Chapter 35 Chapter 35 Not everyone in the provincial department is good, either...
Jiangtan City Bureau’s Serious Crime Squad One.
early morning.
The huge office was filled with an indescribable smell. Five or six aluminum pots and lunch boxes were piled on the desk in the corner, with unfinished braised eggs and noodle soup still floating in them.
Cheng Mo and Xiao Wu, who had been busy all night, curled up on a simple bed made of several tables, snoring one after another and sleeping soundly.
As for the only duty camp bed, it was given to Ye Qing who also worked overtime all night next door.
Ji Yinhe tiptoed in, gently opened the window latch, and ventilated the room.
Looking down from here, you can just see someone running around the flower bed in the backyard of the Municipal Bureau downstairs.
Looking closely, it turned out to be Lu Zheng, who was still full of energy after not sleeping all night.
Although it was mid-autumn, he probably felt too hot and took off his coat. The white mercerized cotton T-shirt underneath was blown up by the wind and stuck tightly to his body as he ran, revealing his delicate and firm muscle contours.
Ji Yinhe let out a long sigh in his heart.
This guy looks gentle and weak, but I didn't expect he has such a good physique!
After admiring the man's beauty for a few seconds, she stepped back from the window, silently sipping the bag of soy milk, while picking up the notebook on Xiao Wu's desk and copying the physical evidence clues and trace examination conclusions found by everyone after she left yesterday onto the blackboard.
Ji Jianguo and Lian Qiao came back together last night. They were talking and laughing, and looked in a good mood.
She observed for a long time without making any expression, but she didn't see any clues on Old Ji's face.
In addition, Lu Zheng said that the person who called had a dull voice and phlegm - that was even more inconsistent with her speculation.
Ji Yinhe could only put this thought aside for the time being and return to the physical evidence in Feixun Dormitory.
Ye Qing and the technical team collected some fingerprints in the room, but after checking all night, they all came from Qi Hang himself.
As for the white powder they found on the cuffs of the jacket - although Lu Zheng highly suspected that it was a new synthetic drug similar to narcotics, the equipment in Jiangtan was not advanced enough to conduct accurate testing, so Director Rao reported to the provincial department and Cui Bin, the captain of the third team who was mainly responsible for drug control, sent the jacket to Jingzhou for further inspection.
There were also two witness drivers who confirmed that Qi Hang had a close relationship with the ceramic factory owner and that Qi Hang often disappeared on Wednesday afternoons.
Ji Yinhe carefully circled several key points, held his chin and thought seriously, and finally drew a wavy line under Ding Tongguang's name.
At first glance, apart from buying Dupont lighters and asking Qi Hang to deliver the goods, he has no connection with other evidence.
——But is he really not suspicious at all?
Su Yue, a lady from a wealthy family, actually got involved with a drug seller. Could this be related to Ding Tongguang?
Policeman Xiao Ji’s brows furrowed more and more.
Bang--!
The office door was pushed open heavily, and Tang Ci strode in with a sullen face. He looked at the two people lying on the table who were awakened by the shock, with a look of disappointment on his face.
"What time is it, and you're still sleeping?" He slapped the back of the chair hard with his palm.
Xiao Wu and Cheng Mo sat up in panic.
Cheng Mo jumped down from the table. "Old Tang, why are you so angry? We barely slept last night. We only closed our eyes for a short nap when it was almost dawn... Who would have thought it would be time to go to work already—"
Tang Ci's aura was like a dark cloud pressing down on the city. "Where's Lao Che?"
"Captain Tang, I don't know either!" Xiao Wu pulled at his hair, which had become a mess from sleep, and screamed when he saw Ji Yinhe, "Xiao Ji, when did you get here?"
"...It's been a while." Ji Yinhe explained kindly, "I didn't see Deputy Che, but Teacher Lu has arrived and is jogging downstairs."
"Teacher Lu didn't leave until three in the morning!" Xiao Wu couldn't help but give a thumbs up, "That's amazing!"
Tang Ci pressed his solar plexus and became irritated when he heard Lu Zheng's name.
