Chapter 83: Missing Case Turns into Murder Case
Jiang Nan had asked so many people before; it was clear she was lying. She snapped her notebook shut and said sternly, "Mrs. Zheng, lying to the police or concealing something is punishable by law. In serious cases, you could even be sentenced to imprisonment. Think carefully about what you were doing that night. Why were there noises in the house?"
Granny Zheng stammered for a long time, squeezing out a voice from between her teeth: "What couple doesn't quarrel? Guohua and that little bitch had a few arguments. What's the big deal? Ask, ask, ask, what's there to ask! It's just a quarrel between husband and wife..."
At this point, she gradually became more confident and assertive: "It was just a few words, so what? That little bitch eloped with someone because of this. Even if you look at it from the top of the world, my family is in the right!"
Jiang Nan pressed on: "Tell me more details. Why are they arguing?"
"I...I don't know." Granny Zheng lowered her head, not daring to look Jiang Nan in the eye. "I fell asleep and was half asleep. I didn't hear clearly."
"Look into my eyes!"
Granny Zheng slowly raised her head, her eyes showing fear, panic, and more importantly, uneasiness.
Jiang Nan's stern voice rang out again: "Tell me, why did they quarrel that night?"
Granny Zheng shuddered unconsciously, but she still said stubbornly, "I...I don't know. She eloped. She's a bitch. How can you...how can you speak for a bitch?"
Jiang Nan remained silent, staring straight at Grandma Zheng with a sharp look in his eyes.
Under this scrutinizing gaze, Granny Zheng's voice gradually lowered until it was barely more than a mosquito's hum, making it impossible to hear what she was saying. But even though her body was shaking unconsciously, she stubbornly kept her mouth shut and refused to speak.
Seeing that no further information could be obtained, Jiang Nan could only withdraw his gaze. It was a pleasant surprise that Granny Zheng, as a mother, could say so much despite her fear, considering this was a matter concerning her own son. The group questioned the neighbors and quickly said goodbye.
After coming out of the street, Xiao Tang wanted to take everyone to a state-owned restaurant for dinner, but was rejected by Zhou Zhixing. After shaking hands with each of the six groups one by one, Xiao Tang said goodbye and left. He still had many cases to deal with, and being able to take them away for a whole morning was already fulfilling his duty.
Zhou Zhixing led everyone back to Hongqi Street and quietly went to the neighbor's house. He said, "Hello, is it convenient for you? We would like to come in and talk to you."
The neighbor's surname was Guan. She was an older lady with a somewhat harsh look. When she saw the six people coming back, she hesitated for a moment, then opened the door and invited the six people in.
Her house was behind the Zheng family's, separated by an aisle more than two meters wide. Because it was lunch time, the Zheng family was cooking and eating in the front yard, so she couldn't see what was going on in the backyard and didn't know how many people from Group 6 had gone there and returned.
There weren't enough stools at Aunt Guan's house, so they had to stand. Jiang Nan slowed down his tone and asked, "Everyone says that Comrade Meng Zhenfang eloped. What do you think about this?"
Aunt Guan raised her eyelids and asked bluntly, "What's the big deal about what I think? Can you still redress Zhenfang?"
Jiang Nan raised an eyebrow and said, "No conclusion has been reached yet, and it doesn't involve the idea of rehabilitation. From your tone, I can assume that you don't believe Meng Zhenfang eloped, right?"
Aunt Guan snorted and said, "Zhenfang is the one with a miserable life. If she wanted to elope, she would have done so long ago. Why did she have to endure until now? She was forced to leave."
Jiang Nan raised his eyebrows upon hearing this and started talking in a classic way: "What do you mean?"
Aunt Guan was about to say something, but then she shut up. She asked, "What did I say? You won't tell anyone it was me, will you? You came into my house so openly, and it will definitely get to the Zheng family's ears. They have connections in the Revolutionary Committee. No, you guys should go back. I don't know anything."
Jiang Nan said seriously, "Auntie Guan, we'll be back this afternoon. After all, we haven't asked Zheng Guohua yet, so we need to investigate this matter further. Don't worry, no one will know what you said."
Aunt Guan hesitated for a long time before asking, "Can you really keep this a secret for me?"
Jiang Nan smiled, "Of course, Auntie. If you don't trust me, how can you not trust the government? We live in a new society now. The police investigate cases with a strong eye for evidence. They won't arrest people arbitrarily, and they will keep witnesses' identities confidential, so that everyone can identify the bad guys with peace of mind without worrying about retaliation."
