Card Room (Rebirth)

Shu Ping’s testimony wasn’t credible. The first person to be excluded by Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou was now the most suspicious person. Xiao Lou suddenly remembered something and took a closer look at Shu Ping’s registration form.

Her marital status column had the word ‘widow’ written while her children column was filled out with her daughter’s name. Her emergency contact was her daughter and her daughter was called… Shu Xiaomeng.

Xiao Lou was shocked.

The female group on the 4th carriage was also called ‘X XiaoX.’ It was very common for girls to be called X XiaoX but this female group was very special. Xiao Lou had asked why their names were so similar and a girl had replied that they grew up together. Then would Shu Ping’s daughter, Shu Xiaomeng be related to this female group?

The case of the 6th carriage was related to the 4th carriage. Jing Weiguang was a doctor and could tell challengers who didn’t know about the principle of killing with insulin. Yu Xinxin was a key witness for the timeline who punctured the lies of the old people. Shu Xiaomeng’s name was very similar to the group of girlfriends and this couldn’t be a coincidence.

Yu Hanjiang carefully glanced at the data sheet. Previously, Shu Ping had been ruled out and they didn’t care about her daughter. Now her daughter was the key.

Xiao Lou stated, “I will go to the 4th carriage to confirm if Shu Xiaomeng is a member of the female friends group.”

Yu Hanjiang nodded. “Yes, I will wait for you here.”

Xiao Lou headed to the fourth carriage. Out of the female group, the girl in 15A was bowing her head to read a novel. The two people in B and C were wearing a headset together to watch a TV series. 15D and F were chatting with each other, talking about someone who broke up with her boyfriend again.

Xiao Lou approached them and they stopped talking, two pairs of eyes staring at Xiao Lou. One of the girls, Song Xiaoyu asked boldly, “Hello, did something happen in the 6th carriage? At 7 o’clock in the morning, I seemed to hear someone screaming.”

Xiao Lou smiled. “Nothing, an old man lost his things and is looking for it.” He quickly changed the topic. “By the way, do you know Shu Xiaomeng?”

Song Xiaoyu’s eyes widened. “Eh? Do you know Sister Xiaomeng?”

Sure enough, Shu Ping’s daughter also belonged to this female group. It was unknown why she didn’t come at this time.

Xiao Lou continued to smile gently. “I don’t know here but there happened to be an auntie called Shu Ping in the 6th carriage. She said her daughter is called Shu Xiaomeng and I found the name very similar to yours. I wanted to come and see. I didn’t expect you to really know her.”

The two people watching TV next to him heard this and also looked up with surprise. “Aunt Shu is in the 6th carriage? What a coincidence.”

Another person suggested, “Shall we go and see Aunt Shu? I haven’t seen her yet and I heard Xiaomeng say that her mother is very beautiful.”

“She is playing cards with a few people. Let’s not bother her.” Xiao Lou casually made up a reason to stop the excited female group and continued to ask, “By the way, is Xiaomeng also part of your group? Why didn’t she come this time?”

Liu Xiaoyan was the most stable member of the five person group and she explained, “Originally, I was going to book six tickets to the concert. However, Xiaomeng had a small operation some time ago and needed to recuperate at home. I found that she looked poor and was in a bad mood, so I didn’t force her.”

Next to her, Zhang Xiaozhu added, “If she didn’t happen to be ill then she would definitely go. This concert is her favourite singer and is only held once every three years. She will have to wait three years for the next one.”

The girls next to her agreed. “Yes, it is a pity!” “It doesn’t matter, let’s record more videos and show it to her.”

Xiao Lou then asked, “Does she often talk to you about her mother? Aunt Shu is really beautiful.”

The big sister Liu Xiaoyan replied, “Yes, she has a good relationship with her mother. Every day, her mother would call. According to Xiaomeng, her mother loves her very much. She eats the best food since childhood and her mother also saved money to buy a marriage house for her. We all feel envious that she has such a mother.”

Xiao Lou pretended to be casual. “What about her father?”

Liu Xiaoyan said, “He seems to be gone a long time? I’ve never heard her mention him.”

Next to her, Wu Xiaofei smiled. “Why are you asking about Xiaomeng? Did you see a photo and become interested in her? Xiaomeng is very beautiful and there is a long line of boys chasing after her.”

Xiao Lou awkwardly coughed. “Does she have a boyfriend now?”

The females immediately showed an ‘I understand, you want to chase Xiaomeng’ expression.

Wu Xiaofei answered, “Three months ago, she broke up with a boy she liked and cried for a long time. I think you have no chance. You might be very handsome and Xiaomeng is single but she still isn’t over her last relationship.”

Xiao Lou didn’t know if he should laugh or cry. He thanked them and turned back to the 6th carriage.

