The Vanishing Lover

Xiao Zhi.

This was Qin Guan's most crucial target at the moment.

Xiao Zhi was Xu Ruyi's right arm, her most powerful support. If Qin Guan wanted to fight back, to tear off Xu Ruyi's disguise, to pull himself out of his current predicament, to clear his name, the first thing he needed to do was sever this support.

Xiao Zhi's photo lay on the table before Old He.

A round, boyish face, glasses perched on his nose, smiling—the very picture of an ordinary college student, the friendly kind.

"They say the face reflects the heart, but really, a person's appearance is just a shell. Some shells are plain and unadorned, while others are wrapped in layers, sealed tight, impossible to see through or guess at with brief contact. Xiao Zhi is the latter kind,"

Qin Guan spoke calmly.

He tried to keep his language non-confrontational, no matter how furious the thought of that little bastard made him—he reminded himself over and over in his mind. He knew police interrogation routines inside out. They never listened trustingly to suspects venting emotions; they even drew conclusions like "the suspect harbors hostility towards the other party" from it.

He had to state facts. Absolute facts.

"The contrast between Xiao Zhi's appearance and his inner self is stark. Xu Ruyi mentioned this several times too. I remember during Xiao Zhi's summer vacation in his sophomore year, when he came over for dinner at our house, Xu Ruyi asked him if he had a girl he liked, that it was time to date. Xiao Zhi blushed a little, then looked somewhat dejected, and said flatly that the girl wasn't interested in him."

"That evening, Xu Ruyi chatted with me. She said Xiao Zhi had a boyish face; girls might find him childish, but he was actually very mature, very sophisticated, a man who could be relied upon and trusted."

Yes, she called him a man. Reliable and trustworthy.

Of course, she also said at the time that Xiao Zhi's precociousness was forced—poor children mature early, especially poor children from single-parent families. A difficult upbringing had made Xiao Zhi much more mature than his peers.

"Just like... you," Xu Ruyi had also mentioned him. "Your upbringing is a bit similar. You both are flowers that bloomed from cracks in the rock, equally resilient, equally outstanding."

The moment he heard that, Qin Guan had been seething.

Constantly comparing him to that bottom-rung country bumpkin Xiao Zhi who had nothing—what was the point? To remind him constantly of his origins? To remind him that Qin Guan came from a wretched family, with a despicable, useless drunkard for a father and a mad mother? To remind him that his current comfortable life was given by the Xu family, that he needed to be forever humble and grateful?

Resentment bubbled up in the pool of his memory.

Qin Guan exhaled deeply.

Don't dwell on that. To deal with them, I need reason, calm, composure, single-minded focus. No emotions.

"Xiao Zhi's grades are pretty good. I heard he's the student council president at school. I often hear our nanny talk about him. Besides school activities, he seems to have part-time jobs outside too, and does them well. That's why I've always said he has the mental capacity to help Xu Ruyi commit the crime,"

"And the motive,"

Motive was the most important thing.

"Come to think of it, my father-in-law also sponsored Xiao Zhi's education. Our nanny, Feng Xiangping, wasn't introduced through a formal agency. She wasn't even a nanny originally,"

"I heard from Xu Ruyi that years ago, my in-laws happened upon Feng Xiangping and her son wandering the streets. Feng Xiangping was holding her son, desperate, even contemplating suicide. My in-laws extended a helping hand—gave them money, found her work, and later brought her home to work as a nanny. She's been doing it for over twenty years now,"

"Without my in-laws, Feng Xiangping and her son wouldn't have the decent life they have today. Feng Xiangping had almost no schooling; she recognizes less than a few dozen common Chinese characters. Without my in-laws' help, she could at best do odd jobs on construction sites. That meager income would barely support herself, let alone raise a child and put him through university,"

"Feng Xiangping is a simple, honest person. She knows this well and has always been grateful. For over twenty years in the Xu household, she's worked diligently, respectful to my in-laws, and utterly devoted to Xu Ruyi. To be precise, Xu Ruyi is practically like her own child in her heart,"

"Feng Xiangping has a photo album in her wardrobe. You can flip through it. It contains many pictures of Xu Ruyi growing up."

The groundwork was laid.

