Chapter 133 Annual Meeting
◎It is a disgrace to our Provincial Writers Association!◎
Zhao Xiangwan glanced at the young man.
The young man's lips were a little dry and had white skin on them. He looked in a very bad mental state. The elbows and soles of his baseball jersey and the buttocks and thighs of his pants were all covered in dust. It seemed that what he said about hiding in the stairwell and waiting for the writer Wei Lan's autograph was true.
There are two staircases in Furong Hotel. One is the main staircase, which is about 3.6 meters wide and faces the lobby. The other is the evacuation staircase, which is located on the west side of the guest rooms. The evacuation staircase is relatively narrow, only meeting the fire protection requirement of 1.1 meters, and few people usually use it.
If this guy hides in the stairwell, he can only sit at the entrance of the stairs. If people go up or down, he has to move to the wall or railing. In this way, if he sits on the ground, his buttocks and thighs will be covered with dust; if he leans against the wall or railing, his elbows will be rubbed with dust.
Li Mingyang happened to walk over at this time. He was a careful person. He stopped the young man and asked carefully: "What's your name? Why are you hiding in the stairwell? You just said you heard a quarrel, what's going on?"
Zhao Xiangwan finally breathed a of relief. It seemed that the police officers of Luo County Public Security Bureau sigh were well-trained and he didn't have to worry too much.
Ji Zhao understood what she was thinking and took her hand and walked towards the elevator.
There was a security guard at the elevator entrance, who said apologetically, "I'm sorry, the elevator is out of order and cannot be used right now. Please use the stairs."
[The police said they wanted to protect the scene, and they even didn't allow us to use the elevator. I'm really impressed.]
Zhao Xiangwan glanced at the Luoxian police who were arranging the investigation details in an orderly manner, and did not say much. There was a murder in the hotel, and the murderer might go down the elevator. It was right to temporarily stop using the elevator to protect the scene.
She nodded and walked towards the stairs with the Ji family.
Just after walking up a few steps, a dozen people came running down from the upstairs, men and women, old and young, some carrying luggage and some empty-handed, making a lot of noise.
"Someone died in the hotel, and you still want us to stay here? Check out, check out!"
"That's outrageous. Today is the Little New Year. It's really unlucky."
"If the train hadn't been delayed, I wouldn't have stayed in the hotel at all."
Hearing that the train was delayed again, Zhao Xiangwan paid a little attention.
The guy in the baseball shirt mentioned that there was an argument in the corridor on the third floor about the train being late. Whether it is related to the murder case will require an interrogation.
The clue that the train is delayed needs to be kept an eye on.
Thinking of this, Zhao Xiangwan stood at the stairs and did not go up. He turned around and watched the group of people rush to the front desk and start arguing with the hotel service staff. The scene was in chaos.
The guests staying in the hotel have left their ID information and paid a certain amount of room deposit. Now, more than a dozen people have come to check out and demand that the hotel not charge today's room rate but return the deposit in full. The front desk staff has no idea what to do and is so anxious that they are sweating and start calling for support with the intercom.
A fat man in his thirties, wearing a brown leather jacket, a thick gold necklace around his neck, and gold rings on his hands, looked like a wealthy man. He had slightly yellow teeth, and slammed his fat hands on the counter, shouting, "Hurry up and check us out! I don't dare to stay overnight in a hotel where someone died."
Li Mingyang walked over. His olive green police uniform gave him a natural sense of majesty. He said in a deep voice, "Everyone, please be patient. Now you need to cooperate with the police to complete the record and leave your contact information before you can leave."
The fat man glanced at Li Mingyang, not afraid at all. Instead, he said arrogantly: "You said you can't let us leave, so we can't leave? This is a hotel, not a public security bureau. You can't restrict our personal freedom!"
Behind him, a dark-skinned man with sly eyes looked around and shouted, "That's right! The police can't restrict our personal freedom. Besides, I don't want to stay in a place where people have died for even a minute. Who knows if I'll be infested with ghosts and evil spirits?"
After saying that, the thin dark man didn't even ask for the deposit and walked towards the door carrying a luggage bag.
[Damn it, I was just enjoying myself in the room when the police suddenly came running. If I don't leave now, should I stay here and wait for them to catch me? If I get caught, I'll die here!]
A group of people who didn't know what was going on also started to make a fuss. Many of them followed the thin dark man out, while the remaining few were reluctant to leave their deposits at the front desk and stood there urging the waiter. The lobby suddenly became a market, full of noise.
Those rushing out were led by dark and thin men and rich fat men.
