After the body was retrieved, the Forensic Department worked overtime overnight to search for clues. Tao Rui also took the necessary equipment and performed an operation at an intersection outside the place where the body was sunk.
Captain Zhang stayed behind to wait with him until the early morning. Seeing Tao Rui taking out paper money to burn, he quickly grabbed him and asked, "Do I need to prepare anything?"
Tao Rui was stunned for a moment, then immediately realized that Captain Zhang was afraid that he would go crazy like Yang Zhijie saw ghosts. He said with a smile, "Captain Zhang, don't worry, you won't see anything you shouldn't see. It's just a little trick."
"...Yes, a little trick." Captain Zhang slowly released him and stepped back. Despite Tao Rui's assurance, he couldn't help but glance around, a little worried about what he might see.
In fact, several ghosts were right next to Captain Zhang. They laughed and said, "Brother Rui, Captain Zhang is scared. Will he have trouble sleeping when he goes home tonight?"
This reminded Tao Rui, and he said, "Captain Zhang, it's so late today. After you finish investigating the clues, you can stay at my house. My house is safer."
The word "safety" was particularly sensitive. Captain Zhang understood immediately, thinking Tao Rui was worried he might get something on him, and immediately agreed, "Then I'll keep you company for one night."
"It's no bother. I also want to thank you for trusting me and giving me the opportunity to catch the thief and solve the case." Tao Rui lit paper money while speaking, throwing it around and muttering to himself.
Captain Zhang listened attentively but couldn't hear clearly.
Then, the previously tranquil space suddenly blew up with wind, and the objects that had previously been swirling in midair seemed to be responding to Tao Rui's words. The compass needle on the ground began to spin rapidly, and the copper coins surrounding the compass hummed.
Captain Zhang's eyes widened instantly. Honestly, while he believed Tao Rui possessed some magical powers, this was the first time he'd witnessed anything so absurd! Tao Rui hadn't touched anything with his hands, yet everything had moved on its own. And... the surroundings were so cold. He subconsciously raised his hand to hold down his gun.
It's not something I want to do, it's just...an instinctive reaction.
The ghosts were almost laughing their heads off. The headless ghost was even kind enough to stand in front of Captain Zhang, preventing any other wandering ghosts from approaching. Who knew if those other ghosts were good or bad? The ghosts surrounded Captain Zhang, their way of protecting him. After all, the officer was really working hard to solve the case and redress the injustices for everyone.
The compass finally stopped and indicated a direction. Tao Rui held up the compass and said to Captain Zhang, "We've found the route. Let's go!"
"Okay." Captain Zhang immediately got in the car and started it. Tao Rui sat in the passenger seat, looked down at the compass, pointed forward and said, "Just follow the compass needle. This is the deceased's movement trajectory before death. In other words, the murderer's movement trajectory."
Captain Zhang turned serious, glanced at the compass, and then, no longer feeling scared, he immediately drove out. The compass occasionally changed, and Captain Zhang changed his route accordingly, memorizing it. Tao Rui also took note of the surroundings along the way.
Halfway through, I saw two ghosts on the side of the road. They were standing next to the bus stop and trying to stop a bus.
Most ghosts are trapped in the same place after death, or vaguely repeat their actions in life. Their brains become slow to react, as if they have become dumber. These two ghosts clearly kept repeating the act of hailing a taxi. Perhaps... they died in a car accident, as their appearance was truly horrible.
The headless ghost sat up straight immediately. "Brother Rui, look! We don't know when they died. If it was three years ago, they might have seen that car!"
Tao Rui had been looking at the compass and hadn't noticed. Hearing this, he looked outside and said, "Captain Zhang, pull over."
Captain Zhang took a look at the car and quickly stopped it. "What's wrong? Any clues?"
Tao Rui opened the car door and said, "Wait for me, I'll be back soon."
Captain Zhang nodded and saw Tao Rui running toward the bus stop behind the car. He thought Tao Rui was going to check the bus stop, but then he saw Tao Rui pull out two red ropes and pretend to tie them. When he came back, the two short red ropes dangled beside Tao Rui's hands. Although the swing was very small, Captain Zhang, with his 5.2 vision, was sure that the two red ropes were definitely tied to something!
Afterwards, Tao Rui patted the trunk and Captain Zhang opened it. After opening it, he got out of the car and was a little puzzled. This was his car, and he didn't remember Tao Rui putting anything in it.
As soon as he walked to the back, he saw Tao Rui taking out a black umbrella from the trunk.
"Eh? When was it released?"
"When I asked someone to drive my car back." Tao Rui made up an excuse and then opened the black umbrella and put it on the back seat.
Captain Zhang saw his action and didn't care about the back seat anymore. It was obvious that there was something fishy in the back seat!
Captain Zhang asked slowly, "What are you doing?"
"Look for an informant. Maybe there's a clue?" Tao Rui smiled at him, and Captain Zhang immediately chanted in his mind: prosperity, democracy, civilization, and harmony...
Later, on the way, Captain Zhang kept silently reciting the core values to protect himself and was extremely silent.
Tao Rui hadn't expected Captain Zhang to be afraid of ghosts. Captain Zhang had definitely put in a lot of effort to recruit him.
