Thanks to a timely discovery, the man was apprehended before he could leave the hospital.
When he was caught, disbelief was all over his face. He had disguised himself so well—how could they have discovered him?
Seeing the confusion on the man’s face, Xiao Wang pointed at the camera in the corner, its red light blinking. “See? Surveillance, high tech. Even the stairwells have cameras.”
As the man stood there with his mouth open, dumbfounded, Xiao Wang couldn’t help but add, “Maybe watch fewer movies next time. They’re not real life.”
In the interrogation room, Zou Shuyang rested his chin in his hand, watching the middle-aged man in front of him who looked deceptively honest. “Alright, let’s hear it. Name, age, and who sent you to kill Lin Shaohuai?”
The man’s lips trembled, and his legs, as weak as noodles, couldn’t support him at all.
“Talk!”
Zou Shuyang’s sudden shout startled the man so much that he visibly flinched.
“My… my name is Zhang San. I’m thirty-eight years old. I’m a gambler, and I owe a huge amount of debt. The loan sharks said if I didn’t pay them back, they’d sell me to northern Myanmar to have my kidneys removed. I was scared…”
Before he could finish his frightened explanation, Zou Shuyang cut him off, narrowing his eyes. “Did I ask about that?”
Zhang San blinked, confused. “Huh? What?”
“I asked, who sent you to kill Lin Shaohuai?”
Zhang San stammered, “Lin… Lin Shaohuai? Who’s that?”
Xiao Wang rolled his eyes. He never imagined his first interrogation in the serious crimes division would be like this.
“The person you killed was Lin Shaohuai.”
Zhang San mumbled, “Oh, that’s a nice name.”
Zou Shuyang: …
After another glare from Zou Shuyang, Zhang San didn’t dare stall any longer and confessed, “The loan shark found me today. He said if I went to the hospital and killed someone, my debt would be wiped clean. I guess I lost my mind and did it. Officer, I’m a first-time offender. Can’t you let me off the hook?”
Zou Shuyang snorted. “This isn’t like getting drunk and brawling where you might get a break. You’ve killed someone. You could be facing the death penalty.”
Zhang San was terrified. His entire body stiffened, and he didn’t dare make a sound.
Seeing that Zhang San was sufficiently scared, Zou Shuyang softened his tone. “However, if you’re willing to come clean and provide us with more information, you could still get a reduced sentence. How about it? Got anything else to add?”
Zhang San stared at Zou Shuyang for a while, as if trying to determine if he was telling the truth.
Zou Shuyang didn’t flinch and let Zhang San scrutinize him.
After a long pause, Zhang San finally hung his head in defeat. “The loan shark is a big shot on the streets known as Brother Long. I’ve heard he’s got people on both sides of the law.”
After sizing up Zou Shuyang, Zhang San added with concern, “I’d advise you not to mess with him. It’s not worth it.”
Zou Shuyang tapped the table with his fingers. “Just tell me what you know. The rest is up to the police.”
Seeing that Zou Shuyang wasn’t going to be intimidated, Zhang San sighed regretfully and continued, “Brother Long ordered me to kill someone, and I didn’t dare refuse. I’m just a small fry—sure, I like to gamble and drink, but I’ve never killed anyone before. But Brother Long threatened me, so I had no choice.”
Xiao Wang couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Zhang San might talk like this, but there wasn’t a hint of real fear in his eyes. Who knew what kind of tricks he had up his sleeve?
Zhang San went on, “Later, Brother Long got me a doctor’s white coat and gave me a syringe. He told me to sneak into the ICU at night and inject that stuff into this Lin guy’s IV. When I got there, Lin was already hooked up to an IV, so I just injected it.”
Zou Shuyang nodded at Xiao Wang and then left the interrogation room.
Captain He was already waiting outside, cigarette in hand. He looked up as Zou Shuyang emerged. “What do you think?”
Zou Shuyang closed the door behind him, shutting out the noise from inside.
Rubbing his face, Zou Shuyang couldn’t hide his exhaustion. “Did you listen to the recording?”
Captain He nodded.
Zou Shuyang smiled wryly. “Who do you think the culprit is?”
“I’ve already sent someone to track down Brother Long. The truth will be revealed soon.”
Two old foxes, neither willing to jump to conclusions about who the killer might be.
However, after a quick glance at each other, both men knew they were thinking the same thing.
Hao Yiming.
June 3, 2022
Capturing Brother Long turned out to be easy. He wasn’t nearly as powerful as Zhang San had made him out to be—just a… slightly more well-connected thug.
As soon as he was brought into the police station, Brother Long and his lackeys immediately cowered.
He answered everything Zou Shuyang asked, obedient as a puppy.
Zou Shuyang couldn’t help but be curious. “Didn’t Zhang San say you threatened him, that if he didn’t pay up, you’d send him to northern Myanmar? But now you’re…”
Feeling uncomfortable under Zou Shuyang’s gaze, Brother Long offered a nervous smile. “That was just to scare him. I’m not that capable. My reputation is mostly just luck.”
And so, Zou Shuyang left with the freshly written statement.
The report clearly stated that Hao Yiming had bribed Brother Long to kill Lin Shaohuai. The money Hao Yiming had promised was even found at Brother Long’s house.
“Wow!” Xiao Tang said as he brought up a cardboard box full of cash. “This guy must be really greedy. He didn’t even wait overnight before withdrawing all the money and stashing it at home. Aren’t you afraid of bugs eating it?”
