Chapter 170 Love Transfer (100 extra votes)

Chen Shi’s astonishing words made Lin Dongxue widen her eyes in disbelief. “Are you saying…”

Chen Shi nodded, turning to the pale-faced Zhuo Xuan. “You took money from Lu Zhendong and ‘transferred’ Cheng Yan to him, so he could let you visit her with peace of mind. Perhaps initially, you even handed her over to this devil yourself!”

“You’re talking nonsense! You’re talking nonsense!” Zhuo Xuan was on the verge of collapse.

“Here’s the deal. You tell us the truth, and we won’t tell her. Let her forever believe you’re a perfect boyfriend sacrificing everything for her. Or you don’t say anything, and I’ll go tell her the truth. Of course, my version might be more sensational than reality.” Chen Shi’s words broke through his psychological defenses. He finally spoke, his voice trembling, “Lu Zhendong… promised me… forty million!”

“Scum!” Lin Dongxue muttered under her breath.

“When was this?” Chen Shi asked.

“Half a month ago, he approached me with this condition. At first, I definitely refused, but when he raised the offer to forty million… I couldn’t earn that much money in my lifetime. I think anyone else would have done the same…”

“Don’t think everyone is like you!” Lin Dongxue said disdainfully.

“Go on,” Chen Shi urged.

Zhuo Xuan’s eyes were moist, his lips trembling. “Of course, I felt terrible inside, but the thought of being able to use this money to treat my mom’s illness, buy a house for my family, and fulfill my dream of making movies made me waver. That day, I asked Cheng Yan out. During our walk, I was absent-minded, not listening to what she said. Later, I took her home. Then Lu Zhendong came to find me in his car. We waited for her on the way back, and it was me… who dragged her into the car. Lu Zhendong injected her with something, and he smiled at me and said, ‘Don’t worry, I’ll treat her well, a win-win situation.'”

“Then Cheng Yan disappeared. Every night, I went to her place, but her lights were always off, and her phone was unreachable. I found Lu Zhendong and asked what happened. Lu Zhendong smiled again and told me, ‘The girl is stubborn, needs a little time.’ I grabbed his collar and asked, ‘What did you do to her?’ He said, ‘Easy, take it easy! I wouldn’t harm her. I like her so much, how could I harm her?’ I asked, ‘Where is she?’ Lu Zhendong replied, ‘At my place! Hey, let me tell you the truth, I recently watched a foreign movie where a man kept a woman like a pet, slowly making her fall in love with him… Don’t look at me like that, I’m not a pervert, it’s just a necessary means, you know? I assure you, I won’t hurt her, just training!’ I was utterly disgusted. Knowing I had pushed Cheng Yan into this hell myself, I started subconsciously watching all kinds of B movies, crime movies. It seems that deep down, I wanted to kill Lu Zhendong as soon as possible. I suffered every day, especially at night. The thought of Lu Zhendong playing with her like that made me hate him so much. I couldn’t sleep at all. Why is the world so twisted? The rich can do whatever they want. Humanity is almost finished. The richer people have more mating rights, but their genes are ugly and selfish. As a result, good genes are gradually disappearing, and ugly genes are perpetuating. Humanity will eventually perish…”

“Stop talking nonsense! Stick to the point!” Lin Dongxue slammed the table in anger.

“When she had been missing for two months, I thought of a perfect murder plan!” Zhuo Xuan’s eyes turned malicious, as if he had returned to that night of planning to kill.

“Let me interrupt. Did you get the money?” Chen Shi asked.

“No.”

“Did Lu Zhendong give you a blank check?”

“I asked him, and he said he couldn’t come up with that much money either. But his father would give him forty million soon. He promised to give it to me within a week. But after a week, he came to me again, saying sorry, his buddy was auctioning off a guitar that was too good, so he bought it. When I heard that, I almost killed him on the spot. But he said he would swagger with the guitar for a couple of days and then give it to me. This guitar would only increase in value, worth more than forty million… I believed his nonsense!”

