Captain Lu was aloof again today.

Chapter 107 Desserts
Wei Qingsong glanced at it briefly. The thermos was a popular style at the moment, with a smart temperature display and an estimated capacity of around 500ml.

The skinny man nodded like a chicken pecking at rice: "Yes, that's the cup. Master Cheng brought it from home. He only drinks the water from his own cup."

"Besides drinking water, has he eaten anything else?" Wei Qingsong turned her gaze away and asked again.

The man with the earring thought for a moment, then clapped his hands and said, "Oh right, he also ate the snacks that Little Rainbow brought!"

As he spoke, he turned and walked to the cabinet behind him, opened the drawer, and was about to reach for it when he suddenly remembered something. He withdrew his hand as if he had been electrocuted and said awkwardly, "It's this box of pastries inside. Xiao Caihong gave it to us to eat. None of us have eaten it yet, only Master Cheng has."

"Little Rainbow?" Wei Qingsong asked in a questioning tone.

"Yes, she's our shop owner's daughter, named Xu Caihong. We all call her Little Rainbow. She's a music student at Tang University, and she comes to our shop to play the piano every day after class to help attract customers." The man with the earring noticed her confusion and quickly explained in a few words.

"So it was her." Wei Qingsong subconsciously thought of the song "A Girl's Prayer," which was soothing and melodious, like heavenly music.

While they were pondering, police sirens sounded outside the door. It was Chen Jin who had arrived with his men, and the questioning on this side temporarily came to an end.

The municipal police station was nearby, and they responded very quickly.

Forensic personnel donned masks and gloves and began collecting valid physical evidence from the scene.

Chen Jin quickly gathered information about the deceased: "The deceased, Cheng Dafu, male, 47 years old, was the head chef of this restaurant. He was a friendly person and had not had any conflicts with anyone recently. The surveillance video showed that the deceased suddenly collapsed five minutes after finishing his snacks and drinking water."

“Cyanide is an instantaneous poison; small doses are highly toxic and take effect quickly. It seems the problem lies with the snacks and water,” Wei Qingsong pondered.

A forensic officer approached and said, "Captain Lu, we detected traces of poison in the snacks. There were also traces of poison on the lid of the thermos and on the deceased's right hand."

"So, the poison was put in the pastry. Cheng Dafu used his right hand to take the poisoned pastry, ate it, and then used his right hand to unscrew the lid of the thermos, leaving the poison on the lid." Wei Qingsong reconstructed the order in which the deceased handled the food before his death.

"Should we bring Xu Caihong over now?" Chen Jin asked after finishing his notes.

Currently, it appears that the poisoned desserts were provided by Xu Caihong, who is the prime suspect.

Lu Jingming nodded in agreement and added, "After completing the simple registration and statement taking for the customers in the store, they can leave. The staff can stay for now; I have some questions to ask them."

"it is good."

The first person to be questioned was the man with the earring. His name was Ding Gui, and he was a chef's apprentice at the restaurant. He usually assisted Cheng Dafu, and was responsible for simple tasks such as washing fruits and vegetables and cutting vegetables.

"Did the deceased have any conflict with Xu Caihong?" Lu Jingming asked in a deep voice.

"No, Master Cheng has a very good personality and never has any conflicts with anyone. Xiao Caihong is the same; she's usually very gentle and has a great relationship with us."

Ding Gui paused for a moment, then said, "That box of pastries was indeed brought by Xiao Caihong, but that doesn't necessarily mean she poisoned it."

"Just tell us the truth as you know it. Whether she poisoned him or not, we will naturally verify it." Wei Qingsong's tone was calm and his expression was expressionless.

“Alright.” Ding Gui hesitated for a moment, then emphasized again, “You must investigate thoroughly. Xiao Caihong would never poison us.”

The second person to be questioned was the middle-aged man with a mole on his forehead. His name was Wang Yong, and he was the second-in-command and sous chef in the kitchen.

Faced with the same question from Lu Jingming, he gave the same answer as Ding Gui: "Our store has only been open for half a month. How could we have such a deep-seated hatred with Xiao Caihong? Besides, we usually get along very well. In addition to pastries, she has also brought us milk tea several times. I believe that she definitely did this. There must be something fishy about this."

Other employees also expressed their approval of Xiao Caihong's character.

However, the thin man named Ge Taining gave an answer that differed from the others.

“I knew all along that Little Rainbow was no good, but I never expected her to try to poison us.”

Wei Qingsong and Lu Jingming exchanged a glance, then looked up and asked, "Why do you say that?"

"Hmph, others may be kept in the dark, but I saw it with my own eyes. She extorted money from Master Cheng."

All the other employees were called to another place to wait, leaving only the three of them in the kitchen. Ge Taining deliberately lowered his voice, as if afraid of being overheard.

"Oh?" Wei Qingsong's eyes flickered slightly as she pressed, "Extortion? When did this happen? Are you sure you saw it with your own eyes? Does anyone else know about it?"

In the eyes of Ding Gui, Wang Yong, and other employees, Xu Caihong is a gentle, kind, and polite girl.

Wei Qingsong had seen her before when she played the piano in the lobby. She had a gentle and charming appearance, and when praised, she would politely say "thank you".

Could she really be the one who poisoned him?
If Cheng Dafu hadn't been the only one eating snacks at the time, several lives would have been lost.

"Yes, I'm absolutely not lying. It happened last weekend. Last weekend at 10:30 pm, everyone had finished get off work and was going back to the staff dormitory together. I went downstairs to buy cigarettes and saw Xiao Caihong and Cheng Dafu in an alley."

“Cheng Dafu gave her a wad of cash, and I heard her say, ‘This isn’t enough, give me some more,’ and ‘You absolutely must not tell anyone about this.’”

“I didn’t linger there for long, afraid of getting into trouble, so I left quickly. But I’m telling the truth. I don’t know if others know, but I saw it with my own eyes.”

After listening to his account, Wei Qingsong pondered for a moment and said cautiously, "So, to be precise, you saw Xu Caihong asking Cheng Dafu for money, but that probably cannot be called extortion."

Ge Taining thought for a moment, then said without refuting, "That's how it is. I don't know anything else, but I just feel that this girl is not simple."

Wei Qingsong looked up at him and smiled faintly: "Your other colleagues have a very high opinion of Xiao Caihong."

"You can know a person's face but not their heart; they're just too young," Ge Taining said, feigning profundity.

Wei Qingsong neither agreed nor disagreed.

Xiao Song lifted the curtain and peeked out, saying, "Captain Lu, Sister Wei, the shop owner and Xu Caihong are here."

Xu Caihong was still wearing that white wool dress, and since it was a cool night, she had put a beige trench coat over it.

Upon hearing that Cheng Dafu had died from poisoning, her eyes welled up with tears, and she looked like a pear blossom in the rain.

Upon hearing that the poison had been put in the snacks she had brought, her sorrowful sobs were tinged with urgency as she stammered, "I didn't poison anyone! I didn't hurt anyone!"

The store manager, who looked to be in his forties or fifties and was wearing a brown leather jacket, was also looking anxious: "Officer, my daughter had no grudge against Lao Cheng, how could she possibly poison him? You must investigate this thoroughly and clear my daughter's name!"

(End of this chapter)