Only then did Qin Guan smoothly and logically present what he truly wanted to say. "Therefore, in this case, the role of Feng Xiangping and her son has misled you greatly from the start. You thought she was just a nanny, at most a paid accomplice. Wrong. They are Xu Ruyi's most trusted family, her invisible kin. Whether repaying the debt to my in-laws or for Xu Ruyi, this close relative, this mother and son pair would do anything!"

"If you overlook this, this crucial point, you risk making a huge error in judgment about the entire case. Surely we can't wait until the case goes viral and causes a public uproar before reopening it?"

Old He's expression shifted slightly.

Qin Guan knew his first step had succeeded.

He had shaken He Zhisheng's original confidence in the case—this stubborn He Zhisheng, who was always hostile towards him, only wanting to close the case quickly and finish the job, refusing to listen to any defense.

But now, that confidence was clearly wavering.

Old He turned his head, took a stack of photos from his assistant beside him, and began to examine them carefully—he was just a team leader. He'd gotten where he was over twenty years through sheer hard work and diligence. He absolutely dared not gamble his career and lifelong reputation on this one case.

Qin Guan picked up the disposable cup and took a small sip of cold water.

No rush. Take it slow. Make every step steady and solid. Xu Ruyi, Xiao Zhi, Feng Xiangping—they're a rabble. They won before because they were in the shadows. Once dragged into the daylight, the three of them combined are no match for Qin Guan.

Old He was still staring at Xiao Zhi's photo.

This was a photo downloaded from Xiao Zhi's personal website by the officers after Qin Guan first mentioned him—Xiao Zhi smiled a lot, seeming open and positive, often participating in various club activities.

He also seemed to enjoy being photographed. In every group shot from activities, he stood among the crowd, smiling at the camera.

He wasn't very tall, but in photos, he liked to sling his arm over the shoulders of the person next to him. Besides activity photos, the people he took private photos with were just a few peers. They seemed like good friends—traveling together, going to bars together. One had center-parted hair and thick lips, smiling with a bit of a rogue charm. Another was a fair-skinned guy, slightly taller than Xiao Zhi, dressed very fashionably, with a row of shiny earrings studded in his ear.

Qin Guan couldn't see these photos, of course.

He'd never looked at them before either—the son of a nanny, a country bumpkin, wasn't worth a shred of his attention.

"You're suggesting that at the lakeside villa, Xiao Zhi, acting on Xu Ruyi's orders, tracked you, so he knew what happened between you and Qi Min?"

Old He finally spoke. This time, his question carried much more seriousness. "But at the lakeside villa, you never saw Xiao Zhi appear, did you?"

Qin Guan had indeed never seen Xiao Zhi.

He knew what the boy looked like. Qin Guan had an astonishing memory. If Xiao Zhi had been there, even just his back, Qin Guan would have noticed.

"I definitely didn't see Xiao Zhi at the business trip location. But that doesn't mean he wasn't there. Perhaps he was hiding in the shadows. You can check his travel records. Nowadays, whether it's a plane, high-speed train, or long-distance bus, buying a ticket requires ID. Remember, the time is before the incident,"

"He's still just a college student. He doesn't have a private car,"

Qin Guan added. "Of course, hitchhiking can't be ruled out either. Qi Min hitched a ride back to the city. Hitchhiking arranged informally, not through a website, doesn't require ID. If he deliberately avoided using mobile payments too, then you likely wouldn't find his travel records from that,"

"But, no matter what, he must have missed classes before the incident. He must have taken leave."

After speaking, he took another sip of water.

This was the breakthrough. The lever to pry open Xu Ruyi's defenses.

The cool water flowed smoothly down Qin Guan's throat and settled quietly in his stomach, smothering the impatience and anxiety trying to bubble up.

Be calmer. More rational. Detach myself. Like in the courtroom before, be an observer. A professional observer.

He listened to his own heartbeat, silently admonishing himself.

This was his only chance.

Before everything was set in stone, this was his sole opportunity.

Before, he had been too tense, too worried about the consequences, so he hid and covered up again and again. That's how Xu Ruyi gained the upper hand, landing him in this completely passive situation.

He needed to be composed. To win this battle to turn the tables.