Just now, Rao called him to the office and told him about the anonymous phone call. He planned to let Lu Zheng and Ji Yinhe cooperate with the third team to dig deeper into Gong Xie's drug trafficking.
Although Tang Ci agreed, he felt very upset.
He didn't have many subordinates to begin with, and Che Zhiwen had been elusive these days, and now two of his capable men had been taken away.
Moreover, the Qingyi River corpse case, which was originally under the jurisdiction of their team, became a major drug trafficking case that they jointly investigated with the third team.
If the situation is true, it will take years just to track down the upstream and downstream parties, and it will be difficult to get results in the short term.
The most important thing is that he has not been able to meet Ji Yinhe alone.
"Xiao Ji..." Tang Ci called Ji Yinhe into the inner room of the office, took a deep breath, and looked at her hesitantly, "Should we find a time--"
"Captain Tang, you're not thinking the same thing as me, are you?" Ji Yinhe's eyes sparkled as he looked at him in surprise. "Ding Tongguang! I also think he needs a thorough investigation! Shall we go today?"
“…” Tang Ci slowly exhaled the breath in his chest.
He didn't understand whether Ji Yinhe didn't understand his implicit meaning or was deliberately interrupting because she didn't want to talk about private matters in the office.
But since she is focused on solving the case, he has to follow her example and put his captain's responsibilities first in his heart.
As for matters of the heart, let’s wait until the case is over before we talk about it.
"Yes, Ding Tongguang." Tang Ci lowered his head and slowly gathered the documents on the table. "I remember when we handled the last case, your mother had a good relationship with the Su family, right?"
Ji Yinhe nodded in confusion.
"The higher-ups recently issued a document prohibiting cases based on personal connections, so you have to avoid suspicion. Logically, the same applies to me because of Tan..." Tang Ci feigned nonchalantness. "Leave the Ding Tongguang line to Cheng Mo and Xiao Wu. Director Rao asked you and Teacher Lu to cooperate with Team Three to investigate Gong Xie's drug trafficking. Is that a problem?"
"no problem!"
After Ji Yinhe agreed loudly, he thought of the relationship between Old Ji and the Gong family and couldn't help but touch his nose guiltily.
On the other side of the office, Xiao Wu was trembling with fear from Tang Ci's anger just now. He had already gone to hide in the cafeteria under the pretext of washing up and having breakfast.
No matter how old Cheng Mo was, he stood calmly outside washing the pots and pans for the midnight snack, and heard the conversation between the two people inside clearly.
Therefore, when Ji Yinhe came out from the inner room, he saw that he had quietly dialed Ding Tongguang's number.
"—Hello, is this Ding Tongguang? I'm Detective Cheng Mo from the Serious Crime Squad of Jiangtan City Police Station."
Not knowing what the other party said, Cheng Mo frowned, held the receiver away for two seconds, and waved to Ji Yinhe.
Comrade Xiao Ji ran over quickly.
Ding Tongguang yelled on the other end of the phone, "Officer Cheng, have you found where Xiaoyue is? Can you give me an address? I don't have any other intentions, I just want to pick her up and take her home. She's a girl and doesn't have any skills. I'm worried about her-"
Ji Yinhe clicked his tongue and shook his head. The paranoid ex was so scary. No wonder Su Yue wrote to her and asked her to keep her address secret!
Cheng Mo took a deep breath, "Miss Su is an adult, she has the right to decide where to live."
"Officer Cheng, you've never been a parent, so you can't empathize with them! Uncle Su and Aunt Chu have been particularly heartbroken during this time. They've aged several years, and I can't continue working as a sales manager at Uncle Su's company. I know she's unwilling to forgive me, and it's even more impossible for us to become a family, but as long as I can bring Su Yue home safely—"
Ji Yinhe listened to Ding Tongguang's hypocritical words and forced herself not to roll her eyes.
No wonder he is in such a hurry, it’s for his own job!
