Chapter 51 He should be somewhere along this road...
Guan Xia was completely free. Xu Nian had just closed his last case and was given two days off, but he only rested for the morning. Just after lunch, he received a call from Director Ren, who was in charge of criminal investigation at the branch.
"The Municipal Public Security Bureau has set up a special task force," Director Ren stated directly. "It's for the 129th case in Xicheng District in 2021. They've mobilized police officers from across the city, and your squadron is on the list."
Xu Nian had anticipated this day last night after learning what Guan Xia and the others had uncovered. He wasn't surprised. "Okay, I'll gather the entire team now and report to the West City Branch."
"Do your best," Director Ren urged. "Be careful."
After hanging up the phone, Xu Nian sent a message to everyone in the squadron group, and then set off for the Xicheng Branch.
I found a spot to park the car and waited for only ten minutes before everyone arrived.
"What case is this, Captain Xu?" Qi Bai asked, his hair standing up, looking like he'd just woken up. He stroked it vigorously with his hand. "The last case was in Xicheng District, and this one is again. We really have a connection with Xicheng District, huh?"
"Case 129." Xu Nian glanced at the few people, made sure everyone was there, and led the way into the building.
Qi Bai hurried after him, thought for a moment, and said, "Case 129? The one where a family of four was murdered? What new clues have been discovered that even called us here?"
Qi Bai looked back as he spoke, and saw that the Xicheng District Branch, which was usually quite deserted, was very busy today. The small parking lot was almost full, but cars were still driving in.
As he climbed the stairs, Xu Nian briefly explained the situation. "A caring citizen provided a very important new clue. We've now identified a major suspect, but besides this person, there are also two other people who are inextricably linked."
Qi Bai was stunned. "So, it was one person who did it, but there are probably two accomplices?"
Wang Yu said, "No wonder they've mobilized so many people. With three suspects, that's a lot of work."
Jiang Yingyao keenly grasped another key point, "Enthusiastic citizens? What enthusiastic citizens?"
Qi Bai's attention was instantly drawn to him, and he muttered, "Why did I subconsciously think of Guan Xia when I heard these four words?"
Xu Nian didn't say anything. They had already reached the second floor and found the task force's office.
The office door was open. When Xu Nian and his companions were about to go in, a group of people were about to come out. They quickly made way to the side. When they looked at each other, they found that they were all acquaintances, so they greeted each other hurriedly before going in.
"Director Liu, Mr. Zhuang," Xu Nian called out, "We're here."
"Xiao Xu is here," Deputy Director Liu, who is in charge of criminal investigation at the Municipal Bureau, said to them, "You've come just in time. Xiao Zhuang has a lot of tasks waiting to be assigned."
Zhuang Yinghua didn't bother reminiscing about the past. He simply handed Xu Nian a stack of documents, a few photos, and a solid-state drive. "Your team is responsible for reconstructing the third person's movements on the day of the crime, and also for finding as much connection between him and Zhang Weiyan as possible."
Xu Nian glanced down at the printed photo and asked Zhuang Yinghua, "Have you found out the identity of this third person?"
Zhuang Yinghua said: "This man's name is Lu Manqing, he's 33 years old, from Jianyang City, and he owns a billiard hall called Dianjiangtai that has been operating."
Xu Nian nodded to indicate that he understood, "Then we'll get back to work, Mr. Zhuang."
Zhuang Yinghua responded and assigned tasks to another team of personnel who had come to report.
A few people left the office. An office clerk was waiting there and immediately came over and said, "Captain Xu, the office prepared for you is over here. Follow me."
I followed the office clerk to the new office, which was a temporary converted conference room. All the original office supplies were moved away, turning it into a row of desks. The desks were put together in fours, barely enough for a team to use. At this time, many colleagues who were transferred here had gathered in teams to discuss tasks.
Xu Nian looked around and found a seat in the corner. Although there were only four tables, there were many extra chairs.
Everyone pulled out a chair and sat down. Qi Bai, still struggling with his hair sticking up, looked at Xu Nian and asked, "Captain Xu, where do we start?"
Xu Nian distributed the printed photos according to the number of people before saying, "Let me first talk about the specific situation. There are currently three suspects in the 129 case. The first is Zhang Weiyan, the nephew of the deceased Zhang Hongda. Although the two are related by blood, they have deep resentment and have sufficient motive to commit the crime. The second is Feng Xingping, a 27-year-old male from Taoyang City. On the surface, he has no relationship with Zhang Weiyan, but there are eyewitnesses who say that Feng Xingping once asked Zhang Weiyan if he wanted revenge and asked him to help him. These words are extremely criminal. The third is Lu Manqing, a 33-year-old male from Jianyang City, who was mentioned by Zhuang Da just now. He appeared in a surveillance camera one kilometer away from the crime scene at 1:36 am on the day of the crime on January 29, 2021, which was very close to the time of the crime. And similarities were found in Feng Xingping and Lu Manqing."
