Soul Patch

Chapter 123

When Wenjie was the only one left in the interrogation room, he stared at the phone number Yang Shanshan had sent him for a long time.

I hesitated whether to call.

He knew in his heart that he contacted Huang Dongheng not only because the police suspected him of murdering Xixi.

His finger hovered over the call button on the phone, ready to press it.

At that moment, a policeman walked into the interrogation room.

"Wenjie, your lawyer has arrived."

Wenjie was stunned when he heard this, and thought to himself: I haven't even made the call yet, how could I have a lawyer?

He hesitated and looked behind the policeman, only to see a smart woman in a white suit walking gracefully towards him.

The high heels clattered on the floor of the interrogation room.

She walked to the interrogation table, the somewhat arrogant sound of her high heels abruptly stopping as she turned to look behind her.

She found the policeman at the door standing there, staring at her blankly.

She gave a professional smile, looked at the police officer at the door, and said, "Thank you, please close the door for me."

Bang!

As the door closed, only Wenjie and the unfamiliar woman remained in the interrogation room.

She sat down gracefully opposite Wenjie, in the same spot where Captain Cao had just been sitting.

As Wenjie sized up the uninvited guest, he secretly speculated:

It seems this woman has some influence; not just anyone can enter the police station's interrogation room.

The woman had a neat short haircut, which was dyed brown, and it complemented her skin tone very well.

She wasn't exactly the type with fair skin and beautiful features, but her makeup was exquisite, her eyes were sharp, and her every move exuded a powerful and intimidating aura that made her someone not to be underestimated.

"Wenjie, I know you don't know me, but that's okay."

She looked Wenjie up and down, breaking the silence first.

Wenjie sensed a provocation in her gaze, as if it contained a hint of something indescribable.

"You are..." Wenjie looked at her inquiringly and asked hesitantly.

"My surname is Zhang, my name is Zhang Meng, and I am a lawyer..."

Zhang Meng!

Wenjie's pupils suddenly contracted; he had seen this name in Huang Dongheng's file.

Because her sister Zhang Yao lost her rape case and committed suicide, Zhang Meng meticulously approached Huang Dongheng, plotting revenge.

She leaned forward, resting her two fair, jade-like arms on the interrogation table.

Wenjie watched her change her sitting posture without making a sound, his gaze lingering for a moment on the pinky ring on her little finger.

“I’ve been asked to bail you out.” Zhang Meng paused deliberately, her gaze towards him now tinged with amusement.

Wenjie didn't respond, waiting for the beautiful lawyer Zhang to continue.

This time, Wenjie's reaction surprised Zhang Meng a bit.

She assumed that someone as poor and pathetic as Wenjie wouldn't even know which way the police station doors faced, and would be terrified at the thought of being taken into custody.

Upon hearing that she could get him out of the house, he would surely grasp at her as his lifeline and shower her with gratitude!

Even if we don't say a bunch of thank-yous, we should at least exchange a few polite words with her, right?

No, Wenjie didn't say a single word.

Zhang Meng suppressed her doubts and maintained a polite smile:

"The formalities are being processed, and you'll be able to come out with me soon."

Wenjie remained silent.

She looked at Wenjie, who remained silent, and suddenly smiled, her red lips parting to reveal her white teeth.

"Wenjie, don't you have anything to say to your lawyer?"

"I am innocent; someone framed me," Wenjie stated without any emotion.

Zhang Meng was overjoyed and waved her hand to interrupt Wenjie.

"Say something useful. Every party involved says the same thing, and it's so annoying to listen to."

Wenjie shut his mouth, but a question popped into his mind: "Attorney Zhang, where do you work?"

Zhang Meng looked at Wen Jie in surprise, inwardly thinking: This...this topic changed too quickly, didn't it?

Besides, isn't this person a bit slow to react? Shouldn't they have been complimenting him at the beginning? Why is he only asking these questions now?

She merely raised an eyebrow slightly, without responding.

Wenjie didn't care about her reaction and continued to ask, "I might not have asked clearly just now. I meant, do you work at Dongheng Law Firm?"

"Please, could you speak slower? What law firm?" Zhang Meng frowned and repeated.

Boom boom boom!

The sound of high heels came from the doorway, followed by a knock.

Wenjie and Zhang Meng looked towards the door at the same time and said almost in unison, "Please come in!"

The interrogation room door was pushed open, and a woman in a light blue suit appeared in the doorway, holding a piece of paper in her hand.

It was another stranger. Wenjie glanced at the girl before looking away.

Judging from his attire, he's probably Zhang Meng's assistant.

Zhang Meng asked in a condescending tone, "Are the formalities completed?"

