Chapter 48 Rope Murder Case (10) Because of the rope
After sending the girl away, Xie Ling'er breathed a sigh of relief in the room: "We originally came here to investigate the bag of money found in Hu Die's room, but we didn't expect to get such an important clue by accident! The two girls know each other, and their fathers also know each other. Is it such a coincidence?"
Ma Shi Tu closed his notebook. "The county town is small, so it's normal for people to know each other. I ignored Hu Die before. She is 18 years old, an adult, and has the ability to commit crimes."
Sang Luo nodded: "We have been focusing on investigating Lan Jianguo's interpersonal relationships, but have neglected Lan Yue's interpersonal relationships. Now is the time to think about it - could it be that the perpetrator has a grudge against Lan Yue instead of Lan Jianguo?"
Xie Ling'er held up her chin: "Strange, how come Lan Yue has never mentioned such an important matter? Besides, Hu Die wouldn't kill someone for such a small matter, right? Just because she failed to ask for protection money, she killed Lan Yue's father? Doesn't she know that killing someone will lead to imprisonment?"
Sang Luo shook her head: "Maybe she didn't think that much. She is at an age when she is full of anger and she is a gangster with low moral standards. It is not surprising that she did such a thing."
Sang Luo has watched a lot of modern news and knows how cruel teenagers are when committing crimes. Many well-known cases were committed by minors.
"That's right," Xie Ling'er sighed, "Teens are at an age when they don't know the importance of things. The old saying makes sense: Like father, like son, like daughter, like rat. Children and their parents are cut from the same mold. Look, Hu Maoshan is a bastard, and his daughter Hu Die is also a bastard. Lan Jianguo is an honest man, and his daughter is also a good girl who allows others to bully her. This father and daughter are so pitiful!"
Sang Luo was startled when hearing Xie Ling'er's words. Both "hooligan" and "bastard" have the character "混" in them. So which one is the person the dictionary is trying to hint at?
Before she could think too much, Ma Shi Tu was about to lead the team back to the bureau, so Sang Luo had to follow. On the way back, they met Yuan Xiaohu. The two police cars drove back to the bureau one after another, and Hu Die was temporarily detained.
The four of them returned to the office and shared the information they had. Seeing that it was already past the end of get off work time, Ma Shi Tu proposed to adjourn the meeting and wait until tomorrow to interrogate Hu Die.
Sang Luo could understand Ma Shi Tu's feelings. The pace of the third team's solving the case was not very tight this time. After all, the investigation had reached the father and daughter of the Hu family, and the matter was half successful. The murderer could only be one of them, and Hu Die could wait for the retrial tomorrow.
But Sang Luo felt a little annoyed. A whole day had passed, and she still hadn't understood the hint given by the dictionary. Although there was a suspect in the case, there was no key evidence. Most importantly, she always felt that Lan Yue was not as simple as she seemed.
Yuan Xiaohu saw that Sang Luo had not left yet, so he stepped forward and pushed her. Sang Luo came to her senses, and Yuan Xiaohu asked her:
"Hey, why did you specifically ask me to investigate Lan Yue's alibi? Do you suspect her?"
Sang Luo hesitated for a moment, neither shaking his head nor nodding, and just said, "I hope I'm wrong."
Ever since Lan Jianguo's accident, Sang Luo felt that Lan Yue had been acting. She deliberately acted out the emotions that a girl who had lost her father should have. She was unconscious, she cried, she was indifferent, all of which were to cover up her true emotions.
Her surging hatred was hidden beneath her calm surface.
I hope Sang Luo is wrong.
Seeing that Sang Luo looked a little serious, Yuan Xiaohu simply put his arm around her shoulders:
"Okay, don't think about the case after get off work. You'll get sick easily if you're always so worried! Come on, I'll take you to relax!"
"Where are we going?" Sang Luo asked.
Yuan Xiaohu rubbed his hands happily: "This is a super delicious little restaurant, this one is also my treasure!"
Yuan Xiao□ took Sang Luo on his bicycle to the small restaurant he mentioned. It was called "Zhang Ma Pancake Shop". The shop front was not big, and there were red plastic letters on the window, with words such as "pancake" and "mixed cold dishes" written on them.
