“The victim’s identity has been confirmed. She was a nurse in First Hospital’s operating room, named Wang Qianqian.”
Lu Yan’s face turned white, feeling as if someone had pressed a gun to her temples and fired twice, her mind exploding with the news.
“Wang Qianqian?” Her face showed complete disbelief.
Jiang Chengyi stared at her bloodless face.
Many years ago, he had seen a similar expression on her face, though back then, besides shock, there had also been heart-wrenching grief.
After several seconds, he spoke unhurriedly: “On November 29th—yesterday afternoon—you made a phone call to Wang Qianqian at 18:17. Can you tell us about the specifics of that situation?”
Lu Yan had now recovered from the tremendous shock. She swallowed, trying hard to organize her thoughts, but even after repeatedly attempting to calm herself, her heart still raced and her legs felt weak.
When she finally spoke, her voice seemed covered in wax: “Yesterday afternoon, I did call Wang Qianqian, but she declined the call. She later sent me a WeChat message saying: ‘Dr. Lu, I can’t take calls right now.’ I thought everything was fine, so I didn’t call again.”
The police officer beside Jiang Chengyi, who appeared to be in his thirties, began taking notes: “Dr. Lu, why did you call Wang Qianqian at that time?”
Lu Yan glanced at the water dispenser in the corner of the room. Her throat was desperately dry, urgently needed something to drink, so she asked: “May I… have some water first?”
Jiang Chengyi watched her without speaking, but the officer smiled: “Dr. Lu, no need to be nervous. We’re just here to gather some information. Go ahead and have some water—take your time recalling the situation.”
Lu Yan nodded and poured herself a cup of water: “The night before last, I was on the night shift. At 1 AM, I was called to help in the operating room. Wang Qianqian was the nursing supervisor on duty that night, but her phone couldn’t be reached all night. This is very unusual in our workplace. Yesterday afternoon, remembering this, I was worried something might have happened to her, so I called.”
The officer continued: “That night—early morning of November 29th—which colleague called Wang Qianqian? Were you present when the call was made?”
After a few seconds pause, Lu Yan said: “It was a newly hired assistant nurse named Xu Zhen. When I arrived, she had already called. According to her, she called again later, but I was in Operating Room Five at the time, so…”
Officer: “So you didn’t call Wang Qianqian personally.”
Lu Yan fell silent, but this was the truth.
“Yes.”
The officer glanced at Jiang Chengyi and continued: “How close were you with Wang Qianqian in private? What kind of person was she, and had you noticed anything unusual about her work or personal life recently?”
Lu Yan thought for a moment: “We were just nodding acquaintances. There was a period when she wanted to publish a paper and asked me a few questions privately. She was quite introverted but very dedicated to her work. As for her personal life… I heard she was getting married soon. A few days ago, she shared electronic wedding invitations in our work group chat.”
She took out her phone and began scrolling through her notes. After a long search, she finally found a line she had written: December 29th (Winter Solstice), Dajiang Restaurant, Noon, Wang Qianqian’s wedding.
She locked her screen: “The wedding was set for this same date next month.”
The police had presumably already gathered this information, as neither Jiang Chengyi nor the officer showed any reaction to Lu Yan’s words.
The officer looked at Jiang Chengyi and asked the final question: “Dr. Lu, can you tell us where you were between 18:00 and 00:30 last night?”
Lu Yan didn’t answer immediately, instead looking up at Jiang Chengyi with some surprise.
He was staring at her too, his gaze deep and unwavering.
After a moment, she quietly shifted her gaze and calmly replied: “I was at Jinhai KTV attending a class reunion. The gathering lasted until 00:30, after which I went home in a high school classmate’s car.”
“Good.” The officer closed his notebook and stood up, saying, “Thank you for your cooperation, Dr. Lu. We have some more questions—could you ask the head nurse of the operating room to come here?”
Lu Yan paused briefly, then nodded: “Alright.”
She put her hands in her white coat pockets and walked toward the door.
Halfway there, she hesitated, then turned back to ask Jiang Chengyi: “Officer Jiang, may I ask if Wang Qianqian was killed last night?”
