Chapter 41

"Boss Wang?" Lin Jiafan didn't seem to be surprised by the person who suddenly jumped out.

Luo Jingyao also had a feeling that it was as expected. In this way, the contradictions that existed in the other party before could be explained.

"Giving false testimony will result in legal consequences." Lin Jiafan reminded kindly.

When Fatty Wang heard this, the fat on his cheeks trembled unconsciously, but he finally waved his hand impatiently: "I'm telling the truth. Officer Lin, there's no need to scare me with this."

"Okay." Lin Jiafan didn't argue with him and turned his attention back to Zhou Hong: "Then Miss Zhou, tell me, what did you do at Haixia Supermarket on the afternoon of the incident?"

Zhou Hong stammered, responding vaguely, "Buying things."

"Shopping, what can you spend the whole afternoon on?"

Faced with Lin Jiafan's aggressive attitude, Zhou Hong's already pale face turned even paler, her lips trembled, but no sound came out of her throat.

"Xiaohong bought soy sauce, but who says she has to leave after buying something? It happened that a few neighbors got together to play mahjong in my supermarket that day, so she stayed to chat and watch the fun." Fatty Wang said it with details, his expression serious and earnest, as if it really happened.

Nodding slowly, Lin Jiafan wasn't sure whether to believe it or not. "I remember your supermarket has a surveillance camera above the cash register at the entrance. Boss Wang, could you provide me with the surveillance footage from the past few days?"

Fatty Wang refused flatly: "That thing is just there to scare people. I don't usually use it."

"Without surveillance footage as supporting evidence, I'm afraid the police will find it difficult to accept your testimony..."

Upon hearing this, Fatty Wang's eyes widened, his hands on his hips, unconvinced. "Why? Officer Lin, you think I'm lying? You'd rather trust an electronic camera than a human eye? Why don't you go out and ask around? Fatty Wang is known for his honesty throughout the surrounding villages!"

Lin Jiafan frowned slightly at the man's sudden excitement. Just as he was about to persuade him, a voice came from the side.

"I also testified that Xiaohong did stay in the supermarket for several hours that afternoon. I was at the mahjong table at the time and I saw her."

Luo Jingyao turned her head in surprise when she heard the noise. The person who spoke up to testify for Fatty Wang was actually the talkative and gossipy Aunt Bujin whom she met yesterday. No wonder she felt that the voice sounded familiar.

"Yes, I was playing mahjong too. I saw it too."

"I also……"

"Although I didn't play mahjong, I went to the supermarket to buy groceries that afternoon, and Xiaohong was indeed there."

"Exactly. My home is diagonally across from Haixia Supermarket. I clearly remember that it was already dark that day when Xiaohong came out of the supermarket."

As soon as Aunt Bujin stood up, it was as if a mysterious switch in Bo'an Village was pressed. All of a sudden, the villagers came forward and began to speak out in support of Zhou Hong.

These people's tone was full of accusations, as if the police were unreasonable and wanted to harm ordinary people, and they were the respected guardian angels.

Amidst the testimonies and questions, Lin Jiafan didn't even blink. He simply stared stubbornly at Zhou Hong's face and asked in a calm tone, "Ms. Zhou, what do you think of everyone's testimony? Is there anything you want to add?"

Zhou Hong avoided his gaze in embarrassment and shook her head slightly.

"Okay." Lin Jiafan didn't dwell on the so-called alibi any further. He turned to ask something else: "Miss Zhou, I'd like to trouble you to explain why the deceased Cui Da's head and internal organs were found in your greenhouse? And why was there Cui Da's blood on the floor of the adobe house? And why were the machete and chainsaw found in the adobe house also stained with the victim's blood?"

"Why so many questions? Officer Lin, you saw it too. There's no lock on the greenhouse. Anyone can get in by just lifting the curtain." Fatty Wang jumped out again: "Who knows who Cui Da offended outside? That's why they killed him and framed Xiao Hong!"

"That's right. You don't want to arrest the criminal, but just interrogate a girl here. Do you have any conscience?"

"The police are so great, right? Can they just wrongly accuse good people?"

"If we really have the time, we might as well go to the city and find out what bad things Cui Da did that made people chase him back to the village and kill him!"

There was another period of commotion, and Lin Jiafan was also a little angry at this time. He raised his hand to signal Pang Guang to take people to strengthen the cordon around, forcing the group of villagers to retreat several meters.

Then he called people from the laboratory to collect DNA, fingerprints and shoe prints from Zhou Hong and her parents.

"The police always look at evidence when investigating a case. If your fingerprints are successfully matched with the fingerprints extracted from the red basin stained with Cui Da's blood found in the small kitchen of the ancestral hall, even if the whole village testifies for you, it will not change anything." Lin Jiafan said meaningfully.

"I wonder if Miss Zhou has time to cooperate with the police and return to the police station for investigation? Of course, as I said before, you can refuse now and wait until the comparison results come out and the arrest warrant is approved."

Zhou Hong's expression froze at first, but after a few seconds her whole body relaxed as if she had accepted her fate.

