Hao Yiming confessed everything, including how he coerced and threatened Lin Shaohuai into helping him target Ding Jing and how, when Shen Tinglan threatened to expose him, he decided to eliminate him to cover his tracks. Naturally, he also confessed to trying to get rid of Lin Shaohuai yesterday, fearing that the police were closing in on him and that Lin Shaohuai might betray him.
“Captain Zou, we found something.”
Xiao Tang rushed into the room, but when he felt the eerie silence and tense atmosphere, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.
Cautiously, he asked, “Captain Zou, Captain He, didn’t Hao Yiming and Shao Heng already confess? Why do you still look like this?”
Zou Shuyang rubbed his face and gathered his thoughts. “You said you found something. What did you find?”
This immediately diverted Xiao Tang’s attention. “Oh, right!” He grinned, flashing his white teeth. “This is where my sharp thinking comes in. Although we didn’t find any valuable clues from Hao Yiming’s home surveillance, I found someone in the dashcam footage of a car parked near Hao Yiming’s house.”
He pulled out a USB drive and plugged it into the computer. “Take a look.”
By coincidence or not, the car was parked right across from Hao Yiming’s house. The owner didn’t turn off the engine, so the dashcam remained on.
Through the dashcam, at 10:40 p.m. last night, they saw a man entering Hao Yiming’s house.
He walked in openly, without any attempt to hide.
He even turned around and greeted the dashcam after opening the door.
“Yin… Yin Zhuo?”
It was unexpected, but at the same time, not surprising.
“Captain Zou, should we bring in Yin Zhuo for questioning now?”
Something seemed to flash through Zou Shuyang’s mind, and his expression darkened. He kept his eyes fixed on the video while pulling out his phone to call Jian Mengyan.
The phone rang twice before Jian Mengyan picked up. The sound of heavy rain came through, along with the rush of flowing water.
“Where are you?” Zou Shuyang got straight to the point.
Amidst the rain, Jian Mengyan’s voice reached Zou Shuyang’s ears. “I’m at the Jiangzhou Bridge. Today is the anniversary of Jing Jing’s and the teacher’s deaths. I came here to pay my respects.”
She paused, then asked curiously, “What’s wrong?”
“Yin…”
Before he could finish his sentence, Yin Zhuo’s voice came through from the other side of the line. “Meng Meng, come over here.”
“Hey? Meng—”
Once again, Zou Shuyang’s words were interrupted as Jian Mengyan hurriedly said, “I’ll talk to you later. I’ll call you back.”
The line went dead.
Xiao Tang, standing nearby, watched as Zou Shuyang’s expression grew visibly darker. He couldn’t help but worry. “Captain Zou, is everything okay? Is Sister Mengyan alright?”
Zou Shuyang clenched his teeth, and after a long moment, he said, “Let’s go.”
Xiao Tang glanced at Zou Shuyang, then at Captain He, who was still standing silently with a grim expression. “Captain Zou, what is…”
Captain He raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t you hear Zou Shuyang? Follow him.”
Xiao Tang’s brain finally caught up, and he quickly nodded, jogging to catch up with Zou Shuyang.
The good news was that Jiangzhou Bridge wasn’t far from the Western District Police Station. The bad news was that Zou Shuyang, worried about Jian Mengyan, was trembling so badly that after a few too many graceful S-shaped turns, he had to stop the car.
“You drive.” Zou Shuyang quickly switched seats with Xiao Tang, unable to calm his nerves.
The rain grew heavier, and the sky was dark, occasionally lit up by flashes of lightning, followed by deafening thunder.
Xiao Tang drove toward Jiangzhou Bridge, still confused. “Captain Zou, what are we doing? Aren’t we going to arrest Yin Zhuo?”
Zou Shuyang didn’t respond, his hands trembling uncontrollably in his lap.
They soon reached Jiangzhou Bridge. Even through the rain, Zou Shuyang could see two figures standing by the riverbank—a man and a woman.
Jian Mengyan wasn’t holding an umbrella. She seemed to be fiddling with something in her hands before squatting down. Meanwhile, Yin Zhuo shifted his feet, as if he were about to push her into the water.
