Chapter 22 [VIP] The Extermination Mystery (6)

Chapter 22 [VIP] The Extermination Mystery (6)

At ten o'clock in the evening, Meng Siqi finally returned home. She hadn't expected Ye Xiuhui to still be awake, lying on the sofa in the living room, covered with a thick blanket.

Seeing her, Ye Xiuhui frowned, "Why are you getting home later and later?"

"Actually, why are you staying up later and later?"

"I was going to talk to you this morning, but you left early..."

Meng Siqi prepared to go upstairs, asking, "What's so urgent?" Her leg still ached slightly, and she wanted to clean it quickly and change the medicine.

"Hey, don't go yet." Ye Xiuhui removed the blanket from her body and waved her over. "Come here, come here."

"I'm filthy. Don't you mind me being dirty? I reek of sweat!" Meng Siqi deliberately used this to urge Ye Xiuhui to end the conversation quickly; indeed, she had been running around all day and felt uncomfortable.

Seeing that she had stopped, Ye Xiuhui's face brightened with a smile. "Yesterday, that Mr. Jiang, Jiang Sheng, how did you find him?"

"What do you mean, how did I find him?" Meng Siqi said without any expression.

"You took his business card yesterday. You can't say you have no interest in him. The Jiang family is wealthy in Jinyang, much richer than our family. His father..."

"Actually..." Meng Siqi clearly felt discomfort in her leg and hurriedly interrupted, "I'll visit his company tomorrow."

Ye Xiuhui's smile widened. "I knew it; you're not made of wood."

"If there's nothing else, I'm going upstairs."

"Tell your mother about the progress when you get back tomorrow!"

"Got it." Meng Siqi turned and went upstairs.

"Wait a moment," Ye Xiuhui suddenly called out, "what happened to your leg?"

"Nothing," Meng Siqi replied indifferently. "I accidentally got scratched by a branch today."

Ye Xiuhui suddenly became serious. "Tell me, what's good about being a police officer? Either you get hurt or you live in constant fear. The salary is pitiful. With the Jiang family's conditions, if you follow them, you'll have everything handed to you..."

"I don't like having everything handed to me. I wasn't born for that life. Besides, what's the difference between that and being a corpse!" Meng Siqi said as she continued up the stairs.

"You..." Ye Xiuhui shuddered. "Bad luck, late at night!"

The next morning, Meng Siqi woke up feeling more pain in her leg than the previous day. She moved the injured leg off the bed with both hands and slowly stood up. As long as she could stand, it should be manageable. After a wave of pain, she gradually adjusted, realizing she needed to go to the hospital again to change the dressing.

During breakfast, Ye Xiuhui nagged a bit more, insisting on confirming the time she would visit Jiang Sheng's company. Meng Siqi gave a random time, and then the phone rang. Aunt Chang answered it and turned to say, "Siqi, your call."

Few people called Meng Siqi, even Ye Xiuhui was surprised, but soon her lips curved upward, assuming it was from Jiang Sheng.

Meng Siqi was also puzzled about who could be calling her at home. When she answered, she realized it was Zhao Leiting. They had planned to go to Long City Enterprises together that morning, but Zhao Leiting sighed, saying, "Siqi, my car broke down on the way. I think a stone got stuck in the tire yesterday. I can't pick you up now."

"When will we go to their company?" Meng Siqi asked.

"I don't think I can make it anytime soon. How about I send Chuan to pick you up?"

"No, don't bother," Meng Siqi felt it would be too troublesome and immediately said, "I'll go ahead and wait for you there. If you finish up, come over."

"That works."

After hanging up, Ye Xiuhui started questioning whether it was Jiang Sheng's call. Meng Siqi took a bite of porridge and picked up the half-eaten steamed bun. "I'm leaving, need to catch a bus."

"Hey, you could have asked your brother to drive you," Ye Xiuhui kept nagging behind her.

