Chapter 218 Police Officer's Suspect
This time Qiu Huo did not leave and stayed at Lin Zhi's house overnight.
Lin Zhi's house did not have any clothes of Qiu Huo's size, and Qiu Huo's clothes were thrown into the washing machine, so he just tied a bath towel around his waist.
Qiu Huo didn't feel embarrassed about walking the bird in public. When he heard Lin Zhi say that he didn't want to take medicine, he simply carried him back to the room.
Qiu Huo has always been a person with a strong sense of territory, but with Lin Zhi lying next to him, he not only did not feel uncomfortable, he even wanted to hug her tighter.
"I am a human being, not a doll without any perception. Captain Qiu, tighten your grip a little more and you can report the crime."
Lin Zhi's sleepiness had dissipated a little. The slight pain should have irritated his nerves, but because the target was Qiu Huo, he was very calm and even in the mood to make a joke.
Qiu Huo relaxed his grip upon hearing this, placed his palm on Lin Zhi's waist and abdomen, and clarified, "I never use dolls."
Lin Zhi was silent for a moment: "...I'm not talking about that kind of doll."
Qiu Huo was somewhat surprised and asked, "Isn't it?"
Lin Zhi unconsciously clenched his fists and took a deep breath.
This familiar feeling of wanting to kick someone away has been missing for a long time.
A man's low laughter came from above his head, and Qiu Huo reacted from Lin Zhi's words. It turned out that he had misunderstood. He was used to the young man teasing him from time to time, so it was inevitable that he thought about it in the wrong way.
"Go to sleep."
Qiu Huo patted Lin Zhi gently, as if coaxing a child.
Lin Zhi knew about Qiu Huo’s sleep disorder, but because of his growing influence on his lover, he didn’t need to worry too much about his illness.
Listening to the even breathing of the young man in his arms, Qiu Huo closed his eyes and sorted through the files.
He had long been accustomed to the feeling of difficulty falling asleep, but because Lin Zhi was by his side, he was not anxious. He just went to bed a little later. The feeling of having someone by his side was different from staying up all by himself.
At six o'clock the next day, Qiu Huo opened his eyes.
The curtains were drawn tightly, blocking out any light. Qiu Huo squinted at the time on the dial, feeling surprised.
He couldn't quite remember when he fell asleep, but he felt no pain and he slept for at least three hours this time.
He looked down at Lin Zhi and was sure that this was a good medicine. Although he didn't know the reason, there was no need to know.
Lin Zhi’s washing machine has a washing and drying function, and his clothes from yesterday have been washed clean.
Qiu Huo went into the bathroom to take a shower as early as an early bird, still furious. However, he couldn't bear to wake Lin Zhi up, so he took a fancy to the underwear that Lin Zhi had placed in the dirty clothes basket.
This was the thing he had set his eyes on last time, and this time it was the beast who took action.
The clothes were pressed and kneaded, as if their owners were imbued with the scent.
In the end, the wrinkled cloth was a mess. Qiu Huo took a shower and put on his pants. He was too lazy to put on a shirt. He rubbed Lin Zhi's clothes by hand in front of the pool, washed them carefully, and finally hung them on the balcony. He then folded Lin Zhi's clothes out of the washing machine and put them in the bedroom closet.
After washing up and putting on his clothes, Qiu Huo called Zhou Erhe and asked him to get ready and bring a few people to wait around the cinema at 8:30 in the morning. The movie would start at 8:50.
The movie ticket Lin Zhi bought was a replica of the one given by the murderer. Because they had the same screening schedule, apart from the different dates, the movie's showing time, screening hall, and seats were all the same.
Qiu or thought that the murderer should be around and observing them. Even if the murderer would not be bold enough to be in the same theater with them, maybe they could notice something.
When Lin Zhi woke up, Qiu Huo was watering the pot of lucky bamboo.
The curtains on the balcony were drawn, and the bright sunlight shone on the tiled floor, creating an irregular golden patch that rose and fell due to the furnishings.
Qiu Huo turned around with the kettle in his hand and said, "Are you awake? I'll make breakfast. How about rice noodles?"
Lin Zhi blinked and said, "Okay."
Qiu Huo put the kettle back on the balcony and walked into the kitchen while rolling up his sleeves.
After Lin Zhi washed up and waited for a while, breakfast was ready.
