The production manager was a very busy man. He had been arranging the crew's work for the entire morning. The second male lead had died, so the screenwriter had to revise the script, revise tomorrow's filming content, and appease the staff. He was very busy.
Jian Jing finally waited until he was free and had the chance to ask questions.
"Did I cause the haunting?" The stage manager looked at her in astonishment. "Why are you asking?"
Jian Jing: "Your actions are not that thorough."
The stage manager looked embarrassed and hesitated to speak.
Jian Jing bluffed: "Given the large amount of blood at the crime scene, I'm afraid you are already the first suspect."
The production manager immediately defended himself: "I didn't kill anyone."
"You were the one who caused the blood all over the bed?" she asked. "Why are you playing tricks on me?"
The stage manager pulled the corner of his mouth awkwardly, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't bring himself to speak.
Jian Jing asked, "What do you want to do?"
"Actually..." The production manager dodged for a moment, and finally couldn't stand it anymore, "We do this for a reason."
"you?"
"Uh," the production manager said vaguely, and quickly got to the point, "We hope Qu Jie can withdraw from the filming."
Jian Jing was puzzled: "Whether Qu Jie participates in the filming or not, what does it have to do with you?"
"We have nothing to do with each other, but Lao Li..." The production manager hesitated for a moment, as if giving up the struggle, and smiled bitterly before revealing everything, "He used to pay for his wife's medical treatment. He signed an agreement. If the show doesn't meet the target, he will have to pay out of his own pocket."
Jian Jing had also heard about the gambling agreement and was suddenly enlightened.
The production manager said, "We have known Lao Li for many years. He has helped me many times. I really can't bear to see him fail. After all, his wife's illness has not been cured yet. If he loses money again, what will he do in the future? We were quite confident in this film, but who knew..."
He showed disgust on his face: "Let me put it this way, I would rather Qu Jie's acting skills were worse, he can make up for it with the script and the camera, but what he did was not authentic, if there is anything wrong, it will affect the film and will not be broadcast."
"Then why not just terminate the contract?"
The production manager smiled bitterly, "Old Li is a bit indecisive. We told him to bleed when necessary and not to hope for the best, but he just couldn't make up his mind and kept delaying. Finally, the biggest investor asked in person and we couldn't refuse."
Jian Jing: "So, you guys have come up with a solution?"
"Alas, you don't know Lao Li." The production manager said, "Everyone is here and filming has started. Given his personality, he would rather take a chance than make up his mind."
She laughed. "But he's superstitious, isn't he?"
The production manager coughed twice and nodded helplessly, but still defended his friend: "He didn't believe it before, but when his wife became so ill, he prayed to the gods and Buddha every day. Now that the treatment is effective, he believes it even more."
"But if you decided to fake a haunted place in order to make Director Li decide to cancel the contract, why would Jiang Baiyan's room also be haunted?"
Facing Jian Jing's questioning, the production manager avoided her gaze and stammered, "It's just Qu Jie, it's too obvious... We're worried that he'll notice..."
Jian Jing narrowed her eyes: "Did you bribe Master Long?"
The stage manager was stunned and asked in surprise: "How did you know?"
Master Long's hint was so obvious that it was hard not to see it. She complained in her heart and tried to get to the bottom of it: "Then when the master said that something bad would happen to him, was that also something you discussed?"
"Yes, but that's not what I meant." The stage manager explained in a panic, "I just wanted him to ask to leave, so that I could put some pressure on Lao Li. No one thought that someone would actually die."
Jian Jing looked at him for a long time, then asked, "How did you fake that effect?"
"It's actually very simple." The production manager said, "There are a lot of plasma bags in the crew, and Qu Jie doesn't have the habit of closing the window. I went in through the window and installed a mechanism on the ceiling. You should have noticed that the roof has been rebuilt. It was originally in the shape of a 'human', but it was changed to a flat roof to install central air conditioning, with a part of space on top."
"Qu Jie has filmed movies before, so he can tell whether it is a plasma bag used for filming. I went to the slaughterhouse to buy chicken blood and pig blood. With the effect of Xiao Gu Tiao, a timing device can make the plasma flow in the middle of the night."
He confessed: "I just wanted to scare him. There is no poison in it. It can't kill people."
"I checked the vents and didn't find the mechanism you mentioned."
Stage manager: “I took it away.”
"when?"
"A little after one."
Jian Jing looked at him and said slowly, "Is the director of photography also present?"
"I haven't said it, but you should know."
"When you closed the mechanism, didn't you notice anything unusual in the house?"
The production manager shook his head and pointed to the person behind him: "I was reeling in the line behind me and didn't look towards the house for fear of being discovered." He paused and continued, "The little girl was screaming at the time, and I thought they saw the blood and got scared. I didn't expect that she would die just like that."
"Will you tell me the truth now?" she asked. "Who do you think killed him?"
The stage manager kept his mouth shut.
"You doubt Director Li." She used a declarative sentence, "Why?"
There was a long silence, and then he said uncertainly: "If I cancel the contract, I will have to pay a huge penalty, and it will be difficult to explain to the investors..."
Jian Jing nodded.
The sky-high liquidated damages, the gambling agreement, the seriously ill wife... are enough to support a motive for murder.
Could it be Director Li
She thought for a moment and asked, "Does Director Li know the truth about the haunting?"
"Of course he doesn't know." The production manager said, "If he knew, it wouldn't have any effect."
Jian Jing frowned.
So far, Director Li is indeed the most suspicious person.
