Chapter 113 Murder in a Locked Room?
Returning from Director Liu's office, Shen Zhenzhu tucked a bag of peanuts into her pocket and placed a handful on each table. She didn't have as much money as Gu Yanzheng, but she had plenty of small tokens of affection to show her care for her comrades.
Wu Zhongguo pointed to the phone and said, "While you were out, Xiaobai called and left a number, saying she's interning at the Shenyang Municipal Public Security Bureau for three months. You can call that number if you want to find her."
"Working under Liu Yiyang is not bad. I'll call her back when I have time." Chen Zhenzhu took out her phone book and carefully wrote down Xiaobai's work phone number.
"Our interns will be arriving in a couple of days," Wu Zhongguo said. "Who will mentor them?"
Shen Zhenzhu said, "Let's see who catches your eye; it doesn't matter who takes it."
Wu Zhongguo said, "Xiao Bai holds a special place in your heart."
Shen Zhenzhu said happily, "Of course it's different once we've developed a relationship. We'll even make plans to hang out together sometime."
Two days later, the dog days of summer began.
The municipal bureau leadership organized a meeting, which Shen Zhenzhu attended in place of Gu Yanzheng.
Upon returning, she distributed documents to everyone and conveyed their spirit: "'Jointly building at the grassroots level, going to the front lines, and tackling major challenges.' During the three months of July, August, and September, those of us without cases should not stay in the office. We are required to go among the people more often to listen to their voices and patrol the security situation. For those with criminal records, we should visit and inquire more, and always pay attention to their mental state and lives."
“I get it. They want us to look around and see if anyone who’s been arrested and released has gone back to their old ways.” Lu Ye rubbed his hands together and said, “There’s always a group of disco kids over at Labor Park. I caught one of them fighting last time. If I go out today, I’ll go check it out.”
Shen Zhenzhu nodded and said, "We are a well-known cultural and tourism city in China, and this is also to protect the safety of tourists."
Wu Zhongguo stopped watering the flowers and feeding the fish. He took the initiative to say, "The old abandoned building is going to be demolished and rebuilt soon. I heard that a group of drug addicts often gather there. I'll go see if I can find any old acquaintances."
Wu Zhongguo had several informants, some of whom were drug addicts, and he was worried that they might be led back to drug use by unscrupulous individuals.
"Brother Qi, you go with Uncle Wu." Shen Zhenzhu was worried about Wu Zhongguo facing drug addicts alone, and it would be safer with Zhao Qiqi by his side.
Shen Zhenzhu planned to walk around the densely populated areas of the Tie Si jurisdiction, and then visit places like Chang'an Jiayuan where murders had occurred.
Although Gu Yanzheng was not present, the work arrangements were carried out in an orderly manner.
Shen Zhenzhu patrolled the area on her little motorcycle, and when it was almost lunchtime, she went to Sixth Sister's shop to freeload a meal.
The two patrol officers in the police station were also at their shift change time. When they saw Shen Zhenzhu, they saluted and greeted her politely. Knowing how hard it was for them to stand guard all day, Shen Zhenzhu invited them to have lunch together.
Although Shen Liuhe took care of all the food and drinks at the police station, eating outside was very different from eating inside. Moreover, the two new recruits at the police station were still very excited to eat with Shen Zhenzhu.
The three men finished all four dishes and one soup. The two patrol officers, without taking a break, received orders from Chief Ma that a fight had broken out on the other side of the street and they needed to respond immediately.
Watching them leave, Chen Zhenzhu ate her refreshing mung bean shaved ice and noticed a sun umbrella set up at the entrance of Yuanjiang Snow Shop.
On a scorching summer afternoon, Yuan Jiangxue and a middle-aged man were actually having a blind date under a parasol.
Shen Zhenzhu watched Yuan Jiangxue talk to her blind date with her lips tightly pressed together. The middle-aged man was slightly overweight with a receding hairline, but he was still considered a handsome older gentleman. He fanned Yuan Jiangxue with a fan and even told jokes to amuse her, which made the beautifully dressed Yuan Jiangxue show a satisfied and shy smile.