Meng Siqi directly hailed a taxi. At this hour, most buses wouldn't have seats, and her leg probably couldn't handle standing.

Thirty minutes later, the car arrived at the entrance of Long City Enterprises. She had researched beforehand and knew that Long City Enterprises belonged to Jiang Sheng's father, and Jiang Sheng, as an only child, had recently taken over the family business, making him the second-in-command with real authority.

In the lobby, she waited for a while but didn't see Zhao Leiting, so she decided not to wait and explained her situation to the receptionist.

The receptionist said she would call the company's responsible person and Meng Siqi vaguely heard the conversation.

The receptionist spoke into the phone, "It's Officer Meng from the City Public Security Bureau. She says she needs information about the development and demolition of the Xiangjiang Hotel two years ago."

"Okay, Mr. Jiang, I'll contact the administrative department."

The receptionist nodded frequently and then looked at Meng Siqi. "Officer Meng, may I ask your full name?"

Meng Siqi showed her police ID again. "Meng Siqi."

"It's Officer Meng Siqi." The receptionist responded to the other end of the phone, listening carefully and nodding firmly.

After hanging up, she looked up with a smile. "Sorry, Officer Meng, I'll take you to Mr. Jiang's meeting room."

"Thank you."

On the fifth floor, Meng Siqi was led into the meeting room and took out her notebook.

The door was open, and Jiang Sheng, dressed in a high-end suit, appeared at the entrance, smiling as he closed the door. "Officer Meng, you have my business card. You could have called, and I would have come down to meet you."

Meng Siqi smiled slightly. "No problem, it's official business."

Jiang Sheng's smile faded slightly. He sat on the sofa, loosened his tie, and slowly looked up at Meng Siqi. "I've already arranged for coffee. Let's chat casually before we discuss business."

Meng Siqi didn't refuse. She was there to gather information, and as long as he cooperated, it was fine. So she followed his lead.

As she smiled, Jiang Sheng said, "I heard that Officer Meng graduated from the Police Academy."

"Yes, I went straight to the police force after graduation." Meng Siqi said, taking out the pen from her notebook.

"I envy people like you."

Meng Siqi was puzzled. "Envy?"

"Isn't it enviable to fight against criminals? When I was young, I had a dream—to marry a policewoman when I grew up." Jiang Sheng chuckled softly, pulling out a cigarette box from his pocket and taking one out. "Back then, I was young and frail, worried about being bullied. I just wanted someone to protect me, ha..."

Meng Siqi didn't know how to respond. However, Jiang Sheng's eyes never left her face as he spoke, and the cigarette he was about to light suddenly paused. "Ah, you're right. I've gotten used to this, but I should quit smoking in such situations!"

He continued with a tone of having seen through life: "The women around me are nothing like you. They all fawn over me without any dignity."

Meng Siqi still smiled slightly, not saying a word.

As Jiang Sheng put the cigarette box away, there was a knock on the door. He said, "Come in," and a waiter gently pushed the door open to serve coffee.

After the door closed again, Meng Siqi picked up her pen decisively. "Mr. Jiang, can we start now?"

Jiang Sheng smiled. "Just call me Jiang Sheng; no need for formalities."

Meng Siqi pursed her lips and slowly said, "Two years ago, Long City Enterprises bought a piece of land on the old pedestrian street to develop a hotel. At that time, weren't you responsible for the compensation payments?" Meng Siqi had checked, and Jiang Sheng was indeed the person in charge back then, likely delegated by his father.

"Hmm." Jiang Sheng nodded vigorously.

"Do you remember a brother and sister who caused trouble over the compensation payments?"

"Who are you talking about?"

"You Meihua and You Shenghua."

Jiang Sheng's expression froze for a moment, as if deciphering something. After a while, his face darkened. "Wasn't You Meihua the one who recently died at home..."

It seemed everyone had seen the news. Meng Siqi nodded. "Yes, that's her."

