Chapter 9 Uniforms

◎You were born to do this!◎

Xu Songling nodded to Zhao Xiangwan and said, "Make bold assumptions and verify them carefully. It's good that you think so. We have considered this possibility before, but we did not identify a female suspect during our investigation."

He turned around and lectured Zhu Feipeng: "In the criminal investigation process, the most taboo is to avoid inertial thinking! Have you forgotten the March 24 case two years ago? Wasn't the murderer who dismembered the body a woman?"

Zhu Feipeng shrank his neck in embarrassment: "Yes! Captain Xu."

Along the way, Xu Songling talked and Zhao Xiangwan listened, and gradually the entire outline of the case became clearer and clearer in Zhao Xiangwan's mind.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Hong Kong and Taiwan songs and mainland hits were everywhere, and karaoke halls were very popular in cities. Holding a microphone, facing a TV screen, singing along with the MTV playing in the VCR, with lights swaying around and people dancing on the dance floor, how could such a feast for the eyes not make young people who have experienced a cultural desert yearn for it?

As one of the most luxurious karaoke halls in Xing City, the three Karaoke halls opened by Wang Qiankun are all located in places with the highest concentration of young people, such as schools and factories.

In addition to a dozen small private rooms where guests can entertain themselves, the hall outside is equipped with a dance floor with flashing lights, and a band of seven or eight people can play songs at any time.

Wei Lili and Gu Xiaoling were frequent visitors to the Yan Yang Dance Hall.

The two girls were at the same age as flowers, they were good at singing and good-looking. Wei Lili was tall and gorgeous, while Gu Xiaoling was pure as water. They were very famous in Yan Yang and gradually became familiar with the boss Wang Qiankun. They sang, drank tea and ordered snacks for free. Occasionally, if a customer gave them flowers, they could get a share of the profits.

In order to provide convenience to the patrons who come to listen to the music, the karaoke bar will prepare some cheap plastic flowers tied into a bouquet. Each bouquet costs ten yuan and is sent to the stage to give flowers to the singers they like, just to have some fun.

Wei Lili and Gu Xiaoling originally came to the karaoke hall just because they liked singing, and gradually they liked the flowers, praises and flattery in the hall. When they found that they not only did not have to spend money on singing, but could also make money, they became even more reluctant to leave and became addicted to it.

There is no mechanical work or boring study here, no parental admonitions or teacher criticisms, only beautiful music, men of all kinds, as well as praise, recognition, applause and flowers. It is better than the unit and school in every way. Therefore, Wei Lili and Gu Xiaoling would like to go to the Yanyang Dance Hall to play 300 nights out of 365 days a year.

Wei Lili enjoyed Wang Qiankun's pursuit very much. Although this man in his forties had a wife and children, he was rich and generous, and always gave her enough face in front of others, which greatly satisfied her vanity.

After the two had a brief romance, Wang Qiankun turned to pursue Gu Xiaoling, which made Wei Lili very unhappy. The drama of two women and one man lasted for half a year, and the arrival of Wu Shengli quickly reversed the situation.

Wu Shengli was a singer invited by Wang Qiankun to stay in the hotel. He looked like the pop star Fei Xiang. Fei Xiang's song "A Fire in Winter" in the 1987 Spring Festival Gala became a hit all over the country. Wu Shengli's curly hair, tall stature, white skin and deep eye sockets just fit the current aesthetic standards. He was immediately welcomed by all the guests.

Wei Lili and Gu Xiaoling were also fascinated by him.

Wu Shengli has good luck in love and has always accepted all who come to him. He enjoyed the favor of the two girls and married them one after another. Although he said sweet words, none of them came into practice.

The two men and two women remained entangled like this for half a year until the two girls suddenly disappeared, which ended the farce.

At this point, Xu Songling was clearly not used to these romantic affairs, and sneered: "The two girls disappeared for half a month, but Wu Shengli and Wang Qiankun didn't even look for them. I don't believe it if one of them didn't kill them!"

Zhu Feipeng added: "Maybe it was a conspiracy between the two of them."

