Always by your side

Ch 5. His bravest face

This wasn't my best morning, thought Lan Sizhui. First, he conversed with his father about the upcoming family meeting. Then, it was so long that he forgot his and his partner's sandwich at home. Then, before he went to the store to buy some food for the road, he was called to duty two blocks away from a restaurant.

He grimaced after walking inside the scene. The dead man lying on the restaurant floor looked quite normal except for his hands since the fingers were blacked. He turned around, the tables looked clean, and the kitchen seemed undisturbed, but the door of the manager's office was half-open, and some papers were on the floor. The toilet's entry was also wide open, and a strange smell was leaving the place. Goodbye, appetite.

"Who is this person?" he asked.

"His name is Mo Ziyuan, the owner of this place. According to the employee who found the body, the dead man was the last to leave. The door and the building were closed from inside. It is not clear why he never left the building".

"Is there anything strange, according to the employee?" asked Sizhui

"It seems that some strange customer came a little before they closed and then left. The manager went to his office, and the employee went home. According to the employee, the office is in disorder," answered Jingyi.

Lan Sizhui sighed and said, "Jingyi, Let's close the perimeter. We need to avoid others from entering here until the detectives and forensics arrive".

"Ok. So, do you not think this was just a case of a heart attack or an aneurism?" asked the other raising his brow.

"No. The owner could have just called emergency if he was sick, but the phone is in the office, not here in the restaurant's salon," said the other.

They waited outside. Not long afterwards, a detective's car arrived. The department was surely getting better at this. However, he has never seen the man in the driver's seat. Well, the other one told him that he was an «undercover agent» long ago.

"Hey there," said Jingyi ", you guys beat forensics finally. Good. Please help here with the inspection of the place. The dead guy looks terrible".

The men paused, both startled. Fortunately, they get their composure in a second.

"Sure, I am detective Wei, he is my associate Wen Ning, nice to meet you, what could you tell me about the incident?".

"Officers Lan, we both have the same last name. Nothing is clear. That's why we were waiting for you guys," Said Sizhui.

"Let's enter the building then," said the detective in a friendly tone.

After talking to the young men, Wei Ying walked inside the office.

"Certainly, this man was feeling sick, but he didn't want to call emergency. Why? He must have wanted to avoid strangers, and it is clear he was poisoned somehow," said Wei Ying.

"Hey, wait, poison, I thought this looked like a bad case of stomach problems?" said Jingyi.

"The evidence is consistent with arsenic. The blacked fingers are a giveaway," said the detective « can we open this desk, please?

"Sure," said the young man rapidly.

Wei Ying got some gloves and moved his hand inside the drawers. He was putting his bravest face to impress the young officers, but he was worried that the protection wasn't enough.

"This envelope looks brand new. Let's see what it says. Hey, wait a second «To Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji of GusuLan" what?" and the detective tossed around the envelope, letting it fall. His eyes widened.

"This cannot be," said the detective.

"What happened, senior detective?" Asked Sizhui

"This envelope is for me," said Wei Ying, pale