Aunt Guan was still a little worried: "After all, the Zheng family has connections in the Revolutionary Committee, I..."
Jiang Nan smiled and said, "Auntie Guan, we've also investigated. If the Zheng family's relatives in the Revolutionary Committee really would make decisions for his family, why haven't they said anything to Zheng Guohua in all these years? You don't have to worry about it. His relatives in the Revolutionary Committee have no real power. They are just using the tiger's skin to bully others."
Aunt Guan finally breathed a sigh of relief. She lowered her voice and said, "Zhenfang was forced by that family. She..."
Aunt Guan sighed, "For so many years, she couldn't have a child. She was very bitter and felt sorry for the Zheng family. She didn't dare to fight back when the old woman beat her at home. Many times her body was beaten until it bled. If I hadn't applied some medicine to her frequently, there would have been no healthy flesh on Zhenfang's body. Oh, that's it. The Zheng family is so unkind."
She made a bitter face and said with difficulty: "Zheng Guohua is an incompetent coward! He is very capable at home, but a coward outside. That time when Zhenfang went to the canal to deliver food, Zheng Guohua's leader took a fancy to Zhenfang and said that if Zhenfang stayed with him for a few nights, he would give Zheng Guohua a promotion. Zheng Guohua, that shameless guy, actually agreed! Tell me, is there anyone who would do this to his husband?! Zhenfang is unlucky to marry such a person!" At the end, she even gritted her teeth.
Jiang Nan: "Auntie Guan, calm down. How did you know such a secret?"
Aunt Guan pointed forward and said, "He lives right in front of mine. One time I woke up at night and heard some noise, so I went to check it out out of curiosity. Don't get me wrong, I don't have the habit of eavesdropping. The noise was obviously wrong, so I went to check it out. That leader is not a good person. Not only is he lustful, but he also likes to beat people when doing that! Ever since that incident with that leader, Zhenfang has had more and more injuries. I tried to persuade her, but she cried and complained to me, oh. It's not easy for women these days. If she gets divorced and goes back to her parents' home, it will delay the marriages of her sisters. And she has endured it for so long, and she's not willing to leave like this. Who would have thought..."
Aunt Guan was furious. "Who would have thought that leader was such a jerk? He actually wanted Zhenfang to accompany another leader. He said that only if he moved, would the positions of others in the office be reshuffled. Otherwise, everyone would be assigned their own position, and it wouldn't be easy to get promoted. Zhenfang disagreed and made a scene twice. That day, the argument must have been about this, and that's why Zhenfang ran away. Don't look for her anymore. Let her go. Otherwise, if she's found, who knows what will happen to her."
Jiang Nan: "Auntie, did Zhenfang also tell you about the leader's plan?"
Aunt Guan nodded and said, "My daughter-in-law is the head nurse of the commune hospital. We have all the medicines at home. I often treat Zhenfang's injuries and comfort her. She trusts me and tells me everything."
Jiang Nan nodded, asked a few more details, and then left with everyone to have lunch at the state-owned restaurant.
On the way, Wang Zili and Wang Gengsheng were so angry that their faces turned blue. The two young men were young and inexperienced, and had never seen such a shameless family: "Beasts!"
Zou Li patted the two brothers on the shoulders and said, "Think positively. There are all kinds of people in the world. We can't let our emotions get in the way of a case. We'll have to ask Zheng Guohua about this after dinner, so don't be so sullen."
Wang Zilii and Wang Gengsheng were indignant, but knowing that Zou Li was doing it for their own good, they could only nod.
The six of them had a quick meal of vegetable noodles, then hurried over to Zheng Guohua's house to block him. Coincidentally, Zheng Guohua had just finished lunch and was about to take a nap. Seeing the six officers from the Oilfield Police Station, his brow furrowed into a "川" shape. He said impatiently, "Meng Zhenfang eloped with someone, what are you still investigating? Really, there are so many things waiting for you police officers to handle, and why are you busying yourself with such a trivial matter? You really don't know what you are talking about."
He has a square face, a flat nose, a short flat head, and a short stature. Not only does he look unattractive, but he has been working as a clerk for almost ten years without moving. This shows his ability. If you don't know him, you might think Zheng Guohua is very capable when you hear his tone of voice.