"Drink tea, fight heat with heat, and you won't feel hot after you drink it." Uncle Lu brought a small Go table to the two of them, seemingly unaware of Yuan Jiangxue's murderous glare, and began to chat with the middle-aged man.
Yuan Jiangxue, on the other hand, was ignored by them and poured tea for them with a long face. For a moment, Shen Zhenzhu was puzzled, wondering who was on a blind date.
Yuan Jiangxue noticed Chen Zhenzhu's smirking gaze through the window, stretched out two fingers as if to dig, and mouthed, "You just wait."
Chen Zhenzhu wiped her mouth, called out to the counter, "Mom, I'm off to work." She then slung her little motorcycle over her shoulder and sped off.
Arriving at the archives at noon, I slept on a cot covered with a straw mat, with the electric fan blowing, on which Zhang Jie had wiped with floral water. Life was so comfortable.
Perhaps I've had it too easy these past two days; in my afternoon nap, Chen Zhenzhu dreamt of returning to Qilin Mountain on a rainy night, climbing and climbing...
He looked haggard after waking up.
Zhang Jie was still sleeping next to her when Chen Zhenzhu tiptoed to open the door and went back to work.
Upon entering the office, I smelled a perfume scent. Standing in front of me was a young man who was a little over 1.7 meters tall, with a slicked-back hairstyle. He looked to be about 26 or 27 years old and was exchanging pleasantries with Wu Zhongguo.
"Madam," the other person greeted Shen Zhenzhu.
Upon seeing Shen Zhenzhu return, Wu Zhongguo breathed a sigh of relief, handed the intern's file to Shen Zhenzhu, and introduced him to her, saying, "This is Chen Junsheng, a graduate of the Hong Kong Police Academy, who is here for a three-month internship."
"Huh? It's not even 97 yet." Shen Zhenzhu looked at Chen Junsheng in surprise. Even though she didn't understand, she still reached out and shook hands with him: "Hello, Comrade Chen Junsheng, you don't need to call me Madam, just call me Section Chief Shen."
Chen Junsheng nodded. Perhaps because of chewing betel nut, his jaw muscles were well-developed, making his profile look a bit square. "I thought you didn't understand the meaning of 'Madam.' Did you learn English from watching Hong Kong police dramas? That's good, language is for communication."
Lu Ye and Zhao Qiqi returned home shortly after finishing their meal. Lu Ye asked, "What communication? Is someone causing trouble?"
Wu Zhongguo frowned and tried to smooth things over: "No, this Chen Junsheng is from the Hong Kong Police Academy. He came here to exchange and learn about the ways of doing things in the two sides of the Taiwan Strait and Hong Kong, mainly to plant the seeds for the 1997 handover."
"Oh. So who's going to guide us?" Zhao Qiqi didn't chat with Chen Junsheng, or even look at him. His wild sixth sense told him he didn't like this person. Knowing it wasn't Xiaobai coming, Zhao Qiqi was a little disappointed.
Wu Zhongguo said to Shen Zhenzhu, "Director Liu wants you to lead the team."
"No problem with Chen Zhenzhu," Chen Junsheng said.
Chen Junsheng said, "I know Section Chief Shen. He has received many medals and is often featured in newspapers and on television. Just like our Miss Hong Kong, he is a public security image ambassador facing the entire city."
Lu Ye hissed and raised his head, saying, "What do you mean by that? They have real skills."
Chen Junsheng said, "It means it's a great honor. But if I had to choose a mentor, I would prefer Captain Gu or another male comrade."
He chuckled and said, "It's not that complicated. You don't know, female police officers are really troublesome over there."
Shen Zhenzhu looked him straight in the eye and said, "You should put away your prejudice against female criminal investigators, whether here or in Hong Kong."
