A tragic childhood under the shadow of a stepfather, a desolate love that could never be, a clown-masked man in a late-night alley, the crisp moonlight, and the cold blade.
Oh, and the waiter...
"Are you the deliveryman who delivered food to Han Mo three years ago?" Wang Shen asked, while gesturing for Xu Xiaolin to write down some information in her notebook.
"Yes." The young man replied softly, looking slightly shy.
"May I ask your name?"
"Xu Cheng, everyone calls me A-Cheng."
"Acheng, do you remember which date you delivered food to Han Mo's house three years ago?"
"6.18".
"You have a really good memory."
"Because Ms. Han's case made the news the very next day, and it was even the headline, it's hard not to remember."
Wang Shen nodded and continued, "Could you recount the scene of delivering the food that day?"
“That day…” Acheng frowned; it didn’t seem like a pleasant memory. However, he still tried his best to recall everything that happened that day. “To be honest, Ms. Han’s neighborhood is a bit old; there aren’t many streetlights, and it’s a little eerie at night. That night, when I delivered the food to her door, I knocked many times, but no one answered. Later, I called Ms. Han, but no one answered. I didn’t know what to do, so I waited outside her door for half an hour, but still couldn’t find her. Finally, I had to call Manager Han, who told me to go back to the store.” Acheng recounted the entire delivery story in one breath.
Xu Xiaolin listened while frantically taking notes in her notebook. Wang Shen listened and nodded. After Acheng finished describing the food delivery process, Wang Shen sat closer to Acheng and asked, "Besides these, did you encounter any strange situations?"
"Strange situation?" Acheng frowned, glancing at Wang Shen with a puzzled look. Acheng closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again. "If we're talking about strange situations, I don't know if those count."
"It's alright, just tell me." Wang Shen smiled.
"Because no one answered the door when I knocked, I called Ms. Han, but the call didn't go through. Strangely, while I was dialing, I heard a cell phone ringing inside the house. Then I hung up, and the ringing stopped. After a while, I tried calling again, and it rang again. Then I hung up again, and the ringing stopped at the same time. So, I think Ms. Han's cell phone is inside the house. But Ms. Han neither opens the door nor answers the phone."
After Acheng finished speaking, Wang Shen and Xu Xiaolin exchanged a glance. Their eyes seemed to say that this was extremely useful information.
"There's another strange thing."
"Is there anything else?" Xu Xiaolin asked, slightly excited, but her pen never stopped moving.
"I'm not sure if this counts." Acheng paused for a few seconds, seemingly organizing his thoughts. "After receiving instructions from the store, I took the takeout orders downstairs to go back to the store. Because the stairwell was dark, just as I reached the second floor, someone bumped into me, and the takeout containers fell to the ground. Since I had made a wasted trip, I was in a bad mood and thought I would argue with that person. I called out to him, and he turned around. He had a scar on his face and a fierce look; he didn't look like a good person at all. In the end, I got scolded by him instead."
"Do you remember what that person looked like?" Wang Shen asked, looking at Acheng.
"I vaguely remember."
"Look at these people, is the one you met among them?" Wang Shen took out the photos from his pocket again and spread them out in front of Acheng.
“It’s him. I remember the scar on his face.” Acheng picked out a photo from the collection and placed it in front of Wang Shen.
Wang Shen put the photo back into his pocket. "Is there anything else strange?"
"That's all." Acheng shook his head.
"Okay, thank you for your cooperation." Wang Shen stood up from his chair, shook hands with Acheng, and then Wang Shen and Xu Xiaolin followed Acheng out of the private room.
Manager Han was already waiting at the corner. Seeing them emerge from the private room, he greeted them with a smile. "Officer Wang, is there anything else we can do to help you?"
"That's all for now. Thank you so much for your cooperation and help today. If we need your help again in the future, we hope to continue to receive your cooperation."
"Officer Wang, you're too kind. Please don't hesitate to ask if you need anything in the future. Here's my business card." Manager Han handed two business cards to Wang Shen and Xu Xiaolin respectively.
"Let's talk in my office," Wang Shen said to Xu Xiaolin behind him after they left the coffee shop.