The rice noodles were wet rice noodles that Qiu Huo bought at the vegetable market in the morning, and they were also tossed with shredded pork and green peppers.
He ate faster than Lin Zhi. He didn't throw the food away when Lin Zhi couldn't finish it. He just took the food and ate it in three or two bites, then went into the kitchen to wash the dishes.
It's almost twenty past eight, so I can go out.
When he heard the sound of the hair dryer, Qiu Huo leaned against the door, watching Lin Zhi blow dry her hair and change into clothes that could be seen to be matched.
This sense of delicacy blurred the true intention of the event, making Qiu Huo once again feel like a date rather than an investigation.
Qiu Huo looked down at his T-shirt and had the urge to go home and look through his closet.
But time was running out, so he didn't do it.
Lin Zhi changed her shoes and got into Qiu Huo's car.
Qiu Huo put on the intercom headset and walked into the cinema with Lin Zhi.
The two police officers in the team also bought tickets and sat closest to the entrance.
Before checking in, Qiu Huo went to buy some popcorn.
He bought a couple's meal and put a cup of Coke in Lin Zhi's hand.
Lin Zhi took a sip of the drink. The cold carbonated drink bubbled up and swept away the summer heat. He looked at Qiu Huo and smiled at him.
"Thanks, dear."
A female voice came from the side. It was the boy who bought the couple's meal who handed the drink to the girl. The girl thanked him sweetly, and the two of them walked forward together.
They were watching the same show as Lin Zhi. Lin Zhi and his friends arrived on time and the ticket checking had already started.
Lin Zhi and the others walked behind. He handed the two printed tickets to the staff, took the ticket stubs and walked forward.
"Hold it for me first, I'm going to the bathroom."
Lin Zhi handed over the Coke in his hand, Qiu Huo nodded, and took it with the popcorn in his arms.
"Thanks, dear."
The young man's voice was light and soft, filled with smiles.
Qiu Huo stared at his receding back, with an indecipherable expression, and took a sip of Coke. Of course, he drank Lin Zhi's cup.
After Lin Zhi came back and entered the theater, he did not sit down immediately, but instead inspected the seats.
Qiu Huo whispered, "We sent someone in to check it out, but they didn't find anything."
Lin Zhi didn't notice anything unusual and sat down.
He didn't think the murderer wanted to simply invite him to watch a movie, especially since the time on the movie ticket was very special. It was the 14th, the day when the Long Alley murder occurred. He also believed that the murderer was not someone who would do useless things. He must have a purpose for giving this gift, which was most likely related to the third murder.
It is even possible that someone will die at the beginning of the movie, but there are no clues at the moment, so they can only wait.
The movie started quickly. It was a comedy, and soon the sound of audience laughter could be heard in the theater.
…………
Tick. Tick.
Water drops flowed out of the curved pipe. The woman watched it like a fascinated person. Instead of catching the water in a basin as usual, she watched the water drip onto the ground, quickly wetting the tile floor and soaking the yellowed edge of the toilet.
The toilet hadn't been used for a long time, but the stench seemed to linger for a long time.
The woman pressed the flush button again, and because of the water filling, the water pipe connected to the toilet leaked faster.
The woman did not let go and kept pressing the flush button. The water tank was not filling up that fast, and even when she pressed it all the way to the bottom, no water flushed out.
The toilet was broken and there was no toilet lid, but even so, it was not dirty. It was wiped very clean by the woman and there was no dirt inside, at least on the surface.
The woman stared at the depression, her stomach churning, and she couldn't help dry-heaving.
She knelt on the ground with her hands on the edge of the toilet, but nothing came out.
The phone beside her vibrated with a message. She replied to the message, picked up the fruit knife on the ground, and stood up.
She was wearing a black dress with no pattern on it except for three white lines.
Aiming at the line, the woman thrust it in forcefully and pulled it out, then stabbed again with a distorted expression. Blood splattered because of her action, spilling onto the toilet, water tank and wall.
The last knife pierced her abdomen. She no longer had the strength to stand. She knelt on the ground with her head buried in the toilet. She stretched out her hand as far as she could, and pressed the flush button with all her strength, just as she had done thousands of times.
The continuous downward flow of water sucked her head down, and the water then slowly surged up, flooding her mouth and nose.
…………
An hour and ten minutes later, the movie ended.
The end credits of the movie were playing on the big screen and the lights were turned on.
