God's Imitator

The ten-minute Recess ended, and the four suspects returned to the courtroom.

Bai Zhilan looked toward Tang Qing once more, ”The trial resumes.

”Please, gentlemen, continue presenting your new evidence.”

Tang Qing was the first to come to the speaking platform, as before.

This was clearly the inevitable result of the particular game mechanics. Only the ’Detective’ and ’Wealthy Merchant’ could submit evidence, so they naturally went first. The ’Lawyer’ and ’Doctor’ could then probe for weaknesses and respond.

If the ’Lawyer’ or ’Doctor’ spoke first, any evidence that the ’Detective’ subsequently presented might completely invalidate what they had said. The best outcome would be wasted effort. The worst would be a self-inflicted blow.

As for Wang Yongxin in the ’Wealthy Merchant’ role, he could have chosen to speak first and set the pace of the trial. But the ’Wealthy Merchant’ identity wasn’t naturally suited to that role, which might affect the jury’s judgement of ’Perfect Portrayal.’ Beyond that, Wang Yongxin also seemed disinclined to be the one leading the charge, appearing to prefer a balanced approach of both offence and defence.

With Bai Zhilan consistently inviting Tang Qing to go first, this order had quietly become the default.

Tang Qing produced several paper documents and displayed them for all to see.

”The evidence I present today consists of several large-value insurance policies.”Among them are high-value accident insurance, term life insurance, travel accident insurance, and other categories, purchased separately from multiple insurance companies.

”The policyholder on all of these is the husband. The insured is the wife. The beneficiary is the legal heir.

”Lawyer Lin, as a legal professional, would you be willing to do an initial assessment of whether these policies appear authentic?”

Tang Qing carried the policies to Lin Sizhi, along with a pair of white gloves, and placed them in front of him.

Lin Sizhi said nothing. He simply accepted the gloves, put them on, and began flipping through the documents.

Tang Qing returned to his seat. While Lin Sizhi examined the policies, the rest of the proceedings continued.

Wang Yongxin came to the speaking platform and displayed the piece of evidence he had brought.

It was a sleek, minimalist card, entirely gold in colour. The main face featured a crowned lion, and below it, set against a large letter A, were the four letters ’KING.’

After showing it, Wang Yongxin said, ”This appears to be a casino card.

”It was found among the evidence recovered from the deceased’s cabin. I am not certain of its authenticity.

”I ask the esteemed members of the jury to verify it when the time comes.”

Wang Yongxin said nothing more and returned to his seat.

Tang Qing glanced at him briefly. Wang Yongxin gave an almost imperceptible nod in reply.

Feng Yuguang again showed no sign of intending to speak, which was understandable. The evidence presented this round had no connection to medical knowledge.

Tang Qing stood once more and approached Lin Sizhi, ”Lawyer Lin, how are you getting on?”

Lin Sizhi handed the policies back, ”The time was limited, so I wasn’t able to read through every clause. I can’t confirm whether any buried terms have been altered.

”That said, the key sections I was able to check appear to be in order, so my preliminary assessment is that this evidence is genuine.

”Whether it is truly authentic, however, would need to be confirmed through verification.”

Tang Qing gave a satisfied nod and took the policies back, ”Thank you.

”In that case, I believe we are ready to put forward a new Possibility Analysis.

”My preliminary conclusion is: this is a case of murdering one’s wife to collect insurance.”

Tang Qing paused briefly, then continued, ”Drawing on the evidence presented so far, I believe the true course of events may have been as follows.

”Based on the tattoo visible in the wedding photograph, the husband likely had no stable employment. And based on the casino card, he may well have accumulated significant gambling debts.

”Despite this, he used his appearance and persuasive words to deceive the woman into marriage, and then separately purchased large insurance policies on her from multiple companies.

”The combined payout across all these policies amounts to tens of millions.

”The husband’s original plan was to lure the wife to the side of the ship late at night, perhaps under the pretext of recreating a romantic scene from a film or series, or of proposing again or giving her a special gift.

”The evidence presented by Mr Wang in the previous session, the ring in its box, may well have been a prop the husband prepared to stage exactly this kind of performance.

”In any case, his true intent was to push her overboard and stage the appearance of an accidental fall.

”But in the final moment, something went wrong. As he moved against her, she fought back on instinct, and the two of them fell into the water together.

”Of course, I cannot claim with certainty that this is the truth of the case. If anyone has a different view, discussion is most welcome.”

Shortly after, Wu Xiufang of Community 23 pressed the speaker button at her table and raised a challenge.

”Your reasoning is broadly coherent, but I believe the wedding photograph still contains points worth questioning.

”Even if taking wedding photographs is exhausting and can cause a momentary lapse in composure, there would have been many shots taken. The couple would certainly have selected the one they both found most satisfying.

”Yet the husband is visible with a tattoo showing at his collar, and the wife’s expression carries an unmistakeable hint of sadness.

”Even if the husband liked his tattoo, showing only a small part of it like this has no aesthetic appeal. He should have chosen to either show it fully or conceal it completely.

”And the wife should have selected a photograph where her smile looked more natural.

”Furthermore, you suggested that the evidence Mr Wang introduced in the previous session, the diamond ring, was something the husband used to lure the wife to the side of the ship. But the question is: why did he not have it on him? Why was it left behind in the ship’s cabin?

”Wouldn’t it have made far more sense for him to carry the ring and stage a proposal again?

”You might argue he forgot it, or didn’t get to use it, which is technically possible, but it means this particular piece of evidence cannot actually be used to support your theory.”

Tang Qing had not yet had the chance to respond when Chen Yumei of Community 18 also pressed her speaker button.

”These are peripheral concerns, aren’t they?

”The wedding photograph has already been verified as authentic.

”As long as the large insurance policies are also confirmed as genuine, this must be a case of murdering one’s wife for the payout.

”Tattoos showing at a collar are very common. The wife might simply have chosen this photograph because she felt it was the most beautiful one.

”Personally, I quite like this photograph. There’s a certain elegance to that melancholy expression, don’t you think?

”As for the ring, the husband only needed to get the wife to the side of the ship. If there happened to be another reason to bring her there, whether or not he had the ring with him would have been of little consequence.”

As the game progressed, the four Jury Representatives were beginning to speak more, and their statements were clearly influencing the judgements of the players in their respective communities.

Bai Zhilan and Lu Xinyi kept their silence on this particular question and offered no opinion.