Captain Xia's words sounded like thunder in my ears again, causing my mind to roar.

What does he mean by saying that this woman doesn't exist? What exactly does he mean?

Facing my question, Captain Xia leisurely took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. After drawing one out, he didn't light it up but just put it near his nose and took two indulgent sniffs.

"Although Master Chen doesn't have a deep impression of that woman, he roughly described her facial appearance. I had the team members take her portrait to Guanshan village for investigation. Strangely, none of the villagers there had seen her."

I frowned and said, "What's so strange about that? She works at night and hides away during the day. It's normal that no one has seen her."

Moreover, there's a big difference between a woman with heavy makeup and without makeup.

Captain Xia seemed to have anticipated my response, and promptly rebuked my words with strength.

According to their investigation, the rented room where Liu Lei was murdered was rented out a month ago. However, the furnishings inside were very simple and there weren't even any clothes, indicating that the tenant had never lived there after renting the place.

Also, the identity information she left on the rental agreement with the landlord was fake.

"So, combined with the villagers' testimonies, I have reason to suspect that there isn't such a woman in Guanshan village at all."

It seems that the woman had only premeditated a crime in Guanshan village.

But if she really was Yang Kai's ex, why would she rent such a shabby room a month in advance? What was she planning to do? Could it be that she intended to kill me?

At the thought of this possibility, I couldn't help but shiver.

"Tao Tao."

Captain Xia suddenly called out a name I had never heard before, eyes staring intently at me, full of scrutiny.

"Master Chen said that when the woman was holding the drunken Liu Lei before getting off the car, she referred to herself like this. You and Yang Kai had huge fights because of her, you should've heard of her."

"I already said, Yang Kai protected her information very well from me," I explained unpleasantly.

Though I said so, Captain Xia's gaze towards me always looked like he was probing something.

What caught me off guard even more was that he started questioning my whereabouts on the night of the incident the next second.

I couldn't help but glare at him, knowing full well what he meant by that.

Too bad for him, I left home on August 13th, and that night I was sleeping in my hotel room!

He really has some nerve. First, he suspected me of killing Yang Kai, now he's trying to link me to Liu Lei's death. I really want to pry open his head to see what he's thinking.

Captain Xia raised his eyebrows: "But your travel records can only prove that you hadn't returned home before you found out Yang Kai had died. This proves you had nothing to do with Yang Kai's death, but as for Liu Lei's murder, you can't prove anything."

As he spoke, he took out a document, which was their previous investigation of my hotel records.

"You left the neighborhood at 2 p.m. on August 13th, and half an hour later, the hotel front desk received your reservation call and reserved a big bed room for you."

"At the same day at 4 p.m., surveillance footage from Baocheng Mall captured you buying cosmetics on the third floor. According to your purchase records, you bought an eyeshadow palette and a lipstick, then disappeared from the mall."

"It wasn't until 9 p.m. that you went to the hotel to check in. Where did you go during those several hours?"

I couldn't help but feel nervous: "Just wandering aimlessly outside, is there a problem?"

"Of course there's no problem, but there's something very strange. According to the surveillance footage from the neighborhood and the mall, when you left the neighborhood, you were pulling a suitcase effortlessly; it could roll freely on the ground, indicating that the contents inside were not heavy."

"But when you entered the mall, your steps were noticeably heavier, and you were dragging the suitcase with effort. Miss Ye, do you know what this indicates?"

I shook my head, my gaze calmly piercing into him.

Captain Xia smiled: "This indicates that the contents of the suitcase were switched. As for what was switched, I think we'll know once we take it back to the police station for a detailed forensic examination."

"Perhaps inside, we can find Liu Lei's tissues."

At this moment, the calm facade I had been desperately maintaining instantly collapsed.

He...where on earth did he start finding flaws!

Captain Xia pressed closer step by step, looking at me with a playful gaze.

"Now, let's re-enact the entire truth of the case."