The police officers tensed when they saw someone approaching with flowers.
Qiu might not be surprised, because Zhou Erhe, who was guarding outside, had told him three minutes ago that someone came in with flowers. After the man handed the flowers to the theater staff, he followed him out and controlled the man.
"Hello sir, someone sent you a bouquet of flowers."
The blue hydrangeas bloom beautifully, just like the gorgeous, never-ending summer.
Lin Zhi took out a card with three words written on it.
【Dongjing District】
Qiu Huo used the headset to tell Wei Yunjun on the other end of the intercom the content, and pressed the flower delivery man's shoulder to make him sit down.
"Excuse me, please cooperate."
As soon as Qiu Huo showed his ID, the staff member stopped moving.
Qiu may not want to cause public panic, but the audience has not yet left, and some are still looking over here curiously because of the flowers.
Only after everyone had left did Qiu Huo start asking questions.
In the car, Wei Yunjun had not yet received the report from Dongjing District, so it would be very troublesome to investigate.
Dongjing District is not an officially designated area like the Economic and Technological Development Zone, but a common name, referring to the area between the two main roads, Donghua Road and Donglin Road.
These two roads and their paths form a tic-tac-toe area, and the area in the center is the 'East Well Area'.
This is the old district of Runing. Like a village in the city, it has absorbed a large number of migrant workers, most of whom are from other places. If no one reports the case, finding out where someone died here would be more difficult than finding the body of an ant in an ant pile.
The cinema staff had nothing to do with the incident, so Qiu Huo asked a few simple questions and then let the person go.
Lin Zhi held the flowers and went to the car with Qiu Huo.
The troops were divided into two groups, Qiu Huo went to Dongjing District and Zhou Erhe went to the flower shop.
The person who delivered the flowers was a staff member of the florist. He didn't know who ordered the flowers. Even though he knew that the murderer would not order flowers himself, he might be able to get some clues.
No one was in a good mood. The murderer informed them of the crime scene for the second time. They didn't know if the person was still alive, but hoped it was not too late.
"Boss, do you want to allocate some personnel to conduct the search and ask the anti-pornography department to cooperate with us?"
Wei Yunjun made a suggestion. There were too many people in Dongjing District and they were short of manpower. Moreover, they could not cause widespread panic. It should be possible to use the excuse of a crackdown on pornography.
"No, according to our speculation, this murderer is most likely a lone ranger. He even had to use Tieba to contact people to find someone to send flowers to, and he always killed people in secluded places where no one was around. To be more precise, it must be a secluded place where no one was around at a certain time. He would not choose the place and the target of the crime at random."
Qiu Huo touched the steering wheel and said, "This means that before we find the person, someone may report the crime."
Wei Yunjun slapped the chair angrily: "Are we just going to wait like this? This is so fucking annoying. I have to catch him myself!"
Qiu Huo's eyes were heavy. The murderer this time was very cautious. He was most likely not announcing the murder, but most likely notifying the death. He controlled the time very well.
The terrain of the upcoming crime scene is complex, and Qiu Huo asks himself, even if he has announced the murder, with only such a location as the known clue, can he rescue the victim?
Hatred or wanting, no, he can't.
He gripped the steering wheel tightly, and the sudden warmth on the back of his hand made him turn his head and meet Lin Zhi's eyes.
Qiu Huo had long known that Lin Zhi had a pair of beautiful eyes, like a misty sea, hiding deeper emotions with a smile, luring people to fall into them. He fell into them and his mood returned to calm.
Seeing that Qiu had returned to normal, Lin Zhi withdrew his hand.
"It won't take long. Someone will probably report it soon. In his mind, his crime is creating an exhibit, and exhibits need to be seen."
"He deliberately sent the flowers at the end of the movie. I think the murder may have happened at the beginning of the movie."
Lin Zhi looked at the bouquet of flowers in her arms, grasped one of them in her palm, and suddenly tightened it.
The ravaged petals fell off and spilled out of his palm.
He is in a bad mood now, and said indifferently that he doesn't care who the murderer kills as long as it is not someone around him, and he doesn't care if he is targeted by the murderer. But it is not okay if the murderer makes him hate him or has negative emotions about himself. It is very annoying and troublesome, just like a bug jumping up and down.
Wei Yunjun's attention was originally on Lin Zhi and Qiu Huo's hands. Before he had time to think about why they were so close, he was attracted by Lin Zhi's words.