Chen Junsheng clasped his hands together and said apologetically, "I was offended. I think you are so cute that you could be a police model. Why bother going to the scene so hard? You can just sit and take pictures and earn a salary."
Shen Zhenzhu said with a straight face, "I also want to grow tall and strong, but this is the condition my mother set for me. But that doesn't stop me from becoming an excellent criminal police officer."
"I didn't mean any harm by saying you're cute; I just admire and praise your success. After all, before I came here, I assumed Section Chief Shen was a strong and tall woman, but I didn't expect her to be so petite." Chen Junsheng maintained his usual playful attitude.
The implication was ambiguous, as if everything Chen Zhenzhu did was for the sake of building a positive image for the public security bureau.
Shen Zhenzhu said seriously, "I don't need others to praise my appearance. Although I am not a tall and strong man, it doesn't stop me from arresting nearly a hundred criminals and being executed. Please don't define successful women by their appearance, whether they are tall or short, fat or thin, extroverted or introverted, or any other type of woman. The only thing they have in common is that they are all irreplaceable progressive women. If you continue to express your prejudice against women in front of me, I will personally contact the provincial department and notify the offices in both locations to send you back to the other side."
"Can you do it?" Chen Junsheng raised an eyebrow.
"Why don't you give it a try? You should re-evaluate who Sister Pearl is." Zhao Qiqi stood in front of Lu Ye, also angry.
"Don't dare?" Shen Zhenzhu retorted.
“I’ve noticed you’re quite serious about things.” Chen Junsheng’s smile faded. He finally realized that the Section Chief Shen in front of him was not the female classmate he could discriminate against at the police academy, nor the female police officer who posed for photos in magazines and pointed fingers at people.
"I am serious because countless female predecessors have helped me get to where I am today, in a position that you could easily stand in."
Shen Zhenzhu pointed at his nose and said firmly, "There are countless female juniors behind me who will walk this path. I must correct my attitude and make all those who look down on female police officers understand my attitude and defeat them. Only then will the path for my juniors be easier!"
"Sorry... I won't say anything carelessly again. It seems you really are different." Chen Junsheng put his hands down at his sides and looked at Shen Zhenzhu, whose gaze was firm and unyielding. He suddenly felt that his words just now were too childish and provocative.
Shen Zhenzhu said, "This is my bottom line. Don't make any more mistakes."
She never argued with anyone in Team Four because she grew rapidly under their respect and care. The sudden appearance of Chen Junsheng made Shen Zhenzhu realize that prejudice cannot be broken by one person overnight; she needs more sisters to work together to defeat it.
"This year, the Provincial Public Security University has increased its enrollment quota for female students by more than five times compared to previous years. The quota is increasing every year, and the number of applicants has reached a record high." Wu Zhongguo put himself in Shen Zhenzhu's shoes, patted her on the shoulder, and said, "As long as you persevere, you will definitely achieve good results."
“Thank you, Uncle Wu. I have never doubted my direction,” Shen Zhenzhu said. “I deeply understand that women’s power is not dormant; they are all yearning for opportunities.”
Lu Ye had just been pulled away by Zhao Qiqi, and now he said to Chen Junsheng, who was standing aside, "I'll take you with me, do you think I'm good enough for you?"
Hearing the cracking sound of his fists, Chen Junsheng quickly said, "I like it, I won't look down on it."
Lu Ye said with a forced smile, "I heard that before coming here, some people thought that interning here was a waste of time, just to learn some outdated criminal investigation techniques, right?"
The wolf king doesn't lead a flock of sheep. Chen Junsheng could sense that the people here were not to be trifled with, and said awkwardly, "I didn't say that, you might have misheard me."
Lu Ye patted Chen Junsheng heavily on the shoulder: "Buddy, just you wait and see."
Shen Zhenzhu now understood why the province had assigned such a difficult household to the fourth team.
So it turns out he looks down on domestic police on an equal footing.
