Chapter 756 - 726: Choice
Zhao Feiyang still maintained his routine of visiting his son first and then Pei Lin. His son’s condition was improving day by day, and Pei Lin’s health was also getting better. The doctor said she could be discharged at any time, and everything seemed to be moving in a positive direction.
Yet Zhao Feiyang knew this was just a façade. Arriving in front of his wife’s hospital room, he routinely identified himself, but this time he was not granted entry.
Zhao Feiyang picked up the meal box in his hand: "I’m delivering food." He felt a bit strange as he had never been stopped before.
A voice came from behind: "No need, we will take care of it from now on."
Zhao Feiyang turned around and saw Lu Qi and Li Zhong walking towards him. Zhao Feiyang frowned, "I am her husband, would I harm her? You can check."
Li Zhong came over to inspect his meal box; the food smelled delicious. Zhao Feiyang had been taking good care of his wife recently.
Zhao Feiyang said, "Let me in, just this once."
Li Zhong shook his head.
Zhao Feiyang vaguely sensed something was wrong. Could it be that the police already had conclusive evidence of Pei Lin’s crime? If so, this could be troublesome, even though he had long anticipated this day would come. When it actually arrived, it felt too soon.
Li Zhong stated that the food was fine, and Lu Qi, along with him, entered the hospital room while Zhao Feiyang watched helplessly, realizing that the law indeed showed no leniency.
Pei Lin was sitting on the bed reading a book. When she saw Li Zhong come in with the meal box, she immediately understood and said softly, "Zhao Feiyang is outside? You won’t let him in?"
Lu Qi said, "Based on the information we have, your health is ready for discharge."
Pei Lin asked, "Can I see my son?"
Lu Qi shook his head, though he wished to help Pei Lin, it was impossible under the current circumstances.
Pei Lin sighed, "It seems you already consider me a criminal."
Li Zhong placed the meal box beside her. "Let me introduce, with approval from the higher-ups, Comrade Lu Qi has been reinstated and will be responsible for the Yang Mufeng case."
Pei Lin’s expression remained calm as she picked up the prepared divorce agreement. "I originally wanted to hand this divorce agreement to Zhao Feiyang personally. Now I’ll have to ask you to pass it on."
Lu Qi said, "Pei Lin, some things can’t be hidden. It’s better to tell the truth sooner rather than later."
Pei Lin stared at Lu Qi, "Why should I hide something I haven’t done? If you think I killed Yang Mufeng, then where’s the evidence? Show the evidence!"
Lu Qi couldn’t help but admire her resilience and composure. "From Jianjie Square to SEVEN STAR, the distance is not far. Someone familiar with the area could avoid most surveillance, but there are some cameras that are easily overlooked, like those at roadside shops. As long as we investigate carefully, we will find the evidence we want."
Pei Lin’s expression remained calm, but inside she was starting to panic as she speculated whether Lu Qi might be bluffing.
Pei Lin said, "Since you claim to have found evidence, just go ahead and sue me."
Lu Qi said, "This killer is very cunning, wearing the same clothes as Chen Weiwei and a wig. Generally, it’s easy to find records through online shopping, so she chose to buy in physical stores. All signs indicate that killing Yang Mufeng was not a spur-of-the-moment decision, but a meticulously planned one."
Pei Lin said, "Hearing you talk like this is really terrifying."
Lu Qi said, "Chen Weiwei is very particular about clothing. We visited two specialty stores in Dongzhou, retrieved their sales records, and found that no identical outfits had been sold in the two weeks before the incident."
Pei Lin said, "What does telling me all this accomplish?"
Lu Qi said, "So we expanded the search range and investigated your travel records."
Pei Lin began to feel anxious, trying to remember if she had overlooked anything.
Lu Qi said, "These two weeks, you’ve only been to Nanjiang. Based on our investigation, this brand’s store in Nanjiang sold only one such outfit in the two weeks before the incident."
"What’s that got to do with me?"
Lu Qi said, "This person is very smart. She knows electronic payments leave records, so she used cash for the entire transaction. But she overlooked one thing; nowadays, very few people use cash, and using thirteen thousand in cash at once made the store clerk remember this person very clearly."
Pei Lin pretended to be calm, "From the start, you assumed I was guilty, tailoring your investigation against me. Such a presumption of guilt is very unfair to me."
Lu Qi said, "I suggest you cooperate. I’ll be frank, the evidence we currently have is enough to convict you. If you don’t speak now, you’ll have to do it later when you’re discharged and relocated. By the way, we’ve already brought the store clerk from Dongzhou here to identify the shopper."
Pei Lin chuckled, "I truly admire your work. Alright, you want me to tell the truth, fine, I have a request. I’d like to see Zhao Feiyang one more time."
Lu Qi shook his head, "Not possible."
Pei Lin said, "The most heartless are your kind of people."