"Go, go, go! I don't want the deposit anymore. Someone died here. It's unlucky."
"Spending money to avoid disaster, bah bah bah."
"Don't bother me, I want to go home."
Those who stayed behind were led by a handsome young man.
"Is your hotel a scam? I only stayed for two hours but you charged me a full day's price? I'm telling you, return my deposit immediately! I won't stay here anymore."
"I'm already being polite by not asking you for psychological compensation, but you still have the nerve to not let us leave?"
"Return your money, quickly!"
The only police officers left in the lobby were Li Mingyang and two other young people who had just joined the job. They were suddenly faced with such an aggressive crowd. One group of people slammed the table and swore at the head waiter, while another group of people were trying to force their way out the door. For a moment, they were in a state of chaos.
Firstly, someone died in the hotel, so it is understandable that the guests would have emotions.
Secondly, the law does not punish the masses. The police cannot take action against such a large group of people, right?
Li Mingyang stretched out his arms to stop everyone from leaving and shouted at the top of his voice: "Everyone, please cooperate with our work!"
His eyes were anxious and veins were bulging on his forehead. He was patiently explaining things to everyone, but he was pushed away by the thin, dark man and almost fell down.
Zhao Xiangwan saw it all, how could he bear it?
She hurried downstairs, rushed to the dark and thin man, threw him over her shoulder, and with a "bang", pinned him to the ground, unable to move.
Half of the man's face was numb from the fall, but he still stared with his eyes wide open and shouted, "The police are beating me! The police are beating me!"
Zhao Xiangwan pulled off the black travel bag that he was holding tightly to his body and threw it into Li Mingyang's hands: "Check his luggage. This guy is not a good person."
The man began to struggle desperately.
Li Mingyang really didn't expect Zhao Xiangwan to lend a helping hand, and he subconsciously took the travel bag. The zipper of the bag was locked and could not be opened for a while.
Ji Zhao reacted quickly, took out a small paper cutter from his pocket and cut open the travel bag.
A bag of white powder fell to the floor.
"Ah——" the man began to scream.
[Damn it, damn it!]
[The good stuff I brought back with great difficulty... is over! ]
Zhao Xiangwan knelt down on one knee to hold down the thin dark man, looked around, and said coldly: "Anyone who dares to leave is his accomplice!"
As soon as these words were spoken, all those who were clamoring to leave the hotel were stopped dead in their tracks.
The fat man had already walked to the door, but he turned around and was attracted by the noise. When he turned around, his pupils shrank and he broke out in a cold sweat.
[Damn, drug trafficking?!]
[I was almost killed by this piece of shit. ]
[With so many drugs, this is a brain-destroying thing. ]
Li Mingyang never expected that Zhao Xiangwan would catch a drug dealer with just one move!
Judging from this bulging travel bag, he must be trafficking a lot of goods.
Oh my god~
A great achievement.
Li Mingyang's eyes sparkled with excitement. He quickly took out handcuffs and handcuffed the dark and thin man, and handed the travel bag to the two newcomers following behind him. I knew that when Officer Zhao took action, it would be a big case, right? In order to investigate the hotel murder case, he also solved a drug trafficking case. He got both the person and the stolen goods. Awesome!
Zhao Xiangwan stood up, staring at the fat man standing at the door with a sharp gaze: "Aren't you going to leave? Why don't you leave?"
How could the fat man dare to go now? He returned with a wry smile and tried desperately to explain himself: "I, I don't know him, I'm not his accomplice. I just happened to run into him when I was going downstairs."
Several other guests who had joined in the fun also reacted and hurried to prove their innocence.
"I won't leave. I will cooperate with the police investigation."
"Yes, yes, I won't leave either. Just ask whatever you want to ask."
"We don't recognize this bad guy."
The hotel lobby was hurriedly attended by several security guards, who apologized and assured everyone, and promised that today's accommodation would be free. As long as the guests cooperated with the police in taking a statement and left their contact information, the hotel would immediately return the deposit and give them a small gift. The customer who was yelling at the front desk clerk was soon calmed down.
The situation was quickly brought under control. Li Mingyang was very grateful to Zhao Xiangwan for his help: "Officer Zhao, if it weren't for you today, the drug dealer would have gotten away. Also, the hotel murder case is under investigation. So many people left at once. If the murderer is among them, it will be troublesome to track him down in the future."
Zhao Xiangwan stretched out his hand to him: "Where is the notebook? Let me help you take notes."
