As he had hurt his hand, Joshua Dales life was greatly inconvenienced. Perhaps if he was by himself then he could have dealt with it alone. But he had a sister, Rosie Dale, whose health had yet to recover, thereby overstretching his capacity.


    In order to prevent the human tragedy of both siblings starving to death in that old house, they were temporarily set up for the next couple of days at the hotel where Yan Suizhi and Gu Yan were staying.


    Joshua Dale was subject to many restrictions during the bail period, such as not being able to leave the city of residence however he pleased, and not being able to meet with victims and witnesses to prevent acting in collusion.


    Even rtives of the victim, Mdm Kity Bell, such as the youth who had flung boiling water at them that day, were not allowed to meet with him without authorisation.


    However, the time that he could have with hiswyer was unrestricted.


    Bang, bang, bang


    Yan Suizhis room door shuddered.


    With such a boorish way of knocking, it could only be Joshua Dale behind the door.


    Yan Suizhi sat on the armchair by the window, resting his injured leg. His chin was propped against a hand, his expressionposed as he flipped through the case file.


    He didnt even look up at the sound, and he said, Come in.


    His behaviour was now an exact replica of the way he used to act in the deans office.


    Seated across from him, Gu Yan was answering an email. His eyes flicked over when he heard this.


    Yan Suizhi turned another page before noticing the look in Gu Yans eyes. Is anything the matter?


    And right after saying this, he realised it himself. Heughed drily, picked up the remote control on the desk, and pressed theopenbutton. He added a sentence of exnation, I thought I was still in De Carma. I forgot that the hotel rooms here arent voice-controlled.


    Gu Yan coolly took his gaze off him and continued replying to the emails on hand.


    Professor Yan secretly rejoiced that he was able toe up with a reasonable exnation.


    Why did you call me over? Joshua Dale began toin as soon as he stepped through the door, clutching his hair and saying angrily, Are you going to ask me about what happened that night again?


    He didnt have high-tech gadgets like smart devices. Fortunately, there was an internalmunication system between the hotel rooms, so Yan Suizhi could summon him for an interrogation with a mere lift of his finger.


    What do you think? If not that, then what else could I ask you? Yan Suizhi put down the holographic page he was holding.


    Par pera bcf lcmlvfca, jcv sfa sbe tjnf jigfjvs tjgqfv bc atf rjwf defralbcr fluta tecvgfv alwfr bnfg lc atf ijra akb vjsr. Abrtej Gjif kjr rb gfiemajca atja fnfc tlr rafqr kfgf wjcs alwfr tfjnlfg.


    Jbwf bc, rabq sbeg ijra-mt rageuuif. Par cb erf. Ktf mbgcfgr bo Tjc Velhtlr ilqr iloafv. Lf qjaafv atf atlgv mtjlg, wbalbclcu obg tlw ab byfvlfcais  vbkc.


    Asking Joshua about the incident and his movements at that time was what Gu Yan had been doing throughout thest two days.


    ording to the legal code in the alliance, there must be a third party present when a criminal defencewyer meets his client. There were no restrictions on the identity of this third partyit could be an assistant, an intern, or even asolicitor. The main intention behind this was to prevent somewyers from using unscrupulous means to win the case.


    Although, naturally, this was even more useless than toilet paper in reality.


    It wasnt too convenient for Yan Suizhi to move around due to his injured leg. Gu Yan also wasnt willing to get cataracts from supporting him here and there at turtle-pace until old age. So, the location of the meeting with Joshua was directly set to be in Yan Suizhis room.


    Gu Yan briskly replied to three work emails, then raised his gaze to stare at Joshua. He said, Even if Ive already asked you eight hundred times, I still need you to assure me that everything you tell me is the truth.


    Joshua snorted, rolling his eyes and raising his hand. Of course Im telling the truth. Why the hell would I lie to you? I didnt rob anyone. I already said I wasnt the one who did it; that means I wasnt the one who did it.


    After thinking about it, Yan Suizhi added, Id like to remind you that ording to the ethical duties of the profession,wyers have the duty of confidentiality. We are obligated to keep confidential everything you tell us.


    How far did this confidentiality extend? For example, if the client was used of intentional homicide and the police were unable to find the murder weapon, even if the client confessed to hiswyer how he had disposed of the murder weapon, thewyer couldnt tell the police this.


    This flimsy line sounded utterly callous, and all the worse in the eyes of ordinary people.


    Some people could carry out this expressly stated responsibility without any difficulty, while some people would always struggle with uneasiness.


    Yan Suizhi had once joked to others that this was the devilsw. It was ck, dark, and contrary to the most basic of morality. It disgusted people. But the reality was that it was only under this legal framework that devils would tell the truth.


