Li Rui reached out to grab Ling Shuyao's small hand and said, "Don't be in such a hurry to leave. Help me analyze the situation a little more. Once we catch the culprit and retrieve the lost paintings, I'll accompany you downstairs for a walk. I won't object even if we spend the whole night together."
Ling Shuyao flung his hand away and pinched his waist. "I haven't settled the score with you yet. You mocked me at the banquet, and now you're getting physical with me. Do you think I, Ling Shuyao, am a pushover?"
Li Rui pulled her in front of him and hugged her waist. "Good Shuyao, stop fooling around. Help me think. If you can help me find the person who stole the paintings, I'll be your slave and repay you well."
Ling Shuyao sneered and said, "Get lost. I think you're the haunting Ox-Head and Horse-Face! Let go of me! I was wondering why you closed the door just now. You were up to no good. "As she spoke, she tried to pry his hand away.
Li Rui wasn't in the mood to tease her, so he let go of her. He paced around the room and sorted out his thoughts. "These three suspects aren't easy to investigate. Let's not talk about Principal Chi. Even if I had the guts, I wouldn't know where to start investigating. As for his assistant, I'm too embarrassed to investigate. As for Professor Liu, he's not nearby. I can't even find him, so where can I start investigating? Hence, instead of investigating the three suspects one by one, I feel that it's better to deduce from the other end and find the person who stole the paintings. As long as we can find him, all the problems won't be a problem. "
Ling Shuyao asked lazily, "How do we find the person who stole the paintings?"
Li Rui said, "We can go to the guest house's surveillance center and see who came to our floor and my room during the meal just now. That way, we'll be able to lock onto the culprit. We can also analyze how the thief got into my room. Did he have the key card to my room, or did he know how to break the lock? If it's the former, we should be able to get some information from the receptionist. If it's the latter, I'll call the police and let them catch the thief using his fingerprints. "
Ling Shuyao pursed her lips and said, "Don't talk about us. I'm not going to get involved in this. I'm going for a walk."
Li Rui pleaded, "My dear Shuyao, let me tell you straight. Wait for me, I'll go for a walk with you after I'm done with my business. We can get to know each other better. Why are you in such a hurry to leave?"
Ling Shuyao blushed and said angrily, "Go away, who wants to be close to you? But I can give you half an hour. If you can catch the thief in half an hour, we'll go to the riverside park. If you can't, I won't wait anymore. I'll take a shower and go to bed. After all, it's not good to go out or come back too late. "
Li Rui said, "Half an hour is too short. We need at least an hour, right?"
Ling Shuyao looked at the watch on her wrist and said, "I'll wait for you until nine o 'clock. I won't wait after that." She swayed her slim waist and walked out.
Li Rui didn't stay. He took the room card and went downstairs to the front desk.
When he saw the front desk, Li Rui realized that he didn't have a good excuse to ask for the surveillance video of the guesthouse. This wasn't the Shengjing Hotel. The general manager of the hotel, Ouyang Xin, was a member of his family. He could ask for the surveillance video if he wanted to. This was the guesthouse of the Provincial Agricultural University. As a guest from afar, he only had the right to stay overnight. He didn't have the right to ask for the surveillance video. If he told the truth, it was likely to alarm Chi Guohua and his assistant. If the mastermind was one of the two, wouldn't it alert the enemy? The mastermind might even destroy the evidence.
When he thought of this, he suddenly felt powerless. He had a sullen feeling that he could only swallow his anger after being framed. He thought that it would be great if this happened in Qingyang City. He didn't even need to do anything to catch the mastermind. Well, the crime happened in the provincial capital. He had no power or influence, so he could only feel depressed.
He then thought about it. It wasn't that he didn't have any power or influence. Speaking of which, his influence in the provincial capital was even greater. Putting aside his father-in-law's influence, just based on the friends he knew, he could easily get to the bottom of this' famous painting theft case 'with the help of any one of them. However, he didn't want to trouble his friends easily and only wanted to use his own power to catch the mastermind behind this. This was the most depressing thing.
Li Rui was smart and quick-witted. He quickly thought of a reason and walked to the front desk. He said to the female receptionist in the middle, "Hello, I'd like to see the surveillance video on the second floor. I lost my key when I left the room and couldn't find it when I came back. I'd like to see the surveillance video to see who picked up my key."
He lied about losing his key. It could be considered a legitimate reason to check the surveillance video. At the same time, he wouldn't blow up the matter and let Chi Guohua and his assistant know about it.
The female receptionist gestured diagonally and said, "Sir, you can go to the security room over there and request to check the surveillance video. We're not in charge of this. I'm sorry."