Zhao Xiangwan was puzzled: "What was the motive for murder? Wu Shengli was hugging her left and right, and Wang Qiankun spent money to buy her affection. Everyone was willing, so how could he have the intention to kill?"

Xu Songling never expected that Zhao Xiangwan, who was only 18 years old, could actually say such words as "hugging girls left and right, spending money to buy love". He felt guilty for no reason and was afraid that Zhou Qiaoxiu would blame him for corrupting the students.

He clenched his right fist and put it to his lips, coughing heavily: "Well, you are still young, you don't understand that it is easy for love to turn into hate between men and women, especially this kind of deformed love triangle."

After saying this, Xu Songling thought for a moment and took the opportunity to give the young people a serious education, "So, girls should be clean and not be too vain."

Zhao Xiangwan knew that he meant well, and nodded seriously, then changed the topic to the murder case: "Have you investigated Wang Qiankun's family?"

Xu Songling: "Wang Qiankun was born in 1950. His hometown is Maoye Township, Yuezhou County. He and his wife Cao Caiyan are from the same hometown. They have two daughters and one son. The eldest daughter is 18 years old, the second daughter is 16 years old, and the youngest son is 10 years old. We have all met his wife. She is chubby and always smiles when she sees people. She is just an honest and simple rural woman."

Zhu Feipeng spat: "The three children at home are still living a life of luxury outside. This Wang Qiankun is not a good person!"

Xu Songling: "Such nouveau riche has almost zero sense of morality. He came from the countryside to work, and in less than ten years he established himself in Xing City and opened three karaoke bars. His hands are definitely not clean."

Zhu Feipeng: "Even if he didn't kill the person, I will find out everything about him!"

“Bang!”

Xu Songling raised his hand and slapped Zhu Feipeng on the back of his head, saying unhappily, "Who are you pretending to be?"

Zhu Feipeng shrank his neck and begged for mercy, "Captain Xu, I was wrong, I was wrong."

Zhao Xiangwan ignored their quarrel to show their intimacy and continued to ask, "Where are Wu Shengli's family members?"

Xu Songling: "Wu Shengli's parents were both from rural Hunan Province. He had six brothers and sisters, and no one cared about him. In 1983, he was recruited to work in the locomotive section of Xingshi Railway Station and became a mechanic. Later, because he was handsome and a good singer, he quit his job and started performing for money."

"What conflicts did the two deceased have with Wu Shengli and Wang Qiankun?"

Hearing this question, Xu Songling and Zhu Feipeng looked at each other. Xu Songling probably feared that Zhao Xiangwan's ears would be polluted, so he remained silent for a long time, thinking about how to put it appropriately.

Born and raised in the countryside, Zhao Xiangwan was much more mature than Xu Songling imagined because she had the ability to read minds at an early age. Perhaps Xu Songling thought that she was only 18 years old and too young, and that it was inappropriate to mention words like cohabitation and abortion, but Zhao Xiangwan had already heard it.

She sighed, raised her eyes and met Xu Songling's gaze, and said calmly, "Officer Xu, I am a student majoring in criminal investigation."

Xu Songling understood, and with a wry smile he explained the whole story.

The story is basically this: Gu Xiaoling and Wu Shengli were living together and got pregnant. If the school found out, she would definitely be expelled. The customers of the karaoke bar said that she often argued with Wu Shengli for a while before her death, probably asking for money for an abortion, but Wu Shengli turned around and had a hot affair with Wei Lili and refused to give her any money. Gu Xiaoling was so angry that she said she wanted to kill the couple, and it is not ruled out that Wu Shengli took the initiative.

As for Wang Qiankun... he gave Gu Xiaoling 1,000 yuan to accompany her in getting an abortion, and took advantage of the situation to take her body. The relationship between the four people is very delicate. One second they love each other to death, and the next second they want to kill each other.

Hearing this, Zhao Xiangwan said: "If the victim was only Gu Xiaoling or Wei Lili, then Wu Shengli and Wang Qiankun both had motives to kill. However, in such a four-way relationship, it does not make sense to kill two women at the same time."

Zhu Feipeng: "Maybe he originally only wanted to kill one, but he was exposed and had no choice but to kill the other one."

