Around 1 a.m., Guan Xia sipped coffee intermittently to stay alert while staring intently at her computer screen. Suddenly, Pang Le exclaimed excitedly, "Come look! Isn’t this Chen Yuanwei? I think it might be him."
As Pang Le spoke, everyone pushed their chairs back and stood up. Guan Xia, being the closest, slid her chair over with a nudge of her toes and examined the figure Pang Le was pointing at on the screen.
The person was only visible in profile, tucked in the bottom-right corner of the surveillance footage, blending into a crowd of onlookers. Aside from his noticeably tall stature, he didn’t stand out.
Guan Xia couldn’t help but ask, "How did you even spot him in such a hidden corner, especially with just his side profile?"
Pang Le’s eyes lit up with excitement. "So it really is Chen Yuanwei?"
Thanks to her system-assisted intuition and countless hours of reviewing surveillance footage over the past two nights, Guan Xia recognized the figure instantly. She nodded with a smile. "You’re right. It’s him."
Pang Le exhaled in relief. "Guess it’s a case of ‘when one door closes, another opens.’ Sure, I lost two hundred bucks tonight, but I briefly gained eagle-eyed vision—fair trade."
She chuckled before turning serious again. "Honestly, I didn’t notice him at first. I kept replaying this segment because something felt off. After watching it a few times, I caught a glimpse of that half-hidden face and thought it looked familiar."
Before Guan Xia could press further, Wang Yu interjected curiously, "What was so unusual about it?"
Pang Le scooted aside to give everyone a better view of the screen. "Just watch," she said, rewinding the footage.
As the video played again, the room fell silent, everyone scrutinizing the movements of the people on screen. Guan Xia instinctively glanced at the spot where Chen Yuanwei had appeared earlier, but since he wasn’t there yet, she shifted her focus elsewhere.
Pang Le had timed the rewind perfectly. Guan Xia saw neither Chen Yuanwei nor the four other victims connected to the case. Just as she began to wonder, the scene suddenly changed.
A delivery rider on an electric bike seemed to faint for a second while crossing the intersection, causing his vehicle to swerve uncontrollably and crash into a luxury car driving nearby.
The loud bang drew the attention of both passing drivers and pedestrians. Many slowed their pace, while a sizable crowd stopped altogether to gawk.
The rider, either jolted awake or recovering from his dizziness, looked panicked. Ignoring any potential injuries, he kept frantically checking the damage where the two vehicles had collided.
Guan Xia sensed where this was going. Sure enough, the driver’s door swung open, revealing a familiar face.
Zhong Xiaoyu gasped. "That’s my uncle!"
A single glance at the man’s face confirmed it: the owner of the luxury car was Zhong Chenghong, one of the four victims in the Chen Yuanwei case—and Zhong Xiaoyu’s uncle.
The moment she recognized Zhong Chenghong, Guan Xia’s mind raced. She immediately looked back to the bottom-right corner where Chen Yuanwei had appeared earlier.
Just as she suspected, while everyone’s attention had been fixed on the accident, Chen Yuanwei had wandered into the frame, stopping to watch the commotion.
Xu Nian was just as quick. A second before Guan Xia could speak, he said, "Rewind the footage. We need to confirm exactly when Chen Yuanwei appears."
Pang Le swiftly clicked the mouse twice. As the video replayed, Guan Xia stared unblinking at the corner.
A few seconds later, Chen Yuanwei strolled into view, hands in his pockets, carrying a bag of apples. Hearing the crash, he turned his head, his lips curling into a faint smirk. He backtracked a few steps to the roadside and joined the spectators.
"So Chen Yuanwei had already seen my uncle by then," Zhong Xiaoyu muttered, glancing at the timestamp in the top-left corner. "December 9, 2019. My uncle died on the 27th—over two weeks later. Did this accident make him a target? But why? Just because he drove an expensive car?"
Her expression twisted in disbelief.
Pang Le shook her head. "There’s more. Keep watching. Chen Yuanwei’s reactions later are the real kicker. After reviewing this part multiple times, I’m convinced this incident was his motive for killing your uncle."
Zhong Xiaoyu clenched her jaw and kept watching.
Though the screen showed only one surveillance feed, Guan Xia had to split her focus—tracking the accident in the center while monitoring Chen Yuanwei’s expressions in the corner. Her eyes darted back and forth, straining to keep up.
No wonder Pang Le had to watch this so many times, she thought distractedly.
