"Patients? Do you think we'll believe that? If they were just patients, how could the photos be so intimate?"
Xu Haorang explained, "I had no choice! I cured their illnesses, and they got so excited that they hugged me for photos!"
Still trying to deny it, I pulled out some photos of him kissing and embracing the women. His face turned red as I asked, "Can you honestly tell me you had no other relationship with them?"
"So what if I did? Isn't it normal for them to like me because I'm handsome? I swear on my character, all of our relationships were perfectly normal and consensual!"
When he mentioned being handsome, I finally took a good look at him. Xu Haorang had delicate features, fair skin, frameless round glasses, and curly golden hair. He was indeed quite attractive, which probably explained why so many women were waiting outside to see him.
At this point, Zhao Simeng scoffed, "With that face of yours, you got demoted from a top-tier hospital to this place, and you still have the nerve to talk about your character!"
"I didn't do anything wrong! I was young and foolish back then, but now I swear I've changed. It's just that I'm too popular—what can I do? I'm no loser. It's only natural for women to admire me."
Confident in his looks, Xu Haorang remained arrogant. To my surprise, Liu Keying chimed in, "Dr. Xu, you're really so handsome. Can I have your number or your WeChat?"
"Haha, little miss, you're adorable too. Sure," he replied smugly.
I was speechless. Couldn't any woman resist a handsome man?
By this point, I didn't know what else to say, so I excused myself. As we left, I said, "Xu Haorang, don't get too comfortable. We'll be seeing each other again soon."
Waving dismissively, he said coldly, "I won't bother seeing you out, officers."
After leaving Xu Haorang's office, I asked Liu Keying, "What was that back there? We're working on a case, and you're asking for his contact information?"
"You think I actually like his type? I can't stand womanizers like him. I just wanted to see his reaction," she explained.
Zhao Simeng added, "Exactly. The moment we walked in, that sleazy guy was already ogling us. He's definitely up to no good."
The two of them took turns criticizing Xu Haorang, and I couldn't help feeling pleased. I already didn't like the guy, so I joined in, throwing in a few jabs at him now and then.
Before leaving Zhenxi Hospital, we headed to the staff room to follow up on the suspicious nurse. I asked one of the medical staff, "How's the work situation of the nurse with the burned forehead?"
"You mean that ugly one? Her name's Shan Yayun. Haha, everyone here avoids her. She's Dr. Xu's assistant," the doctor replied mockingly.
Hearing this, Liu Keying immediately got angry. She couldn't stand men making rude comments about women's looks. "How can you talk like that?" she scolded.
"His assistant?" I asked.
"Yes, they work in the same office. Honestly, I don't know why Dr. Xu doesn't transfer her out. Just looking at her forehead would ruin anyone's appetite! Hahaha!"
The doctor kept laughing, and this time, even Zhao Simeng couldn't hold back. "And you think you look so great? You look like a potato yourself!"
Hearing this, the other doctors in the room burst into laughter. As we left, Liu Keying muttered, "I can't stand that potato-head doctor. Luckily, Brother He Sheng, you're not like that."
"Thanks, but I think that nurse is just a bit… well…" I trailed off at the word "ugly" when I noticed both Liu Keying and Zhao Simeng glaring at me. I quickly swallowed the rest of my words.
Under their strange looks, I returned to the police station, where we needed to focus on investigating Xu Haorang further.
I brought out all the victims' phones and placed their photos on the whiteboard. Gathering the officers in the criminal case conference room, I pointed at the photos and said, "We've confirmed that all the victims had been to Zhenxi Hospital and were treated by Dr. Xu Haorang."
"That's right. The likelihood of Xu being the killer is high, but we don't have evidence that he poisoned them," Xiao Yuande noted.
I asked forensic expert Zhao Simeng if there were any clues in the substances or needle marks. She explained that the substances were ordinary and commonly available in many hospitals. As for the needle marks, the one on Nanmen Chunrou's neck was likely due to her injecting nicotine, in addition to smoking. If the syringe was tampered with, she could have died from a nicotine overdose.
"Smoking wasn't enough for her? She needed injections too?" Xiao Yuande asked, puzzled.
I shook my head. "It's probably meth."
"There's methamphetamine content. She must have been using it for years. But the killer was smart. Instead of using excessive meth, they used nicotine, which is harder to detect in small amounts and easily obtainable. That makes tracing the source of the poison very difficult," Zhao Simeng analyzed.
Her explanation made sense. I had Xie Deguang pull surveillance footage from Xinming Restaurant, where we discovered that Xu Haorang had met with the third victim, Nanmen Chunrou. They talked for a while before Xu left. He had plenty of opportunity to swap her syringe.
If Dr. Xu were the killer, his method would be to lure women into relationships, then kill them out of fear that they'd expose him and ruin his reputation. If that's the case, he's a monster of the highest degree.
We all began analyzing the case further. Many officers voiced their opinions, and most of them were convinced that Dr. Xu was the killer. I decided to escalate our efforts. This time, we wouldn't make it easy for him. Using a warrant, we forcibly brought him to the interrogation room at the station.
Since Liu Keying couldn't participate, it was just me and Xiao Yuande facing Xu Haorang.
When we arrived, he said impatiently, "What right do you have to bring me here? I'll sue you for interfering with my work!"
"Mr. Suspect, there's no need to be so arrogant. We've gathered plenty of evidence linking you to the victims. Things don't look good for you. If you don't cooperate, it'll only make things worse," I warned.
Xu flicked his hair and flashed what he must've thought was a charming smile. "When did I become a suspect? Do you even know how to use your words properly?"
"Oh, really? Then explain why you were meeting Nanmen Chunrou at Xinming Restaurant this morning."