Chapter 5

"Add one more beautiful little flower, and this will be the best cake I've ever made!" Zhen Fan put the cake into the oven, set the timer, and took a book to sit near the window.

The sunlight streamed into the room, and the cool shade created by the curtains was just right for hiding one person.

"Ding dong!"

"Ah—"

When Zhen Fan got up, the book fell from his chest. He had fallen asleep just now. These were all English books, and he found it more tiring to read them than Chinese. To be honest, he would rather speak English with others than face a bunch of English technical terms.

But for inducing sleep, they worked really well.

"Mr. Zhen, we are Officer Sarah Vogel and Officer Ryan Hart from the California Investigation Bureau. We want to talk to you about something. Can you open the door?"

A woman's voice.

"Why are you here again?" Zhen Fan was somewhat dissatisfied. Although he didn't expect anything good from the police in his home country, he didn't want to deal with the American police either.

"It's me, Zhen Fan!" He opened the door and saw the two people standing there.

"Officer, I already told the officer in the store everything I know. Oh, it was Officer Ryan, right? Do you need any more help?"

Zhen Fan politely blocked the two at the door.

"Hey, buddy, that's true, but we're here for something else. We want to ask about your neighbor. We've taken on another case!" Ryan looked at Zhen Fan with a somewhat smug expression. "Would a petty robbery case really require us to come?"

Sarah gave Ryan an unhappy look and cleared her throat. "Actually, your neighbor Wendy Ellis was murdered..."

"No way, they were just here yesterday. Oh, poor Thomas, how are his wife and daughter?"

"No, no, it's another neighbor, the one on the left. The female owner died in her room. We want to know what happened in the past few days, including your observations and those of others!"

Zhen Fan looked to the left. The house on the left was already cordoned off with police tape, and several police cars with flashing lights were parked there, with a group of busy police officers coming and going.

It seems I slept like a log and missed all this. Just as he was about to speak, he heard a cry from the right.

"God, the poor woman! I can't believe it!"

It was Thomas and Annie coming over. Clearly, they had also heard the commotion and had just heard what Sarah said.

"What a tragedy!"

Annie covered her face with one hand, her eyes flashing, and looked at Sarah with hope.

"I hope you catch the murderer. It must have been her husband!"

"Don't talk nonsense, dear!"

Thomas quickly stopped Annie.

"What? Was their relationship that bad?"

Sarah looked at Annie in surprise. Thomas glared at Annie and then explained, "Yes, we often heard Wendy's screams. It was her husband George who did it!"

"Oh? Tell me, what kind of person is her husband? He reported the incident today!"

"I think you must have met her husband. To be honest, he drinks, gambles, chases women, and smokes marijuana. I heard he often gets into gang fights and even shot someone, landing him in jail! He's a scumbag!"

Annie nodded, fully agreeing with him!

Uh, now Zhen Fan was completely ignored. He cleared his throat.

"Thomas, I just baked a cake and was about to bring it to you. Since you're here, take it with you. Damn, don't let it burn. I need to take it out!"

He turned around hurriedly.

Annie shrugged at Sarah, completely ruining the atmosphere. Thomas also stopped, realizing he had said too much.

"Actually, we just talked to the victim's husband George. He was out of town for the past few days and only came home to find this. Of course, we will consider what you said. Have you seen Wendy go out in the past few days? Or seen anyone come over, or heard anything unusual?" Sarah asked.

"No, they... don't seem to socialize much."

Thomas shook his head.

"Alright, that's it for today..."

"Your cake is here!"

Zhen Fan appeared at the door again, holding a tray of cake covered with a transparent glass lid. It looked well-baked.

"Thank you, Zhen. Your skills are really impressive. It looks as good as those from cake masters, and it makes me hungry just looking at it!" Annie complimented him casually.

"Of course!" Zhen Fan accepted the compliment with ease.

This made things a bit awkward, and Annie looked at the two officers with some embarrassment. Clearly, she felt she had said something wrong and misled Zhen Fan, feeling somewhat guilty.

