Chow y said, "I thought it was over. But then I suddenly got a drastic reduction in my paynt. I was paid far less than what other actors were. It felt like I was working for free. I asked my agent and she said that the agency was cutting so costs since business had been slow for them. I thought it was for everyone but no. It was only . I wasn’t getting the money I deserved to be paid!"
She gritted her teeth. "I refused to give up and kept resisting and protesting. Nobody listened to and kept paying peanuts. I could hardly pay my bills anymore. Then one day, I saw Wan Guanting talking to my agency’s managing director. I felt odd and imdiately felt suspicious. I followed them and secretly heard their conversation. And guess what I learned?"
She sneered. "That bastard was bribing that MD to interfere with my salary."
"Can you imagine what I felt at that mont?" Chow y asked Jia, not expecting any answer from her.
"I thought I was being protected by being Haoyu’s girlfriend but I was wrong. Wan Guanting hadn’t given up. He still wanted . He was forcing to practically live on the streets until I myself would approach him left with no choice. It was then I understood that he was obsessed with beyond any understanding."
She dug her nails in her palm until blood started to trickle down the crack. "I stood there blankly. Wasn’t it...enough already? The physical and ntal abuse over the years, the ruining of my face that I never wanted and now he was targeting my hard earned money too? He was going this far to continue sleeping with ?"
Jia pressed her lips. "You didn’t tell any of this to Mr. Dong?"
She laughed, feeling contempt towards herself. "What should I have told him? That I used him to get free of that monster? That I don’t love him and now I will shalessly ask for his help when I have already hurt him so much out of my own selfishness?"
She said nothing.
"Wan Guanting was my problem. Haoyu had nothing to do with him."
"Did you confront him?"
She paused. "No. Not imdiately. I ca to know about it recently only and we were shooting for the final season. It was very important for all of us so I didn’t create any scene that would jeopardize such an important juncture of this drama. So I waited."
Jia guessed it. "And you thought that you would confront him during this trip, when shooting and post-production stuff would already be done with."
"Yes. That sa morning of that dinner evening, I went to him and said that I wanted to talk to him. Maybe he also guessed what it was about and that I would agree to sleep with him again to get my paynts back on track. So he arrogantly gave a copy of his key card," her expression twisted with that of disgust and hatred.
Then her face slowly turned whiter out of fear. "After the party in his room ended, I went to his room. I was very nervous and didn’t want to be caught by anybody on the way so I hastily walked. I knocked first thinking that he would have sobered up. I didn’t want to use the key card. But he never responded and I got more jittery. I had to use the key."
"What did you see when you were inside?"
Her heart beat wildly as she recalled that ti. "He was sleeping on the bed. That’s what I thought at first. I called out to him. But when he didn’t wake up, I pushed his shoulder and his head suddenly rolled to my side. I gasped and stepped back. It felt very eerie. I didn’t know what was wrong with him. W-when I checked him, I realized that he wasn’t breathing..."
She tiredly said, "The realization hit like lightning. He was dead. I was confused and bewildered and scared to death. How did he suddenly die? I didn’t know. I ended up fainting because of the stress. When I woke up, he was still on the bed, lifeless. I panicked and ran away from his room as fast I could. I felt so paralyzed that it didn’t even occur to to talk to anybody about it and because of that, I got misunderstood."
Jia gave her a few monts to calm trembling figure.
"I didn’t kill him. I really didn’t kill him...and I don’t want Haoyu to get involved in this either," tears rolled down her cheeks.
Jia slowly asked, "Did you see anybody ssing with Wan Guanting’s drink at the party in his room?"
She tiredly looked away and said, "I didn’t...I just rember that Manchu was handling the drinks."
"...I see. When you entered Wan Guanting’s room, did you notice anything out of the ordinary?"
Chow y furrowed her brows. "In what sense?"
"Did you feel anybody’s presence in the room?"
"No, I didn’t," she replied imdiately.
"Did you happen to see the balcony by any chance? Were the curtains or the door opened or shut?"
"I don’t think I really noticed anything in the balcony’s direction. Why do you ask?"
"My theory is that sobody climbed up through the balcony into Wan Guanting’s room and killed him. The culprit was probably hiding in the bathroom when you ca in and got the chance to escape when you fainted."
Her eyes widened in disbelief. "Impossible...Nobody can do that. His room was on the twelfth floor."
"It’s possible if the culprit manages to use nearer floor rooms like on the tenth or eleventh floor. Nobody else other than you went in through the door so the only path remaining is from outside."
Jia got up and said, "I am done with my questions, Miss. Chow. Thank you so much for answering . I know it must have been painful to rember the past."
She softly closed her eyes and rested her head back.
Jia left her alone and quietly left the interrogation room.
—
Jia stood in Wan Guanting’s balcony as the night grew darker. She felt a chill in the wind that blew past her face.
"I didn’t know Spicy liked to talk to ghosts~"
Mingshen’s charming but devilish chuckle vibrated in the air.
"Congratulations. You caught the culprit. Then why are you still searching for an answer?" He tilted his head, amused.
Jia looked back and said, "Because there is a second person who is also a murderer and I am wondering...what to do about it?"
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