The nurses brought the three people to an office, and the head nurse explained whilst gesturing, “That is Xiao Pan’s table.”

Chen Shi looked closely at the table. It was cleaned up very well, and the number on each page of the calendar next to it was all filled with the number of calories that she ate every day. It also listed the changes in her weight. It seemed that she was very careful about her lifestyle.

A nurse revealed, "Xiao Pan is a very good person. She is very kind to people. She also gave me a pack of sanitary napkins last month... Haii, I really didn't expect such a person to have an affair."

Another nurse added in jealousy, "You see how she dolls up every day even though she’s married? She must have done it to steal the hearts of other men.”

The ultimate defamation between women was that the other party stole men.

Chen Shi asked, "Has she ever mentioned anything about her family? How about the relationship between the husband and wife?"

Several nurses grinned amongst themselves, so Chen Shi smiled and asked, "What’s so funny?"

A nurse began, "I often see Xiao Pan go to the pharmacy to buy medicine saying that it is for her husband to take. Guess what kind of medication it was? It is the kind that you men eat! Her husband may have been at home for too long, so he’s unable to perform. ”

The nurse who had growled about Xiao Pan stealing men suddenly exclaimed loudly, scaring all the people who were present. She recalled, "I remember now! Xiao Pan has not been feeling very well for a while. I heard that she even has some symptoms such as irregular menstruation. So it turns out she wasn’t satisfied in that department, huh? Recently, though, her personality suddenly changed. It seems that the adulterer has made her feel very good."

When she heard this, Lin Dongxue blushed. Chen Shi asked, "Why didn't she come to work today?"

"If this kind of thing happened, how could she still have the mood to go to work? She’s been taking leave for a few days... But her adulterer has lots of money, so she probably doesn’t care about her pay checks. I heard that she intends to resign. I don’t think she should resign though. Once the case is broken, she probably wouldn’t be able to find another job again." The nurse concluded with contempt.

"Alright, thank you all."

Leaving the hospital, Lin Dongxue said, "These nurses really like to kick people while they’re down."

"Angry when people have things and laugh when they don’t. It’s understandable. But I also heard some useful things from them. Let’s go visit Ximen."

Ximen Sheng was the boss of a clothing company. Because of this incident, the company was now closed. When the three arrived, they found many colleagues there checking the accounts, calculator in their hands. They were checking each transaction one by one.

Xu Xiaodong joked, "Xiao Li? When did you become an office worker?"

Police officer Xiao Li complained, "I am looking for the whereabouts of the 50,000 yuan. I’ve spent the whole morning doing this... Brother Chen came? You have to break the case soon and save us from the bitter sea!"[1]

Chen Shi smiled and warned, "Don't have too much confidence in me. I just came to play tickets."[2]

"You ticket players seem to be a lot more capable than us. Everyone in the bureau is saying that you are a driver detective.”

"Oh really? Did anyone comment on how handsome I am?"

Seeing Chen Shi and other female officer talking and laughing, Lin Dongxue coughed. "Investigate the case! You’re just chatting here. Where’s ‘Ximen Qing’?”

"The brat has been missing since the morning. We’ve gone to his house, the company, and the wife's house, but we couldn’t find anyone.” A male police officer replied.

"Empty-handed." Lin Dongxue told Chen Shi.

The office was full of accounts books and receipts. They didn’t know where to start investigating. Chen Shi made a gesture of retreat. Suddenly, a police officer rushed in. “I found the guy! He’s in a hotel! Hurry up and go!”

A group of police officers quickly went downstairs, and the three of them followed. Ximen Sheng was in a hotel a few streets away from the company. It was discovered by the citizens in the area through network investigation. They immediately reported this finding to the criminal police department.

When the group of people arrived at the hotel, the person working at the front desk told them that Ximen was in 404 room on the 14th floor, so everyone rushed upstairs.

This time, they weren’t trying to sound him out with traps. The policemen knocked on the door and called him out. The people inside shouted, “Fuck off!”

"Quite unreasonable. Get the person at the front desk to come over and open the door."

After getting the keys, they tried opening the door, but it seemed like a chair was used to block the door. No matter how much they pushed, they couldn’t open it. Everyone discussed whether to break in when Chen Shi shushed them, pointing at the door.

Everyone listened attentively. There seemed to be a woman’s voice, and the sound of the bed frame rattling.

"Darling, are you there yet?"

"I am coming... Soon... Ah~"

Everyone outside was so angry that they wanted to laugh. The people inside were shameless enough to finish up knowing people were outside.

At this time, the door opened. Ximen wore a bathrobe and appeared in front of everyone. He was a middle-aged man who was on the chubbier side. His body was tall, and his face was oily and flushed. He had a golden tooth in his mouth.

"What? What's the matter? Now the police officers are going to interfere with the sexual lives of citizens?" Ximen Sheng became aggressive.

"You’ve really got some gall, don’t you? The police have been looking for you everywhere, but you’re here doing this?" barked a police officer.

Ximen looked annoyed. "I have had too much pressure on my shoulders the past two days. Isn't it okay to vent?"

“Why is there a lot of pressure for you? Do you feel guilty?”

"Nonsense! You gave me a murderer’s hat, causing my company to close down. Every day, I lose hundreds of thousands of yuan. Even my hair is falling out! What exactly are you trying to investigate?!”

"Ximen Qing..."

"Fucking hell, my name is Ximen Sheng, not Ximen Qing!" Ximen was so angry that he began stomping.

"Sorry, we just wanted to know what happened to the 50,000 yuan in your account.”

Ximen widened his eyes and looked at everyone, saying, "It was scammed away."

"Bullshit! You said you didn’t know where it went last time. This time you’re saying you were scammed. How can we believe you?"

"It is indeed due to a scam!"

"Who deceived you then?"

"How would I know? If I knew, I would have called the police! Please stop hanging around me like flies. I have told you all everything that I know. What else do you want from me? You guys have gone too far with your investigating. Bring me a lie detector so I can prove that I didn’t kill him!”

Chen Shi glanced in the door and asked, "Who else is in the room?"

"My wife!"

At this time, the woman in the room dressed herself properly. It was a beautiful young woman. Lin Dongxue whispered, "She is Pan Xiuying."

Pan Xiuying requested, "Please officers, don't bother us anymore. We can't go to work and live our days with you all being like this. Why are you all doing this? I have tried telling you all so many times now. My husband died in an accident. It’s none of our business! Yes, we admit that it’s shameful having an affair, but did we break the law? You all actually chased us here today. Tomorrow, do you need to stand next to the bed and watch us do it?”

"Ms. Pan, we don't care about your private affairs. We just want to figure out how the deceased died."

"Who do I ask if you’re asking me?"

"Your husband had gasoline residue on his car. It is clearly a murder, yet you’re saying it’s an accident."

"How would I know if it was a murder or not? I was not there at the scene! Please use your brains. What era is it now? Is it necessary to kill my husband in order to have an affair? I am not above a divorce. He only had a tiny bit of wealth. Would I need to be greedy over something like that?”

"Yes, she is right!"

Everyone turned their heads and tried to see who echoed her beliefs. It turned out to be Chen Shi.

1. The equivalent of “hell” in English in a metaphorical sense.

2. An expression that means that they are only tagging along and playing around, but they aren’t going to make a living out of it. For example, an actor that sang a song at a concert to entertain the fans even though they’re not a singer.