Chapter 33 Chapter 33 (Edited) I’m confused…

At the same time, at Lianjie Snack Shop.

Ji Jianguo parked his bicycle at the alleyway across from the kitchen and casually greeted the helpers, "Thank you for your hard work. Have you eaten?"

"Eat it, eat it!"

“There are new dishes every day, it’s a real treat!”

"Section Chief Ji is here to see Boss Lian again? He's checking the accounts up front!"

"What a great relationship! Unlike me and my husband... I'm so envious!"

Ji Jianguo nodded with a smile, walked through the kitchen and went straight to the store in front.

A new Red House Western Restaurant has opened on Jiangtan City Pedestrian Street and is currently in its trial operation phase. Lian Qiao and Ji Jianguo have agreed to try it out while there are fewer customers.

Although they are an old couple, they still maintain the habit of meeting once every two weeks.

But she was still sitting behind the bar, clumsily counting money on an abacus, recording each amount in the account book.

"Are you here? Give me ten minutes. I still have to finish this account." Lian Qiao raised her head, stretched her cervical spine, and complained softly, "I really miss the great Excel..."

"Who said that before traveling through the book, I was so tired of making a watch that I felt like vomiting?" Ji Jianguo scratched his wife's nose. "Let me help you write it."

"Old Ji, you are such a nice person!" Lian Qiao held her face and blinked her big eyes.

Ji Jianguo, who was given the "nice guy" card, was in a good mood. He picked up the account book on the bar and said, "It's no big deal. I was nicknamed "cousin" in the company back then!"

Boss Lian admired the side profile of her husband who was conscientiously doing homework for a few minutes, then walked to the kitchen to explain the precautions when she was not in the store in the afternoon.

As soon as I finished chatting with the helpers, I turned around and saw the latest local news playing on the TV in the hall -

"...This morning, Montagut visited Jiangtan. To promote its many new styles, they held a fashion show at Xinbai Building. Beautiful and handsome models walked the red carpet wearing the latest polo shirts, showcasing the trend and charm of this international brand..."

On the screen with low-quality pixels, a girl in a blonde wig and a boy in big sunglasses walked side by side. Lian Qiao's pupils widened: "Old Ji! Old Ji! Come and see!"

"What's wrong?" Ji Jianguo poked his head over the bar. Although it was only a fleeting moment, he immediately recognized his biological daughter. "Wow! Isn't that Yinhe?! This outfit is really good, not at all Shamatte, like an international celebrity... Wait, why is she walking the runway at the mall?"

"Maybe it's for investigating a case! Old Ji, pay attention to the boy next to her!"

Ji Jianguo narrowed his eyes, "He's quite handsome. Who is he?"

"Teacher Lu!" Lian Qiao excitedly slapped her thigh. "It's that handsome young man from the provincial department! ...That's great!"

"What's good about it?"

"Didn't Yinhe say he went back to the provincial department? He's still in Jiangtan! Maybe he stayed here for our daughter!"

Seeing his wife's enthusiasm for the couple, Ji Jianguo muttered, "Our Yinhe is so good, it's natural for her to fall in love. Besides, she's going to handle big cases in the future, so she's still a long way from even starting a relationship! But this guy surnamed Lu... is really not bad!"

*

On the other side of the city, Ji Yinhe walked into the city bureau's conference room early to organize his notes and prepare to speak at the first case summary meeting of the Chenjiang male corpse case.

Not long after, Xiao Wu, Cheng Mo, Lu Zheng, Ye Qing and several police officers in charge of the case came in and sat at the table with serious expressions.

It wasn't until exactly two o'clock that Tang Ci, who rarely arrived on time, pushed the door open and walked in.

Ji Yinhe looked up and was surprised to find that Captain Tang, who always wore only uniforms or round-necked T-shirts, was wearing a cool Hong Kong-style leather jacket for the first time. He also tied a tie neatly under the collar of his shirt and combed his hair back. He looked like a peacock spreading its feathers, as if he was going on a blind date.

For a moment, the entire conference room was silent for two seconds.

Only Cheng Mo, who knew the inside story, sighed heavily.

Xiao Wu asked curiously, "Captain Tang, what are you doing tonight? Are you planning on going out with your girlfriend?"

"..." Tang Ci laughed and cursed softly, "Minding other people's business", but the tips of his ears turned red.

"Oh oh oh——" the crowd made low jeering sounds.

"Ahem." Tang Ci cleared his throat, and suddenly produced a can of yellow peaches from behind him. He walked over and placed it on the table in front of Ji Yinhe.

Ji Yinhe frowned silently: "......?"