Xu Nian flipped through the information and found two pictures. He pushed them to the middle of the group and said, "This is it. It's a pendant on Feng Xingping's body and a tattoo on Lu Manqing's left hand. It has the same pattern. Xicheng District has already checked this pattern. It belongs to a character in a very popular game called the Angel of Judgment."
Qi Bai opened his eyes wide in surprise. "Wow, this case is really complicated. It seems that Feng Xingping and Lu Manqing are very likely in cahoots."
"Angels of Judgment?" Wang Yu said, "The judgment of justice over evil? I didn't expect these two to be so childish."
Jiang Yingyao asked, "What was the cause of death in Case 129? This Lu Manqing is from Jianyang City. He traveled across several cities to Yongquan City to commit murder. He was first seen in the surveillance video one kilometer away from the crime scene. This shows that he is very familiar with the environment around the crime scene. Either he visited the area beforehand to avoid the surveillance cameras within one kilometer, or he had help from locals."
"No wonder Zhuang Hui asked us to investigate Zhang Weiyan together," Qi Bai said, "Isn't Zhang Weiyan a local?"
"The four victims in the 129 case were all stabbed in the heart by a sharp weapon," Xu Nian said. "They were killed with a single blow. There were no other injuries."
"Wow," Qi Bai yelled again, "He's an experienced hand, which means he has more than four lives on his shoulders."
Xu Nian thought for a moment and said, "Well, let's split up. Brother Jiang and Wang Yu will stay behind to watch the surveillance video, while Qi Bai and I will investigate when Lu Manqing arrived in Yongquan City, what transportation he took, and the source of the murder weapon."
Several people agreed, "Okay."
Leaving Jiang Yingyao and Wang Yu at the Xicheng District Branch, Xu Nian took Qi Bai out.
The two people worked non-stop and did not return to the temporary office until almost dawn.
The entire Xicheng District Branch was still brightly lit, with police officers constantly coming in and out. There were still several people in the temporary office who had not left work and were watching the surveillance cameras intently.
Jiang Yingyao and Wang Yu were also watching the surveillance video. After watching for an entire afternoon and half a night, their eyes were sore and swollen. While putting eye drops in their eyes, they asked Xu Nian, "Captain Xu, did you find anything over there?"
Qi Bai poured water into disposable cups for himself and Xu Nian and said, "Captain Xu and I have been running around all day and finally found out that Lu Manqing arrived in Yongquan City on the afternoon of the 28th and left at noon on the 29th, flying both ways."
"My goodness, this schedule is really tight," Wang Yu said. "He came in the afternoon of the 28th, killed someone just a few hours later in the early morning of the 29th, and then left again at noon on the 29th. He didn't even get any sleep."
Xu Nian drank the water in the cup in one breath and asked Jiang Yingyao, "Brother Jiang, what about you guys? What did you find?"
Jiang Yingyao leaned back in his chair, trying to stop the eye drops from dripping, and spoke with a hint of fatigue, "We've found that before the incident on January 29th, Zhang Weiyan frequently appeared near the crime scene, looking around at every intersection and even facing the cameras several times. He was clearly trying to locate them."
"Then there's no escaping," Qi Bai said with certainty: "Zhang Weiyan scouted the area, and Lu Manqing killed people. These two are working together."
"But there's a problem," Jiang Yingyao said. "We still don't know how the two people contacted each other. I asked the Xicheng District Police Station's office to check Zhang Weiyan's call records for the month before the incident. They didn't find anything unusual. I verified the identity of each caller and checked the duration of each call. Most calls were under a minute. If the two really were in contact by phone, one minute wouldn't be enough time to describe the surrounding circumstances of the scene."
"Maybe they've met in private?" Wang Yu guessed, "Or maybe online. We can check Zhang Weiyan's social media accounts."
Xu Nian suddenly asked, "Where's Zhang Weiyan's wife's number? Have you checked it?"
Jiang Yingyao replied, "I've checked. Zhang Weiyan didn't cancel the number after his wife died, but he didn't use it again. Aside from some harassing calls, there's no record of him making outgoing calls."
Xu Nian sat down on the chair next to Jiang Yingyao. "Then we can only follow Lu Manqing's movements in Yongquan City. However, Lu Manqing has strong anti-detection capabilities and is very cautious. I guess it is highly likely that he has not met Zhang Weiyan privately."
"Well, we have to split up again," Qi Bai thought of something and suddenly felt a pain in his face. "We haven't found the source of Lu Manqing's murder weapon yet, so we have to check their social media accounts again."
