A Bad-Hearted Doctor is Unbearably Beautiful - Chapter 26

Lu Xiao reorganized the known clues and the network of relationships.

They had hit a dead end with Chen Qiang. There was no evidence to link him to the deaths of the two victims. The current information was not enough to obtain a search warrant for his home.

“Wang Deng, how’s Zhang Dalong’s wife doing lately?”

Wang Deng took a bite of his steamed bun. “Hmm… his wife? I heard she had to cut her child’s winter study tour short and rushed back from Italy to handle the funeral arrangements. Oh, and get this! I heard that Zhang Dalong’s mistress and other lovers even showed up, wanting to inherit his estate!”

Lu Xiao rolled his eyes in exasperation. “That old geezer was quite a player, wasn’t he?”

Lu Xiao had a feeling they were missing a clue, and maybe Zhang Dalong’s wife could provide it.

“Contact her and set up a time. I’d like to talk to her.”

“You got it, bro!” Wang Deng’s face lit up with enthusiasm.

Lu Xiao took a drag from his cigarette and looked back at him. “Wang Deng, you’ve been pretty motivated with work lately, haven’t you?”

Wang Deng – 28 years old, field officer for the Criminal Investigation Department. Efficient and has a keen sense of smell, like a human police dog.

He secretly puts blessed bullets in Lu Xiao’s pockets before field operations. The inside of his own bulletproof vest is stitched with a peace charm from his mother. He once edited Lu Xiao’s body camera footage into a humorous, meme-like video and played it at the police team’s annual meeting.

Wang Deng sheepishly handed Lu Xiao the titanium thermos from his desk. “I’m just afraid you’ll forget your old friend once you have a new one, Brother Xiao~~”

Wang Deng made an annoying, playful face. Lu Xiao looked confused. “What new friend?”

“Wu Di, of course. Haven’t you noticed you’re sending me out on fewer errands now? Oh, I’m so jealous, I’m so jealous~~”

Lu Xiao grabbed a file folder from his desk and playfully slapped Wang Deng with it.

“Knock it off. Don’t worry, Wang Deng’er, you’ll always be my most loyal sidekick.”

They both laughed and continued their banter.

Lu Xiao’s mind, however, was still consumed by the case. “By the way, which flower shop did that delivery guy Wu Di contacted get the flowers from? I want to go check it out.”

“I’ll send you the location right away.”

Should I call Shen Zhao?

The thought barely registered in Lu Xiao’s mind for a second before he pulled out his phone. He opened the chat with “Professor Shen”.

【I’m going to check out the flower shop that delivered flowers to Liu Tingting’s place, and then I’m going to see Zhang Dalong’s wife. Want to come?】

Lu Xiao stood by the door, smoking two cigarettes, but Shen Zhao still hadn’t replied.

【I’ll send you the flower shop’s location. I’m heading over now.】

Lu Xiao started his car and entered the flower shop’s address into the GPS.

Most of the storefronts on the street were still closed for the Chinese New Year, with small fu characters and spring couplets posted on their doors. This particular flower shop, however, seemed to be doing excellent business.

The shop was bustling with people, and many bouquets were lined up outside. The artistic, wrought-iron sign above the door read Forest Narrative.

Pushing the door open, Lu Xiao was met with a warm, moist air. The walls were painted in a warm tone.

“Sir, are you here to order flowers?” a cute clerk wearing glasses, two pigtails, and a frilly apron saw Lu Xiao.

Lu Xiao was about to say no, when his eyes caught sight of the white calla lilies behind a row of dyed roses on the left side of the floor. For some reason, he felt these flowers would be perfect for Shen Zhao.

“Yeah, I’ll take a look first,” Lu Xiao nodded.

The shop was long and narrow. Lu Xiao navigated past the bouquets on the floor and the dried flowers hanging from the ceiling to the counter at the back.

A woman was sitting behind the counter with an open ledger and a cup of rose tea.

“Are you the owner?” Lu Xiao asked.

The woman had smooth, black hair loosely pinned up with a hair stick. She exuded an elegant and calm demeanor.

She paused for a moment and then smiled. “Yes, how can I help you?”

Lu Xiao pulled out his ID with a cool, effortless gesture.

“I’m a police officer. I’d like to ask you about a past delivery order.”