Jiang Sheng's earlier smile faded significantly. This was a homicide investigation. He played with the cigarette in his hand and asked more urgently, "Meng Siqi, you don't suspect me of being involved in this, do you?"

"Of course not. The compensation payments might be a clue in this case, so I'm here to understand the situation."

"Oh." Jiang Sheng nodded slightly. "I see. Ask what you need to; I may not remember everything clearly."

"Do you remember the brother and sister? I heard they caused quite a commotion over the compensation distribution."

Jiang Sheng's gaze lingered on Meng Siqi's face, as if thinking deeply, but his eyes were intensely focused. Meng Siqi had to turn her head slightly.

Then, he suddenly said, "Now that you mention it, I do remember them. There was indeed a brother and sister fighting in our lobby. The man was big, but the woman wasn't backing down. They caused quite a scene until security intervened."

"Do you remember the specific reason for their argument? Or how the compensation distribution led to their conflict?"

"I remember this. The house was jointly owned by the siblings. The compensation was 60,000 yuan. The paperwork was handled by my staff, but if you need it, I can get it printed for you. Anyway, the woman ended up getting 20,000 yuan more."

"So the sister received 40,000 yuan, and the brother got 20,000 yuan?"

"Yes. It seems the sister might have used some tactics to sign the contract first, leaving the brother at a disadvantage."

"That seems unfair."

Jiang Sheng laughed cynically. "There's nothing we could do. We only had so much compensation money. How they divided it was their business. Besides, we wanted the contract signed quickly. If it dragged on, our project would be delayed."

Meng Siqi understood and asked, "Did the brother, You Shenghua, come back to you after that?"

"He did, more than once. He was quite persistent, which is why I remember him. Our legal department showed him the signed contract, but he couldn't do anything about it."

Meng Siqi nodded, quickly reviewing the details in her mind. The storefront was jointly purchased by the siblings, but the compensation was unfair. According to You Shenghua's wife Xu Hongxia's testimony, the sister used the excuse of supporting their parents to take the extra 20,000 yuan. This was the root of their conflict and the motive for You Shenghua's crime.

She asked a few more details, finished writing the report, and put her pen and notebook away. She stood up with a smile. "Thank you for your cooperation today, Mr. Jiang. I'll be going now. If I need any documents later, I hope you can provide them."

"Siqi," Jiang Sheng also stood up. "Stay for lunch."

"Sorry, I need to go back and report. Maybe next time."

Jiang Sheng looked at her intently, examining her tall figure and well-proportioned body. Her olive-green police uniform was tight-fitting, and her coat was open. He smiled. "If that's the case, I won't insist. Let me walk you out."

"No, really, it's not necessary."

"I'm heading downstairs anyway." He moved to open the door.

In the somewhat cramped elevator, she deliberately stood to the side, but Jiang Sheng stood in the middle, almost touching her, making it impossible for her to avoid him.

Each time the elevator doors opened, the company employees hesitated to enter, so the descent was just the two of them. Jiang Sheng, taller and larger than her, stood close beside her, and the scent of tobacco seemed to envelop her.

She felt him secretly sniffing her, his breath heavy, making her very uncomfortable. With a ding, they reached the ground floor.

Together, they walked toward the entrance of the hall. Just as they approached the glass doors, a group of people came walking in. The leading man, tall and graceful, was instantly recognizable to Meng Siqi—it was Lu He.

Their eyes met. His gaze was cool and deep, steady yet reserved, carrying a faint chill.

Yet strangely, his eyes seemed to pierce through her.

She smiled slightly as a greeting. But Lu He and his companions stopped right in front of her.

Confused, she stepped aside. Lu He then showed his badge. "Are you Jiang Sheng?"

So they were here for Jiang Sheng. Meng Siqi moved further aside.

Lu He's magnetic and righteous voice echoed in her ears. "I am Lu He, captain of the Criminal Investigation Team of Jinyang City Police Department. Based on reports, your company's hotel has been involved in multiple organized prostitution incidents. Please cooperate with the investigation!"