Chen Zhenzhu patted the big tea mug that Xiaobai always carried around, then touched the phone book. "Hmph! The new intern is so unlovable."
Ring ring—
Ring ring.
The phone rang, and Wu Zhongguo answered it before hanging up: "A murder has occurred at the Iron Machinery Factory dormitory on Xuanwu Street. A 45-year-old man was stabbed to death in his bed at home. The person who reported the incident has apprehended the suspect."
Although she felt sorry for the deceased, Shen Zhenzhu was overjoyed to the point of tears because it was a simple murder case, and the body was intact.
"Set off."
All four teams poured out and headed straight for the iron machinery factory dormitory.
The iron machinery factory's attempt to privatize from a state-owned enterprise failed, resulting in the layoff of many employees over the past two years. Because the factory still owes wages, some employees have simply refused to leave the factory-allocated housing, even though it has already been used to pay off debts.
There are a few small restaurants, billiard halls, and hair salons on the street outside. After turning onto the long, empty cement road, the Tieji dormitory gives a gloomy impression.
Under the scorching sun, dragonflies flew low and low, while cicadas on the tree trunks chirped listlessly.
"Building 23, Unit 7," Wu Zhongguo said, wiping his face and neck as he pointed, his forehead covered in sweat from his fieldwork.
When Shen Zhenzhu saw the neighborhood committee lady wearing a red armband that she had met a couple of days ago, the thin girl and the scars on her wrist flashed by, and Shen Zhenzhu had a bad feeling.
"Police officers, you've finally arrived!" The woman from the neighborhood office pointed to the fifth floor where the shouting and cursing had taken place and said, "We've caught the person red-handed."
Shen Zhenzhu walked ahead, and just as she entered the stairwell, an elderly woman rushed down from upstairs. She wailed and cried, "Comrades, quickly drag her out and shoot her! She's a damned thing! She abused my granddaughter and killed my son!"
"Have you all been inside the scene?" Shen Zhenzhu asked calmly, as if this was commonplace.
“How can we catch them if we don’t go in?” A middle-aged woman who looked similar to the older woman said, “If we waited for you to come, they would have already run off with my brother’s money. What good can a hairdresser be? We’ve been preventing them from getting married for a long time. Now look what’s happened, they’ve lost their lives.”
"Brother Ye, Brother Qi, please take control of the scene." Chen Zhenzhu stood close to the stairwell, letting them go up first.
She could hear a lot of shouting and insults coming from the fifth floor, which she guessed meant the man's family had arrived.
“We live right across the hall.” The deceased’s sister, Wu Yan, said to Wu Zhongguo, stepping past Shen Zhenzhu, “Boss, hurry up and handcuff him so he can’t escape. My good brother, no one ever said a bad word about him, and he just died like this.”
Wu Zhongguo pointed at Shen Zhenzhu and said, "Don't call her that. This is my leader."
Wu Yan glanced at Shen Zhenzhu in surprise. Shen Zhenzhu said to her, "There are procedures for handling cases. I understand your feelings as family members. Please cooperate with our work. Someone will take your statements in a little while. Tell me about the process of catching the suspect."
"What's there to say?" Wu Yanhong pointed her fingernail at the opposite door: "We went over for breakfast this morning and saw that my brother wasn't coming out. When we opened the door, we found him stabbed to death. Only Yuan Juan was inside. Who else could it be but her?"
"Whether it's her or not, we will make our own judgment." Shen Zhenzhu thought to herself, no wonder they said they caught the murderer, so that's how it is.
Wu Yan, still indignant, followed Shen Zhenzhu and kept nagging: "She's my brother's second wife, and she's always arguing with him. We can hear it all from across the street."
When Shen Zhenzhu arrived at the door, she found more than ten people huddled together in the room, pointing and whispering at the woman sitting on the sofa with her head down.
If the police hadn't arrived, one can imagine they would have swarmed in and started punching and kicking. They probably already have.
Shen Zhenzhu stopped and asked Wu Yan, "Why are they arguing?"