Initially, Jiang Chengyi didn’t speak for several seconds.
Lu Yan’s throat inexplicably itched under his stare.
The feeling was uncomfortable. Standing there, she suddenly regretted asking the question.
Just as she was about to leave, Jiang Chengyi finally spoke: “The case is still under investigation. Related details cannot be disclosed.”
The news of Wang Qianqian’s murder spread quickly.
The young nurses who were close to Wang Qianqian immediately teared up upon hearing the news, each showing extreme grief.
The unnatural death of a young person always shakes people’s hearts. As colleagues expressed their regret over such a young life being cut short like a withered flower, various speculations gradually began to emerge.
Throughout the day, wherever Lu Yan went, she could hear colleagues discussing the matter.
She knew that such discussions often evolved into unexpected versions of events.
Wang Qianqian’s case was no exception.
By the time she finished her shift, there were already multiple versions circulating, such as “Wang Qianqian was actually involved in a love triangle, taking mysterious phone calls in secret during lunch breaks” and “Wang Qianqian had been experiencing strange things lately—her superstitious mother even took her to see a city master.” Each version was vividly detailed and seemingly well-founded.
Lu Yan had no interest in joining the discussions. She took off her sterile clothing and quietly changed into her clothes.
As she walked out of the changing room, her phone rang.
She answered and heard Tang Jie say: “Yan, I’ve remembered some things I want to tell you. Are you off work? Let’s have dinner together.”
After reviewing the autopsy report back at the police station, Qin Yue got into the police car with Jiang Chengyi.
Once seated, he took out his notebook from his pocket to organize the clues.
During the three hours that morning, he and Captain Jiang had roughly investigated Wang Qianqian’s workplace situation. In his view, Wang Qianqian’s case might not be too complex. For women in their early twenties with stable jobs like her, their social networks were relatively simple, making a crime of passion more likely, so he decided to focus the investigation on Wang Qianqian’s fiancé.
When he looked up again, he realized Jiang Chengyi had driven back to First Hospital.
The sun was setting, and street lights were lighting up one by one, like snow light reflecting the rose-colored clouds stretched across the sky, creating a crystalline beauty.
It was the evening rush hour, with cars and people streaming past the hospital entrance. He peered out and said: “Just looking at this crowd, you can tell how many patients First Hospital sees in a day.”
Looking back, he saw Jiang Chengyi gripping the steering wheel, staring out the window, lost in thought.
Remembering the morning’s events, he couldn’t help smiling: “Captain Jiang, I’ve been thinking about something all day. This morning when we questioned that pretty Dr. Lu, I don’t remember showing our police badges, yet she knew your surname was Jiang?”
Criminal investigators were naturally more observant than others.
Jiang Chengyi checked his watch: “We need to return to the station later. Let’s just grab a quick dinner nearby. Old Qin, pick any restaurant you like.”
Qin Yue looked at Jiang Chengyi’s composed profile. Initially, upon learning of Jiang Chengyi’s family background, he had been somewhat dismissive—how long could such a rich young master last in front-line criminal investigation? Surely it was just a passing fancy.
But after working with him these days, he realized Jiang Chengyi was an absolute workaholic, arriving early and leaving late, working more diligently than anyone. In just two short months, he had completely changed everyone’s impression of him at the bureau. No wonder he had risen so quickly—he truly had the makings of someone destined for great things.
Lost in thought, he noticed Jiang Chengyi looking at him, seemingly waiting for his answer. After thinking, he said: “There’s a decent Chaozhou restaurant nearby. But Captain Jiang, it should be my turn to treat today.”
“Fine.” Jiang Chengyi smiled, turning the steering wheel to merge into the right-turn lane when a phone call came in.
Qin Yue picked up the phone for him and saw “Mom” on the caller ID. He quickly said: “It’s your mother, should I answer?”
Jiang Chengyi nodded: “Help me answer it.”
A middle-aged woman’s voice came through: “Chengyi, are you busy at the bureau today? Uncle Ding and Aunt Wang brought Jingjing over. Jingjing has something to discuss with you. You’d better come back—let’s have dinner together with both families tonight.”