Chapter 87: Clues and Traces (Part 1)

Chen Tianyu met He Xiaoxue in the detention center, while a female police officer watched from a distance.

At first, Xiaoxue's gaze was somewhat vacant, and she didn't even recognize who he was. After Chen Tianyu stated his name, a trace of joy flickered in her eyes, though it quickly faded away.

Chen Tianyu had no choice but to take the initiative and speak. "Actually, I'm a detective. I forgot to tell you that earlier."

Xiaoxue did not react much, merely offering a faint "Oh."

"It seems you don't have a very good impression of detectives?" Chen Tianyu's heart stirred, and he decided to test the waters.

Xiaoxue murmured, "No... no."

Chen Tianyu smiled faintly. "The Divine Eagle Detective Agency, you must have heard of it, right?"

Sure enough, Xiaoxue raised her head with a hint of surprise and glanced at him. "You—you're from the Divine Eagle Detective Agency?"

"So, you've received help from the Divine Eagle Detective Agency before?" Chen Tianyu looked at her.

Xiaoxue immediately grew somewhat flustered, looking a bit confused. "I don't understand."

Chen Tianyu smiled. "After you left the inn that day, you probably ran into someone from the Divine Eagle Detective Agency. I know that agency has always liked helping ladies like you, so I just asked out of curiosity."

"Ladies like me..." Xiaoxue's face turned somewhat pale. "I haven't done anything bad."

Chen Tianyu nodded. "I know, but your experiences are still quite sympathetic."

"Um..." Xiaoxue said blankly, "I've already forgotten all about those things."

Chen Tianyu clarified his position. "Actually, I'm from the Beiting Detective Agency, not the Divine Eagle Detective Agency at all. I don't know if you've ever heard of Beiting?"

Xiaoxue still responded with a faint "Oh," appearing as though she had never heard of it and probably couldn't tell the difference between one detective and another.

Chen Tianyu sighed inwardly and asked, "Do you still have thoughts of ending your life?"

Xiaoxue shook her head. "They said Hu Wenyi is already dead. I don't know where to go from here either."

Chen Tianyu said, "Haven't you always wanted revenge? Doesn't this happen to fulfill your wish? Why don't you want to pull yourself together? Heavens obviously didn't let him off."

At the mention of this, Xiaoxue seemed to show a sliver of interest, though her expression remained numb.

"I don't know either," she paused. "I used to always want him to die, but now that he's truly dead, I don't feel happy. I just feel an emptiness inside..."

"Could it be that you still have feelings for him?" Chen Tianyu asked in surprise.

Xiaoxue decisively shook her head. "No more."

Chen Tianyu realized, "Then you must feel unreconciled, feeling like you sacrificed too much."

"A little bit, yes."

Chen Tianyu sighed. "Actually, you should start over and look for a new life."

Xiaoxue looked at him in astonishment. "Are you joking with me? ... I am a... criminal now."

"That word isn't quite right. You should be a criminal suspect," Chen Tianyu corrected.

Xiaoxue said despondently, "What difference does it make? They've pretty much decided it was me."

Chen Tianyu glanced at her and decided to employ some tactics. Although Xiaoxue was not particularly young in age, her psychological age was clearly still quite naive, and she knew nothing about the law. This was likely a form of psychological regression after experiencing the untainted world and suffering cruel ravages, which only made him more determined to pursue the truth.

What is it that drives these ignorant and innocent young girls into the jaws of the devil just for a tiny temptation?

Chen Tianyu said earnestly, "Xiaoxue, do you know? I've never believed that you had any direct connection to Hu Wenyi's death. If you're willing to tell me the whole truth, perhaps I can help you."

Xiaoxue raised her head to look at him once more, skeptical and half-believing. "Do you really believe I didn't kill anyone?"

"Actually, if you were a prime suspect, you wouldn't be chatting with me so leisurely right now," Chen Tianyu had to comfort her. "As you've probably noticed, although I'm just a private investigator, my relationship with the police is unlike anyone else's."

Chen Tianyu pulled his credentials from the inner pocket of his jacket. This was the first time he was using the Beiting badge.

Xiaoxue didn't dare to take it, but she must have seen the police emblem on it. Chen Tianyu didn't force her, carefully putting it away instead.

At a time like this, trust was paramount.

Sure enough, Xiaoxue thought about it seriously. "If I say I actually know nothing at all, would you believe me too?"

Chen Tianyu smiled. "That would depend on what it is you don't know."

"Ah?" Xiaoxue looked somewhat confused. "I don't know anything; I was just single-mindedly bent on revenge. At the time, Sister Zichen saved me, and I was very grateful, but my heart had already turned to ashes, and I had no motivation to remain in this world. Later, I found an excuse for myself, which was revenge, so I went back to the place I used to live and quietly waited for an opportunity."

Chen Tianyu acutely observed, "You never waited for him, did you?"

Xiaoxue nodded. "Mm. Hu Wenyi never came back. He probably forgot he even had an apartment like that. Besides, the residential complex was very desolate, and staying there alone at night scared me. So, I planned to move away..."

"But you didn't know where to settle down yet, so you didn't move away immediately?" Chen Tianyu asked. "I know your income isn't high, and paying rent is quite a struggle, right? So, was there any other reason that finally made up your mind to leave?"

"Uh..." Xiaoxue hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "It was still the fear."

Seeing the shifting expressions on her face, Chen Tianyu pressed on, "Did something unusual happen? In the residential complex."

A trace of fear appeared on Xiaoxue's face, as if she was reluctant to recall it. "I... I can't quite explain it either, but for a few days, there kept being these strange noises upstairs that kept me from sleeping."

Chen Tianyu's eyes lit up. "What kind of noises were they, exactly?"

Xiaoxue subconsciously shrank her neck, as if the lingering dread remained. "It was... the sound of glass marbles rolling."

"Glass marbles?" Chen Tianyu naturally thought of a horror movie.

"Didn't you go upstairs to take a look? You should have dared to go during the day, right?"

Xiaoxue nodded. "I went, but after knocking on the door for a long time, no one opened it. Maybe nobody was home..."

Chen Tianyu asked, "Was anyone living upstairs? Think carefully."

Xiaoxue decisively shook her head. "I don't know. I hadn't been there for a long time and wasn't familiar with the people or things there."

Chen Tianyu actually knew very well that no one was living upstairs; that was a fully decorated apartment that had not yet been sold.

The reason he asked was simply to observe Xiaoxue's reaction.

"Are you sure you weren't experiencing auditory hallucinations?" Chen Tianyu asked casually.

Xiaoxue shook her head. "My mental state was fine during those days. Besides, I've never had similar medical conditions before, so auditory hallucinations are unlikely."

"Oh." Chen Tianyu thought for a moment, unable to figure out what was going on.

He had no choice but to say, "Let's put this matter aside for now."