"This was not a spur-of-the-mont act by the deceased, for there were six glasses in the set, all placed in a box. If it were you, would you search for a glass in the box instead of using the ones readily available? Clearly, there was an unexpected visitor, and the deceased took out a new glass that had never been used before," Nan Zhan said as he picked up the ashtray on the other side of the coffee table, and imdiately a technician retrieved a smoked cigarette butt from it, "The owner of this cigarette was the second person to co into this room."
Jian Si whispered, "Piaopiao also smoked."
"Yes, I know," Nan Zhan nodded. "The deceased usually smoked won’s cigarettes, while this strong-slling cigarette is a favorite among n."
"But how do you know that the person who drank water and the one who smoked are not the sa person?"
"Because of habits. Look, the position of the glass is directly facing the guest sofa, while the ashtray faces the single sofa on the other side. If you are visiting soone else’s house, would you drink water on this sofa only to move to the other side to smoke? Typically, people keep their glass wherever they sit, and even if they move around, they would return to sit in front of their glass," Nan Zhan pointed out. "This glass belongs to the last person to arrive here; he did not drink from this glass, and shortly thereafter, he killed the deceased. Since the deceased was very tidy, she would not leave the glass unattended after the guest left, thus the owner of the glass was the last visitor here."
"Now we need to find the three individuals who had visited the deceased’s residence, and one of them must be the murderer."
Everyone was stunned, surprised but also admiring; from such ordinary details, he was able to deduce so precisely—it was no wonder he was highly relied upon by the city bureau as a master of deduction.
After Nan Zhan said this, he glanced at Jian Chuan who was still crouched on the floor.
He seed to be silent for a mont, but soon stood up and said calmly, "This cigarette was smoked by ."
"Doctor Jian?" Everyone looked at him in surprise.
Jian Chuan said, "I indeed ca here at noon yesterday because Miss Feng Piaopiao is the girl I am pursuing."
The looks of surprise on everyone’s faces turned to sympathy.
Nan Zhan nodded; he had already noticed earlier that the cigarette pack in Jian Chuan’s pocket had shown its corner due to his squatting—a veteran smoker like him could identify the brand rely by its color. Moreover, he had seen Jian Chuan with Feng Piaopiao in front of a coffee shop that day.
Nan Zhan stated, "To kill out of unrequited love, Doctor Jian indeed has a motive for murder."
"Impossible," Jian Si hurriedly denied. "My elder brother likes Piaopiao very much; he wouldn’t kill her."
"I’m rely stating there’s a motive; I didn’t say he was the murderer. As I clearly explained earlier, the murderer is soone who had sat here intending to drink this water and was known to the deceased. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have allowed him into her ho, nor would she have been strangled without defenses," Nan Zhan furrowed his brow lightly.
"Ni Yuanchen." Jian Si suddenly spoke up, "Ni Yuanchen, he is Piaopiao’s ex-boyfriend. Piaopiao wanted to break up with him, but he didn’t agree and has been harassing and threatening her for the past few days."
Upon hearing this, Nan Yu imdiately sent soone to find this Ni Yuanchen. Currently, he had the most significant motive and was the pri suspect.
While everyone continued to gather evidence, suddenly a sharp cry was heard from outside, followed by a woman in her fifties who rushed in, "My daughter, my daughter."
The police at the door imdiately stopped her; Jian Si recognized her as Feng Piaopiao’s mother, Qin Yan, and behind her was her stepfather, Feng Qingzhong.
"Sorry, you cannot enter," the police blocked the two outside, "You cannot disturb the scene."
"She’s my daughter, why can’t I go in? My poor daughter," the grief-stricken Qin Yan struggled hard to shake off the police’s hold. Jian Si quickly went over to support her, "Auntie, Piaopiao was murdered, so the scene must not be disturbed, otherwise, we can’t catch the murderer."
Qin Yan and Feng Qingzhong both looked at her with shocked expressions, "What? Murder?"
Jian Si pulled the two aside and briefly recounted Nan Zhan’s analysis. Qin Yan was devastated and cried incessantly while Feng Qingzhong, in comparison, was much calr and constantly comforted her.
"Take them back to the police station," Nan Zhan said as he left the scene, and Jian Si followed him.
She asked, "Can we find the owner of that glass?"
Suddenly, Nan Zhan asked, "Did you finish the docunt I sent you?"
"Not yet, I only read a third of it. Did you discover any issues?"
Nan Zhan looked at her intently for a while, "Let ask you another question. Half a year ago, when you were having the wall in your house fixed, besides the construction workers, who else ca into your room? Think carefully and ntion everyone, regardless of who they were or the reason they ca."
Jian Si was puzzled why he brought up this issue again, she scratched her head, "It happened so long ago, I can’t quite rember now. Let think about it."
"Alright, another thing, Feng Piaopiao’s stepfather is suspicious," Nan Zhan lit a cigarette and took a few puffs, "When he first saw Feng Piaopiao’s body, he seed relieved. Even if their relationship was strained, this isn’t a normal reaction to a stepdaughter’s death. If he’s not the murderer, he must have so unspeakable secret."
Jian Si asked in shock, "Unspeakable secret?"
"Your friend is quite attractive, and a man of lascivious nature would most likely have indecent thoughts about her."
"How did you deduce he’s of lascivious nature?"
Nan Zhan took a puff of his cigarette, "There were six police officers in the room, only one of whom was a female officer. His first glance upon stepping through the door was at that female officer and then at you. Shouldn’t a normal person be more concerned about his stepdaughter in such a situation? Moreover, he has a strong scent of cologne, and his hair and clothes are ticulously grood; for soone his age, if that’s not suggestive of a libertine nature, then what is?"
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