Be in low spirits

When I saw Li Jing again, she was different from last time. Her eyes were a little empty and she seemed numb when she saw anyone.

Kong Zhixi looked at her, then at Liu Zheqi. He sat at the tea table, brewing tea, shook his head helplessly, and said, "After returning from your place last time, her mental state has been unstable. She only got better after seeing a psychiatrist."

He poured tea and motioned Kong Zhixi to sit on the tea table to drink. Kong Zhixi took a sip and said, "Mr. Liu, do you mind if I talk to Li Jing alone?"

Liu Zheqi seemed very embarrassed, but he couldn't refuse. He replied: "Jingjing... she is not fully recovered yet, and some of what she said may not be true. I hope Officer Kong will not provoke her again."

Kong Zhixi nodded, stood up, took Li Jing to the courtyard and sat down, took out a recorder, and began to question him.

"Jingjing, do you still remember what happened in the orphanage?" she asked cautiously.

"There were many children in the orphanage, as well as Director Zhao, Teacher Zhou, and many others. Of course I remember them." Her eyes were still empty and numb.

"Are Dean Zhao and Teacher Zhou nice to you?"

"Teacher Zhou... Dean Zhao... Dean Zhao is dead, he is dead, did you know that?" She suddenly became a little anxious, and said with her hands and feet: "He deserved it! He killed Brother Zhe! He killed Brother Zhe!"

"Jingjing, calm down, Jingjing!" Kong Zhixi saw that something was wrong and wanted to comfort her and wake her up. Liu Zheqi heard the voice and ran over quickly, comforted her with words, and helped Lijing back to the house.

Kong Zhixi stood in the yard, turned off the recorder, and felt a little embarrassed. From the room came the sound of Jingjing smashing the glass, she cried and said, "He deserves to die! He deserves to die!" Then came Liu Zheqi's soothing words: "It's okay, Jingjing, it's okay, everything is over, it's okay." His words were full of heartache and self-blame.

Kong Zhixi wanted to follow the sound and go in, but when she reached the hall, Liu Zheqi pushed the door open and when he looked up and saw her, he pushed his glasses on the bridge of his nose, put his index finger on his lips, and whispered a hissing sound. Kong Zhixi then stopped moving forward.

Liu Zheqi took her to the reception room, poured her some tea, and said, "Officer Kong, you've seen that Jingjing's condition is sometimes good and sometimes bad. You may... need to wait for a while."

Kong Zhixi also felt very distressed. What kind of thing had happened to such a good girl in her prime to be tortured like this?

"Jingjing... didn't have a good time in the orphanage, so that period is what she least wants to talk about." Liu Zheqi sighed and began to talk about that period. "Director Zhao didn't have much patience with so many children. He would punish us physically and lock us up in a small dark room. We often didn't have enough food or a warm sleep. To be honest, it's not a good thing for a pretty girl like Jingjing to be sent to an orphanage."

Kong Zhixi hesitated for a long time and never turned on the recorder. "So...Jingjing's illness is because of Dean Zhao?"

"Not entirely. Because she was pretty, many families who came to the orphanage wanted to adopt her. But, at that time... she was a girl after all, and was often sent away for a period of time and then sent back, or she would run back secretly on her own." When he talked about these past events, he seemed to feel heartbroken as well.

"What about you? We heard that you are a rare good kid in the orphanage." Kong Zhixi wanted to hear more details about himself.

He took a sip of tea, forced a smile, and said, "Don't be afraid of Officer Kong laughing at me. I really liked Jingjing at that time, so I hoped that I could make a name for myself as soon as possible and rescue Jingjing from the orphanage. I could only study very hard."

Kong Zhixi calmly opened the recorder and asked, "But, does Jingjing like you? Does she really want you to keep her by your side like this?"

Liu Zheqi sighed again, turned the teacup, and said with his head down: "This is the best choice for both her and me."

"Have you met with Dean Zhao?" Kong Zhixi didn't understand a lot of things. She always felt that Liu Zheqi had not confessed many things.

