Chapter 71 Red Spider Lily 10
That night, Chi Li arranged for someone to interrogate Master Zhang overnight to ensure that he did not know any other clues about the case.
Zhang Angu gave some information about the fortune-telling place, and that den was considered useless.
In the early hours of the morning, police apprehended two more apprentices who had been hiding. They were both customer service agents soliciting customers online. Following the lead of the real company, they eventually discovered a shell company where much of the illegal income had been transferred to overseas accounts.
The biggest gain was that the police pulled out some settlement documents and collected information on some of the victims. The amounts ranged from hundreds of thousands to millions of yuan, and among them were some well-known tycoons, actors, and entrepreneurs...
Because this case was only related, Chi Li handed it over after investigating this matter.
As for the arrests, Donglan City has set up a tight net. Not only are there people checking at major stations and airports, but even the number of patrols on the roads has increased. However, the relevant personnel have not been caught yet.
The police officers were busy until late at night.
The next morning, Luo Siwei went from the duty room to the Criminal Investigation Team's office. She overheard Huo Cunsheng and several other officers discussing the list of people seeking Master Zhang's fortune-telling. Some of the information matched the gossip.
"I can't believe that Xiaohua would actually seek help from a master to change her fate. Now she's so obscure she's practically invisible."
"So, it's all a scam."
"I didn't expect the online post... that Feng Shui match was real."
"Alas, those big guys will hire more than one person to help them. Master Zhang is probably just a consultant. If his master hadn't passed away, who knows what big news would have been revealed..."
"His master is a fortune teller? I seem to have some impression of this name..."
"Will this matter become a hot topic in the future?"
Huo Cunsheng hissed mysteriously, "These matters can be discussed internally, but remember the police confidentiality agreement. Think about who's on that list. The media won't be able to report this."
Seeing Luo Siwei come in, Guo Zhengyao hurriedly said, "Let's have a morning meeting."
The gossip stopped abruptly, and several police officers returned to their seats.
The morning meeting is still to summarize all the clues found so far in the case.
Luo Siwei wrote down two key names on the whiteboard. The one on the top was Zhang Angu, and the one on the bottom was the mysterious person. She used the code 43 to refer to them.
Just as she was about to analyze the case, Ni Xiang's computer suddenly buzzed. She checked the incoming message and said happily, "Captain Luo, Deputy Captain Guo, the fingerprints on the murder weapon match. We can confirm the identity of the mysterious man."
This is good news.
Ni Xiang double-clicked the file with the mouse, and an information sheet unfolded.
Luo Siwei leaned forward to look at the computer screen. The person in the message was named Xu Chile, 28 years old, and 1.78 meters tall.
This person is a habitual criminal. When he was fifteen years old, he was sentenced for burglary and attempted robbery. After serving his sentence, he was imprisoned for a period of time for theft. Now he has just been released from prison and is involved in the case again.
Because Xu Chile had a criminal record, his fingerprint information was in the police database and was quickly found after comparison.
It can be said that after Xu Chile became an adult, he spent more time in prison than he did in freedom outside.
Luo Siwei saw the police photos and found that Xu Chile did look a bit like Ding Zhaomo. Their faces, body shapes, and even facial features were very similar, but in the police photos, Xu Chile had a shaved head, so he only looked 60% like him.
Luo Siwei compared the person in the photo and thought that the person she saw last night should be the same person.
However, he seemed to have undergone some facial plastic surgery, including nose augmentation and double eyelid surgery, and his original 60% similar appearance became 80% similar.
Last night, Xu Chile's hairstyle and clothing were similar to Ding Zhaomo's style, and the dim environment and insufficient lighting made it easy to mistake the fake for the real thing.
A repeat offender in his twenties who has been imprisoned many times.
After investigating the case for so long, we finally have a decent suspect.
In addition, the shoe prints are similar and the shoe sizes are the same. Could he be the murderer who killed Zhou Zitu and his mother that night?
Luo Siwei said to Ni Xiang, "Add this information to the wanted list and have all the branches step up their investigation. Then, compile Xu Chile's file as soon as possible and send it to everyone."
Ni Xiang and Tang Xi immediately started working, and soon the information was compiled.
Judging from the information, Xu Chile's hometown, age, and the school he attended are very different from Ding Zhaomo, and the two have no intersection.
Apart from looking similar, this Xu Chile seems to have nothing to do with the case fourteen years ago.
Huo Cunsheng flipped through the documents for a while, then stroked his chin, as if he had seen through everything. "Yesterday's footprints are very similar to those at the crime scene, but they still need expert evaluation. However, I think this person is 80% likely No. 43. This case is almost solved."
Guo Zhengyao asked him, "Huo Xiaowulang, can you analyze this?"
"Come, let me sort it out for everyone." Huo Cunsheng walked to the whiteboard and pointed at it, saying, "The murderer of the two people in Liyu Bay should be Xu Chile who just got out of prison."