Good-natured Cheng Mo couldn't stand it any longer and interrupted, "Mr. Ding, my call has nothing to do with Miss Su's case... It's like this: there's a case recently where I need you to provide relevant clues - a Dupont L1 gold-plated lighter I bought at the New Century Plaza. Do you remember it?"
"Yes!" Ding Tongguang answered frankly, "What's wrong? Can't I buy a lighter?"
"Of course." Cheng Mo asked, "Do you still have the lighter?"
"No, to be honest, I'm just an ordinary citizen and can't afford such an expensive brand... I bought it as a gift!"
Cheng Mo and Ji Yinhe's eyelids jumped. Cheng Mo quickly asked, "Who did you give it to? When did you give it to him?"
"I gave it to Uncle Su." Ding Tongguang answered as a matter of course, "Let me think about it, I bought it before the New Year this year, and I didn't even open the packaging. I went to the Su family to pay New Year's greetings on the first day of the Lunar New Year and gave it away directly with the New Year's goods."
Ji Yinhe found the list of Xinbai Building and glanced at the sales time at the back.
——January 22, 2006, the 22nd day of the twelfth lunar month, it really matches!
She nodded at Cheng Mo, who said solemnly into the receiver, "Okay, one more question. During your time working at Su He Company, did you ever ask Feixun Company to deliver goods for you?"
"...Feixun?" Ding Tongguang thought without hesitation. "Right? There are only a few transportation companies in Jiangtan. Their assistants helped to contact them. I didn't ask about this specifically."
"Got it." Cheng Mo wrote a few words on the paper, "Thank you for your cooperation."
Ding Tongguang, however, launched into a series of follow-up questions: "Hey, hey, comrade police officer, what happened to the lighter? What big deal happened at Feixun Company?"
"I can't tell you this for now." Cheng Mo explained patiently.
"Alright, don't tell me anything. You won't even tell me where Xiaoyue went!" Ding Tongguang complained. "Our taxpayers' money is being wasted like this..."
Cheng Mo listened silently for two seconds, then hung up the phone with a thud.
Ji Yinhe couldn't help but applaud, "Brother Cheng's attitude is worth learning from!"
*
Although Ding Tongguang said that the lighter was given to Su He, it does not mean that his suspicion has been completely ruled out.
Tang Ci planned to let Cheng Mo and Xiao Wu go to the Su family under the pretext of following up on the case to verify whether Ding Tongguang had lied.
Ji Yinhe, Lu Zheng and several people from Team 3 met in the director's office to discuss how to get involved in Gong Xie's case.
Rao Zhenghao’s suggestion was: since Team One had been investigating the case previously and had a clear understanding of the evidence and clues, Team One should still be the lead in the next step, while Team Three would cooperate and provide personnel and technical support.
Team Three had long been accustomed to the lazy pace of handling cases, and since Captain Cui Bin happened to be away, they happily agreed immediately.
Half an hour later, a low-key black Santana quietly parked on the side of the main road of Jinghu Villa.
Looking inside the car through the dark windshield, there were two good-looking faces staring at Gong Chenggong's villa without blinking.
According to common sense, if Gong Xie’s drug trafficking is indeed true, then after Qi Hang’s death, he must have needed a new channel to deliver the goods.
There are police officers at Feixun Company and the dormitory these two days. Even if he is very brave, he will not dare to hang around there.
The ceramic factory is managed by Gong Chenggong and Gong He. As a large local private enterprise that has transformed into "Chenggong Ceramics", a large number of reporters will come to interview it today, and it is not a place where Gong Xie can act rashly.
In addition, comrades from the branch and police station reported that Gong Xie had not left his home since last night.
So Ji Yinhe and Lu Zheng immediately made a decision and went directly to Jinghu Villa to keep an eye on them.
This is the first time that Comrade Xiao Ji has set foot in the newest and most luxurious villa area in the city.
It is said that the developer of Jinghu Villa is a boss from Hong Kong. He was attracted by the geographical location and development potential of Jiangtan and spent a huge amount of money to buy this land. He also included the naturally formed Jinghu Lake and the slightly raised Hushan Mountain on the back, creating a landscape view that is close to the mountains and water and has excellent feng shui. It is deeply loved by businessmen.
