Chapter 23: Please
◎I came here to apologize◎
Zhao Qingyun had a hard time.
From being suddenly invited to the Public Security Bureau by the police, to the hotel waiter identifying him, to the issuance of an arrest warrant, Zhao Qingyun felt as if he was falling into a fog, trapped in a huge net and unable to escape.
At first, when the police asked him whether he knew Weng Pingfang and what his relationship with her was, he denied having an improper relationship with Weng Pingfang, insisting that it was just because the Left Bank Café was near the provincial party committee compound, so he would go there from time to time and chat with Weng Pingfang occasionally, and his relationship with her was just that of an ordinary customer and waiter.
Even though the waiters at Tianranju Hotel collectively identified him as the man who dated Weng Pingfang every time, Zhao Qingyun still denied it, saying that they had identified the wrong person, and instead accused the police of intentionally misleading and smearing his innocence.
Until Xu Songling took a photo of the scene in front of him and shouted: "There is male semen in the body of the deceased. The Provincial Department's Criminal Technology Center has the most advanced DNA fingerprint testing equipment. It only takes three days to get the matching results. Do you admit it now, or wait for the results in three days?"
The interrogation room was cold and solemn. The eight large characters on the wall, "Leniency to those who confess, severity to those who resist," carried a strong sense of oppression. Zhao Qingyun looked down at the photo of Weng Pingfang, whose face was blue and lifeless. Regret and pain made him hold his forehead with both hands and lower his head, which had been held high.
"Yes, it's me. I am Weng Pingfang's lover."
After saying this, he suddenly put down his hand, raised his head and said in a loud voice: "I didn't kill her! I didn't kill anyone! After I met her, I took a shower and left the hotel. She was fine at that time. If you don't believe me, you can ask the taxi driver with license plate number Xiang A544. I took his car and paid a deposit of 20 yuan to ask him to pick me up on time at 11 o'clock."
Zhao Qingyun was very cautious. He had been dating Weng Pingfang for such a long time that even his bedmate Wei Meihua didn't notice anything. Renting or buying a house would leave traces, so Zhao Qingyun thought a hotel was the best choice. They only met occasionally, and it wouldn't cost much.
When he went to the hotel to meet his lover, he never used the car provided by his company.
Generally, you should find a taxi temporarily to avoid being targeted.
The body was found at 9am on January 12, and according to forensic analysis, Weng Pingfang died between 10pm and 12pm on January 11. Zhao Qingyun said he left around 11pm, but although there was a driver's testimony, it could not serve as an effective alibi.
If no new clues emerge, Zhao Qingyun will be the biggest suspect in the murder case.
Zhao Qingyun knew that the situation was not good, and his mood fell to the bottom.
When Wei Meihua saw Zhao Qingyun, although he was dressed neatly, his spirit seemed to have been completely drained away. His beautiful eyes were surrounded by dense wrinkles, and he looked ten years older in an instant.
Wei Meihua held her handbag tightly with both hands, and her knuckles began to turn white, but she still did not let go.
The two looked at each other, Zhao Qingyun looked away and remained silent.
Wei Meihua bit her lips tightly until she could taste blood in her mouth. Then she let go and asked in a hoarse voice, "Why?"
Zhao Qingyun's eyes had been unconsciously lingering on Wei Meihua's handbag. When he heard Wei Meihua's question, he closed his eyes and replied after a long while: "I'm sorry."
Wei Meihua's voice was filled with suppressed anger: "I'm sorry? What's the point of saying sorry! We have been married for so many years, and you have been able to stand at this height now. Don't you know how much my family has helped you? I gave birth to your children and took care of the housework for you, and in return you say sorry?!"
Zhao Qingyun raised his head suddenly, and his tone became stiff because of his irritability: "I don't deny that you have contributed a lot to this family, but, don't tell me that I have contributed nothing? We are a family, and only when I am well, can we all be well. Now I have been inexplicably involved in a murder lawsuit, and you still want to blame me at this time, is there any meaning?"
