Chapter 301: The Character of Deng Xuemei

2022-05-20

Old Zhang and Lao Li were still polite as they saw Zhao Mingkun and me out of the apartment. I glanced at the large mourning tent in the distance, its doors wide open, sitting silently under the sky. In my mind, I pictured an old scene: late at night, Lao Deng suddenly falls ill. Instinctively, he reaches for the medicine bottle beside his desk.

In his last years, Lao Deng knew his time was running out. He always kept his medication within arm’s reach, so he could grab it right away if anything happened. But the attack came at night. When he reached out in the darkness, his hand fumbled and the bottle crashed to the floor.

At that moment, Lao Deng understood that if he didn’t get his medicine fast enough, it might be the end for him. He tried to turn his body toward the wall, hoping to bang on it and get someone’s attention. But his pain was overwhelming. He couldn’t even call out, let alone manage to make any noise.

He curled up from the pain, helpless. When illness strikes like a landslide, there’s just no time to do much else.

So, while countless families slept that night, Lao Deng died on his bed without a sound.

As I walked out, I ran my fingers through my hair, mulling over this theory. From Lao Li’s account, it seemed easy to reach such a conclusion. But the more I thought about it, the more something felt off.

Lao Deng had battled this illness for years—he knew how dangerous it was. Someone like him wouldn’t leave his medicine sitting on a desk where it could fall, especially in the dark. That’s just asking for trouble.

If it were me, I’d keep a small box on my bed for water and any medicine I might need, so a sudden attack wouldn’t catch me off guard. That’d be the smart move. Lao Li said Lao Deng was educated. Surely he’d think of something so basic.

Which means that bottle didn’t just disappear on its own—someone must’ve taken it.

I glanced at Zhao Mingkun. “I keep thinking Deng Xuemei isn’t as simple as she looks. We should check out her workplace. Who knows, maybe we’ll dig up something unexpected.”

Zhao Mingkun rubbed his eyes and stretched. “But didn’t we already decide she’s the killer? If that’s the case, then Deng Xuemei really isn’t someone to underestimate. Think about it—a woman who could kill over twenty people? There’s nothing ordinary about her.”

He paused, then added, “If this were back in the day, Shi Huacheng would never have let ‘talent’ like this slip by. He’d do everything he could to bring her under his wing.”

I shrugged and stayed silent.

From our short chat, you could start to piece together a picture of Deng Xuemei. She seemed stubborn, clever and tough—facing off with someone like her wouldn’t be easy. There were still three women alive. Would Deng Xuemei try to kill them too? Or did she sense she was already being watched, and now was lying low?

No one knows for sure, but one thing’s clear—there’s something up with Deng Xuemei.

We made our way to Gangtai Pharmaceuticals to ask about Deng Xuemei. The manager from the HR department came to see us after we explained what we needed. He told us to wait in the reception room, then left.

With a company this big, slow efficiency comes as no surprise. We waited an hour before the HR manager finally showed up again, carrying a stack of files. “Here’s Deng Xuemei’s information. If you’ve got questions, ask away—we’re pretty busy around here.”

I shrugged and took the files. Turns out, Deng Xuemei was already an intern here before she even graduated university. After finishing school, she jumped straight into a full-time job and worked here over seven years. But a few months ago, she quit. Nobody seemed to know where she’d gone since.

“Wait!” I interrupted. “Do you still have any bioengineering grads from Dongxing University from seven years ago working here?”

The HR manager shot me a look. “I have no idea. Why don’t you check the files yourself?”

He seemed in no mood to help. So I said, “If you don’t want your little secret with your female employee getting out, you’d better stay and answer my questions properly.”

“What?” The manager instinctively took a step back. “What are you saying? That’s slander—you know I could sue you, right?”

I tapped the documents lightly, speaking calmly. “When I first saw you, your hairstyle was neat, but now it’s kind of a mess. And your tie is done up tighter than before. That tells me you fixed it right before you walked out.”

I pointed at his neck. “Looks like things got pretty crazy in there. As a manager you’d have your own office. There are tiny lipstick smudges on your shirt collar, so someone kissed your neck, but you didn’t clean up well afterward.”

His face stiffened.

I shrugged and went on, “Look at your pants—there’s dust and some new creases. That just happened. The curtains in your office were drawn and I only saw your secretary inside.”

“For someone so high and mighty, you wouldn’t be the one to personally deliver files unless your secretary couldn’t do it herself. Looks like today wasn’t her day. Right?”

By now, his face was bright red. He wanted to retort but no words came.

I continued, “You were gone nearly an hour. Given your age and shape, I’ll take a wild guess. The way you’re walking looks unsteady. I’d suggest picking up some Liuwei Dihuang pills or Dami pills. Might do you good.”

Both Zhao Mingkun and the manager stared at me, dumbfounded, as if they couldn’t believe I’d guessed all that from the moment I laid eyes on him. His first step back and the speechless look said enough—I wasn’t wrong.

I shrugged. “So here are your two options. First, I can just tell your wife. Judging by your ring, you’ve been married for years. Second, help me find out if any Dongxing University bioengineering majors from seven years ago are still at your company. Talk to them, see if anyone was in the same class as Deng Xuemei.”

He stood silent for a long moment before finally saying, “Uh, haha, I’ll take care of it right away. Just give me a minute.”

As he walked out, he kept glancing at his shirt collar, clearly checking for imaginary lipstick marks.

I grinned at him, “By the way, that lipstick thing? I made it up—your shirt’s clean.”

“Ah, haha…” he chuckled, scurrying off.

Zhao Mingkun gave me a thumbs up. “Impressive, man!”

I waved it off. “You can learn a lot about a person just by paying attention. It’s amazing what people let slip.”

“So nobody has secrets in front of you?” Zhao Mingkun joked.

I shook my head, “Not really. People’s thoughts are way more complicated than that. I just made a bold guess based on his appearance and how long he stayed locked up in his office. It paid off.”

“Tell me,” I said, gazing out the glass window at white coats bustling in the hallway. “With skills like this, maybe I belong in HR myself.”

This time, the manager was much quicker. Less than ten minutes later, he came back with a woman. “This is Song Ying. She joined the company with Deng Xuemei—they were in the same dorm seven years ago. She’s here to answer your questions.”

Song Ying nodded.

The manager added, “If that’s all, I’ll be going. Let me know if you need anything.” Then, halfway out the door, he turned to Song Ying, “Make sure you tell the truth. Just answer their questions honestly.”

He was clearly feeling a bit paranoid now.

I smiled and asked, “You used to share a dorm with Deng Xuemei?”

“That’s right,” Song Ying replied. “We were dorm mates for two years in college.”

“Just two years? Isn’t college four years? Why only two?” I pressed.

Song Ying nodded. “Yeah. Later on, she got a boyfriend and moved out to live with him up until graduation.”

I stroked my chin and said, “When someone mentions Deng Xuemei, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?”

“Deng Xuemei?” Song Ying’s eyes drifted to the right—a dead giveaway she was searching her memory.

“She seemed pretty well-off.” Song Ying answered.

“Wealthy?”

I hadn’t expected that. It completely caught me off guard.