Li Mingyang excitedly handed her the transcript and said, "Oh, I'll treat you to a meal tomorrow! Isn't today the Little New Year? The bureau is short-staffed, Officer Zhao, you really are a timely help."
Ji Jinmao, Luo Danfeng, and Zhou Fangxi had been standing at the stairs waiting for Zhao Xiangwan. Seeing this, they looked at each other helplessly. Alas! My future son (grandson) and daughter-in-law is a workaholic. What should I do?
Ji Zhao stood beside Zhao Xiangwan.
【I'll accompany you.】
Ji Zhao had a beautiful appearance. Standing there, she looked like a landscape painting, so beautiful that everyone in the hall looked over at her. For a moment, the atmosphere became quite harmonious.
Li Mingyang briefly explained the case.
301, the easternmost room of Furong Hotel, is occupied by a Luoxian writer, whose pen name is Wei Lan and whose real name is Wei Qingfen. She is 32 years old this year. She has a beautiful appearance and a slim figure, and is known as a beautiful writer in the contemporary literary world.
About an hour ago, Wei Qingfen was killed.
Someone cut his throat with a knife, and half of his body was inside the house and the other half was in the corridor, with his head facing outside and blood all over the floor.
No one knows who the murderer is. He may be a hotel resident or he may have fled long ago.
People from the Luo County Public Security Bureau's Investigation Brigade were investigating the scene upstairs. Li Mingyang's team was mainly responsible for investigating and recording the residents to see if they could find any useful clues.
Li Mingyang asked questions and Zhao Xiangwan helped to take notes and occasionally asked a few questions.
Li Mingyang feels very happy to work with Zhao Xiangwan.
Zhao Xiangwan, who is well-trained and experienced, asks questions accurately and concisely and records them quickly, which makes Li Mingyang feel that his work efficiency has been greatly improved.
The two rookie detectives following Li Mingyang were very curious and didn't know what Zhao Xiangwan was up to. However, they were smart and didn't ask too many questions. They just watched the drug dealer they had just caught, carried the evidence, and maintained order in the hotel without letting up.
Zhao Xiangwan asked the fat man: "Which train is late today?"
The fat man's name is Chai Dingshan, and he is a businessman. He took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat off his forehead: "The express train from Yangcheng to Kyoto was delayed for more than five hours. It was supposed to arrive in Luo County around 2 pm. I planned to take a taxi back to my hometown, but it didn't arrive until after 7 pm, so I had to stay in the county first."
Zhao Xiangwan glanced at him and asked, "Do you know Wei Qingfen?"
Chai Dingshan hurriedly shook his head and denied: "No, no, no, I don't know her."
[The police had sharp eyes. Qingfen and I were classmates and had been friends for more than ten years. When I heard that she was coming back to celebrate the New Year, I wanted to reminisce with her, but I didn’t know...she was dead? Alas!]
[I can’t let the police know that I know her, or they’ll think I’m the murderer.]
Zhao Xiangwan narrowed his eyes, his gaze was extremely sharp: "It's not too late to tell the truth now."
Chai Dingshan felt extremely guilty and smiled awkwardly: "Of course I am telling the truth."
"Tell the truth?" Zhao Xiangwan turned his head and looked at Li Mingyang, "You can cuff this man and take him back for questioning."
Chai Dingshan panicked: "Comrade police, what do you mean?"
Zhao Xiangwan ignored him and raised his chin towards Li Mingyang.
When Li Mingyang saw her expression, he immediately perked up: "Okay!" Without saying a word, he handcuffed another one.
Chai Dingshan didn't dare to resist and could only keep explaining.
"Yes, yes, I lied. I know her."
"But I really didn't kill him. I swear, I definitely didn't kill anyone."
"I was just her classmate and we haven't been in touch for many years."
Zhao Xiangwan continued to ask.
With the ability to read minds, he can quickly screen people related to the case.
There were twelve people in total who were causing trouble and wanted to leave.
Finally, three people were left.
Chai Dingshan, a drug dealer and old acquaintance of Wei Qingfen, and Huang Liang, an editor of the "Ridiculous" magazine who chased Wei Qingfen and asked her to give him articles, were the most active ones who stood at the main service counter and banged the table to demand the return of the deposit.
The other ten people were all locals who had booked rooms in the hotel to play mahjong and have fun. They felt that someone's death was unlucky, and under the instigation of the drug dealers, they clamored to check out and go home.
Half an hour later, the hotel lobby returned to silence again.
Those who should leave have left.
Those who couldn't leave had to keep their heads down and wait for the police to question them.