There are even wealthy businessmen from provincial capitals and Shanghai who come here specifically to buy houses for investment.
As the owner of one of the top ten local restaurants, Lian Qiao was also stuffed with flyers at the very beginning of the opening.
Although Ms. Lian and Mr. Ji have a full nest egg, they do not plan to buy a property here.
House prices are about to soar in the next twenty years or so, but unlike villas, Western-style buildings, old and dilapidated high-rise buildings, there are no planned school districts nearby, few people can afford them, and the opportunities for replacement are correspondingly much fewer.
Moreover, according to the ending of "River City Storm, Industry is King", after Gong Xie was arrested, Gong Chenggong's wife Wei Manli was very sad and committed suicide by jumping into the lake on a snowy night. Gong Chenggong then left Jiangtan to regroup, which opened the big hook of the second part of the novel.
This area of Jinghu Lake became a notorious haunted house in the city, and wealthy businessmen would rather lose money than leave.
Local rumors in Jiangtan: Some people heard sad cries coming from the lake, some saw the lake water turn red, and some people fell into the water - it is said that the female ghost trapped at the bottom of the lake will crawl to the shore in the middle of the night and randomly pull a passerby to be a scapegoat.
Later, the city government moved the new district to the suburbs, and this once popular wealthy area became completely deserted.
Of course, Lian Qiao couldn't reveal the spoilers like this when facing Comrade Xiao Ji, who didn't have a golden finger.
Her explanation was that the house in Meiqingyuan was large enough for living and had a square layout, which made it convenient for Lao Ji to go to work at the street office and for her to open a shop.
It's just a little far from the Municipal Bureau, but Comrade Xiao Ji has a bicycle, and she can ride in the wind and rain as exercise, which is not a difficult task for her as a young police officer.
At this point, Ji Yinhe felt a little embarrassed when he thought of the Giant mountain bike that was the same model as Lu Zheng's.
She rubbed her face and focused her attention on the villa in front of her.
Gong Chenggong truly deserves to be the city's richest man! His large single-family villa looks much more impressive than Su He's small Western-style house.
As the most expensive building in the entire community, the villa has a tall sloping roof, carved columns and transparent glass curtain walls. It is decorated as classically and luxuriously as a European manor. There are large courtyards in front and back, fountains slowly spewing white mist, and lush green trees even in autumn.
Although the main gate was not open, nannies and housekeepers were constantly coming in and out of the side and back doors, cleaning the yard and buying things.
Every window was covered with white gauze curtains, and no one knew which window Gong Xie was hiding behind or what he was doing.
After squatting there for the entire morning, no one from the Gong family came out of the villa.
Ji Yinhe ordered takeout from Lianjie Snack Bar and squatted in the car with Lu Zheng, eating the food brought by the helper while discussing what to do next.
"Just barging in is definitely not an option," Xiao Ji muttered, holding Boss Lian's new peppercorn-flavored chicken burger. "How about I give their cleaning lady some money and pretend to be one of them?"
Lu Zheng couldn't help laughing when he thought of her last solo action at Lijing Nightclub. "You want to catch your boyfriend this time?"
"Hmm...it really doesn't seem to be suitable." Ji Yinhe picked up a glass bottle and handed it over with both hands. "Teacher Lu, please try this. My mom said it's called Zhizhi Meimei. It's made with our Handong plum-fragrant black tea and milk. She also puts her homemade cheese sauce and salted plum pulp in it. It tastes better than the powdered drink you see at the elementary school gate!"
Lu Zheng took a sip through the straw, feeling the wonderful salty, sweet and rich taste collide in his mouth. He couldn't help but raise his eyebrows, "It's delicious! When I get back to Jingzhou, I will definitely recommend it to my colleagues and friends!"
"Great!" Comrade Xiao Ji smiled happily.
