Chapter 101 The Cart: The Dog is Gone, the Cart is Sold
Zheng Yu tapped on the five names on the whiteboard in turn: "Ge Cuihua", "Liu Biao", "Mao Dali", "Zhao Laoliu" and "Sun Xiaojun".
The meeting room fell silent, with only the hum of the electric fan breaking the silence.
Jiang Ling didn't speak immediately. She walked to the window, opened the blinds a crack, and looked at the main road in front of the Municipal Bureau. The weather was still incredibly hot, the asphalt road steaming with heat, and the leaves of the plane trees along the roadside were curled up from the sun.
For some reason, Jiang Ling thought of Liang Jiushan at this moment.
He had been keeping watch across from Shunlai Restaurant for eight days; it must have been tough for him in this heat. I also need to speed up the investigation; I can't let Liang Jiushan's efforts go to waste.
Jiang Ling lowered the blinds, turned around and walked back to the whiteboard. Zheng Yu handed her a red marker.
Jiang Ling took the pen, her gaze calmly sweeping over everyone: "Time is tight, so I'll rank the five suspects from a psychological perspective to see who is most likely to have had a conflict with Wang Youfu, caused his accidental death, and then murdered and buried the body."
Jiang Ling's voice wasn't loud, but it possessed a captivating power that drew people in.
“Determining the suspect’s profile, or creating a psychological portrait of the killer, involves three key points.”
First, he had a grudge against Wang Youfu, so much so that he repeatedly struck Wang Youfu's face with a spatula, causing multiple lacerations and subcutaneous bleeding. Second, he remained clear-headed after the attack, knowing to mop the floor and clean up the bloodstains. Third, he was very familiar with the environment, able to choose a garbage dump to bury the body. Moving the body and digging the pit would have been quite noisy, unlikely to have been done in broad daylight; it's likely that after the murder, he put the body in a sack, temporarily placed it in the kitchen, and then carried out the crime at night when no one was around.
Upon hearing this, everyone couldn't help but shudder.
The sack containing the body was left in the kitchen for an entire afternoon, and the restaurant continued operating as usual? Just imagining that scene sends chills down my spine. How could the murderer have such incredible mental fortitude? How could he be so certain that no one would notice such a large sack in the kitchen?
She walked to the whiteboard, hovered the red pen tip over Liu Biao's name, and drew five stars next to it.
"From the perspective of the criminal motive, the wage dispute and the trampling of dignity, and Wang Youfu treating him like an animal, created a deep and direct grudge that could easily have exploded, leading to a fight in the kitchen."
"Judging from his abilities, Liu Biao is burly and has a fiery temper. He can grab a spatula and start a fight with Wang Youfu in the kitchen without hesitation, and he knows the environment very well."
"Judging from the timeline, he said he was sleeping at home on the afternoon of the incident, but there is no one who can corroborate that."
After analyzing Liu Biao, Jiang Ling took a red marker and drew five stars next to Mao Dali's name.
"Similar to Liu Biao, Mao Dali had a clear motive and was familiar with the kitchen environment. According to neighbors, Mao Dali was beaten and scolded every day, his wages were deducted, and he had adopted a dog, but it was possible that Wang Youfu killed it. This should have been the last straw that broke the camel's back. After all, even a rabbit will bite when cornered."
"Mao Dali's criminal abilities were not as good as Liu Biao's. He was thin and had a gentle temperament, but people can unleash a ruthless force when they are extremely angry. It's not impossible that he might grab a spatula in the kitchen and suddenly smash it against the drunk Wang Youfu. Because of the hatred in his heart, he was very calm after the man died, and continued to serve customers, take orders, serve food, and collect money..."
At this point, Jiang Ling suddenly thought of something: "Mao Dali left very decisively, without asking Ge Cuihua for his wages. I guess he pocketed all the money the restaurant collected after Wang Youfu died."
Zheng Yu added, "Everyone says Mao Dali is honest, but I don't think he's that honest."
Jiang Ling nodded: "Yes. I heard Liang Jiushan say that when Ge Cuihua came to the store to cause trouble, Mao Dali approached her and said that Wang Youfu had returned to his hometown, but Ge Cuihua had not heard from him."
Zheng Yu's eyes lit up: "He's lying! He's even more suspicious now."
Jiang Ling frowned. Why didn't Mao Dali flee after the incident? Was he terrified, or did he have some other scheme?