Yu Hanjiang was waiting for him in the office and Xiao Lou gave a simple recap. “Shu Xiaomeng is a member of the female group and she has a good relationship with these people. She often mentioned her mother’s love for her. Some time ago, she broke up with her boyfriend and is resting from surgery. That’s why she didn’t go to this concert.”

Yu Hanjiang nodded. “Therefore, Shu Ping’s words are made up. It isn’t true that she introduced her daughter to Li Zhemin’s son.”

Xiao Lou added, “In addition, they said that Shu Xiaomeng is super beautiful and doesn’t need to worry about finding a good boyfriend.” Shu Ping loved her daughter. Even if Old Li’s son had money, she wouldn’t push her daughter into the fire pit. After all, Old Li’s reputation in the unit was too bad.

The two people glanced at each other and thought of a possibility.

Yu Hanjiang whispered, “Shu Ping’s daughter is her counter scale.”

Xiao Lou nodded. “If Shu Ping really killed Old Li then her motive for killing is probably related to her absent daughter.”

Shu Ping was proud of raising her daughter alone after her husband’s death and her daughter was beautiful and excellent. If Shu Ping had a simple grudge against Li Zhemin, she wouldn’t have waited until now. Perhaps Li Zhemin did something that hurt her daughter and she couldn’t wait to pick up the butcher’s knife.

What was the intersection between Li Zhemin and her daughter?

Yu Hanjiang frowned and thought for a moment before suddenly saying, “This trip was organized by Li Zhemin’s son. We have been focused on the elderly group’s grievances but ignored… their offspring might have grudges!”

Xiao Lou was suddenly startled. “Right! This has been revealed in previous statements. Niu Dapeng’s son was wounded in the eye by Li Zhemin’s son in high school. Perhaps Shu Ping’s daughter was hurt by Li Zhemin’s son? Her friends said that she recently broke up with someone. Did Shu Xiaomeng break up with Li Zhemin’s son?”

Yu Hanjiang, “…”

Professor Xiao’s conjecture was shocking but there was a certain rationality to it.

He frowned. “Mrs Mei, Niu Dapeng, Zheng Weiguo, Liu Yuming and Shu Ping, they all have ulterior motives in their heart. They bite at each other and tell lies but there are other people in the elderly group. Perhaps they will have clues. We need to re-interrogate them.”

Xiao Lou agreed with a nod.

Yu Hanjiang asked the three old ladies in Room 3 who stayed with Shu Ping to come over. He asked about their past as well as Shu Ping’s husband and daughter.

The first old lady said, “When Little Ping was young, she was our unit’s most beautiful and talented person. She also studied dance. She is currently 60 years old but she looks like she is 40. She maintains herself well and wears a dress every day. She looks very chic when travelling with her daughter.”

Yu Hanjiang asked, “Was she in love with anybody in your unit when she was young?’

The old lady suddenly lowered her voice and gossiped, “We all thought she was with Li Zhemin. At that time, she and Li Zhemin ate together every day and their relationship was especially close in the company. Li Zhemin easily coaxes girls but he sent her a set of high-end cosmetics… However, the young lady came back and Li Zhemin suddenly got along with the young lady.”

Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang were surprised. They didn’t expect that Shu Ping and Li Zhemin had an emotional history!

Yu Hanjiang whispered, “What was the relationship between Shu Ping and the young lady?”

The old lady said, “Their relationship was particularly close. She and Ruirui played together from a young age. Shu Ping studied accounting and the reason she could directly go to the company’s financial department after graduation was due to the young lady’s recommendation. The young lady went to graduate school so it was three years later that she joined the company. At that time, Shu Ping specially organized a welcome party for her.”

Yu Hanjiang wondered, “Did Li Zhemin also go to the welcome party? That’s how he knew she was the boss’ only child?”

The old lady nodded. “Yes, the entire company went to it.”

Yu Hanjiang asked again, “Do you know about Li Zhemin’s birthday matter?”

The old lady carefully recalled fora moment. “I heard some rumours. Li Zhemin invited a lot of young men and women to his house for his birthday. The young lady also went. At that birthday party, Li Zhemin and the young lady got together. Some people had a good relationship with Shu Ping and were angry for her. They thought that Li Zhemin was only interested in the young lady’s money but Shu Ping said that she and Li Zhemin were just friends. Don’t spread chaos by talking. Then Li Zhemin and the young lady quickly married. Shu Ping attended and gave Ruirui expensive jewellery as a wedding gift.”

Xiao Lou took notes while thinking.

If his speculation was correct, Li Zhemin likely saw that Shu Ping was beautiful and he had a secret relationship with her for a while. As a result, he climbed onto the boss’ daughter and kicked Shu Ping out. He took advantage of his birthday to have a relationship with the young lady.

Shu Ping might’ve felt resentment in her heart but this was the friend she grew up with and she also wanted to keep her job. In short, she swallowed it down and clarified that she and Li Zhemin were just ordinary friends. She smiled as she attended the wedding of her best friend and ex-boyfriend.