"Thank you for your hard work today." Tang Ci said softly.

Lu Zheng, who was sitting two seats away, raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Looking at the tie floating on Tang Ci's chest, he suddenly understood something.

——This guy mistook the gift from Tan Yaxin as Ji Yinhe’s work, right?

"Captain, you're being partial!" Xiao Wu pouted and yelled, "Everyone's worked hard today, why is it that only Xiao Ji got a can of food?"

The blush spread from Tang Ci's ears to his cheeks. Ji Yinhe stared at the glass bottle for two seconds before realizing it: "Captain Tang must be asking everyone to eat together and let me open the can!"

"I'm not... Never mind... Let's have the meeting!"

Tang Ci probably realized that his attempt to hide the truth only made it more obvious, and he lowered his head in silence. The can of food that was originally used to show courtesy was finally opened by Ji Yinhe and divided up among everyone.

A little emotion was playing tricks on him, but it was soon interrupted by someone who came late at the door.

"Sorry, sorry!" Che Zhiwen held onto the door frame and breathed heavily, "Something happened at home, so I was delayed..."

"Old Che, what time is it now? You're the deputy captain of the Serious Crime Squad. How can you set a good example for the young people?" Tang Ci slammed the table and resumed his usual swift and fierce attitude. "If you're late again, you don't have to come!"

Che Zhiwen was not angry. He found a seat at the door with a shameless face.

Faced with such an unyielding old comrade, Tang Ci felt that his anger was like a slap on cotton.

He rubbed his brows and said loudly: "Meeting! Xiao Wu, come up first and report the situation!"

Xiao Wu quickly swallowed all the bulging yellow peaches in his mouth, picked up his notebook, wiped his mouth, and ran to the blackboard in the conference room.

"Well, Captain Tang and I went to Feixun Transport Company this morning." Xiao Wu turned around and wrote quickly with a piece of chalk. "We took out the deceased's photo and had it identified. Although it was so convoluted that it made the female comrades in charge of administration sick, someone still recognized him by the birthmark on his neck. The deceased's name is Qi Hang, a 28-year-old male driver employed by Feixun Company."

Ji Yinhe's eyes lit up. What a breakthrough! Team Tang's Xiao Wu did a great job!

Xiao Wu continued, "Qi Hang is from a village below Jixiang. His father died a long time ago, and his mother worked in a textile factory a few years ago. She's in poor health and retired. Qi Hang didn't have much education. He came to Jiangtan as a teenager to make a living. He used to drive a truck, taking orders and delivering goods... According to his colleagues, he's very capable and smooth, and he has good relationships with the bosses of the cooperatives. The manager let him drive a small car last year, running freight in Jiangtan city and surrounding counties. It's much easier than driving a large truck."

Now that the identity of the deceased had finally been confirmed, Ji Yinhe was full of questions. Lu Zheng tapped his fingers on the table and tacitly said what she wanted to ask:

"Is this the Jetta that Feixun gave Qi Hang?"

"right--"

"Which suppliers have a good relationship with Qi Hang?"

"Those people at Feixun don't know either." Xiao Wu scratched his ear and took out a stack of letter paper from under his notebook. "But Captain Tang asked their administration to list all the suppliers that Qi Hang has used over the years. We've been waiting for this all morning... To be honest, there are too many. If we investigate them one by one, it will take us forever to finish—"

Lu Zheng took it, glanced at it, and handed it to Comrade Ji, who was craning his neck beside him. "When was the last time anyone else in the company saw Qi Hang?"

"About seven or eight days ago," Tang Ci continued. "That was the day they distributed last month's salary, and someone saw Qi Hang going to collect it. However, as drivers, they're out all day, plus there was a weekend in between, so it's hard to determine the exact time Qi Hang disappeared... That's all we found out this morning. What about Xiao Ji and Teacher Lu?"

Lu Zheng nodded and looked at Ji Yinhe.

In front of her was a list of suppliers and the names of seven people who had purchased lighters. She flipped the pages quickly with her slender fingers, entering a state of deafness.

Lu Zheng stood up and walked to the blackboard and told what happened in the New Century Plaza that morning.

Naturally, the part where she was a model for Montagut was omitted.

After he recited the seven names clearly and concisely, Ji Yinhe also completed the cross-comparison work.

The only two intersections are—

"Gong Xie, the second son of Gong Chenggong, the local richest man, is also the sales manager of the Gong family's ceramics factory." Ji Yinhe took a deep breath, suppressing his surprise. "The other one is Ding Tongguang, the key witness in the previous case."

Everyone: “…………”

This is such a coincidence!

