Chapter 217

Chapter 217 - 217 210 Its So Hard for Xie Shang to Chase His Wife Chapter 217: 210: It’s So Hard for Xie Shang to Chase His Wife Miss Wen (First Update) Chapter 217: 210: It’s So Hard for Xie Shang to Chase His Wife Miss Wen (First Update) Old Lady Zhao was a bully towards the weak but crumbled in front of the strong. With Xie Shang present, she didn’t dare to speak ill of Wen Changling anymore, and instead wailed about how her son’s life was hard and his death was wrongful.

Wen Changling didn’t want to go back with Qin Qi, as she would definitely be interrogated about her relationship with Xie Shang, so she left with him instead.

Once they were out of the police station, Xie Shang let go of her hand.

“If the police call you in for questioning again, have a lawyer accompany you. If you don’t want to find me, you can look for another lawyer. I’ll send you the number.”

He must have come straight from the law firm, as he was dressed in formal attire.

The former Boss Xie had now become Lawyer Xie, because of her; he was doing something he didn’t like. Although it wasn’t her intention, the harsh words from before had indeed come true; the son was paying for the father’s debts.

“Aren’t you busy?”

“Busy.”

“Then don’t waste time on me.”

“It’s not a waste of time,” Xie Shang looked at her, his pupils reflecting the sunlight and becoming as beautifully colored as pure amber, “it’s an excuse for me to see you.”

Wen Changling fell silent.

When she was sober, she always struggled, wrestled with her feelings. She couldn’t help herself, but her reason wouldn’t let her go. She didn’t want to stay in this world for anyone, let alone the son of an enemy.

“Where are you headed now?”

“Huaqi.”

Xie Shang asked, “Will you take my car?”

“No, I have my own car,” Wen Changling said with a distant look, “I’ll be going first.”

Xie Shang stood still, watching her cross the street, get into her car, and drive further and further away.

Miss Wen is so hard to pursue.

*****

After the Qin Family left, Lin Yaoping was deep in thought.

“Captain Lin,” Zhang Qian came to ask, “is there something you’ve found?”

Lin Yaoping didn’t have many clues, but he had an intuition: “Qin Qi and Qin Ke are too similar.”

Zhang Qian agreed, “They do look very alike.”

The only difference was a mole; they were so similar that one could easily be mistaken for the other.

Lin Yaoping felt that Qin Ke’s past criminal record also needed to be examined thoroughly once more. Qin Ke had been imprisoned once before for intentional harm resulting in disability, and at that time, he had confessed to the charges voluntarily.

“Guo Dan,” Lin Yaoping said, “go investigate the prescriptions that Liu Wenhua and Qin Ke used for their medicine, as well as the source of the medicine.”

“OK.”

The next day.

The autopsy report came out, confirming that Qin Ke died of poisoning. The toxicologist detected poisonous components in his stomach contents: Hooked Cymbidium alkaloids.

Hooked Cymbidium alkaloids are a strong neurotoxin that, once ingested, causes paralysis of the motor nerve endings, suppresses the respiratory center, and ultimately leads to death due to paralysis of the respiratory system. Qin Ke’s autopsy results were consistent with symptoms of poisoning by Hooked Cymbidium alkaloids: congestion in the organs, myocardial rupture, and deep red flowing blood in the ventricles.

The Hooked Cymbidium alkaloids are present in the evergreen woody vines of the Family Loganiaceae, Hooked Cymbidium genus.

“The common folk also call it Broken Heart Grass,” the forensic expert explained as he shared images during the case briefing, “The Hooked Cymbidium is toxic from root to stem, leaves, flowers—all of it.”

The forensic expert added information about the growth conditions and distribution areas of Hooked Cymbidium.

“In addition, other drug components were detected in Qin Ke’s stomach contents. I consulted with experts in traditional Chinese medicine to speculate the prescription, and several of the medicine ingredients are used for regulating menstruation and replenishing blood and qi.”

Guo Dan immediately guessed, “Is this Liu Wenhua’s medicine?”

“That’s possible,” the forensic expert continued, “One of the herbs is honeysuckle. The Hooked Cymbidium Flower and honeysuckle look alike; there have been quite a few cases of mistakingly eating or using Hooked Cymbidium Flower for honeysuckle.”

That day, the police went to the Qin Family house for another search and found medicine residue in the outdoor potted plants, confirming the forensic expert’s speculation—the residue indeed contained Hooked Cymbidium Flower and honeysuckle.

The police summoned Liu Wenhua, Shen Ru, and the doctor who prescribed the medicine for questioning.

The prescribing doctor vehemently assured that he could never mistake honeysuckle for Hooked Cymbidium Flower, never grab the wrong medicine, saying that it was an insult to his professional integrity. Furthermore, Liu Wenhua’s medicine was not the first time he had prescribed it, it had always been the same prescription, and there had never been any issues before.

This prescribing doctor was also a well-known traditional Chinese medicine practitioner with no animosity towards the Qin Family.

Guo Dan took another statement from Shen Ru.

Shen Ru said, “The madam usually takes her medicine in the afternoon, and Mr. Er in the morning. If Mr. Er wants to sleep in, there’s no need for me to prepare the medicine, and I wouldn’t get them mixed up.”

“Then how did Qin Ke end up taking Liu Wenhua’s medicine?”

Shen Ru pondered for a moment, then suddenly remembered something: “The day Mr. Er had an accident, the madam’s medicine was prepared in the morning. The madam was going out, so she asked me to prepare it in the morning. After I made it, I left it to warm in the kitchen. When I returned from shopping, the medicine had been drunk.” She suddenly widened her eyes with surprise and panic, “Could Mr. Er have drunk it?”

What Shen Ru said also matched Liu Wenhua’s statement.

“Yesterday, I was going to a flower arrangement class, and since I wasn’t sure what time it would end, I asked the nanny to prepare the medicine beforehand.”

Lin Yaoping asked, “Did you drink the medicine then?”

Liu Wenhua replied, “No, the nanny might have forgotten, and when I left the house, I didn’t see the medicine in the kitchen.”

At present, it could be confirmed that the medicine Qin Ke drank was Liu Wenhua’s. But there was no conclusive evidence yet whether the prescribing doctor mixed up honeysuckle with Hooked Cymbidium Flower, nor could it be ruled out that someone added Hooked Cymbidium Flower to the decoction while cooking the medicine, or that it was pre-inserted into the medicine pack.

Every member of the Qin Family could not be ruled out of suspicion. He Dongzhou, who had stayed overnight at the hospital two days before Qin Ke was poisoned, was also not exempted, and though summoned for questioning, no useful information was uncovered. For the moment, Liu Wenhua and Shen Ru were the prime suspects, but without evidence, they could not be criminally detained; after being summoned for 24 hours, they had to be released.

Qin Qi visibly withered over these two days.

The murder case of the Qin Family hadn’t been made public, fearing that it would negatively affect the company. But Chen Qiuchan, as Qin Qi’s mentor and close acquaintance, knew all about the Qin Family’s situation, and he called Qin Qi into his office.

“Has there been any progress with your brother’s case?”

Qin Qi shook his head, his expression one of profound grief.

“Offer my condolences.”

Chen Qiuchan didn’t have much that could offer comfort, as far as he knew, the Qin brothers had a good relationship.