Chapter 954: Unveiling The Truth

Lin Dongxue asked, "What about other evidence? For example, the dummy."

Chen Shi said, "The dummy is just the opposite. There are too many fingerprints on it and it can’t be considered a final piece of evidence."

Lin Dongxue thought about what else was missing that they hadn’t collected evidence on. At this time, Tao Yueyue said, "It's better to confront the suspect directly."

"That's a bit risky."

"The screenwriter's psychological quality isn’t good. When we mentioned the dummy that day, he was very flustered. If we retold his crimes once and for all in front of the police, I think his heart will be shaken."

Lin Dongxue inquired Chen Shi with her eyes, and Chen Shi said, "Directly attacking is also a method. If he’s really suspicious, we will arrest him today and collect evidence slowly."

Tao Yueyue looked at Xu Xiaodong and said, "Brother Xiaodong, I need you to do something for me."

Chen Shi, Lin Dongxue, and Tao Yueyue went to find the screenwriter. Lin Dongxue introduced, "This is our captain."

"Oh, hello, hello. Do you have something you want from me?"

"Mr. Screenwriter, I would like to invite you to have a walk outside with us." Chen Shi said.

When he heard that it was outside, the screenwriter instantly showed a guarded look and smiled. "No problem, I’ll put on my jacket."

The four of them went outside the hotel. Tao Yueyue walked as he said, "Uncle screenwriter, I heard that your studio has already been dissolved, right?"

"Huh?" The screenwriter was slightly taken aback. "Who did you hear this from?"

"In fact, we found out through our investigation, sorry."

"I understand. After all, it's a case. Starting a business on your own is risky. That year, I took on a big order and co-created a full-length script. As a result, the project went sour and the investor ran away. This year, the manpower, property, rent, water, and electricity were all borrowed. I owed a lot of money at once and could only declare bankruptcy." The screenwriter smiled bitterly and shook his head.

"That's so pitiful!" Tao Yueyue consoled him.

The four people had already arrived outside. The screenwriter subconsciously looked up and saw a person sitting in the conference room above and exclaimed, "Someone is going to jump off the building!"

"No, that's a dummy." Tao Yueyue said.

The screenwriter pushed at his glasses. "Are you guys doing a fall test?"

"No, we’re simulating your faking the fall."

The screenwriter looked as though he was struck by lightning and turned to look at Chen Shi. "She's talking nonsense. These kinds of jokes can’t be made at random."

Chen Shi said flatly, "Just listen to her."

Tao Yueyue shouted towards the top. "Brother Xiaodong, let's start!"

Xu Xiaodong peeked out of Lin Dongxue's room and pushed hard. It turned out that the dummy sitting on the window sill of the conference room had a string tied to their foot.

So, the dummy fell from above, and after passing through the director's window, he swung it around mid-air. Xu Xiaodong pulled the rope with both hands and dragged the dummy back into the window.

"Very good!" Tao Yueyue yelled, turning her head to see that the screenwriter was covered in cold sweat and his hands were trembling.

This reaction undoubtedly revealed that he’s the murderer!

Tao Yueyue walked to the falling point, turned around, and said calmly, "Little Ai was pushed down the stairs by you that day. He hit his skull on the steps and died soon after. You must have been very scared at the time. So, you thought of a plan to use cheap construction materials in place of higher-quality materials.[1] It was late at night, it was raining, and there was no one in front of the hotel. You put Little Ai's body there as if he fell from the conference room."

"Then, you got the dummy used for filming, tied a thin rope to its foot, which may have been a fishing line or the like, and placed the dummy on the window sill of the conference room with the rope hanging down outside before going back to your room. You tried to hook and reach the rope and held it in your hand. At that time, Sister Lin and I heard a ‘pakpak’ noise from the window. It was actually the sound of the rope passing in front of our window and hitting the glass. With a slight tug, the dummy fell from above, passed by the director’s window, and was successfully witnessed. When everyone looked down in a panic, the dummy swung around in the air and was caught by you, who pulled it back into the window. Then, you ran out of the door. In this way, it was as if Little Ai fell from above, and you’d have the perfect alibi at the moment of the fall!"

The screenwriter asked with a pale face, "Where did you see this?"

"Through some clues, I was able to come up with this reasoning. The first thing that reminded me this was when you stood under the stairs with a reddened face that night. I later realized that you were actually looking for something there. One of Little Ai’s nails was torn off and there was also a button missing. That may be what you were looking for. They may still be in your room now."

"I... I have no grievances with Little Ai. Why would I kill him?"

Lin Dongxue said, "We think you very likely killed him out of impulse. That night, Little Ai first caught the adulterers red-handed in an affair. He was already teeming with rage. Then, he met Cai Zhengkai in the corridor. The two quarrelled with each other. In order to get his revenge on Cai Zhengkai, Little Ai found you and told you to delete Cai Zhengkai's scenes again. The murder happened at that time."

The screenwriter raised his hand and put it down again, completely at a loss. Chen Shi finally added, "Yueyue has already described it in detail. If we didn't have enough evidence, the process behind it all wouldn’t have been restored in such a complete manner. There is no need to resist any more. Murder in the heat of the moment won’t have you sentenced to execution."

Chen Shi once said to Lin Qiupu that when the other party doesn't know what you know, he will think that you know everything. This was a guilty conscience.

With a loud cry, the screenwriter’s psychological defenses finally collapsed. He covered his face and knelt on the ground and cried. The three of them watched him quietly. Some hotel guests were also attracted, poking their heads out of the window to watch the commotion.

The screenwriter raised his head. "I just pushed him a bit in anger. Just pushed him a bit. I didn't expect it to cause such a serious result. He said awful things at the time. He said that he was the one giving me food to eat and said that if he’s saying to change it, to just change it without so much nonsense! You guys may not understand, but the scripts are like my children with my passion and soul poured into them. I really hate when people who aren’t in the scriptwriting industry point their fingers and ask me to modify the script."

Chen Shi patted him on the shoulder. "A lot of people are watching. Let’s leave you some face. I won't handcuff you, but get in the car with us!"

The screenwriter raised his eyes full of tears. "Thank you!" Then, he looked at Tao Yueyue, and said "Thank you" again. "You know what? The moment you said it all out loud, I actually felt a sense of relief. These past two days, I’ve been having nightmares every night and I feel like I’m going crazy. I’m really afraid of having my life ruined by this horrible guy, so... that’s why I went with that plan. I’m sorry to have deceived everyone!"

Chen Shi said, "Let's go."

The screenwriter stood up and followed him with his legs limp. After getting in the car, Chen Shi said, "I will pick you guys up in a while."

Watching the car drive away, Tao Yueyue said, "He pleaded guilty just like that? It went even smoother than I thought it would... But after all, it's not a big case."

Lin Dongxue rubbed Tao Yueyue's head. "You performed very well. Through the potential you showed, I believe you will become an excellent police officer in the future."

Tao Yueyue smiled, but looked unhappy. "This is the first time I personally sent someone to prison. Haii, I hope that the screenwriter won’t be bullied in there."

"Everyone chooses his or her path in life. You just did what you had to do."

1. This is a 4 character Chinese term that’s typically used to refer to tofu-dreg projects. However, in this context, she’d be talking about using the dummy in place of the real corpse. ☜