Chai Dingshan looked at Huang Liang and said, "Isn't your magazine office in Yangcheng? Why are you here?"
Huang Liang sighed, looking very frustrated: "You and I took the same train to Luo County, but we arrived a little late because the train was delayed, and missed the meeting with Ms. Wei Lan. I was planning to sleep today and meet with Ms. Wei Lan tomorrow, but who knew... Alas!"
Chai Dingshan said with some sympathy: "Then you are as miserable as me. It seems that you will have to stay at the Public Security Bureau tonight."
After quickly screening out the troublesome customers, Zhao Xiangwan shook hands with Li Mingyang and said goodbye.
After helping the Luo County police with this small favor, Zhao Xiangwan finally felt refreshed.
After taking a shower, Zhao Xiangwan lay on the bed with his hands behind his head, looking at the ceiling and smiling slightly.
Since I entered the People's Public Security University in 1991, major criminal cases have followed me like a shadow. I didn't expect that even after coming to Luo County, I still couldn't escape the fate of encountering cases.
You know what, I'm really used to it.
The next morning, Zhao Xiangwan and the Ji family went to the restaurant on the first floor to have breakfast.
The buffet breakfast at Furong Hotel is quite rich. Western food includes milk, coffee, snacks, various breads, cakes, ham, and fried eggs. Chinese food includes soy milk, fried dough sticks, steamed buns, steamed bread, porridge, salted vegetables, fried rice, fried noodles...
Zhao Xiangwan took some of his favorite food and sat at the table by the window.
Ji Zhao sat opposite her.
After a good night's sleep, Ji Zhao's skin was as white as porcelain and her eyes were as black as ink, which was very pleasing to the eyes. Although Zhao Xiangwan was not a person who paid attention to appearance, when facing Ji Zhao, who was as beautiful as a person in a painting, an idea suddenly crossed his mind.
——If he and I have a daughter, will she be pretty?
As soon as this thought came to mind, Zhao Xiangwan forced it down.
However, Ji Zhao, who was sitting opposite, looked at Zhao Xiangwan intently, his eyes full of joy, as if there was a whirlpool that wanted to draw Zhao Xiangwan's attention in.
The thought that I had just suppressed suddenly popped up again.
It would be best if my skin was like Ji Zhao's, white as milk;
His eyes are like Ji Zhao's, clear black and white, and sparkling.
The lips should also be like Ji Zhao's, plump, bright and beautiful, like the thick petals of a lily.
The face shape is like mine, an apple face, which is a little cute.
The nose can also look like her own, because Zhao Xiangwan is most satisfied with her small and beautiful nose.
If it was a daughter, Zhao Xiangwan would hope to be nicer to her.
Accompany her carefully as she grows up and give her the most complete love.
She must be very happy, right?
What a warm family they have: loving parents, a kind and gentle grandpa, a cool and elegant grandma, and a warm and cheerful great-grandmother.
Thinking of this, Zhao Xiangwan began to look forward to the wedding.
She looked at Ji Zhao with a smile, and the more she looked at him, the more she thought he was handsome. As expected, when looking for a partner, you still have to look for someone who is good-looking. Isn't it said that a daughter looks like her father?
Although Ji Zhao couldn't hear Zhao Xiangwan's thoughts, he seemed to see something from her increasingly bright eyes. His heartbeat suddenly quickened, and he stretched out his left hand and gently covered the back of her hand.
【Love you.】
Thousands of words are not as beautiful as this one.
Zhao Xiangwan's heartbeat also began to beat rapidly, his body temperature gradually rose, and his cheeks were slightly flushed.
Someone pulled out a chair behind me and sat down.
bite--
The porcelain made a crisp sound when it collided.
[Dead? It’s better to be dead. ]
[This stinky woman thinks she can be a writer just by writing a few romantic novels full of whining. She is a disgrace to our provincial writers' association! ]
Although you can't see the person speaking, when the inner voice sounds, it is usually accompanied by a strange crackling noise of electricity, which is slightly vaguer than the real sound of speaking.
After realizing that the other party was slandering the writer Wei Lan who died last night, Zhao Xiangwan's mind was immediately attracted to the case and he began to listen attentively.
There were two people sitting at the table behind me, talking to each other.
"What a pity! It's a rare opportunity for our association to hold an annual meeting, and we specially chose to hold it in Wei Lan's hometown, but something like this happened. Sigh!"
"Yes, President Yuan and I suggested holding the annual meeting in Xing City, a provincial capital city, which is more convenient. As a result, a lot of people came to this small county town, with nothing to eat and nothing to go shopping. It's really boring."