Ever since he saw these two names in New Century Shopping Mall this morning, Ji Yinhe's heart has been tense.

Old Ji used to be Gong Chenggong's driver, and Ms. Lian was the Su family's former nanny...

Although I have been mentally prepared for the "rich second generation of drug trafficking", this damn lighter, could it be related to my dear parents?

Moreover, both of them are men, and Qi Hang even put the lighter on his chest... Does he have that kind of fetish?

Just as she was daydreaming, Tang Ci had already finalized the task:

"Enough of the small talk. Feixun has arranged accommodations for all the drivers. Everyone, go to Qi Hang's dormitory to search for clues. We'll leave in ten minutes!"

"receive!"

Ji Yinhe grabbed his notebook and hurried to the office with the main group. Captain Tang caught up with him from behind and gently called out "Xiao Ji".

Lu Zheng, who was not far ahead, looked back and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.

Xiao Wu asked in a low voice: "Teacher Lu, what are you laughing at?"

"It's okay." Lu Zheng shook his head and quickly climbed the stairs.

If he guessed correctly, Tang Ci would be sad soon.

Sure enough, in the corridor on this side, Ji Yinhe stopped and turned around, asking with a puzzled look on his face: "Captain Tang, is there anything else? Did you get the things I brought for you?"

"We'll talk about that later..." Tang Ci thought she was referring to the case materials, so he puffed out his chest and asked, "Didn't you notice any changes in me this afternoon?"

Ji Yinhe looked him up and down: "A new hairstyle? New clothes?"

She suddenly felt nervous. What did Captain Tang mean by suddenly dressing up? Was he hinting... that he had noticed her and Lu Zheng's fashion show?

"No, take a closer look!" Tang Ci hurriedly smoothed his bangs, his fingers inadvertently sliding across his tie. "What do you think?"

Ji Yinhe was a little confused, but since her leader had spoken, she couldn't ignore him, so she could only look the man up and down again.

Although Tang Ci's tie had been in her hand the entire morning, she actually only took a casual look at it when Tan Yaxin handed it to her. Now she couldn't remember the pattern at all, so naturally she didn't recognize that the tie in front of her was the one she had placed on the captain's desk at noon.

She scratched her forehead for a long time, and after a long while, she finally understood the situation with difficulty. "I feel... pretty good?"

"Really?" Tang Ci's expression suddenly became joyful and excited.

Ji Yinhe nodded seriously, "Yes, after all, it was Miss Tan who picked it for you personally-"

"Xiao Tang and Xiao Ji, what are you two dawdling about here?" Director Rao's voice suddenly floated out from a conference room. "We have a big case on our hands, why don't you speed up?!"

"Hey! Okay!"

Ji Yinhe quickly ended the tense conversation and ran upstairs into the office.

Tang Ci didn't finish what he wanted to say, and was immersed in self-admiration, so he didn't hear her last explanation clearly.

I couldn't help feeling a little annoyed.

But then I thought, since everyone is going out to work together this afternoon, I can always find a chance to talk to Ji Yinhe alone!

Tang Ci straightened his tie and walked downstairs with big strides.

*

Feixun's staff quarters were over ten kilometers away from the company's headquarters. While most drivers were out and about at this hour, there were still elderly people and children at home. Without sirens blaring, three police cars silently surrounded the complex and stopped in a secluded area.

Ji Yinhe opened the car door, jumped out of the jeep, and looked up.

The houses looked old and dilapidated in the sunlight. The brick-red five-story tube-shaped building looked as if it was thirty years old. Every balcony was crowded with miscellaneous items, and scattered clothes and pickles were hung on top. The racks made of twisted wire were rusted and reflected a grayish silver light.

"Building 17, Unit 2, Room 504." Tang Ci read out the door number and walked ahead, explaining, "Feixun's administrator said their company has rented six rooms on this floor, with five or six people in each. Qi Hang should have a roommate. If we're lucky, someone might be home. Be careful not to make too much noise."

Everyone followed him up to the fifth floor and watched him knock on the door of Room 504.

Less than two seconds later, a man's impatient roar could be heard from inside: "Who is it?"

"Qi Hang's friend." Tang Ci said, "Something happened."

"He's not in now!"

"Qi Hang said he left something at home and asked me to come over and help get it."

The person inside was quite carefree and opened the door with a bang. Only then did he discover that there was a large group of people in uniform standing outside.

He opened his mouth wide, but before he could be surprised for even half a second, Tang Ci's ID blocked his next move.

"Officer, Officer..." The man, about forty years old, with a greasy belly, a round bald head, and sleepy eyes, asked, "What's going on? Did Qi Hang do something wrong?"