The criminals had taken a detour, and it took them two hours to find the crime scene. The previous investigation was also conducted nearby, but within a certain range. This time, they were investigating the exact location of the crime, and they had already determined the complete route.
Captain Zhang checked the time, pulled out his phone, and said, "I'll assign a few people to check the situation along this route, especially the cameras, vendors, and any possible witnesses."
Tao Rui reminded: "It's best to check if there are any people who love photography. Roadside cameras may have already overwritten the data, but private archives may not be deleted."
"That's right, just like the Yang Zhijie case, if someone hadn't happened to take a photo, there would be no key evidence." Captain Zhang made a phone call and immediately arranged for his colleagues who were still working overtime to write down the route.
It was already past two in the morning. After Captain Zhang finished his call, Tao Rui suggested, "All the shops along the way are closed now, so we can't verify anything. Why don't you go to my house and rest for a while? We have a lot to do tomorrow."
Captain Zhang thought about it for a moment, then glanced back at the black umbrella in the back seat. He said with a tight throat, "I'll take you home. I have something to do at the police station."
Tao Rui wants to take the ghost home, he thinks Tao Rui's home might not be very safe...
When it comes to safety, where can you be safer than the police station? Protected by righteousness, you are immune to all evil!
Besides, he was anxious to go back and investigate the case. The case he was working on had just been solved, and there was a turning point in a case that had been suppressed for three years, so of course he had to keep a close eye on it.
Tao Rui was amused and went home in his car without saying anything else.
After arriving home, he asked the housekeeper to open the room at the back of the second-floor corridor. He was the only one living on the second floor, and his bedroom and study were both on the second floor. The innermost room had been unused due to poor lighting, so it was perfect for a haunted house.
Tao Rui took a bath. The housekeeper had already decorated the room. Tao Rui set up a formation in the room, lit incense and candles, and then performed a ritual to restore the consciousness of the two ghosts that blocked the car.
The two men woke up and immediately looked at them. Before they could ask any questions, everything they had experienced after their death appeared clearly in their minds.
The two were an elderly couple. The old woman immediately burst into tears, holding the old man's hand and saying, "My dear, are we dead?"
The old man nodded. "Yeah, it's been three years. How come there was a car accident?"
The headless ghost and the others were silent. They were also at a loss when they first discovered they had turned into ghosts. They could empathize with the ghost. The headless ghost stepped forward and advised: "Don't be too sad. Everyone will die one day. You are very lucky to have met Brother Rui today. No matter what obsessions you have before you die, Brother Rui can find a way to help you. When you no longer want to stay in the human world, Brother Rui will send you to reincarnation. In the next life, everything will start anew."
The two elders were respectable people. They cried for a few times, but the headless ghost persuaded them to stop crying. They looked at them and asked, "Where are we? Why are you all ghosts? What are you doing?"
Tao Rui explained, "This is a place dedicated to granting ghosts their wishes. Of course, it's not free. I'm solving cases where there are thieves I can't catch, and there's no witnesses or evidence. So I hope you, our invisible friends, can help me find clues and solve the case. Let's exchange."
"Yes," the headless ghost added, "but the ghost must not be an evil ghost, and the wish must be a normal wish. If you want to harm people casually, that won't work. Right, Brother Rui?"
Tao Rui nodded. He knew that the headless ghost was very righteous and responsible. Since the ghosts were brought here on the headless ghost's suggestion, the headless ghost felt that it was his responsibility to manage them and prevent them from causing trouble, which was a bit like a small supervisor.
Tao Rui was happy to see this happen. After all, it was impossible for his special "detective agency" to hire people to do the work, so it was most appropriate to let the headless ghosts take care of it.
The ghosts explained the situation to the two elders. They might not care about other things, but they cared about the car. They had died five years ago, and for the past five years, they had been riding the car constantly, in a daze, and they had no idea how many times they had ridden on it. But now, after being awakened by Tao Rui, they found that their memories were surprisingly clear.
The two immediately began to reminisce and discuss. A suspicious vehicle, a suspicious driver, and the possibility of a woman trapped in the car. Tao Rui also showed them several photos of the deceased. She also showed them the clothes she was wearing on the day of the accident, which she had posted in a selfie on WeChat Moments.
The old man looked at the photo, thought for a moment, and said, "Sometimes when we can't wait for a taxi, we take the bus. If we're in a hurry, we take other cars. A few times, we've seen unresponsive girls on the bus. I don't know if they're asleep, drunk, or something else."
The old lady said, "I seem to remember it because the girl was wearing a vest and shorts, the kind of outfit you would wear for running, and then she was sleeping in the car, which seemed quite incongruous. But I didn't think much of it at the time. Later, I realized that the car had turned a corner and was not going the way we wanted, so we both got out quickly."
Tao Rui immediately asked: "Do you remember what the driver looks like?"
"Driver? I need to think about this, I need to match the numbers." The old lady looked at the old man, "Do you remember? Just three years ago, one summer night, the car we were riding in turned a corner. After getting off, I said I had waited so long for this car. You advised me that I might have drunk too much, so please stop nagging me."
The old man hesitated and said, "This has happened three or five times. I vaguely remember what car it was. I like to watch those car ads when I have nothing to do, but I don't remember which car my wife mentioned."
Tao Rui laughed and said, "It's okay. Three or five cars is already a very small area. I can check them one by one. Thank you."
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