Chapter 7: First clues
Xin Xiao glanced at him with a look that only Ji Feng could understand.
"Xin Xiao and I have discussed this. We should not stick to the same old routine. We should open our minds. No matter whether the cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice, it is a good cat, right, Captain Jiang?" Ji Feng said.
"Well, that's very good. We should boldly liberate our minds and find new ways," Jiang Bo added.
"In addition, we need to continue to dig deeper into Shen Zhaoran's social circle. I always feel that as a businessman, Shen Zhaoran's circle cannot be too small. After all, he is a businessman. Since he is doing business, there will inevitably be conflicts of interest, and he may offend someone in other aspects. These may become motives for the crime."
"I have arranged for Comrade Ji Chuan to investigate, including his call records, social circle, and any possible conflicts," Jiang Bo added.
"Although it hasn't been fully investigated yet, based on the current results, his social circle is indeed very small, and there are no valuable clues. I guess it's useless even if we investigate everything." Ji Chuan replied angrily.
"Yeah, if there were any clues, they would have found it long ago. Why wait until now?" Gu Xiaozheng looked dejected.
Xin Xiao glanced at Gu Xiaozheng from the side.
Ji Feng suddenly felt like he was giving a lecture at a college and said, "To put it in a more theoretical way, everything is developing and changing. The same clue may produce different results at different times, in different places, and under different circumstances. Therefore, I don't think it is futile to check the same clue over and over again. This has also been verified by practice. I hope everyone can understand." Ji Feng explained patiently.
"You're a university professor, after all! We can't even understand such advanced theories, haha." Gu Xiaozheng said sarcastically. The other team members also laughed awkwardly.
"For example, Lan Ruojin's previous mental state may have undergone subtle changes over time. Perhaps he didn't want to speak at the time, or he didn't dare to speak, or he might have expressed himself inaccurately. Of course, it could also be the other way around, where he could speak before but can't now. In short, human thought is very complex, and we must have sufficient understanding."
"Captain Ji said it very well. I fully agree with it. Everyone here should also learn from it with an open mind." Jiang Bo said in a somewhat official tone.
"Now, let me sort out the case." Jiang Bo continued.
"There's no clear-cut grudge or emotional entanglement between Shen Zhaoran and Lin Wantang to support the inference of revenge or passion. Therefore, Captain Ji and his team, using the logic of 'the biggest beneficiary', have temporarily pinned their suspicions on the Lan family. The case has been preliminarily determined to be murder for money."
His tone grew deeper, each word clearer. "The on-site investigation results are questionable. Various signs indicate that the crime scene was most likely staged. This is precisely the main reason we're reopening this case."
"If the scene was indeed fabricated, then there must be someone behind it. And Lin Wantang is most likely just a scapegoat pushed to the front." Jiang Bo's inference was nodded in agreement by the others.
"If this series of inferences is correct, then this case is no longer a simple murder, but a premeditated and organized murder for the purpose of profit."
He took a deep breath and spoke firmly, "To summarize, the Lan family is most likely the mastermind behind this, and Lin Wantang is a pawn being used. Of course, this conclusion is based on the premise that the aforementioned assumptions are true."
"Therefore, the next step in our investigation will be to verify the authenticity of these hypotheses one by one. I understand that this path to solving the case may not be completely correct, but in the absence of current clues, we can only resort to this method of reverse deduction to uncover the truth of the case."
Ji Feng leaned back in his chair. "Captain Jiang has laid out our previous and future investigation ideas very clearly. I want to point out that although these are all assumptions, they are not completely groundless. I agree with Captain Jiang's approach."
Xin Xiao: "I agree with this line of thought, and I hope that in the process of solving the case according to this line of thought, we may find other unexpected gains. After all, the Lan family is not only a direct stakeholder, but also a relative, so they are at least very familiar with the situation."
"Daji, Xiaozheng, and Qin Tian, you three were so eloquent just now, but why did you all fall silent when talking about the case?" Jiang Bo stared at the three of them.
"I can't reason, so how dare I express different opinions?" Gu Xiaozheng said sarcastically.
"That's right, I'm just a bricklayer, a waste." Ji Chuan added.
Qin Tian stretched out his voice: "I will follow your instructions."
The three of them were talking in a sarcastic tone, as if they were performing a two-and-a-half-line scene.
"Also, there's one more thing." Ji Feng said without even raising his eyelids. Jiang Bo was about to lose his temper, but after seeing Ji Feng's reaction, he temporarily suppressed his anger.