Jiang Nan complained internally, but said seriously on the surface, "Whatever the police station wants to investigate, it's up to the leadership to decide. Officer Zheng, don't worry about it. We want to inquire about Meng Zhenfang's situation, so please cooperate."
Zheng Guohua looked a little unnatural and nodded stiffly.
Jiang Nan: "May I ask what your leader's name is? What are your main responsibilities in the commune?"
Zheng Guohua was stunned for a moment, then asked sharply, "Aren't you asking about Meng Zhenfang? Why are you asking my leader?"
Jiang Nan said sternly, "Please answer the police truthfully. This is necessary for the investigation. Please cooperate."
Zheng Guohua hesitated for a moment before replying, "My boss is Xu Jianshe. He's... he's the deputy director of the commune office, and he's mainly responsible for some of the commune's logistical work."
Jiang Nan nodded: "Where does he live? Who are his family members?"
"Why...why are you asking these questions?"
Jiang Nan: "Please answer truthfully."
"This has nothing to do with Meng Zhenfang. You're asking nonsense questions. I...I refuse to answer such questions."
Jiang Nan: "After investigation, someone saw Xu Jianshe pulling Meng Zhenfang. We suspect Meng Zhenfang's disappearance is related to Xu Jianshe. It doesn't matter if you don't answer. We will go directly to the commune to find him."
Zheng Guohua was anxious: "No, you can't go to the commune! And you can't go to Xu Jianshe!"
Jiang Nan raised an eyebrow: "Do you have anything to say?"
Hearing this, Zheng Guohua lowered his head and didn't speak for a long time.
Seeing this, Zhou Zhixing played the good guy: "Comrade Zheng Guohua, if you don't cooperate, we have the right to ask you to go to the police station to assist in the investigation!"
Seeing the police were angry, Mrs. Zheng started to throw a tantrum: "No, you can't take Guohua away. Guohua hasn't done anything wrong. If you take him away, you're not going to give him a chance to live! How will he be able to work in the commune in the future? You bastards, you..."
Zhou Zhixing played the white-faced role very conscientiously, and his whole body exuded an aura of not being easy to mess with: "Mrs. Zheng, if you do this again, we will take you back and assist in the investigation together."
Mrs. Zheng was dumbfounded. She didn't understand why the throwing a tantrum that had always worked before suddenly didn't work anymore. This...where could she seek justice?
Zheng Guohua raised his head, his eyes gloomy, and said sinisterly, "Did you find out anything?"
Jiang Nan shrugged, not answering the question. Instead, he tried his best to coax her: "Zheng Guohua, whether or not you go to the police station depends on your cooperation. If you cooperate, we can let you off the hook. After all, Meng Zhenfang is still missing, and the most urgent thing is to find him. If you don't cooperate, that's fine. We can bring him back for interrogation and get to the bottom of the matter."
Zheng Guohua, however, acted as if he hadn't heard anything. He stared fiercely at everyone, his eyes filled with hostility: "You look down on me?! Do you look down on me?!"
Jiang Nan knew that this kind of person cared most about face, so she didn't let the other male colleagues speak. Instead, she said, "Whether you look down on me or not, you've done it. Right now, only we police officers know about it. If you don't speak up, once we go to the commune revolutionary committee, the whole commune will probably know. Think it over carefully."
Hearing this, Zheng Guohua slumped in his chair like a deflated ball. He murmured, "I have no choice. I was forced to do this. I have no choice."
Mother Zheng cried out, "God damn it, Meng Zhenfang! You're still causing trouble for my family even after you left. Why don't you just die? You did such a shameless thing, and you still have the nerve to run away. If you have the guts, you should just die and put an end to it all. Make room for my Guohua. God damn it, Meng Zhenfang!"
Jiang Nan yelled, "Alright, when the police are investigating a case, throwing a tantrum is useless. You'd better explain the situation clearly. Otherwise, if others find out, you'll lose the initiative."
Forced by the momentum of the six men, Mrs. Zheng felt as if her fate had been strangled by the scruff of the neck and she could no longer utter a sound.
Zheng Guohua wiped his face and began to tell the truth.
It was similar to what Aunt Guan had said before, but what Aunt Guan didn’t know was that the one who was infertile was actually Zheng Guohua.
