Chapter 239 - Interview? Questioning?
After finishing her shift as Lu Chen's wife by convincing him to eat his lunch, Xiu Mei returned to her role as a dedicated secretary. It was another usual working day for the both of them.
Lu Qiang went out with his classmates after class, so it was only her and Lu Chen who dropped by in the hospital today.
She was peeling some oranges when she was suddenly called by a soldier. After saluting to her eldest brother, he informed her that the investigation committee was asking for her.
"What do you need her for?" Her eldest brother interjected. His voice sounded stern and cold.
"We need Ms.Xiu's statement regarding the death of Mr.Zhu that happened here in the hospital."
Ah. That's right.
She forgot to leave her statement about the incident. When she woke up, she was still a bit shaken up to be interviewed, and then when she went home, she was too excited to return to work that Zhu Lin's death was completely thrown at the back of her mind.
"I understand. I'll go." She stood up to pick up her things.
"I'll go with you." Lu Chen interjected. He glanced at the soldier.
"That should be fine, right?"
Instead of asking permission, Lu Chen made it a statement that the soldier couldn't disagree with.
And so, Xiu Mei and Lu Chen found themselves waiting inside of one of the empty rooms in the hospital. Moments later, the special army agents in charge of criminal investigations within the army entered.
"Good evening, Ms.Xiu, Mr.Lu." The two special agents only briefly introduced themselves before they started collecting her statement.
"Did Ms.Xiu come with Mr.Zhu to the hospital that day?"
"No. I bumped into him when I came out of the restroom."
"Was he waiting for you outside or did he come out from somewhere then bumped into you?"
"I'm not sure. He came up from behind me then he started blocking my path right after I went out."
The two people nodded while taking notes.
"Could you share with us what were you two talking about before he drugged you?"
"We didn't exactly talk because I was temporarily unable to speak at that time. He was just talking about some grudges I had to him about the incident from ten years ago."
"If you don't mind, what was the grudge from ten years ago that you and he were pertaining about?"
Xiu Mei lowered her gaze and stared at the table as she fell silent. Seconds later, she opened her mouth and explained what it was.
"It was when my best friend and I were kidnapped ten years ago. We were initially with him when we were caught, but he made a run for it and left us alone. That action made the kidnappers fiercer to us and he didn't report to the authorities about the situation so I held a grudge to him because of that."
"I see. I hope you take no offense to this question Ms.Xiu but may I ask if that grudge is enough reason for you to kill him?"
"...excuse me?"
Did they not know that she fainted before he jumped out of the window?
Xiu Mei thought that they were only collecting her statement but it seems like she was being interrogated like a criminal instead.
Lu Chen didn't sit still and interrupted their conversation.
"If you're going to push this interview in that direction that I would like to call our lawyer first before continuing. It seems to me that you're not interviewing her, but rather, questioning her as a potential suspect." His expression turned fiercer as he coldly stated their stance in this situation.
The two special agents weren't intimidated but remembering that the woman in front of them wasn't just a simple civilian. She is a relative of the Yu Clan whose families hold a lot of positions within the military. They couldn't offend her so they immediately took a step back and changed their tune in questioning.
"Apologies if that question offended you, Ms. Xiu."
"Let's just continue and finish this up quickly." She couldn't help but let out an annoyed tone when she replied.
But she was seriously offended by their question. It was like they were blaming the victim for the death of the perpetrator which was very unacceptable for her.
If it wasn't because of her family's status, they would have surely continued to question her in that direction but since she was someone they couldn't easily offend, they retreated. But what about the others who were put in the same situation as her?
Were they also 'interviewed' this way?
Just thinking about it alone angered her. So her attitude completely changed for the next half of the interview.
"What happened after your conversation with Mr.Zhu?"
"He started harassing me, then when I distanced myself from him, he took out a spray and after that, I felt weak and my vision turned hazy. I realized that something was wrong so I immediately ran."
"And then he chased after you?"
"He did. But before I completely fainted, I bumped into a doctor, I think that was Dr.Lee then after I blacked out. I woke up hours later and that's when they said that Zhu Lin was already dead."
"Were you aware that he jumped from the window?"
"Yes. Mr. Lu told me what happened after I fainted."
"And how did you react when you knew he died?"
She frowned. Were they expecting her to say that she was happy that he died? Did they think that she was some kind of evil person or something?
"I don't know. I wasn't sure to feel at that time since I just recovered my voice after that and my psychologist was busy explaining to me about my current situation so I didn't really get to think what I felt when I hear Zhu Lin died."