He could even see the tips of her ears turning red.

Only then did Luo Fei suddenly realize.

"So from this angle, President Liao isn't really the honest man he claims to be, is he?"

"That's right, Mr. Luo."

The girl looked a little aggrieved as she spoke.

"Back when I got together with him, it was my fault for being blind and not seeing through his true nature. Otherwise I might not have ended up like this!"

He saw the light fade from her beautiful eyes.

Luo Fei asked as well.

"Miss, what's your name?"

As he spoke, he turned on the recording device.

The girl introduced herself of her own accord.

"My name is Cao Lingling."

"I'm 28 this year. Right after I graduated from college, I joined Liao Yongwen's company. From that time on, he was always looking out for me, and he would personally drive me home."

"At the beginning he also said he couldn't betray his wife, so he couldn't be with me. But later, he treated me so well that I made the first move. I never expected that he'd turn out to be a sanctimonious hypocrite."

As she said this, Cao Lingling's face was full of grievance.

Her eyes were also rimmed with red.

"So what you mean is, he deceived you. He said he'd be with you, and then kicked you away with one stroke?"

Things like this were nothing new to Luo Fei.

Even though he was no longer at the precinct.

There were still people around him who had experienced it personally.

After listening to Luo Fei's analysis, she neither confirmed nor denied it.

"Yes, Mr. Luo, I was tricked by that guy."

"I really thought he was serious. That he wanted to be with me. But after he found out I was pregnant, he deliberately started to distance himself from me, until one time, I secretly checked his phone and I finally realized he didn't have only me as a lover—I was just one of many."

"Do you have evidence?"

Before Luo Fei's voice had fallen.

The girl had already pulled up her chat logs with Liao Yongwen.

At first, it was just simple greetings and concern from Liao Yongwen.

Later it turned into intimate words that only couples would say.

And then in the end.

Liao Yongwen completely distanced himself from the girl.

The evidence was very clear.

"Miss, I understand your situation. But the emotional disputes between the two of you at most count as a civil matter."

Sliding through the phone screen, Luo Fei analyzed as he spoke.

"And judging from your chat logs, he also transferred you some money. Every transfer was 1,999, and you took all of it?"

The girl was extremely embarrassed.

"Yeah, Mr. Luo, but I told him that if I made money later, I'd pay him back. It's not about the money. I just want an apology from him, but he refuses to say even a single word."

As she spoke, her voice grew softer and softer.

A hint of helplessness flashed across her beautiful eyes.

Luo Fei's expression also grew a little grave.

"Miss, it's not that I don't want to help you. But I have to remind you, your situation is very hard to handle."

"Because he can completely deny there was any relationship between you two. He can just say you willingly slept with him. He could even characterize your behavior as blackmail. If he turns around and sues you, that would be big trouble."

As Luo Fei spoke, he rubbed his temples.

He looked like he had more to say but was holding back.

The girl instantly felt a bit awkward.

"Mr. Luo, you're right. I've asked some lawyers before, and they said the same thing. But when I think about letting that scumbag walk away scot-free, I just can't swallow it."

As she spoke, she clenched her fists.

He could tell she was clearly very angry.

Luo Fei comforted her.

"Miss Cao, I understand what you mean."

"But this case between you two doesn't fall under our Major Crimes Unit's jurisdiction."

"Unless there's a homicide involved, or injuries determined to be at least minor serious, or the case causes a huge social impact, otherwise we won't handle it."

Luo Fei trailed off as he spoke.

But Cao Lingling suddenly looked up.

"Then what if I say that one of Liao Yongwen's people has killed someone?"

"Would you help investigate then?"

Luo Fei didn't ask much, just concisely asked one word.

"Who?"

Seeing that Luo Fei was now strongly interested in what she'd brought up.

The girl spoke solemnly as well.

"No one else—He Jinhui, the one who was exposed before."

Cao Lingling's tone was serious. When she said this, it was as if she had thought very carefully before deciding to voice such a suspicion.

But Luo Fei was immediately a bit surprised.

"He Jinhui? What kind of grudge does he have with President Liao?"

Luo Fei was genuinely a bit taken aback.

Cao Lingling pursed her lips and said.

"Mr. Luo, you might not know this. President Liao actually invested in Boss Yang's company in the past. It wasn't a shareholding on the surface though. He helped build new school buildings for him, under the pretext of maintaining public facilities, and that was his way of secretly buying in."

"So even later, when this President Yang got into trouble, Liao Yongwen wasn't affected at all. Because he was a hidden shareholder, making a quiet fortune. The dividends he got weren't in cash either, but in real estate and vehicles."

This was how Cao Lingling explained it.

Which finally made things click for Luo Fei.

"So that's how it is."

At this moment, Luo Fei finally understood.

So Liao Yongwen really was a sanctimonious hypocrite.

He just wore his mask well.

That's why he gave people the impression of being kind and easygoing.

He wasn't truly kind; he was just very good at hiding his claws.

"Miss, what you know—did it come from Liao Yongwen himself?"

At this point, Luo Fei had grasped the key point, so he asked a follow-up question.

She still neither confirmed nor denied it.

"Mr. Luo, some of this I did infer on my own, but it's not without basis."

"Because every year during Qingming Festival, Liao Yongwen goes to see He Jinhui. But the two of them have no connection on the surface. And before, he also secretly met with He Jinhui's family members. That's why I guessed there's something very off about him."

After listening to her explanation.

Luo Fei nodded.

"Miss, with what you've told me, I can feel more at ease."

"I'll arrange for people to contact He Jinhui's family later, to verify the situation and see if it checks out."

Luo Fei's answer allowed Cao Lingling to breathe a little easier.

But at the same time.

She was also a bit anxious.

"Officer Luo, do you think we can actually get this Liao Yongwen?"

It was understandable that Cao Lingling was so conflicted.

Because after all.

All this time she had been living under a psychological shadow.

She was afraid Liao Yongwen would find someone to silence her.

She was genuinely worried about her own situation.

But Luo Fei reassured her.

"Cao Lingling, based on what we know right now, this Liao Yongwen doesn't see you as a threat at all. To put it bluntly, when he broke up with you, he was very confident—he thought he could keep you completely under his thumb."

Luo Fei's tone was faint.

But his words were very direct.

Which even made Cao Lingling a little angry.

Her teeth practically itched.

"Mr. Luo, in that case, that's actually great."

"Because then he won't see me as a threat. I can even try to get close to his wife, and see if I can get something out of her."

"That might help us dig up more useful clues."

Seeing how serious Cao Lingling was.

Luo Fei rubbed his temples again.

"Miss Cao, over the two-plus years you were together, he gave you at least tens of thousands of yuan, if not more. As for other expenses, I don't know."

"In that situation, you could completely treat it as if nothing ever happened between you two. Why keep digging into it? Don't tell me it's purely for justice—I don't buy that."

When Luo Fei said this.

Cao Lingling also felt a little ashamed.

"Mr. Luo, I know you might not want to believe me when I put it like this, but what I'm doing is for my own dignity—for my name to be cleared."

"Not to mention, my whole life has been ruined because of that scumbag. So I have every reason to fight for myself. Even if it's just to save face, I'm dragging him down with me!"

When she finished,

Luo Fei nodded.

"In that case, Miss Cao, head back for now and wait for my news. Once we have any results from our investigation, I'll contact you right away."

When Luo Fei said this.

Cao Lingling felt deeply grateful.

"Thank you, Mr. Luo. Really, thank you so much for being willing to do all this for me."