She lowered her head, wiping her fingers, which were covered in black ink, with a tissue, and whispered, "No need. I'll go back with you."

Lin Jiafan was satisfied with her ability to know the situation, so he just asked two colleagues to escort her into the police car.

Zhou Hong unexpectedly stopped when passing in front of Luo Jingyao, and her big eyes looking at Luo Jingyao showed relief and endless sadness.

"Sister Luo." she said.

"I'm scared, can you stay with me?"

Luo Jingyao subconsciously glanced at Lin Jiafan, and at the man's disapproving look, she nodded slightly.

Anyway, the police van is quite spacious. I was originally going to take a ride back to the city, so it doesn't matter which one I take.

So when it got dark, Luo Jingyao and Zhou Hong got into the same police car.

Pang Guang was still steering the car, and Lin Jiafan sat in the passenger seat as usual. Two policemen and Zhou Hong sat in the second row, while Luo Jingyao and Guo Zhen squeezed into the third row.

As the villagers watched, they drove on the bumpy loess road and left Bo'an Village, shaking all the way.

On the way back to Jinshi Public Security Bureau, the atmosphere in the car was silent and heavy.

After an unknown amount of time, when Luo Jingyao began to doze off, Zhou Hong suddenly spoke up: "Sister Luo, are you a police officer too?"

"I... I'm not..." She looked at the man in the passenger seat through the rearview mirror, and when she saw that he had no intention of stopping her, she replied.

"What a pity! I think you're very suitable to be a police officer." Zhou Hong murmured, and finally laughed self-deprecatingly: "Sister Luo, you are one of the few good people I have ever met. This morning, you were truly doing this for my own good and my mother's good. I know it."

Luo Jingyao was stunned, feeling an unbearable pain in her heart, and didn't know what to say for a moment.

At this moment, the sky outside has become completely dark. From the car window next to her, she can vaguely see the woman's face. The sadness in her eyebrows seems to be overflowing.

"Officer Lin, you don't need to ask anymore. I admit it." Zhou Hong calmed down and spoke again, "I killed Cui Da."

"You must have found those photos at the Cui family, right? That's why you came to my house two days ago. What did the Cui family tell you about our relationship? A couple?"

"You believe it too?"

Lin Jiafan, who was sitting in the passenger seat, didn't choose to answer the question directly. Instead, he asked, "How long has this relationship lasted, and why didn't you call the police?"

"I have a younger brother. Have you found out? He died last year." Zhou Hong also evaded the question: "He overdosed on drugs. When we got the call and rushed to his rental house, he was already stinking."

Luo Jingyao sorted out the timeline in her mind. Cui Da and Zhou Hong's relationship ended last year, and Zhou Hong's brother also died last year.

"So the reason you didn't call the police before was because of your brother?" She opened her mouth unconsciously.

Zhou Hong paused, then nodded with her back stiff.

A few years ago, Zhou Hong's younger brother insisted on going out to explore the world, but after going through so much trouble, he didn't make any money and ended up owing a lot of debts.

No one expected that his creditor was Cui Da.

At first, Zhou's parents sold everything they had and scraped together the money to help their son pay back the debt. However, they never expected that their son would become addicted to drugs and within a few days he had to borrow a lot of money again.

As the interest continued to compound, the Zhou family owed Cui Da more and more money. After Cui Da went to collect the debt several times, he set his sights on Zhou Hong.

Zhou Hong had thought about calling the police, but her brother stopped her every time. The other party was kowtowing and threatening to commit suicide, and she couldn't bear to do it.

Their mother, Wu Guiqiu, suffered a cerebral hemorrhage because she felt guilty towards her daughters, and ended up being unable to take care of herself.

Zhou Hong was harassed by Cui Da for about two years. It was not until last year when Zhou's son died of a drug overdose that she finally had the opportunity to break up with Cui Da.

This move naturally caused strong dissatisfaction among Cui Da. Not only did he run to Zhou's house and smash things up, he also beat Zhou Hong half to death.

Originally, the Zhou family wanted to call the police, but Cui Jiafu and his wife stepped in and took charge of settling all the debts owed by Zhou's son during his lifetime, and promised not to let Cui Da return to the village to cause trouble. Zhou Hong thought about it and finally nodded in agreement.

At this point, the woman's self-deprecation grew stronger. "I just don't want to overwork my parents. They haven't had a peaceful day in years trying to pay off my brother's debts. It wouldn't be the first time I've been beaten, so even if I call the police and have Cui Da arrested and put in jail for a few days, what good will that do? I still have to pay what I owe."

"Later, Cui Da really seldom returned to Bo'an Village. Even if he did come back occasionally, I could just hide in time so that he couldn't find me."

"On the 30th..."

As Zhou Hong spoke, she seemed to suddenly fall into some memories, and her expression became even calmer. Only through her hands clenched into fists on her knees could one glimpse the turbulent waves in her heart.

"That day, Cui Da came back suddenly. I didn't have time to run away, so he blocked me in the greenhouse."