Life Plan

Chapter 27, Inquiry

Liu Chichi was about to report on the progress when she opened her phone and Shen Shuyi's message popped up: 【Is it over?】

【Um. 】

【position.】

Just after sending her location, Shen Shuyi received a phone call: "Don't move, wait for me."

"Huh? Now?"

It was already completely dark, and there were hardly any workers leaving get off work. The streetlights were shining alone, and every house was closed. She only dared to come in because of the police officer in front of her.

The two were now preparing to return home, so was she supposed to wait here alone?

She followed the policeman with small, quick steps, and whispered to Shen Shuyi, "I wouldn't dare."

"Okay, that works too. Come tomorrow. Do you want some scallions?"

She instinctively replied, "No, I won't eat."

"There's a three-way intersection right outside here, and a convenience store next to it. Can you wait for me inside?"

Liu Chichi glanced at the map; it was already on a main road, and the convenience store was open 24 hours. She quickly agreed, "That's fine."

She could also buy some food at the convenience store; she hadn't had dinner because she was in a rush, and she was very hungry.

But Shen Shuyi was quick. As soon as she stepped out of the alley, she saw Shen Shuyi's red SUV. The passenger window rolled down, and Shen Shuyi waved to her: "Get in."

With a convenience store right in front of her, she didn't hesitate to choose the latter over buying food first and getting on the bus.

The moment the car door opened, a jianbing guozi (Chinese crepe) lay quietly on the passenger seat. Its steaming aroma filled her stomach, and the golden-yellow dough caught her eye.

Shen Shuyi reached out and handed her a jianbing guozi (Chinese crepe): "Get in the car quickly, parking is restricted here."

"Why are you here?"

"Do you think a police car is a public bus? It's more than ten kilometers from here to your home. I'll take you back."

I thought you had already left work.

"Of course I'm off work. I went out for a meal. Do you really need me to go hungry with you over something so small?"

"No, no need."

Liu Chichi felt a wave of moisture welling up in front of her eyes, stinging her eyes. Just as she lowered her head, Shen Shuyi's voice rang out in her ear: "Quickly navigate, I've never been this way before."

It was late when Liu Chichi got home. She assumed her mother was already asleep, so she quietly opened the door. But she saw Liu Chunhong sitting at the dining table, still wearing her work vest, with a gloomy expression.

Liu Chichi subconsciously tried to recall what she had done wrong recently. Was it that she hadn't reported working overtime, or that her hidden salary had been discovered?

She slowly put down her backpack and phone, her mind racing as she considered every possible response. Before her mother spoke, her mind was like that of someone facing a trial.

She knelt down in front of her mother, carefully placing her hands on her legs, and smiled ingratiatingly, looking up at her mother: "Mom, why aren't you resting yet?"

Where did you go today?

"Going to work."

"Just going to work?"

"Yes." Liu Chichi blinked rapidly without realizing it, even showing a hint of confusion. The seriousness of the problem did not match the seriousness her mother showed. "I worked overtime until very late, and my boss drove me home."

Liu Chunhong stared intently into her eyes, as if trying to see if she was lying: "I heard that you were taken away by the police again?"

Liu Chichi suddenly realized that the factory area seemed to be where her aunt worked. She was no longer a child and could sense the blatant malice in her aunt's words and actions.

Perhaps she saw it today, took a picture, and then complained about it.

Liu Chunhong had warned her to be careful, even if it wasn't her fault, she should be careful not to give anyone a handle to use against her.

Liu Chichi took out the application forms she had photographed on her phone and slid them in front of her mother one by one: "Mom, it's about the patients. We doctors went with them."

Liu Chunhong's brow gradually relaxed, and her face returned to a kind smile: "Mom didn't mean to blame you. A woman's reputation is the most important thing. You'll definitely get a government job in the future, and you'll get married too. A good reputation is essential for a good family."

She changed the subject: "Did you see anyone you liked at the hospital?"

