Chapter 243 (1/2)
Chapter 243
Qi Ming was stunned when he heard Yu Hanjiang’s question . Then he quickly replied, “Last Tuesday, the editor-in-chief of LE Fas.h.i.+on Magazine invited us to dinner and said she would offer an interview with the magazine next year . Yiyan went home early after the meal and I continued talking with Editor Li . ”
Yu Hanjiang frowned . “Can anyone prove the time that Lin Yiyan left?”
Qi Ming thought carefully about it . “We had a meal with Editor Li . It was around 8:30 when Yiyan suddenly received a message saying there was an urgent matter at home . She left first . I talked to Editor Li until just after 10 o’clock . Then Editor Li drove me home . She can testify for me . ”
Yu Hanjiang looked at Shao Qingge and Chief Shao immediately searched the magazine editor’s name in his phone address book .
LE was the fas.h.i.+on magazine with the largest circulation in China . Stars in the entertainment circle who could be on the cover of the magazine must have some fame or it would be impossible to cooperate with LE . Shao Qingge had the contact information of the editor-in-chief and gave Yu Hanjiang the telephone number .
Yu Hanjiang used Shao Qingge’s mobile phone to confirm it on the spot . The other person said they had indeed eaten with Lin Yiyan and Qi Ming last Tuesday . Yu Hanjiang told her, “Ms Li, there is a case that requires your a.s.sistance . Can you please take the time to go to the police station and make a transcript?”
The female editor-in-chief was stunned . “A case? I’m busy right now, can I go in the afternoon?”
“Yes . ” Yu Hanjiang hung up and looked at Qi Ming . “Mr Qi, please come with me too . ”
“Yes, officer . ” Qi Ming glanced at Chief Shao anxiously . “Yiyan, how should I tell the public about her?”
“Don’t mention a word until the police have finished their investigation lest the fermentation of public opinion has a negative impact on the company, understood?” Shao Qingge spoke solemnly .
Qi Ming nodded immediately . “Understood . ”
Yu Hanjiang told Shao Qingge, “Chief Shao, I will return to the police force first . I will contact you if there is something else . ”
Shao Qingge smiled . “Okay, Group Leader Yu go carefully . ”
Yu Hanjiang took the agent Qi Ming back to the police station to do a detailed transcript .
Qi Ming was very cooperative during the interrogation and answered whatever Yu Hanjiang asked . As Lin Yiyan’s agent, he knew a lot . Yu Hanjiang asked him about Lin Yiyan’s properties and personal relations.h.i.+ps in detail .
Apart from the perverted murders who killed people indiscriminately, most murders involved finding the motive for the murder which was usually love, hatred or wealth . Yu Hanjiang first asked about Lin Yiyan’s economic situation . Qi Ming answered, “Yiyan has three properties under her name . In addition to the private villa in the Yuehu Villa area, there are two city houses, two cars and some savings . ”
Yu Hanjiang asked, “Are there any siblings in her family?”
“She is an only child . ”
Yu Hanjiang’s next question was, “Did she borrow money from anyone or does she gamble and owe debts? Has she been involved in any investments in recent years?”
Qi Ming shook his head . “She is a very practical and hardworking person . She doesn’t know how to invest or manage money . Most of the money she earns is kept by her parents . As far as I know, she has no financial disputes with anyone . She has a good temper, never acts arrogant because she is famous and is well known in the circle . She has never made any enemies . ”
“What about her relations.h.i.+p history?”
Qi Ming touched his nose awkwardly . “I’m not sure about this . She said it was her private matter and refused to tell me . ”
Yu Hanjiang asked him to elaborate on his whereabouts last Tuesday . Qi Ming directly took out his schedule book .
At 10 in the morning on Tuesday, he arranged for Lin Yiyan to have an interview with a media reporter . It was an exclusive interview about the finished costume drama World of Mortals . At noon, she had a meal with the director and producer of the crew to celebrate the shooting being finished . They also agreed on the publicity time . In the afternoon, Lin Yiyan went back to sleep and in the evening, she met the editor of the magazine for dinner .
Dinner was originally arranged to be at 6:30 . Qi Ming drove to pick up Lin Yiyan at 5:30 but after picking her up, there was a traffic jam . They didn’t arrive at the restaurant until 7:30 . The three people talked about the cooperation and Lin Yiyan seemed very happy during the dinner . Then her mobile phone rang at 8:30 with a WeChat alert .
Yu Hanjiang grasped the key point . “Do you know who sent the WeChat message?”
