That beautiful woman, having poisoned three faithless men to death with her gudu (Gu poison), ultimately perished by her own venom.

In truth, the woman was both detestable and pitiable; all she had ever done was strive to win a man's genuine heart. Yet, she never considered that a man's heart belongs to no one, and the same is true for a woman. The world itself is inherently imperfect; demanding perfection only ensures that one ends up being the one who is hurt.

Suddenly, I felt a pair of eyes secretly fixed upon me within the room. I didn't know what they intended or where they were hidden, but this very uncertainty filled me with a helpless dread, like a small lamb wandering into a wolf pack, constantly under threat of being torn apart.

I looked around tensely, but there was nothing but flowers, flowers everywhere.

Just then, the proprietress approached and inquired, "Sir, are you buying these flowers for your home or to give as a gift?"

From this single sentence, one could tell the proprietress was a shrewd businesswoman. Earlier, the young girl had asked me, 'What flower would you like to buy?' so I naturally replied, 'Just looking,' because that was genuinely my intention. But the proprietress's phrasing was different; my first thought was whether I was buying them for home or as a gift, an impulse that had already tacitly confirmed the intent to purchase.

I smiled faintly and said, "Do you have any Hucì?"

Hucì, also known as Shòutíngmù (Longevity Tree), generally lives for over a hundred years, symbolizing health and longevity when given to elders. I had long wanted to bring something for Xiaoxuan’s parents, and finding myself in the flower shop today, I immediately thought of it.

The proprietress offered a professional smile and gestured toward the back of the shop. "The Hucì are in the back; go pick one yourself."

Entering the rear of the shop, the Jacaranda tree was still as lush as ever, yet times had changed, and that poor woman would never return.

A dozen pots of Hucì were placed on the empty ground to the left of the Jacaranda. I walked over, crouched down, and examined them one by one. For some reason, I turned back to look at the Jacaranda again, feeling that the tree was somehow different. I approached it and looked closely.

The Jacaranda was densely covered in foliage, nearly ten meters tall, its canopy spreading over more than half the courtyard. I circled the tree once but found nothing, yet the feeling in my heart had not faded. I couldn't help thinking to myself: Could Qi Wan's lingering spirit be causing this?

It seemed I needed to call Xiao Cuo over when I had the chance, to see if his dubious detection plate was of any use. If Qi Wan’s shade truly lingered, I would have him perform an exorcism.

Thinking of this, I couldn't help a self-deprecating laugh. I am a police officer of the new era; when did I start becoming so superstitious?

It was then that I noticed small cards, or similar trinkets commonly sold in the market, sparsely hanging from the branches. The cards were somewhat grayish-yellow, suggesting they had been there for some time—likely left by Qi Wan back then.

I had visited this place before, but because these small cards were similar in size to the leaves and mostly yellowed, I hadn't noticed them. I counted eighteen in total.

The proprietress walked in then and, seeing me staring at the tree, teased, "Weren't you looking for Hucì? Why are you suddenly interested in this tree? Even if I wanted to sell it to you, you couldn't move it."

I smiled and pointed at the small cards above. "Did you hang these things up?"

The proprietress moved closer to look and shook her head. "No, I didn't even see them until you mentioned it; they blend right in with the leaves."

"Can I have these cards?"

The proprietress’s expression became slightly puzzled. I quickly explained, "My child is collecting these things; I want to take them back to make him happy."

I thought my excuse was seamless, but the proprietress frowned more deeply. "A child? How old? You look like a young man yourself; you actually have a child?"

I laughed awkwardly and then sighed. "Ah, there's no helping it. As soon as I graduated, my family started urging me to marry, so my child is already almost six."

The proprietress looked enlightened. "Having children early means enjoying their blessings early; you are fortunate."

"So, I can take these down?"

"Go ahead and take them. They aren't mine anyway; do as you please."

I thanked her profusely and stretched my arm up, carefully taking down all eighteen cards one by one.

Without pausing to examine them closely, I dumped them all into my bag, selected one particularly handsome Hucì, paid, and left.

Leaving the flower shop, I drove to the Wanxiang Street Police Substation. As soon as I entered, a familiar feeling washed over me. The feeling of a local substation is entirely different from that of the municipal bureau; it operates on a 'small but fully equipped' model, giving off a warm, cozy vibe. Just thinking about my own time stationed there filled me with warmth.

Upon hearing I was from the Municipal Bureau, the duty officer was very welcoming, and I was happy to chat with him for a while before explaining my purpose and getting down to business.

"Old Li, I’m handling the investigation into the rental apartment homicide case. The City Bureau’s Fourth Criminal Investigation Team is currently coordinating with your precinct to locate someone. I need to contact the precinct's lead officer. I could have called Hong Yang beforehand, but anyone who knows me knows I’d rather take a detour than see someone I dislike."

"Oh, no wonder you came here; you have an assignment. For this case, the precinct assigned Officer Zhao Neng to cooperate with the City Bureau. I have his number here; I'll find it for you right away."

Duty Officer Li quickly found Zhao Neng’s number. I made the call immediately. "Officer Zhao, this is Wang Lei from the City Bureau handling the rental apartment murder case. Where are you now? I'll head over immediately."