“Was it Huang Jiaju’s guitar?”

“He tricked me like that.”

“And the guitar?”

“I took it and hid it along with his assistant’s body in my house.”

“This time, I’m surprised. I thought you’d hide it more discreetly,” Chen Shi remarked.

Zhuo Xuan shook his head. “If the police suspected me to the point of searching my home, it wouldn’t matter where I hid it. So I might as well keep it at home. The bodies won’t smell because I bought a large freezer and kept them inside. As for the guitar, I hope you’ll sell it and give the money to my mom. You can take a bit for yourselves. I won’t say anything!”

Lin Dongxue looked at him with contempt. Chen Shi said, “That guitar isn’t yours. Lu Zhendong didn’t formally give it to you. It’s still his property and will be returned to his family after the trial.”

“What?” Zhuo Xuan lowered his head. “So, all my efforts were in vain. Lu Zhendong didn’t pay any price and played with her for half a month for nothing! He got away with it!”

“I feel sick to my stomach!” Lin Dongxue’s disdain had reached its peak.

“I don’t understand. Your motive for killing Lu Zhendong, is it because he didn’t fulfill his promise or because he stole your love?” Chen Shi asked.

“Both.”

“Between these two factors, which one was stronger?”

“Love…” Zhuo Xuan paused before continuing, “In front of so much money, it wasn’t something I couldn’t give up! If it were you…”

“I would never betray my love!” Chen Shi said. “So, if Lu Zhendong had given you the guitar initially, would everything have ended happily? He gets Cheng Yan, you get the money.”

“What’s the use of saying this now? It’s all too late!”

“Are you a virgin?”

Zhuo Xuan was stunned. “If you don’t count… then yes.”

“You’ll probably be a virgin for life, Mr. Zhuo. Good luck!” Chen Shi stood up. The interrogation was over. Lin Dongxue ran outside and found everyone there. She breathed a sigh of relief and said, “I thought it was a beautiful love story, but it turns out to be utterly disgusting!”

The onlookers were also shocked. Xu Xiaodong asked, “Chen, should we tell that girl?”

“No need. Let her believe she’s fallen for a perfect boyfriend!” Chen Shi pulled out a card, the one Mr. Lu gave him with 200,000 yuan. “This money is from Mr. Lu. Originally, I planned to return it after closing the case, pretending to be cool. Now I’ve changed my mind. Find a good psychologist for that girl. Give her the rest. Let’s say we donated it together, a little psychological comfort.”

Lin Dongxue smiled bitterly. “The end of the story is still resolved with money to soothe the inner trauma.”

“Money, too, can be good or bad!” Chen Shi chuckled.

Suddenly, fireworks lit up outside. Everyone exclaimed, realizing it was New Year’s Eve.

“Damn, we’ve been so busy, we forgot!”

“Great! We solved the case before the New Year!”

“Chen, you’re awesome!”

Amidst the joyful noise, Lin Dongxue quietly pulled Chen Shi aside. They went to the office. Chen Shi asked, “Got a gift for me?”

“Haha, you guessed it right!” Lin Dongxue took out a knitted scarf from the drawer and draped it around Chen Shi’s neck, adjusting it herself.

The scarf had cute little flowers on it, and Chen Shi liked it very much. “Thank you!”

“Just a thank you?” Lin Dongxue looked into Chen Shi’s eyes, he was taller, so she had to stand on tiptoe.

“How about coming to my place tonight…” Chen Shi suggested.

Lin Dongxue blushed. Chen Shi continued, “Tao Yuanyuan is probably starving at home. I’ll cook a New Year’s Eve dinner for you both. Let’s stay up together.”

A tiny bit of disappointment flickered across Lin Dongxue’s face, but she thought it over and nodded. It might still be a warm and unforgettable New Year’s Eve after all!