Chapter 114 Chapter 114 The real murderer always returns to the scene after the incident...
After listening to Ji Yinhe's explanation, Tan Li suddenly stood up, picked up a pen and drew a circle on the calendar on the wall next to her desk.
"—There's still a full fortnight until the night of the return." She looked worried, arms folded as she paced a few steps, her police shoes clacking against the ground. "What if another explosion happens during this time—"
"It's very likely," Ji Yinhe said calmly. "But one thing is certain: since the sanitation workers' clothes have been abandoned by Zhang San and Gong Xie in the abandoned house in Heishuiba Village, this means that their next move will definitely be a different look and method."
Tan Li took a deep breath.
"These two fugitives are smarter than we thought." The female director of the Criminal Investigation Bureau narrowed her eyes at her most capable officer. "Capture them before June 30th. Even if we can't catch them, we must ensure the smooth conduct of the Homecoming Night event and prevent widespread panic among the people... I'll leave this to you. Is that okay?"
"No problem." Ji Yinhe clenched his fists firmly. "Director Tan, I will do everything I can to complete the task!"
"Very good, get busy." A hint of satisfaction finally appeared in Tan Li's serious expression. She bent down to roll up the map on the table and handed it over. Ji Yinhe walked to the door with the documents under his arm, but was stopped again.
"Xiao Ji." Tan Li frowned slightly. "I heard that Gong Xie's other target of revenge is you... If this case makes you uncomfortable, I agree that you can withdraw at any time—"
"That's not necessary." Ji Yinhe turned around, raised his chin slightly, and laughed. "I'm not afraid. I just want to tell them loudly - if you have any tricks, just try them out."
*
Ji Yinhe was not only not afraid, she was extremely excited deep down. The blood in her body was rushing because of this unknown case and the difficult suspect, and a layer of sweat oozed out of her slightly dilated pores.
Stepping back into the Special Criminal Case Investigation Team office, she immediately unfolded the map and pinned it to the large white wall in front of her.
During the time she and Lu Zheng were training at the Tiandu Branch of Jiangtan City, the provincial department also underwent renovations, and the police equipment was greatly upgraded.
Not only is a camera with no blind spots installed on the ceiling, but the large blackboard originally used for drawing mind maps has also been replaced by a refreshing magnetic whiteboard.
Markers don't produce a lot of dust like chalk, so while Team Leader Ji was carefully copying down all the clues, the police officers who were having dinner came over with their instant noodle buckets and lunch boxes.
Guan Ye was struggling to find the braised beef slices in the cold noodle soup when he asked loudly, "Team Leader Ji, why do you think it's these circled areas?"
"Yeah!" Sun Gaoge muttered as he munched on a large bun stuffed with zucchini and wood ear mushrooms. "There's even a new Handong Pearl Plaza in the Economic Development Zone!"
"..." Ji Yinhe turned around and asked with interest, "You all saw the house where Zhang San and Gong Xie hid in Black Water Dam. Tell me, what do you think is special about it? If you were them, why would you choose to hide there?"
Guan Ye put down the instant noodle bucket and said, "I know, there are a lot of people there, and it's so lively every day, who would pay attention to two sanitation workers!"
Others followed suit.
"Yes, the more open the place is, the more likely it is to attract attention and the easier it is to be exposed." Ji Yinhe smiled, "But you are only half right - today I walked around their shabby house and found that standing in the backyard, I can overlook the roof of the Children's Palace."
Qiu Peng said, "Ah! I noticed it too! I was wondering at the time! It took me 20 minutes to drive here, but it's actually quite close!"
"That's because the roads in the old city are narrow and winding." Ji Yinhe nodded his chin at him, "But I measured the map when I got back, and the straight-line distance is only four kilometers."
"What does this mean?" Sun Gaoge looked puzzled.
"Make sure the target is within sight." Cheng Mo replied calmly, "They want to watch it explode."
"Ahhh, I get it!" Guan Ye took the plastic instant noodle fork and poked it on the paper lid with a "click". "How does that saying go - the real culprit always returns to the crime scene afterward!"
"That's about it." Ji Yinhe laughed. "So, like the Handong Pearl Plaza you just mentioned, you have to know that the Economic Development Zone is the newest district in Jingzhou. It only has square factory buildings and straight avenues equipped with cameras. There are not even any residential areas. There is no place suitable for hiding within a radius of ten kilometers. Naturally, it is ruled out as an option."
"Oh, I see!"
Everyone nodded vigorously.
Ji Yinhe hadn't finished speaking yet: "In addition, Teacher Lu also found an evening newspaper in the hut where they were hiding, tucked inside the Entrepreneur magazine."
She took the evidence bag from Lu Zheng, put on gloves, took out the dirty newspaper inside, and read the tofu block at the top -
"To celebrate Hong Kong's return to China, the Children's Palace will be hosting a series of cultural and artistic activities, such as table tennis competitions, calligraphy contests, painting competitions, and dance performances." Comrade Ji picked up another stack of newspapers on the table. "Handong Province has been placing special emphasis on youth development since this year, so these kinds of activities have made many headlines."
"You mean, Zhang Sangong Xie saw the news in the newspaper and chose the Children's Palace as the location of the first explosion?" Sun Gaoge asked.
