been temporarily assigned to her by the company, so she wouldn’t talk about her, but the other, named Shi Changyun, had been with her since her debut, and yet she had colluded with Zhou Zengxiang to deceive her.
“Xiao Xun… I’m so sorry.”
Facing Shi Changyun’s self-reproach, Zhou Jingxun walked past her coldly, not wanting to see her.
“Wait a minute.”
She had intended to continue walking out, but the female detective’s next words made her have to turn back. “Your phone has been recovered. It’s here.”
The familiar purple case came into view. She took it anxiously and immediately turned it on. Everything was fine.
“Thank you.” She held the phone and trembled, thanking her over and over. The female detective’s only response was a gentle smile, and it was only then that she noticed a rust-colored stain on the chest of the female detective’s shirt. Did she accidentally wipe it on her? Her hands were already clean.
When the female detective returned the small knife, she blurted out, “What’s… what’s your name?”
“My name is Zhou Jinglin,” the female detective answered. “I received an order from the chief and followed the taxi that kidnapped you.”
Oh, right. When she had been brought back, she had still been in shock from the car accident, and she had been a little dazed, so she hadn’t had much of an impression of this female detective.
So her name is Zhou Jinglin… looking at her pretty face, Zhou Jingxun felt a strange sense of familiarity.
“I’m so glad you’re okay. But for the next few days, we’ll have to be together for a while.”
Her words made Zhou Jingxun instantly sober up. “W-Wait a minute. What do you mean, together…?”
“Yes, exactly what I said… ah, I almost forgot. I have to take you for a check-up right away.” Zhou Jinglin took her hand. “Take my car. The chief will also send two other colleagues to follow us. You don’t have to worry about what happened just now happening again.”
At this reminder, Zhou Jingxun vaguely felt a pain in her waist and back, and she also felt a little nauseous.
“Dad said he would send someone to be with me… you mean you?” This female detective… is so tall. Although she wasn’t short, she still had to jog to keep up.
“Yes.”
Almost at a ready-to-go pace, she led Zhou Jingxun to the car. Zhou Jinglin quickly started the engine. “The Taipei Investigation Team is a little short on female detectives. Besides me, there doesn’t seem to be anyone particularly suitable.” She shrugged with a smile and deftly backed out of the parking space. “Everyone says I’m a little impatient, so I’ll have to ask you to bear with me.”
A little… impatient?
The question had just popped into her head when the car’s violent acceleration pressed her back against the seat, and she gasped.
Is this the kind of “impatient” she meant? “You’re driving so fast.”
“Is it too fast? I’m sorry.” She changed gears and turned, the speed not decreasing but increasing. “I didn’t expect the director to lecture you for so long. The car accident just now was so serious… I should have taken you to the hospital for a check-up right away. If you can, take a rest. We’re going to the municipal hospital, about fifteen minutes.”
The municipal hospital? Fifteen minutes? It’s… rush hour.
Zhou Jingxun suppressed her nausea, held her backpack tightly, and closed her eyes, screaming, “Can you drive a little slower—”
**
This female detective… what is she like…
Lying on the hospital bed, Zhou Jingxun, who had just undergone a series of examinations, finally had a moment to catch her breath. The emergency room was filled with the unpleasant smell of disinfectant. When was the last time she had been to the municipal hospital? Her head still hurt a little, and the female detective was on the phone with someone.
“…Yes, the X-ray is done. We have a surgeon we know. It’s fine. Please don’t worry, ma’am…” When she turned, her eyes met hers, and Zhou Jinglin raised an eyebrow with a smile. “Yes, you can come over anytime. I’ll be here waiting…” Is she talking to Mom?
The curtain was pulled back, and the female doctor who came in was the same one who had examined her just now. “I never thought I would meet a celebrity under these circumstances.” She smiled faintly and put the X-ray on the light box to examine it. “There seems to be a slight contusion to the spine and ribs… does your waist and back hurt now?”
“A little…”
“It’s probably the effect of the impact. Do you feel dizzy?”
“Yes.” She switched to a supine position. The doctor looked down at her, as if she had discovered something.
“Your nose is bleeding a little.” She used a cotton swab to apply some medicine. “Do you feel nauseous?”
This time, she just nodded.
Ending the call, Zhou Jinglin walked over and asked, “Dr. Ren, how is Miss… Zhou?”
“I think she may have a slight concussion, and the contusions to her muscles and spine are also a little concerning…” Ren Liqiong deftly twirled her pen and made a note in the file. “Yingli didn’t come with you?”
“No, the teacher is probably still busy.” She had just called, and Tang Yingli hadn’t answered.
“In any case, we will continue to give her medication. Let’s have her stay here for one night.”
Ren Liqiong and Zhou Jinglin said something else, but she didn’t pay much attention, just turned to the other side.
Staring at the IV drip, Zhou Jingxun swore that this was definitely the most eventful trip home she had ever had.
“The madam will be here in a bit.” Ren Liqiong quietly left, leaving only Zhou Jinglin with her. “Are you thirsty? I’ll get you some water.”
“It’s in my backpack.”
The water in the thermos was still warm. She drank it and sighed. “What happened to that culprit? Is he dead…”
Zhou Jinglin shook her head. “He has a fractured lower leg, and his life is not in danger.”
“It was so sudden. Whether it was Dad having you come to pick me up, or being immediately hijacked as soon as I left… I wasn’t prepared at all.”
“It may be hard for you to accept, but for the victim, the culprit’s crime is indeed never announced.”
“I’m still out of the loop. I saw Mom and Dad arguing like that, and it didn’t seem like they had reached a consensus…” she had Zhou Jinglin put away the thermos for her, “so who wanted to kidnap me?” The phrase “someone paid a high price” made her very curious.
“We’ll have to wait until the culprit wakes up to find out. But…” Zhou Jinglin pulled up a chair and sat down, crossing her legs, “do you have any ideas about the mastermind?”
She sneered. “What ideas could I have?”
“No suspicious individuals? For example, a crazy fan who has been following you across the sea…”
“There are a lot of those, but they’re not crazy to that extent. And the entertainment company will block them… we just have to focus on our performance. If we get distracted by this kind of thing, we probably won’t be able to make it.” She frowned. “You should know, right? The entertainment industry in Korea is very competitive. If you’re not careful, there are always other similar girl groups ready to take your place.”
“Uh… yes.” Zhou Jinglin’s expression was awkward for a moment. “But in that critical situation, you were still able to defend yourself. That really surprised me.”
Thinking of the feeling of the knife piercing his arm, Zhou Jingxun’s hands still trembled. “I don’t know where I got the courage. I just didn’t want to sit and wait to die…”
“Good job.”
She was taken aback. Zhou Jinglin’s hand covered hers and held it gently. “Thankfully, the car crashed into a fruit stand, and besides the culprit, no one else was hurt… contrary to your weak and sweet image on screen, you were really very brave.”
Zhou Jingxun bit her lip, her expression a mixture of tears and laughter. “I wish my dad would say the same thing to me.”
