Impersonation

Chapter 32 Impersonation

To tell two sides of the story.

At Ruyi Inn, Bai Yanliang had just finished gathering information.

"They are staying in Room 406?"

"Yes, sir. Another gentleman came to ask just a moment ago. Are you friends with that gentleman?"

Bai Yanliang nodded. "You could say that. May I ask... how long ago did he leave?"

The attendant glanced at the clock on the wall and said, "Almost an hour ago."

Almost an hour...

Damn it.

Bai Yanliang thanked the attendant and was just about to leave when he saw another female attendant who had been answering the phone suddenly stand up, look around, and call out, "Excuse me... is there a Mr. Xu, Ms. Jiang, Mr. Bai, or Mr. Feng here?"

Bai Yanliang's heart stirred. He walked over and said to her, "I am Bai Yanliang. Please, give it to me."

The attendant hurriedly handed him the phone, her gaze filled with suspicion and uncertainty; after all, this call was coming from the police station.

"Hello?" Bai Yanliang took the phone and asked.

"Bai Yanliang?"

"It's me."

There was a moment of silence on the other end, and then, Li Yuejun's voice came through.

"I just received some news: the owner of Ruyi Inn, Ding Lei, and his younger brother, Ding Peng, are twins!"

Bai Yanliang's brows lifted, and the knots of doubt in his mind instantly began to unravel.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!"

"I understand..." Bai Yanliang was silent for a moment, then said, "Stay at the police station. I will handle everything here."

On the other end, Li Yuejun's expression was strange. Bai Yanliang had already hung up the phone, and he had even told her to stay put and behave.

Is he... that confident?

What a strange guy.

Though she was grumbling in her heart, Li Yuejun couldn't lie to herself; this man, who was still a stranger to her, gave her a strong sense of security. It was as if... as long as he was around, even ghosts and monsters weren't quite so terrifying anymore...

Feng Xinghan was in trouble; Bai Yanliang was certain of it.

He looked up at the ceiling, his gaze seemingly piercing through the floors.

Jiang Li and Xu Zhi'an were still hiding on the rooftop. Although there were two highly decomposed corpses lying in the water tank there, that place might just be the safest spot after all.

As for Li Yuejun, she hadn't conducted much of an investigation and was unaware of many details, but the fact that she had keenly sensed that the twin relationship between Ding Lei and Ding Peng might be the issue had already been a massive contribution.

In fact, even Bai Yanliang had overlooked this point, which was the one thing he hadn't been able to figure out.

Zhang Wen had obtained Ding Peng's help to kill Li Yuhua based on a verbal promise that had zero credibility.

Even someone blinded by greed wouldn't believe such foolish, crazy talk, yet... Ding Peng had actually cooperated with Zhang Wen.

This was the one thing Bai Yanliang had been completely unable to fathom.

Why?

Why was Ding Peng so certain that he would obtain a massive fortune after killing Li Yuhua?

It wasn't until Li Yuejun's phone call that he understood everything.

The reason Ding Peng was willing to cooperate with Zhang Wen was because he had a plan of his own!

Bai Yanliang had now fully cleared up the cause and effect of the matter. He looked at the attendant and said, "Please call Boss Ding. Tell him the police are coming tonight and that we hope he will cooperate with the investigation... regarding the disappearance of his sister-in-law, Zhang Qiao."

The attendant's eyes widened, and she looked at Bai Yanliang in confusion, feeling somewhat at a loss.

"Sir... may I ask who you are?"

Bai Yanliang looked at her with a serious expression and said, "Detective, badge number 015386. I hope you will cooperate."

The female attendant was clearly frightened; she nodded repeatedly and began to dial Ding Lei's number.

Bai Yanliang didn't pay her any more attention, instead looking toward the fourth floor, blocked by layers of ceilings. He hadn't come down in an hour... Feng Xinghan might never come down again.

"Help... help me!"

A howl filled with terror came from not far away.

The attendants and Bai Yanliang turned their heads simultaneously to see a short, thin male attendant rushing out, his face deathly pale.

"Wang Sheng? What happened?"

The female attendant at the counter looked toward him and asked in confusion.

"Dead... he's dead! Brother Jiang is dead!" His gaze was filled with terror, and even in the brightly lit lobby, he couldn't stop his entire body from trembling.

"Ah!"

Several women covered their mouths and gasped, their minds in a whirl as they looked at one another in panic.

Fortunately, Bai Yanliang had just assumed the identity of Yang Wanlong and borrowed his police badge, so he stepped forward now and looked at Wang Sheng: "I am a criminal police officer. Take me to the scene."

Wang Sheng, caught between suspicion and terror, cast his gaze toward the other staff members.

Seeing those women nodding repeatedly, he finally steeled his resolve.

"He... he is in the restroom."

Led by Wang Sheng, Bai Yanliang stepped into the staff lounge area once again; the narrow corridor seemed... a bit tighter than before.

The restroom was at the end of the hallway, dim and gloomy. Wang Sheng was extremely reluctant to go back in, yet he dared not abandon this "police officer."

After stalling for a long time, the two finally entered the restroom.

The sight before them was unbearable for Wang Sheng, who began to dry heave, unable to look for more than a second. Bai Yanliang, however, remained silent, simply staring quietly at the corpse before him.

He looked at the dead male attendant.

He was still wearing the Ruyi Inn uniform, his limbs twisted in a bizarre and terrifying fashion.

Most horrifying of all were his hands; blood was still dripping from the fingernails of Jiang Chaojie.

Bai Yanliang did not ask Wang Sheng what had happened, believing that even if he did, this man who had lost his wits would be unable to answer.

Furthermore, Bai Yanliang was certain that this was not a crime committed by a human, but by a ghost.

"Where is Jiang Chaojie's room? Take me there."

Bai Yanliang's gaze fell upon Wang Sheng, his voice stern and steady, causing the already frantic Wang Sheng to nod repeatedly.

Leading Bai Yanliang to Jiang Chaojie's door, Wang Sheng appeared restless and uneasy.

"Go on. Don't let anyone into the staff area until your boss arrives," Bai Yanliang instructed.

Upon hearing this, Wang Sheng nodded hurriedly and scrambled away.

Bai Yanliang watched his retreating back; after the man left, the surroundings seemed to grow much colder.

Kicking the door open, Bai Yanliang surveyed Jiang Chaojie's room.

This man and Wang Sheng had witnessed the scene where the body was hidden, yet they had chosen to keep the secret for the sake of hush money.

Bai Yanliang did not believe such a matter could be resolved with a bit of so-called hush money. Ding Peng had already killed one person; killing two more would be no great feat. After all, only the dead could keep a secret forever.

But... Ding Peng had indeed spared him.

Bai Yanliang stepped into Jiang Chaojie's room and began to search the area.

He did not stop until he found an agreement deep inside the wardrobe.

Everything was explained.

The first story ends tomorrow.