"Oh right!" Lu Zheng put down the glass bottle and picked up a leather briefcase from the back seat. "I've been living in the Jiangtan Municipal Bureau dormitory for a while. I didn't sleep last night, so I just happened to sort out some of my stuff..."
Ji Yinhe: “…”
After not sleeping all night, I still have the energy to clean the room and go for a morning run. I’m really strong!
Lu Zheng lowered his head and took out several thick notebooks from his bag.
"—These are my notes from when I audited a criminal psychology class at the Public Security University. These are the cases I copied while working abroad. This is a list of profiling books I borrowed from my seniors... If there's anything you'd like to read, give me a call and I'll borrow it from the Public Security University and the provincial government and send it to you."
Ji Yinhe took it and carefully flipped through the pages, his heart suddenly filled with emotion.
Great! Great! She wanted to see more distant places too! She also wanted to solve a major case that attracted national attention!
"And this. I sorted through Jiangtan newspapers and magazines, and interviewed several entrepreneurs from provincial departments who had dealings with Gong Cheng's family, to sort out his history of success." He chuckled. "Gong Chenggong's first half of life was quite interesting. I don't know what mysterious master guided him. He faced many difficulties along the way, but he always managed to turn danger into safety..."
Ji Yinhe looked serious, comparing the materials and listening attentively to Lu Zheng's introduction.
"It's worth noting that Gong Chenggong was already the richest man in Jiangtan during the early days of reform and opening up, but for over a decade, his business has stagnated. While he hasn't fallen from the top spot, everyone feels his vision is far less developed than it once was. His private life is a mess, and neither of his two sons are capable of carrying on the business... Almost all of the people in Jingzhou who helped him have severed ties with him."
Ji Yinhe narrowed his eyes as he looked at the clippings.
If she remembered correctly, Old Ji resigned from the Gong family in the early days of reform and opening up and went to work as a useless civil servant in the street office.
Recalling the last time at the Su family, when Su He treated Ji Jianguo as a guest of honor, Ji Yinhe suddenly had an absurd idea in his mind:
——Could this mysterious master who is giving instructions behind the scenes be her parents with mysterious backgrounds?
She quickly grabbed the French fries and stuffed a few bites into her mouth guiltily.
After enduring the most difficult time in the afternoon, someone finally came out of the Gong family villa.
But the person who came was not Gong Xie, but Wei Manli, with flowing black hair, sunglasses, a glittering gold bracelet on her wrist, and a red windbreaker that reached her ankles. She swayed as she got into an imported crown.
Ji Yinhe's gaze followed the shiny car as it left the community.
Another Cadillac came towards them and stopped in front of the Gong family villa.
As the car door opened, Gong He got out of the back seat with a cane and limped into the front yard.
"When these two cars met, there was no sign of greeting. They really don't look like a family!" Ji Yinhe crossed his arms and couldn't help but complain, "And the boss of the Gong family, how did his legs become like this?"
"Before Wei Manli, Gong Chenggong had another wife named Wu Tianxin. A descendant of revolutionary pioneers, she possessed exceptional vision and courage. She provided the initial funding for the Gong family's ceramics research and development, and gave birth to their eldest son, Gong He. However, twenty-four years ago, Wu Tianxin unexpectedly died. Just six months later, Wei Manli was married to Gong Chenggong, and four months later, Gong Xie was born."
Ji Yinhe counted on his fingers and said in shock, "Wu Tianxin just passed away, and Gong Chenggong and Wei Manli are already having an affair? What a scumbag!"
"...Yeah." Lu Zheng chuckled.
The carriage was filled with the sweet aroma of milk tea. He turned the stack of materials to the last page that Ji Yinhe had not had time to read, and said in a soft and refreshing voice:
"Gong He is capable and knowledgeable, having inherited Wu Tianxin's intelligence and talent. Gong Chenggong is grooming him as the heir to the company. However, Gong Xie has a bad temper and spends his days hanging out with his mischievous friends... Under the influence of Wei Manli's years of influence, Gong Chenggong favors Gong Xie, transferring most of his assets to his account and appointing him as the sales manager of the ceramics factory, hoping to hone his business skills."