Wei Meihua heard that he was still so strong, and she couldn't help but get angry: "Don't blame you, do you want me to reflect on myself? I didn't fulfill my responsibilities as a wife, so I let you go out and find a wild woman! You really have no taste for the wife of a waiter from the countryside, an ordinary salesperson in our construction machinery factory."
Zhao Qingyun saw that his wife didn't grasp the main point, and was always brooding over his cheating, not caring about the murder case at all. He couldn't help but feel anxious - does this woman have any brains? Human life is at stake, and now his life is almost in danger, and she is still talking about finding a wild woman and having bad taste!
Zhao Qingyun took a deep breath, rubbed his eyebrows with his hand, and tried to soften his voice.
"This is indeed my fault. It has nothing to do with you. You are a good mother and a good wife, and you have fulfilled all your family responsibilities. I was on the wrong track and was seduced by that woman. I am very sorry. Now I am involved in this murder case. I don't know who is behind this and wants to put me in an unjust situation."
Wei Meihua finally regained her senses. Oh, yes, the most she could do with her work style was to be demoted and criticized by her unit, but if someone killed someone, she would have to pay for the crime. Once the crime was proven, the whole family would suffer. The most important thing now was not to let Zhao Qingyun be charged with murder.
"This matter is a bit serious, because my work style may affect my career. I have called my father and asked him to communicate with the provincial party committee leaders to see if they can only give me an internal party punishment and try to keep my current position."
Wei Meihua sneered, "You are dreaming. You were taken away by the police directly from the provincial party committee. The influence of your unit is very bad. I don't know how many people are gossiping behind your back. Ruan Wenlun has been eyeing the position of secretary-general for so long. This time he wants to step on you when he sees you in trouble. Now he is moving around everywhere. Do you still want to keep your current position? You are lucky not to be fired!"
Zhao Qingyun sighed: "Forget it, the most important thing now is to clear the charge of murder. I don't know who planned it, to kill someone and then frame me. I can't get out now, and I can't investigate. Can you help me?"
Knowing that her husband had cheated on her, Wei Meihua was filled with hatred and wanted to beat and scold him. However, in the interrogation room, she saw that he now had white hair on his temples, his eyes were dull, and his words were full of pleading. For some reason, she softened her heart.
"You really didn't kill him?"
"Of course! We have known each other for such a long time, don't you know me? If I want to get rid of this woman, I have a hundred ways to do it, why should I kill someone myself?"
Wei Meihua remained silent. Zhao Qingyun was a cautious person who would go to a hotel dozens of kilometers away to meet a lover and never stay overnight. He was very careful about his reputation and it was impossible for him to be so reckless and impulsive.
"Then... who do you think harmed you?"
"It was either Weng Pingfang's lover or my political enemy. Wei Guoqing might have done this to vent his hatred for having his wife stolen. He killed his cheating wife to vent his hatred and threw the dirty water on me, making me a scapegoat, killing two birds with one stone. It could also be Ruan Wenlun. I don't know how he found out that I had a lover and deliberately set a trap for me."
"Wei Guoqing? Impossible. He is a salesperson at our construction machinery factory, an honest man. He is diligent in his business, but he can't even say a complete auspicious phrase when toasting at the dinner table. If he didn't have a good alcohol tolerance, I'm afraid he wouldn't be able to get many orders. I met him several times at the company. He always smiled and was friendly to everyone. He never argued with anyone."
"It's either him or Ruan Wenlun. This bastard is a smiling tiger. He is warm and considerate to me in front of me, but secretly he wants to trample me to death. He found out that I have a lover, but he didn't report it. Instead, he took the opportunity to kill people and frame them. He wants to kill me directly!"
Wei Meihua was overwhelmed when she heard this.
When it comes to playing mahjong, buying bags, and buying clothes, she has a lot of ideas. How to split the cards, how to eat the cards, how to win the game, she is good at it. What color and style of bag to match with what kind of clothes, how to dress when shopping, how to be dignified and elegant when attending a meeting... She is very good at these and never gets tired of it.
But investigating a case? How could she understand that?