Ji Yinhe put down the evidence in his hand and slowly paced in front of the large whiteboard. "Think about it, Zhang San has been in prison for twenty-four years now. The outside world has undoubtedly changed dramatically for him. Gong Xie previously lived in Jiangtan... In fact, they are completely unfamiliar with Jingzhou and are penniless. As my father said, they don't have any 'cash power', so the most convenient source of information for them is newspapers."
“That makes sense!!”
"Teacher Lu bought the daily, evening, and market newspapers for the past two weeks on his way back. Assuming the first condition is met, these places appear most frequently." Amidst everyone's admiring gazes, Ji Yinhe pointed to the red circle on the map again. "However, the above is just my speculation. To be on the safe side, we can't just focus on these few places."
She cleared her throat. "Gao Ge, you were transferred up from the Jingzhou City Bureau. You have good relationships with the comrades at the grassroots level. Could you please put a word in for me and ask them to send a few more plainclothes teams to strengthen patrols in high-traffic areas throughout the city... Of course, I will also go through the formal procedures and submit a report for the leadership's signature."
Sun Gaoge's smile showed off his small white teeth. "It's okay to skip the formalities! They're happy to practice their skills under you! Last time I went to Jinghai to handle a case, the deputy director of their county bureau asked me why Officer Ji went back to Jiangtan for training. They were just short of a team leader. Oh, and when he heard me talk about the delicious food you brought to the office, his mouth was watering!"
Everyone smiled knowingly. In the current Jingzhou Public Security System, the only place that could compare with Officer Xiao Ji in fame was the Jiangtan specialty - Lianjie Snack Shop!
"No problem!" Ji Yinhe waved his hands proudly. "After this case is over, I'll find a way to convince my mother to open a branch in the provincial capital. When the time comes, mention my name and I'll give everyone a 20% discount!"
"Woohoo~~" A loud cheer suddenly rang out in the office.
…
So in anticipation of the delicious food, all members of the team quickly carried out advance control work according to Ji Yinhe's arrangements.
However, three days passed and the whole city was quiet, without even a single suspicious target worthy of vigilance.
Ji Yinhe and Lu Zheng were still able to keep their composure, but Guan Ye was like a restless monkey, rushing around to several key locations with Cheng Mojiang, Nian and Qiu Peng all day long.
Because they were too nervous, they even caused several blunders, mistakenly arresting ordinary pedestrians as suspects in disguise, which resulted in the Criminal Investigation Bureau receiving three letters of complaint.
Tan Li dropped the letter on the desk with a "bang" and looked at Ji Yinhe and Guan Ye across from her. "How do we solve this?"
"Ahem, it's all my fault. Listen to me, it's mainly because those guys look so much like Gong Xie—"
Guan Ye cautiously observed the expression of the female director opposite him, and stumbled over his explanation. However, Ji Yinhe next to him interrupted, "It's my fault for not making good arrangements. Don't blame Guan Ye, but I don't think this is a bad thing."
Two pairs of eyes looked over at the same time, and Tan Li raised her eyebrows, "Oh? What do you mean?"
"If Gong Xie and Zhang San chose these three locations for the next explosion, they will definitely pay attention to these mistakes." Ji Yinhe looked relaxed. "Even if the warning letter is provocative, they won't dare confront the police so early. So, Commander, I think these three locations can be ruled out for now. Our scope of suspicion has been narrowed down again."
"..." Tan Li thought about what she said and felt that there was some truth in it.
She took out the red-circled map from last time and bent over the table to eliminate them one by one. Surprisingly, only two places remained—
"Mingguang Road Passenger Transport Terminal, and...the square in front of the train station!"
"That's right." Ji Yinhe bent down and said seriously, "Before you called me into the office just now, I had already regrouped the team and was just waiting for your order."
Tan Li felt a little relieved. "Okay, what about the students at the Children's Palace? I have a few letters from their parents..."
"The Children's Palace building won't be repaired for a while. Yesterday, Teacher Lu visited the Chengjiao Activity Center and reached an agreement on cooperation with local leaders and relevant department heads. Although it's a bit far, it avoids the factors that made the suspect choose the explosion site, so it should be very safe."
Guan Ye quietly raised a thumbs up, and Tan Li also said "hmm", with deep approval in her eyes.
But everyone's happiness did not last long. That afternoon, the guard at the door ran up, panting, holding an envelope.
"Team Leader Ji! Someone just passed by on a motorcycle and threw this into the guard booth!"
Everyone's expression changed and they rushed over immediately.
Ji Yinhe took a deep breath, took the envelope and opened it, feeling as calm as expected.
"Second notice." She closed the unfolded letter and said in a deep voice, "Same newspaper cutouts as last time. Tomorrow evening at 7 o'clock, in the square in front of the train station."
"You're right!" Comrade Qiu Peng slapped his thigh and suddenly realized, "These two are smart. They knew we had someone watching the post office, so they just threw them in directly--"
He grabbed the guard and said, "Did you catch up with the guy on the motorcycle? It's probably Zhang San or Gong Xie!"
"No, no..." the guard said aggrievedly, "How would I know they were so brave!"
However, Ji Yinhe shook his head, "Everyone knows to disguise themselves when planting explosives. This person may not be one of them."
She turned around and nailed the envelope to the whiteboard with a thud. "Since we can't catch up with them now, let's focus on this explosion... Comrades, please work hard tonight. We will hold a case review meeting tonight and launch an operation tomorrow morning to nip this terrorist attack in the bud!"
"good!!"
Everyone was ambitious and started to offer suggestions one after another.
However, no one expected that this time the explosives—
It was detonated prematurely!
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