Yuan Xiaohu pushed the door open and it creaked. Sang Luo immediately felt the hot air coming towards him. The stove in the room was facing the guests. There was a pot on the stove, and golden pancakes were sizzling in the pot.
When she saw Yuan Xiaohu, the pancake-making woman put down the pancake and came over enthusiastically: "Hey, Xiaohu, you brought your friends again!"
"Yes, this is our new colleague in the criminal police team - female criminal police Sang Luo. Don't be fooled by her small stature, she is very good at solving cases!" Yuan Xiaohu introduced Sang Luo solemnly, and then said to Sang Luo, "This is Aunt Zhang. I often come here since I started working."
Aunt Zhang looked at Sang Luo, her eyes full of envy: "It's great, the times have really progressed, girls nowadays can go to school, go to work, and wear uniforms, unlike when we were young, we had nothing, and when we got old we just knew to get married."
As she spoke, she returned to the stove and continued making pancakes. Yuan Xiaohu whispered to Sang Luo:
"Aunt Zhang likes to talk about her past. She had a hard life when she was young. Just pretend you didn't hear anything. The food here is really delicious."
Sang Luo nodded, and they sat down and took off their coats. Before they ordered, Aunt Zhang came over with two plates, one in front of each of them. On the plates were golden and crispy pancakes. After putting them down, she said:
"This is fresh out of the pot, eat it while it's hot!"
Yuan Xiaohu chuckled and said, "Aunt Zhang, you know what I want to eat before I even order it."
Aunt Zhang wiped her hands on her apron. "Of course I'll tell you. You must have ordered your three favorites: pancakes, pork head, and egg soup, right?"
Yuan Xiaohu nodded, and then held out his hand again: "Two."
Aunt Zhang smiled and said, "Of course I know. Do you think I'm a fool? Wait, I'll bring it to you right away!"
Soon, Aunt Zhang brought two plates of pork head and two bowls of egg drop soup. Sang Luo first tried the pancake and was pleasantly surprised when she took a bite. The pancake was crispy, fragrant and crunchy, just like a string of small firecrackers, which kept falling into Sang Luo's mouth. She opened her eyes wide and said to Yuan Xiaohu:
“This is the best pie I’ve ever eaten!”
Yuan Xiaohu was very proud: "Of course, how can I cheat you? Believe me, I'm bringing you to a good place!"
He pointed at the pig head on the table and said, "You can eat this roll. I tell you, it's a must-try! Just eat it, and don't say a word!"
Aunt Zhang, who was standing by, also heard Sang Luo's praise. She smiled happily and kneaded the dough harder. Seeing this, Yuan Xiaohu said:
"Aunt, you're making pancakes in public like this, aren't you afraid that others will learn your secret recipe?"
Aunt Zhang looked very proud: "What are you talking about? Do you think you can make good pancakes with just flour and water? The most important thing is the ratio! My flour and water are in the golden ratio, and the fermentation time is also important. Only I know it. I have tried it many times. It is not that I succeeded in one go. If others want to learn, let them try!"
Yuan Xiaohu praised her a few more times, and Aunt Zhang's face began to look sad. Then she really started talking about her past:
"You all say that I'm an amazing craftsman, but I don't really want to be that amazing. I was forced into this. When I was little, I lived in the village and had no chance to go to school. I got married at the age of seventeen. The bastard man was a piece of shit. He would beat me every day when he was unhappy. I waited and waited until he died. I finally got through it. I packed my bags and came to the city by myself. I couldn't find a job, so I worked a lot before I learned how to make pancakes..."
She talked to herself that the diners in the restaurant were all perfunctory. It was a bit novel to hear such words for the first time, but it became annoying after hearing them too much.
After the meal, Sang Luo felt refreshed. She walked out of the door and felt confident about the case in hand again.
After returning home, she set an alarm for herself. When the alarm rang at twelve o'clock in the evening, she jumped out of bed, quickly went to the desk, and saw the dictionary turning pages automatically.
Swish, swish, the dictionary stopped at a certain page, and a word lit up -
【practice】
practice?