Tang Ci frowned, "Aren't you from Feixun Company? Haven't you heard anything?"

When they were looking at the photos to identify the body in the morning, he and Xiao Wu clearly told them not to make it public, but with such a shocking thing happening, the private news must have spread faster than the wind.

"Yes," the man said, bewildered. "I've been on a long-distance trip in Dengzhou these days. I just got back to Jiangtan at noon, had a meal, and took a nap... What's wrong with our Feixun? What does it have to do with Qi Hang?"

"Don't ask me any questions...just answer whatever you ask. What's your name?"

"Zhang Erlei." The middle-aged man was intimidated by the scene and stood against the wall honestly. "Qi Hang is my roommate."

"Okay, we have a few questions for you."

Captain Tang signaled several people from the Serious Crime Team to enter the room and conduct inquiries in the living room. Xiao Wu picked up his notebook and quickly wrote it down.

There was a greasy and moldy smell in the room. Ji Yinhe couldn't help but hold his breath and looked around - the doors of several rooms were closed, the living room was a mess, and men's clothes, shoes and socks were scattered all over the tables, chairs and low cabinets, like a pigsty.

This smell is different from the stench of a corpse. It is the inevitable rotten smell emitted by a dead person. You will get used to it after smelling it for a long time. However, this house is full of surprises. With every step you take, there is an indescribable and disgusting stench mixed in.

"Are all you men so dirty?" She walked to the kitchen and found half a pot of leftover noodles on the stove. She didn't know how many days it had been there, and green hair had grown on it. She couldn't help but ask the person who followed her in.

Lu Zheng raised his eyebrows, "Do you think I look like you?"

Comrade Xiao Ji looked at the provincial expert's spotless white shirt collar and shook his head, "Not like that."

Lu Zheng chuckled softly, reached into the toolbox and took out a gauze mask.

"It smells terrible here, put it on and go out."

"Oh." Comrade Xiao Ji nodded, put on the mask on his face and took a deep breath.

A refreshing and clean scent of lemon mint and sunlight saved her from the stinking world.

Ji Yinhe couldn't help but turn around and look at Lu Zheng with gratitude.

However, in the blink of an eye, her sight suddenly froze——

A blue-gray work jacket was hooked on the iron hook in front of the kitchen door. A plastic-sealed card was hanging on the chest pocket. A piece of light green cardboard was sandwiched between two layers of transparent leather. The three big words "Work Permit" were written on the top, and a one-inch black-and-white photo was on the left side below. On the right side were written Zhang Erlei's name and his position as driver.

Ji Yinhe walked towards the living room puzzled and poked Xiao Wu.

"Did you go to Feixun Transport Company this morning and the staff there display their work badges?" she asked in a low voice.

"Yes!" Xiao Wu remembered it clearly, "otherwise how could we tell who was the driver and who was in charge of administration!"

Zhang Erlei, who was answering the question, overheard it and raised his hand to answer, "Officer, Feixun requires us to display our IDs when we're out. Even if we're not wearing work clothes, we have to carry that plastic card with us."

"I see..."

Everyone present exchanged a knowing look.

When Qi Hang was pulled out of the car, he did not find any ID.

So, there are several possibilities:

One possibility is that the deceased was not Qi Hang, but more than three people at Feixun Company recognized the deceased that morning, so this possibility is not high.

Second, Qi Hang did not have his work ID with him when the accident happened, so his card might have been left somewhere;

Third, the murderer was extremely meticulous and took away everything that could prove the identity of the deceased;

Fourth, during the fight, the ID accidentally fell out.

Every situation is very tricky, and the most worrying thing is that the work permit falls to the bottom of the river while the murderer is destroying the body.

That's like looking for a needle in a river. It's very difficult to find this important evidence.

Ji Yinhe rubbed his brows and asked Zhang Erlei, "Which room is Qi Hang's? Can I go in and take a look?"

"Yes! Yes!" Zhang Erlei pointed to the second room on his right, "That small second bedroom!"

Lu Zheng was close by, so he walked over and turned the handle.

...The door was locked.

Zhang Erlei jumped up, "Xiao Qi is a bit of a problem. He always locks the door when he's not at home... But don't worry, Officer. The company has a spare key to the dormitory. It's better to be safe than sorry! None of us has used it in the past few years. It's just on the top shelf of the entrance cabinet!"

Ji Yinhe took the key as she was told. The moment the door opened, a picture popped up in her mind—

The deceased was a very cautious person with mysophobia and obsessive-compulsive disorder, and he attached great importance to privacy.