He then analyzed it in detail.
"Xu Chile had just been released from prison and couldn't find a job. This habitual criminal, who had been in and out of prison several times, was definitely looking to return to his old ways. He then set his sights on Zhou Zitu, who lived in the villa. However, Xu Chile was very greedy. He not only had his eyes on Zhou Zitu's money, but also her sex. He planned to enter the villa at night, rape Zhou Zitu, and then steal the family's money."
Having said that, Huo Cunsheng drew an arrow pointing to the words "haunted house" next to it.
"As luck would have it, this villa is a haunted house. Zhou Zitu is a very timid person. She has always felt that Ding Zhaomo's spirit is following her here, lingering. That's why she has kept the peach wood sword on the third floor, frequently visited Master Zhang's fortune-telling shop, and a rift has arisen between her and Zheng Wanshan."
"Xu Chile selected a target and began to observe Zhou Zitu. At this time, Zhou Zitu discovered that someone was following her. Because Xu Chile and Ding Zhaomo looked very similar, Zhou Zitu thought she had encountered a ghost. She ran to find Master Zhang again and asked Master Zhang to help exorcise the ghost. Master Zhang gave her a talisman."
Huo Cunsheng connected the clues to the talisman paper again, and then he said: "Xu Chile also saw all of this."
"Later, Xu Chile made his way to Zhou Zitu's house and hid under the bed. When Zhou Zitu fell asleep, he got up and tried to rape her. But when Zhou Zitu saw him, she realized he looked so much like a man who had died in the house before. She must have seen a ghost. She was so scared that she struggled and screamed, and even bit the talisman in her mouth. Xu Chile was afraid that he would attract others, so he killed her in a fit of rage."
"Xu Chile murdered someone, wrapped Zhou Zitu in a sheet, and carried him to the bathtub downstairs. To keep things going, he also killed Zhou Zitu's daughter. He simply disposed of the body, cleaned up the scene, and ran away. It wasn't until the third day that the whole thing was discovered by a milkman..."
Huo Cunsheng told the story vividly, as if he was telling a story. There were many details that did not stand up to scrutiny, but at first glance they seemed to make sense. Moreover, his statement rarely connected all the details together and made them correspond one to one.
Guo Zhengyao interrupted him and said, "Even if what you said is true, why did Xu Chile appear there yesterday?"
"Deputy Captain Guo, don't worry, I will analyze it right away." Having said that, Huo Cunsheng connected Xu Chile and Zhang Angu with a line on the whiteboard.
He continued to analyze the crime from the perspective of the murderer: "Xu Chile has been terrified for the past few days, afraid of being found by the police. Then he remembered that when he was following Zhou Zitu before, she went to see Master Zhang."
"The first possibility is that Xu Chile was afraid that Zhou Zitu had left some clues with Zhang Angu, so he was always uneasy and wanted to investigate again. The second possibility is that Xu Chile failed to rob the villa and was thinking of making another deal to solve the financial crisis. He followed Zhou Zitu that night and found that Master Zhang had cheated a lot of money, so he had evil intentions. The third possibility is that Xu Chile thought that if Zhou Zitu had not gone to find this half-immortal, he would not have struggled so violently that night. Maybe he would not have killed anyone and would go all out to find Zhang Angu to settle the score. The fourth possibility is that he might just want to tell his fortune. The fifth possibility is that the person he was looking for was not Zhang Angu, but Zhang Angu's apprentice, and it was just a coincidence."
Huo Cunsheng analyzed them one by one and then summarized them.
"Whatever the reason, Xu Chile understood that killing one person was punishable by death, and killing three was also punishable by death. So he went all out and ran to Wuli Lianhua Street. He was a habitual criminal who broke into houses and picked locks. He went to the back hall of the house, but unfortunately, he didn't expect our police to be on the scene that night. We fought him and almost caught him red-handed."
Hearing Huo Cunsheng's words, Guo Zhengyao frowned unconsciously: "Then who was the person who fired the gun last night?"
Huo Cunsheng said, "Maybe he's an accomplice in his cell, or maybe he's a passing hero."
Guo Zhengyao's frown deepened. "The motive is insufficient, and there are some logical problems. What you just said, Xu Chile killing Zhou Zitu makes sense, but there is no sufficient reason to go find Zhang Angu, and it would actually risk exposing himself."
Huo Cunsheng spread his hands and said, "The murderer is just a madman. It's normal for him to be a little strange. Look at the cases solved at home and abroad. Some killed someone because they met a pretty girl on the street, and some killed someone because they were laughed at by classmates. More than half of the logic is very strange."
After hearing this, Luo Siwei looked at the whiteboard, frowned and thought, without expressing any opinion.
Shen Qing asked her doubts: "In the past, Xu Chile committed crimes mainly for money. Why didn't Zhou Zitu's family lose any luxury goods or gold and silver jewelry?"
