Zi Yingtai presented the footage tape in front of Qian Meigui.
Qian Meigui then offered the evidence to the Judge. He took it and dismissed the court of a recess until he can prove the authenticity.
After an hour of tension, and waiting, the judge returned to the court. Xue Guangli did not leave her seat. She stared at w.a.n.g Weimin hard.
She wasn"t sure if Zi Yingtai provided sufficient evidence, but she knew that when she kept seeing w.a.n.g Weimin, she secretly kept talking to Zi Yingtai, re-building trust, and a friends.h.i.+p. She also promised her that if w.a.n.g Weimin ever threatened her, that she and Long Huojin will do anything to protect her. It was up to her, to decide to help them or not. Though, it could bring her a bit of danger, too.
w.a.n.g Weimin did not appear to be afraid at all, which worried her.
"The proof of the recording is authentic. I worked with a team that proved it"s concrete," the judge said, then played the recording. It was of w.a.n.g Weimin walking in and out of the house, but Xue Hien was still alive when she sent him off. Not long after, there was a gap.
Zi Yingtai pulled out her purse, taking out something and giving it to Qian Meigui. "Those are records from w.a.n.g Worldwide," she said. "They were creating military advancements using technology. Mr. Xue was in charge of the collaboration. He had found out the secrets they were hiding. Long Group may have been part of the team as well, but that was BEFORE the dispute between Long Group and w.a.n.g Worldwide, which occurred three years ago."
Xue Guangli"s eyes widened.
"Three years ago. w.a.n.g Worldwide and Long Group were collaborating. w.a.n.g Worldwide used extreme measures to extort money from Long Group, thus resulting in a dispute between the two corporations. At the same time, they were making advanced military weapons. Mr. Xue Gao found out that w.a.n.g Worldwide planned to use unethical measures that would result in making money, but they were testing the weapons on citizens of our country, on rural areas against those with low-income. Xue Gao didn"t know if it was w.a.n.g Worldwide or Long Group, but he started with w.a.n.g Worldwide. They didn"t like it, so they plotted to kill him, it was his wife they killed instead," she finished.
Xue Guangli released a breath. Some relief and closure filled through.
"She"s lying!" w.a.n.g Weimin yelled. But the police were already handcuffing him.
"I also recovered the rest of the security footage that Mr. w.a.n.g tried to erase," she said. w.a.n.g Weimin"s face turned ashen.
Xue Hien arrived at home from work when she greeted her husband, who looked at her with soft brown eyes. She smiled up at him, running a hand through his auburn hair, the hair her two eldest daughters inherited from.
Over the last two weeks, she noticed something off about her husband. He appeared to be worried, afraid. It made her nervous.
She decided to confront him one evening after dinner. "What"s wrong?" she asked softly and sincerely.
Xue Gao was tapping his foot nervously, his legs shook. "I messed up," he said. "I should have stayed quiet, but I couldn"t. Now, they"ll come after me."
Xue Hien was confused; she crouched next to her nervous husband. "I don"t understand. Can you tell me everything?" she asked.
Xue Gao faced her and told her everything. "I think it"s Long Group," he said. "But I"m not sure. Long Yuntian"s cruel, but he wouldn"t stoop so low."
Xue Hien held her stomach. Her husband wounded up in a battle between corporations, big ones that they can"t face alone since they were nothing but commoners pretending to be high cla.s.s.
"Where are the girls?" Xue Hien asked him.
Xue Gao ran a hand through his hair. "I sent them away on a trip. They"ll be visiting my parents," he said. Xue Hien nodded, "We"ll have to lay low, too," she said. She darted up the stairs to pack. They both rushed to gather their things. They will leave, they will move and hopefully erase their names.
The doorbell rang.
Xue Hien checked the cameras. It was w.a.n.g Weimin. He was a twenty-four-year-old boy, a friend of Xue Guangli, the one who wants to court her. Xue Hien did not doubt his intentions.
Long Yuntian must be the one responsible. She let in the boy who greeted him respectfully. He asked if Xue Guangli was home. Xue Hien informed him that she wasn"t. He was going to leave until he said, "May I speak to you?"
"Ah," said Xue Hien. "I will make some snacks then." She set the tray of tea on the table before going to the kitchen to grab the snacks. When she returned, w.a.n.g Weimin was drinking some tea. He then poured two more cups.
Xue Gao then came down to join them. He shook w.a.n.g Weimin"s hand and asked, "What are you doing here?"
"I wanted to speak to you two in regards to Xue Guangli."
w.a.n.g Weimin told them he wanted to court and marry her. Her parents didn"t disapprove, but Xue Gao said, "It"s Xue Guangli"s choice, and she may not be ready for marriage. Not at this time, at least."
w.a.n.g Weimin smiled grimly. He then thanked them for their opinion and left, as Xue Hien showed him out.