“Yes, Attorney Zhang. You can take Mr. Wen and leave now,” the assistant standing at the door said respectfully.

Zhang Meng stood up, tilted her chin at Wenjie, and said, "Let's go."

Wenjie followed the two women out of the interrogation room. On their way to the elevator, they ran into Captain Cao and Officer Gao Xiang, who were returning from smoking.

Officer Cao and Gao Xiang exchanged a glance.

Zhang Meng smiled at the two police officers first and said:

"Captain Cao, Officer Gao, I'm here to bail Mr. Wen out. All the formalities are complete," Zhang Meng said, extending her hand to her assistant.

The assistant quickly took out the letter of release on bail from his briefcase and handed it over.

Zhang Meng took the bail letter, glanced at it, and handed it to Officer Cao.

Officer Cao glanced at the document stamped with the red seal of the East District Police Station and smiled faintly:

“Attorney Zhang, make sure to explain the requirements for your client during the bail period. If anything goes wrong, we will come after you.”

"Understood, goodbye Captain Cao!" Zhang Meng took the official letter and put it in her briefcase.

As she turned to leave, her high heels slammed even louder, displaying a very arrogant attitude.

After Zhang Meng and her group left in the elevator, A Xiang smiled at Officer Cao and said:

"Zhang Meng is a regular here. She bailed out the suspects we just brought back. Does she even allow anyone to solve cases?"

Officer Cao raised his hand and tapped Ah Xiang on the head: "Stop talking so much nonsense. Whether the person is detained at the police station or released on bail, does it have anything to do with solving the case? Does it have anything to do with it?"

"Hehe, it's just strange, why does Zhang Meng always go against you? A policeman, a lawyer..." Ah Xiang deliberately stopped and looked at Captain Cao.

Team Leader Cao nodded thoughtfully, then shook his head.

"What, are you admitting that the police and lawyers are in cahoots?" Ah Xiang teased his direct superior with a wicked grin.

"What do you mean by 'family'?" Officer Cao asked seriously.

Ah Xiang was a bit of a rascal, but he could be quite serious when necessary. He tentatively asked, "Captain Cao, have you thought of any clues?"

“We have eyewitnesses, but…”

"You mean Xiaofeng? The one who led the team. Boss, you mean... he saw Wenjie when he arrived at the scene?"

Ah Xiang turned to look at Captain Cao, his face filled with disbelief.

"Yes, he did see someone standing next to the body. But..."

"Just what?"

"But... that figure vanished into thin air."

Ah Xiang suppressed a laugh, patted Captain Cao's shoulder with a serious expression, and said with concern, "Boss, did you not get enough rest last night? Why don't you go back and get some sleep!"

Officer Cao was still pondering the matter when he nodded.

"Then let's go back. I'll keep an eye on things here."

As he spoke, Ah Xiang sat down in front of his desk and took out his phone.

"What do you mean go back? There was just a murder case. The whole team is investigating and looking for clues. Why would I go back? Don't try to persuade me to go back until the case is solved."

Officer Cao picked up the case files from his desk and went into his office.

After closing the door, he picked up the thermos on his desk, grabbed a small handful of goji berries, and threw them into the cup.

I got up, filled the water dispenser, sat back down at my desk, and stared blankly at the mouth of my thermos.

After an unknown amount of time, the goji berries had rehydrated and floated to the surface, piling up at the rim of the cup.

Officer Cao picked up his cup and took a small sip.

Suddenly, a scene flashed through his mind. He put down his water glass and buried his face in his hands.

I rubbed my face a few times and felt a little better.

He stared at the rim of the thermos and began counting the goji berries one by one.

Bang bang bang

There was a knock on the door.

"Please come in!" Officer Cao said without looking up.

"Boss, the takeout is here. It's your teriyaki chicken leg and beef combo..." Ah Xiang, carrying a takeout bag, pushed open the door and walked towards the desk.

Seeing Captain Cao staring blankly at the cup, he asked in bewilderment, "Boss, what are you doing?"

"Count the goji berries!"

Why count goji berries?

"do not know."

"What?!" Ah Xiang looked completely bewildered. He slammed the takeout bag on the table and pushed it in front of Captain Cao. "Let's eat!"

The thermos was hidden by the lunchbox bag, and only then did Captain Cao look up at Ah Xiang, hesitatingly asking, "You..."

Have you ever experienced hallucinations?

"no"

Ah Xiang pulled up a chair and sat opposite Officer Cao, answering dismissively. After a moment's thought, he added, "Boss, I really think you went all out on the last case, you..."

Officer Cao waved his hand, indicating that Ah Xiang didn't need to continue.