Suddenly, Zou Shuyang remembered what Jian Mengyan had once said: Ding Jing had been pushed into the water by a man.
His scalp tingled, and he quickly got out of the car without even grabbing an umbrella, shouting, “Meng Meng!”
Both Jian Mengyan and Yin Zhuo turned around at the sound of his voice. Yin Zhuo seemed to say something with a smile.
Jian Mengyan waved at the approaching Zou Shuyang, but the next second, she was pulled away by him. Her already damp hair was now completely soaked by the rain, making her look disheveled.
“Ayang?” Jian Mengyan asked in confusion as she looked up.
It was then that Zou Shuyang noticed the floating river lanterns on the water.
“What are you doing here?”
Jian Mengyan wasn’t wearing any makeup today, so the scar near her nose was more visible.
“Today is the anniversary of Jing Jing and the teacher’s death. We thought we’d come to pay our respects.” Jian Mengyan wiped the rain off her face. “Ayang, what’s going on with you?”
Zou Shuyang kept his gaze locked on Yin Zhuo, his whole body tense, as if ready to spring into action at any moment.
Yin Zhuo found this amusing and commented with a hint of suggestion, “Meng Meng, your boyfriend is really protective of you. Judging by his expression, it’s like he thinks I’m some villain about to hurt you.”
Today, Yin Zhuo was wearing a black long-sleeved shirt and pants, holding a black umbrella. He stood there quietly, looking just like someone here to mourn.
But maybe it was due to Zou Shuyang’s suspicions that even Yin Zhuo’s gentle demeanor now seemed a bit more sinister.
“Look at that, really.”
Yin Zhuo, seemingly innocent, said, “Meng Meng, look at your boyfriend. It’s like he’s afraid to let you out of his sight.”
Before Jian Mengyan could respond, Zou Shuyang pulled her behind him. Staring at Yin Zhuo, Zou Shuyang wasn’t sure if he should confront him with the truth and arrest him right then and there.
But then, Yin Zhuo took a step forward, tilting his black umbrella to shield Jian Mengyan, creating a small gap between him and Zou Shuyang.
Standing close to Zou Shuyang, Yin Zhuo could catch the familiar scent of Jian Mengyan’s usual perfume. He smiled slightly.
“I was just betting with Meng Meng.”
As soon as Yin Zhuo spoke, goosebumps ran up Zou Shuyang’s arms.
He knew better than to think that this bet with Yin Zhuo was something innocent.
“I bet that you’d definitely come looking for her because she’s with me. Looks like I won.”
Zou Shuyang looked up, meeting Yin Zhuo’s gaze. He couldn’t help but grit his teeth and ask in a low voice, “What do you really want?”
Yin Zhuo chuckled to himself for a while before responding, “Want?”
After a long pause, he lowered his eyes in melancholy. “I don’t even know what I really want anymore.”
Sensing Jian Mengyan fiddling with Yin Zhuo’s umbrella from behind, Yin Zhuo hurriedly added, “Treat her well. She’s not as strong as you think.”
With that, Yin Zhuo handed the umbrella to Zou Shuyang and turned to walk toward Xiao Tang. “Take my car and drive Meng Meng home. And remember to make her some ginger tea.”
From the moment Yin Zhuo walked over, Xiao Tang had been on edge. But instead of attacking, Yin Zhuo got into the car, soaking the backseat with his wet clothes.
Seeing Xiao Tang still frozen in place, Yin Zhuo let out a soft laugh. “Officer Tang, aren’t you going to drive?”
Then, as if having a sudden realization, he added, “Don’t you know why I’m here? I’m here to turn myself in. I’m the one who killed Shen Jun and Cheng Hao. Officer Tang, let’s go.”
His tone was light, and his demeanor relaxed. He didn’t seem like someone turning himself in but rather like someone heading off on vacation.
Back at the police station, Yin Zhuo casually walked to the interrogation room. As he passed by Hao Yiming, who was temporarily held at the station, he cheerfully greeted him, “Oh, hey, you’re here too.”