There was a pause on the other end, then, "Wang Lei? Never heard of you. Isn't Officer Hong Yang handling this case? Who exactly are you?"

I couldn't help but smile wryly. I never expected that fellow Hong Yang would completely sideline me and claim to be the person in charge. But since people there only knew Hong Yang initially, there was nothing I could do. I resigned myself: "I know Officer Hong Yang; he’s a colleague from the City Bureau, and we are working this case together. If you don’t believe me, ask him... Forget it, where are you now? I’ll just come over; seeing your credentials will clear things up."

At this point, Old Li said, "Let me speak to him," and snatched the phone. "Old Zhao, it's Old Li. Officer Wang is from the City Bureau; I've seen his badge, he’s legitimate. Talk to him again." He then handed the phone back.

Zhao Neng made an 'oh' sound, offered a few pleasantries, and then said, "We are near the Xingfu An Elderly Care Center. Just come to the main gate, and I'll send someone to pick you up."

"Great, I'll be right there."

After hanging up, I asked Old Li for directions to the Xingfu An Elderly Care Center and drove over.

When I arrived, a young officer quickly ran over. I opened my car door. "You must be here to meet me?"

The young officer nodded. I beckoned him over. "Get in!"

The young officer sat in the car and exclaimed, "The City Bureau guys are different; your car is even nicer than our precinct chief's! I’m so envious!"

I despise 'Wang Xuyang'-style young men whose speech is full of clichés from TV shows. I said without mercy, "We must always remember to serve the people, putting hardship first and enjoyment last. Understand?"

"Hehe, I understand. The hard workers go first, and the enjoyers hide in the back. Who doesn't understand that?" The young officer was endlessly amused.

If this weren't the first meeting, I would have slapped him. What nonsense was this? It seemed Zhao Neng couldn't be much better. I instantly regretted coming, thinking I should have stayed in the office and enjoyed myself in the back.

Just then, the young officer pointed to the side. "We're here. Instructor Zhao is over there."

So, the man was an instructor as well. I wanted to see just how far his political ideological work had gone.

At that moment, inside a shop on the street, a man in a police uniform was questioning the shop owner. The young officer enthusiastically led me over and introduced us: "This is our Instructor, Officer Zhao. This is Officer Wang from the City Bureau."

Zhao Neng was about my height, with darker skin, probably from years of grassroots work. He said to the young officer, "You're dismissed; get back to your duties."

The young officer gave a cheerful salute and disappeared from my sight.

I chuckled. "Truly, no weak soldiers under a strong general. Instructor Zhao is formidable."

Zhao Neng seemed not to notice my sarcasm and immediately began, "We don't have concrete news on this person yet, but after a few days of investigation, we have determined that this person might not be living in the Wanxiang Street area."

"If there's no concrete news, how can you be sure he isn't living in this area?" My impression of him and his young subordinate wasn't great, so my tone wasn't very polite, though I kept the surface level, appearing to discuss the matter.

"Because very few people wear plaid shirts nowadays. At least in our inquiries, very few people recalled seeing anyone in plaid, and if they did, they would remember it clearly..."

"So, someone saw him?"

"Not him, but the plaid shirt. Three different people only remembered seeing the plaid shirt, and only once, but none of them noted his physical appearance."

"And the timing?"

"The same day as the incident."

It seemed the investigation hadn't stalled; they were just one step away from success! Recalling my earlier rudeness, I felt a bit apologetic and said, "Old Zhao, I was just eager about the case, so I asked questions hastily. Please don't mind me."

Zhao Neng smiled. "Officer Wang, you are much younger than me. Honestly, when I heard that guy speak, I wanted to find a rag to stuff his mouth with. Are you letting your affection for Hong Yang cloud your judgment?"

My pretense exposed, I smiled sheepishly, and my opinion of him instantly improved.

"What about Officer Hong Yang? What is he doing?" Since this fellow had tossed me aside, I intended to investigate his movements thoroughly. If I caught him slipping up, he wouldn't get any mercy from me.

"He's busy, even busier than us. He's not only canvassing the streets but also gathering footage from various surveillance cameras. The City Bureau colleagues are truly dedicated."

Oh, I felt a little disappointed. I hadn't expected that guy to be so diligent at work; he was cut from the same mold as Zhang Jiewei.

Just then, Zhao Neng’s phone rang. He glanced at it and said, "Speak of the devil; it's Officer Hong calling."

Zhao Neng answered and told me, "Good news, Officer Hong found the person!"

I immediately felt excited but didn't forget to gloat a little. "It's a good thing I showed up, or he wouldn't have found him."

Zhao Neng paused, then slapped my shoulder heavily. "What, you and Officer Hong aren't getting along? Once the case is solved, I'll treat you both to drinks, and we can bury the hatchet."

"Hey, the higher-ups strictly forbid drinking. I think we should skip it. If you're treating, you treat me, but forget about that other guy." With Old Jiang, I didn't need to hide anything.

"We'll drink on Sunday, just a get-together. Whatever trouble arises, I, as an older brother, will cover it."

