The Vanishing Lover

It was that pair of black stockings.

Qin Guan recognized them. Qin Guan remembered them. There was no mistake—brand new black stockings, the tear in the middle was exactly where he had ripped them apart when he couldn't get them off!

This pair of stockings was the most crucial prop in Qi Min's "fake death" act. Qi Min had once had "Zeng Demei" use them to "blackmail" Qin Guan for 3 million.

However, the fake Zeng Demei was utterly stupid, fell for Qin Guan's trick, didn't get the money, but this piece of evidence ended up in Qin Guan's hands.

Then, Qin Guan hid them under the driver's seat of his car.

After that, the stockings were stolen by Xu Ruyi!

And now, these stockings appeared here.

Had Xu Ruyi placed them here?

Qin Guan could hardly believe it—no wonder he couldn't find these stockings anywhere: at Guanlan Court, Jiayuan Community, any place Xu Ruyi had been, even at her friends' places.

So, she had planted them here!?

"There's something on these stockings. Smell them, there's a faint scent, right? And this... feels a bit like grease... maybe some kind of essential oil?" Lao He frowned, asking.

It was essential oil.

Qin Guan stared at the stockings, his heart trembling—it really was that pair. The oil was what Qi Min used. She always liked essential oils, premium brands. She said the scent was nice, helped enhance the mood. She loved everything atmospheric and sensual.

That's why Qin Guan could never resist her body.

That day, she had used the oil. It was on her hands and naturally transferred to the stockings.

The air in the room seemed sucked dry. Qin Guan felt dizzy. He took a deep breath before managing to steady himself slightly.

These were truly those stockings. Had Xu Ruyi put them under the bed?

When exactly had she done it?

During these days, Xu Ruyi had been home every day. Ever since the day Qin Guan and Qi Min went on their business trip, she hadn't left home.

She couldn't be in two places at once. That meant she must have had an accomplice—but Lao He had said Little Pear was at school the whole time, never took leave.

So who had done it for her?

More importantly, how did she know to place the stockings here?

This place, this lakeside villa, this room, this bed, all the intimate details of his "games" with Qi Min—how on earth did Xu Ruyi know about them?

Although a rational voice inside kept saying: "Calm down, Qin Guan, calm down. It's fine," a strong, ominous premonition surged uncontrollably.

Only the stockings.

In this room, long occupied by other guests, nearly all traces left by Qin Guan and Qi Min had vanished.

The officers searched the entire room. The only useful finds, besides the photo, were that pair of stockings.

This evidence was quickly taken away.

Qin Guan was naturally also taken to the local police station. He was locked in an interrogation room.

Again, he was left alone. No one came to question him, no one paid him any attention—logically, with such an important clue as the stockings found, Lao He should have been eager to interrogate him.

But no.

All the carefully prepared explanations Qin Guan had in mind were useless. He sat alone in this small, inescapable room. He couldn't see the time, couldn't see anyone. Thirsty, but no one gave him water. Hungry—the two small buns he ate in the morning were long gone.

No one came. Maybe this was another police tactic—to wear him down, exhaust him until he was too tired and hungry to resist.

There was another possibility—past experience told Qin Guan that the case might have taken a new turn.

When they discover more crucial evidence, they sometimes temporarily have no time for the suspect.

What else could they possibly find?

Qin Guan endured the hunger, the thirst, the overwhelming fatigue and tension. His hands restlessly ran through his hair, trying over and over to smooth down his unquiet thoughts.

Currently, the black stockings were key evidence. Qin Guan knew: he had strangled Qi Min with them. His epithelial cells would be on them, along with Qi Min's.

That was powerful evidence. It could prove Qi Min might have died at his hands in the lakeside villa hotel—even though it was all just a scam orchestrated by that bitch Qi Min!

Yes, it was a scam, a fake death act.

But because of Xu Ruyi's intervention, the nature of this case had completely changed now.

Qin Guan pounded his head, forcing himself to calm down and think clearly.

From a professional standpoint, he was already in a very disadvantageous position—he could absolutely not prove Qi Min had ever returned alive. There was no evidence of Qi Min at the Xinhe Hotel. Xu Ruyi would rather self-harm than reveal Qi Min's whereabouts.

He finally saw more clearly: Xu Ruyi's aim was to nail him to the "Qi Min Disappearance During Business Trip" case—Qi Min went on the trip with him, they had their affair at this lakeside villa, and then Qi Min never appeared again.

Now, the stockings bearing both his and Qi Min's DNA had been found by the police.

This move was truly ruthless, truly precise.

Was this that woman's ultimate goal?

The corner of Qin Guan's mouth twitched in hatred—over the years, during meals at home, he often discussed the cases he handled: motives, evidence, processes...

Xu Ruyi must have secretly memorized it all then.

Although she only learned the surface—she hid her father's will in the safe, providing ample motive for the police. Then, she painstakingly planted the stockings at the lakeside villa. She thought this was sufficient evidence.

But Xu Ruyi overlooked the most crucial link—the body.

Without finding the body, this case might not even be successfully filed.

That bitch. That bitch wasn't that clever after all. Her methods were rigid and deliberate.

But even knowing this, Qin Guan no longer dared to underestimate his opponent.

He didn't know what other moves Xu Ruyi had up her sleeve.

He didn't know how Xu Ruyi knew so much about this villa and the intimate details of his affair with Qi Min.

He still hadn't figured out when or how Xu Ruyi had managed to plant the stockings by the bed, completely undetected.

He didn't know how much time had passed before the door opened.

"Quite relaxed there, Lawyer Qin," Lao He strolled in casually, still chewing some unfinished food. He tossed a report casually onto the table. "Guess you'd want to know the results. Well, those black stockings—forensic analysis confirms they bear epithelial tissue from both you and Qi Min."

Qin Guan's expression didn't change. He remained silent—Don't panic. Don't flinch. This only proved that he and Qi Min had been intimate on that bed.

The police had no other evidence. They certainly couldn't find Qi Min's body. Don't lose composure.

He kept his mouth tightly shut, silent—the door in front of him stood open. Diagonally opposite seemed to be an AV room. A group of uniformed young people were busy at computers.

Suddenly, he heard someone shout: "Found it! Come take a look!"