For the local people, it was such a cheap and good thing to just pay the barber as long as they knew him!
Seeing everyone laughing, Wu Dinghuai laughed along, making the boy feel embarrassed, so he ducked behind the crowd.
After everyone's laughter subsided, Wu Dinghuai cleared his throat and said to everyone:
"That depends on how people know each other and whether they can provide valuable information. For example, do you know anyone who is close to the barber, who often comes to his house for meals and drinks, or who seems to have a good relationship with him?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a middle-aged woman around fifty years old stepped out from the crowd and took a step forward.
She looked at Wu Dinghuai with a timid expression, her face showing both nervousness and excitement.
"Officer, if we do something useful, will you really reward us and give us money to spend?"
Wu Dinghuai knew that, aside from the principle that a generous reward will surely bring forth brave men, in this relatively impoverished era, when many families couldn't even afford to cook, a reward was still a very attractive thing.
Although Wu Dinghuai is still very young, he has accumulated many years of experience on the public security front and has been working under Shao Jian for several years.
From the middle-aged woman's expression and tone, he could tell that she must know some useful clues about Liu Han.
"If we think it's useful, we will definitely reward it."
He looked at the middle-aged woman and said with certainty.
The middle-aged woman rubbed her hands together incessantly, and finally mustered her courage to say:
"Officer, may I go to the barber's house alone to report this situation to you?"
Wu Dinghuai nodded in agreement.
He led the middle-aged woman to Liu Han's home, asked her to sit down, and then had Qian Weidong and another police officer stand guard outside the door to prevent others from coming in and disturbing her.
In his judgment, since this middle-aged woman requested to go to Liu Han's home to report the situation, it must be of some value.
After all, it was July, and the middle-aged woman, who was a bit plump, had fine beads of sweat on her forehead, whether from nervousness or the heat.
Wu Dinghuai moved the floor fan that was leaning against the dining table closer to the middle-aged woman, then turned it on and let the wind blow towards her.
The wind blew swiftly across the middle-aged woman's face and chest, filling her with gratitude.
Liu Han was a barber with excellent skills, and his economic conditions were much better than those of ordinary people on the street. After electric fans became available, he bought one. As a veteran special agent who had been hiding for many years and was the deputy leader of the covert team, one can imagine the luxurious life he lived before liberation. He would never allow himself to live in poverty. Therefore, apart from not having a telephone, his residence was much more spacious than that of ordinary people, with beds, tables, chairs, and daily necessities.
After the middle-aged woman settled down and sat down, Wu Dinghuai looked at her.
"Ma'am, tell me what you know about this."
"Officer, my name is Gao Xiuli. I live right next to Old Liu's house, just one house away from him."
Wu Dinghuai thought to himself, "This doesn't need explanation; just get to the point."
However, he was too embarrassed to urge Gao Xiuli, so he could only smile and nod at her, waiting for her to provide valuable information.
As expected, Gao Xiuli provided valuable information.
She glanced toward the door, then lowered her voice.
"Officer, I hope you can keep what I'm about to say a secret. Otherwise, if it gets out, people might come to my door and cause me trouble."
Wu Dinghuai immediately assured Gao Xiuli:
"Don't worry, ma'am, we have confidentiality rules and will absolutely not tell anyone."
He had to dispel Gao Xiuli's concerns.
Gao Xiuli lowered her voice again and said:
"Then let me tell you, this old Liu has been having an affair with the mute man at the south end of the street for many years."
Wu Dinghuai naturally understood that they had a relationship.
He just couldn't understand why an agent, and the deputy leader of the covert team, would be at least a major, regardless of whether he belonged to the Military Intelligence Bureau or the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics.
"Sister Gao, is that true? How do you know about this?"
Wu Dinghuai asked with a look of surprise.
Gao Xiuli explained to Wu Dinghuai.
“Officer, of course I can’t just talk about this. It’s immoral. I’ve seen that mute man stay here more than once or twice. He often comes at night and sneaks out early the next morning. At first, he didn’t come often, maybe once every two weeks or so. But later he started staying at Lao Liu’s place every few days.”
Hao Dinghuai nodded to the other party, signaling Gao Xiuli to continue.
"The mute woman was originally married to a boat captain. The boat captain was a cripple, and he probably lost sight in one eye when he was young in a fight. Later, he married the mute woman."
"But a few years later, the boat captain encountered a storm while sailing at sea, and it is said that he and his boat disappeared without a trace, leaving the mute to live alone."
"However, to be honest, she was really good-looking. Many bachelors had their eyes on her. Later, I don't know how she ended up having an affair with Lao Liu. She probably thought that Lao Liu had a skill and could provide for her."
Seeing that Gao Xiuli was not continuing, Wu Dinghuai asked:
"Sister Gao, how old is the mute this year?"
“She should be older than me. I’m fifty-two this year, and the mute looks to be fifty-five. But I’m not ashamed. The mute is prettier and more attractive than me, and looks much younger.”
"Sister Gao, have you been living here all this time?"
“I’ve been married into this neighborhood for almost thirty years and have always lived here. The house has been renovated. Oh, and Old Liu’s house has also been renovated.”
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