He Jingjing covered her face and cried as she said that. Song Lang stepped forward and handed her a piece of tissue, saying, "Miss He, I sympathize with you very much."

"Stop pretending!" He Jingjing grabbed the piece of tissue angrily and blew her nose vigorously.

Song Lang sat back again, "When did you and He Jun get together?"

"We got together a few years ago. This kind of life in which I was kept at home by He Taiyang was too depressing. If I didn't have my little affair with He Jun, I would have gone crazy long ago... Of course, I was also bored with He Jun, this boorish man. I was like a concubine in bygone days who was kept at home by a rich man. I couldn’t go anywhere except for that dark and depressing shop. I could only watch TV in my bedroom most of the time. He Taiyang restricted me from using computers or phones. He was afraid that I’d meet a young guy over the Internet. That rotten old man got jealous really easily!"

"Did your biological father Li Qiang come to see you?"

He Jingjing sneered, "Why would he come? To him, I’m already dead and gone. Haha, he even thinks I had a better life with He Taiyang. Let him try what it’s like!"

"Did Li Qiang come on the 16th of last month?"

He Jingjing fell silent suddenly. She was considering how much Song Lang had already found out through his investigation. Song Lang tapped the table unhurriedly. His handsome face seemed to be smiling even when he wasn’t, exerting invisible pressure on He Jingjing.

"He came... but he didn’t come to see me. He came to borrow money from He Taiyang."

"He Taiyang was a loan shark, but Li Qiang still dared to borrow money from him?"

"No one around Li Qiang dares to lend him any money. Since I was born, he’s been borrowing money to get by, using this high-interest loan to repay that high-interest loan. All the things that could be mortgaged have been mortgaged. He bows down and begs others all day long. I saw him being taken to the rooftop by the moneylender with my own eyes as a child. They wanted to push him down and he was so frightened that he peed his pants. He still didn’t get his act together. He has always been unemployed and didn’t want to find a job either. He would only complain about society. Every time he succeeded in borrowing money, he would happily get himself drunk first as if he was a wealthy person. He’d get drunk while there’s wine for the day. [1] I feel ashamed of having such a father!"

"What kind of parents you have is something one cannot choose." Song Lang commented briefly, "Returning to the previous question, how long did Li Qiang and He Taiyang talk that day?"

"I don't know and I don't care. They might have talked the whole afternoon. Li Qiang kept begging He Taiyang to lend him money, but He Taiyang knew what he’s like and he refused to lend him anything."

"Was Madam He there that day?"

He Jingjing's eyes widened and she fell silent. Song Lang felt that he had gotten close to the truth. Otherwise, why would He Jingjing remain silent in response to such a simple question?

Song Lang answered for her, "Madam He must have been at home. During the conversation between Li Qiang and He Taiyang, Madam He heard them mention your situation. Madam He had never liked you as an illegitimate daughter. When she heard from an outsider that you weren’t an illegitimate daughter at all, but a mistress being kept at home, her reaction would definitely have been very violent. He Taiyang flew into a rage from shame and killed her accidentally! All of this was witnessed by Li Qiang."

He Jingjing's face was pale, but she still pointlessly denied, "Ha, your imagination is so rich."

Song Lang took out a piece of paper. "Madam He already had high blood pressure, heart disease and other diseases, in addition to her advanced age. A small push would have killed her. The doctor said that when they asked him to sign a consent form for her surgery that day, He Taiyang actually ran out to withdraw money and took half an hour to do it. He was obviously carrying a credit card. He was deliberately stalling for time, because as long as his legal spouse died on the operating table, he wouldn’t have to face this shambles. There is also a point which can prove that Madam He’s death was abnormal. Less than three hours after her death, He Taiyang took her to the funeral parlour for cremation. In fact, even if he wasn’t so cautious, this was at best an ordinary death of an elderly woman in the hospital. Who knows how many of these incidents happen every day? As long as no one calls the police, the police wouldn’t intervene."

He Jingjing bit her nails and her face became increasingly pale.

Song Lang looked at her expression, it was as if he had seen her tell the truth with her own mouth. He continued, "However, Li Qiang was there that day. He witnessed the whole process and he desperately needed money. He Taiyang was a rich man in his eyes. He also had something to blackmail He Taiyang with, so what would he do? Blackmail him, of course. Li Qiang asked for a million or more. After half a month of bargaining, the two finally met on the night of September 2nd. He Taiyang had gone to see him with a suitcase full of money, but Li Qiang changed his mind for some reason. He asked He Taiyang for something even more valuable than money."

"Base- baseless claim!" He Jingjing said angrily.

"I find your reaction strange. You’re just a bystander with regards to this matter. Why do you want to keep it secret? Why did you fabricate the legend of a small bowl to obstruct us? Is it just because Li Qiang is your biological father? Compared to the fragile thing like familial love, I’m more inclined to think it was your judgement of value. I think you can get huge benefits from this whole thing. You and Li Qiang are bound by shared interests, so you have to lie and cover for him."

"Inspector Song, in your heart, people must be all beasts with no fathers and mothers, right? Li Qiang is my father no matter what. What bullshit judgment of value? I'm already so miserable. What benefits can I get? Why don’t you tell me about it?!" He Jingjing became enraged, and her rebuttal was almost unreasonable.

Song Lang calmly tapped his fingers on the table, "Miss He, can I take your refutation as admitting that Li Qiang had blackmailed He Taiyang?"

He Jingjing's gaze flickered. Her breathing became short and she sank into a huge panic. Then her eyes lit up, and she found the final excuse like other suspects who had sat on this same chair.

"These are all your speculations. Where is the evidence? Bring out the evidence!"

Song Lang had expected this sentence a long time ago, and he smiled slightly. "There will be evidence. One million isn’t easy to hide. Miss He, let's take a break."

"Sorry, I'm heading back!"

"No, you can't leave now. According to the Criminal Procedure Law, I can interrogate you for twelve hours."

"I’ve already stayed here for ten thousand years!" He Jingjing roared.

"I don’t know how you’re measuring time. You’ve only stayed here for six hours, and there are six hours left. That is, until 8:00 in the evening."

"Fine, I will stay here until 8:00. Let’s see if you can produce evidence!"

Song Lang walked out of the interrogation room and called Lin Qiupu. Lin Qiupu said, "Captain, we went through Li Qiang's house again, and we couldn't find a dime."

"Has he bought anything recently?"

"The refrigerator is filled with booze. I don't know if it was bought recently."

"Check where the booze had been bought. If there aren’t any unexpected issues, money withdrawn from the bank will have consecutive serial numbers. I’ll liaise with the bank to find out the numbers. You go to the place where Li Qiang bought the booze and check the banknotes. If you find the money with the serial numbers on them and there are Li Qiang's fingerprints on them, it will be evidence!"

Lin Qiupu was fully convinced that he deserved his position as captain, as his train of thought was really sharp and clear!

1. Indulged himself for the moment without caring about the future.