Li Rui turned around and saw a door in the corner. There was a sign on the door that said "Security Room". The door was half open, so there was probably someone inside. He thanked the kind receptionist and turned around to go to the security room.
There was only one young security guard on duty in the security room. Li Rui knocked on the door and went in. He told him the reason for his visit and requested to check the surveillance video on the second floor between 6 pm and 7: 30 pm.
The security guard listened to him expressionlessly. He shook his head and said, "No, you don't have the right to check the surveillance video."
Li Ruiqi said, "Why? I lost something. Can't I even check the surveillance video? Even the five-star hotels where I come from provide this kind of convenience. How can a small guesthouse like yours be so particular about power? "
The security guard was neither angry nor retorted. He said impartially, "There are only three situations where you can check the surveillance video. The first is when the police are handling a case. The second is when a crime is involved. The third is when valuable property is lost. Your situation obviously doesn't belong to any of the three, so you don't have the right to check the surveillance video. "
Li Rui retorted, "I lost my key. Doesn't that count as the third type of loss of valuable property?"
The security guard looked at him and shook his head. He didn't even bother to talk to him.
Li Rui said angrily, "But if I don't check the surveillance video, how would I know who picked up my key?"
The security guard said blankly, "You can ask the cleaner or other staff." After he finished speaking, he ignored him. He turned around and sat on the chair. He casually picked up the cigarette box and lighter on the table. When he reached into the box to take out a cigarette, he found that it was empty. He could only throw the box into the trash can and throw the lighter on the table. He looked very angry.
Li Rui was about to leave in a huff. However, he noticed the security guard's small movements. He suddenly thought of something. He turned around and walked out of the security room. He climbed the stairs and ran back to the room on the second floor. He took out two spare boxes of soft Zhonghua cigarettes from his briefcase and stuffed them into his pocket. He ran out of the room and went straight up the stairs. The next moment, he was back in the security room.
"Brother, do me a favor. I'm begging you, okay? Anyway, there's no one else here. You can secretly show me the surveillance video. No one will know. You're not breaking the rules. How about it? I'm begging you. Do me a favor! "
Li Rui stuffed the cigarettes into the security guard's hand and begged him with a vivid expression.
The security guard was still very insistent on his principles. However, when he saw the two boxes of soft Zhonghua cigarettes and how polite and sincere he was, he couldn't help but feel a little proud. However, he didn't agree rashly. He refused and said, "Hey, don't be like this. I can't break the rules. It's not good if people see it …" Although he said that he couldn't, he already had a smile on his face. Even if it was a bitter smile, it was still a smile.
Li Rui stuffed the two boxes of cigarettes into the security guard's trouser pocket and said, "Don't worry. No one will see it. I'll finish watching it quickly. Good brother, help me with this. Discipline is not more important than kindness. A good person will live a peaceful life."
The security guard smiled and said, "You … I've never seen you like this. Okay, then … then I'll get it for you. Quickly finish watching it and leave. Don't make it difficult for me. Luckily, I'm the only one on duty tonight. No one will come …" As he spoke, he already went to operate the computer to get the surveillance video for him.
Li Rui was secretly proud. He thought that in this society, cigarettes and alcohol were really good things. Alcohol was not necessary. Cigarettes were treasures. Not only could it relieve tiredness and refresh one's mind, but it could also bring people closer. If it wasn't for these two boxes of cigarettes, he wouldn't have been able to get what he wanted so easily.
The security guard quickly pulled up the two surveillance videos from the second floor corridor between six and eight o 'clock. Each video was an hour long. He said, "Watch carefully now. I'll fast-forward the video. If you see the part where I picked up your keys, tell me. I'll stop and show you the details."
Li Rui agreed and leaned forward. He opened his eyes wide and watched the security guard fast-forward the video. The time in the video started at six o 'clock. Every time the video fast-forwarded, it skipped ten seconds. Li Rui watched as the time quickly passed. Six o' clock, seven o 'clock, seven o' clock, seven o 'clock, seven o' clock …
Something unbelievable happened. Even after watching the entire video, Li Rui didn't see anyone enter or leave his room. He also didn't see anyone holding the painting in the corridor.
"Could it be that the painting grew wings and flew away on its own?"
Li Rui was bewildered. After thinking for a while, he asked the security guard to fast-forward the video again.
The security guard took his cigarettes and naturally agreed to his request. He fast-forwarded the video again. This time, he purposely timed it so that it wouldn't be fast-forwarded to the previous video. He wanted to cover more footage. However, even after fast-forwarding the video, there was still nothing that he wanted to see.
"Did you make a mistake? You didn't lose the keys in the corridor?"
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