"Well, I'll talk to my dad and ask him to help me."
"I called your father. He's old and has been retired for so long, so I can only look for old connections and try to get a heads up from the provincial and municipal bureaus. But my case is now in charge of Xu Heimian, who is a very ruthless person and very difficult to deal with."
"What should I do? Should I check and ask on my own? How would I know what to ask?"
"Let Chen Yang go find Zhou Jingrong and ask the Xu family to help. Xu Qingxi is a cautious and steady kid. If he comes forward to contact them, maybe he can find out something."
When Wei Meihua heard the three words "Zhou Jingrong", she became furious.
Zhao Chenyang is engaged to Xu Qingxi, and is in a hot relationship with her future mother-in-law Zhou Jingrong, but Xu Qingxi is a little lukewarm towards her. What's the point of this damn girl just trying to please her mother-in-law? The key is to win the man's heart.
"Don't mention the Xu family! I called the Xu family before I came here, but no one answered. I don't know if it was intentional or unintentional. Chen Yang said that Xu Qingxi went to the south as soon as the winter vacation started, and I don't know what he was busy with. None of them can be trusted!"
Zhao Qingyun originally thought that he had enough power to arrange everything even in the Public Security Bureau, so that he could clear his name as soon as possible. But after talking to his wife, he found that when the tree fell, the monkeys scattered, and he couldn't even find anyone to save him after he got into trouble.
Despair enveloped Zhao Qingyun like a black mist, making it hard for him to breathe.
Seeing him in low spirits, Wei Meihua angrily continued, "No one can be trusted! Especially our good daughter."
趙青雲嘆了一口氣：“晨陽只有些小聰明，沉不住氣，這件事指望不上她。”
魏美華說：“我沒說晨陽，我講的是趙向晚那個掃把星！剛才我在辦公室見到過來實習的她，她和抓你的許警官是一夥的，見到我裝作不認識，一臉讨債相。”
趙向晚！實習？
趙青雲仿佛看到一線曙光。
他急切地身體前傾，一把抓住魏美華的手：“對，找趙向晚！我聽說她是許嵩嶺的徒弟，又和重案組的人關系很好。還記得四季大酒店見到的那群人嗎？全是重案組的人，許嵩嶺非常維護她。讓趙向晚幫忙查，一定能找出真兇，還我清白。”
魏美華一把甩開他的手，臉頰被鉛筆尖劃破的地方隐隐作痛。