"...Then how did Gong He get injured?"
Ji Yinhe frowned and read on carefully.
After reading the last clipping, Lu Zheng snapped the book shut and smiled at her:
"Then there were rumors... It was said that Gong He broke his right leg while riding a horse in the suburbs. A week before the incident, a letter was delivered to the study. Gong Chenggong flew into a rage after reading it, and an argument broke out between him and Wei Manli. Afterwards, someone secretly picked up the torn pieces of the letter from the trash can and pieced them together, only to discover a shocking secret written on it - Gong Xie was not Gong Chenggong's child, but the son of Wei Manli and her lover."
Ji Yinhe pondered his words and slowly analyzed, "...So, Gong Xie and Wei Manli suspected that Gong He had informed Gong Chenggong about this, and out of venting their anger and seeking revenge, they created an accident that resulted in Gong He's disability?"
Lu Zheng crossed his legs without commenting, his eyes still fixed on the villa, and slowly picked up a piece of popcorn chicken from the paper box.
"Wait, is there any evidence for this rumor?" Ji Yinhe's pupils widened, and he really wanted to go back and grab Old Ji to ask him what was going on. "Where did you get this information from?"
Lu Zheng coughed shyly, "I got a hint from Comrade Ji Yinhe. Last night, I pretended to be Gong Chenggong's business rival and bribed the messenger from Jinghu Villa to get firsthand information."
"Luckily it's you! If I had really done something like this, Captain Tang and Director Rao would have scolded me!" Ji Yinhe crossed his arms, looked at him and shook his head, "The provincial department is still the best. They have flexible ideas for handling cases!"
"Not everyone in the provincial department is good." Lu Zheng glanced at her and said nonchalantly, "Maybe I'm the good one."
"Hmm..." Ji Yinhe yawned.
After staring at a door for six or seven hours, it is hard not to feel tired, even if there is someone to chat with.
"Are you sleepy?" Lu Zheng suggested, "Why don't you take a nap first? I'll call you when the people come out."
Ji Yinhe looked around, a hint of hesitation on his face.
The carriage was small and enclosed, and next to me was a handsome guy who was only a few years older than me.
Sleeping in this kind of environment seems a bit ambiguous no matter how you look at it.
"I'm fine." Ji Yinhe forced his eyelids open. "But you, Mr. Lu, have been busy all night, doing tests, sorting materials, and pretending to be a commercial spy. Don't you really need to rest up?"
Lu Zheng didn't say anything, but stared at her dark circles for two seconds.
"Actually, I'd rather go out for a walk than sleep. My legs are a little numb from sitting for too long. If Gong Xie comes out to arrest me, I'm afraid I won't be able to run fast enough."
Ji Yinhe looked at the narrow space in front of the driver's seat and thought that his long legs were indeed a bit unfair.
"Okay, go ahead." Comrade Xiao Ji nodded seriously, "Leave this to me."
Lu Zheng put his hand on the car door and said, "I won't go far. I'll be nearby. If you want to sleep, go ahead. It will be easier for you to be alone."
After saying that, he grabbed the empty glass bottle and paper box on the center console and stepped out of the car.
Ji Yinhe blinked slowly at the tall figure outside the car window, thinking, maybe he was afraid that I would be embarrassed, so he deliberately gave me the space in the car?
This guy is quite a gentleman!
In order to live up to this thoughtfulness, Comrade Xiao Ji found a comfortable position on the passenger seat, straightened his head and closed his eyes.
After sleeping for a while, I suddenly heard a soft "bang" sound.
The driver's door was opened from the outside. Lu Zheng got in with a chill on his face. He quickly started the engine, turned on the lights, and stepped on the accelerator. He looked at her seriously and said,
"Gong Xie is out! It's the Audi in front!"
Ji Yinhe sat up straight and stared at the big black car in front of him.
She felt like she hadn't slept for long, but it had gotten dark outside without her noticing.
Under the vast night sky, a Santana followed a black Audi from a distance, speeding towards the city center where the lights were just coming on.
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