The Mystery of the Inner Demon

Chapter 331 Losing Things

An awkward silence fell over the scene for a few seconds, before Wu Shanqiu suddenly spoke up: "Is there a retirement home near Buerjing?"

Tian Mi could no longer hide her smugness: "Hmph, I went to ask the leaders for work advice that day. If you have the ability to prove you weren't there, go ask the veterans' retirement home."

Seeing Tian Mi's smug and arrogant demeanor, Qi Fei couldn't help but get angry. He said seriously, "Everyone is a citizen and needs to cooperate with the investigation. Since you have a witness, tell us his name and we will go to him to verify."

Perhaps Tian Mi had seen too many sycophants, so she was surprised by Qi Fei's response and stammered, "Well, that's not appropriate... Fine, I'll tell you, forget about verifying it, don't cause trouble for the leaders."

"Then tell me." Qi Fei took out his notebook, sat down opposite Tian Mi, and waited for her to speak.

"Actually, it's nothing much. I bought a few pairs of pants and gave them to a retired leader from the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission to ask him about fund-related business." Tian Mi said it in an official tone, but everyone understood what he meant. The so-called gift of clothes was probably more than just pants.

Qi Fei said coldly, "Pants are not like other things; they need to be in precise sizes. It seems the other party trusts you a lot."

Tian Mi's face flushed red and then turned pale. He said, "At my level, doing these things is necessary to advance the work. There's nothing to be ashamed of."

Qi Fei did not argue, but he knew that Tian Mi was not telling the truth. If she had nothing to hide, she would not have concealed it in the first place.

“I know that place, the retirement home. It won’t be near the place where we found the candy keychains. Was this the bag you were carrying when you went there that day?” Qi Fei asked, pointing to the bag that Tian Mi habitually placed on the table.

“I usually only have this one bag, I don’t change it, and I did the same that day.” Tian Mi frowned after saying that. “I’ve had this charm on for a long time, could it be from when I lost it last time? But I lost it when I went hiking last time?”

"When was the last time?" Qi Fei asked.

"The weather is too cold for hiking. The last time was on September 18th," Tian Mi replied without hesitation. It seems she remembers the dates for hiking very well; she's quite a shrewd woman.

Wu Shanqiu, who was scrolling through her phone, said, "That's not right. I checked Nancheng Investment's official WeChat account. In the photos of you attending an event half a month ago, that bag still had the charm on it." She then showed the photo. "So, this charm wasn't left there when you last went to Buerjing in September."

"Did it grow legs and get there by itself?" Tian Mi said unhappily. "This pendant can be bought everywhere online. Maybe it's just a coincidence? What evidence do you have to say that this pendant is the one I lost?"

"That's simple. We just need to compare the wear and tear on the loop and the charm on your bag," Qi Fei said coldly. "We need to take this bag for testing."

"Heh, investigate all you want, Dong Ziwu's death has nothing to do with me anyway." Tian Mi said with an air of utter confidence.

"Oh, right." Qi Fei suddenly remembered something, "If you enjoy hiking, you should have a lot of outdoor gear, like a tent?"

"What's wrong with the tent again?" Tian Mi kept a straight face, the sagging lines on her face betraying her age.

"Would you mind if we took your tent with us?" Qi Fei asked.

"Does this have anything to do with investigating Ziwu's death?" Tian Mi asked reluctantly.

"Yes," Qi Fei replied succinctly. "Alright then," Tian Mi reluctantly rummaged through her light purple bag and pulled out the car keys. "They're in my trunk. I'll take you to get them."

When the group arrived at the underground parking garage, Tian Mi's parking space was right outside the elevator, and the parking space next to it looked like it belonged to the CEO of Nancheng Investment.

They finally saw the black Mercedes-Benz. As Tian Mi pressed the button on the car key, the trunk lid slowly rose.

Qi Fei was the first to reach the trunk, glanced at it, and asked Tian Mi, "Where's the tent?"

"It's right there!" Tian Mi said as she walked over, but when she got to Qi Fei's side, she was dumbfounded. "Huh? Where's my tent?"

Qi Fei looked at her surprised expression, unsure whether it was genuine or feigned.

"What color is your tent?" Qi Fei asked.

"It's just a khaki tent. I always keep it in the trunk. I take it with me when I go hiking, and sometimes I can set it up by the roadside to rest." Tian Mi reached into the trunk and groped around in vain, but there was only so much space, and the tent was obviously not there.

"The tent just happened to be lost?" Wu Shanqiu asked, leaning closer with a hint of suspicion.

"It's mainly khaki-colored," Qi Fei added.

"No, what do you want my tent for?" Tian Mi straightened up, looking at them as if the police were deliberately making things difficult for her.

"By the way, I heard that Dong Ziwu had some problems at his previous company. Are you aware of this?" Qi Fei asked Tian Mi, his tone increasingly skeptical.

"And who in the company told you this?" Tian Mi asked sharply.

“We’ve already spoken with Peng Jian and understand the situation clearly. You’re the vice president in charge of human resources at Nancheng Investment, so this matter with Dong Ziwu will likely be a major mistake in your work, right?” Qi Fei asked.

“This is just work. What, do you think I would kill Ziwu for something like this? I watched him grow up. Do you know how heartbroken I was when he died?” Tian Mi became agitated, her voice sounding particularly jarring in the empty basement.

"I don't know, and I can't tell." A remarkably calm voice came from behind Tian Mi's clamor. It was Zhong Xiaoyu, who had been quiet all along, who finally spoke. "When you mentioned Dong Ziwu's death, you made a similar expression to when you mentioned going to the retirement home. You were not only not saddened by his death, but even satisfied. What wish did his death fulfill for you?"

Zhong Xiaoyu spoke in a gentle voice, but her words were sharp and ruthless, tearing away Tian Mi's fragile and arrogant facade.

"Nonsense, you're talking nonsense! I'm not that kind of person!" Tian Mi shouted, acting nothing like a company executive, more like a shrew from the outskirts of Nancheng.

However, for Zhong Xiaoyu, who had seen too many patients with emotional breakdowns, this was nothing. She simply continued to calmly press, "For you, he represents more than just a mistake at work; there must be something far more troubling than that mistake. Tell us, what did Dong Ziwu do to you that made you so eager for him to die?"

Tian Mi covered her mouth with trembling hands, a sign of shame, and murmured repeatedly, "I'm not that kind of person..."