Yu Hanjiang asked, “Who did she marry?”

The old lady said, “A doctor! The doctor seemed to be abusing her. After she got married, we saw that her body was always injured. She said she was clumsy but nobody believed it. Still, it wasn’t easy to ask. Shu Ping loves maintaining her face the most.”

Yu Hanjiang wondered, “When did her husband die?”

The old lady shook her head. “I don’t know. She never mentioned her husband in the company. You can ask Old Jiang. She and Shu Ping have a good relationship and play mahjong together every day after retirement. Perhaps she will know more clearly.”

Yu Hanjiang sent her back and asked her to call Aunt Jiang in.

This old lady did know and sighed. “Her husband is really terrible. He hit her when drunk and she had been suffering. Then after three years, her husband died of stomach cancer. Someone introduced her to a blind date but she said she didn’t intend to get married again.”

Yu Hanjiang asked, “Shu Xiaomeng, she is the daughter Shu Ping had with her husband?”

The old lady shook her head. “No, she never gave birth. There seems to be a problem with her body. Right after her husband died, she went to the orphanage to adopt a daughter and her daughter took her surname. Not many people know about this. Her daughter is smart, beautiful, admitted to a major university and is filial. Shu Ping is very proud.”

Yu Hanjiang was silent for a moment before continuing to ask, “Does her daughter know Li Zhemin’s son?”

The old lady thought about it. “As a child, definitely not. Li Zhemin lives in the west of the city and she lives in the east of the city. The two children wouldn’t go to school together. However, I don’t know about when they grew up.”

Yu Hanjiang added, “Did Aunt Shu mention that her daughter had a boyfriend?”

The old lady replied, “Yes, six months ago, we were playing mahjong and she told me that her daughter found a particularly excellent boyfriend. He is handsome and rich. On her birthday, her daughter’s boyfriend knew about it and gave his future mother-in-law a very expensive bag. She carried it every day and liked it.”

“Did she mention when her daughter broke up?”

The old lady looked surprised. “How did you know?”

Yu Hanjiang didn’t answer and questioned, “She really mentioned it?”

The old lady nodded regretfully. “Three months ago, I met her at the supermarket buying a lot of chicken, duck and fish. I asked why she was buying so many ingredients and she happily said that her daughter was bringing her boyfriend home to visit and she had to prepare. As a result, we didn’t see each other after that. The other day, I asked her about the boyfriend and she said the two people weren’t suitable and broke up. I also wondered how they suddenly broke up.”

The old lady had a good relationship with Aunt Shu and mentioned all the gossip she knew.

Things here have become clearer.

Yu Hanjiang calmly analyzed the case. “This case, there are two critical people who aren’t on the train.”

“One is Li Zhemin’s son, called Li Mo. There is also Shu Ping’s daughter, Shu Xiaomeng.”

“Perhaps the two young people didn’t know there was a deep feud between their parents. They got to know each other by chance and fell in love. Based on the words of the old lady and the group of female friends, the man gave his girlfriend’s mother a very expensive bag to show his sincerity. Then after they broke up, the woman went to her friends’ place to cry for a long time. It can be seen that the relationship between them was very good.”

Xiao Lou followed her words. “Then three months ago, Li Mo came to visit his future mother-in-law and the bubble burst in a flash?”

Yu Hanjiang nodded. “Shu Ping found out that her daughter’s boyfriend was the son of Li Zhemin, who abandoned her and hurt her friend. It was simply a bolt from the blue! She definitely wouldn’t agree to her daughter and the son of a slag man being together! However, it is still uncertain if the breakup was Shu Ping’s idea or Li Zhemin deliberately breaking them up.”

Yu Hanjiang touched his chin. “Still, we can be sure that three months ago, their breakup involved a lot of the past. Maybe because of that, Li Mo finally knew that his mother was his stepmother and his mother was raped by his father.”

“Li Mo can make his father’s company boom and also invest in real estate to make money. He is obviously a farsighted and resourceful young man. He definitely wouldn’t sit back and do nothing.”

Xiao Lou was silent for a few seconds. “Perhaps once he went back, he quickly found out the truth of that year. He might’ve found that that the death of his mother and grandfather weren’t simple. Along with other events, his disgust and hatred of his father were pushed to the extreme. He was determined to get rid of Li Zhemin so… he organized this trip.”

Yu Hanjiang nodded at Xiao Lou’s speculation. The two thought about it and this was the most reasonable guess when the current clues were combined.

Li Zhemin might be a slag but he was still Li Mo’s father. He couldn’t commit patricide so he borrowed a knife to kill this person. He arranged all those who had a hatred with Li Zhemin in the same group.

If A didn’t do it, B would do it. If B didn’t do it, there was C and D. Perhaps the moment that Li Zhemin left him, Li Mo knew that his father’s trip would be a train to hell. There was no going back.

TL Note: This will be posted to both my wordpress and CG, so you can choose either place to read it from.