“別提她！她就是沒良心的白眼兒狼。我就算沒有養過她一天，好歹也生下了她，生恩大過天。可是你看她那個讨債鬼的樣子，好像我們欠了她幾百萬一樣，連個好臉都沒有。她肯定早就知道真相，可是見了面什麽也沒有說，把我們當空氣，這樣的女兒，我要不起！”
趙青雲的心跳陡然加快，再也顧不得自尊與面子，壓低了聲音對魏美華說：“美華，我們生了她沒錯，但是沒滿月就把她丢下也是真，她心中對我們有埋怨很正常。有埋怨是好事，這說明她對我們還有期待是不是？你對她好一點，說話柔和一點，真心實意待她，她自然就會和我們貼心是不是？”
魏美華若有所思。
趙青雲趁熱打鐵：“你看啊，現在我們有求于她，她又有這個能力，我們當然要放低身段和她結交。你和我以前拜訪領導的時候，哪一次不是遷就、迎合、讨好？你就當她是一個我們要搞好關系的上級，一切不就簡單了？”
魏美華不情願地偏過頭：“我剛剛才把她得罪，現在讓我去求？我到底是生下她的親媽！我張不開這個嘴。”
趙青雲說：“美華，算我求你了，為了我……你忍忍好嗎？趙向晚讀的是公安大學，才大一就能進入重案組實習，這說明什麽？說明她有真材實料，是個刑偵人才。咱們有現成的自己人不求，難道還要去求不知底細的旁人嗎？”
魏美華依然不願意。
趙青雲有些急了，恨不得扒開魏美華的腦袋把自己的想法塞進去。
“我現在非常被動，人明明不是我殺的，但卻成了唯一的犯罪嫌疑人。萬一警方偷懶不認真查，真有可能下半輩子交代在監獄裏。如果我坐牢，就算我們兩個離婚你也落不着好，承祖更會受到牽連。現在唯一能夠幫助我們查案的，就是趙向晚。你是她親生母親，有什麽張不開口的？直接說就是。只要她願意幫忙，肯定可以讓許黑臉多花心思認真查案。”
魏美華聽着有道理。她的确動過離婚的心思，但現在大家都是一條繩上的螞蚱，誰也跑不脫。她能夠在建機廠當辦公室主任，悠閑自在地打麻将，還不是因為有趙青雲撐腰？如果他倒下了，恐怕她再也沒辦法過現在的好日子。
想到這裏，魏美華咬着牙說：“好，我去求她！”
有些事情說起來容易做起來難。
雖然魏美華決定開口央求趙向晚幫忙查案、洗刷趙青雲的罪名，但剛剛趾高氣昂地罵她翻臉無情，現在卻要自己放下身段來說軟話，魏美華感覺臉有些發燒。
趙青雲剛剛起步的時候，魏美華也曾陪他送禮、求人，乖巧話她會說，拍馬屁她也會做。可是後來趙青雲一步步高升，都是別人來家裏送禮，人前人後魏美華聽到的都是順耳的話，她都差點遺忘應該如何放低姿态。
糾結來糾結去，魏美華從審訊室出來之後一直在重案組門口走廊徘徊。
屋內，許嵩嶺與組員們正在開會。
“從目前來看，趙青雲嫌疑最大，但作案動機不明。他本人也只承認與翁萍芳有長期不正當男女關系，11號晚上與她在酒店呆了三個小時，否認殺人。”
“哼！避重就輕。我看，人絕對是他殺的。至于原因……翁萍芳當了他兩年情人不滿意，想要轉正上位，所以兩人有了矛盾争執。趙青雲為了不影響自己的前途，所以動了殺心，以永絕後患。”
“他當然不會承認自己殺人，殺人償命呢。一開始他連情人關系都矢口否認，要不是有DNA檢測技術，他連服務員集體指認都能說是認錯了人，嘴可真硬！”
“有沒有一種可能，翁萍芳又有了新的情人、或者不想再和他交往，拿他們之間的關系威脅他達到某種目的，總之吧……他們兩人地下情玩了兩年，總會出點問題。激情殺人，很正常。”
證據擺在眼前，趙青雲想要擺脫嫌疑，除非發現1月11日晚上十點到十二點之間，還有其他人進了天然居酒店的2103房間。
但是詢問過酒店員工，這個時間點大多數已經下班，只留下前臺兩個值夜班的，都沒有留意到有人員進出。
重案組的組員們你一言我一語地讨論着，許嵩嶺打斷大家的話，提了一個建議。
“DNA檢測結果只能證明趙青雲是最後一個與死者發生關系的人，酒店員工的話只能證明趙青雲與死者有長期情人關系，但趙青雲是不是殺人兇手還需要更多的證據。我們分成兩組，一組尋找案發當晚2103隔壁房間的住戶，詢問十點之後有沒有聽到異常的響動，争取找到新證據。
另一組走訪翁萍芳的愛人、公婆、朋友，理順她的社會關系，對她與趙青雲的關系進行整理，尤其是翁萍芳的愛人，他雖然有不在場證明，但還是要仔細核對，畢竟……他有充足的作案動機。
別忘了，警察的使命是一種責任，預防、制止和偵查違法犯罪活動是我們的職責。刑偵就是找事實、擺證據，以偵破案件為主旨，絕對不能放過任何一個罪犯！”
聽到這裏，趙向晚擡眼看着許嵩嶺，若有所悟。
趙青雲是她的親生父親，這對案件偵破并沒有影響。
如果趙青雲是兇手，那就讓法律來制裁他，但如果不是他……也要把隐藏的兇手揪出來，還他一個清白。
“吱呀——”
虛掩的門被推開，魏美華探頭進來。
朱飛鵬立刻起身攔住她：“抱歉，我們正在開會，請你出去。”
魏美華擠出一個僵硬的笑臉：“那個，我找一下趙向晚。”
朱飛鵬嘲諷一笑：“怎麽？剛才罵得不過瘾，還想繼續？”
辦公室裏坐着一屋子穿警服的人，清一色的橄榄綠，魏美華有些眼花，一下子沒有找到趙向晚，只得對朱飛鵬讨好地笑了笑：“那個，我是過來道歉的。”
趙向晚轉過頭來，魏美華看到她那張蘋果小臉，眼睛一亮，沖她招了招手：“趙向晚，你出來一下，我和你說說話。”
