Chapter 179 Manager Hou
Zhou Yi thought about it and felt that he didn't seem to recognize the man in front of him.
"You... know me?" Zhou Yi couldn't help but ask.
The man shook Zhou Yi's hand warmly and said, "Of course I know you. I saw the news on Hongcheng TV. You saved a little girl. Oh, you're so cool! Your presence here today is such a great honor to our humble home."
Zhou Yi then understood that this was what "knowing" meant.
"What's your last name?" Zhou Yi asked.
"No need to bother. My last name is Hou, and I'm the manager here. Officer Zhou, you can just call me Xiao Hou."
Of course Zhou Yi couldn't call him that, because Manager Hou was at least a generation older than him.
"Manager Hou, this is what we're doing. We're investigating a very important case, and we've discovered that one of our key suspects has been to your location before, so we'd like to review your surveillance footage."
"Cooperating with the police is every citizen's duty, and we naturally won't refuse." Manager Hou said, looking around and asked doubtfully, "Are you here alone?"
After hearing this sentence, Zhou Yi knew that this person was not simple. This was implying that Zhou Yi was alone, which was not in compliance with the regulations.
"Yes, it was just me, and the situation was special. We have limited police force, so there's really nothing we can do. I can't tell you the specific details of the case, but of course, in special circumstances, the law allows for a single person to respond. If you have any concerns, you can call our city police directly to confirm."
Manager Hou immediately waved his hand and said, "No, no, I'm just asking casually. Do you know the specific date and time you're looking for?"
Zhou Yi said, "I really can't be sure about that. All I can say for sure is that it was before March 27th. The further back, the better."
Because according to Su Jun's parents, Su Jun returned home twelve days ago, and today is April 7th, so Zhou Yi said it was before March 27th.
Manager Hou frowned when he heard this. "This is a bit difficult, because our surveillance can only be retained for fifteen days. There is no more data before that."
Zhou Yi thought about it. Hard drives are still quite expensive these days, and there was no legislation in 1997 to regulate the use of surveillance in public places, entertainment venues, etc., so it was considered good that the Golden Phoenix Nightclub could keep the data for fifteen days.
"Fifteen days is fifteen days, so let's focus on checking the surveillance footage from March 24th to 26th."
Zhou Yi knew that time was running out, and instinctively wanted to step forward and follow the other party to the monitoring room.
But Manager Hou reached out to stop him.
Zhou Yi looked at him suspiciously. Manager Hou wore the same professional smile as Ajie and the usher. "I'm sorry, Officer Zhou, I can't let you view this surveillance footage directly."
"Manager Hou, what do you mean? Didn't you just say that you were willing to cooperate with our police in investigating the case?" From a legal point of view, based on the needs of solving the case, Zhou Yi has the right to view their surveillance.
"Don't get me wrong, we're certainly willing to cooperate, but we can only view this surveillance footage ourselves, not you. You can give us a photo of the person you want to check, and we'll help you find it."
Zhou Yi didn't want to use his identity as a policeman to pressure the other party. After all, Wu Yongcheng had already reminded him that the boss behind Golden Phoenix was Jiang Zhengdao.
Perhaps compared to his own age before rebirth and other people of the same age, Zhou Yi has already achieved remarkable results.
But in the eyes of those powerful people, he is still just a little bug.
Another reason why Wu Yongcheng reminded him was to consider his future. Otherwise, if he was implicated in certain people and things, it would be detrimental to his future promotion, such as the case of Sanpo Village.
Zhou Yi suppressed his anger and said, "Can you give me a reason?"
Manager Hou smiled and said, "It's like this, our nightclub is the most luxurious nightclub in the city."
He lowered his voice and said, "It's inevitable that some leaders will come to our place to relax after work... That's all I have to say. I hope Officer Zhou will be more understanding and considerate of my difficulties."
So that's how it is. This reason really left Zhou Yi speechless. If he continued to insist, he would have no choice but to take a businesslike approach and break up with him.
Although Zhou Yi really wanted to say that he didn't know many other leaders except those in the public security system.
But even if it is said, it is meaningless. If the Golden Phoenix cannot protect the privacy of the leaders, then it is questionable whether it can still exist.
Zhou Yi is not stupid. He is just reborn. He is not omnipotent. He cannot change the world or the things that are not under his control.
After figuring this out, he nodded emphatically. "Alright, then please take a closer look. Do you have a fax machine here? I'll have the police send me a photo of the suspect."
After completing the fax, Manager Hou asked Ajie to take Su Jun's photo to arrange surveillance, and asked them to look carefully in front of Zhou Yi. If they missed anything and delayed Officer Zhou's investigation, don't blame him for being rude.
Then Manager Hou said with a smile, "Officer Zhou, this surveillance check will probably take a while. I've arranged a private room. I'll take you there to sit for a while and have some fruit to moisten your throat."
"No need, I'll just sit here for a while." Zhou Yi pointed to the big sofa behind him.
Manager Hou said awkwardly, "There are so many people coming and going..."
Zhou Yi immediately understood that he was still afraid that I would recognize certain guests.
"Forget about the box and the fruit, that's not appropriate. Just find a quiet place to sit down. It won't affect your business."
