"Do you really recognize this pattern?" Wang Shen looked at Xu Xiaolin with suspicion.
"Of course." Xu Xiaolin answered Wang Shen's question while opening her palm to Wang Shen, gesturing for him to show her the banknotes in her hand.
"Give her a pair of gloves," Wang Shen instructed the policeman beside him.
Xu Xiaolin took the plastic gloves and put them on, then took the banknote from Wang Shen. She held the banknote high; the patterns on it were even more pronounced in the sunlight. After examining it for a short while, Xu Xiaolin returned the banknote to Wang Shen.
“I already know what this pattern is.” Xu Xiaolin looked at Wang Shen with confidence and even smiled smugly.
"Oh? Are you sure?" Wang Shen really didn't know why Xu Xiaolin was familiar with this pattern.
"You still don't believe me?" Xu Xiaolin sighed innocently. "But it's okay. After I finish explaining, you can check it out. You guessed right, this pattern is the sole of the shoe. And this pattern comes from a high-end product of a luxury brand."
"How do you know all this?" Wang Shen looked at Xu Xiaolin with a face full of surprise.
“Officer Wang, I am a well-known writer, and a woman too. So, I do pay attention to luxury goods. This pattern is from a luxury brand's new summer collection, and it's a haute couture piece, quite valuable.” Xu Xiaolin made no attempt to hide her love for luxury goods. However, Xu Xiaolin's income certainly supported her spending.
"In that case, we can start with this brand's shoes and look for related purchase records," Wang Shen muttered to himself.
"This brand's haute couture products are released in limited quantities. The store keeps detailed information on customers who have purchased these products. Moreover, because they are limited in quantity, the number of people who can buy them shouldn't be too large. You should be able to get the results you want by checking with the store."
"You really know your stuff when it comes to running a brand like this."
"Of course." Xu Xiaolin smiled smugly again. "See, you didn't want my help in solving the case, but this time I'm the one who provided the assistance."
"Alright, I'll treat you to a meal sometime as a way of repaying you."
"Captain Wang, I'll keep your words in mind. Alright, I have other things to attend to, so I'll leave now. You can continue your investigation." After saying this, Xu Xiaolin gracefully disappeared into the crowd.
The noisy atmosphere at the crime scene gradually subsided. Liang Li's body was transported away, awaiting further autopsy. Following the clues provided by Xu Xiaolin, Wang Shen went to the luxury store. The store employees, knowing Wang Shen's identity, were very cooperative with the police. In no time, they provided the police with information on all the customers who had purchased that particular shoe. Wang Shen didn't have time to carefully examine the customer list; instead, he drove back to the police station at breakneck speed.
The surveillance footage that Wang Shen requested had been sent to his email. Wang Shen downloaded the footage to his computer. Taking advantage of this time, Wang Shen browsed through his purchase history. One unfamiliar name after another flashed before his eyes. Suddenly, a somewhat familiar name caught his eye.
Song Mu? That name seemed familiar. Wang Shen racked his brains, trying to recall everything about the name. Suddenly, it dawned on him—Song Mu was Han Mo's therapist when she was alive! Right, if it weren't for Sang's car accident, Wang Shen's original purpose that day was to visit this therapist. Wang Shen suddenly remembered that he had looked up the therapist's file before. He immediately opened his computer and found it—this was the photo. From the photo, Song Mu indeed appeared to be a refined and cultured man.
Wang Shen opened the surveillance video and searched for suspicious individuals at double speed. The results were as he expected: the early morning footage revealed almost no suspicious figures. However, during rush hour, a familiar figure appeared in the crowd. This person was wearing a mask, but judging from their facial features and demeanor, they were identical to Song Mu. Wang Shen fell into deep thought again. If this psychologist was the murderer of Liang Li, or even the culprit behind Sang's traffic accident, what was their motive? It seemed that all the recent cases stemmed from Han Mo's death. From this perspective, could Song Mu also be seeking revenge for Han Mo? A psychologist shouldn't have such strong feelings for their patient. To find a reasonable explanation, Wang Shen could only conclude one thing: the relationship between Han Mo and Song Mu was far more complex than that of patient and doctor.
Through Liang Li's case, we return to Sang's case. If Sang's traffic accident was also caused by Song Mu, what was his motive? Right, that handsome man who gave Sang money. If this man was Song Mu, everything makes sense. Song Mu bribed Sang to testify against Zheng Wu for murdering Han Shuang. However, Song Mu didn't want his identity exposed, so he plotted to kill Sang. Because Liang Li happened to witness Song Mu and Sang's transaction, Song Mu killed Liang Li to prevent her from revealing any information about him to the police.
To confirm his suspicions, Wang Shen picked up the phone again. Based on Sang's call logs, he retrieved surveillance footage from several public phone booths. Because the call times recorded by public phones were exceptionally accurate, the video footage search was highly targeted. Wang Shen's eyes were fixed on the man in the video. Sure enough, the same man had called Sang back several times from the public phone. This man wore a hat and mask, making it impossible to see his face in the footage. However, his build was very similar to Song Mu's.
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