Seeing this, Luo Tianhe took a step forward, his tall figure exuding a sense of oppression:
"Director Wang, let's be frank. Everyone knows right from wrong. We don't ask for much, just to see the surveillance footage. Otherwise, if the family makes a fuss and says that your funeral home is not doing a good job of storing the body properly, or even if there are other rumors, it will not be good for your reputation."
"Heh, are you threatening me?" Director Wang sneered.
"You little brat, trying to scare me? Do you really think I've been sitting around doing nothing all these years? Let me tell you the truth: we have connections in both the legitimate and underworld! This matter has nothing to do with our funeral home. If you want to cause trouble, don't blame us for being impolite!"
I was a little surprised by what he said. He was just a junior manager at a funeral home, yet he spoke so arrogantly.
As he spoke, Director Wang turned to look at Zhao Jianguo.
“I was quite polite to you the last few times you came, and I answered all your questions. But now you dare to bring your colleagues to cause trouble? I think your father is just a front!”
Does this guy know we also run a funeral home?
But our businesses are completely different! Has he misunderstood?!
Moreover, what he just said about having connections in both the legitimate and criminal worlds sounds a bit ridiculous to me. If he really had connections in the underworld, he wouldn't say he didn't know Luo Tianhe.
As for the legitimate side, that's even more ridiculous. Given our relationship with Zhang Qiang, unless his uncle is the police chief, everything he does is in vain!
Director Wang's words carried a certain air of authority, which actually startled Zhao Jianguo, who waved his hands repeatedly.
"No, you've misunderstood. They do run a funeral home, but their main business is..."
"Why are you wasting your breath talking to that idiot!" Luo Tianhe sneered, directly interrupting Zhao Jianguo.
When Director Wang heard Lu Tianhe call him an idiot, his face darkened, and he was about to get angry when Lu Tianhe stepped forward, almost touching Director Wang's oily face, and stared down at him condescendingly.
"I have connections in both the legitimate and criminal worlds. What a coincidence. I, Luo Tianhe, have been in this area for so many years that my friends in the legitimate world have to give me some face, and my brothers in the underworld have to call me Brother Luo."
"Wang Youde, your cousin who runs a sand and gravel pit, and your brother-in-law who works as an auxiliary police officer at the Chengnan Police Station, are they your people in both the legitimate and criminal worlds?"
"Haha, that's hilarious!"
Luo Tianhe laughed twice and kicked Director Wang in the chest. The kick was so powerful that it knocked the 200-pound fat man to the ground.
It's fortunate that he's fat; if it were someone like Zhao Jianguo, who's as thin as a praying mantis, that kick would probably have left him breathless for ages.
Seeing Luo Tianhe kick me like that, I felt quite relieved.
This fat guy is too arrogant, and he probably just fooled Zhao Jianguo the last few times. Zhao Jianguo is in such a miserable state, and he's still teasing him like this. It's no exaggeration to say that he's killing him!
Most importantly, the problem definitely lies with the funeral home!
I consider myself a good judge of character; Zhao Jianguo seems to be an honest man.
Director Wang's face had changed, and he was breathing heavily, but he didn't dare to get angry at all.
"Luo, Luo Tianhe, even if you're from the underworld, you can't just come here and cause trouble for no reason, and you're also secretly investigating me."
"Investigate secretly? You dare to call yourself that! I just casually asked someone before I came here, and he told me all your dirty secrets!" Luo Tianhe scoffed, pulling out his phone and slowly swiping through it.
"Should I call your cousin now and ask if he still wants to delay paying the debt from last year? Or should I talk to your brother-in-law's boss, Captain Zhang Qiang of the Municipal Criminal Investigation Division, and discuss the funeral home run by the family members of one of his auxiliary police officers, which might involve improper handling of remains, or even more serious issues?"
As soon as Zhang Qiang's name was mentioned, cold sweat immediately broke out on Director Wang's forehead.
Although Zhang Qiang may have seemed a bit overwhelmed lately, dealing with all sorts of frustrating problems, he still appears quite disheveled in front of us.
However, he is well-known in the city. He became a leader at such a young age, solved many major cases, and most importantly, he has a solid background.
"What exactly do you want?" Director Wang's tone softened completely, carrying a hint of pleading.
"I said I'd check the surveillance footage, don't make me say it a third time. If I have to say it a third time, it won't just be a simple kick!" Luo Tianhe put away his phone, crossed his arms, and looked at Director Wang meaningfully.
"But, this involves customer privacy..." Director Wang was still making a last-ditch effort.
"Privacy?" I really didn't want to argue with him anymore, and said coldly:
“There were abnormalities during the time that Mr. Zhao’s body was stored here. The family has the right to know the situation. If you still insist on not giving it to them, I will have to ask Zhang Qiang to come and formally retrieve the surveillance footage on the grounds that it may involve a criminal case. I will also check all the recent records of bodies entering and leaving your funeral home, the cold storage management log, and the accounts for the purchase of disinfectants and consumables. I will also check the fire safety and other things.”
My words were a blatant threat.
To put it bluntly, funeral homes are also a business. It's impossible to build such a large business without some gray areas.
Moreover, I've worked in a funeral home before, so I know exactly what kind of place it is.
Director Wang's face turned completely pale. He looked at my icy expression, then at Luo Tianhe, who was sneering with his arms crossed, and finally couldn't take it anymore.
"Fine, fine, go ahead and watch if you want!" He said through gritted teeth, turning around and leading us toward the monitoring room, his steps slightly unsteady.
"However, let's make this clear: whatever you see after you've finished looking is your own business and has nothing to do with our funeral home. It's the body's own problem!"
"Shut up, who do you think you are to lead the way!" Luo Tianhe was getting annoyed by his nagging and kicked him again.
He then calmed down and led us to the monitoring room, where the staff on duty retrieved the surveillance footage from half a month ago showing the area where Zhao Laoshuan's body was located in the cold storage.
The image is in black and white and somewhat blurry; Zhao Laoshuan's body is being pushed into drawer number 304 of the cold storage.
As time went by, everything was normal at first, so we sped up the surveillance footage several times.
Suddenly, around 2 a.m., something chilling happened!
The metal handle of the 304 drawer slowly turned on its own. I quickly adjusted the time flow back to normal and stared intently at the screen.
Immediately afterwards, the drawer was pushed open a few centimeters from the inside, and in the silence, a hand covered with black age spots reached out from the gap, its fingers stiff and bent, as if groping for something.
After a while, he withdrew his hand, and the drawer slowly closed by itself.
The monitoring room was deathly silent, with only the low hum of the machines running.
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