Chapter 10: I Will Prove That She Committed Suicide

Li Li had been pondering the conversation between the two all the way. It wasn't until they were almost at the bureau that he finally figured it out. He slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "So that's it!"

Lin Che curled his lips into a smile, "Not too dumb after all."

Li Li smiled confidently and looked at Lin Che, "Of course, look who's been mentoring me!"

"If you put as much effort into solving cases as you do into flattering, you wouldn't need anyone to mentor you."

Li Li chuckled awkwardly and changed the subject, "Captain Lin, why did that girl have to speak in riddles? If she had a problem, why not just say it directly? It took me so long to figure it out."

"She was just being cautious."

Li Li glanced at Lin Che, surprised that the captain would defend the young girl. "I think this Sun Fangfang is definitely suspicious!"

Lin Che parked the car and gave Li Li a look, "If what you say was useful, why would we bother looking for evidence? Get out and get to work!"

Outside the office building stood a few people. Xu Yang saw Lin Che and ran over. "Captain Lin, Sun Fangfang is here!"

Xu Yang quietly pointed to one of the people wearing a black dress. Li Li looked over and nudged Xu Yang's shoulder, "Brother Jie and the others are too fast! They brought her back in less than half an hour?"

"Sun Fangfang came voluntarily."

"What?!"

Li Li was shocked, and even Lin Che showed a puzzled expression. A suspect voluntarily coming to the police station?! What kind of operation is this? Lin Che wasn't sure if he saw it correctly, but he thought Sun Fangfang glanced in their direction before following Xia Jie inside. "By the way, Captain Lin, how did you find out there was something wrong with the sleeping pills?"

Xu Yang was curious because the sleeping pills, as a lethal drug, had been carefully examined at the time, and no issues were found. Li Li jumped in to answer, "Because the pills weren't prescribed by Zhou Xinyu's psychiatrist."

Xu Yang was confused, "What does that prove?"

"Are you stupid? Depression isn't like a cold or fever. Zhou Xinyu had been treated at this hospital for many years, and the treatment was quite effective. Her doctor knew her condition best. Why would she go to another hospital just to get sleeping pills and recount her entire illness again? It doesn't make sense behaviorally!"

Xu Yang nodded thoughtfully, "That makes sense... Who are you calling stupid! It's not like you figured it out yourself, Captain Lin told you! What are you showing off for!"

Li Li immediately got defensive, "I figured it out myself! If you don't believe me, ask Captain Lin!"

Xu Yang ignored him, "Captain Lin, I just checked Sun Fangfang's information, and I've compiled it."

"Good, give the information to Old Du, and let him lead the interrogation later."

For different interrogation subjects, Lin Che usually assigned different people to lead. For middle-aged individuals, he would let young officers like Li Li and Xu Yang handle it to relax their guard; for young girls like Sun Fangfang, a seasoned detective would handle it to create psychological pressure; for the truly vicious, Lin Che would usually take charge himself. "Got it."

Xu Yang reported the information he found to Lin Che and followed him into the office. Li Li stood still, rolling his eyes in frustration, comforting himself not to argue with a young girl. Accompanying Sun Fangfang was her boyfriend, and their sports car parked in the yard was quite eye-catching. The two were separated for questioning.

Sun Fangfang was dressed in a black dress, without makeup, her face pale, but her eyes were red, with heavy dark circles under them. "Name."

"Sun Fangfang."

"Relationship with Zhou Xinyu."

"Good friends."

"Tell us, why did you come here specifically?"

Sun Fangfang was silent for a few seconds, then looked up to meet Old Du's eyes, "I... I came to prove that she committed suicide!"

This answer was unexpected and somewhat disrupted Old Du's rhythm, but he quickly adjusted. Lin Che had been staring at Sun Fangfang since he sat down, and when he heard this, his deep pupils slightly contracted. Sun Fangfang took a deep breath and began, "Xinyu considered everyone who liked her comics as friends. She posted her suicide note online just to say goodbye to everyone. She never imagined it would cause such a huge uproar. She was the type who hated troubling others, and she wouldn't want to see this situation. I came here hoping this matter could be settled quickly, so she could leave in peace."

As Sun Fangfang spoke, her brows were furrowed, her expression sorrowful. "What evidence do you have to prove she committed suicide?"

Old Du asked. Sun Fangfang lowered her head, her gaze falling on her fingers, and said, "In the past month or so, Zhou Zhou's mood swings were significant. Several times during our chats, she hinted at suicidal thoughts."

"Did you talk on the phone?"

"Mostly on the phone, but there are also some WeChat chat records."

"But according to our investigation, Zhou Xinyu did not express such emotions to those around her recently."

"We are best friends, some things, Xinyu would only tell me."

"Best friends?"

Old Du retorted, "As best friends, did you know that Zhou Xinyu had suffered from severe depression and attempted suicide multiple times?"

"Of course I knew, I was by her side during that time, you can ask Xinyu's grandmother."

"Then since you noticed she had suicidal thoughts, why didn't you stop her? Why didn't you remind those around her? Letting her commit suicide, is this what best friends do, huh?"

Old Du raised his voice, his tone and gaze full of pressure. "How do you know I didn't try to stop her?"

Old Du's sharp questioning made Sun Fangfang agitated, "Xinyu was worried that her grandparents would be upset, she repeatedly told me not to say anything, what else could I do but respect her wishes? I took several days off to come to Jiangcheng to accompany her, I even moved my annual leave to accompany her to New Zealand for a vacation, I worked overtime until ten at night, exhausted, but still spent over an hour on the phone comforting her! Officer, I did everything I could! Xinyu's death, I am also very sad! I am almost getting depression myself!"

During the interrogation, maintaining calm and rationality, not being swayed by emotions, is the most basic quality of an interrogator, so even though Sun Fangfang was almost hysterical by the end, Old Du remained unmoved. Lin Che didn't show any expression either. "Don't get agitated, we will verify everything you've said."

Old Du checked the dates on the information and continued, "You purchased sleeping pills on October 9th, October 29th, and November 18th, do you remember?"

Sun Fangfang wiped her tears and adjusted her emotions. "Yes."

"Why did you use Zhou Xinyu's name to buy the sleeping pills?"

"Because I was buying them for her, she insisted I use her medical insurance card, so I had to register under her name."

"Why couldn't she buy them herself?"

"She was busy with her manuscript those days, and I happened to be around, so I went to buy them for her."

"Then why didn't you go to the hospital where Zhou Xinyu had been receiving treatment? Her doctor knows her condition better, doesn't she?"

"Because Xinyu was worried that Dr. Yang would inform her grandparents, their health hasn't been good these past few years, Xinyu was afraid they would worry."

"From the night of November 22nd to the early morning of November 23rd, where were you, and did you contact Zhou Xinyu?"

"I was a bit feverish those days, took a day off to rest at home, took some medicine and went to bed early, called Xinyu before sleeping, and chatted a bit on WeChat."

"Did you notice anything unusual?"

"Xinyu seemed to be in a better mood those two days, I thought she had adjusted, I didn't expect..." Sun Fangfang closed her eyes and shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks to her neck, her chin trembling slightly. After nearly three hours of questioning, Sun Fangfang's answers were all reasonable, her demeanor natural, and she had explained all the suspicious points clearly.