"How can he be sure that you must have watched that movie? We didn't see any suspicious people in it."
Wei Yunjun was confused about this. Captain Qiu and two colleagues entered the cinema, Zhou Erhe and another colleague mixed in with the staff to observe the waiting room, and she and others were checking outside the cinema.
During that time period, she checked the people who entered the cinema and came out and found nothing unusual. Those who did not come out naturally entered the theater, and it was impossible for them to come out and commit crimes in Dongjing District.
You have to know that the cinema is at least half an hour's drive from Dongjing District, even if there is no traffic jam.
Unless the murderer had someone to help tip him off, it would be difficult for him to be sure that they had entered the theater and finished watching the movie.
Wei Yunjun: "Why are you so sure that we will come at the time he booked the tickets? Isn't he afraid that we, or you, will watch other shows?"
"Let the people there question the theater staff again."
Qiu Huo had asked this before, and no one said they had revealed it, but it is common for people to falsify information for money.
Wei Yunjun called immediately. Just after she finished the call, Zhou Erhe called and told her the results of the investigation at the flower shop.
This flower shop is not far from the cinema. According to the owner, a customer placed an order at 9:30 and asked them to deliver the order to the cinema at 10 o'clock. The order must be delivered on time and must not exceed the end of the movie.
The person who ordered the flowers this time was a man. The flower shop did not have any surveillance equipment, so it was difficult to determine the appearance of the person buying the flowers based solely on the owner's verbal description.
However, this person should not be the murderer, because he is a slightly short and fat middle-aged man, which does not match the murderer's criminal profile.
Wei Yunjun murmured: "This means that the murderer is really sure that you watched the movie and did not leave early."
The movie started at 8:50 and ended at 10:00, and the person who ordered the flowers went to the flower shop at 9:30.
Wei Yunjun: "Someone really reported the news!"
Qiu Huo didn't respond and drove faster.
As soon as they arrived at Dongjing District, they received a report of a crime.
"Building 3, 7th floor, 307."
Qiu Huo told the room number and went straight to the destination.
Because they arrived early, the police responded quickly.
There are several residential areas here that are close to each other. At a glance, you can see densely packed rooms and various shops. Many old residential areas do not have elevators, so the buildings are not very tall. The highest of the three buildings is the eighth floor.
The person who reported the case was the landlord, so it seemed a bit surprising that the police arrived so quickly.
"It's only been two minutes since I hung up the phone, and you guys are here?"
Qiu Huo: "I just happened to have something to do here. Please tell me what happened."
Qiu Huo's appearance and temperament were very intimidating. The landlord did not dare to argue and quickly took people to the crime scene.
After entering the room, you can feel that the space is narrower and more crowded than outside.
Lin Zhi finally understood why there was room 7307. There were three households on one floor of this building, and this one was room 703.
After entering, you can find that such a 100-square-meter house is divided into 7 rooms, which is even more crowded than Ma Xide’s shared house.
There was a complex smell in the air that made people feel uncomfortable. The small balcony was almost full of clothes, and it could be seen that they belonged to different owners.
7307 is the smallest room among the seven houses, as can be seen from its slightly narrower door.
"Today is the day to collect rent. The girl in room 07 has been delaying payment for two months. She said she would pay today, so I came to collect the rent. But no one answered when I knocked on the door. I found that her door was not locked, so I twisted the door and it opened. When I pushed the door open, I found that she was dead, so I quickly called the police."
"Don't worry, I didn't wander around. I've watched TV dramas and I know how to protect the crime scene," the landlord stroked his sparse hair and continued with some pride, "I closed the door immediately and waited for you to come."
“Good job.”
Wei Yunjun praised that it was gratifying to see such a reporter.
Qiu Huo put on gloves and opened the door.
When the sight of the house is revealed to the public, it is difficult to remain silent.
The room was incredibly small. After putting down a single bed, there seemed to be no space left. There was a cabinet in the corner and shelves nailed to the wall. The most eye-catching thing was the toilet not far from the entrance.
It is right in the room, next to the bed, and next to it is a simple kitchen made of small cabinets, on which is an induction cooker and a small pot.
In such a small space, even turning around seems difficult.
The woman fell in front of the toilet with her head in the bowl.
She held a knife in her limp hand, which was stained with blood.
