"Is that so? Did you hear clearly what she was chanting?"
"Let me think," the nanny hesitated, scratching her head as if deep in thought. She usually took care of Liu Chuxin, so it was natural she'd be close to her. Perhaps I could get some clues from her.
After a moment's thought, the nanny said, "It sounded like something about 'kill me, kill me, I am guilty...'."
Mentioning these scripture-like chants, the nanny before me began to tremble with fear. Her pupils constricted slightly, and in front of me, she repeated the strange words: "Kill me, kill me, I am guilty..."
I tightly gripped her shoulder, "What's wrong?"
"Kill me, kill me, I am guilty..." She completely ignored me, continuing to repeat herself as if she had been infected by Liu Chuxin.
At that moment, a bizarre scene unfolded again. For some reason, as I stared into the nanny's eyes for too long, my mouth seemed to lose control and I began to chant along with her: "Kill me, kill me, I am guilty..."
I had no idea what I was doing at the time; this voice was actually contagious.
I chanted dozens of times until someone suddenly patted my shoulder from behind, "Officer He, it's time for bed. Come, get into bed!"
I found that Liu's father and Gao Mingqiang were standing straight behind me, dressed in their pajamas. Ya Jing seemed to be with them as well. The nanny, not far away, had stopped speaking and was looking at us with a placid expression, "How foolish, daring to investigate me? You all just sleep!"
Although I was furious inside, my mind was elsewhere, and I could only obey the nanny's command. She pointed a finger at a room, and my feet automatically lifted, following her into Liu Chuxin's room. Then, Gao Mingqiang and Liu Chuxin's parents were also directed to other rooms.
I sat on the bed. At this point, I felt the room door being pushed open, and the nanny calmly walked in. It was then that I noticed she wasn't very old, probably around thirty. She wore a simple cleaning uniform, a light makeup, and her rosy cheeks radiated a vibrant aura. Her slightly slender figure exuded a faint fragrance. As she sat beside me, for some reason, I felt a sense of restless longing.
"Officer He, I recognized you at first glance. You must be that Chinese Sherlock Holmes, Detective He. I never expected to meet you. Do you know? I actually admire you quite a bit. If we weren't on opposing sides, perhaps we could have been friends."
"But even so, I don't mind. I won't let you leave here. We'll spend the rest of our lives together here! No one will ever find this place!"
"What do you think?"
At that moment, I had no intention of resisting. My mind was a blank, as if I had been hypnotized.
I had no idea what was happening. My head turned, facing the woman before me, and I uttered a single word: "Okay..."
"Well, let me tell you then. Actually, those drugs were administered by my people. That's right, I killed everyone. But do you know why?"
"I know you have strong deductive abilities, but this time, you will absolutely not guess my motive!"
"Isn't it? Because I did this all for you. In fact, the other targets were merely sacrifices. I didn't expect you to come here today. When I heard your voice downstairs earlier, my heart was beating so fast, you know?"
I increasingly felt that the woman before me was not normal. She claimed to have killed so many people, and it was all for me?!
How could that be?
I wanted to ask, but my body once again felt like it wasn't my own. My mouth couldn't open.
"I've been infatuated with you for a long time. Didn't you write a book called 'Forensic Investigator of Strange Cases: Unnatural Deaths'? Do you remember..."
My mind was jolted like an electric shock, and I was struck as if by lightning. A few words burst from my mouth: "You are impersonating Jia Hainan!"
"No, my name is Jia Hainan! She's a criminal from your book, but I admire her. I've always imitated her, just for the day I could meet you."
"You..." I didn't know if she was bluffing, but if this were true, I would have become the culprit in this case.
"Everything I'm saying is true. Don't think I'm lying. Everything I've done is truly for you, Detective He."
I seemed to be moved by Jia Hainan's words, and a genuine urge to stay here and accompany her arose within me.
I nodded, "Okay, thank you for your trust in me all along. I'm willing to stay here."
Hearing this, Jia Hainan's face lit up with joy. She grabbed my arm tightly, "Really?"
"Of course. Put your hand in mine," I said in a gentle tone. Jia Hainan had already trusted me, with no reservations. She reached out and placed her hand in my palm. At the same time, I grabbed her hand and pressed her against the wall.
Jia Hainan still thought I was playing with her, giggling, "Detective He, I didn't expect you to have such a peculiar taste."
*Click!*
The sound of handcuffs being fastened around her wrists made her realize she had been arrested.
"What are you doing?" Jia Hainan exclaimed in surprise.
"Jia Hainan, you are under arrest. Come back with me!"
At this moment, the room door was opened by someone else. Gao Mingqiang entered and discovered that we were fine. Jia Hainan was surprised again, "So you were faking it?"
Actually, I almost believed her. Before she could imprison me, I had already regained consciousness. I just pretended to cooperate with her and continued the act. After the strange subway case, we now spray a detoxifying mist wherever we go. This is another new invention of our He family, the opposite of the cassia seed and chili oil spray; it's for detoxifying, called sandalwood oil mold spray.
I don't fully understand the specific principles. Anyway, I made it according to the formula in the secret manual my grandfather gave me.
The successful use here for the first time proved its effectiveness.
After we came out, Jia Hainan had already been handed over to another officer. We initially wanted to continue the investigation, but the culprit had been found.
Back at the provincial department, Jia Hainan was taken to the interrogation room. I had already recorded the conversation, so she couldn't deny it now. "Confess, Jia Hainan."
I played the recording from earlier. Jia Hainan listened without a trace of fear. She looked at me calmly, "Officer He, what's wrong? I was just acting earlier, just like you. What should I confess?"