On the afternoon of the incident, he and Qu Jie had a fierce argument. Qu Jie made a lot of irresponsible remarks, claiming that he was not easy to bully and could cause trouble for the crew and even Director Li at any time. At the same time, if his negative news was exposed, the film would most likely not be broadcast.
Director Li may have to bleed heavily for this, and it may even affect his wife's disease treatment.
Judging from the time, he was the last one to come back, and he lived opposite the dead house, so it was very convenient for him to act, and the conditions were sufficient to commit the crime.
But there is one problem that cannot be ignored.
—Why did the murderer create such a crime scene
Rather than complex motives, the murderer's actions are the key to solving the case.
If he wanted to use the rumor about the rich girl to create the illusion of a female ghost killing people, then the combination of bloodstains in the secret room would be absolutely perfect.
But now the production manager has admitted that the bloody bed was his doing. It was not the murderer's original plan, at most he took advantage of it.
Just imagine, if a superstitious director saw blood flowing from the ceiling after killing someone, what would be his reaction
A normal person would be scared to death, let alone him? Even if he was filled with hatred and calmed down, would he still have the courage to use the haunted blood to disguise the scene
Director Li doesn't seem like that kind of person at all.
Also, he came back very late, so he probably didn't know the situation of Qu Jie and the girl. Why did he still choose to take action when he saw that there were more than just Qu Jie in the house
Shaomai’s drunkenness level is unpredictable. Isn’t the murderer afraid of being caught by her
Jian Jing thought about it and asked the producer another question.
He said that he fell asleep quickly after returning to his room yesterday and did not talk to anyone else.
In this way, the identity of the murderer is obvious.
Jian Jing spent some time to crack the mechanism of the secret room.
In the afternoon, she gathered all the suspects in the case and announced that the murderer had been found.
Director Li couldn't wait: "Who is it?"
"Don't be in a hurry." Jian Jing didn't identify the murderer right away. Instead, she looked around at everyone and said, "I'd like to ask everyone here, does anyone know the truth about the haunting? If you know or have a guess, please raise your hand."
Director Li was stunned: "What's the truth about the haunting?" He turned his head and saw the other creators winking at each other, and immediately became suspicious, "Could it be..."
The stage manager avoided his gaze and raised his hand silently.
However, the art director also raised his hand helplessly.
"Don't other people know?" Jian Jing smiled, "Don't lie to me."
Miss Bei hesitated for a moment, perhaps fearing that she would be exposed, and raised her hand in cooperation.
Jiang Baiyan scratched his face and reached out his hand obediently.
Director Li looked at them in disbelief, then at the director of photography and the producer.
The photographer cleared his throat, spread his hands and said, "Okay, I guessed it."
The producer, like Director Li, was shocked and suspicious: "Did you do this? What did you want to do?"
"Nothing." The art director shrugged, pretending to be disdainful. "I just don't like that guy, so I want to vent my anger, right?"
The producer was furious: "Nonsense! You guys are messing around like this and totally disrupting the filming!" He was also suspicious, "Did you kill him?"
The production manager said hurriedly, "No, we just want to teach him a lesson."
Art Director: "It's not okay to murder people."
"Who is it?" The producer took the initiative and questioned Jian Jing.
Jian Jing didn't want to pay any attention to him, and asked to herself: "The second question is, on the night of the crime, did anyone see anyone leave their room and go out?"
Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads.
"Okay." Jian Jing did not explain the reason for the inquiry. She changed the subject and got to the point. "Now, let me reconstruct the case."
She sorted out her thoughts: "Qu Jie died of mechanical asphyxiation, that is, he was strangled to death by the murderer's bare hands. Judging from the handprints left on the body, the murderer was a male with a strong temper. He killed Qu Jie, locked the door, left through the window, and used a mechanism to forge a secret room."
Jiang Baiyan raised his hand in a daze: "What mechanism?"
"The murderer hung a clothes hanger on the window handle. When the top-hung window is opened, the handle faces upwards, and when it is closed, the handle is broken off." The scene was too bloody, so Jian Jing did not demonstrate it, and just described it as follows, "Put a dry beauty egg under the hanger, and put a water-absorbent bath towel on it. When blood drips, it will be transferred from the bath towel to the beauty egg, which will absorb water and expand, lifting the hanger, causing the center of gravity of the hanger to shift, and the hook will have a handle."
Jiang Baiyan is a first-rate Huashi, and asked seriously: "Won't the clothes hanger be hung on the hook?"
"Yes, so you need a compressed wet wipe and a piece of ice." Jian Jing said, "The compressed wet wipe is very small. It is stuck between the hook and the glass. Put a few pieces of ice. The water from the melted ice will make them expand and push off the hook. The wet wipe and the hanger will fall to the ground and it will be completely inconspicuous."
Thanks to Qu Jie's bad habits, even if wet wipes, hangers, bath towels, and beauty sponges were scattered all over the floor, no one would notice anything unusual because he was just that messy.
"I understand." Jiang Baiyan said cooperatively, "The murderer was able to make such a trap, which proves that he knew the layout of the haunted place and took advantage of the situation."
The producer was obviously relieved: "So I'm not a suspect now, right? Well, I told you before, I didn't kill anyone."
Mistress Bei said coldly: "Wouldn't the murderer lie?"
"Yes." Jian Jing didn't want to give the producer an easy time, so she immediately said, "Whether you know or not, that's all you said. There's no evidence. We can't rule out someone as a suspect at this point."