“That’s not what I meant. When I’m deep in thought, there’s always a voice in my head that seems to be saying, ‘15, 15.’ But what exactly are these 15?”

As Officer Cao spoke, he turned his gaze toward the thermos cup.

"I think they're referring to the goji berries in the cup."

Ah Xiang pursed his lips and scratched his head, wanting to say something, but really didn't know what to say.

Captain Cao seemed to be possessed, and what was he saying?

Finally, he got up, closed the door, and left, reminding Captain Cao to hurry up and eat before he left.

After closing the door, he looked at the office door in front of him and for a moment felt that the scene was familiar.

It seems he once left Captain Cao's office like this, and then...

Something must have happened afterward, otherwise how could he have such a deep impression of that moment?

But what happened?

As he stood at the doorway, lost in thought, a man hurrying past him saw him standing there dumbfounded and stepped back to give him a nudge.

"What's wrong with you all? The food on the table is getting cold. Hurry up and go back to eat. What's wrong with you all today?"

Ah Xiang shook his head, trying to shake off that inexplicable feeling; it turned out to be Xiao Guo.

After finishing his meal, Xiao Guo took his water cup to the break room.

Ah Xiang grabbed Xiao Guo and stared at him, saying, "What did you just say?"

"What did you say? Go eat."

"If it's not this sentence, what comes after it?"

"That's all. None of you are eating properly. I'm really fed up with you guys."

Ah Xiang's eyes lit up instantly. He stepped forward, grabbed Xiao Guo's collar, and asked, "Who are you referring to, 'one by one'?"

“Xiao Feng, he’s been acting strangely ever since he came back from a call.”

Upon hearing this, Ah Xiang released the hand that was holding Xiao Guo and ran quickly to the office area.

Xiao Feng was shoveling rice into his mouth with his lunchbox when A Xiang leaned over and whispered, "I heard from Captain Cao that you saw what the murderer looked like today?"

Xiao Feng suddenly became very excited after hearing what A Xiang said. He put down his lunchbox and said repeatedly, "Captain Cao believes me, right? I knew Captain Cao believed me. I really did see someone standing next to the body..."

He was wearing a black tracksuit, tall and thin, probably about half a head taller than me, around 1.8 meters.

Ah Xiang got up and returned to his desk, where he found the suspect Wen Jie's identity information from a pile of documents.

He held up an enlarged printout of Wenjie's ID card and handed it to Xiaofeng, asking eagerly, "Is this the person?"

"I didn't see clearly! He was standing with his back to the door."

Ah Xiang was furious when he heard this, and anxiously asked, "What was he doing at the time? Did he see the murder weapon?"

"He vanished in an instant. Ah Xiang, you have to believe me, he really disappeared into thin air..."

Xiaofeng was eager to emphasize that what he said was true, and that he had seen it with his own eyes...

Ah Xiang waved his hand, silently picked up the lunchbox in front of him, and began to shovel rice into his mouth.

Although he was momentarily dazed, he was not stupid, nor did he hallucinate. Therefore, as a policeman, he did not believe in such nonsense as disappearing into thin air.

"Ah Xiang, don't you believe me...? Everything I said is true... Ah! Ah! Ah! Tell me, do you believe me or not?"

Xiao Feng grabbed A Xiang's arms and shook them violently back and forth, causing A Xiang's body to sway along with him.

"Let me eat! Let me eat!"

Ah Xiang gave him a push, finally freeing him from Xiao Feng's shoving so he could continue eating in peace.

……

Wenjie followed Zhang Meng and the others out of the police station. Zhang Meng and her assistant walked towards a black Passat: "Wenjie, where are you going? I can give you a ride."

Wenjie opened the car door and got in. After closing the door, he didn't rush to give the address: "Attorney Zhang, now you should tell me where you work!"

"..."

Zhang Meng remained indifferent and gave her assistant a wink.

The assistant understood and started the car, stepping on the gas and turning onto the highway.

After driving for about five or six minutes, and covering two blocks, Zhang Meng turned to look at Wenjie and said:

"It was Sister Mei who asked me to bail you out. She said she knew why you were at the scene and why you were involved in Xixi's case."

Wenjie had anticipated these things and wasn't too surprised.

"She believes you can save her daughter, so she asked me to do this favor."

Wenjie curled his lip. "Ms. Mei, is this what you call believing in yourself?"

Where is Ms. Mei? Is it convenient for me to meet her?

"You have her contact information, so ask her yourself. That's not within my scope of service. But if you treat me to lunch, I might consider it."

You guys pick the place.

Wenjie said calmly, "After all, I bailed him out of the police station, so it's only right that I thank him."

(End of this chapter)