I was criticized on a dating reality show, but I retaliated and became an internet sensation.

Shu Zi calmly closed her fan, stood up, and straightened the hem of her cheongsam:

"I brewed the tea and served the cup; I don't deny that."

"But Manager Zhao was unharmed when he left after drinking tea, as the waiters in the corridor can attest."

Su Yanhuan, with a pipe in her mouth, squinted at her for a moment, then nodded:

"That makes sense, but Miss Nian Tang, your suspicion cannot be ruled out until the truth comes out."

She turned to Jiang Yunyou and said, "Secretary Jiang, write down Miss Niantang's statement."

Jiang Yunyou opened his notebook and quickly wrote a few lines.

[Shu Zi held the teacup, but Manager Zhao was fine when he left. The poison might not have been in the tea, but somewhere else.]

[Shu Zi's logic is sound. If she was the one who poisoned him, she could have easily avoided mentioning that she had been to Manager Zhao's office.]

Shu Zi sat back down in her chair, gently fanning herself. Her gaze passed over the edge of the fan and met Gu Yan's, who had been silently watching her from the corner, for a moment.

He leaned against a pillar, the chain of his pocket watch winding around his fingers again and again, a smile playing on his lips, as if he were watching a good show.

Shu Zi looked away, covered her lips with her fan, and the smile in her eyes faded slightly.

Su Yanhuan looked around at everyone and then said:

"Alright, asking them one by one is too slow. I've decided to split into two groups of two to search several key areas of the Paramount Ballroom. We'll come back in an hour to gather the clues."

She glanced down at the makeshift map she had drawn on the spot and pointed to it with her finger:

"Secretary Jiang and I searched Manager Zhao's office and meeting room on the first floor."

"Manager Han and Reporter Shen, go upstairs and take a look at Manager Zhao's private study and bedroom."

"Secretary Yu and the accountant should go to the kitchen and storeroom to check for any suspicious medicine residue or utensils."

She paused, then looked up, her gaze falling on Shu Zi and Gu Yan:

"As for Miss Nian Tang and Boss Gu, you two are most familiar with the Paramount Ballroom, so the third-floor ballroom and backstage area will be your responsibility."

"Is there a problem?"

The group exchanged glances, and no one raised any objections.

Shu Zi stood up from the armchair, gently closed her fan, and tapped it in her palm:

"Then I'll gladly accept your offer, Mr. Gu, please."

She glanced at Gu Yan, then turned and walked towards the stairs.

The two went up the stairs one after the other, and their figures disappeared around the corner.

Su Yanhuan watched them leave, then turned to look at Jiang Yunyou and lowered her voice:

"Let's go, let's not just sit here. Let's check under Manager Zhao's desk for a hidden compartment."

Jiang Yunyou nodded and pushed her wheelchair toward the corridor.

Han Jingxue put down her celadon teacup and looked at Shen Yihuai: "Let's go."

Shen Yihuai didn't say much and followed her upstairs to the second floor.

Soon only Yu Shize and Fang Yutong remained in the living room.

After a few seconds of silence, Yu Shize spoke first: "Let's go, the kitchen is in the backyard."

Fang Yutong nodded and followed behind him. The two walked through the corridor and headed towards the kitchen.

Su Yanhuan sat in her wheelchair, holding a pencil, pointing at the documents on Manager Zhao's desk:

"Secretary Jiang, look at this. Manager Zhao's ledger has an expense, a considerable amount, with the remarks column saying it's for entertainment expenses, but there's no specific information about the recipient."

She pushed the ledger towards Jiang Yunyou, "Who do you think this money is for?"

Jiang Yunyou leaned closer for a look, pushed up his round-framed glasses, and frowned in thought for a few seconds:

"Entertainment expenses can vary greatly, but if the amount is so large that it needs to be listed separately, it is probably not a normal entertainment expense."

He looked up, a hint of speculation in his eyes. "Could it be... hush money?"

Su Yanhuan, with a pipe dangling from her lips, squinted and slowly nodded:

"That's exactly what I was thinking. The whereabouts of this money is probably related to Manager Zhao's death."

She glanced down and made a note in her notebook, then looked up at Jiang Yunyou:

"Let's go check out the reception room; maybe we can find something there."

Jiang Yunyou resignedly pushed her wheelchair toward the reception room.

Under the coffee table in the living room, Su Yanhuan found a torn piece of paper.

She bent down, picked up the pieces, and pieced them together. A line of text was written on them:

"Within three days, or you will bear the consequences."

There was no signature or date.

Jiang Yunyou leaned closer for a look: "This looks like a threatening letter."

Su Yanhuan nodded:

"Moreover, the paper is from the same batch as the letter paper on Manager Zhao's desk. Either he wrote it himself, or someone else used his paper to write it."

She carefully put the note away, intending to take it back to summarize.

"Within three days, or face the consequences"—this threatening letter is so standardly written, it's like it was copied from a TV drama.

[Su Yanhuan can even tell the batch number of the paper; you're quite the detective.]

[Jiang Yunyou: Have we accidentally gotten involved in some gangland dispute? Su Yanhuan: No, we're solving a case. Let's be professional.]

The second floor contains a study and a bedroom.

Han Jingxue stood in front of the bookshelf, her fingers gently tracing the spines of the books. After looking at them for a while, she spoke in a calm tone:

"Manager Zhao's study is very tidy, almost unnaturally so."

She picked up a book, flipped through it casually, and then put it back:

"It would seem deliberate for a person who has been in business for many years to have bookshelves full of literary classics but not a single account book."

As she pulled out the next book, her fingers touched a neatly folded piece of paper sandwiched between the pages.

She paused for a moment, pulled out the paper, unfolded it, and quickly glanced at it.

It was a handwritten list, the handwriting was Manager Zhao's:

"Shen Nian—a singer at the Paramount Ballroom, three years ago."

"Ms. Lin – Apprentice at the herbal medicine shop, two years ago."

"Han, woman—identity unknown, one year ago."

Each name was followed by a date and an amount.