"If you loved Xiumin, you should seek justice for her," Xue Ning said, turning his face so she could stare straight into his eyes.
"Her killer is still on the loose," Xue Ning said quietly. "Will you be able to die knowing that her murder is unsolved?"
The man swallowed as he stared into the eyes of Sun Jingwei's fiancee.
What did he have to lose? If Xiumin was already dead…
"I want proof," he choked out. "I want proof she's dead."
Jingwei and Xue Ning looked at each other. How were they supposed to prove that? It wasn't as though they had Xiumin's autopsy report…
Then Jingwei's eyes brightened and he took out his phone. He searched for Officer Tang's police district and the date of Xiumin's death, and it showed the police station cordoned off with crime scene tape, and netizens' claimed that a murder had taken a place due to the presence of a body bag.
"Here, take a look. My brother is in-charge of the investigation, so nothing is public knowledge." Jingwei said quietly. "But as you can see, this particular police station that Xiumin was brought to had a murder."
More tears rolled down the man's cheeks as he read the headline. He lifted a shaking finger to the screen, touching the black pixels that made up the garbage bag, mouthing Xiumin's name silently.
Xue Ning wanted to look away to give him some privacy to grieve, but she couldn't risk him trying to strangle Jingwei again. Jingwei meanwhile, could only wait quietly until he got his feelings under control. He didn't feel much for Xiumin, but this man clearly did. He felt upset on his behalf.
Eventually, he heaved a sigh and rubbed at his wet face. Xue Ning handed him a piece of tissue to dab his face dry and he took it without a word of thanks.
"Help us bring her murderer to justice." Xue Ning said.
"How can I, when it's all your husband's fault?" He asked tiredly. He was a man in his early 20s, yet at that moment he seemed like a weary old man.
Jingwei raised his eyebrow. "Look, I didn't film the video. I explained it to Xiumin before - she thought I did it and I thought she did it, but I believe that it was done by your Boss."
"My boss…?" He replied weakly. "That…cannot be… it was him who helped Xiumin… he assigned me…to her… said she needed…my support…my friendship… my love…"
"Believe what you want, but there's no point in protecting the man behind her," Jingwei said furiously. "I would not have her killed when she had information I wanted."
"So… Xiumin was collateral damage? She… died… because she… knew too much…" The man replied, but it felt like saying these words pained him incredibly. But there was a firm resolution when he reopened his eyes, there was a burning need to see her killer suffer retribution that wasn't there before.
Xue Ning knew at that moment that they got him on their side.
"The Boss…wants you dead…you and your family. All of you. Your money. Your company. Gone."
"I see," Jingwei nodded. It felt good to finally have confirmation that someone wanted the destruction of his entire family and their fortune. "Do you have any details? Like his name? Organisation? What's his plan?"
The man sighed. "I don't have his real name… but he was known as…Dimitri."
Jingwei paled. It was that same name from before! That name that he created!
"Have you seen that boss? What did he look like?" Jingwei asked, more frantically this time.
"I…" the man closed his eyes, as though trying to recall. "I didn't dare… to meet his eyes… but from afar… he should be your age."
"I see," Jingwei said woodenly. He took back his phone and searched for a photo from his old camera albums from nearly a decade ago.
He had never bothered to declutter his phone, because those photos brought up memories he wanted to forget. And he could always expand his phone's storage. Now, his unwillingness to face the past has paid off.
He showed a photo to him. Xue Ning also took a look, but didn't find anything out of the ordinary. It simply was a photo of two teenage boys with their arms slung around each other's shoulders, making funny faces at the camera. One boy was Jingwei, and the other, a stranger.
"Does your boss look like an older version of the boy on the right?" Jingwei asked evenly. Xue Ning eyed him curiously. It sounded like Jingwei had an idea who was responsible for the attacks, but was afraid of having it confirmed.
The man frowned as he stared at the photo. "...Maybe? I think so…? But…I've never dared… to look him in the eyes. The boss… had a bad temper."
Jingwei gave a sardonic smile.
"Sounds like someone I knew. And let me guess, your boss is incredibly charismatic, and can convince people to do his bidding easily. He believes himself to be better than everyone else. And he has a single-minded determination to destroy everything I hold dear."
The man on the bed blinked in surprise. So did Xue Ning.
"I think I know who your boss is now." Jingwei said quietly. Deep down, he had always known but refused to accept it, choosing to believe in the reports of his death.
"Care to tell me?" Xue Ning asked curiously. "Is the boy in the photo Dimitri? The man that manipulated Xiumin to harm you?"
"No, Xue Ning," Jingwei said regrettably. It was time for her to know the truth.
"He is Wu Shang Jing, the only son of the prestigious Wu family. He was… an old friend of mine. Their family rivalled us a decade ago."
"Wu family…I've never heard of them before." Xue Ning said, frowning. She hadn't been the most internet savvy person, but if they were as prestigious as Jingwei claimed, then they should still be around. "Where are they now then? Did they go abroad?"
Jingwei gave her a smile, but there was not much humour in it.
"They were destroyed by me years ago."
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