【哪有當媽的低三下四來找女兒的？我也是命苦！趙青雲不要臉地在外面養情人，我還要替他擦屁股。可是現在……為了自己、為了承祖，總不能讓趙青雲坐牢吧？只能舔着臉來求她。唉，早知今日，何必當初。如果見到她的時候多給點笑臉，快點把她認下來，或許這孩子現在也不會這麽記恨我們。明明是從自己肚子裏生出來的孩子，怎麽就認錯了呢？唉……】
聽到魏美華心中所想，趙向晚站起身，走到門口：“什麽事？”
再一次與親生女兒面對面站着，魏美華的感覺與往日不同。
也許是發現趙晨陽關鍵時刻不抵用，也許是因為有求于趙向晚，魏美華覺得眼前的親生女兒眉眼秀美、神态堅毅，雖然冷冷淡淡，這讓惶恐了一天的她忽然之間有了底氣。
“那個，你爸……他不是殺人兇手。”
趙向晚淡淡道：“我爸是趙二福。”
魏美華被刺得差點跳了起來，她深吸一口氣，努力壓制着自己的脾氣：“好吧，趙青雲。趙青雲不是殺人兇手，他不可能做出這種自毀前程的事情，他是被人陷害的。陷害他的人有可能是潘國慶，也有可能是省委的阮溫倫，請你幫忙查一下，還他清白。”
“好，我知道了，你回去吧。”趙向晚明白她的來意之後，沒有再出言刺激。現在魏美華是嫌疑人家屬，她的話或許能夠為警方提供線索。
潘國慶、阮溫倫，這兩條線應該跟一下。
第一次見到趙向晚的态度如此平和，魏美華有些受寵若驚：“向晚，你爸……嗯，青雲說你大一就能進重案組實習，肯定是個優秀的刑偵人才，以前我們有做得不對的，請你大人大量不要計較。這一回，我們只能拜托你了。”
趙向晚嘴角微微一勾，自己的親生父母真是最現實的人。
When you dislike her, you call her "Zhao Xiangwan", when you beg her, you call her "Xiangwan". When she is useless, you throw her aside, and when you find that she is useful, you come over and say soft words to her.
It is true that belated affection is worth less than grass.
Zhao Xiangwan said calmly: "The police will naturally get to the bottom of this case."
Perhaps because she was used to Zhao Xiangwan's cold face, when she heard her say that she would get to the bottom of the matter, Wei Meihua immediately breathed a sigh of relief and thanked her repeatedly: "Xiangwan, thank you, thank you."
This time, Wei Meihua's attitude was no longer arrogant, and her smile was no longer a "rectangular smile" that only reached the corners of her mouth. Instead, it was an even smile with the orbicularis oculi muscle involved, which pulled the wrinkles from her nose to the corners of her mouth and the smile lines around her eyes. It was a sincere smile.
[Luckily I have a daughter to help me, otherwise I really don’t know who to ask for help. ]
At the same time, the voice in his mind echoed, making Zhao Xiangwan lower his eyes and no longer look at the smile on Wei Meihua's face.
At this moment, thinking about the arrival of their daughter Zhao Xiangwan, their biological parents felt so realistic.
Zhao Xiangwan walked back to his seat and said to Xu Songling, "Captain Xu, I want to meet Zhao Qingyun."