"Let's go." Jiang Cong still looked high - spirited as he strode forward.
Chen Er followed closely behind him.
At the corner, they ran into Yang Heng head - on.
Yang Heng took several hasty steps backward. When he saw it was Jiang Cong, he was about to say something. But then, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Chen Er who was a bit behind, and he shut his mouth.
Chen Er rolled her eyes impatiently. This Yang Heng was really on guard against her all the time.
"I still have classes at school. I'll leave first. Bye." Chen Er said this, pressed the elevator button and walked in.
The elevator door slowly closed, blocking Jiang Cong's gaze on Chen Er.
Inside the elevator.
The carefree smile on Chen Er's face faded, and her expression returned to its aloof state.
It seemed that Zhang Lu had woken up.
The only thing that could make Yang Heng so excited was probably some progress in Sheng Qingqiu's case. And now, Zhang Lu's waking up was the breakthrough.
"Speak. What's the matter?" Jiang Cong withdrew his gaze, his expression inscrutable.
Yang Heng lowered his voice, barely containing his excitement. "Professor Jiang, Zhang Lu has woken up!"
A subtle arc formed on Jiang Cong's thin lips. His eyes turned sharp. "Take me to his ward. Also, inform Qin An to come to the hospital and be ready to take relevant statements. Today is the day to uncover the truth."
"Yes!" Yang Heng led Jiang Cong to the door of Zhang Lu's ward, then took out his phone and quickly informed Qin An.
Jiang Cong pushed open the door and saw the young man lying on the bed.
He was obviously extremely frightened. His eyes looking at Jiang Cong were full of alertness and panic, and his face was pale and haggard.
Jiang Cong casually pulled out a chair, crossed his legs, and introduced himself. "I'm Jiang Cong, the main person in charge of Sheng Qingqiu's death case."
Hearing the name "Sheng Qingqiu", Zhang Lu's pupils constricted, and he let out a low growl.
Jiang Cong narrowed his eyes. Zhang Lu's reaction was typical of someone who had been severely shocked and stimulated.
"Did you see Sheng Qingqiu before her death, or were you also involved in killing her?" Jiang Cong asked skillfully. Obviously, Sheng Qingqiu was the trigger for Zhang Lu.
Zhang Lu helplessly grabbed his hair with both hands and mechanically repeated, "I didn't, I didn't..."
Jiang Cong glanced at his watch. Twenty minutes had passed since he entered.
The police station was about a half - hour drive from the hospital. That meant they could start the interrogation in ten minutes.
Before that, it was necessary to gradually break down Zhang Lu's psychological defenses and make him willing to reveal the truth he had been keeping silent about.
"But Sheng Qingqiu is dead. Don't you want to avenge her?" Jiang Cong kept emphasizing the fact of Sheng Qingqiu's death.
"Avenge her?" Zhang Lu murmured in a low voice. He hugged his knees with both hands, his fingernails turning white. There were signs that his attitude was wavering.
Jiang Cong stood up, paced to Zhang Lu's bedside, and looked down at him. "Because of your cowardice, she died in obscurity. Are you really heartless enough?"
Zhang Lu's eyes flickered. He didn't dare to meet Jiang Cong's intense gaze.
Guilt?
Jiang Cong keenly sensed Zhang Lu's struggle, becoming more certain that there was some unknown connection between Zhang Lu and the murderer.
Otherwise, why would he, who had been kidnapped by the murderer, choose to keep silent at this moment instead of revealing the truth of the kidnapping?
This connection was the reason why the murderer kidnapped only Zhang Lu to be the scapegoat.
At this moment.
Qin An and Yang Heng pushed the door open.
Zhang Lu was immersed in his own world and didn't notice anyone coming in.
Jiang Cong winked at Yang Heng. Yang Heng understood and silently stood on either side of Jiang Cong with Qin An.
This was a psychological battle.
Jiang Cong continued to coax Zhang Lu. "I guess the reason that person targeted you is that you knew his secret and used it to threaten him, right?"
Zhang Lu looked shocked, virtually admitting Jiang Cong's guess.
His body trembled uncontrollably. He was on the verge of collapse.
Jiang Cong pressed on, forcefully lifting Zhang Lu's head that was trying to avoid his gaze. His sharp eyes were full of insight. "You, who are described as kind and seemingly spotless by others, actually have such a shady side. So you're scared. You don't dare to say who that person is because you're afraid your disgraceful deeds will be exposed!"
Zhang Lu let out a scream. His psychological defenses were completely shattered by Jiang Cong. He sobbed and choked out, "Stop. I'm begging you. Stop. I... I'll tell you everything..."
Jiang Cong withdrew his hand and wiped his fingers with a tissue. "Every word you say now has legal effect. I hope you won't hold anything back. Otherwise, you'll be one of the accomplices in Sheng Qingqiu's murder, even if you didn't do anything."
Yang Heng was completely stunned by the scene of Jiang Cong interrogating and forcing Zhang Lu to talk.
Qin An was the first to come to his senses from the shock. He picked up a pen and prepared to record Zhang Lu's statement.
Zhang Lu looked ashen. "The murderer is actually Ji Pei."
Yang Heng widened his eyes in disbelief. That seemingly gentle young man was actually such a calculating murderer.
Jiang Cong was much calmer. He wasn't surprised by this result.
People with extreme personalities were indeed prone to being stimulated, leading to a series of out - of - control behaviors that could harm others and society.
"You're right. I did use Ji Pei's secret to threaten him." Zhang Lu lowered his head and told Ji Pei's past.
Ji Pei was born into a single - parent family. Since he could remember, there had only been his mother by his side.
He didn't have a father. Even his mother didn't know who that man was.
Other mothers were always kind and gentle, but Ji Pei rarely received even a bit of care from his mother.
Ji Pei envied his peers who had their parents' company. Such simple happiness was far from him.
There were always all kinds of men around Ji Pei's mother.
Every time, she would brazenly walk past the young Ji Pei with those men.
They would call Ji Pei's mother "Sister Ying" with vulgar words.
Later, Ji Pei found out that his mother was actually a low - class prostitute.
She earned money by selling her looks and body. Ji Pei was just an illegitimate child she had left behind when receiving a customer.
Originally, Ji Pei's mother wanted to abort the child, but perhaps a bit of humanity in her hadn't completely disappeared, so she gave birth to Ji Pei.
Ji Pei became lonely and sensitive. He was afraid of others' strange looks and hated his disgraceful mother.
Ji Pei studied hard and read books desperately in order to get rid of the shadow of that woman.
He lived in fear every day, afraid that one day, the secret about his mother would be known by his classmates.