False evidence

Chapter 137 Suspense Novel
Gao asked me, "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely certain."

Seeing Gao He take out his phone, Zhang Xuan seemed to only then realize what was happening:
"Officer, what case are you opening? Has something happened to my sister?"

Seeing that Gao He ignored him, I simply said, "It's a murder case, and the murderer left at least three clues in this house."

Zhang Xuan suddenly stood up: "What happened to my sister...?"

"sit down!"

Gao shouted angrily, hung up the phone, and looked at me, saying, "Lin Dan and the others are here immediately. Don't take any further action before the forensic evidence arrives!"

I handed him the recorder: "This is one piece of evidence. As long as we take it back and verify it, at least the claim that we are cousins ​​cannot be established."

I was really startled when the voice recorder was accidentally turned on.

But soon, it was clear that it was the sound of a man and a woman doing 'mixed doubles'.

Gao He turned on the recorder, played it for only a few seconds, then turned it off again, staring intently at Zhang Xuan without saying a word.

Zhang Xuan sighed: "Alright, I'll tell you the truth. Zhang Xuan and I are indeed relatives, but not cousins, we're distant relatives. Also, we have... we have that kind of relationship. This recording pen is mine, it was recorded when she... when her husband was still alive. At that time we already... we couldn't see each other often, I recorded this to comfort myself when I was alone."

Seeing Gao He looking at me, I sat down next to him: "Captain Gao, I recently read a novel about crime investigation, it was really well written. Since the person hasn't arrived yet, shall I tell you about it?"

"Go ahead and say it, I'm just killing time anyway."

I nodded: "One of the cases went like this: a female painter married an antique dealer who was nineteen years older than her. Before the marriage, she had a boyfriend, and they continued their affair after the wedding! By the way, Captain Gao, can you guess what the 'boyfriend' did?"

Gao He scoffed, "I don't read these kinds of novels much. Most of them are made up, and reading too many would affect my studies."

I said, "Just this book alone, I highly recommend you read it. Let's put aside their professions for now, just say that the boyfriend and the female painter are the true lovers, while the woman married the antique dealer for money."

As it turned out, after getting married, she discovered that the antique dealer was a miser. Almost two years into their marriage, she hadn't gotten much money out of him.

As I just said, this boyfriend and the female painter are true love.

Seeing this situation, the two took the opportunity to discuss it privately: This won't do. If this continues, won't we end up losing our wives and getting a scoundrel instead?
So, the two came up with an ultimate solution—to have the antique dealer die in an accident, so that all his wealth would go to this couple whose love knows no bounds.

"What do they want?" Gao asked.

I smiled and said, "First, record an audio clip that's not suitable for children. Then, run a leaky wire halfway up the stairs. After that, put a white marker on the step near the top."

The antique dealer returned home drunk after a social engagement. Upon entering, he found the downstairs dark, while the upstairs lights were on. Moreover, he could hear sounds of a man and woman making love upstairs.

How could any grown man stand this? He'd immediately fly into a rage and rush forward. But if he rushed up and stepped on a marker, he'd fall backward, face-first.

If the stairs are made of cement and have floor tiles but no carpet, then if someone hits the back of their head on a sharp corner, they'll be instantly dispatched to the underworld.

Gao He waved his hand: "Even if you fall, you might not die."

“And there are electrical wires!” I gestured. “When a person falls forward, their instinct is to brace themselves with their hands. I can speak to that; that’s how I injured my hand.”

If you fall backward, your instinct is to grab onto things on either side. That's how the antique dealer ended up grabbing onto the leaky wire.

That might not kill someone with an electric shock, but after being electrocuted, they can't even perform the most basic self-protective reactions, increasing the probability of death by 30%.

Gao He nodded: "If we follow your logic, the chances of success are quite high. But then the police will definitely have to investigate, right? If it's a new house, new furniture, and the decoration is very high-end, how could the wiring be leaking electricity?"

I slapped my thigh and exclaimed, "How about I recommend this book to you! My boyfriend designed it all based on the environment of an antique shop!"
That antique dealer keeps pets—he keeps cats! Those things love to chew on things, and lots of pets have been electrocuted because of chewing on electrical wires.”

Jiang Banxia finally couldn't help but ask, "What if the antique dealer hadn't stepped on the pen? Or what if he was holding onto the railing as he walked up and stepped on it but didn't fall?"

I said, "Oh right, that gets to the point. My boyfriend's profession is a writer, and a mystery novelist at that! He's incredibly meticulous in that area! He thought of everything you mentioned!"

The plan failed, and the antique dealer rushed upstairs. There he saw his young, beautiful wife, her face smeared with paint, holding a voice recorder in one hand, mischievously smiling at him—she looked so adorable…

The antique dealer then realized it was just a prank. The couple were just joking around; surely it wouldn't lead to a fight? A recording? There are plenty of downloadable recordings online!

Another option is to buy a remotely controlled voice recorder. Hide it in some hidden corner. The two of you can watch from downstairs as the antique dealer goes upstairs, enters the house, turns on the living room lights, and then turns on the voice recorder.

At that moment, the lights upstairs were not turned on.

The darkness above, coupled with the antique dealer's hasty rush upstairs upon hearing the commotion, increased the chances of an 'accident' occurring. Even if it failed, at worst the recording pen would be found—what else could happen? He could just blame it on his young wife's prank.”

Gao He asked, "So, did the plan succeed? Did they really kill the person?"

I shook my head: "This plan was ultimately rejected by my 'boyfriend.' Because, at this point, he and the female painter unexpectedly learned that the antique dealer used to be a tomb raider!"

"Ugh……"

Zhang Xuan suddenly sighed, "I just got back from my business trip yesterday. Zhang Xuan sent me a WeChat message saying she fell on the stairs and got electrocuted. I thought she was just teasing me about our original plan, but it turns out she solved the case."

She's being controlled by you, isn't she?

She mentioned this unimplemented plan on WeChat, which was probably a hint that I should run away!
That silly woman, she's read too many trashy novels and has no idea what the police are really capable of.

Once something happens, where can you run to?

"Alright! I admit it. After learning that Kou Yun had previously robbed tombs, and taking advantage of his frail health, I changed the plan. I personally went and scared him to death! Only I carried out the plan!"

A knock sounded at the door, and Jiang Banxia went to open it.

Zhang Xuan also stood up at this moment, walked up to Gao He, and stretched out his hands: "I am now turning myself in and striving for leniency."

After Zhang Xuan was taken away, Gao He asked me if there were any evidence or clues in the house.
I shook my head. "It's been almost half a year, how could there still be any clues? Oh right, there's a laptop in the master bedroom, the password is 456321."

All I can say is: Zhang Xuan really is a novelist; he actually wrote down every single plan he could think of—at least six different plans in total.

(End of this chapter)