Huo Cunsheng scratched his head and said, "Maybe he's afraid that the police will catch him right away. His method of committing the crime is too obvious."
"I still feel something is wrong. The police haven't found any evidence on Xu Chile yet, but he suddenly appears in front of us. It's too strange that he suddenly jumped into the crime scene..." Shen Qing said this, and suddenly he realized something. He looked at the various lines drawn by Huo Cunsheng on the blackboard and sat up straight. "I've figured it out a little bit. Maybe Master Zhang didn't tell the truth. These two people may be accomplices!"
Then he also came to the whiteboard and analyzed the second possibility of the case.
"Perhaps, Xu Chile and this Master Zhang knew each other before!"
Then Shen Qing analyzed it carefully.
"Xu Chile was constantly in jail, feeling he had a bad fate. Someone recommended him to Master Zhang for a fortune-teller. Over the years, Zhou Zitu had been going to Master Zhang for fortune-telling. Master Zhang knew the house she lived in was haunted, and he had seen Ding Zhaomo's portrait while performing a ritual many years ago. As soon as Master Zhang saw Xu Chile, he realized he looked a lot like Ding Zhaomo and thought there was potential for business."
"So, Master Zhang instructed Xu Chile to impersonate Ding Zhaomo and repeatedly scare Zhou Zitu. Zhou Zitu would give him money, and Master Zhang would give her talismans. Then, the colluding Xu Chile and Ding Zhaomo divided the spoils. This was a joint fraud alliance."
"But Zhang Angu didn't expect Xu Chile to become lustful and accidentally kill Zhou Zitu. He was afraid that Master Zhang would reveal that they had conspired to defraud Zhou Zitu, so he wanted to kill him to silence him!"
This makes the motive for the crime much more plausible than Huo Cunsheng's version. It also explains why Xu Chile, after some minor adjustments, looks more like Ding Zhaomo.
Hearing this, Luo Siwei turned around and said, "If Shen Qing's hypothesis is true, then Zhang Angu and Xu Chile must have had more interactions. We'll go check on this Master Zhang later. Tang Xi, you should also carefully check whether they have any financial dealings."
Master Zhang's confession didn't involve this kind of information, but he was an old fox, and his words couldn't be trusted. Luo Siwei even suspected that Zhang Angu's other reports might be mixed with lies. But this man had already been interrogated by Captain Chi and transferred out according to Director Chen's instructions... Luo Siwei pondered how to submit a request to the leadership.
Ni Xiang, who was taking notes, looked up and said, "But this isn't right. Your assumption is that Zhou Zitu is terrified and always worried that the villa is haunted. But if Zhou Zitu is troubled by this, why doesn't she move? She's rich, so she could just live in a hotel..."
This question stumped Huo Cunsheng and Shen Qing, who were both very interested in reasoning.
"I think this is explainable." Luo Siwei stood up. "Zhou Zitu doesn't have many assets to her name. She became a housewife shortly after marrying Zheng Wanshan. Zheng Wanshan is indeed very rich, but Zhou Zitu can't freely use the money. Zhou Zitu also proposed to move out, but Zheng Wanshan is not superstitious and is a bit chauvinistic. He insisted that his wife and children live here and didn't agree to them moving. After Zheng Wanshan refused, Zhou Zitu didn't dare to offend this man again because she still relied on his money to live. Unless they divorce, she can have money and freedom."
Huo Cunsheng tutted his words twice: "So it seems that being a rich wife is not happy either."
Ni Xiang said, "I finally understand why they say that women need to have their own careers so that their words carry weight."
Luo Siwei brought the topic back to the case. "Also, I noticed a detail. Although the stories you told all connect, there are some problems. The scene at the villa was very meticulous. The murderer had carefully disguised the scene and changed the bed, leaving almost no fingerprints. The murderer cleaned the room thoroughly. Aside from the mess in the bathroom, everything else was spotless."
She pointed to the previous records and said, "However, from Xu Chile's previous crimes, we can see that this person does not have a thorough plan. He often acts on impulse and his crimes are also very casual. I can't rule out that he learned some methods from others in prison and achieved some evolution in his crimes, but this still leaves some doubts."
When Luo Siwei said this, she habitually touched the hairpin on her head. She remembered what Sizhe had said to her in the past and repeated it.
"A criminal's modus operandi is like their fingerprints. Each one has unique characteristics. Even if they change with their psychology, there are always some common traits in every case."
Luo Siwei has not found any commonalities among these cases so far.
After analyzing this, Luo Siwei stood up and said, "However, we currently have too few clues. Xu Chile is still our primary suspect. I think the police now have two practical ways to test whether our reasoning is correct."
She extended her slender fingers. "First, we need to wait for the test results of that hair. If the hair matches Xu Chile's DNA, it means the person hiding under the bed is him. Combined with the half footprint, we can basically confirm that he is the murderer who broke into the house that night, or at least one of the murderers. As for the second point, we need to catch him as soon as possible and interrogate him."
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