Wu Yan said, "We can argue about anything. If the allowance is too little, we'll argue. If the food is too salty or too bland, we'll argue. If you talk to a man for too long, we'll definitely argue."
Shen Zhenzhu asked, "When talking to someone of the opposite sex, who argues more?"
Wu Yan hesitated for a moment: "They were both arguing."
Shen Zhenzhu said, "You are not answering the question truthfully."
Wu Yan flung her hand away and said angrily, "She's always fooling around with men. What's wrong with arguing with her a few times? She's just a slut, but my brother treats her like a treasure at home. Go out and ask around, and everyone will say that my brother is a good husband who dotes on her. But she insists on being a tyrant at home and has bullied my niece until she's covered in bruises."
Shen Zhenzhu didn't look at Wu Yan, but instead looked at the woman on the sofa. She remained motionless, head in her hands, in the face of Wu Yan's accusations.
"What a vicious woman! My heart aches when I see the injuries on Niu Niu's body. Everyone says stepmothers are bad, but I've been working in the neighborhood for over ten years and I've never encountered such a heartless woman."
"Look at her, she's like a dead pig that's not afraid of boiling water. She's probably secretly happy that her husband is dead, and she'll go off to have fun with some other man with my son's money."
"That woman is a vixen. When she first entered your family, I said something bad was bound to happen sooner or later, and here it is. Dahai is such a good person, he treats me better than my own son."
"The ocean is gone just like that, and I feel really bad about it."
......
Shen Zhenzhu gave Lu Ye a look, and Lu Ye continued to shoo away the bystanders who had gathered at the door.
The deceased's mother stopped him and said, "Tell all the neighbors not to leave, come and sit in my house. I want them to be my witnesses that you will shoot the murderer!"
She took out her key and opened the door across the street. More than a dozen old neighbors said they wouldn't leave and just stayed. Even TV dramas can't compare to the excitement and liveliness of this scene.
Shen Zhenzhu walked to the sofa, looked down at the woman, and said, "Did you kill him?"
After the body was discovered, the woman, who had endured countless insults, raised her head, her eyes devoid of any emotion, her calmness frightening: "I didn't kill him."
Shen Zhenzhu nodded, took out gloves from her pocket, put them on, and walked to the second suite, room one.
Lu Xiaobao was conducting a preliminary examination of the body when he saw Shen Zhenzhu walk to the door, stand up, and walk around to the other end of the bed, saying, "The deceased is Wu Dahai, 45 years old, a worker at a private home appliance repair shop. He was stabbed in the anterior region of his heart, with a sharp wound about 1-2 centimeters long. The wound edges are clean, with no abrasions. The deceased's face and oral mucosa are noticeably pale, and his hands are still in the position of covering the wound. The preliminary judgment is that he died from acute massive bleeding caused by a sharp object stabbing his heart."
“There are signs of rigor mortis.” Shen Zhenzhu approached to examine it.
The large pool of blood on the master bedroom bed had congealed, its color changing from dark red to a viscous film on the surface, and the bloodstains around the clothes had also darkened significantly.
The room reeked of blood, which had begun to mix with a faint, sweet, cloying smell of decay, tinged with the sourness of blood.
Shen Zhenzhu observed the room's windows; they were tightly closed and intact.
Lu Xiaobao said, "Section Chief Shen has a good eye. Due to the massive blood loss, the livor mortis is very faint and hard to notice. The livor mortis on the back of the limbs that were not compressed is light red, and it is completely fixed when pressed with a finger, and the color will not disappear."
Shen Zhenzhu speculated: "Early livor mortis will temporarily fade, and what remains is the fact that the hemoglobin in the blood has decomposed and penetrated into the tissues around the blood vessels."
“That’s my assessment too.” Lu Xiaobao was very happy to work with Shen Zhenzhu. He was extremely serious about the initial examination of the body: “Rigoletto has spread throughout the body, and the joints are difficult to bend. Based on rigor mortis, livor mortis, appearance, and wounds, I determine that the time of death should be between midnight and four o’clock last night.”
