Chapter 20 - Chapter 20 (1/2)

Father Xu had always been open-minded and gentle with the way he educated his children. He gave Xu Xu and Xu Juan the freedom to develop their character freely. Thus, Xu Juan started his pursuit at a very young age as he believed that money and social status were the keys to success in society. On the other hand, Xu Xu chose to pursue truth and conscience, which she considered the simplest and most important things in life. This was also the reason why she chose this profession.

The two of them were very busy and sometimes they could not even meet each other once a month. Nevertheless, they did not grow distant. Since everyone had their own strengths, they both respected each other and their relationship only got better with age.

However, if there was anyone around Xu Xu who could keep such a big secret, it would be Xu Juan. Since she would never analyze her brother who loved her unconditionally, she would subconsciously "turn off" when she was with her brother who had always protected her.

Around three or four in the afternoon, there were very few people in the departure hall and only patches of sunlight were shining in. Xu Xu stood in front of the huge glass window and stared out at the cloudy blue sky above for a while. Then, she turned around and walk towards Ji Bai who was standing not too far away from her.

After Ji Bai passed the photo to her last night, he said, "You're suspended from all work relating to this case until Xu Juan can prove his innocence."

Ji Bai was watching the news on his mobile phone with a calm look on his face whilst his tall body leaned against the light blue chairs at the airport. It seemed as though yesterday's accidental discovery had not affected his calm heart in even the slightest.

He noticed that Xu Xu was standing in front of him and he asked without lifting his head, "Do you have anything to say?"

Xu Xu stared at his chiseled face and said after a moment of contemplation, "Teacher, as the sister of the suspect, you can feel free to interrogate me."

Ji Bai's lips slowly curled up as he raised his head to look at her.

Her expression was dignified and, though it was slightly gloomy yesterday, it had now returned to her usual cool look.

Very good.

Since he did not say anything, Xu Xu continued, "Firstly, I believe that Ye Zixi was once the woman that he loved the most. Even though he used to have many girlfriends, both of us are very careful and selective when it comes to marriage. This is due to the way that my father educated and influenced us. He had never proposed marriage to another woman..."

Ji Bai interrupted her, "What does being careful and selective when it comes to marriage mean specifically?"

Xu Xu thought for a while before continuing, "To try to only have one marriage, such as to avoid elders and children from being affected by unstable family relationships."

"Be faithful to one's spouse until death"

"You could say that. Yes, that would be the ideal state."

Ji Bai smiled lightly. "Very good. Continue."

Xu Xu felt that the way he said "very good" was a little strange, but that feeling disappeared in a flash. Thus, she did not pay too much attention to it and continued to state her analysis,

"Even so, there isn't sufficient motive for him to kill her.

"Firstly, if they are lovers now, he is successful now so there is no need for them to hide the relationship. The secret lover must be someone else.

"Secondly, even if there is an emotional involvement between Xu Juan and Ye Zixi, I doubt that there is anything beyond that. Xu Juan had nothing at all in the past, he was just a young and frivolous youth who might have been crazy about love.

"Nonetheless, after so many years in the business industry, he has changed a lot. He is a very outstanding businessman who is skillful in planning as well as a very tactful man who is rarely swayed by emotions. 'Profit' and 'achievement' are the most important things in his life. So, even if he couldn't get Ye Zixi's love, he would just try to win her over by whatever means necessary, and if he was unsuccessful, he would take his revenge on her through business. However, he would lose if he murdered her out of anger, thus ruining everything he has. Therefore, the possibility of him doing something so stupid and impulsive is very low.

"Thirdly, I think that Xu Juan's greatest contribution to this case lies in the reason why he wanted to hide the fact that he used to be in a relationship with Ye Zixi. Even if he wanted to hide the relationship from the others, why would he want to hide it from me? This proves that he definitely knows something about Ye Zixi that he can't tell his sister, who is a police officer. Thus, I hypothesize that it is something illegal. After figuring this out, we might be able to relate it to the reason why Ye Zixi was killed."

After she finished talking, she stared at Ji Bai's face and tried to observe the change in his expression. Nevertheless, Ji Bai remained silent as usual such that she was not able to read him.

"I only believe in evidence. I will thoroughly investigate whether he's innocent or not." He said briefly.

Xu Xu nodded and was about to sit down when he added, "However, I personally hope that your brother is innocent."

Xu Xu was stunned.

As they were about to take-off, more people started to come and go in the spacious departure hall. The lights got dimmer and the place was filled with noise.

Ji Bai calmly and quietly sat in the messy environment as he took his time to speak in a mellow voice. There was a rarely seen gentleness in his profound looking eyes and also a faint smile on his handsome face.

Xu Xu stood in front of him and looked at him quietly. The noise around them felt distant and far off as a warm and comforting feeling rushed into her heart.

She was grateful as she thought to herself, 'What he said was natural because he was considering their mentor and apprentice relationship. He was indeed a strict teacher with a gentle heart.'

Ji Bai looked back at the obvious respectful look of admiration in her eyes and thought internally, 'As expected, she completely missed my signal... Well, there is no need to hurry. I will need to be determined and think of a good plan before making a move. Also, I must be persistent, but not overdo it.'

The good news came faster than expected.

As soon as they landed, Ji Bai just turned on his phone and received a call. After a brief phone call, he turned around and faced Xu Xu who was a few steps behind him. "It seems like you will not be on leave."

Xu Xu suddenly stopped smack in the middle of the passage where people were hurrying to and fro.

Ji Bai had a warm look in his eyes as he told her, "Xu Juan has an alibi. He was working overtime at the company until 11 pm, then he went to get supper with two of his colleagues and stayed up until the next morning. He is not a suspect and he's still in the police station. He asked to speak to you."

Xu Xu let out a sigh of relief as a smile appeared on her face.

It was the first time Ji Bai had ever seen such a wide smile on her face as even her eyebrows were raised and the corner of her eyes were wrinkling. Even so, all she did was stand there quietly and smile silently as she looked at him. She was unlike any other women as she did not say or do anything else.

It was a quiet and comfortable moment.

Slowly, a sense of deep gratitude appeared in Xu Xu's eyes since she believed that Ji Bai was the one who immediately ordered someone to get Xu Juan's alibi. With this, Xu Juan was able to be free of any suspicions as soon as possible.

As she thought about this, she stepped forward and reached out for Ji Bai's hand.

Ji Bai's heart fluttered slightly. Was she going to give him a hug? He would definitely not refuse it even if it was just a hug out of gratitude.

Then…

Xu Xu grabbed his hand with both of her hands and bowed deeply before speaking in a solemn tone, "Thank you, teacher. Thank you."

There was only a small window in the interrogation room of the police station. The orange light was the only thing illuminating the tables, chairs, and the gray walls, which made the atmosphere in the room appear cold and solemn. Even so, Xu Juan who was standing by the narrow window seemed very tall and handsome.

As Xu Juan heard the sound of footsteps, he turned his head and smiled, "Xu Xu, the coffee here sucks."

Xu Xu did not answer him. She sat down and went straight to the point, "Why didn't you tell me about Ye Zixi?"

Xu Juan stopped smiling and stared at the night sky outside of the window for a while before answering softly, "Sorry, I just didn't want to talk about her."

Xu Xu's body stiffened.