    Yan Suizhi fed Joshua Dale reassurance for the eight hundredth time, and said slowly, So


    So, you hope that I wont have any misgivings and tell you the entirety of it. No matter how contemptible the contents are, they will still be kept in confidence. Joshua recited monotonously, finishing his words for him. He muttered, I got it, Ive heard it so many times that calluses are growing in my ears; I can even say it for you already.


    Yan Suizhi and Gu Yan were each calmer than the next. They were long ustomed to this brand of impatience.


    So, what were you doing from the afternoon to the evening of the 21st? Yan Suizhi asked topare against the existing information in the case file.


    I got into a scuffle at work that day and hurt my cheekbone. I received 100xiinpensation, and even got to leave work ahead of time, pretty much getting a half-day holiday


    His face was swollen, and he had money clenched in his fist. He was in a delicate mood. He couldnt tell if he was more dejected, more irritable, or more surprised by the extra cash.


    Or perhaps it was this sort of conflicting feelings that in of itself made him feel depressed.


    He touched his cheekbone and licked the tang of blood in his mouth. He went home for a short nap, then took to the street with the money in hand. He went into a wholesale jewellery store in the alley to buy a pair of pearl earrings for 68xi.


    Following which, he brought the cheap but pretty pearl earrings to Kitty Bells yard wall.


    Why did you spend 68xito buy that pair of earrings? Gu Yan asked.


    Although this question had already been answered many times before, every time before Joshua answered, he would still fall silent for a few seconds.


    Because I dreamt of my grandma during my afternoon nap, Joshua said.


    Why did you dream of your grandmother?


    Who knows.


    Maybe because his swollen cheekbone suddenly hurt more than any previous injury, or maybe because that 100xpensation suddenly made him feel wronged and insipid.


    In this short nap, Joshua dreamt of his grandmother who had passed away many years back.


    He dreamt that he was standing in the narrow kitchen, stewing vegetable porridge for his sister. Rain poured heavily outside, and the water dripping from the eaves streamed down into a curtain.


    His grandmother stood under the eaves outside the kitchen window to take shelter from the rain, looking at him kindly.


    He pushed the window open and said to his grandmother, The rain outside is too big. The eaves cant block it, why are you still standing out there? Hurry up ande in.


    The grandmother touched the wet hems of her clothes and looked inside the house again. She said with a warm smile, I wont being in. I only wanted to see you.


    Joshua was worried. Come in, hurry up ande in. The rains falling on you already.


    Yet his grandmother kept smiling, and never entered the door.


    In his dream, he didnt know why he was so anxious for his grandmother to enter the house, nor did he know what he was so sad about.


    And so he woke up in that thick haze of sadness. Hey on the bed with red-rimmed eyes for a long time, and all of a sudden wanted to buy a pair of pearl earrings.


    For many years ago, before passing away, his grandmother once said that she had always wanted a pair.


    Why did you climb over the yard wall around Kitty Bells house? It was again a question that Yan Suizhi and Gu Yan had been taking turns to ask.


    Because when she sits in that armchair and knits a scarf against the light, she really looks like my grandma Joshua said. Her reading sses are very simr, her actions are very simr, from the side, from head to toe, she looks very simr.


    Sometimes when he suddenly missed his grandmother, he would crouch on the wall and watch her silently for a while under the cover of night through the condensation on the window.


    That day, after buying the pearl earrings on impulse, he walked back to his door and realised that he no longer had a grandmother to give this pair of earrings to.


    So, he took advantage of the night to climb the wall to Kitty Bells house. This time, he didnt only watch, but he quietly jumped into the yard. And he hung a small ck velvet bag with pearl earrings in it by the door.


    Little did he know that there would happen to be a burry at Kitty Bells house that night, and little did he know that the velvet pouch with earrings that he hung by the door would be blown to the ground by the wind.


    In the absence of any other conclusive identifying evidence, the velvet pouch just happened to be a central piece of evidence proving guilt. The alley was cluttered and old; there werent any cameras that could be checked. But the police tracked down the store where the pearl earrings were sold and pulled up the stores surveincein it, Joshua had clearly bought the earrings.


    And then, from the traces of mud stuck to the soles of Joshuas shoes, it was determined that he had gone into Kitty Bells house


    In short, all evidence pointed towards Joshua.


    Let me confirm this another time. What time did you leave the yard? Gu Yan said.


    Joshua, Before 7:30 p.m.


    The burry urred between 7:50 p.m. to 8:10 p.m. It would be good enough to prove this mismatch in timings.


    This would also be their best breakthrough point. As long as they could prove Joshua left the house before that.


    However, the troubley in that there were no surveince cameras installed in that alley, and no one had passed through at that time; simrly, no one was able to give Joshua Dale an alibi for that time frame.


    If only there was surveince, Yan Suizi tapped his index on his loosely sped fingers in slight regret. Unfortunately


    Joshuas face was despairing. So even after asking eight hundred times, you still have no way of helping me?