Chapter 3

In the house, no one could have imagined that a simple argument would escalate to such a tragic extent.

Seeing Tang Xiu and Su Shangwen lying in a pool of blood, unconscious, the people in the house were panic-stricken. Screams, cries, and calls for help echoed one after another, and no one had the heart to care about who was right or wrong.

In just a few minutes, the police arrived at the scene.

Strangely enough, as soon as the police arrived, Su Shangwen, who had been unconscious, slowly woke up, and then Tang Xiu groaned.

Seeing the room full of police, Su Shangwen was greatly startled. He glanced at Tang Xiu lying on the ground and immediately remembered the moment before he fainted when Tang Xiu had hit him. Su Shangwen's eyes instantly turned bloodshot.

"Comrades, I have lost three thousand yuan from my home, and I suspect this fool stole it. Please arrest him," Su Shangwen said through gritted teeth, ignoring the pain in his finger and pointing at Tang Xiu's nose.

"Earlier, we received a call reporting a murder here. Who made the call?" A clear voice echoed in the room. The leader of the team was a spirited female police officer.

The female police officer ignored Su Shangwen and scanned the room, finally focusing on Zhang Mei Yun. She asked in a serious tone.

Under the sharp gaze of the female police officer, Zhang Mei Yun lowered her head guiltily and stammered, "Comrades, I made the call. I saw my husband bleeding and not breathing, and in my panic, I said the wrong thing when I called the police."

Hearing Zhang Mei Yun's explanation, Cheng Xue Mei's expression softened.

"Comrades, you must arrest this person. He not only stole three thousand yuan from us but also violently attacked me, breaking my hand," Su Shangwen shouted again as Cheng Xue Mei bent down to carefully examine the injuries of Tang Xiu and Su Shangwen.

Cheng Xue Mei glared at Su Shangwen but said nothing, continuing her work and ordering the other police to secure the scene.

"Comrades, I am a close friend of Captain Wang from the Public Security Team, and I have even had drinks with Director Deng. I have sponsored the Municipal Bureau multiple times," Su Shangwen said, feeling embarrassed by Cheng Xue Mei's indifference.

"Why don't you say the Municipal Bureau is your family business, and you can arrest anyone you want?" Cheng Xue Mei, who already disliked Su Shangwen's domineering attitude, looked up with a cold expression and mocked him.

Su Shangwen clearly did not expect that revealing his connections to the Municipal Bureau would not only fail to win him any favor but also make the female police officer more hostile. He was momentarily speechless.

Without Su Shangwen's interference, Cheng Xue Mei quickly finished examining the injuries of Su Shangwen and Tang Xiu.

Cheng Xue Mei found that Su Shangwen had only dislocated his arm, with no other significant injuries, while Tang Xiu had multiple injuries to his waist and abdomen and was in a state of exhaustion.

What puzzled Cheng Xue Mei was the large pool of blood on the ground.

Cheng Xue Mei could confirm that Tang Xiu's injuries, though severe in appearance, were not life-threatening. However, the people on the scene claimed that all the blood on the ground was from Tang Xiu, which made her doubt her own eyes.

"Are you feeling any discomfort?" Cheng Xue Mei looked at Tang Xiu, whose face was pale, and asked with concern.

"Sister, I'm fine. I don't want to go to the hospital. I don't want my mother to worry," Tang Xiu shook his head and said in a weak voice.

Cheng Xue Mei stared at Tang Xiu for a moment, then glanced at Su Ling Yun, who was standing nearby, looking anxious, and fell silent.

"Captain Cheng, do we need to transfer the case to Captain Wang?" Confirming that there was no murder and not even a serious injury, the few detectives who had responded with Cheng Xue Mei were thinking of leaving.

"Director Deng said at the mobilization meeting yesterday that we need to conserve police resources. Is it necessary for the Municipal Bureau to send police twice for such a small matter?" Cheng Xue Mei glared at the speaking police officer, displeased.

After saying this, Cheng Xue Mei felt relieved.

The other police officers who had come with Cheng Xue Mei were stunned, almost thinking their ears were playing tricks on them. According to their understanding, Cheng Xue Mei was not one to meddle in unnecessary matters. In the past, she would avoid such public security cases as much as possible, let alone take the initiative to get involved.

However, recalling the conversation between Cheng Xue Mei and Su Shangwen when she arrived at the scene, they seemed to understand what was going on.

In the Municipal Bureau, Cheng Xue Mei hated evil and especially disapproved of Captain Wang Hao's style. Su Shangwen's mention of his close friendship with Wang Hao was undoubtedly digging his own grave.

Following Cheng Xue Mei's order, the detectives quickly got to work.

Seeing the police search the house, Su Ya Ning and Su Xiang Fei, brother and sister, turned pale and trembled. They wanted the police to stop investigating the three thousand yuan, but they did not have the courage to speak up.

"Ya Ning, Xiang Fei, the police said your father only dislocated his arm. You don't need to worry," Su Shangwen, seeing his children's abnormal expressions, thought they were scared by his earlier collapse and smiled to reassure them.

