I raise furry animals and fly them to my motherland.

Chapter 307 Eyewitness Account of Fish
Ji Xuehui pulled up the deceased's file and showed it to Xu Ying: "The deceased was 28 years old, named Lin Qing, and was an experimental worker at Xishan Pharmaceutical Research Company. The project she was in charge of was the research on the medicinal properties of Xishan Snow Lotus."

Upon hearing about snow lotus research, Xu Ying couldn't help but think of Professor Ye, who was researching snow lotus's ability to inhibit tumor cell metastasis.

Last time Xu Ying came to Xishan, she helped Professor Ye catch the thieves who were stealing snow lotus from Xishan. Professor Ye's laboratory gave her a reward of 150,000 yuan.

Xu Ying couldn't help but ask, "What's the relationship between this pharmaceutical research company and Professor Ye's medical laboratory?"

"It's a collaborative relationship because the Snow Lotus of Xishan is a medicinal plant unique to China. Both parties' research is confidential."

Ji Xuehui explained.

"According to the company, Lin Qing has not come to work for twenty days. She sent a resignation email to the company's HR department twenty-one days ago and has not made any further contact since."

Xu Ying frowned: "This is too sudden. Could someone have sent her that resignation email?"

“We checked the email’s sender and found that it was sent by Lin Qing using her usual laptop.”

Ji Xuehui shrugged: "Because the project involved trade secrets, the company suspected that Lin Qing had stolen the trade secrets and absconded. They were even preparing to report Lin Qing to the police and sue him for being a commercial spy. But they didn't expect that Lin Qing was already dead."

Xu Ying seemed thoughtful. "How did the key and pendant found by the otter and the taimen help your police in solving the case?"

"We still have no leads on the key that the otter found. We extracted two different fingerprints from it, one of which belongs to Lin Qing, and the other one has not yet been matched with any person in the database."

Ji Xuehui rubbed her temples: "We've already compared it with Lin Qing's colleagues and friends, and none of them match. The shape of the key is the common small key that can be found in laboratories, warehouses, and locked cabinets; many people have it."

"It's even possible that it was dropped by a visitor or delivery employee who had been to the company. Finding out who lost the key and what it was for is like finding a needle in a haystack."

Xu Ying felt the case suddenly become increasingly perplexing. "What about the pendant? Are there any clues about it?"

"We showed the pendant that the taimen brought up to us to Lin Qing's colleagues, and some of them said that it was a gift from Lin Qing's boyfriend."

According to official reports from China, 50%-60% of homicides were committed by acquaintances.

Xu Ying frowned: "Where is Lin Qing's boyfriend?"

“That’s the problem,” Ji Xuehui said, her face full of worry.

"Nobody knows who Lin Qing's boyfriend is because Lin Qing has a cold personality and is a research fanatic who buries herself in experiments. She always keeps to herself in the lab and is somewhat unsociable."

Ji Xuehui said helplessly, "We checked the design of the pendant and it is a new model from the Lung Tai Fook brand. However, the pendant that Lin Qing is wearing is a fake."

"It's difficult to trace the purchase channels of counterfeit goods. You can buy them from any individual seller by simply adding them on WeChat."

Ji Xuehui glanced at the vast frozen lake: "We, the police, believe the key lies in who Lin Qing's boyfriend is."

Xu Ying followed her gaze to the lake: "When I left the frozen lake last time, I asked the animals to ask each other if any of their companions witnessed the crime scene."

"Now I'll call them out to see if any animals have found any new clues."

As Xu Ying spoke, she threw a handful of fish food that she had used to feed the taimen last time into the lake.

Previously, whenever she scattered fish food, fish would come up to eat it shortly afterward, because food is especially scarce in winter. But now, almost ten minutes have passed, and there's still no sign of them.

"Huh? How could that be?"

Xu Ying changed positions again and scattered some fish food into the lake.

no response.

She continued until she scattered all the fish food she had brought into the lake.

Still no movement.

Xu Ying scratched her head in confusion, "Where did the taimen go? Didn't they rise to the surface so quickly before?"

"Or are they sleeping right now?"

Xu Ying was about to turn and leave when she said, "Never mind, I'll go ask the otter."

Ji Xuehui glanced at the lake and quickly grabbed Xu Ying: "Hey, bubbles are coming out! They've appeared!"

Xu Ying turned around and saw the scene of "fish heads swarming".

Xu Ying squatted down by the lake, puzzled. "What were you all doing just now? Were you having a party?"

A small taimen said, "No, the fish food that Station Master Xu makes smells so good. We've been squatting in the lake, waiting for the fish food to sink."
Great-Grandma said we have to trick Station Chief Xu out of all the fish food before we show ourselves.
"Wow--"

As soon as the little taimen finished speaking, it was whipped aside by the tail of a much larger taimen.

The one who arrived was none other than the ancestor of the taimen clan, the taimen grandmother.

[Station Chief Xu, don't listen to that brat's nonsense. Children speak without thinking.]
"Alright, stop explaining, I understand." Xu Ying patted the fish food crumbs off her hands. The taimen grandma was really cunning.

"Now that I've offered up all the fish food, you should tell me if you've found any clues, right?"

[Yes, yes.] Grandma Tailubber said, blowing bubbles: [Quick, bring me the witness fish!]
Soon, several large taimen drove a group of smaller fish over.

This is like herding a prisoner.

The small fish that were herded over were a group of naked barbels, which locals also call mountain whitebait or stone flower fish. Their flesh is very delicious and rich in fat... Xu Ying's thoughts wandered further and further, and she quickly stopped herself from thinking about it. After all, these small fish that had been herded over looked pitiful enough.

[Dear site administrator, this is how it is.]
The alpine whitebait, trembling amidst the taimen, said: "[A long time ago, probably when the lake was frozen over, with only a few holes in the ice, our family was diving in the lake when we suddenly heard a thud. A long, heavy thing fell into the lake through a hole in the ice.]"
[It turned out to be the carcass of a two-legged creature!]
We were immediately terrified and scattered. I swam frantically to the edge of the ice hole.
[A man wearing glasses was seen crouching beside an ice hole, panting.]
Xu Ying asked with surprise, "So it was a man wearing glasses who threw the body into the icy lake?"

[That must be him!]
The mountain whitebait flicked its tail: [Aren't most fish afraid of people? But this two-legged creature was so startled when it suddenly darted to the surface that it fell backward onto the ground.]
"Is he afraid of you? He reacted so strongly to a fish; he must have done something wrong."

Xu Ying had a vague feeling that finding the murderer was on the horizon. "Little Fish, Little Fish, can you describe in detail what he looks like and what color clothes he's wearing?"

(End of this chapter)