Thinking of the records about Black Bone from her previous life, and recalling Liang Jiushan's mention of the disappearance of the cart in the restaurant alley and the missing stray dog, Jiang Ling wrote the word "dog" in red pen: "The biggest conflict between Mao Dali and Wang Youfu is that stray dog. We must find out the whereabouts of this dog and the dog-collecting cart."
After a brief pause, Jiang Ling added the word "rope" next to the word "dog": "The autopsy report mentioned that the strangulation marks on Wang Youfu's neck were caused by a hemp rope, an injury sustained after death, which should have been caused by the murderer dragging the body. Where is the rope? It wasn't found in the kitchen, which is very important physical evidence."
"Okay." Zheng Yu finished making notes and looked at the team members who were waiting to be assigned tasks.
"Liang Liang, you're in charge of investigating Liu Biao. Find out his whereabouts during the time of the incident, his feud with Wang Youfu, and where he went after Ge Cuihua fired him. Also, look for the discarded hemp rope near the restaurant."
Liang Liang, who has a baby face, is now Zheng Yu's partner, and immediately replied, "Yes!"
"Xiao He, you take a group of people to track Mao Dali's whereabouts. Keep a close eye on the bus station and train station. You must bring him back."
Xiao He, whose real name is He Kai, was overjoyed at being entrusted with such an important task and shouted, "Yes!"
Zheng Yu looked around and realized that there weren't enough people.
There are too many suspects and too much to do. She used to work in the office, and only gradually got involved in criminal investigations after Jiang Ling came. Now she has just been promoted to team leader and doesn't have many people under her.
Jiang Ling could tell what Zheng Yu was hesitating about just by looking at her eyes, so she took the initiative to say, "Let Haoran and Dawei handle the investigation of where the stray dogs are going and the route Wang Youfu takes in dogs."
Zheng Yu turned her gaze to Liu Haoran and Zhou Wei.
They were Jiang Ling's team members, belonging to the technical brigade, and were not supposed to participate in fieldwork.
Without the slightest hesitation, Liu Haoran and Zhou Wei immediately stood up: "Yes! We guarantee to complete the mission."
They sit in the office all day and have been wanting to get out and stretch their legs for a while.
Although they belong to the technical team and their main job is technical analysis and data support, Liu Haoran and Zhou Wei still prefer to combine theory with practice and interact with people more in order to hone their technical skills.
After resolving the personnel arrangements for the investigation of the two five-star suspects, Jiang Ling moved her pen to Ge Cuihua's name and drew four stars next to it.
“Ge Cuihua harbored resentment because her husband cheated on her, never brought money home, and would disappear at the drop of a hat. If Wang Youfu died, she could take over the business and wouldn’t have to divide the family property. Therefore, Ge Cuihua had a sufficient motive to kill him. Especially after the incident, she was in a hurry to take over the shop and didn’t investigate his whereabouts. She directly accused him of embezzling money and running away. She immediately hired someone to renovate and clean up the scene, which is indeed suspicious.”
Zheng Yu added, "When she saw Wang Youfu's body, she sat on the ground crying and wailing, but she didn't shed a single tear. I felt like she was putting on an act."
Jiang Ling hummed in agreement and continued her analysis, "We've already discussed this. Her physical strength wasn't enough to fight Wang Youfu and stuff the body into a sack. If she really did it, she probably had accomplices. We must find out her recent whereabouts and whether she has any close male friends."
Zheng Yu: "Okay, I'll take people to investigate Ge Cuihua."
Jiang Ling gave Zhao Laoliu and Sun Xiaojun both three stars.
High-interest debt collectors use many methods, and threats and physical violence are quite common. If they discovered Wang Youfu had fallen to his death, they would most likely scatter like birds and beasts. Cleaning up the scene and disposing of the body? That doesn't seem like their style.
As for Sun Xiaojun, he didn't resist when he was wrongly accused of stealing money, but instead, after holding it in for two months and getting angrier and angrier, he went to the restaurant to confront Wang Youfu. That doesn't seem like his personality.
Zheng Yu assigned Mao Yicheng and Ai De to investigate the two individuals respectively.
“So,” Jiang Ling said, placing his hands on the edge of the table and scanning the crowd with sharp eyes, “at this stage, we should focus our firepower on Liu Biao and Mao Dali. Liu Biao has already been taken into custody by the police, and what we need to do now is to work hard to prove his alibi. We need to go door to door in his neighborhood and ask if he went out to buy a pack of cigarettes that afternoon, or if he took the bus. We can’t let any clue slip by.”
