Frightening Joke: Above the Mist
Chapter 143: Unsuccessful Attempt

Chapter 143: Chapter 143: Unsuccessful Attempt

"Do you hate Ai Qing?" Bai Yanliang suddenly asked.

Ma Junsheng’s expression turned slightly rigid; he raised his head unnaturally and looked at Bai Yanliang, saying, "I don’t understand what you mean."

Bai Yanliang turned his head to look at the trash can, saying, "This morning’s newspaper had a report about the Ai Qing incident, but you tore it to shreds. Do you dislike her, or are you so angry because you like her too much?"

"Enough!" Ma Junsheng suddenly stood up, a bit impatient, "I don’t want to see or hear anything related to that name. If you have questions, please ask quickly; I still have work to deal with."

Bai Yanliang remained unfazed, continuing to ask, "When was your last contact with her?"

"No contact! I deleted her completely; she’s vanished from my life. If she hadn’t suddenly died, I wouldn’t have even remembered she existed."

"When and from where did you learn about her death?"

"Yesterday at noon, I accidentally saw it while scrolling through news on social media. Although it was pixelated, I recognized her figure and clothes."

"You remember it very clearly, don’t you?" Bai Yanliang suddenly looked at him and said.

"..."

Ma Junsheng pursed his lips and turned his head away.

"Are you taking sleeping pills recently?"

Bai Yanliang continued to ask.

Ma Junsheng followed Bai Yanliang’s gaze, realizing that he had noticed his sleeping pills.

"Insomnia, I went to the hospital to get some. Is there a problem?"

"Not really, just to my knowledge, sleeping pills are classified as a type II psychotropic drug. According to Ye City’s regulations, the hospital can only prescribe a week’s worth at a time, which is fourteen to twenty-one pills. I’m curious, which hospital did you get that full bottle from?"

Bai Yanliang’s words made Ma Junsheng instinctively clench his fists.

Yang Wanlong was the first to notice his abnormality. The seasoned detective quickly moved into a position that could threaten him and said coldly, "What do you intend to do?"

Ma Junsheng slumped back down, bowed his head, and said nothing.

Bai Yanliang quietly watched him, or rather, he watched the distorted black shadow connected to him from behind.

The thing seemed to have no consciousness and couldn’t perceive this world; although Bai Yanliang was staring at it, it had no response whatsoever.

Ma Junsheng’s silence lasted a long time, until Yang Wanlong, nearly out of patience, finally heard him speak hoarsely:

"Yes, I did plan to kill her..."

His words immediately put everyone on alert, and Yang Wanlong reached for his handcuffs on his waist.

"My family is very poor..." Ma Junsheng instinctively squeezed his water cup, Bai Yanliang knew he wasn’t lying.

Although he ran his own photography studio, which was quite famous, his fingers and skin were rough and dark, signs of being burdened with housework since childhood.

From this, it was clear Ma Junsheng’s original family was not well-off, even poverty-stricken.

"When she was with me, she always liked to ask which brand of makeup or skincare product was good. I thought she was just curious, but later realized it was her way of hinting she wanted gifts. I bought them for her."

"But after three months together... her demands became increasingly ridiculous: lipstick, earrings, necklaces, high-end apparel, tens of thousands for a pair of high heels, hundreds of thousands for a car, and then... millions for a house."

"I couldn’t stand it anymore. I simply can’t afford a house right now! But she said I didn’t even have the sincerity to live with her. Sincerity? I was like an idiot being toyed with, and after we broke up I finally understood the house was just an excuse for breaking up."

"Didn’t she know your father is in the hospital?" Bai Yanliang suddenly asked.

"How do you know my father is in the hospital?" Ma Junsheng paused, then looked at Bai Yanliang in surprise.

"There’s a picture on your desk of you and your father by the Yeshui River. Your mother passed away early, and your father raised you farming. You brought him to live in the city, but you previously said you currently live alone, so it’s clear your father has been somewhere else for a while. I imagine someone who puts a picture with their father on their desk wouldn’t choose to send him to a nursing home."

Bai Yanliang said this casually, but Ma Junsheng felt a chill down his spine.

It was as if he had seen it with his own eyes... even guessing that his mother had passed away early.

"You’re right, my mother died from illness when I was in elementary school; she passed away painfully. I’ve always felt guilty, and ashamed. In recent years, my father’s health started to decline. To make up for it, I brought him to the city. Unexpectedly, he fell ill within days and has been in the hospital for over half a year."

"As for Ai Qing? Ha, she has known my father was in the hospital for a long time and also knew our family situation was modest, but she didn’t care. I was just her wallet and a tool to show off. After all, like her, I also have a good appearance, and having a boyfriend like me could make her the envy of her coworkers and friends."

When Ma Junsheng talked about Ai Qing, he couldn’t hide his hatred.

Lin Wan kept jotting down notes in her notebook. The questioning today had painted a fuller picture of the deceased.

A radio host with exquisite beauty and a young body, yet pretentious, materialistic, and chaotic in her personal life.

Though disrespectful to the deceased, Lin Wan thought that even if she hadn’t died this time, continuing to play with relationships like this would ultimately lead to her demise at the hands of someone else.

"But... I really didn’t kill her! At eleven the day before yesterday, I prepared the sleeping pills, used the copied key to sneak into her house, and put it in her favorite orange juice, then left. But she didn’t even come home that night! She died in front of her own company! Her death really has nothing to do with me!"

Ma Junsheng loudly defended himself.

At this time, Yang Wanlong was already on the phone with the station: "Send some people to Ai Qing’s house and inspect all the orange juice to check for sleeping pill components."

"Yes, Captain Yang!"

Yang Wanlong hung up, looked at Ma Junsheng, and said, "Mr. Ma, please come with us. Even if Ai Qing’s death has nothing to do with you, your actions constitute attempted murder."

Ma Junsheng’s pupils quickly lost their light; after a moment of silence, he pleaded, "Officer...could you not tell my father yet?"

Yang Wanlong stared into his eyes and saw guilt and unease.

"Okay."

"Thank you..."

Ma Junsheng was led to a car, while Bai Yanliang had to take a cab back.

"Yanliang, thank you for joining us today. We’ll handle the rest."

"It’s no problem, Uncle Yang." Bai Yanliang smiled, not minding at all.

What he was wondering was, although Ma Junsheng had nothing to do with the case, how did he acquire the sleeping pills... that was still unclear.

Moreover, what role did that twisted, deformed black shadow behind him play?

This case... isn’t that simple.

Bai Yanliang turned and left; it seems the final key will be revealed tomorrow.