From the preliminary judgment of the situation, it can be seen that it was suicide.
Wei Yunjun said in disbelief: "Why is there a toilet taking up space in here?"
She knew that these places would be crowded if they were divided into many rooms, but she couldn't understand the toilet standing there so abruptly.
Even if people dislike public sanitation, no one would install a toilet in the room they live in, right?
"Well..." The landlord rubbed his hands awkwardly and said, "This room was converted from a bathroom."
"I originally wanted to remove this, but it would cost money. The girl didn't mind at first, but later she told me she wanted to take it down. Oh, take it down..."
The landlord kept complaining, "I should blame the person who did the work for me. My room originally had a squat toilet, but later my dad moved in. He couldn't squat, so I changed it to a toilet. That plumber was really bad, and the cement had problems, too. Anyway, if I had to tear it down and rebuild it, this room would probably leak, and it would cost more money to make it tight."
"I won't give her the money. Who made her accept it in the first place? Besides, this room has the cheapest rent. If she doesn't use it, it won't smell good. If she can't stand it, she can move out. Why does she want to die here?"
Lin Zhi looked at the leaking external pipe, looked at the bloody fingerprints on the flush button on the toilet tank, and rubbed his eyebrows.
This is why he tried so hard to climb up. The most terrible plague in the world is "poverty".
This place is too small, so small that not too many police officers can get in.
The medical examiner arrived at the scene quickly to conduct a preliminary autopsy, and everything that needed to be examined was put away.
The deceased was laid flat on the ground, her wet hair combed back to reveal her face, allowing everyone to see the almost relieved smile on her face.
"From the angle and depth of the knife's entry and the arc of the blood splatter, it can be determined that the deceased committed suicide and the time of death was between 9 and 9:30."
The police officers present were all experienced, and it was not difficult to reconstruct the scene from the traces at the scene.
Looking at the bloodstains on the edge of the toilet, Qiu Huo could see how she had stretched out her hand with all her might to reach the button on the water tank at the last moment of her life. Because she had to straighten her upper body, the inside and outside of the edge of the toilet were covered with blood.
It's not hard to imagine why she did this, which makes it even more difficult to accept.
Lin Zhi suddenly met Qiu Huo's eyes. He seemed to know what he was going to say and said, "He's in the cinema."
"There he is."
They said it almost in unison, Qiu Huo made a phone call and asked the people guarding the theater to check the surveillance footage immediately.
If it was suicide, the murderer was most likely remotely controlled.
Qiu Huo pointed to the phone in the evidence bag and said to Wei Yunjun, "Go back to the bureau as soon as possible to check the records inside."
Qiu Huo found the deceased's diary on the shelf. He put his gloved hand on the edge where fingerprints were less likely to appear and opened the book.
The diary covers a wide range, and almost every entry contains words about the toilet.
At first, the deceased was somewhat grateful that there was a toilet in the room, because the shared bathroom was particularly dirty and traces left by other people could often be seen. Also, sometimes when he suddenly had a stomachache, he didn't have to rush to the toilet.
Everything changed when the deceased started cooking in the room. She originally used the public kitchen to cook, but there were often dirty dishes and chopsticks there. One time, someone put sexy underwear on the stove. She felt disgusted when she thought about someone playing with that kind of thing in the kitchen, so she cooked in her room.
She blocked the toilet with a board so it wouldn't be used anymore, but the toilet just existed, making her feel a little nauseous when cooking and eating.
She tried to ask the landlord to move the toilet, but the landlord asked her to pay for it herself. It cost money to remove the toilet, and it also cost money to fill the water pipes and the floor afterwards. The total cost was enough to cover her monthly rent, so she endured it.
The family who don't want to go back has no ability and can only sell their physical labor and time in exchange for a meager salary. It seems that they can't do anything except barely survive.
She would look at the toilet every day, even when she was sleeping and eating. She gradually felt that there was no hope in life. Even though the toilet had not been used for a long time and there was no smell, she always felt a lingering stench at the tip of her nose.
—I'm like a piece of shit.
One day she wrote in her diary that she and her life were terrible, like worthless excrement, but feces would be flushed into the sewer, so where could she go?
——I am a piece of shit and I need to be washed away.
Three days ago, she left this line in her diary.
She hasn't kept a diary since then, until today.
—I am about to be swept away.
These were her last words.
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