"Let"s go back to packing," Xue Hien suggested. When Xue Hien was zipping up her things, she began to feel fuzzy. She was sweating profusely, turning to find Xue Gao unconscious on the floor.
She started towards him, kneeling on the ground when she fell into a slumber herself.
Xue Hien woke up to with ropes tied around her wrists. She was in a large dark room. Her heart began to thunder nervously. She doesn"t remember anything about what happened, or how she got to where she was. The last thing she remembered was packing. But she felt the carpet beneath her, and she suspected that she was still inside the bedroom.
She heard footsteps approach her. The man carried a flashlight, wearing a black ski mask over his face. With the light, she then noticed Xue Gao next to her, still unconscious. "What the f.u.c.k do you want," she questioned the man.
The man"s voice was deep and cold, unrecognizable. "Tsk," he said. "You weren"t supposed to wake now."
"What do you want?" she asked again.
"I came to do what I have to do," he said.
Xue Hien"s eyes widened. The masked man approached Xue Gao, taking out a vial of liquid. From her guess, it was a lethal dosage of poison.
"w.a.n.g Weimin," she said softly.
The masked-man voice paused, not expecting her to uncover his ident.i.ty.
"Don"t do it please," she said with a trembling voice. "He"s Xue Guangli"s father. We will move away; we won"t tell anyone about what happened."
w.a.n.g Weimin removed his mask, his eyes filled with dread and fury.
"You don"t know?" he began. "He"s the one who helped Long Huojin go against my father. They"re in league and told the police. They ruined him, and with what Xue Gao knows, he will ruin me, too."
Xue Hien tried to talk him down. "I promise we won"t say anything. Just let him go," she cried. "I...I remember when you were a child. You were so unhappy, but then I brought my daughters to visit and play with you. Out of all of them, you loved Xue Guangli most."
w.a.n.g Weimin looked into her eyes with a complicated expression. "You were like a mother to me," he said began to say with a small smile. "I never had one that cared for me, not as much as you do with your girls."
Xue Hien nodded. But w.a.n.g Weimin"s expression darkened. "But you treat Long Huojin like a son, more than me."
Xue Hien"s eyes widened, and she began to cry again. He approached her, forcing the contents of the vial down her throat. Xue Hien fought back, but w.a.n.g Weimin wore thick black leather. He pinned her down, pus.h.i.+ng his arm against her throat as he forcefully made her drink the poison.
That was when they heard someone enter through the front door. w.a.n.g Weimin placed on his mask, bolting through the back door, leaving nothing behind.
Someone entered the master bedroom, and it was Long Huojin. Xue Hien tried to speak, but her throat was sore. Long Huojin"s eyes widened, running towards her. He placed her in his arms while calling the police. "Who did this?" he asked her. With his phone dialing the number, he untied her hands.
Xue Hien tried to speak; nothing came out. She felt herself slipping, so she looked into Long Huojin"s stunned pale-blue eyes. She caressed his face softly, staring into his eyes. Indeed, he was like a son to her. It was a shame that she doesn"t get to see Xue Guangli court him, the one, she knew her daughter was undeniably is in love with, even if she denied her true feelings.
In Long Huojin"s arms, Xue Hien"s body stiffened, her eyes lolled before it closed, and Long Huojin tried to shake her, but she was gone, far gone. He tried to resuscitate her, the only form of medical training he knew. But she didn"t revive.
He cried out into a sob, taking her body into his arms, hugging her and trembling. Xue Gao woke up groggily. He saw Long Huojin holding his wife. "Was it you?" he questioned.
Long Huojin shook his head. "I don"t know who killed her. I came because Xue Teegan called me. She said she had a bad feeling and insisted on me coming," he said through a sob.
Xue Gao"s eyes went far away. His shock overcame him. Long Huojin placed Xue Hien down gently before he rose to take the ropes off Xue Gao. Long Huojin wiped the tears from his own face.
"Go," Xue Gao said to him.
"But the police—" Long Huojin began.
"If they see you here, they"ll think you did it. Go NOW!" Xue Gao yelled.
Long Huojin rose, glancing at both of them. He was conflicted on leaving them.
"I SAID, GO!" said Xue Gao. "Don"t tell my daughters that you were here. Pretend that you weren"t. Otherwise, they"ll suspect you."
"How do you know it wasn"t me?" Long Huojin asked him.
Xue Gao began to cry with distant eyes. "Because you loved her like a mother," he said.
Long Huojin clenched his fists. He then darted out of the room, running next door to his house. Inside the house, he went to his room, watching as the police came over. He watched as the coroners took Xue Hien"s body and how the police arrested Xue Gao.
Long Huojin"s pain didn"t falter, but his sadness turned into anger. He was determined to find out who did it, and he was determined to look after the Xue"s.