Chapter 246: Heart Hurts Too Much to Even Breathe (10)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“Ok, how about her other personality traits and personal interests, as well as her hobbies?”
“The majority answered that Wu Changqing was rather pessimistic and had a very negative outlook on life, besides being rebellious. She often expected the worst and remained quiet and moody most of the time. As for her hobbies and interests, most of the people who knew her said that she enjoyed cultivating flowers in her free time. They also mentioned that she planted a garden of flowers in the backyard of her home when she was living with her grandmother,” Gong Le answered.
After a moment of pondering in silence, An Xiaoning said, “Cultivating flowers? She wouldn’t be able to do so at the nightclub where she stayed at. At most, she could only buy some potted flowers that she could water daily. Everyone, go with me to visit her dormitory.”
“Alright.”
An Xiaoning arrived with her colleagues at the nightclub by car. Due to the fact that it was daytime, the usual boisterousness of the nightclub was nowhere to be found, and the entire place was filled with serenity and silence. The manager in charge then brought them to the dormitory Wu Changqing used to stay in when she was alive.
The four of them looked at each other in dismay upon sight of the room.
“She’d been staying in this room and she slept on this bed in the past,” said the manager, pointing towards a bed on which a few women were sleeping.
The few women quickly hid their faces upon hearing that the police had entered, for they feared seeing the police at the nightclub the most.
An Xiaoning scanned her surroundings to find that it was a rather small room, though there was a balcony and a washroom outside. However, there was an anti-theft system secured to the window of the balcony. The window was also facing the west, thus making it a poor environment for flowers to thrive in, since sunlight was scarce.
“Has she ever brought flowers back here?”
“No, she has never brought any flowers home,” one of the women in the dormitory answered confidently.
“Then, does she come back here to rest every day? Or does she only return once every few days?”
“She comes home every day.”
“Thank you for your cooperation. We’ll drop by again should we have any further inquiries,” An Xiaonning said to the manager.
“Don’t mention it, Team Leader An. It’s only part of our duty. Feel free to come by again if you have any other questions for us.”
“Sure.” An Xiaoning exited the dormitory, while Ma Jianguo, Zu Dong, and Gong Le followed closely behind.
A smile formed on An Xiaoning’s face as soon as they got on the car.
“Team Leader, why are you smiling…?” asked Ma Jianguo, widening his eyes in surprise.
“Did you guys find anything after taking a look at her dormitory?”
“Yes, that cultivating flowers is not possible at all,” Zu Dong answered.
“That’s right. I’m not sure if we’re working towards the right direction, but I hope we can get something out of this lead. If not, we’ll just search for new clues. So now, we have to begin searching for clues from property agents. She must’ve wanted to move out of the dormitory back then. Didn’t you see how cramped and pungent it was? A pessimistic and introverted woman who enjoys growing flowers wouldn’t enjoy living in groups. Thus, she must’ve been constantly searching for a house that comes with a backyard to move into. She should’ve also been looking for property housed in locations near the hospital where her grandmother is receiving treatment,” An Xiaoning said with much seriousness.
An Xiaoning smirked and continued, “Go check up on all the property agencies near the hospital her grandmother is currently residing in. Bring her photos along with you.”
“I’m suddenly enlightened after hearing your a.n.a.lysis, Team Leader,” said Ma Jianguo, giving her a thumbs-up excitedly.
“What are you waiting for then? Drive to the police station, then you three shall visit the property agencies near the hospital. There should only be a few around. Also, remember to ask for the birth characters of any suspicious persons you see. It’ll help with resolving the case,” An Xiaoning instructed.
“Yes!”
They then dropped An Xiaoning off at the police station before driving away again.
She stretched her back and laid down on the seats of her sports car. She then picked up an apple she brought and began to savor it bite by bite.
Just as she was about to rest and relax, she received a sudden call from Jing Tian.
She answered to hear what he had to say.
An Xiaoning then immediately drove towards the filming location.
She parked her bright red Ferrari in the carpark of the actors’ hostel and quickly strode towards the location Jing Tian mentioned.
She arrived to see that a crowd had gathered around a bald man who had a gold chain draped around his neck and a large beer belly. The malicious-looking man had brought along many bodyguards with him.
An Xiaoning took a closer look and realized that he was Bai Ranran’s brother, Bai Duocai.
“What brings you here to my film set, Mr. Bai?” asked An Xiaoning.
Bai Duocai stroked his bare head and chuckled before answering, “Ms. An, you arrived at the right time. I shall just tell you now then, we’ve booked this filming location way before you. But, I heard it was rented to you guys after I already made my booking. Thus, this would hinder the filming of the movie I invested in. What do you say we do now?”
“Although you did book it first, ultimately, it’s up to the owner to decide who to rent it to. There’s nothing much we can do about it. If you’re willing to let this matter slide on my account, then I’ll make it up to you in the future when I have the chance to. Otherwise, there’s nothing else I can say,” said An Xiaoning.
“Ms. An, it’s not that I’m not willing to let it slide, but it’s really going to affect filming. Well, I heard that you’ve trained at a martial arts boot camp lately. Why don’t we spar for a few rounds? If you lose, you are to give up the location to us. In the case that I lose, I’ll leave with my men immediately,” Bai Duocai said fearlessly.
“One on one?” An Xiaoning said with a raised brow.
“Not bad. But I don’t want to seem like I’m taking advantage of women. Why don’t you get your female company along?” Bai Duocai sneered with a grin.
“There’s no need for that.” An Xiaoning threw her bag towards Mei Yangyang and said to the people crowding around, “Stand back, everyone.”
“How brave of you, Ms. An. Since you chose to give up the advantage I gave you, I shall show no mercy then,” Bai Duocai said boastfully with his chin raised.
Dressed in easy-fitting clothes, which would allow her to move about without restrictions, An Xiaoning put on a straight face and began sparring with him.
Just as they began, Long Tianze arrived after rus.h.i.+ng down from the city. Due to the fact that his scenes were scheduled to be filmed in the afternoon, Long Tianze decided to head to the office in the morning. Little did he expect that Bai Duocai would bring along his men to seek trouble so soon.
The nimble and agile An Xiaoning was relentless in launching her strikes on Bai Duocai.
Within just minutes, Bai Duocai was already on the verge of vomiting blood due to the hard and fast kicks An Xiaoning had been throwing at him.
Striking the iron while its hot, An Xiaoning finished off with a perfectly executed flying kick, which caused Bai Duocai to fall onto the ground.
“Hooray!” the crowd cheered and applauded in unison.
Long Tianze’s lips curled into a smile. It never occurred to him that An Xiaoning would be so skilled and remarkable. Meanwhile, his girlfriend, Mei Yangyang…
“You’d better not try and provoke me; otherwise, you shall suffer the same fate as Bai Duocai,” Mei Yangyang whispered to him.
He patted her head gently and answered, “Yes, Madam.”