Zhao Xiangwan shook his head, not agreeing in his heart. If it was a murder in the heat of the moment, why behead the person? Cases like this where the person beheaded and dumped the body were either caused by deep hatred or extreme viciousness, and rarely occurred in the emotional entanglement between men and women.

But she was smart enough not to say anything. The two people in front of her were both criminal investigation experts with rich experience. If they hadn't had no other choice, they wouldn't have come to her, a freshman. Once they met the suspects and heard what they were thinking, they would naturally know the result.

The police car drove into the Xing City Public Security Bureau.

There was a sound of hurried footsteps along the office corridor, mixed with curious voices.

"Have they arrived? Have they picked them up?"

"Has Zhao Xiangwan, who Captain Xu has praised countless times, arrived?"

"Here she comes, that girl has really bright eyes! I finally see her in person!"

There were quite a few people from the Public Security Bureau, more than a dozen of them gathered around her, and Zhao Xiangwan felt a little uncomfortable. She pursed her lips, put her hands behind her back, lowered her eyelids, stood properly, and let everyone's eyes pass over her.

Olive green uniforms, golden shields, national emblems... the sacred and solemn Public Security Bureau made Zhao Xiangwan feel relaxed. If all went well in the future, she would also become one of them. There was nothing to be nervous about.

Xu Songling waved his hand with a straight face: "Go, go, go, don't gather together."

He turned his eyes and picked out a slender young female police officer from the crowd: "He Mingyu, take Zhao Xiangwan to change into a uniform, and bring Wang Qiankun to interrogate immediately."

He Mingyu agreed, smiled and stretched out her hand to Zhao Xiangwan: "Come on, little sister, I'll take you to change clothes."

After changing into a neat police uniform, Zhao Xiangwan carefully adjusted her collar, cuffs, and trousers. He Mingyu circled around her and exclaimed, "Zhao Xiangwan, you were born to do this! You look so heroic in the uniform."

Zhao Xiangwan is tall, with a slender waist and thin and flat shoulders. He looks frail in casual clothes, but once he puts on the tall olive green police uniform, his whole demeanor becomes extremely eye-catching.

It is tall, strong and graceful, just like a pine tree standing in the snow.

Even standing among a group of public security officers wearing the same uniform, Zhao Xiangwan is still the most handsome one.

Zhao Xiangwan put her braids on top of her head, put on a wide-brimmed hat, looked at Senior Sister He Mingyu, who was five years older than her, and took a deep breath: "Senior Sister, take me to see the suspect."

He Mingyu led the way and asked quietly, "Junior sister, our Captain Xu praised you endlessly, saying that you taught yourself the behavioral theory of experts from the United States when you were just a freshman, and created a theory called micro-expression behavior. You can also use this theory to identify whether the other party is lying. Is it true?"

Zhao Xiangwan never thought that he would be praised by Xu Songling for just showing off his skills: "I was just guessing, it's not as good as Officer Xu said."

He Mingyu waved his hands: "Don't be modest. We criminal police deal with criminals every day. Isn't it to identify lies and seek the truth? Our country's criminal investigation technology is still relatively backward. If you can really come up with a micro-expression behavior study, it will be a great contribution!"

A glimmer of light seemed to shine into Zhao Xiangwan's heart.

Micro-expression behavior studies? If she had only had a vague idea before, now this idea was slowly sprouting in her heart.

In the cold interrogation room, Wang Qiankun confronted Xu Songling and Zhu Feipeng.

Across an iron table, Wang Qiankun leaned back in his chair, his hands folded, his expression very relaxed. Seeing two pretty policewomen coming in from the door, he whistled and looked at Zhao Xiangwan frivolously: "Hey, I haven't seen this little policewoman before. Is she new?"

Zhu Feipeng stood up and slapped Wang Qiankun's shoulder with his right hand: "Behave yourself!"

Wang Qiankun grimaced in pain, and then he became a little more obedient, but his eyes were still glued to Zhao Xiangwan. He was also a frequent visitor to the Public Security Bureau, and he would always pay more attention to new faces.