Liang Liang had been listening intently to Jiang Ling's analysis of the case, and upon hearing this, he immediately stood up: "Yes!"
Jiang Ling turned her gaze to He Kai: "Find Mao Dali even if you have to dig three feet into the ground. He might be working in another city, hiding with some fellow villagers, or wandering around. Mobilize all your informants and connections, and make sure to bring him back."
He Kai also stood up: "Yes!"
Jiang Ling looked at Liu Haoran and Zhou Wei: "If Mao Dali really did kill someone, then that stray dog is the most crucial link. We need to carefully question the neighbors, the cleaning lady, and the old man who was taking a walk. When and where did the dog last appear? Did Wang Youfu really kill it? Also, where does Wang Youfu's restaurant, which sells dog meat, get its meat from? Where did that cart with the iron cage go? We need to find out all of these things."
"Understood!" Liu Haoran grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.
Zhou Wei nodded calmly, pondering in his mind which clue to follow next.
Mao Yicheng and Ai De were newcomers, and Jiang Ling wasn't very familiar with them, so she spoke very politely: "We haven't found Zhao Laoliu and Sun Xiaojun yet. You two are responsible for finding them and bringing them over for questioning."
Mao Yicheng and Ai De responded solemnly: "Yes!"
Seeing that Jiang Ling had a clear division of labor and clear instructions, the whole team was mobilized and full of energy. Zheng Yu's eyes shone: "Don't worry, I'll investigate Ge Cuihua! Call records, bank statements, interviews with neighbors... I guarantee I'll find out everything about her."
After saying that, Zheng Yu stood up and looked at everyone: "Jiang Ling's portrait is very clear. Let's start the operation as we just discussed!"
Five suspects and seven investigation teams were all mobilized.
He Kai led a group of people to the bus station, train station, and various cheap hotels in Yan City. Dozens of copies of Mao Dali's photo were made and distributed to each team member.
However, Mao Dali seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving no record of purchasing tickets or any obvious traces near the station.
He Kai encountered setbacks on his first time leading a team, which gave him a headache.
Mao Dali may still be hiding in some corner of Yanshi, or he may have hitched a ride on a freight train or truck and escaped.
At the same time, Liu Haoran and Zhou Wei went to the household registration office of Chengbei Police Station to investigate Mao Dali's household registration information.
As the saying goes, you can run away from the monk but you can't hide from the temple.
Liu Haoran, an outgoing man, flashed his signature sunny smile at a middle-aged female police officer in charge of the files: "Please help me, it's a matter of life and death!"
In the 1990s, the household registration system had not yet been established, and the archives were all handwritten booklets, making them very difficult to search. Hearing Liu Haoran's plea, the policewoman smiled helplessly but did not refuse, and began to carefully search through the documents.
The restaurant had registered Mao Dali's ID number because he was a migrant worker from out of town and had obtained a temporary residence permit as required. The search for his household registration was tedious, but it was still possible to find him if one was willing to spend the time.
"Found it!" The policewoman's finger stopped on a yellowed registration form: "Mao Dali, male, born in April 1977, native place... Maojia Village, Kaoshan Township, Linjiang County, Yunling City."
The registration date was early June 1994, and the reason for registration was "working". The handwriting on the registration form was messy, the contact information section was blank, and there was only a simple signature and red handprint. At the bottom, there was a note: introduced to work at Shunlai Restaurant in this city by fellow villager Mao Zhirong (ID number: ...).
"Mao Zhirong!" Liu Haoran and Zhou Wei exchanged a glance, their spirits lifting. This cousin was the one who brought Mao Dali out; he must know Mao Dali very well.
"Can you find Mao Zhirong's registration information?" Zhou Wei's voice was steady and powerful, with the conciseness characteristic of a soldier.
The policewoman quickly pulled out a slightly clearer file: "Mao Zhirong, male, born in August 1973, same hometown. Registered a year earlier, in October 1993. Work unit... Foundry workshop, Huaiyin City Third Machinery Factory." An address was provided: Room 302, Unit 2, Building 3, Chengnan Workers' New Village.
"Workers' New Village." Liu Haoran clapped his hands. "Brother Zhou, shall we go?"
"Let's go!" Zhou Wei neatly put away his notebook.
The two headed straight for the south of the city.