"I heard that Wei Lan died tragically..."
"I heard about it, but I didn't dare go and see it. Anyway, I live on the fifth floor, so it's far away."
"Who would kill her?"
"Who knows? Maybe it was a murder of passion?"
"Moral murder? Tell me, what do you know?"
The two people who were talking were two authors from a certain provincial writers' association. As authors, it was their instinct to gossip and dig deep into the inside story. When they talked about murder, one of them became interested and started to find out more about it.
Zhao Xiangwan also pricked up his ears.
I wonder if the police from Luo County Public Security Bureau questioned these writers last night and whether they found out some important clues. If the writers' association held its annual meeting at Furong Hotel, with so many writers gathered together, their love, hate, and vengeance could probably be written into a dozen novels.
"Wei Lan is a beauty, and there is a long line of people who like her. She is already 36 years old and has been married for five years but has no children. Do you know why?"
"Why?"
"She was a mistress, and although the man's wife agreed to divorce, she made one request, which was that Wei Lan could not have any more children because the man already had a son."
"Who is her lover? How could he agree to such an excessive request? It's not good to deprive a woman of her right to be a mother, right?"
"Her lover is Yu Huimin, the boss of Lanyu Publishing Company. He has a background in the Cultural Bureau and his family is super rich. When Weilan was still young, she submitted her manuscripts to this publishing company and was noticed by Boss Yu for both her and her books. She was his mistress for six years. Later, she became famous and began to force him to abdicate. Boss Yu was reluctant to give up this money tree and had to negotiate with his then-wife. His wife was from Kyoto and was a strong person. She divided the family property in half and put forward this condition. Yu Huimin's success today is actually half due to his wife, so he dared not refuse."
After hearing this, Zhao Xiangwan began to become curious about Wei Lan.
She is 36 years old this year, which means she was born in 1960. When she was in primary school, she encountered the Ten Years Movement. It was probably difficult for her to concentrate on her studies in primary school and junior high school. She was spotted by Yu Huimin at the age of 24, which was the era of the Cultural Explosion in 1984. Under the impact of Hong Kong, Taiwan culture and Western culture, mainland novels in the 1980s were brilliant. How did she emerge as a dark horse at that time and become a well-known contemporary writer?
Zhao Xiangwan never reads romance novels, so naturally he had never heard of the name Wei Lan.
In fact, Wei Lan is a well-known romance novelist in mainland China. Her writing is delicate and emotional, and her words are full of spirituality and appeal. Once you read her works, you will be immersed in them and can't help but want to walk into the book and talk about a passionate love.
The two authors who were chatting at the table behind him stood up and took their plates to get their breakfast. Zhao Xiangwan took the opportunity to take a look at them.
A man with a beard, permed hair, a jacket and bell-bottom pants, looking like a rock youth, someone greeted him and called him "Old Worm".
The other one wore gold-rimmed glasses, was gentle and refined, tall and thin, and was called a "nerd" by others.
The old man is the one who gossips in a low voice, and the nerd is the one who joins in the fun and acts as the supporting actor.
Lao Chong took a bunch of food, filled his plate, sat back at the table and started to eat, complaining as he ate.
"As far as I'm concerned, living is the best way. Fame, wealth and fortune are all fleeting. With Wei Lan's death, she has no children, and all the revenue from the publication of her works will go to Boss Yu. Then Boss Yu will use her money to marry someone younger and prettier, and enjoy a wonderful life, while she will suffer alone in that world. Sigh... If she had known this would happen, why did she do it?"
Zhao Xiangwan nodded secretly.
According to the basic principle of homicide, whoever is the beneficiary is the suspect. Therefore, it cannot be ruled out that Yu Huimin hired a killer to commit murder.
According to the idea of revenge killing, it is not ruled out that Yu Huimin's ex-wife committed revenge killing.
Of course, who killed Wei Qingfen still needs further investigation.
The possibilities for murder vary.
It could be an internal fight among members of the Writers Association, leading to murder out of anger; it could be an uneven distribution of profits among publishers, leading to murder out of passion; it could be a loyal reader who became disillusioned with his ideals, leading to murder out of impulse.
In short, the death of a well-known writer in Luo County, and his murder in a hotel where a provincial writers' association was hosting an annual meeting, leaving behind millions of dollars in property and countless copyrights, must have been a headache for the Luo County police.
The nerd didn't eat much. He just ordered a fried egg and a piece of toast. He spread the jam on the toast with a knife, took a few bites slowly, and sighed.
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