Come back as soon as possible
The personnel assigned by their superiors held a brief meeting on the day they arrived in Linpu and basically learned the specific details of the case.
That day, as Duan Ruiming watched Officer Li and his team bustling about, he had a strange feeling that he was seeing Xu Zhengbei again.
However, Li Rong was more serious than Xu Zhengbei, with a somewhat fierce expression, and seemed unlikely to joke with his subordinates. Perhaps it was just that this case was indeed quite tricky.
Team leader Jiang came over with the compiled data to print it out. Seeing Duan Ruiming staring blankly, he reminded him, "What's wrong? Are you looking at something like that?"
Duan Ruiming snapped out of his daze and shook his head.
"You should come with me later. Officer Li is going to visit the school."
"good."
When Duan Ruiming arrived at the school, he felt as if he were revisiting a familiar place.
There weren't many people there; besides the two of them, there was also a recorder.
All three were dressed casually and had contacted the school and Fei Li's former teacher in advance.
Jiang Li had visited the school during the summer vacation, but the teachers didn't pay much attention to students like Fei Li who were good for nothing. With the college entrance examination approaching, they just wanted to make sure they didn't cause any trouble.
So much time has passed, and I've forgotten many details. Several of the teachers who taught me tried to recall the details but couldn't remember anything special. They said that he didn't pay much attention in class, and would sometimes chat with the teacher about something unrelated, then sleep or eat, doing whatever made him comfortable.
One of the homeroom teachers recalled, "He became even more unruly during the days leading up to the college entrance examination, so I talked to him. He looked quite tired, probably due to the pressure of the exam, and he had lost some weight."
Did you notice anything unusual about him during the conversation?
"No, not at all. Their attitude was fine. They didn't talk back and just agreed to whatever I said."
Li Rong then asked, "How does he usually get along with his classmates?"
"He's not very good. He doesn't study and has made some bad friends outside. At school, he can only talk to his classmates. The boys are okay, but the girls are especially afraid of this kind of gangster and don't want to have any interaction with him. However, there is a girl named Xu Li who can talk to Fei Li."
Duan Ruiming's eyes darkened, and he shifted his gaze from the homeroom teacher to the recorder who had come over to write down Xu Li's name.
"Xu Li? She interacts with Fei Li a lot. Could you elaborate?"
"It's not that we talk a lot, it's just that she's easy to talk to and doesn't know how to say no. Whenever Fei Li talks to people around him, this girl is the only one who responds. After a while, Fei Li naturally starts talking to her. We don't usually talk that much. By the way, her father is also a policeman in Linpu, but..."
Duan Ruiming felt a tightness in his throat, so he clenched his teeth and his jaw muscles bulged.
When the police station in Linpu was mentioned, Li Rong glanced at Duan Ruiming without saying a word, observing his reaction.
Seeing the regret in the homeroom teacher's tone, Li Rong had actually guessed what was going on. In order to understand the case, she asked again, "But what?"
"Her father had an accident just before the college entrance exam, which was a huge blow to her, but she persevered. I paid extra attention to her during that time, and just when I thought she could pull through, she didn't go to take the exam..."
As he spoke, the homeroom teacher shook his head, his eyes filled with undisguised regret.
“Her father’s situation really affected her a lot. Afterwards, the school contacted her, but we don’t know if she wants to repeat a year or what.”
"Indeed, these things are hard to say, but what was the reason for her father's situation?"
"I don't know, and I don't feel comfortable asking her. I haven't been able to contact her since. I'll have to ask the police station for details."
"Okay, if you need anything else, please contact our police station anytime."
"Okay, we will definitely cooperate. Although Fei Li's grades are not good, I am also very unwilling to see this happen. We will definitely cooperate with the police station."
Afterwards, the three of them went to the school to check on Fei Li's movements, copied the surveillance footage, and finally returned to the police station at midnight.
There were still some people at the police station working overtime at their desks with small desk lamps on. Duan Ruiming walked over to the water dispenser, sat down, and waited to get some water.
The person who was recording the conversation with me was a girl, and she has already gone back.
Duan Ruiming's closed eyes gave him a tired look, as if he was about to fall asleep, but only he knew that his mind had been tense all night.
Feeling the light in front of him being blocked, Duan Ruiming opened his eyes.
Li Rong sat down next to him and asked, "Are you that tired?"
Duan Ruiming consciously moved to the side and said, "It's alright."
"What did you think was wrong with what the homeroom teacher said today?"
Duan Ruiming shook his head: "I just don't see any problem, there's no entry point."
"Didn't you find out these things when you went to the school to investigate last time?"
"...Yes, but there's nothing suspicious about it. Those teachers didn't pay much attention to Fei Li and didn't know the specifics."