Zou Shuyang gave Xiao Tang a brief glance and then focused on the report in front of him.
“What’s wrong, Captain Zou? We’ve got the evidence. Why are you still worried?”
Zou Shuyang shook his head. “I don’t know. Something feels off. Doesn’t everything seem to be going too smoothly?”
“Too smoothly?”
Xiao Tang scratched his head, not quite understanding. “Isn’t that a good thing?”
“I’m not saying it’s bad. It’s just…” Zou Shuyang set down the report and looked out at the torrential rain. “Hao Yiming and Lin Shaohuai have been hiding their tracks for years. But look at what’s happened in just a few days—one’s dead, and the other’s guilt is clear. It doesn’t make sense.”
Xiao Tang was even more confused. “Isn’t that how investigations go? You follow the clues, and they lead you to the truth. Are you saying someone’s trying to frame them?”
Frame them?
Zou Shuyang slapped his thigh. “Exactly! What if there’s another group seeking revenge for Ding Jing? Maybe they think we’re moving too slowly, so they set Hao Yiming up?”
Xiao Tang’s eyes widened, and he clapped his hands. “Captain Zou, you’ve got a vivid imagination! If those people were that capable, shouldn’t we be investigating Hao Yiming’s death instead?”
Zou Shuyang shook his head. “No, that’s not right.”
Before Xiao Tang could ask what was wrong, Zou Shuyang pulled up an article on his phone about Jiangzhou’s top ten outstanding youths of 2022 and placed the news report in front of him. “Look, Hao Yiming’s family is rich, and he’s one of Jiangzhou’s top ten outstanding youths. He’s famous and wealthy. If you were him, wouldn’t you be happy?”
Xiao Tang began to understand what Zou Shuyang was getting at. “But could he really go that far?”
Zou Shuyang shook his head honestly. “I don’t know. We’ll have to wait until we catch Hao Yiming to find out.”
As he spoke, he picked up his car keys. “I’m going to visit Shen Jun’s house. There might be evidence there linking Hao Yiming to the murder of Shen Tinglan.”
Xiao Tang took a couple of steps after him. “Want me to go with you?”
Zou Shuyang waved him off, his voice growing more distant. “You’re busy. You’ve got to go arrest Hao Yiming soon.”
Following the GPS, Zou Shuyang drove toward Shen Jun’s house. The further he went, the more remote the area became, until finally, there was no road ahead at all.
Having no choice, Zou Shuyang got out of the car. He stood in front of a vast field of reeds, staring at the muddy path on the GPS, dumbfounded.
“You, young man! What are you doing here so early in the morning?” Suddenly, an elderly voice called out from behind him.
Zou Shuyang turned around to see an old man leaning on a cane, hunched over as he squinted at him.
Quickly, Zou Shuyang asked, “Grandpa, I’m looking for someone. Do you know where Shen Xiangxiu’s house is?”
The old man stared at Zou Shuyang for a while, his expression slowly turning cautious. “There’s no one by that name around here. You must be lost.”
Zou Shuyang returned to his car to grab his police badge and showed it to the old man. “I’m a police officer, investigating the case of Shen Jun’s death.”
The old man, whose eyesight seemed to be poor, squinted at the badge for a long time before he finally let out an “Ah.” “I see. Follow me.”
As they walked, the old man explained, “About ten years ago, they were going to tear this place down to build tall buildings.” He pushed aside the thick reeds, revealing the muddy yellow dirt path underneath. “But then something happened, and the plan fell through. Some folks were supposed to come and pave the roads, but that never happened either. Ah, what a shame.”
“By the way, you’re investigating Little Jun’s case?” The old man’s cane thumped heavily on the ground, splashing mud and rainwater onto Zou Shuyang’s pants. “He was such a good kid.”
Zou Shuyang didn’t respond. He just quietly listened to the old man’s words.
“That boy was so filial. His mother, Xiangxiu, has poor eyesight, so he started doing the household chores when he was very young. His grades were pretty good too—he passed all his classes. Very impressive.”
Zou Shuyang opened his mouth to say something but held back.
Passing all your classes was impressive? Isn’t that a bit of a low bar?
“But about ten years ago, something happened to that boy. I heard he beat a teacher to death and ended up in juvenile detention. He only got out a few years ago, and ever since, he’s been staying at home to take care of his mom.”
The old man paused and turned around, the rainwater from his large black umbrella splashing onto Zou Shuyang’s face. “But there’s something strange about it.”
Zou Shuyang wiped his face. “What’s strange?”
The old man blinked his eyes. “He never went out to find a job, yet he always seemed to have plenty of money. He paid for Xiangxiu’s eye treatments and even renovated the house. I heard he was planning to buy a house in the city too. Amazing, isn’t it?”
As he spoke, the old man pointed to the only house in the area that didn’t look run-down. “That’s it. The nicest house over there is Xiangxiu’s place.”
Thanking the old man, Zou Shuyang headed toward Shen Jun’s house.
After only a few steps, the old man called out to him again, “Young man.”
Zou Shuyang turned around in the pouring rain. “What is it?”
The old man sighed and warned him, “Ever since Little Jun died, Xiangxiu hasn’t been right in the head. She refuses to believe he’s dead. Just be careful—anytime someone brings up his death, she gets very agitated.”
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