Lin Fan's face flushed with heat, instantly feeling embarrassed. "Did I say something wrong?"
Qin Feng nodded. "No, it's fine."
Lin Fan's face turned even redder.
Qin Feng didn't eat much during the meal, as he was busy sending messages. Lin Fan scooped out the beef from the boiling hotpot, suddenly feeling a bit emotional. The first time she had hotpot was with her grandmother. At that time, she still had family.
"Retaking a year?"
Lin Fan quickly put down her chopsticks and nodded.
"Which school are you planning to attend?"
Lin Fan pursed her lips. "You mentioned No.16 High School before. Can I still apply there?"
"Sure," Qin Feng said. "I'll let you know the results in a few days."
"Thank you."
"My relative's company is currently hiring. There are still two months before school starts. If you want a job, I can introduce you there." Qin Feng wiped his hands with a tissue. "Your current job is not only tiring but also dangerous."
"I don't know anything," Lin Fan said.
"You can learn everything," Lin Fan's biggest flaw was her lack of confidence. She was too weak. "You're not inferior."
Lin Fan's eyes sparkled. "Really?"
Qin Feng nodded. "Nobody is born knowing everything. It's all about the learning process. You don't need to feel inferior."
Lin Fan's face heated up, feeling embarrassed to have her thoughts exposed by someone else.
"Yeah."
"Chin up," Qin Feng said.
Lin Fan looked up at him, and Qin Feng said, "Do what you want to do, say what you want to say. You are not weaker than anyone else, Lin Fan." He paused for a moment. "Don't be afraid."
After dinner, Qin Feng drove her back home. When Lin Fan returned, the man next door came to move things out, while the woman sat on the living room sofa, numbly staring at everything in front of her.
Lin Fan didn't want to get involved in their affairs, so she went into her bedroom and closed the door.
On June 1st, Qin Feng called her and asked her to report to Baijia. Baijia started out as a shopping mall and still had some reputation in Jiangcheng. Lin Fan quit her job at the domestic service company, thinking she was going to work in sales or something similar. She reported Qin Feng's name at the company, and the receptionist immediately took her to the reception room.
They were very polite, and Lin Fan felt overwhelmed.
Soon, a middle-aged man came over, and Lin Fan quickly stood up.
"Please, have a seat. No need to be so polite," the man said.
Lin Fan sat down, and the man scrutinized her. "Can you handle printing some documents with the secretary?"
"I can learn to do it all," Lin Fan said.
The man smiled. He had a commanding presence despite his calm demeanor. Tall and imposing, Lin Fan couldn't think of who he reminded her of.
"Take your time to learn," he checked his watch. "I have something to attend to, the secretary will come over to take you to the office in a moment."
He looked like a leader, so Lin Fan stood up. "Thank you."
The secretary was a woman in her thirties. She took Lin Fan to the 18th floor office, giving her a computer and some files. "Take a look at the company's information first. You don't have much to do today."
Lin Fan felt a little lost but still nodded in gratitude. It wasn't easy for such a big company to accept a high school graduate as a short-term intern, and Lin Fan was very grateful.
After interning for three days, she was formally hired.
It was only then that Lin Fan learned that the person she met on her first day was Baijia's founder, Qin Yunko. The secretary was the executive secretary, also a prominent figure in Baijia.
Lin Fan followed the secretary, mainly copying and printing documents, and running errands to deliver files to the general manager's office. The work here was leisurely, and Lin Fan had extra time to review her studies and prepare for the upcoming school year.
Su Ran has been rising to fame recently. Two years ago, she starred in an obscure film that unexpectedly became a box office hit. Smoothly transitioning from third-tier to first-tier status, she has since received numerous film offers, all with A-list co-stars.
Her box office success has been soaring, and this year, she successfully collaborated with the renowned director Liu Wei, starring alongside the Best Actor, becoming the blockbuster queen. Everyone believes Su Ran is riding on a lucky streak, with rumors online suggesting she went to Thailand to seek the help of spirits to change her luck. If one were to speak of acting skills, Su Ran has been in the entertainment industry for quite some time, but she never really stood out.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
As Su Ran's assistant, Li Yun knows best that the rumor about seeking the help of spirits is not unfounded. When Su Ran was at her career's lowest point, her boyfriend left her, and her talent agency wanted to shelve her. At that time, she was desperate, but her best friend gave her a suggestion: seek the help of spirits to change her luck. She went to Thailand and came back appearing mysterious, and within six months, she soared to the top.
Li Yun has been with Su Ran for three years. They used to be so close they could share a bed, but now Li Yun is not allowed to enter Su Ran's room. Su Ran's personality has become more and more unpredictable, often resorting to violence at the slightest provocation. Just yesterday, she slapped Li Yun when they had a disagreement with a fellow actress from the same crew.
Work is about making money, and she gets paid for her labor, which doesn't include being insulted or physically attacked.
Li Yun thought about it all night and decided to resign. Su Ran usually arrives at the set at 8 a.m., so Li Yun arrived at Su Ran's room at 7 a.m. Human emotions are not like grass; even after three years of working together, Li Yun still hesitated a bit. After hesitating for a while, she finally gathered her courage and knocked on the door, but no one answered.
She knocked again, but still no response. After standing there for a while, thinking of leaving, the assistant director hurriedly approached. "Where's Su Ran? Still not up?"