After thinking it over, Li Rong asked again, "Do you know which of Xu Li's fathers is here?"
He finally asked the question, and Duan Ruiming's taut string snapped.
It's understandable, really. Li Rong has been doing this for so long, his professional intuition is far sharper than Duan Ruiming's.
"Yes, we know each other..."
Duan Ruiming wanted to say something, but then he didn't.
"So, what happened at the time? Was it an accident or something else?"
"It wasn't an accident, but there are no leads on the murderer. The body was found in the suburbs at the time, and the forensic examination showed signs of human intervention. We've been investigating, but we still haven't found any leads."
"..."
"So, what do you think is the connection between this and Fei Li's case?"
This suggestion did provide a clue to the case, but Duan Ruiming immediately denied it. He couldn't believe that if the two cases were connected, what was hidden between them?
What is the connection between these two people? Who is the killer? And why did the killer target these two individuals? Is the killer still searching for a target?
Duan Ruiming shook his head directly.
"And Xu Li, we also couldn't contact her around this time. Have you investigated? Is it really impossible to contact her, or..."
Li Rong hesitated for a moment before uttering two words: "Missing?"
Then he explained, "His father was murdered. So we can't rule out the possibility that the killer might target his daughter."
Duan Ruiming had to admire Li Rong's investigative abilities; he could logically connect everything he knew, and regardless of whether it was true or false, he could provide a new perspective on the case.
However, Duan Ruiming couldn't reveal his relationship with Xu Zhengbei and Xu Li at this moment, nor could he say that he had any contact with Xu Li. Looking at Li Rong's expression, he only knew that Xu Li really didn't have much time left.
But in reality, I don't have much time left for myself.
Maybe tomorrow, maybe the day after.
It's unclear when Li Rong will discover this, or in what direction things will develop.
Looking at Duan Ruiming's expression, Li Rong knew that he probably didn't believe it. In his eyes, Duan Ruiming was still a bit naive. Many cases that occurred at the same time seemed unrelated, but they could often be connected. Even if there was no direct and necessary connection, there would be some indirect and accidental connections in certain details.
"Tomorrow, investigate the people around Fei Li to see where he usually stays off campus, and also review the surveillance footage repeatedly to find details."
Finally, Li Rong stood up and patted Duan Ruiming on the shoulder: "That's how being a police officer is, it can be boring but it's also meaningful."
In that instant, Duan Ruiming really seemed to see Xu Zhengbei. Both of them had taught Duan Ruiming in the same way. At that time, they were also investigating a case. Seeing his heartbroken parents at the door, Duan Ruiming felt extremely sad for the first time. Xu Zhengbei felt the same way. He walked to Duan Ruiming's side in the light, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Don't you think the profession of police officer is very meaningful?"
Find the murderer and uphold justice.
Why did Duan Ruiming choose to become a policeman? It was indeed because of his youthful passion. Some people say that such passion can't put food on the table and can't last long. After a while, you'll find it boring. At that time, Duan Ruiming was naive and didn't understand, nor did he know how to refute it effectively.
Upon arriving here, Duan Ruiming met Xu Zhengbei. Xu Zhengbei didn't teach Duan Ruiming how to hold onto his passion, but Duan Ruiming could sense from his every move that a person with faith in their heart would become different. That inner and outer recognition of one's profession and pride in it is a rare and invaluable strength.
When you truly feel, touch, and see something, you will experience a change in yourself from the inside out.
Li Rong's ability to remain a police officer for so long is a testament to the fact that he and Xu Zhengbei are, in a sense, the same kind of people, and perhaps countless others, who have shone brightly in their professions and found meaning in their work—a truly remarkable achievement.
only……
Duan Ruiming seems to have made a mistake, and things are beyond repair.
At first, he would simply think about what choices were wrong. Later, he finally realized that there are no absolute right or wrong choices. Still later, as an outsider, he would think about what choices would be better. It wasn't until the matter was actually in front of him that he was the one who needed to make the decision, and only then did he realize how difficult it was.
He had hesitated and felt lost, unable to be truly rational and absolutely clear-headed, and he also had selfish motives, so he chose to keep it a secret, to hide the strange things he had noticed, and to hide his connection with Xu Li.
Li Rong left, leaving Duan Ruiming alone.
The strings in my mind turned to stone, pressing down on my heart and making it hard to breathe.
Late at night, Duan Ruiming took out his phone; it contained a text message he had edited in the car.
In the past, when he contacted Xu Li, he would talk as much as he could, because he didn't have many opportunities to talk to Xu Li.
But this time, the text message only contained a few words.
Come back as soon as possible, Xu Li. Time is running out.
It was very brief, and this was the last thing he could do.
He hoped that Xu Li could understand the meaning behind his words and appreciate his hardships.
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