"Let's get some more people here," Jiang Yingyao said to Xu Nian, "see if we can transfer some auxiliary police officers from our squadron. With just the four of us, it'll take forever to investigate."
Xu Nian nodded and said, "Okay, I'll call Director Ren."
After reporting the need for manpower, Xu Nian sat down at the desk opposite Jiang Yingyao, closed his eyes for a while, and watched the surveillance video.
It can be seen that the Xicheng District Branch was really busy last night, and copied almost all the videos from the surveillance cameras that could be found within five kilometers of the crime scene.
Xu Nian asked about the progress of Jiang Yingyao and Wang Yu, and then allocated some to himself and Qi Bai.
No one spoke. For a moment, the temporary office was silent, with only the occasional clatter of keyboards and mice. The four of them stared blankly for a long time, until Wang Yu suddenly shouted excitedly, "Captain Xu, we've found something."
This sentence immediately broke the silence in the office. The police officers in other areas looked at it with some envy, and then continued to look at their own.
Xu Nian, Jiang Yingyao and Qi Bai almost jumped up and moved closer to Wang Yu's position.
"Look," Wang Yu rewinded the surveillance video, "at this intersection, Lu Manqing is carrying a backpack."
Wang Yu finished speaking and cut to another surveillance video, fast-forwarding it a bit before pausing it again. "But when he got to this intersection, his backpack was gone."
All three of them frowned. Xu Nian glanced at the surveillance video time, which was 2:43 a.m. on January 29th. After thinking for a moment, he said to Wang Yu, "Play that video again."
Wang Yu cut back and replayed the video. When the figure appeared in the surveillance video again, Xu Nian took a look at the surveillance time. It was 2:05 on January 29.
"Which two intersections are these?" Xu Nian asked.
Wang Yu said, "The first one is the intersection of Qianjin Street and Pingcheng Road, and the second one is the intersection of Pingcheng Road and Binhu Road. These two intersections are not far apart, less than two kilometers. An adult man walking at a normal speed should be able to reach them in about 20 minutes."
"But Lu Manqing walked for almost 40 minutes," Jiang Yingyao observed, astutely. "Plus, the backpack suddenly disappeared from his body. He must have disposed of the murder weapon somewhere along this stretch of road."
"It's not just the murder weapon," Xu Nian said, standing up straight. "The forensic autopsy report shows that the four victims in Case 129 were all fatally injured by the same weapon. Their deaths were all caused by piercing the heart, and they were stabbed from the front. When the murderer pulled out the weapon, blood would have spurted out. But look at Lu Manqing's body; there's no trace of blood. This means he either changed his clothes after committing the crime, or he had something else to cover himself when he committed the crime."
Qi Bai and Wang Yu racked their brains, almost saying in unison, "Raincoat! Lu Manqing was very likely wearing a raincoat when he committed the crime. This would also explain why he was carrying a backpack instead of just putting the murder weapon in his pocket."
Jiang Yingyao suddenly picked up the thermos on the table and walked over to the water dispenser to fill it up. Facing the three pairs of eyes looking at him, he smiled and said, "Let's go. Looks like we won't need to sleep tonight. Luckily, I had the foresight to bring some red dates and wolfberries in advance this time."
Qi Bai gave a thumbs-up and quickly grabbed his phone, opened the food delivery app, and looked around. "There's a fast food restaurant near the Xicheng District Police Station that's still open. We'll happen to pass by it on our way to Qianjin Street later, so we can grab a few burgers or something."
Wang Yu also took out a bottle from his bag and said, "I brought mosquito repellent. Let's spray it later."
Xu Nian thought for a moment and took something out of his pocket. "I just brought a few pieces of chocolate. If you get hungry during your walk tonight, you can share some."
Jiang Yingyao and Wang Yu laughed. Qi Bai scurried over and grabbed two pieces. He handed one to Wang Yu and shoved the other into his mouth after hastily removing the wrapper. He mumbled, "Captain Xu, why didn't you tell me you had chocolate earlier? I figured I'd take today off, so I stayed up all night playing games to level up and didn't go to bed until almost dawn. I received the message at noon, so I just had some cookies and came here. I've been hungry all day."
Jiang Yingyao watched Qi Bai wolfing down his food and slapped him on the back of the head in annoyance. "I told you to stay up late. Did you learn your lesson this time? Don't forget that we are criminal police. Even on vacation, we are on call 24 hours a day. Don't waste time if you can sleep."
Qi Bai smiled foolishly and nodded vigorously, "I remember, I will never stay up late again. If I want to play, I will play during the day."
Wang Yu frowned at Qi Bai, hesitated for a moment, and handed the chocolate to him.
Qi Bai was touched, "Xiao Wang, you are so good."
Wang Yu rolled his eyes in disgust, and Xu Nian and Jiang Yingyao couldn't help laughing when they saw this.
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