At the Wanxiang Street Police Substation, a man in his late twenties was being questioned by Ding Qingyuan. Hong Yang was nowhere in sight—perhaps he deliberately avoided me because he knew I had arrived.

Ding Qingyuan nodded when he saw me enter, then resumed his questioning.

I glanced at the man. His complexion was pale, his build neither fat nor thin, and his eyes held a hint of panic. He wasn't wearing a plaid shirt now, but he still wore that hat—it must be him.

"Officer, I already told you, I only came that evening to eat. After eating, I took a cab home. I didn't do anything else," the man said with resignation.

"Who did you eat with? Who were you with when you left?" Ding Qingyuan’s interrogation technique was decent; he didn't miss standard details.

I glanced at the notes. This man’s name was Xu Jinping, a local resident living on Binjiang Road.

Then, Xu Jinping answered, "I ate with a few friends. We went our separate ways when we left because we weren't heading in the same direction."

"Which friends? Names, phone numbers, addresses?"

"Wang Feng, Tan Zhixiang, Xue Ming, Li Wei. Their numbers are on my cell phone; I can pull them up, and you can call and check."

Xu Jinping unlocked his phone and recited four numbers. Ding Qingyuan wrote them down one by one, then called them. He frowned; it seemed the man wasn't lying.

I interjected from the side, "Ask them what time they dispersed."

Ding Qingyuan made another call to inquire and then told me, "Around 9:30 PM."

Around 9:30 PM, maybe a little later, but certainly not past ten. The man appeared on camera a few minutes past ten in the evening...

My expression darkened, and I suddenly snapped, "Tell me, where exactly did you go after dinner?"

Xu Jinping flinched, his face becoming even more flustered.

"N-nothing, I just took a cab home, really! Don't you believe me? Ask my wife?"

I gave a cold smile. "Hand over your wife's phone number."

Xu Jinping scrolled through his phone, then suddenly looked up at us. "Please, just this once, forgive me. This is the first time I’ve done this; please don't let my wife find out. I’ll never dare to do it again."

Hearing that, I knew this guy was probably about to start weaving another lie, but one thing was certain: he hadn't gone straight home after dinner, and the person on the surveillance camera was definitely him.

This meant he had strong motive for suspicion, having followed the deceased He Shuhua.

Sensing the gravity of the atmosphere, Xu Jinping suddenly fell to his knees. "I was wrong! I shouldn't have gone to see a prostitute. Please, you must not let my wife know. I’ll accept any fine!"

Going to see a prostitute—this guy still thought he could talk his way out of it!

Ding Qingyuan slammed the table hard and roared, "Sit up straight! What exactly did you do?"

"I-I really just went to see a prostitute! If you don't believe me, go ask the prostitute."

No way, did this guy really go there for that?

Xu Jinping said, "We had a good time that night, and the lady seemed to like me too, so I kept her number. You can ask her."

I took the phone number. In matters like this, simply asking wasn't enough. I immediately left the interrogation room, found Zhao Neng, handed him the number, and said, "You’re familiar with this area; I’ll have to trouble you to make a trip."

Twenty minutes later, Zhao Neng brought in a young woman dressed seductively.

Upon seeing her, Xu Jinping immediately cried out, "It's her! It's her!"

The young woman suddenly cursed, "You bastard, why did you drag me into this? I don't know you!"

Xu Jinping was nearly in tears. He leaned forward and pleaded, "We met a few days ago, didn't we? How can you not remember? You must remember, right?"

At this point, Zhao Neng intervened. "Alright, let's put your petty business aside for now. We are investigating a murder case. You both understand the seriousness of this matter, so you must tell us exactly what happened that night, truthfully. Otherwise, the crime of perjury is far more serious than that small matter. Understand?"

He was indeed a grassroots leader; his words went straight to the core issue. The young woman thought for a moment, then lowered her head and whispered, "Yes, he came to see me that night, but we didn't do anything; we just chatted for a while."

Xu Jinping quickly chimed in, "Yes, yes, we just chatted."

Although I felt deeply disappointed, I pressed on, "Chatted until what time?"

As soon as I asked, I regretted it. What kind of question was that? It was too suggestive.

Zhao Neng quickly commanded, "Both of you, stay quiet. Write it down separately, clearly stating the start and end times."

Hearing that, I felt ashamed. Compared to these seniors, I was still too green; I needed to constantly improve my professional skills in handling details.

The two wrote down their times separately. Looking at them, the man wrote, "10:25 to 11:30," while the woman wrote, "10:30 to 11:25."

I observed this and mused that men and women perceive time differently, then immediately suppressed that damned thought.

According to these times, Xu Jinping should have met the woman before 10:30 PM. The time he appeared on camera was just after 10:10 PM. The difference was only about twenty minutes, which was enough to rule out the possibility of him committing the murder.

Zhao Neng saw the shift in our expressions and knew it was a dead end. He said, "You can both go. Be more careful in the future. We'll let this slide this time because you cooperated, but next time, we won't be so lenient."

The two immediately headed for the door. Just as Xu Jinping reached the exit, he suddenly turned back. "I heard there's a reward for providing clues. Is that true?"