Liu Chichi felt her brain was numb. Wearing a mask and a white coat every day, she was so busy with work that she was dizzy. All she could keep in mind was "disinfection." Who would pay attention to these things?

She shook her head, and Liu Chunhong took out her phone. A large text page contained a photo. The man in the photo was wearing a windbreaker and standing on a mountain road. He wore glasses and looked very refined, but his face showed signs of fatigue.

Liu Chunhong looked very satisfied. Pointing to the photo, she introduced with a smile: "Your Aunt Wang's sister-in-law's son just turned thirty this year. His mother works at a bank, his father works at the land bureau, and he owns his own company."

Liu Chichi instantly understood her mother's meaning, but couldn't help but stare in disbelief: "I'm only twenty-two years old."

"That's great! I've heard that his mother wants to marry someone young and smart. You have an advantage!"

"That's what his mother thought, not him."

How do you know that's not what he meant?

"But I don't like him." Under her mother's disapproving gaze, Liu Chichi mustered her courage and repeated, "Mom, I don't like him."

"Feelings can be cultivated slowly, but a good man is hard to come by once you miss him. You're already twenty-two, and after the New Year you'll be twenty-three. If you get to know each other for a year, you'll be twenty-four. Have a baby at twenty-five, and you'll recover quickly. Have a second child to make a boy and a girl, and you'll have a stable life. I've arranged everything. You two will meet tomorrow."

"I have to work tomorrow."

"Work isn't really that important..." Liu Chichi's resistant gaze was too obvious, and Liu Chunhong's voice gradually weakened, as if she remembered what she had said before. She tilted her head, quickly finding a new position for herself: "I'm your mother, I'm doing this all for your own good."

Liu Chichi fell silent. All these years of hard work in her studies were for this diploma, but this diploma, which she had only had for half a year, became part of her dowry in her marriage.

She is nearsighted by 600 degrees, and her nose always hurts when she wears glasses for a long time. If she can only rely on having two children to make a living, then what is the point of all the books she has read over the years?

Can we save on our child's tutoring fees?

Liu Chichi's silence was taken as tacit approval by her mother. The next day, just after lunch, the time and place of the blind date were sent to her phone. She only glanced at it before quickly turning off the screen.

Shen Shuyi ignored her furrowed brow and asked, "Do you have work this afternoon?"

Her thoughts snapped back to reality. "That's all."

"I'll come to your office at one o'clock this afternoon."

"it is good."

The victim in Jiang Xiaonv's assault case wasn't at their hospital, so they couldn't get any more information. They went back to that narrow old town area; the alleys were still quiet during the day.

The factory area is like a game server; it only gets crowded during rush hour when countless people log in and out. Otherwise, it's just deserted old people.

Jiang Xiaonv's house was sealed off, so Shen Shuyi took her around to ask around. With a recording pen in hand, they asked everyone they met, and when they encountered someone who was particularly wary, they would give themselves a new identity: "I'm a reporter, here to do an interview."

Shen Shuyi carefully manages every step of her work, but she doesn't mind skirting the edges of rules and regulations when necessary.

Liu Chichi meticulously recorded various keywords, piecing together a rough story from these people's accounts—Jiang Xiaonv, while her husband was away working, had dinner with his coworker. Later, for unknown reasons, she stabbed the coworker in the abdomen with a knife, causing massive bleeding. The victim was rushed to the hospital that night and remains in a coma.

Jiang Xiaonv personally bought and prepared the dinner. She was in a good mood while shopping and did not seem to be coerced. The market surveillance footage and the stall owners' testimonies were consistent. Her coworker did have a message on his phone inviting him to dinner from Jiang Xiaonv. When questioned by the police about whether she had committed murder, Jiang Xiaonv nodded.

With both witnesses and physical evidence readily available, the only remaining unclear aspect is the motive. Aside from the incomplete testimony due to Jiang Xiaonv's pre-existing medical condition, this is a murder case with a closed-loop evidence. The prosecution has already filed charges.

The case is scheduled for trial, but the outcome is not hard to predict.