Shen Zhenzhu looked down at the expression on the deceased man's face; shock and fear were the last impressions he left in this world. His eyes began to soften, and the blood in the heart wound had completely congealed, with clots visible blocking the wound.
"It's 9:30 in the morning. The person who reported the incident, please come over here." Shen Zhenzhu nodded to Lu Xiaobao and walked into the living room.
Standing at the door, Wu Yan and her mother quickly said, "We were the ones who discovered it first. We come here for breakfast every morning at eight o'clock, and we noticed something was wrong then."
Shen Zhenzhu questioned, "You discovered something was wrong at eight o'clock, but you called the police at nine o'clock. What did you do during that hour?"
Wu Yan glanced at Yuan Juan, who was sitting on the sofa with her hair disheveled, and said awkwardly, "Just asking if she killed her."
Lu Ye stood in the living room with his arms crossed, and said in a low voice, "Is this 'asking' or 'interrogating'?"
"How can you police be like this? We caught the murderer and you're still criticizing us? Is this how you eat your government salary? Are you protecting a vixen because you can't resist her?"
"Watch your words. If you're so capable, why don't you just shoot him?" Wu Zhongguo was taking witness statements across the way, but he was being harassed by the group of people talking all at once. So he called someone over to the stairwell platform to talk to him alone.
"Calm down, everyone, don't argue." The neighborhood woman squeezed out of the opposite door and pointed downstairs, saying, "We're all neighbors in this building. I live downstairs from them. Last night I heard the couple arguing, they were practically fighting. We all know Yuan Juan treats her stepdaughter badly—"
"Did the girl tell you herself that her stepmother abused her?" Shen Zhenzhu suddenly asked.
The woman on the street adjusted her red armband, swallowed, and said, "No, not at all."
“As a street-level cadre, you need to have evidence for your words.” Shen Zhenzhu gave her a deep look, and seeing that Lu Ye was still talking to Lu Xiaobao inside, she went over and asked, “Where is Chen Junsheng?”
Lu Ye was studying the corpse, trying to analyze it like he had with Chen Zhenzhu. Without turning his head, he said, "Have Archie take him to park the car, so we don't have to see him and get annoyed."
Shen Zhenzhu agreed with this.
She went into the room across the street, took out her notebook, and went to each room to talk to them. Almost everyone insisted that Yuan Juan was the one who killed the person.
“We watched Niu Niu grow up. Her stepmother came and married her two years ago, and Niu Niu is as thin as a cabbage. Her biological mother died, and who would have thought she would meet such a stepmother. She doesn’t have new clothes for holidays, and she doesn’t have any pocket money. She often goes hungry when she boards at school. Wu Dahai is a very good person. He always helps us neighbors. He was blind to marry her.”
“Niu Niu is probably afraid that the two adults will continue to argue, which is why she doesn’t want to call the police. But even if her dad knows, he might not be able to control Yuan Juan. That woman is a vixen. She’s still not honest after getting married. She works in a hair salon and is always flirting with men.”
"She abused Niu Niu for years. Wu Dahai often argued with her; the whole building could hear them." One of the old men sat on the edge of the bed, watching Chen Zhenzhu take notes. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Wu Dahai is practically a hapless old man. What kind of person is he? Everyone says he's kind-hearted. That woman works at a hair salon. Can you find good women in hair salons? For men—"
"Alright, that's enough asking." Shen Zhenzhu interrupted him and walked out.
She sat down next to Yuan Juan and carefully observed her. Yuan Juan did not look up or speak from beginning to end.
Taking advantage of the brief respite, Chen Zhenzhu had a few minutes to carefully recall the Heavenly Eye's recollection she had just witnessed—
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Author's Note: Newbie: My new mentor isn't cute at all, sob sob.
***
There's a red envelope! See you tomorrow! [Let me see]
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