Workers' New Village is a typical residential area for families of state-owned factories and mines, with rows of red brick buildings and honeycomb briquettes and other miscellaneous items piled up in the corridors, full of life.
Finding apartment 302 in building 3, unit 2, and knocking on the door, a strong smell of sweat and engine oil hit me. The man who opened the door was Mao Zhirong, a slightly more robust man than Mao Dali, with equally dark skin, wearing an oil-stained work vest, and a hint of confusion on his face.
"Mao Zhirong?" Liu Haoran flashed his badge, his smile unchanged, but his eyes sharpened. "He's from the Municipal Public Security Bureau's Criminal Investigation Division. He wants to ask you about something, about your cousin, Mao Dali."
Most people are afraid of the police, so Mao Zhirong was a little uneasy and stepped aside to let the two men in. The dormitory was small, with four bunk beds, housing eight workers, but Mao Zhirong was the only one there at the moment.
"Dali... what happened to him?" Mao Zhirong's voice was a little hoarse.
"You know that Wang Youfu, the owner of Shunlai Restaurant, is dead, right?" Zhou Wei asked bluntly.
"No, I don't know." Mao Zhirong swallowed. "I'm a temporary worker at the factory, working three shifts a day, and I rarely go out. How could someone just die like that?"
He suddenly became nervous: "What, what does this have to do with Dali? Officer, although I introduced Dali to work at Shunlai Restaurant, it was through connections and several intermediaries. I only mentioned it briefly. It was registered when I applied for the temporary residence permit, but I really don't know anything else!"
Clearly, upon hearing of Wang Youfu's death, Mao Zhirong wanted to distance himself from the situation.
“Mao Dali disappeared after the incident.” Liu Haoran pulled up a stool and sat down, his posture relaxed but his words pressing. “We have to find him. You were the one who brought him out and introduced him to Shunlai Restaurant, so you should know him quite well. Tell me, when was the last time you saw him? Did he ever talk to you about the restaurant? In particular, what was his relationship with Wang Youfu like?”
Mao Zhirong rubbed his hands, looking somewhat uneasy: "The last time I saw him was at noon on the 24th. He came to me to borrow money, saying that his boss had deducted his wages again and he was almost out of food. I didn't have much money on me, so I gave him ten yuan. He took the money and left, looking dejected, and didn't say anything."
He paused, as if recalling something: "Relationships? Sigh, Boss Wang is a scoundrel. Dali got yelled at a lot, his pay was always docked, and he even beat him. Dali is a quiet person, and he doesn't like to talk about it when he comes back, but he'll occasionally mention that the boss is too ruthless, he can't even tolerate a lame dog..."
"Dog?!" Liu Haoran and Zhou Wei grasped the key word almost simultaneously, both leaning forward slightly.
“Yes, a dog!” Mao Zhirong nodded. “Dali said he picked up a stray dog at the back door of the restaurant and secretly fed it. Boss Wang found out and broke its leg. Dali begged for a long time, and only after he offered ten yuan a month did Boss Wang reluctantly agree to let him keep it. But after only a few days, he changed his attitude, scolding him for wasting food and even saying he would kill the dog and cook it. Dali cried secretly about this, saying that the dog was as pitiful as Ah Huang from his hometown…”
Mao Zhirong sighed, "This child has loved dogs since he was little, and he has a soft heart."
"What happened to the dog after that? Do you know where the dog went?" Zhou Wei pressed, his tone becoming more urgent.
"I don't know about that," Mao Zhirong shook his head. "Dali never mentioned it again. But..."
He hesitated for a moment, "The day Dali came to borrow money, his eyes were red, and when I asked him, he wouldn't say anything, just kept muttering 'It's all gone, it's all gone.' I was busy at work at the time, and after giving him the money, I didn't ask him any questions. Now that I think about it, could it be related to that dog?"
"Did Mao Dali say where he might go? Or did he mention wanting to go back to his hometown?" Liu Haoran continued to ask.
Mao Zhirong smiled bitterly: "He came out to make money. His grandfather is still waiting for him to send money back home for medical treatment. His hometown? A poor mountain village. What would he do back there? He probably hasn't gone far. He has no money. Where could he go? Maybe he'll be doing odd jobs at some construction site in the city, or sleeping under a bridge."
He provided very limited information, but he mentioned that "Grandpa is in our hometown," which was a clue.