This was a far cry from his previously gentle doctor persona.
Hao Yiming looked up in confusion. Who was this guy?
Yin Zhuo smiled faintly. “Your place has nice decor. Also, next time you sleep, try turning over a bit. Lying there motionless makes me think you’re dead.”
In an instant, Hao Yiming realized who this person was.
“It was you who set me up?!”
Yin Zhuo was about to respond, but Xiao Tang, frowning, pushed him along, forcing him to leave with a look of regret.
Yin Zhuo’s interrogation was conducted by Captain He and Xiao Tang. When asked about his crimes, Yin Zhuo confessed everything without hesitation. He even added helpful details for things the investigators had missed.
“And what was your motive?”
When asked this question, the always calm and composed Yin Zhuo suddenly froze.
Just when Captain He and Xiao Tang thought there might be some hidden truth, Yin Zhuo smirked coldly and replied, “Motive? Revenge, of course.”
Captain He kept his eyes locked on him, refusing to let any expression on Yin Zhuo’s face slip by unnoticed. “I don’t buy that. If you killed the people responsible for Ding Jing’s death out of revenge, that’s understandable. Maybe you had some special feelings for Ding Jing. But what about the old… Shen Tinglan?”
“As far as I know, you had no connection with Shen Tinglan. Why did you seek revenge for him?”
To Captain He’s disappointment, Yin Zhuo’s expression remained unchanged. In fact, as if to make his words more convincing, he lifted his head and met Captain He’s gaze. “It’s true that I had no connection with Shen Tinglan, but he was the only person who treated Ding Jing well after her family went bankrupt. He was a good person who met a tragic end. The least I could do was get revenge for him, right?”
No flaws in his story.
Captain He withdrew his gaze, giving no indication whether he believed Yin Zhuo or not.
But when he looked at Yin Zhuo again, his eyes held a bit more scrutiny.
“So, how exactly did Ding Jing die?”
Yin Zhuo wiped his face and ran his fingers through his hair, suddenly chuckling softly. “I killed Jing Jing.”
Xiao Tang was stunned. “What?!”
Yin Zhuo stared at his hands and sighed deeply. “Jing Jing felt like she was tainted. She wanted to end it all, so she ran to the river to commit suicide. I tried to stop her, but she just kept crying, crying and crying.”
Yin Zhuo suddenly looked up, his eyes bloodshot, pointing to his chest. “Do you know what that feels like? The person you love is standing right in front of you, staring at you, crying nonstop. It broke my heart. In the end, she begged me—begged me to let her die. It was the first time I held her. I picked her up and then… I threw her into the river. I watched her struggle in the water. I watched her disappear into the current.”
When the interrogation ended, Yin Zhuo was temporarily detained in the police station’s basement. Xiao Tang, holding the case file, followed Captain He upstairs, looking troubled.
As soon as they entered the office, Xiao Tang spoke up, “Captain He, don’t you find this strange?”
Captain He didn’t respond but gave Xiao Tang a glance.
Encouraged, Xiao Tang continued enthusiastically, “Just like Hao Yiming, Yin Zhuo had gone undetected for so many years. So why is he suddenly cooperating so willingly now? Could it be that he’s fulfilled his revenge and now has no regrets?”
Evening of June 3, 2022
It seemed that with the conclusion of Ding Jing and Shen Tinglan’s cases, even the weather had started to clear up.
When Zou Shuyang returned to the police station, the rain had stopped, and by the time he got upstairs, the sun had come out.
“Captain Zou, you’re back?”
Xiao Tang immediately handed Zou Shuyang the case file, then turned toward the window. “Just as I thought, after a storm, the air is always fresher. Captain Zou, look how blue the sky is!”
Zou Shuyang glanced at the bright blue sky, letting out a half-hearted “oh” before focusing on the case file in his hands.
To be honest, nothing in the file surprised Zou Shuyang.
It was just as he expected—Yin Zhuo’s motive was his unrequited love for Ding Jing and his guilt over her death. His methods and timeline for the murders were all clearly explained.