In the footage, Zhong Chenghong stepped out of his car. The rider grew increasingly frantic, nearly collapsing before Zhong Chenghong could even speak. The man clutched his phone tightly, his lips moving rapidly as if pleading.
Zhong Chenghong ignored him at first, inspecting the damage to his car with a frown before saying something stern.
The rider’s face crumpled. Tears spilled over instantly, and after muttering a few words, he dropped to his knees. Zhong Chenghong’s expression darkened.
With no audio, the scene played out like a silent film, leaving the group to interpret the exchange through body language alone.
As the rider knelt, bystanders began pointing and murmuring. Traffic police arrived, trying to haul the man to his feet while speaking firmly. But the rider refused to stand, fumbling with his phone until Zhong Chenghong said something resigned. Only then did the man slump, barely caught by the officer before hitting the ground.
The crowd’s whispers grew louder. Zhong Chenghong bent to help, but the rider suddenly wrenched free, kowtowing violently at him—forcing Zhong Chenghong to leap aside, one knee buckling in the process.
The rider scrambled up in alarm, reaching out to steady him. After another exchange, the two finally got into their respective vehicles and drove off, letting traffic resume.
Throughout the unfolding events, Chen Yuanwei's expression shifted dramatically—from schadenfreude to excitement, then to anger, until he seemed utterly consumed by rage. His right hand clenched the plastic bag of apples tightly before he suddenly hurled it to the ground in a fit of emotion. With a cold glare at Zhong Chenghong, who was getting into his car to leave, Chen turned away without bothering to pick up the scattered apples, walking off without a backward glance.
Naturally, the onlookers gave his retreating figure puzzled looks. A few called out to him, judging by their lip movements and gestures, but when he ignored them, some elderly bystanders quickly scooped up the apples from the ground.
It was at this moment that Pang Le hit pause.
"So? Pretty unique, right?" Pang Le said. "Did you notice Chen Yuanwei's expressions? Absolutely riveting. I can't figure out why he was so angry, but it’s clear he harbored hatred toward Zhong Chenghong. I think this could very well be his motive for murder."
Wang Yu frowned. "Judging by the body language between Zhong Chenghong and the delivery rider, they seemed to have a minor dispute—not quite an argument—over compensation for the accident. Based on the outcome, Zhong Chenghong generously waived the rider’s payment. But what does that have to do with Chen Yuanwei? Why was he so furious? Was he angry at Zhong Chenghong’s kindness? Or did it remind him of his own past, sparking jealousy over Zhong’s current wealth?"
Guan Xia pondered for a moment before shaking her head. "Chen Yuanwei’s mental state has been warped by the hardships he’s faced over the years. It’s hard to apply normal logic to his behavior. Still, Pang Le makes a valid point. Let’s review the surveillance footage of the other three victims to see if there’s a similar pattern."
Zhong Xiaoyu suddenly interjected, "I think Chen Yuanwei’s extreme emotional reaction might be tied to something my uncle said. It’s a shame the surveillance video doesn’t have audio. If only we knew what they were talking about."
Guan Xia’s expression shifted as if recalling something, just as Jiang Yingyao spoke up. "I remember… doesn’t Guan Xia know lip-reading?"
At his words, all eyes turned to Guan Xia.
She froze for a second, remembering how the system had previously assigned her a "lip-reading expert" persona during the case involving the Judgment Angel organization.
Under the group’s expectant gazes, Guan Xia felt her scalp prickle.
Pang Le, ever eager, immediately rewound the footage, cheerfully saying, "Right, right! I remember now—Guan Xia does have that skill. Let me replay the video."
Wang Yu added, "Zoom in on the footage and slow it down to make it easier for Guan Xia to read."
Guan Xia had never seen Pang Le work so efficiently. In seconds, he adjusted the settings as instructed and even scooted aside to give her the prime spot directly in front of the screen.
With no room to refuse, Guan Xia stiffly adjusted her chair and reluctantly rewatched the surveillance footage, steeling herself.
Fortunately, the system—being an infallible cheat—didn’t disappoint. As soon as the video ended, Wang Yu asked, "Well? Was the speed okay? Could you see clearly? Should we adjust anything?"