Many words suddenly popped up in Sang Luo's mind: practice, rehearsal, training...
Unlike the night before, the meaning of this word today was very clear, which was to repeat a certain fixed action. When thinking about the case, Sang Luo suddenly had an idea -
Aunt Zhang said at dinner today that she tried many times but didn't succeed the first time.
This is true for making pancakes, and even more so for killing people. Why did the murderer kill Lan Jianguo with one blow? How did he know that this rope could kill people?
It is very likely that the murderer had rehearsed this move in advance.
Sang Luo was delighted. As long as they had rehearsed it, there would be evidence left behind. With evidence, there would be clues to know who the murderer was.
She was only one step away from solving the case.
Time quickly came to the next day. Sang Luo came to work full of energy. Several other people also arrived one after another. After everyone arrived, Ma Shi Tu made arrangements. Today everyone was divided into two groups. One group interrogated Hu Maoshan and the other group interrogated Hu Die, trying to get some new information out of them.
Sang Luo and Ma Shi Tu were responsible for interrogating Hu Die, which was exactly what Sang Luo expected. When they pushed the door open, Hu Die was already sitting in the interrogation room. She looked listless and it was obvious that she did not sleep well last night.
"It must be hard to sleep in a detention center, right?" Ma Shi Tu spoke first. "If you cooperate with the police investigation and clear your suspicion as soon as possible, we will let you go."
Hu Die bit her lip stubbornly and lowered her head stubbornly: "I have nothing to say to you."
Ma Shi Tu took out the bag of change again: "This is the money we found in your house. You formed gangs in school, robbed classmates, and collected protection money. Do you admit it?"
Hu Die stuck out her tongue and said nothing, with an indifferent expression on her face. She knew in her heart that this was not a serious crime and it didn't matter whether she admitted it or not.
Ma Shi Tu continued, "The students who robbed with you identified you as the leader, and some people even witnessed you taking students to the back alley of the school and beating them. Do you admit this?"
Hu Die tilted her head and said nothing. She looked exactly like her father.
Ma Shi Tu simply asked, "Did you ever beat up a high school student named Lan Yue in the past month?"
Hu Die finally responded. She raised her head quickly, then lowered it again, swaying her feet:
"What the hell are you talking about? I don't even know who this person you're talking about is."
"It's her." Ma Shi Tu took out Lan Yue's photo.
Hu Die took a quick look and shook her head, saying, "I don't know him, I've never seen him, and I don't have any impression of him."
This approach was exactly the same as Hu Maoshan's. Ma Shi Tu was so angry that his blood pressure rose. Seeing that Ma Shi Tu was angry, Hu Die whistled and made a smug expression.
"What were you doing after six o'clock in the evening on the 7th?" Sang Luo asked.
Hu Die finally answered the question directly: "My father injured his butt that day, and I was at home taking care of him. He was in a lot of trouble. He needed medicine and alcohol, and I just stood by and listened to his orders."
"You answered quite quickly." A smile appeared on Sang Luo's lips. Hu Die answered without even thinking about it, while Hu Maoshan took a long time to think of the answer.
Hu Die realized something, and then her face changed drastically. She glared at Sang Luo with hostility and was unwilling to answer any more questions.
Sang Luo didn't care about her attitude and started another topic: "Let me guess why you want to be a gangster."
Hu Die raised her head and glared at Sang Luo fiercely. Sang Luo continued, "Because you are scared."
Hu Die laughed disdainfully: "I'm afraid? What a joke, I'm the boss of the Wild Wolf Gang, who would I be afraid of? Go out and ask around, who in the middle and high schools in Baiyun County is not afraid of my name, Hu Die?"
"You're just bluffing," Sang Luo saw through her at a glance, "You're actually very afraid of your dad."
Hu Die stopped talking.
Sang Luo picked up the oral statement of Hu Maoshan's neighbor: "According to your neighbor, your father often drinks and likes to beat people when he is drunk. He used to beat your mother, and later he beat you. When my colleague searched your house, he also found many scratches on the wall, which were left by dropping things. There are also some old bloodstains on the wall. If nothing unexpected happens, they should be yours."