After leaving Mao Zhirong's place, Liu Haoran immediately contacted He Kai, informed him of Mao Dali's hometown address, and asked him to coordinate with the local police station to check whether Mao Dali had returned home, and to keep an eye out for buses departing from the long-distance bus station to Yunling Linjiang.
"The main points are still the dog and the cart!" Zhou Wei drove the car, turned the steering wheel, and headed straight for the area near Shunlai Restaurant. "Mao Zhirong said that given Mao Dali's final state, the dog was very likely dealt with by Wang Youfu. Moreover, Liang Jiushan also noticed that the cart with the iron cage had disappeared when he was keeping watch."
The two parked their car two blocks away from Shunlai Restaurant and began walking around to visit the restaurant.
From the elderly sweeping the streets, to the owners of small shops on the street, to the old men sitting in the shade of trees fanning themselves and playing chess, and even the security guards of several nearby residential areas, the focus was on asking them if they had seen the lame yellow dog and the cart.
"Grandpa, do you often stroll around around here? Have you seen a yellowish-brown dog with a limp hind leg and a slightly dirty coat? It's about this tall." Liu Haoran gestured, offering a cigarette to an elderly man watching chess with a friendly smile.
The old man took the cigarette, squinted, and thought for a moment: "A dog? Oh, you mean the one at Shunlai Restaurant? It's an old dog. It used to scavenge for food near the garbage dump. Later, it broke its leg and was secretly fed by the restaurant's young worker, the skinny one."
“Yes, yes, that’s it! Have you seen it recently? Or, have you seen the tricycle with the iron cage at Shunlai Restaurant?” Zhou Wei asked, leaning closer.
The old man took a puff of his cigarette and shook his head: "I haven't seen that dog in a while, maybe a week or so? The cart? That cart used to be parked in front of the restaurant quite conspicuous, but I haven't seen it lately either. I heard about Boss Wang's accident, and I was wondering why he was gone and the cart was gone too. I think... it was sold?"
"Sold? Sold to whom?" Liu Haoran and Zhou Wei's hearts were in their throats.
"I can't say for sure," the old man waved his hand. "I just heard Old Zhao, the scrap collector, mention that Shunlai Restaurant sold a broken tricycle to the scrap yard. Why don't you go ask them at the scrap yard?"
A clue has emerged.
The two rushed to the largest nearby scrap metal recycling station without stopping.
The owner of the scrap yard was a lean, middle-aged man who was sorting through a pile of old cardboard. When Liu Haoran asked about the tricycle with the iron cage, he frowned and recalled, "I think I did collect one. Just a few days ago, I picked it up from a restaurant worker who was pushing it. He said the boss wanted him to sell it. It was a bit broken, but the iron cage was quite heavy, so I gave him twenty yuan."
"Is the car still there?" Zhou Wei asked hurriedly.
The boss pointed to a corner of the yard, "Yes, it's there. Look, in that pile of scrap metal. It hasn't been dismantled yet; we plan to deal with it together in a couple of days."
The two walked over quickly.
A rusty, oil-stained tricycle was squeezed into a pile of scrap metal, with a square iron cage made of thick steel bars on the cart, used to keep dogs, standing out conspicuously.
"Dawei, look here!" Liu Haoran, with his sharp eyes, squatted down and pointed to a spot near the bottom of the iron cage. There were several suspicious spots there, which had turned black and dark but were irregularly shaped. He quickly took out the cotton swabs and evidence bag he was carrying to take samples.
“And this too.” Zhou Wei pulled out a dog leash made of coarse hemp rope from under a pile of garbage and rust at the bottom of the truck bed. The leash was also covered in dirt, but its original color was still visible.
"A rope!" Liu Haoran's voice was filled with excitement. "I remember Sister Ling mentioned that we should keep an eye out for ropes. Dawei, we need to take this cart back! The evidence team has a job to do."
Zhou Wei nodded calmly and immediately contacted the bureau to send a vehicle to pick up the evidence.
Liu Haoran stood up, dusted off his hands, and looked at the dilapidated tricycle and the cold iron cage. He seemed to see the immense hatred contained in Mao Dali's silent, thin body when Mao Dali pushed it to the scrap yard.
"The dog's gone, but the cart's been sold," Liu Haoran muttered, whistling. "Our team leader was right! Mao Dali, you're not getting away!"
The clues gradually came together.
Mao Dali's criminal motives became increasingly clear.
The net to capture Mao Dali is tightening rapidly.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com