A Bad-Hearted Doctor is Unbearably Beautiful - Chapter 32

Chen Qiang took a deep breath. “So you have it?”

Lu Xiao nodded, observing Chen Qiang’s reaction.

“How do you prove that?”

Lu Xiao thought for a moment. He couldn’t make something up, so he decided to tell the truth. “I have it, but I haven’t decrypted it yet. I’m very curious to know what secret has made both you and a highly trained assassin organization so desperate.”

Chen Qiang stared at Lu Xiao without blinking. “You ran into them?”

Lu Xiao nodded. “I almost died out there.”

Chen Qiang’s tense posture suddenly relaxed. He slumped into his seat, a look of relief on his face.

“If that’s the case, then it doesn’t matter whether I admit to killing them or not. If that thing is in your hands, neither you nor I will get out of this alive! Hahahahahaha, hahahahahaha…”

Chen Qiang’s laughter became a continuous, manic cackle.

“Is he crazy?” Old Zhou asked Lu Xiao, his face filled with astonishment.

Lu Xiao was a little confused, too. All he wanted to know was what was on that USB drive!

“Stop laughing!” Lu Xiao grabbed Chen Qiang’s chin and forced him to look at him.

“I have more questions for you. What happened to the blood samples that were destroyed? What’s your relationship with that assassin who likes to wear a hat and a trench coat? Are you working together?”

Chen Qiang narrowed his eyes and stared at Lu Xiao. “Let me put it this way: I’m not the only one who wanted Zhang Dalong’s life. They wanted it, too. We just got to the same destination on different roads. As for the blood samples, I don’t know. Zhang Dalong must have taken them back to test something and ended up getting on their bad side. I was doing their dirty work, but I was also getting my revenge.”

“Who are those people? Explain yourself!” Lu Xiao’s eyes were sharp.

Chen Qiang took a deep breath. “Can I have a cigarette?”

Lu Xiao glared at him. He pulled a cigarette out of the pack and lit it for him. “They’re some ruthless people I met while doing shady business in the early years. They don’t show their faces, but if they want my life, it would be as easy as pie.”

“The early years? In Dongxi Town?”

Chen Qiang nodded.

“What else did you do besides selling blood and organ trafficking?” Lu Xiao’s face was grim. He lit a cigarette for himself and took a long puff.

“That’s all.”

“How do you contact these people? What do they want?”

“They’re the only ones who contact me. I don’t know anything else.”

Lu Xiao was furious, but he couldn’t get any more information. He took a deep breath, sat down, and drank a full glass of water to clear his head.

“What’s your grievance with Zhang Dalong?”

“What grievance? For years, I was his frontman and did all his dirty work. I got my hands filthy, while he made a fortune. I managed to get away and clear my name. I wanted to continue working with him, and he pretended to agree, but not long after, he did everything he could to cut me out!”

“And then you decided to kill him?”

“I went to find him a few more times, and every time he saw me, he looked at me like I was a plague. It’s ridiculous. Then he threatened to expose my past if I ever came looking for him again.”

“The conflict between you and Zhang Dalong has been going on for years, hasn’t it? Why did you suddenly decide to kill him now?”

“He was preparing to run away. What, you thought my information was fake?” Chen Qiang sneered with a hook of his mouth. “If I didn’t kill him and he really got away, he would have been as stubborn as a mule. I’ve been locked up for so long, not saying a word, and you still thought I wouldn’t kill him.”

“Where did you hold them captive?” Lu Xiao asked. Up to this point, they had no definitive evidence that Chen Qiang had killed the two victims.

Chen Qiang looked at Lu Xiao and suddenly realized something. “So you still haven’t found any direct evidence to accuse me of murder?”

Lu Xiao didn’t confirm or deny it. Chen Qiang laughed. “I’m not stupid enough to willingly provide you with evidence. If there’s nothing else, you can leave.”

In criminal law, even if a suspect confesses to the crime, they cannot be convicted without direct, conclusive evidence to support their confession.

They were still missing the key evidence, and Lu Xiao felt a headache coming on. He hoped Lin Xue would have some luck.

After leaving the interrogation room, Lu Xiao stood outside and smoked a few cigarettes, watching as the sky grew dark. The more he thought about it, the more frustrated he felt about the investigation. At that moment, Lin Xue came back with a bunch of samples from Chen Qiang’s house. They met at the door, exchanged glances, and shook their heads.

Lu Xiao looked up at the moon, which was getting rounder that night. He picked up his car keys and walked toward the flashy Maybach. He got in.

Military Hospital

Lu Xiao had been coming to the hospital so often that the nurses on duty knew he was there to see Director Shen. As soon as Lu Xiao walked in, a young woman pointed to the operating room before he could even ask. “Director Shen is still in surgery.”

Lu Xiao smiled and nodded. “I’ll wait for him in his office then.”

Lu Xiao had just walked in when two nurses started talking.

“Did you see that? He’s here to see Director Shen again.”

“Director Shen is so handsome. He can be a little intimidating sometimes… but it’s hard to resist him. So beautiful and tragic. It’s so compelling!”

“What do you mean, ‘beautiful and tragic’?”

“Oh? You don’t know? Director Shen is an orphan. I heard a young doctor from our hospital raised him when he was a kid. He didn’t have any family to begin with, and that doctor died five years ago…”

“What?! That’s so tragic!”

“I know, right?”

Lu Xiao sat in the office for a full hour. Shen Zhao finally came out of surgery. He habitually took off his surgical gown and threw it outside the office before entering.

He walked into the office and saw Lu Xiao sitting inside. Lu Xiao’s expression was even more surprised than Shen Zhao’s when he saw him only wearing a gray tank top.

“Is our relationship a little… too intimate?” Lu Xiao’s eyes were wide, and he couldn’t help but look Shen Zhao up and down.

Shen Zhao shot Lu Xiao a sideways glance. “Why are you here?”

“To celebrate you getting off work.” Lu Xiao forced a smile and took out a bouquet of white calla lilies from behind his back.

“For me?” Shen Zhao looked at the scene, a little taken aback.

Lu Xiao said, “Of course. I thought these flowers suited you. I had the florist wrap them when I was investigating the case, but something came up, so I’m only giving them to you now.”

Shen Zhao looked at Lu Xiao with hesitation and then fell silent for a moment. Lu Xiao was a little confused by Shen Zhao’s expression. “You don’t like them?”

Shen Zhao’s face looked a little strange. “Lu Xiao, do you know what day it is today?”

Lu Xiao was stumped. He remembered looking at the moon before he left and saw that it was very round. “The 15th day of the first lunar month?”

Shen Zhao gritted his teeth. “Valentine’s Day.”

Lu Xiao: “…”

Shen Zhao: “I’m starting to think you did this on purpose.”