"No one answered when I knocked," Li Yun, with a soft personality, could be bossed around by anyone.
"We have an important scene today. Tell her to hurry up and not be late," the assistant director scolded.
"I know," Li Yun instinctively nodded.
The assistant director left, and Li Yun decided to work for one more day before resigning in the afternoon.
With this thought in mind, her face no longer hurt, and her hand stopped shaking. She continued knocking on the door. "Sister Su? We need to start shooting."
Still, there was no response.
At 8:10 a.m., the assistant director came again, now angry with Li Yun. "What's going on? It's already this late? She'll be late for makeup. How do I explain this to the director?"
"She's not answering," Li Yun meekly replied. "I'll call her."
"You should have called her earlier!" The assistant director was close to exploding. "Hurry up and call her!"
Li Yun made the call, but it rang inside the room without anyone picking up. She looked at the assistant director, her fingers clenched. "No one's answering."
"What about Liu Ge?" (Liu Ge is Su Ran's manager)
Li Yun quickly called Liu Ge and explained the situation. Liu Ge scolded Li Yun and told her to go downstairs to get the room key.
Liu Ge called Su Ran again, but there was still no answer.
Li Yun hurried downstairs to the front desk to get the room key. The hotel staff, holding the master key, accompanied her upstairs. "With so many witnesses, if you open the door yourselves, and Miss Su blames you, will you take responsibility?"
Li Yun looked at the assistant director, who pointed at Li Yun and said, "She'll take responsibility."
Li Yun: "..."
Damn it! Are we still human?
Finally, after dragging their feet, Su Ran's manager, Liu Ge, arrived and opened the door.
The room was pitch black, with thick curtains drawn.
"Su Ran?" Liu Ge strode in, signaling the others not to enter. He turned on the lights.
Worried, Li Yun peeked inside.
Did Su Ran drink last night? She didn't ask Li Yun to buy any alcohol. Why wouldn't she wake up?
Suddenly, a scream pierced the air from inside the room. Li Yun pushed open the door and rushed in.
The room was brightly lit, with blood staining the floor. Su Ran lay naked between the bathroom and the bedroom, blood spreading from under her body, glaringly red.
Li Yun turned and ran out, vomiting in the corridor.
"Supposedly, she's a celebrity, quite beautiful," Xiao Wang said excitedly, looking rather awkward in his enthusiasm.
Qin Feng gave him a fleeting glance. "This is a homicide case. Tone down your excitement before going to the scene."
Xiao Wang scratched his head, halting his words.
The atmosphere in the carriage became somber again. Half an hour later, the car stopped at the Luxurious Hotel. The entrance was already crowded with people, including journalists with cameras and fans.
The police set up a cordon, but few paid attention, pushing desperately to get inside.
Qin Feng frowned. "The journalists are more impatient than the police."
"Indeed," Liu the forensic expert said, opening Weibo. "The internet is flooded with discussions about the female star being harmed by spirits."
Qin Feng glanced at him. "Spirits?"
"I don't believe it," Liu withdrew his phone. "After handling so many cases, I've never seen spirits involved in murders. If they exist, they're disguised spirits."
Qin Feng nodded.
"It's not easy being a celebrity; even their deaths are exploited," Liu commented.
Qin Feng took the elevator to the top floor, with Liu rambling beside him. "Luckily, we're in police uniforms today. Otherwise, we'd be fined for being photographed."
Qin Feng remained silent, hands in his pockets.
"Does my face look fat on camera?" Liu lamented, touching his face against the stainless steel wall of the elevator. Qin Feng couldn't bear to look and turned his head away.
The Luxurious Hotel had twelve floors in total. The deceased, Su Ran, resided in the top-floor suite. Police guarded the door, and Qin Feng briskly walked over.
"Captain Qin."
Qin Feng nodded, put on gloves, and shoe covers, then entered the room.
The room was still in its initial state, with the curtains tightly drawn and the lights on. The deceased was very young, lying naked between the bathroom and the bedroom, facing the bathroom.
Her chest was cut open, and her white skin looked especially stark against the blood.
Qin Feng's gaze darkened as he tightened his fists.
The floor was marble, with blood flowing to the position of the sofa.
Liu's expression also became serious as he squatted down to examine the body. After a while, he looked up at Qin Feng. "Her heart's missing."
Qin Feng froze, looking at the body.
"The cutting method is the same, no signs of restraint or resistance wounds," Liu continued.
Qin Feng clenched his jaw. "Xiao Wang, go to the Baijia headquarters and bring Lin Fan over."
Xiao Wang was taken aback. "Lin Fan is at Baijia?"
"Yes," Qin Feng didn't explain further. "I'll call to have them release him."
There were no signs of struggle in the room, and besides the blood spreading under the body, there were no other clues. It was too clean, almost eerie in its cleanliness. Qin Feng didn't believe there could be a perfect crime in this world; there's always a flaw.
The windows were tightly closed, the curtains drawn, and the deceased's bag was placed on the sofa. Qin Feng opened the bag to find a compact powder, a bottle of perfume, and a wallet. The wallet was clean, but Qin Feng suddenly paused as he flipped through it. There was a business card tucked inside.
Taking out the card, it was black all over, with three handwritten words: Ouyang Yu.
No position, no title, just a string of phone numbers below.
Qin Feng tossed the card and wallet into an evidence bag, then continued to search for possible traces on the floor.