Hearing their father's reassurance, Su Ya Ning and Su Xiang Fei almost cried, but with the police nearby, they did not dare to speak openly.

Soon, the detectives found the three thousand yuan in the house.

The money was found on top of the wardrobe in the bedroom, along with a clear handprint.

The top of the wardrobe had not been cleaned for a long time, so a thin layer of dust had accumulated, and the person hiding the money had left a trace.

Cheng Xue Mei first stared at the handprint, then scanned the people in the room, finally focusing on Su Xiang Fei.

"Su Xiang Fei, can you explain how this handprint got there?" Cheng Xue Mei suddenly asked sternly after staring at Su Xiang Fei for a moment.

"It's not my fault. My sister told me to hide the money. She said she hated Tang Xiu, and since he is a troublemaker in school, even if we framed him, he wouldn't be able to defend himself," Su Xiang Fei, already feeling guilty, broke down under Cheng Xue Mei's stern voice and hurriedly shifted the blame.

"I... I... I just wanted to play a trick on Tang Xiu. I didn't mean to steal the money," Su Ya Ning, seeing everyone's attention on her, panicked and tried to defend herself.

Hearing Su Xiang Fei and Su Ya Ning's words, even without Cheng Xue Mei's comment, everyone in the room understood what had happened.

"So, it turns out it was a case of the thief crying 'catch the thief.' This family is truly despicable."

"Why would they frame an orphan and his mother over three thousand yuan when they clearly don't need the money?"

"Having such relatives is a curse. If it were me, I would have cut ties with them long ago and not suffer their insults."

"..."

Today was Su Shangwen's fortieth birthday celebration. Although most of the guests had left after the lunch, many stayed for the dinner.

When Tang Xiu made a big scene, what was initially known only to a dozen people in the bedroom quickly became known to all the guests.

People are naturally drawn to drama, especially when it involves the main character of the celebration. The arrival of the police not only attracted all the guests but also the neighbors and passersby, who came to join in the commotion.

Initially, everyone thought Tang Xiu had stolen the three thousand yuan out of poverty and lack of ambition. When the truth came to light, they realized how absurd the situation was. They sympathized with and pitied Su Ling Yun and her son while looking at the Su family with disgust and contempt.

Su Shangwen and Zhang Mei Yun clearly did not expect the truth to be so shocking. They were momentarily stunned.

Hearing the crowd's comments and accusations and feeling their mocking and disdainful gazes, the Su family felt a burning pain on their faces.

"Comrades, hiding money in one's own home shouldn't be considered theft, right? I'm sorry for wasting your time today," after a long while, Su Shangwen managed to calm down and approached Cheng Xue Mei with a forced smile, pleading softly.

"Hiding money in one's own home is not a crime. However, according to our criminal law, publicly insulting someone or fabricating facts to defame them, if the circumstances are serious, can result in up to three years in prison, detention, or deprivation of political rights. You not only fabricated facts but also committed defamation."

"Furthermore, according to our criminal law, intentionally harming someone can result in up to three years in prison, detention, or control. Causing serious injury can result in three to ten years in prison. Your beating of Tang Xiu caused multiple injuries and even made him vomit blood and faint. Even if you don't get ten years, you will certainly get three to five years."

Seeing that Su Shangwen still did not realize his mistake and was calmly defending his son's actions, Cheng Xue Mei sneered.

Ignoring the pleading looks of the Su family, Cheng Xue Mei waved her hand and said loudly, "Take all the relevant people back for questioning!"

"Comrades, it's a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding. Tang Xiu is our nephew. How could we defame him or intentionally harm him?" Seeing that Cheng Xue Mei was serious, Su Shangwen panicked, grabbing her sleeve and pleading loudly.

While talking to Cheng Xue Mei, Su Shangwen looked to Su Ling Yun for help.

Zhang Mei Yun also realized that only Su Ling Yun and her son could save their family. She tugged at her children's sleeves and slowly approached Su Ling Yun.

"Ling Yun, as the saying goes, 'If the people do not report, the officials will not investigate.' We are all family, and we can talk things out. Ya Ning and Xiang Fei played a bit too much, but they are just children. Can you talk to the comrades and let us resolve this privately?" Zhang Mei Yun said with a forced smile.

Hearing Zhang Mei Yun's attempt to downplay the situation, Su Ling Yun turned her head away.

"Second Sister, Xiang Fei was wrong today. I will have Xiang Fei apologize to Xiu, and we can let this go. If you insist on making this a big issue, we will have no further contact," Su Shangwen, seeing Su Ling Yun stand up to his wife, coldly snorted, his eyes full of threats.

"Don't forget that Tang Xiu is still studying at Xingcheng No. 1 High School. With his grades and character, if it weren't for my connections at the school, he could be expelled at any time!" The cold words from Su Shangwen's mouth made the temperature in the room drop several degrees, and Su Ling Yun shivered, forcing herself to turn and look at Su Shangwen.