Ji Yinhe walked in and walked around the iron bed and wooden wardrobe.

In stark contrast to the messy living room, this room was small but tidy and clean, with no strange smells and very few things. The bedding was the most common blue and white plaid, the quilt was folded neatly, and there were a few books next to the pillow.

She put on her gloves and just picked up the top volume, "Philosophy of Art," and flipped through it when she heard Lu Zheng, who had followed her in, whisper, "I've found something."

Ji Yinhe turned around and saw him standing in front of the wardrobe with the door open, taking out a brown paper bag from one of the beige coats.

There was a faint, almost unrecognizable white powdery mist mark on the cuff.

She held her breath for a moment, "This is..."

Lu Zheng narrowed his eyes, his usually gentle and casual expression immediately becoming cold and solemn. "Yeah, like drugs."

Ji Yinhe was stunned for a moment. "Ye Qing's autopsy was very detailed. If Qi Hang had taken drugs, it would have been impossible not to detect it."

"I'll take this coat back and check it out." Lu Zheng carefully looked through all the other clothes in the closet. "This is the only one I have. Do you find anything?"

Ji Yinhe shook his head and put the book back, "No..."

She was still quite nervous, as the two clues, Gong Xie and drugs, completely pointed to the "rich second generation drug dealer" - at this point, she had to go back and ask Old Ji.

Lu Zheng saw that she looked a little strange, "What's wrong?"

"It's okay." Ji Yinhe clenched his palms and took a deep breath, "Teacher Lu, I may have to go out for a while——"

Before she could think of an excuse, she saw Lu Zheng staring into her pupils and said in a deep voice, "Go ahead. I'll explain to Captain Tang. If what you're about to do gets dangerous, or if you need a companion, page me and I'll be there right away."

Ji Yinhe was stunned for a second, and felt as if his heartstrings were gently plucked. He quickly said "OK", lowered his head and ran out.

Of course, what was on her mind as she was moved was——

Teacher Lu is such a great person! To solve cases with such outstanding colleagues, I must strive for a higher position!

*

While Ji Yinhe was searching Qi Hang's room, several Feixun drivers came back from 504 and 503 opposite.

In order to find out more clues about Qi Hang, Tang Ci, Cheng Mo, Xiao Wu and Che Zhiwen were questioning them one by one.

Combining the list that Lu Zheng and Ji Yinhe obtained from the New Hundred Building, they focused on Qi Hang's interpersonal relationships, especially his relationship with two key figures, Gong Xie and Ding Tongguang.

However, these two were well-known figures in the city, so the drivers were not very cooperative at first, and said vaguely that they didn't know or were not sure.

Tang Ci and his friends had no choice but to use the old method, giving them cigarettes and trying to get close to them in the smoky corridor.

Fortunately, two of them finally gave some valuable clues.

One of the drivers was Qi Hang’s roommate. He said that he used to go to the ceramic factory often, saying that he wanted to “bring things” for the boss there.

Tang Ci asked if this "boss" was the sales manager Gong Xie. The driver said he didn't know, but he only knew that Qi Hang was flirting with that person and their relationship was abnormally good.

Another driver, a young man who lived across the street and had joined Feixun at the same time as Qi Hang, said he'd heard his supervisor complain about several times when the company had urgent customers but couldn't contact Qi Hang, who didn't respond to page calls. The supervisor wanted to dock his bonus, so he secretly compiled the times and discovered they all fell on Wednesday afternoons.

Tang Ci felt his head buzzing. After solving several cases in a row, he had developed some "intuition", but he was not really talented in reasoning.

These clues were like tangled tree roots, turning his brain into a mess.

Tang Ci put out his cigarette, scratched his short hair at the back of his head, and was about to call everyone together to discuss it when he saw Ji Yinhe rushing out of Room 504 with a nervous look on his face and walking downstairs quickly.

...Did she make a new discovery? Why was she in such a hurry to go there alone? Why didn't she report it to her superiors? What was going on?

Tang Ci frowned, and subconsciously wanted to follow... but after taking a few steps, his footsteps paused.

The last time Ji Yinhe acted alone, he rushed to the snack bar next to Lijing Nightclub and got very angry at someone. Thinking about it afterwards, he felt quite regretful.

After all, every time she stepped in, she achieved unexpected breakthroughs in the case.

Director Rao always said that he was very courageous when dealing with suspects, but he often acted impulsively at work and had difficulty controlling his emotions.

Maybe I should trust Ji Yinhe's judgment this time and change my bad temper...

Tang Ci stood there for two seconds, took a deep breath, and turned to look at the next driver waiting for questioning.