The owner stood up, looking a bit nervous and puzzled. “A police officer? Okay. Which order are you referring to?”

“An order from the night of February 1st. It was for about a hundred red roses. A delivery driver picked it up around 11 p.m. and delivered it to this address.”

Lu Xiao showed her the location of Liu Tingting’s apartment on his phone.

“This is…”

The woman suddenly clapped her hands.

“Wasn’t that around the time of the Chinese New Year? I think it was two or three days before New Year’s Eve!”

“That’s right.”

“I had given my staff time off then. I usually have two young people helping out. Since it was almost the new year and business was slow, I told them to go home early.”

Lu Xiao nodded, gesturing for her to continue.

“Then, I suddenly got an online order. I saw it was for 99 roses! I was about to close the shop, but I decided to finish this bouquet first.”

“What time was the order placed?”

“Let me think… one moment, I’ll check my platform records.”

The owner, with her nude-pink nails, quickly scrolled through her phone.

“Let me see… let me see… Ah, here it is.”

Lu Xiao looked at the order, which was titled “Long-lasting.” The time: 20:35.

“Who placed the order? Can you see the name?” Lu Xiao pressed.

The owner’s face suddenly showed a hint of pride. “No name, but I met the person who ordered the flowers.”

“What?”

“He just sent the order over with no notes, not even a complete delivery address. So I called him through the platform.”

“He told me to come to his place first to pick up a box. He said it was a gift for his girlfriend that he wanted me to put under the roses to surprise her.”

“A box? What kind of box? What was inside?” Lu Xiao’s eyes lit up. He felt he had stumbled upon an important clue.

“I have no idea. The box was sealed—a small green one. I don’t know what was inside; maybe a ring or something,” the woman shrugged.

“So you went to his house to pick it up?”

She took a sip of her rose tea. “I thought it was really strange that he was asking me to pick something up so late. But he added 500 yuan for the trouble, and for the money, I went.”

Lu Xiao showed her a photo of Zhang Dalong on his phone. “Was it this person at the Cloud Garden apartment?”

“Yes, that’s him! I felt he didn’t look very friendly, so I grabbed the box and left right away. Then I came back to work, wrapping the flowers. It took me almost two hours; I was exhausted!”

Lu Xiao asked, “When you went, was anyone else home?”

“No, he was the only one. He was sweeping and opening the door to throw out trash.”

“Okay, if you remember anything else, please contact me immediately,” Lu Xiao gave a friendly, sunny smile.

The woman continued to recall, “Hmm… he seemed to be sweeping up pieces of glass or ceramics. I remember hearing a clinking sound. Other than that, I can’t think of anything.”

Ceramics…

“Was his home tidy when you were there? Did it look like anything had been searched through?”

The woman thought for a moment. “No, his place was very clean. It didn’t look like he had been searching for anything.”

It seems Song the Third didn’t lie this time.

What was the deal with that box Zhang Dalong specifically had put inside the roses?

Lu Xiao immediately called Wang Deng. “Go back to Liu Tingting’s apartment! Focus on checking that bouquet of roses for a small green box, like one that would hold a ring. If it’s not in the flowers, check the rest of her apartment! Be thorough!”

“Copy that!”

Lu Xiao walked to the glass door. Just as he was about to push it open, he saw the fully-packed bouquets at the entrance and remembered the cluster of white calla lilies.

Lu Xiao pointed to the bouquet of erect white lilies.

“Boss, could you wrap a bouquet of those for me? I’ll go smoke a cigarette outside. Call me when it’s ready.”

The woman’s gaze followed his finger.

“Oh? That one? You have great taste, handsome officer. I love those elegant colors too. Are they for your girlfriend?”

Lu Xiao had already taken out a cigarette when he felt as if the owner’s words had struck him in the back of the head. It was like a flash of lightning.

“Huh?” Lu Xiao sucked in a sharp breath.

“Can’t a person send flowers if they don’t have a girlfriend?” Lu Xiao’s big eyes were filled with confusion.

The woman immediately laughed. “Oh, that’s not what I meant. If you send them enough, she will be!”

Lu Xiao still felt something was off about that statement…

Never mind, she’s just a business owner making small talk.

As he walked out the door, he waved his hand grandly. “Make it high-end. I’ve got money~”