Qi Ming shook his head . “I don’t know . Her expression didn’t look right after she read the WeChat message . Then she said that there was an emergency and she had to leave first . She let me continue to talk with the editor-in-chief about the cooperation . She borrowed my car keys and drove my car away . I told her to be careful not to be followed by the paparazzi . ”
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The magazine’s editor-in-chief arrived at the police station at 2:30 .
The editor-in-chief wore a camel-coloured casual woolen coat, black knee-length boots and a beige woolen sweater . She had short, ear-length hair and delicate makeup . She looked very capable .
Yu Hanjiang inquired in detail about the process and opportunity for her cooperation with Lin Yiyan .
Editor Li said, “Miss Lin has been very popular after making two movies this year . I wanted to ask her to shoot the magazine cover and her agent also wanted to cooperate with us . We hit it off and made an appointment to take print promotional photos . We met only three months ago . ”
Yu Hanjiang wondered, “How is your relations.h.i.+p? What type of person does she look like to you?”
Editor Li replied, “I don’t know her well but I feel she is a very friendly person . She doesn’t act arrogant and is polite to everyone . She had a good temper when working with the photographer . She took photos all day without shouting that she was tired . The people of our magazine really liked her . ”
“On Tuesday, you asked her for a meal . Talk about the meal in detail . ”
Editor Li sorted out her thoughts . “Her agent called and said there was a traffic jam on the road . They didn’t arrive until 7:30 . I arrived early and waited for them in the restaurant’s private room . During the meal, she seemed to be in a good mood and we had a good chat . Oh yes, her phone rang around 8:30 like someone had sent her a WeChat message . After reading it, she said that something happened at home and she needed to leave . I talked to her agent about the details of the cooperation and it ended around 10:30 . Since Miss Lin drove his car away, I sent Mr Qi home . ”
“Where does Mr Qi live? What time did you drop him off?”
The editor-in-chief replied, “He lives in Jiayuan, Dongfu, not far from my home . He should’ve arrived home around 11:00 . ”
Yu Hanjiang finished with the editor-in-chief and took the transcript to the forensic centre to find Xiao Lou .
Xiao Lou had already done the autopsy for the deceased and checked her internal organs, blood and other conditions . He saw Yu Hanjiang coming and walked forward quickly to take Yu Hanjiang to his office . “How is your progress? Is there a suspect?”
Yu Hanjiang frowned . “On Tuesday night, Lin Yiyan, her agent and the magazine editor-in-chief had dinner together . The editor-in-chief can prove that Lin Yiyan left for home at 8:30 and the agent arrived home at 11 o’clock . ”
He opened a map of the city and pointed to two communities . “The agent lives in Jiayuan, Dongfu which is 30 kilometers away from the Yuehu Villa area where Lin Yiyan died . After returning home, it isn’t too late if he changes cars and drives to Yuehu Villa . His skin and hair are under the deceased’s nails so the agent’s suspicion can’t be ruled out for the time being . ”
He looked at Xiao Lou’s records book and asked, “What are the autopsy results?”
Xiao Lou told him, “The fatal injury was the heart wound . No other organs were injured and there were no traces of toxins in the body . From the a.n.a.lysis of the wounds on the body surface, the crime tool should be a sharp, long knife with a blade width of 5cm and a length of 20cm . ”
Xiao Lou professionally opened the computer and used the software to rebuild the knife model . The length and width of the reconstructed knife fit perfectly with the wound on the body .
Yu Hanjiang touched his chin and spoke thoughtfully . ”I have searched the interior of the villa and sent people to search the trash cans and lawn of the community . So far, no murder weapon has been found . It must’ve been taken away by the murderer . ”
Xiao Lou nodded . “Yes, this type of knife is rare at the supermarket . Perhaps it was bought online . ”
Yu Hanjiang questioned, “What about the composition of the ice?”
“It is ordinary condensed water . There is nothing special . ”
Yu Hanjiang glanced at the ice cubes in the photos of the scene . Most of the ice were cubes which should be made from the square container in the freezer . In winter, the murderer placed Lin Yiyan’s body in the bathtub with ice cubes . In addition to delaying the time when the body was discovered, it seemed to have the meaning of ‘preservation’?
Yu Hanjiang said, “According to the testimony of the agent, Lin Yiyan had no property disputes and no siblings in the family . She is usually kind and rarely offends people . People who have contact with her say that she has a good temper . It is unlikely her death is a relations.h.i.+p issue . Still, I will start to investigate the case from this aspect . ”