The Mystery of the Inner Demon

Chapter 287 Perfect Friends
The surveillance footage showed the time as 2 a.m. On the empty street, a swaying figure appeared in the frame, holding a bottle of liquor in one hand and pointing to the sky and the ground with the other. Although there was no sound in the footage, one could guess that the person was cursing.

A moment later, a man wearing a hoodie approached Ma Ziqiang, pulled out something, and struck him hard on the head. Ma Ziqiang fell to the ground. The man dragged him into the green belt, and a moment later, he emerged from the green belt in a panic and ran away into the distance, disappearing at the end of the road.

The suspect and the victim both appeared in the video, making it seem like a relatively easy case to solve; it appeared to be a murder and robbery case.

"Check all the surveillance footage along the route to see which direction the suspect fled in," Qi Fei said without hesitation.

"Ma Ziqiang's family reported that the deceased had gone out drinking with friends last night. Because he often drank with people until late at night, they went to sleep without waiting for him and only found out about the incident when the police contacted them." Wu Shanqiu told Qi Fei what she knew. "Ma Ziqiang lived with his parents and wife. His family has already arrived at the police station."
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Sunlight fell on the reception table, where a pair of fair hands held a tissue, the backs of their hands gleaming in the light. The woman with disheveled hair had red and swollen eyes, but despite her age, she still looked beautiful.

"Are you Song Yun, Ma Ziqiang's lover?" Qi Fei sat down opposite her.

The woman nodded: "Who are you?"

Qi Fei introduced himself, "I am Qi Fei from the Nancheng Criminal Police Brigade. I am very sorry about what happened to your husband."

Song Yun took a deep breath, barely managing to hold back her tears, and choked out, "Our family relies on Lao Ma for support. I really don't know what we'll do after he's gone."

"The footage of Lao Ma's incident has been captured by surveillance cameras, and we are currently tracking down the suspect. We will do our best to bring the murderer to justice. Although it appears to be a robbery and murder, I would still like to know if Ma Ziqiang had any enemies before his death?"

Song Yun shook her head without hesitation: "Our Lao Ma is a businessman, and he values ​​friendship the most. He's known in the industry for his loyalty, and nobody dislikes being friends with someone like Lao Ma." She sighed, "It's all fate. Because he's so popular, he's often invited out for drinks, and we're all used to it. If it weren't for that, I should have urged him to go home earlier last night, and maybe this wouldn't have happened. I'm sorry for causing you trouble."

"No one can predict these things. Don't think like that. Your husband's death is the murderer's fault. It has nothing to do with you. Investigating cases is our job. You don't need to apologize." Qi Fei suddenly felt an inexplicable fondness for the respectable middle-aged woman in front of him, especially after experiencing the unreasonable Zhang Yingdi.

Song Yun left the police station with her elderly in-laws, and they seemed to have a harmonious relationship.

“We did some digging and it's the same as what Song Yun said. Ma Ziqiang is a good person and almost never gets into conflicts with anyone. The guy he was drinking with yesterday is named Fan Xin, and we invited him over too.” As Wu Shanqiu spoke, she pointed to a tall, middle-aged man wearing a white polo shirt who walked into the police station.

The seat that Song Yun had originally sat in was now occupied by this man named Fan Xin. His eyes were also swollen, but unlike Song Yun, who was crying, this man was probably suffering from a hangover.

"I heard Old Ma had an accident. Is he really gone?" The man looked at Qi Fei with hope, as if he hadn't accepted the fact yet.

Qi Fei showed him the video of Ma Ziqiang's murder. Fan Xin remained silent for a long time after watching it. Then his gaze fell on the time on the surveillance screen, and he murmured, "2 a.m., that's an hour after we parted ways. I should have insisted on calling a car to take him. It's my fault..." "Where did you drink?"

"It was a barbecue restaurant not far from his apartment complex. It was almost 1 a.m. when we finished, and I was a little tipsy by then. I had already called a car and offered to give him a ride home, but Lao Ma said no and insisted that I leave first. Knowing Lao Ma as I do, I figured he wasn't completely drunk yet, so I didn't insist and left on my own. Sigh! A moment of weakness."

"You said the barbecue restaurant isn't far from his neighborhood, how long is the walk?"

"About fifteen minutes."

"He had the accident at 2 a.m., when he had just reached the road downstairs in the residential area." Qi Fei carefully traced the timeline.

Fan Xin didn't seem surprised: "Old Ma is a good man in every way, except he loves to drink. Even if no one's drinking with him, he can still get himself drunk. I bet he found a place to drink again after I left, otherwise he wouldn't be this drunk. Sigh! That guy!" He said with a pained expression, "Such a smart man, and in the end, he was ruined by drinking!"

A hint of suspicion flashed in Qi Fei's eyes: "You said you were drunk, but you still remember the time you left so clearly?"

Fan Xin took out his phone and opened the ride-hailing app: "I remembered this after seeing it."

Qi Fei checked and, sure enough, at 12:50, he had booked a ride-hailing service from the barbecue restaurant. The trip showed that he arrived home at 2:00, which meant that when Ma Ziqiang had the accident, he was already an hour's drive away from the scene of the crime.

"You drove an hour just to find Ma Ziqiang for a drink?"

“You don’t understand Lao Ma’s influence among our friends. He invited me for drinks, so of course I had to come… I just never expected…” Fan Xin’s eyes reddened as he spoke, “I’ve known him for decades. I never imagined last night would be our final farewell. It’s a pity he didn’t even get to see his son’s wedding…”
-
It was late at night. The designer opened his laptop. Today was the deadline for another project, and it looked like he would have to stay up until dawn again. He made himself a cup of instant coffee, stood at the window, and watched the lights in the building across the street go out one by one until only the light directly opposite remained.

He was a little nervous for some reason, like the kind of nervousness you feel when you're on a date and afraid the other person will stand you up. He even forgot to drink the coffee in his hand.

For him and for the window, it wasn't too late.

However, before the clock struck 11, the light went out.

He sighed softly; this fleeting romance had finally come to an end. Disappointed, he returned to his workbench, the sounds of the mouse and keyboard echoing in the quiet night. As he turned his back to the window, the light unexpectedly switched on again, and a dark figure appeared at the window…