Returning to the living room, Tianyi tried to visualize the area where Chen Ma would have been lying if she hadn't died after falling.
People always struggle in their final moments. The floor at the bottom of the stairs had already been cleaned.
Tianyi noticed the rug closest to the stairs and looked at it closely, wondering if there was anything missed on it.
Xiao Lin followed him and, while walking, accidentally kicked the edge of the rug, shifting it slightly.
"I'm sorry, Young Master," Xiao Lin apologized hastily, only to discover a bloodstain on the corner he had moved.
Tianyi glanced at his feet and saw it too. He immediately said, "Move the rug further."
"Okay." Xiao Lin bent down and pulled the rug aside, revealing a bloody handprint and the letters "sf" scrawled crookedly in blood where the corner of the rug had been.
Tianyi took out his phone and took several photos. The bloodstains had long since dried into a dark color, likely Chen Ma's blood.
"Take some for analysis," Tianyi instructed Xiao Lin.
Xiao Lin nodded and quickly prepared the tools and a small bag.
After collecting a sample, he asked, "Young Master, what should we do now? Call the police?"
"Calling the police won't help. Let's cover the bloodstains with the rug for now." Tianyi felt a tightness in his chest.
Looking at the bloody handprint and the initials of Sophie's name left by Chen Ma in her final moments, it was easy to imagine how terrified and desperate Chen Ma must have been.
He clenched his fists, gritting his teeth. He decided to go out and confront Sophie, to make her confess her crime herself!
...
Susu arrived at the studio and still hadn't seen Sophie come to work.
She had asked everyone, but no one knew where Sophie was, nor had Sophie contacted anyone from the studio.
Clients who had previously made arrangements with Sophie couldn't find her and had come to the studio, blocking the entrance.
Susu, along with other colleagues, had to appease these clients, trying to see if they could help Sophie resolve the issues.
Sophie, being alone in Lancheng, couldn't just disappear for two days without contact. Something must have happened.
Susu was overwhelmed, working tirelessly all day. She managed to get the clients to leave, promising that if Sophie didn't show up, the studio would issue refunds and compensate for breach of contract.
After much persuasion, the clients agreed to give the studio three days to provide a clear explanation.
She checked her phone during a break. Tianyi hadn't left her any messages or called. She wondered if An Jing had found any trace of Sophie.
As it was nearing the end of the workday, she decided to call Tianyi's phone, but a voice message announced that he was out of service area.
She called several more times, but only the automated voice message played.
Wasn't Tianyi resting at home?
She then called An Jing directly, who answered quickly.
"An Jing, is Tianyi at the group's office?"
Xiao An Jing replied, "He didn't come in today, and he didn't tell me where he went."
Susu asked, "Did he ask you to find Sophie's whereabouts? Have you found anything?"
Xiao An Jing paused for a moment, then quickly responded, "Oh, about that, he mentioned it to me this morning. I've assigned someone to investigate, and we should have news by tomorrow."
"As soon as you have any news about Sophie, tell me immediately," Susu urged.
Xiao An Jing chuckled on the phone, "Okay. Don't worry, Sophie is a living person, she won't get lost. Could she have gone back to her family?"
"Her family cut ties with her after they took the money last time." Susu didn't think it was possible. If she were to go back to her family, she would need her passport and to book an international flight in advance.
"Does she have any friends abroad? Could she have gone to visit them?" An Jing deliberately steered the conversation, hoping to lessen Susu's shock if she learned Sophie had gone overseas.
Susu also felt it was unlikely. "If she were going to see friends abroad, she would have at least told me beforehand. She wouldn't just say nothing."
"In any case, let's wait until the person I assigned finds out," An Jing said, feeling he couldn't say much more. He had promised Tianyi to cooperate with him in keeping things from Susu.
Just as Susu finished her call with An Jing, she heard a commotion outside.
"Hand over Sophie! Hand her over to my boss!"
Susu came out of her office and saw a tall man wearing a hat leading the way. He pushed aside Zhang Ting, who was trying to block him, and respectfully allowed the calligrapher and painter who had sponsored Sophie's solo exhibition to enter the studio.
Zhang Ting almost lost her balance but was thankfully supported by other colleagues.
"What do you want? I told you Sophie isn't here!"
The man with the hat obscuring half his face said with a laugh, "Not here? We'll have to come in and see for ourselves if you're lying."
Zhang Ting, annoyed, was about to retort, but Susu stepped forward. "Sophie is indeed not here. If you have something to discuss with her, you can tell me."
At this moment, Yu Wei, the calligrapher and painter who had been silent, looked at Susu and recognized her. "You are Gu Susu, the owner of this studio."
"Yes, so if there's anything, I can help you resolve it," Susu said politely.
Yu Wei smiled and said, "I suspect you're behind this. Sophie exposed your infidelity at the exhibition, and now you're retaliating. Tell me, what have you done to her? Why is her phone unreachable, and why has she disappeared?"
"I don't know why you would say that, but I am also looking for Sophie's whereabouts." Susu asked him, "And what urgent matter do you have with Sophie? If it's related to the studio, I will do my best to help you resolve it."
"You didn't make her disappear?" Yu Wei stared into her eyes, trying to gauge if she was telling the truth.
Susu said with a laugh, "She's not only an employee here, but she's also my best friend. I'm the last person who would want anything to happen to her. What do you mean, make her disappear? That's ridiculous. I wouldn't do that to her."
Yu Wei asked, "If you didn't hide her, did she run away herself? When she signed the agreement with me, it was stated that after her solo exhibition was successfully held, I would be entitled to an annual draw of twenty percent of the studio's profits. Now that she's gone, I can only come to your studio to enforce the contract she signed with me."
Everyone else listening found this unbelievable. This person had merely sponsored Sophie's solo exhibition, and now he wanted such a large share of the studio's profits annually!
Susu immediately retorted, "Impossible, don't talk nonsense here. Firstly, you sponsored Sophie's personal exhibition, which has little to do with our studio. Secondly, Sophie is not a partner in the studio, just a designer. She has no right to sign such a contract with you. Even if she did, it would just be a piece of scrap paper..."
Before Susu could finish, Yu Wei signaled his subordinate to produce the contract and placed it in front of Susu. "Scrap paper? Look for yourself. This contract bears your studio's official seal and your personal seal, along with a copy of your ID card and the studio's qualification documents."