Lu Qi said, "That also depends on who it’s for. The doctor says your current condition allows you to be discharged. Next, you need to come with us and cooperate with our work. If you’re truly innocent, I believe it won’t be long before you can reunite with your husband and son."
Pei Lin said, "I would like to change my clothes. Can you wait outside for a moment?"
Lu Qi and Li Zhong exchanged a glance and went out, but a female officer quickly entered. Pei Lin has been listed as a prime suspect, and her every move needs to be monitored.
Lu Qi took the signed stack of documents from Pei Lin and handed them to Zhao Feiyang.
Zhao Feiyang glanced at them; among them were three divorce agreements that Pei Lin had already signed, as well as an organ donation form. These were all provided at her own request.
Zhao Feiyang came today to tell Pei Lin in person that he agreed to the divorce. After a series of major upheavals, Zhao Feiyang became increasingly calm, forced to consider the worst-case scenario. If Pei Lin was proven to have committed murder, her shadow would hang over the family for life. Even if Zhao Feiyang was indifferent, what about their son?
Divorce was undoubtedly the best choice, and could also be seen as a form of minimizing loss in life.
But Zhao Feiyang couldn’t understand why Pei Lin would sign the organ donation form. Did she think she couldn’t escape the law’s punishment, or even considered facing the death penalty, so she came up with this idea for a part of her to live on in this way?
Zhao Feiyang’s heart was filled with bitterness. He shouldn’t think this way. Pei Lin should be making some sort of compensation through this act, accumulating merit for her son.
Lu Qi looked sympathetically at Zhao Feiyang, "You should try to persuade her."
"Persuade her about what?" Zhao Feiyang asked.
Lu Qi said, "Given our current progress, we can solve this case in at most three days."
Zhao Feiyang’s heart sank; Lu Qi had essentially given him an ultimatum, indicating that they had found substantial evidence.
Zhao Feiyang said, "I also want to know the result."
Lu Qi asked, "Do you believe her?"
Zhao Feiyang was caught off guard by Lu Qi’s simple question. He didn’t believe Pei Lin; he never had. But even now, he still hoped Yang Mufeng’s case had nothing to do with Pei Lin. He couldn’t bear for his son to lose his mother just after being born.
Suddenly, a panicked voice came from the ward, "Someone! Quickly, someone!"
Everyone was momentarily stunned. Lu Qi was the first to react, rushing into the ward, followed closely by other police officers. Zhao Feiyang also rushed in, ignoring any protocol.
They saw Pei Lin, her face ashen, foaming at the mouth, her whole body tense and convulsing.
The female officer, pale with fear, trembled, "I didn’t do anything. She just took a sip of soup and suddenly turned like this."
Lu Qi glanced at the food container, "What did you give her to eat?"
Zhao Feiyang said, "What do you mean? You checked it! Someone, quick, someone!" As he called for help, he pushed Lu Qi away and began administering first aid to Pei Lin.
Pei Lin’s smile was extremely eerie. Suddenly, she grabbed Zhao Feiyang by the collar and whispered, "...I...I’ll go myself...take care...take care...of..."
Zhao Feiyang shouted, "Don’t speak!"
Doctors and nurses had all arrived. Zhao Feiyang tried to step aside but was held tightly by Pei Lin, "My organs... hurry..."
Lu Qi was dumbfounded by everything, and Pei Lin looked at him with a crazed smile.
Lu Qi understood her mindset. As more evidence emerged, she feared she wouldn’t withstand the police interrogation, so she resolved to seek death. She believed that if she died, many things would remain unresolved, and Yang Mufeng’s murder case would forever remain an open case. The police couldn’t convict her, so her family would not be influenced by this case.
Just as they were about to win, Pei Lin used this extreme method to once again turn the situation around. Lu Qi had never seen such a crazy, decisive woman, and for a moment his mind was in chaos.
Doctors and nurses began resuscitating Pei Lin, while Zhao Feiyang took out his phone and started calling in experts from Changxing to come and save her.
Regaining his composure, Lu Qi instructed someone to seal the meal box Zhao Feiyang brought for later testing to determine if the food was poisoned. His eyes searched the surroundings and suddenly he remembered something. He looked down and saw the book on the floor—"Interpretation of Criminal Law."
Lu Qi remembered that when they came in several times, Pei Lin had been reading that book. He put on gloves, picked up the book, and some white powder fell from inside.
Li Zhong handed him an evidence bag. Lu Qi put the book in the bag and carefully collected the powder on the floor.
By this time, the hospital experts had arrived. Zhao Feiyang shouted angrily, "Everyone out, anyone irrelevant, get out!"
In such situations, they had to consider the emotions of the family.
Back in the corridor, Li Zhong said gloomily, "What couldn’t she think through? Why would she take poison?"
Lu Qi remained silent, hitting the wall hard with his fist. According to national laws, if a suspect commits suicide after committing murder, criminal responsibility is not pursued. Pei Lin had placed a bookmark on that page and had highlighted it with a pen.