Manager Hou immediately smiled and said, "Thank you, Officer Zhou, for understanding my difficulties. How about this? Come to my office and sit for a while. I'll have them check the surveillance footage and report back immediately."
Zhou Yi nodded. Just then, a few guests came in behind him. The middle-aged man in the middle was pot-bellied, with his hands behind his back. He looked like he was in charge of something and was obviously a leader.
Manager Hou quickly led Zhou Yi to his office.
Zhou Yi was shocked as he entered the office. The office was even more luxurious than the office of the director of the Municipal Bureau. And this was just the office of a manager of a nightclub, a small part of Jiang Zhengdao's many industries. It was hard to imagine how rich Jiang Zhengdao was.
No wonder he quit the position of deputy director.
There is a huge desk in the south of the office, and a huge calligraphy and painting hangs on the wall behind it. On it are four large and flamboyant characters: Wealth comes from all directions.
"Officer Zhou, please take a seat." Manager Hou enthusiastically pulled out a mahogany chair.
In the center of the office is a mahogany tea table, on which is a complete set of tea-making tools, which are obviously very expensive.
Manager Hou sat down and began to skillfully fiddle with the tea set, and soon served a cup of tea with both hands.
"Officer Zhou, please taste this Longjing tea before the Qingming Festival and give me some advice."
"Thank you." Zhou Yi took it and took a sip. It was obviously much better than what he had just drunk in the hall, so he nodded.
Manager Hou asked with a smile, "Officer Zhou is in the Criminal Investigation Division of the Municipal Bureau. What exactly is his responsibility?"
"Third Brigade, it's just right. I haven't shown my ID to Manager Hou yet." Zhou Yi said as he took out his ID.
Manager Hou immediately waved his hand: "No, no."
"The Third Brigade is responsible for serious crimes. They're really impressive. Excuse me, brother. How old are you, Officer Zhou?"
Zhou Yi said, "It seems that Manager Hou is quite familiar with the situation of our Municipal Bureau."
"No, no, I just hear some guests mention it occasionally."
Zhou Yi knew that the guests he was referring to were naturally the leaders who came here to relax.
"I'm twenty-three this year." Zhou Yi took another sip of tea, and Manager Hou immediately refilled it.
Manager Hou was surprised: "This... is so young, Officer Zhou really has a bright future. When you are free one day, I will treat you to a simple meal, and I hope Officer Zhou will do me the honor." Manager Hou said, patting his chest.
"I appreciate Manager Hou's kindness, but we have our own rules. Let's forget about the meal."
Zhou Yi is not stupid. The other party is so friendly to him and even invites him to dinner. He just wants to win him over.
What he called a "simple meal" was definitely a feast that might not even be enough to cover his several months' salary.
Although this kind of friendship does not directly require one to do something for oneself, and as long as it is not a banquet hosted by the person concerned or his agent, it does not violate discipline in theory.
But Zhou Yi is very clear about the routine here. First, he invites you to dinner to build a relationship, and then gives you gifts during festivals. Over time, when the day comes when he really wants to ask you for "help", it will not be so easy to turn back.
In his previous life, he had seen and heard of many people being slowly corrupted in this way.
It seemed that Zhou Yi really preferred someone like Qian Hongxing to Manager Hou. He was straightforward and didn't resort to such cunning tactics. He expressed gratitude, donated supplies with a wave of his hand, and didn't hide anything when faced with an investigation.
"People always have to eat, and I'm not involved in any case, so I can't be said to have violated any discipline. You should also know that our General Manager Jiang used to work in the same system as you, so we are very familiar with your police rules. Just because of General Manager Jiang's previous status, we can't do these crooked ways, otherwise it will only bring shame to General Manager Jiang."
Just then, there was a knock on the office door.
"Come in!" Manager Hou shouted.
Zhou Yi thought the surveillance video had been checked and immediately turned around to look.
But the person who opened the door was not Ajie, but a big man with a face full of flesh. He shouted as soon as he opened the door: "Brother Hou, that little girl..."
The big man's words stopped abruptly because he saw Zhou Yi in the room and immediately shut up.
"Can't you see I have a distinguished guest here? Why are you making so much noise?" Manager Hou scolded.
Then he said to Zhou Yi, "Officer Zhou, I'm sorry to bother you."
Zhou Yi nodded.
Manager Hou stood up and left, pulling the big man out. The office door was very soundproof. Once it was closed, no sound could be heard from outside.
After four or five minutes, Manager Hou opened the door and came in.
Ever since he left, Zhou Yi has been sitting sideways, looking at the office door out of the corner of his eye.
Zhou Yi caught a sudden change: the moment Manager Hou opened the door, the expression on his face changed from fierce to smiling.
It's comparable to Sichuan Opera face-changing.
"I'm sorry, Officer Zhou, a customer got drunk and asked the waitress to drink, which led to a dispute." Manager Hou said with a smile.
Zhou Yi asked: "Should we call the police?"
"No, no, it's just a minor friction, no one was hurt." Manager Hou sat down. "Oh, the tea is cold."
Zhou Yi's face became more serious, he knew that Manager Hou was lying.
Because the big man who opened the door just now had blood on his knuckles.
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