"You've seen Jingjing's condition. I usually don't dare to mention these things, let alone go and see her." He was a little surprised.

"But some villagers said that a man and a woman went to Dean Zhao's house a few days ago." Kong Zhixi said truthfully.

"Villagers? I've been at the company these days, and Jingjing has been receiving treatment at the mental hospital. How can I find the time to see Director Zhao?"

Now it was Kong Zhixi's turn to be surprised. If they all had proof of their alibis, then who would have gone to Dean Zhao's house?

"Mr. Liu, have you really not found out anything about your background?" Since she couldn't find out anything about Dean Zhao, Kong Zhixi tried to ask from a different angle.

"What I am more concerned about right now is Jingjing's physical condition. What's more, if they really cared about me, why would I need to look for them?" Speaking of his parents, Liu Zheqi seemed indifferent and ruthless.

"As far as we know, you have a brother, so... the deceased should be your younger brother or older brother." Kong Zhixi confessed.

His hand that was pouring tea froze in mid-air, and then he pretended to be calm and said, "So... have you found the murderer?"

Kong Zhixi kept staring at his reaction, afraid of missing any movement or expression.

"We're still investigating." She imitated Li Li and answered in a professional manner.

Liu Zheqi nodded and said, "I hope you can catch the real murderer soon and let him rest in peace."

His reaction seemed to indicate that this matter had nothing to do with him, and Kong Zhixi could not see anything wrong. In her current state of departure, she could not seem to get any more results, so she thanked Liu Zheqi, said something polite, and left.

She drove to Li Jing's university, found a teacher from their college, and talked to her classmates and teachers about her usual personality. According to them, Li Jing didn't look like a mental patient at all. She was usually quite optimistic and liked to help others. Although she didn't have any family, her brother seemed to be quite rich. However, she was always very frugal in what she wore and used, and she worked part-time while studying at school.

Kong Zhixi asked: "Did brother Li Jing tell you about this?"

The teacher said: "She didn't explain it to us, but he looked so young and didn't look like his father, so we all thought he was her brother. Some classmates also talked about it, but it was unfounded and hard to say."

"Does she have any classmates that she is particularly close to or that she can get along with very well?"

"She...seems to have had a boyfriend." said someone in the same dormitory.

"Can we still find him?"

"We don't know her. She said she was from the school next door and came to see her several times." One of the classmates said again.

"Have you always been in contact?"

"No, there was a period of time when I came to see her every day, and they even had a fight downstairs."

"What's the noise about?"

"I didn't hear it clearly. I asked her later, but she didn't tell me. Then she said we broke up."

"And during that time, she and her brother seemed to have a big fight. Do you think she was jealous?" As soon as this classmate finished speaking, the others gathered more closely. Everyone was talking at the same time and it was impossible to hear clearly.

Kong Zhixi kept leaning forward, trying to hear more useful information, but her classmates and teachers seemed to be so caught up in the wave of CP support that they completely forgot that there was a policeman standing here asking questions.

She couldn't hear clearly, so she simply pulled out, sat on the stool next to her, and turned off the recorder. She glanced at the phone on her palm, and there was no missed call. This Li Li didn't even know to ask her about the progress.

When the classmates came to their senses, she asked about Li Jing's boyfriend's situation and then left.

On the way back to the bureau, she sorted out the situation of Li Jing and Liu Zheqi, thinking about how to report to Li Li.

Li Jing said that Dean Zhao killed Liu Zheqi, so who is this Liu Zheqi now? Does Li Jing really know something? Or is he just talking nonsense? And if Dean Zhao really bullied Li Jing, why didn't the two teachers say anything? Now Kong Zhixi has more questions in her mind.

It was already evening when they returned to the bureau. Li Li seemed to have expected that she would not be able to get anything out of Li Jing today, so he did not hold out much hope. However, seeing that she did not take the initiative to talk about it, he asked, "Did you get anything today?"

"Well, there are some. I... will tell you after I learn more about it." She had too many questions in her mind and didn't know where to start.