"A wealthy man was murdered inexplicably. There are many doubts about the alleged murderer, and the Lan family, the people directly involved, are reacting in an unusual way."
Ji Feng paused briefly, glancing at everyone's reactions. They seemed to be waiting for him to elaborate. He continued, "According to normal reasoning, when a family member was murdered, the wealthy and powerful Lan family should either disagree with the original case or actively request a complete reopening of the investigation. However, neither of these actions occurred. This isn't normal."
Jiang Bo nodded silently, agreeing with Ji Feng's statement. He then added, "Even if the couple's relationship wasn't great, they shouldn't react like this. It's definitely not in line with the Lan family's usual style."
"Captain Jiang, based on my responsibility for the case and rigorous logic, I think there is another possibility." An idea suddenly flashed through Ji Feng's mind.
"Speaking."
“Maybe there’s no human element at the scene.”
When Ji Feng said this, everyone glanced at him. Ji Feng quickly explained, "What I mean is that maybe Lin Wantang is the real murderer, and there's no one behind the scenes. Because if they weren't professional killers, ordinary people would panic after killing someone and rush to leave the scene. They wouldn't bother to clean up the scene, let alone fake it. So the scene is the real scene. As a first-time offender, it's not surprising that Lin Wantang didn't bother to clean up the scene."
"Of course, this requires the premise that Lin Wantang has sufficient motive to kill. However, at least we haven't found such a motive yet."
"The reason I say this is that I don't want to miss any details or any possibility, so that the case investigation can be more rigorous. There is no other meaning." Ji Feng knew that Jiang Bo might feel uncomfortable after hearing this, so he quickly explained.
"Captain Ji's logical thinking is indeed rigorous. We are ashamed of ourselves." Before Jiang Bo could speak, Ji Chuan said sarcastically.
Ji Feng seemed to have been prepared for this, and ignored Ji Chuan's sarcasm, and continued, "So, before we find out Lin Wantang's motive for murder, I suggest that we put this possibility aside for the time being. Instead, we should conduct an in-depth investigation according to Captain Jiang's previous ideas." Ji Feng glanced at Jiang Bo and said.
Jiang Bo nodded and continued, "I agree. Also, I would like to add one more thing."
"If the Lan family is behind this, then the so-called murder for wealth is after Shen Zhaoran's inheritance and company shares, not the Thuja spice ornaments lost at the scene. Although the latter is valuable, it is not on the same order of magnitude as the former. Everyone should understand this."
"Yes. After the incident, the Thuja spice ornaments will definitely be seized as stolen goods. No matter who is behind it, this should be common sense." Ji Feng replied.
"Captain Ji, do you have anything to add?" Jiang Bo raised his hand and looked at his watch and asked.
"Regarding the Lan family as the focus of our investigation, I would like to talk about some specific measures for the next step." Ji Feng glanced at Jiang Bo.
Jiang Bo nodded and signaled Ji Feng to continue.
"First, contact Lan Ruojin as soon as possible to find any clues about the relationship between the Lan family and Lin Wantang. Second, ask Brother Chuan to continue to investigate Shen Zhaoran's social connections, including his business partners, and any possible relationship between him and Lin Wantang. After all, we can't 100% rule out a murder of passion or revenge. Third, it is recommended that the Lan family be placed under 24-hour surveillance from now on."
"I agree, but don't alert the Lan family during the surveillance. The Lan family has a certain influence in this city and is very familiar with the city leaders, so as to avoid any complications. If there are no objections, let's split up and disband the meeting."
"By the way, Captain Jiang, after the meeting I'd like to see the interrogation transcript. I didn't see it in the archives before."
"You go and have a look. I've already finished and returned. By the way, when I was reading the transcript yesterday, I remembered that Shen Zhaoran had a close relationship with a cultural relic expert named Zhou Wenlan, an appraisal expert at the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau. During the previous investigation, I called and visited him many times, but was unable to meet him. Since the case was closed, we haven't contacted him again. You can contact this person again."
"Zhou Wenlan?" Ji Feng and Xin Xiao looked at each other. They knew that it should be the person Li Min was talking about.
So Ji Feng said, "Is he from the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau? I was just looking for his contact information. I'll contact him right after the meeting." Xin Xiao quickly wrote down the key information and thought to himself that Zhou Wenlan might be able to provide new clues.
Jiang Bo nodded. "Yes, from the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau. Captain Ji, you're getting into character really quickly."
Ji Feng curled his lips into an uninhibited smile, "Captain Jiang, you're too kind. I'm actually carrying two gambling agreements."
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