X Company, 20th floor, Lin Xian's office.

Lin Xian sat at his desk, twirling a pen, contemplating what Chu Shanhe had told him at noon.

According to the evidence currently held by the Donghai City Public Security Bureau, Tang Xin was a woman with a chaotic and promiscuous private life, which led to a retaliatory crime of passion…

This was supported by dashcam footage and chat logs from Tang Xin's phone, making the reasoning seem sound.

Unless…

All the evidence was fake.

If it was fake, was it fabricated by Zhou Duanyun and his accomplices?

Then the next question is—

Who are Zhou Duanyun's accomplices?

So far, Zhou Duanyun has shifted responsibility cleanly, and since Tang Xin's case seems to have a clear perpetrator, no one suspects him except for Lin Xian.

And Lin Xian's suspicion is only based on subjective speculation; he also lacks evidence.

He needed to find more clues.

Lin Xian tapped the desk with his finger.

Currently, his situation seemed relatively safe. Perhaps Zhou Duanyun and his group had listed him as a potential target, but they hadn't made a move to kill him yet, and he wondered what they were waiting for.

Regardless, he needed to act quickly.

The breakthrough point for all these problems lay in the fabricated evidence used to smear Tang Xin:

"I need to find a way to see that evidence."

Lin Xian closed his eyes and began to think.

If he went directly to the police station, the police would definitely ignore him and wouldn't show him classified information that hadn't been released to the public.

So…

"Maybe I can just ask Ji Lin."

Although he had only met Ji Lin once, they had a decent conversation at the Donghai Chamber of Commerce New Year's Eve banquet. Ji Lin liked the Rhein cat, and he was also a fan of Ji Lin's books. He believed he could glean something from Ji Lin… at least, he had a better chance than with the police.

Lin Xian opened a news report and started searching for news about Ji Lin.

Perhaps it was because the Oscars were approaching… Ji Lin was frequently headlining the entertainment section, and everyone was concerned about whether he would win the Oscar for Best Screenplay.

After all, no native-born Long country citizen had ever won this prestigious Oscar award.

Lin Xian read a few news articles and found that Ji Lin had been frequently attending events and banquets in Donghai City recently, with a high media presence.

This was quite different from his "recluse style" from previous years. He wondered if his entertainment company was requiring him to generate publicity.

After some inquiries, a publisher he had worked with before told Lin Xian that Ji Lin would be attending a book fair the day after tomorrow.

Lin Xian planned to meet Ji Lin then.

…

The day after tomorrow.

Outside the Donghai City Library, at the book fair.

The area was divided into several sections and was very lively.

After the various activities, Lin Xian followed the publisher to the backstage area and met Ji Lin.

"Hi, Ji Lin."

"Lin Xian?" Ji Lin turned around, seeing the unexpected guest.

"I didn't expect to see you here."

"Do you have time now?" Lin Xian asked.

"I have some things I want to discuss with you privately. If you're busy, we can reschedule."

"It's fine, come this way."

Ji Lin led Lin Xian into a reception room and gestured for him to sit down.

Lin Xian directly explained his purpose.

Ji Lin nodded thoughtfully.

"Is that so? You heard about it. But it's nothing. There's no wall that doesn't have a crack. It was only a matter of time before word got out that I was assisting in the investigation at the Donghai City Public Security Bureau. I'm not particularly concerned about these things anyway."

"It's good that you don't mind," Lin Xian said.

"The main reason is that Tang Xin was my high school classmate, and we were close friends in private. I won't hide it from you, I've also heard about the investigation results of Tang Xin's case, but… in my understanding, Tang Xin wasn't that kind of girl, so I wanted to hear more from you."

"Of course, don't feel pressured. I know you also have matters that need to be kept confidential. In short, if possible, I would like to clarify things. After all, this concerns Tang Xin's reputation. Although she has passed away, her parents and family are still alive, so she deserves to have her name cleared, right?"

Ji Lin lowered his head and smiled.

"Lin Xian, you really are a kind person… I understand your thoughts. In simple terms… you don't believe the evidence the police found regarding Tang Xin, and you believe someone maliciously fabricated evidence to defame her."

Lin Xian nodded.

"That's roughly the idea."

"I understand your feelings, Lin Xian." Ji Lin changed his posture, looked at Lin Xian, and said:

"Because like you, that is also my reason for being in Donghai City."

"What reason?" Lin Xian asked.

"To avenge a friend." Ji Lin replied.

A friend?

Lin Xian recalled Ji Lin bowing at Xu Yun's memorial service.

"Professor Xu Yun is your friend? The age difference between you two seems… like a mentor relationship?"

"No."

Ji Lin shook his head.

"Xu Yun is my sister's husband."

"Then he's your brother-in-law," Lin Xian said directly.

Really…

Brother-in-law is brother-in-law, why make it so complicated?

"Brother-in-law, huh…"

Ji Lin looked at the ceiling, hugging his arms.

"In theory, that's correct, but I've never called him brother-in-law, nor have I ever regarded him as a relative. I've always treated him as a friend."

"Why?"

"Because I'm adopted. My sister and I have no blood relation."

"Alright."

Lin Xian sorted out Ji Lin's family relationships in his mind; it was indeed quite complicated.

"So your purpose in coming to Donghai is to find the murderer who killed Xu Yun?"

"That's right." Ji Lin nodded.

"Although I don't have any direct relationship with Xu Yun, because of my sister, Xu Yun often gave me books and told me science stories when I was a child. I believe our relationship was pretty good."

"I've never had many friends since I was a child. Other than my sister, Xu Yun can be considered my first friend in life… It's just a pity that he's dead, and the murderer hasn't been caught, which is why I've been in Donghai City the whole time. My purpose… is to find the murderer who killed Xu Yun and avenge him."

So that's it…

Lin Xian had been confused about the relationship between Ji Lin and Xu Yun, and he couldn't understand why Ji Lin, who originally didn't like to go out, would suddenly join the Donghai Public Security Bureau to assist in handling the case.

Now he completely understood; there was such a relationship between them.

"That's why I said I understand your feelings, Lin Xian."

Ji Lin turned his head and looked into Lin Xian's eyes.

"As Tang Xin's classmate, it's indeed difficult for you to accept that she had such a bad reputation and died in a crime of passion. The Donghai City police are also taking this into consideration, which is why they haven't publicly disclosed this information that damages Tang Xin's reputation."

"But… the facts are the facts, the evidence is the evidence, and now that the murderer who killed Tang Xin has been identified, it's only a matter of time before the truth is announced in the police report."

"If you don't trust our investigation results, I can let you see the undisclosed materials, and you can judge for yourself."

"Really?"

Lin Xian was surprised.

He originally just intended to ask Ji Lin about the situation; he never expected that he could see information the police hadn't released…

Was this compliant with regulations?

"In principle, it's not allowed." Ji Lin smiled.

"But I can make an exception for you."

After a pause, Ji Lin continued:

"To be honest, Lin Xian, even if you didn't come to me today, I would have come to you sooner or later."

"Why?"

"Because there are many aspects of Professor Xu Yun's case that you can't get away from. Of course, I'm not saying you're the murderer, but some things are indeed difficult to explain. I always feel… that you and Professor Xu Yun seem to have some unusual secrets."

Ji Lin raised his head and looked at Lin Xian.

"Can you tell me…"

"Why are the authorization profits from that chemical substance that Xu Yun developed, all in your name?"