Shi Ting said, “The killer had a clear purpose. After entering the Fan household, they went directly for their target — they were there solely to kill Fan Wenzhi and Lin Yuqin. Fan Wenzhi’s and Lin Yuqin’s personal assets show no suspicious changes, and there were no signs of theft at the scene. The killer was not motivated by money.”

Ahead of them, a red light appeared. Shi Ting gradually brought the car to a stop behind the vehicle in front.

“There are only two motives for a murder: to kill the person or to take their money. Since it wasn’t for money, it was personal.” Shi Ting’s voice rang out clearly and pleasantly in the confines of the car — as though he were not discussing a case at all, but telling a story.

“Think about it — who was the killer’s true target? Was it Fan Wenzhi or Lin Yuqin? If it was Fan Wenzhi, why kill Lin Yuqin as well? Even if Lin Yuqin was simply collateral damage, then why spare Fan Mingming? Given how ruthless the killer’s methods were, if Fan Mingming had walked out of her second-floor room that night, there is no way they would have let her go.”

Yan Qing nodded, agreeing with his reasoning.

“Old Fan’s investigation is ongoing. But based on the suspects identified so far, no one has a clear motive, and everyone has an alibi.” Shi Ting said. “I had Old Fan ask Lin’s father, and he said Fan Wenzhi and Lin Yuqin were extremely cautious people. Even he didn’t know the door code to their home. The Fan family had a housekeeper who came periodically — she would always contact Fan Wenzhi or Lin Yuqin in advance and only visit when one of them was home. In the days before the incident, her son fell ill and she took three days off to stay at the hospital with him. Medical staff there can confirm this.”

As Yan Qing listened to Shi Ting’s analysis, a picture slowly took shape in her mind — and when the thought finally crystallized, even she was startled by it.

“So the only people who knew the door code were, in fact, only three — the Fan family themselves.” Shi Ting turned to look at Yan Qing, whose face had gone slightly pale. “Both Fan Wenzhi and Lin Yuqin refused to give the code to their own parents, let alone anyone else. The only person left who could have shared it… seems to be one person.”

Yan Qing met his gaze. “You suspect…”

“When every possibility has been eliminated, the one that seemed most impossible may well be the truth.”

“That line… why does it sound so familiar?”

From behind, a horn honked twice. The red light had turned green, and the previously stalled line of traffic had begun to ease forward.

Throughout the rest of the drive, Yan Qing couldn’t stop turning Shi Ting’s words over in her mind. Once they got out of the car, she finally said to him, “Earlier it was said the killer was two people, yet three different weapons were used — that was the one thing I couldn’t reconcile. But if your reasoning is correct, that inconsistency can be explained after all. The killer wasn’t two people — it was three. The third one didn’t directly participate in killing the couple but orchestrated everything from within.”

Shi Ting looked at her with clear appreciation. He liked talking to sharp minds. Without his needing to spell it out, she had already understood.

—

“Fan Mingming?” The homeroom teacher’s face was filled with tender concern the moment her name was mentioned. “Fan Mingming is an exceptional student. Her grades rank among the best in our school, and she never causes any trouble. Beyond being introverted and not particularly sociable — she doesn’t really have any faults. Well, being introverted isn’t even a fault, really. It’s just who she is.”

“What is her relationship with her parents like?”

“I have never once met Fan Mingming’s parents.” The teacher pushed up her glasses, clearly disapproving of the Fan couple’s behavior. “Every parent meeting is attended by her maternal grandparents — both in their sixties, with poor eyesight and failing hearing. And so much of what we need to communicate is done through online channels, which the grandparents have no idea how to use. I recall one occasion when the school was organizing an activity and everyone needed to wear white shirts. We sent out a notice in the parents’ group chat and tagged Fan Mingming’s mother — but the next day, Fan Mingming was the only student in the entire school still wearing her uniform. She said her mother hadn’t bought her a shirt. Rather than disrupt the whole group, Fan Mingming didn’t participate in the activity. She’s a proud girl — she cried for a long, long time afterwards, and I spent a good while comforting her.”

The teacher sighed. “We understand her parents are very busy — always flying in and out of the country. But no matter how busy you are, you can’t simply neglect your child. Other children have parents who love and dote on them; Fan Mingming only has her grandparents. And truthfully, what elderly grandparents can offer is limited. A parent’s care and love is something no one else can replace.”

Shi Ting asked, “Does Fan Mingming have any particularly close friends?”

“She does.” The teacher shrugged slightly. “Strangely enough, this model student’s best friend is the student with the worst grades and worst conduct in our school. If it weren’t for her father’s regular donations to the school, that girl would have been expelled a hundred times over.”

The girl the teacher mentioned was named Liu Zimo.

When Yan Qing saw Liu Zimo in the office, it was difficult to imagine how she and Fan Mingming had anything in common.

Liu Zimo had dyed her hair a deep wine red and had no fewer than six piercings in her ears.

All the high school students wore uniforms — only she had on a T-shirt and torn jeans, looking completely out of place everywhere she went.

In the teacher’s own words, Liu Zimo’s father had essentially bought her a spot at the school. He had appealed to the principal, insisting that Liu Zimo at least finish high school, promising to find her a university to attend afterward.

So Liu Zimo did as she pleased, unchecked, because everyone knew she was “connected.”

For all her delinquent appearance, Liu Zimo was intensely loyal. She had met Fan Mingming after stepping in one day when Fan Mingming was cornered outside the school and shaken down for money.

Fan Mingming, who had never had a friend, was deeply fond of Liu Zimo. By all accounts, Liu Zimo was the only friend she had in her seventeen years of life.

“What happened to Mingming?” Liu Zimo was picking at her red nail polish, barely paying attention. “Mingming hasn’t broken any laws — why are you officers asking me things about her?”

“Fan Mingming’s parents are dead. Did you know?”

“What?” Liu Zimo nearly fell out of her chair. She stared with her eyeshadow-lined eyes wide. “Dead? How did they die?”

Yan Qing had assumed she would show some grief on behalf of her best friend. Instead, Liu Zimo clapped her hands together and laughed. “Ah, good riddance! Good riddance! Those two — they deserved it.”

Yan Qing said sternly, “Liu Zimo, these are two real, living people — and they are your friend’s parents. Even if you feel nothing, openly celebrating their deaths is not acceptable.”

“Oh, please.” Liu Zimo spat. “What kind of parents were they? Besides giving Mingming money and using her top grades to show off, did they ever fulfill even one responsibility as parents?”

It had to be said — Liu Zimo’s words left Yan Qing momentarily silent.

—