But something still didn’t sit right with Zou Shuyang.
“What’s wrong?” Xiao Tang asked, munching on a snack he had found in Xiao Wang’s drawer.
Zou Shuyang wheeled his chair over to the door and pulled out the whiteboard. “Look up Yin Zhuo’s travel records for 2017.”
“Huh?”
Without a response, Xiao Tang could only shrug, clap the crumbs off his hands, and start searching.
A moment later, Xiao Tang reported, “In 2017, Yin Zhuo only traveled three times. The first was on June 30, 2017, when he flew from Yunnan Province to Jiangzhou. The second was on August 15, 2017, when he took a return flight from Jiangzhou back to Yunnan. The third was on December 20, 2017, when he took a train from Yunnan to Jiangzhou.”
Finishing his report, Xiao Tang saw Zou Shuyang rubbing his chin, deep in thought. “Captain Zou, what’s the problem?”
Zou Shuyang replied, “In 2017, three of Shen Tinglan’s students died. Two of them died in July. The last one,” Zou Shuyang tapped the whiteboard with his marker, “died on September 1, 2017.”
He turned to Xiao Tang. “But by that time, Yin Zhuo had already returned to Yunnan. How could he have committed the crime?”
Xiao Tang, still holding his snack, froze mid-bite. “Could it be… there’s another killer?”
Suddenly, all of Zou Shuyang’s past suspicions came rushing back. “Yin Zhuo is a surgeon.”
“Yeah.”
“So his work and studies wouldn’t involve spores.”
Xiao Tang was still confused. “Captain Zou, what are you trying to say?”
“What if Yin Zhuo didn’t develop PHR769?”
Ignoring Xiao Tang’s startled exclamations, Zou Shuyang pieced the puzzle together in his mind: 2017, Ding Jing, Shen Tinglan, spores…
All of these clues led to only one person who fit—
Jian Mengyan.
Just then, Zou Shuyang’s phone rang.
“Hello, is this Zou Shuyang? This is Jiangzhou First People’s Hospital. Jian Mengyan has been brought in due to excessive blood loss and is currently in critical condition in the emergency room…”
The marker Zou Shuyang was holding slipped from his hand and rolled to the window, where the bright sunlight cast a soft glow over it.
In that instant, everything seemed to click into place—PHR769, Jian Mengyan’s university thesis, and the antidepressant medication the housekeeper had been carrying that day.
Late that night, Yin Zhuo sat in the interrogation room, idly staring at the ceiling. It was all over now.
Meng Meng should be able to live happily with that police officer, right?
They had all gone in circles, but in the end, someone should have a good ending, right?
The door suddenly burst open with a loud bang, startling Yin Zhuo.
He turned his head to see Zou Shuyang, eyes red and swollen, storming into the room.
The next second, Zou Shuyang grabbed Yin Zhuo by the collar and hauled him to his feet.
“Officer Zou, what are you doing?” Yin Zhuo didn’t resist, speaking lazily. “Even if I’m a criminal, I still have rights, don’t I? Are you going to abuse your authority?”
Zou Shuyang took a few deep breaths. “What do you know?”
Yin Zhuo stiffened. “What are you talking about? I don’t understand.”
“All these murders—there’s more than one killer. Is Meng Meng involved too? Or rather, is Meng Meng the one who did most of the work?”
Yin Zhuo didn’t respond, but his silence was telling.
Zou Shuyang let go of his grip on Yin Zhuo’s collar, leaning back against the table, tilting his head back, and closing his eyes.
Yin Zhuo sat back down, straightening out his clothes and calmly saying, “Officer Zou, that won’t do. How could you suspect your own girlfriend? You two…”
“Meng Meng committed suicide.”
Yin Zhuo’s eyes flew open, a strangled sound escaping his throat.
Zou Shuyang looked at Yin Zhuo, speaking slowly and clearly. “Meng Meng committed suicide. Just now.”
It was unclear how much time passed, but eventually, Yin Zhuo heard the sound of the door closing. He lowered his head and began to laugh quietly.
So, it turned out, none of them had met a good end after all.
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