The system interface flashed open. Whether it was her imagination or not, the text seemed to appear faster than usual, lines materializing in rapid succession:
You’ve been questioned by the police. Suddenly, you recall that at 1:27 a.m. on July 18th, while reviewing case-related surveillance footage, you keenly realized the suspect Chen Yuanwei’s murder motive was tied to an accidental traffic incident involving the victim Zhong Chenghong. After rewatching the incident multiple times, you pieced together the entire exchange through lip-reading. You decide to inform the police.
After a brief pause, the familiar video reappeared—but this time, Zhong Chenghong and Chen Yuanwei were highlighted with red frames, and subtitles appeared at the bottom of the screen. Guan Xia quickly realized these were the dialogues between Zhong Chenghong and the rider after the accident.
Relieved, Guan Xia took charge like a narrator, directing Pang Le to rewind and replay the footage while she recited the conversation verbatim from the subtitles:
Rider: I’m sorry, I’m so sorry—I didn’t mean to! I just blacked out for a second. I’ll pay for everything. I’ve got 4,322 yuan and 75 cents saved up—I’ll give it all to you, okay? That’s all I have.
Zhong Chenghong: Look, I don’t want to make this hard for you, but this car is brand-new. My wife just got it for me yesterday, and now it’s wrecked. Feels like bad luck.
Rider: I’m really sorry… but this is all I have. I’ll borrow more—I can scrape together 10,000 yuan, okay? My friends aren’t well-off either, but I’ll beg if I have to. Please, just let me pay you 10,000.
Zhong Chenghong: Hey, hey—don’t kneel! What’s this? People will think I’m bullying you.
Rider: I’m sorry… I really can’t get more than 10,000.
Traffic Officer: Kid, stand up. We’ll work out the compensation properly. Kneeling’s not the way.
Rider: I just… I don’t have anything else to offer—
Zhong Chenghong: Ugh, this is getting out of hand. Why are you kowtowing now? Fine, forget it. Consider it my bad luck. You don’t need to pay 10,000—just give me 2,000. Hopefully, the insurance I got when I picked up the car covers this.
Rider: Thank you, thank you! You’re a good person—may you live a long life and grow old with your wife!
The video ended there. Guan Xia finished reciting the last line, and after a brief pause, the subtitles vanished.
Unlike the earlier lively discussion, the room fell silent after Guan Xia’s narration. Finally, Ji An spoke up. "I have a… slightly far-fetched theory. I suspect Chen Yuanwei’s sudden hatred might be tied to the bystanders."
Pang Le blinked. "Weren’t we just speculating that his anger was about Zhong Chenghong and the rider’s exchange? How’d we jump to the bystanders?"
Xu Nian suddenly said, "I had the same speculation. Just now, I estimated that the traffic accident occurred in the rightmost lane of the eastbound side, specifically the middle lane of the three-lane road. With so many onlookers gathered, the noise from their discussions must have been overwhelming. Chen Yuanwei was standing on the sidewalk of the opposite lane—at such a distance and with the crowd's interference, he couldn’t possibly have heard the conversation between the two people at the center of the accident. All he could hear were the murmurs of the bystanders around him."
Jiang Yingyao easily followed their line of thought. "I noticed Chen Yuanwei’s expression of resentment appeared about ten seconds after the rider knelt down and Zhong Chenghong stepped back, saying something about settling for two thousand yuan. I suspect Zhong Chenghong’s actions did provoke Chen Yuanwei’s jealousy, but the surrounding crowd’s comments also fueled his emotions."
Guan Xia, now understanding, hesitantly added, "So you’re saying Zhong Chenghong’s behavior earned him praise from the onlookers—things like, ‘He drives such a nice car and is still so kind-hearted,’ or ‘No wonder he’s successful.’ And that made Chen Yuanwei project those remarks onto himself, which drove him to murder?"
Zhong Xiaoyu frowned deeply. "Is the motive for murder really that absurd? Just because people praised my uncle, Chen Yuanwei decided to kill him?"
Pang Le stroked his chin and nodded. "This theory does sound far-fetched, but the more I think about it, the more plausible it seems. Given Chen Yuanwei’s twisted mindset, he might have taken those compliments personally—if Zhong Chenghong was kind and ‘deserved’ his wealth, then by contrast, Chen Yuanwei must be unworthy, doomed to failure and suffering."
At Pang Le’s speculation, Zhong Xiaoyu fell silent, and the others didn’t speak for a moment either.
Guan Xia wasn’t sure if this guess was close to the truth, but if it was, she found it utterly absurd.
Truly, a murderer is a murderer—their motives always defy logic, leaving people baffled and horrified.