Xu Songling used his body to shield Zhao Xiangwan, handed her a notebook and pen, pursed his lips, and motioned for her to sit aside and take notes.

Zhao Xiangwan didn't say much. He just sat quietly aside and began to observe the suspect in front of him: Wang Qiankun.

Fat and greasy, this was her first impression. He was not tall, but he had a big beer belly, three layers of chin, and thick fat squeezed his facial features into a ball. He wore a gold necklace around his neck and gold rings on his fingers. When he grinned, two big gold teeth were exposed, and the aura of a nouveau riche came over him.

His eyes were cloudy, his eyes were gray, his breathing was heavy, and it was obvious that he had been drained of alcohol and sex and was very weak.

Zhao Xiangwan's gaze moved away from Wang Qiankun's face, and he lowered his head to read the transcript carefully.

The interrogation had just begun, and I only asked a few routine questions such as name, gender, age, etc., and did not reveal any information.

Xu Songling didn't say anything, his eyebrows knitted into a line, secretly thinking about how to pry open Wang Qiankun's mouth. He had been invited to the city bureau to cooperate with the investigation three times, but each time it ended in nothing. Wang Qiankun was the big boss of the karaoke bar and a frequent visitor to the police station. He had his own way of dealing with police interrogations. He talked about irrelevant issues and glossed over the key information. He seemed to have no ulterior motives, but in fact he was ruthless.

Zhu Feipeng stood behind Wang Qiankun, his eyes fixed on Zhao Xiangwan's trembling eyelashes. He thought this girl was just average when he first saw her, but he didn't expect her to be so beautiful in a police uniform.

No one spoke for several minutes.

Snow-white walls, grey concrete floors, tall windows with cold iron railings…the silence in the interrogation room made the air solemn.

Wang Qiankun was not used to the sudden silence, so he forced a smile and broke the silence: "Comrade police, I admit that I had affairs with Wei Lili and Gu Xiaoling. I have bad behavior and have had promiscuous relationships with both men and women. I plead guilty. But I really don't dare to kill someone!"

Xu Songling had seen many people like this and leaned back in his chair.

"Think it over before you reply."

Zhu Feipeng placed one hand on Wang Qiankun's shoulder and exerted a little force.

Half of Wang Qiankun's body was numb and painful from being crushed, but he didn't dare to cry out in pain, so he could only beg for mercy: "Comrade police, comrade police, I really didn't kill anyone, go ask Wu Shengli, it must be that guy who did it. Gu Xiaoling is pregnant with his child, but he refused to admit it and even refused to pay for the abortion..."

Seeing Wang Qiankun start to pull Wu Shengli, Xu Songling shouted: "Answer whatever I ask you!"

Wang Qiankun shrank his neck, smiled awkwardly and closed his mouth.

Xu Songling and Zhu Feipeng continued with the process, and asked Wang Qiankun questions about his social relationships, his whereabouts before and after his death, his relationship with the two deceased, etc. Wang Qiankun had answered these questions countless times and was familiar with them. He complained for himself while answering, without revealing any flaws.

However, the repeated interrogations made Wang Qiankun gradually irritated, and a crack finally opened in his heart, revealing his vicious side.

[Damn it, Wu Shengli is such a murderer. Not only did he make me pay for an abortion, but he also killed someone and sent me to jail. I robbed Huang Jiarong, the Shanxi coal boss, and I was already involved in a murder case. Now the police are holding on to me. It's so damn unlucky!]

When Zhao Xiangwan heard this, his heart sank. He quickly wrote two lines of words and sent them to Xu Songling.

Xu Songling glanced at it and his eyes narrowed immediately. It said: Ask in detail about his history of making a fortune.

Xu Songling stood up and gave up the judging position, and said to Zhao Xiangwan: "You ask the questions." Instead of asking the questions himself, it would be better to hand over the leadership to Zhao Xiangwan. He also wanted to see the magic of Zhao Xiangwan.

Zhu Feipeng opened his mouth but said nothing. He Mingyu looked at Zhao Xiangwan excitedly and pushed her excitedly: "Captain Xu wants you to go, so go!"