Hu Die's shoulders trembled, but she still didn't speak.
"He often abused you, and you were very scared," Sang Luo approached her and said, "so you needed to seek some kind of protection. You couldn't wait to join a group to get the group's protection, so you joined the Wild Wolf Gang. In order to have a position in the gang, you even did many things unwillingly."
Sang Luo looked straight into Hu Die's eyes, and Hu Die glared back at her stubbornly, as if to say that this was all nonsense.
"Just like animals' disguises, your hair color, your status as a big sister, and your fierce personality are all just your disguises. You seek a sense of security through disguises," Sang Luo leaned over and said the conclusion -
"In fact, at the end of the day, you are just a frightened child."
Hu Die was a little upset by these words. She spat, "Bullshit, I'm not that hypocritical!"
Sang Luo did not argue with her, but said: "We need to check your body. If you have really been abused for a long time, you must have scars on your body."
Hu Die immediately began to resist, but Sang Luo did not force her. Instead, she asked Xie Ling'er to take her to a closed room for examination. Xie Ling'er had the temperament of a gentle older sister, so Hu Die was more receptive.
After the inspection, Xie Ling'er came out of the room with red eyes. She said to Sang Luo and Ma Shi Tu:
“It’s just horrible.”
After hearing this, Sang Luo became more certain of her guess. She returned to the office and told Ma Shi Tu her thoughts:
"The fact of abuse exists, so Hu Die must hate Hu Maoshan very much. Maybe she hopes that Hu Maoshan will be sentenced to death more than her next-door neighbor."
"Hu Die hopes that Hu Maoshan will be sentenced to death. She used Hu Maoshan's rope to kill someone, so Hu Maoshan might be considered the murderer—" Ma Shi Tu said slowly, "You mean, the real murderer is Hu Die, and she killed Lan Jianguo not only for the protection fee, but also to take revenge on Hu Maoshan?"
Sang Luo nodded: "It just so happens that Hu Maoshan and Lan Jianguo have a feud. If Lan Jianguo dies, everyone will suspect Hu Maoshan instead of Hu Die, who has nothing to do with him. If Hu Die kills Hu Maoshan directly, she will be caught easily and will have no chance of escaping the crime."
Just like what Aunt Zhang said last night, a person who commits domestic violence will never change. The only way is to wait for him to die. Only when he dies can the victim be relieved.
"So this is a frame-up," Ma Shi Tu accepted this line of thought. "Lan Jianguo was not Hu Die's main target, but Hu Maoshan. The blame was put on Hu Maoshan, and he was sentenced to death, and Hu Die was also freed."
Ma Shi Tu took a sip of tea and then asked, "What makes you think so?"
You should know that Hu Maoshan and Hu Die are equally suspected. Both of them had the opportunity to touch the rope, had motives for committing the crime, and lacked effective alibis. There is currently no key pointing evidence.
"Because of the rope." said Sang Luo.
Ma Shi Tu frowned: "Only pig blood and lard were detected on the rope. How can you be sure it is Hu Die?"
Sang Luo: "It's not because something was detected on the rope, but because of the rope itself. The fact that this rope was left at the scene is enough to explain the problem."
Ma Shi Tu still frowned, and Sang Luo explained: "Few people walk along Su Zhai Lane where the crime occurred, and no one passed by all night after the victim died. The murderer had enough time to return to the crime scene, untie the knot, and take away the rope. Wouldn't it be more difficult for the police to investigate?"
"Take the second rope as an example. The owner of the second rope obviously didn't want us to recognize his identity, so he bought a new rope. This is the normal thinking of a person when committing a crime."
"But looking back at the first case, the murderer not only used the rope from his own home, but also left it at the scene. Wasn't he afraid of exposing his identity? The police only need to do a little testing to find pig blood and lard, and then follow the clue of killing the pig to investigate, and they will definitely find Hu Maoshan."
"So I boldly concluded that the murderer wanted to deliberately frame Hu Maoshan from the beginning. Not only was he not afraid of exposing his identity, he was also eager for the police to investigate Hu Maoshan and then arrest him."
"This rope was left for the police by the murderer."
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