What a kind woman!

"Alright, we'll be going. That's it for today, but we might come back..."

"Sorry, how long will you be here?" Zhen Fan suddenly interjected.

Interrupted again, Annie was very annoyed.

"Until the case is solved. We will have officers monitoring the area 24/7 to ensure your safety, Mr. Zhen. That's all for now!"

Sarah tilted her head, signaling Ryan to leave.

"He baked a nice-looking cake! It looks really delicious..." Ryan muttered as he walked away, his voice low.

"Damn, can't you focus on something else?"

"Oh, yes, yes, I did look at something else!" Ryan seemed excited.

"Tell me! What did you notice?"

"The one called Annie was wearing a low-cut top!"

"You bastard, if you keep this up, I'll make sure your uncle takes you back!"

"Alright, I promise..."

Zhen Fan and the others couldn't hear this conversation as they had already walked far away.

"It seems we need to be more cautious. With the police and the murderer around, this place is really not safe!"

Thomas grumbled.

"Goodbye, Zhen!"

The couple sighed and shook their heads as they walked back.

"Hey, Sarah!" Zhen Fan suddenly called out loudly to Officer Sarah.

Sarah and Ryan stopped and turned to look at Zhen Fan.

"Maybe I can help you!"

Zhen Fan shouted again.

Ten minutes later, at George's house.

"How can you trust this guy? He says he knows the murderer, which is enough reason to arrest him. I bet this kid did it." Ryan glared at Zhen Fan as he walked around the crime scene, complaining to Sarah.

"You don't trust him?"

"No, how can I trust this Chinese guy?"

"Let's wait and see. If he doesn't find anything, we'll arrest him!"

Zhen Fan came out, took off his gloves, and walked over with a smile.

"Do you want to know who the murderer is?"

His words stunned Sarah and Ryan. Indeed, he was fearless and ignorant!

"Although I gave you a temporary consultant status, you're not a formal consultant. If you start making wild claims, I have reason to believe you're obstructing our investigation. A stint in jail might teach you a lesson! Kid, don't talk nonsense!" Ryan glared fiercely.

"It was her husband!"

"Nonsense, George has an alibi. Someone vouched for him, and he wasn't home these past few days!"

Sarah's face was also grim, but she nodded. "He does have a motive, but he has an alibi and no time to commit the crime!"

"Alright, you might not believe me if I say it this way!"

Zhen Fan took a few steps into the house and nodded at Sarah. "Come, follow me!"

Sarah thought for a moment and followed him.

"Wendy died around 1 AM today."

Sarah nodded. This was correct, and Zhen Fan's ability to deduce this just by observation was impressive, proving he had some skills.

"I'm a doctor!" Zhen Fan added, making Sarah sigh. "Of course, I haven't obtained a medical license yet, but I will, won't I?"

"Alright, I get it. Go on!"

"The victim was killed by having her throat slit with a kitchen knife. You won't find it now, but I can tell you where to look. If you search behind the yard, near the edge of the lawn, there's a cluster of gardenias. If you dig there, you'll find the knife, and the soil will show signs of recent disturbance. You might be surprised!"

"Anything else?"

"More..."

Zhen Fan smiled at Ryan.

"Don't look at me like that. Did I do it?"

"No, you don't look like a murderer at all. But I think you'd be good at digging up those gardenias. You must often plant trees at home!"

"Yes, so what? Kid, are you just guessing? I never told anyone about this!" Ryan looked at Sarah, who glared at him.

"Alright, alright, I'll dig up those damn gardenias. If I find nothing, I'll make you pay, kid. Wait and see!"

"Last night around 1 AM, a man about George's height came in from the back of the house. Wendy opened the door and made dinner for him. While clearing the dishes, she was killed. I think the answer is clear!" Zhen Fan mimicked an American, shrugging at Sarah and crossing his arms, looking like he was done and it was no longer his problem.