Chapter 539: Chapter 539: An Account Must Be Given

Hearing someone call out to her, Su Qing turned around and exclaimed with delight, "Meng Yanjing!"

The newcomer was none other than Meng Yanjing. After Su Qing had gotten into Beijing University, she had written to Meng Yanjing to share the news. Over the past half a year, they had been corresponding by letter. However, Meng Yanjing often had to follow her teacher into the mountains for geological surveys, while Su Qing was frequently away from Beijing, so the two of them hadn’t corresponded much.

But Su Qing had never expected Meng Yanjing to suddenly show up in Beijing.

Su Qing stepped forward with a smile and said to Meng Yanjing, "When did you get to Beijing University? Why didn’t you tell me? I would have given you a proper welcome."

Meng Yanjing laughed. "I wanted to surprise you! I’m here at Beijing University for a study program. I just arrived today, and I’ll be here for a whole month."

Because she wanted to give Su Qing a surprise, Meng Yanjing hadn’t told her. It was all meant to be a surprise.

"That’s wonderful." Su Qing was truly delighted. "Are you here at Beijing University by yourself, or with classmates? Have they arranged your lodging? Have you eaten yet?"

"Mhm, the university arranged a dorm for me, and I already ate. Don’t worry, I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself. I came to Beijing University alone this time because there was only one spot, and Mr. Chen recommended me."

Su Qing and Meng Yanjing chatted and laughed for a bit before Su Qing introduced her to her dorm mates.

Li Huan laughed. "I’ve heard Qingqing talk so much about you. It’s great to finally meet you! Come on, let’s go hang out in our dorm."

"Okay!"

The girls were all around the same age and hit it off quickly. Meng Yanjing had also brought Su Qing many local specialties from Chuncheng. When she learned that Sun Xiaowen and Ye Qingqing were also from Yun Province, the three of them even chatted and laughed for a bit in their hometown dialect. Afterward, the girls all made plans to go shopping together over the weekend.

The weekend arrived quickly. Neither Su Qing nor Li Huan went home that week. Early in the morning, all the girls in the dorm got up and ready. Once Meng Yanjing arrived, they all headed downtown together.

「Meanwhile, at the Xiangcheng docks.」

Hua Zifeng and his assistant were disembarking from a ship. He had been invited by the Xiangcheng Police Station to investigate the death of Master Wen.

Although all signs indicated that Master Wen had passed away in meditation, the nearly simultaneous disappearance of Little Master Wen and his four disciples made the matter quite intriguing.

Hua Zifeng had been invited by the police in Kongkan Prefecture to investigate the disappearance of Little Master Wen and his four companions. However, he found no clues. It was as if everything had been wiped clean. There were no signs of a crime, not even a single fingerprint or footprint. The scene was unbelievably sterile.

With no leads on that front, Hua Zifeng returned to Xiangcheng immediately after learning the time of Master Wen’s death and receiving the invitation from the Xiangcheng Police Station.

"Mr. Hua, aren’t these two incidents just too bizarre? If they were murdered, does that mean two different groups of people committed crimes in two different places at the same time?" Hua Zifeng’s assistant had been pondering it the entire trip but couldn’t make sense of it. "But Master Wen was a renowned Feng Shui Master, the real deal. What kind of ordinary person could possibly get the better of him?"

"I suspect one person is behind this," Hua Zifeng said to his assistant, his eyes narrowing.

"Mr. Hua, you don’t mean... you suspect that Miss Susan?" The assistant’s eyes widened as he heard Hua Zifeng’s words.

"Correct." Hua Zifeng gave a firm nod. "Look into Susan’s whereabouts after she returned to Xiangcheng."

Just before leaving Kongkan Prefecture, Hua Zifeng had suddenly thought of Su Qing. He’d had the police station check her travel records and was surprised to find that her destination in A Tai was indeed Kongkan Prefecture. She had stayed there for several days, and on the day she arrived, she had gone to collect a peace charm. Most importantly, his estimated time of Little Master Wen’s disappearance coincided perfectly with Su Qing’s stay in Kongkan Prefecture.

Unfortunately, when he followed the trail to the hotel where Su Qing had stayed, he failed to find any clues. It was a complete dead end.

At this time, Hua Zifeng still didn’t know that the Miss Susan he knew was Su Qing in disguise. He only knew this suspicious woman had returned to Xiangcheng by boat, which was why he’d instructed his assistant to track her movements.

"Yes, sir." The assistant quickly replied, then asked curiously, "Mr. Hua, why do you suspect Miss Susan? She’s such a delicate-looking girl, she doesn’t seem like a murderer at all. Where would she find the strength to take on four grown men?"

Even though he knew Hua Zifeng’s intuition was very accurate, the assistant still found it hard to believe. Back on the Jixiang, although Hua Zifeng had been suspicious of Susan, he himself had never suspected her at all.

"I’ve told you, you can’t judge people by appearances," Hua Zifeng said, shaking his head.

"But even if Miss Susan is connected to the disappearance of Little Master Wen and the other four, she was still in A Tai when Master Wen passed away. She couldn’t have flown back to harm him, could she?" the assistant asked, puzzled. "Unless... this Miss Susan has an accomplice?"

"Heh. She’s a lone wolf," Hua Zifeng stated with conviction. "You can’t just look at how people present themselves; you have to look at what’s underneath. Most of the time, what you see is only what they want you to see."

"I could never do that," the assistant said, scratching his head with a sheepish grin. ’If I could,’ he thought, ’I’d be the detective, not the assistant.’

Following behind Hua Zifeng, the assistant couldn’t help but voice another worry. "Mr. Hua, if Miss Susan really is the killer, that means she’s capable of killing a Feng Shui Master. Do we even have what it takes to catch her?"

"Let’s just wait and see," Hua Zifeng said, his mood growing heavy. Just as his assistant had said, if Susan truly was the killer, he feared that not only he, but the entire police station would be powerless against her. They might not even find a single scrap of evidence.

And yet, he couldn’t accept that. His curiosity about Su Qing was overwhelming. For some reason, he felt a desperate need to understand this person.

Hua Zifeng and his assistant took a car to the police station. After getting the details on Master Wen’s death, he asked, "Are you certain Master Wen passed away in meditation?"

"We’re certain." Officer Liu, who was Hua Zifeng’s contact at the station, replied. "We’ve confirmed that Master Wen did indeed pass away in meditation. However, we suspect there’s more to the story, which is why we asked you to come back and investigate. After all, you know how it is. Master Wen had a high standing among the city’s elite; many of them were indebted to him. His passing was so sudden, and then with his disciples and their apprentices all disappearing in A Tai at the same time... well, that group of tycoons wants justice for him. We have no choice but to investigate. We have to give everyone an explanation."

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