Zheng Guohua had secretly gone to the hospital for a checkup and was diagnosed with azoospermia, meaning he would never be able to have children. Mrs. Zheng knew this, and when the couple filed for divorce at the Meng family, she flatly refused. Zheng Guohua was infertile, and marrying a beautiful woman like Meng Zhenfang was a great blessing. Furthermore, Zheng Guohua had noticed that his boss, Xu Jianshe, was a womanizer. He deliberately had Meng Zhenfang bring him food so that Xu Jianshe would see her and seduce her.
To use Zheng Guohua's deceptive words to Meng Zhenfang, since she couldn't have children, she had to contribute in other ways. Maintaining a good relationship with her boss and helping him get promoted was also Meng Zhenfang's usefulness. Otherwise, would the Zheng family have raised her for so many years in vain?
Meng Zhenfang initially firmly disagreed, but only after Zheng Guohua knelt down did she relent and agree. Unfortunately, a scumbag is a scumbag. It was clearly Zheng Guohua who started it, but after two or three times, Zheng Guohua still disliked Meng Zhenfang's uncleanliness and slept in a separate room from his wife.
Even Jiang Nan, who was used to seeing such scumbags in later generations, sighed that he had not seen such a shameless person for a long time.
As for Meng Zhenfang's subsequent disappearance, it was as Aunt Guan had said: Zheng Guohua and Xu Jianshe wanted her to accompany a more senior leader, but Meng Zhenfang disagreed and fled after an argument. The two also had an argument that day, and Meng Zhenfang accidentally injured Zheng Guohua.
After stuttering out his account of what happened, Zheng Guohua shrugged and defended himself, "She ran away on her own. It has nothing to do with me. You can't wrongly accuse her, and you can't go to my boss. He...he has no hope of getting promoted, and he's been treating me with disdain lately. If you go to him about this again, I won't be able to stay in the commune any longer."
Jiang Nan cursed inwardly and asked, "Do you know where Meng Zhenfang went? She hasn't been home for so long, and she hasn't returned to her parents' home either. Do you know where she could have gone? Did she have any money when she left?"
Zheng Guohua shook his head: "I don't know. She usually works at home and has never been anywhere. She has no money and no letter of introduction, so she definitely can't buy a ticket. But..."
He thought for a moment and said, "Don't you have a railway line in your oil field that transports crude oil? Her...her brother passed the exam to become an oil worker, and he came home to say a few words, but he was actually just here to support her. She might try to jack the train, and jacking trains doesn't require a ticket. There are always people jacking trains in the commune."
Jiang Nan and Zhou Zhixing looked at each other and nodded. Although it was difficult to move around without a letter of introduction these days, if one really couldn't survive in a place, who would care so much? They would just leave first. There would always be a way out when the car reached the mountain. It wouldn't be worse than staying where they were.
The six inquired about details, such as the clothes and shoes Meng Zhenfang was wearing when she left, and had Zheng Guohua and Mrs. Zheng sign their testimony before leaving. They would ride from Zheng's house all the way to the railway line of the oil field, asking along the way if anyone had seen Meng Zhenfang.
At that time, with less advanced technology, the investigation relied on extensive investigations and field visits. However, these were time-consuming, and six teams spent two days without finding anyone who had seen Meng Zhenfang along the way.
Just when everyone thought that Meng Zhenfang had disappeared by hopping on the train, Meng Zhenfang entered the sight of everyone in the Oilfield Police Station in a way that no one expected.
That morning, retired fisherman Lao Huang rode his bike to the reservoir to fish as usual. Although the reservoir hadn't completely thawed, the ice was already quite thin, allowing him to easily carve a large hole with a stone. Fishing in the ice hole was even easier than usual.
He returned to his old spot, dug a hole as usual, and began to bait his line. He wasn't actually retiring; he was letting his son take over. These days, few people work until retirement; many voluntarily give up their jobs to prevent their children from moving to the countryside. Old Huang was only in his early forties, still in the prime of life. With nothing to do after retirement, he thought of fishing. These days, with no business to go around, fishing was a pastime that also provided some income for the family. Many idle men came to the reservoir to fish.
Not long after Old Huang sat down, people began to arrive. He nodded to those he knew and noticed the hook began to sink. A smile crossed his face. Judging by the force of the bite, the fish must be quite large.
He quickly reeled in his line, and the people around him all looked over to see what he had caught so early in the morning. Who knew that when the hook emerged from the water, it turned out to be a pair of cloth shoes! The black shoes were still entangled in seaweed, clearly entangled in it. No wonder it took so much effort for Old Huang to reel them in.
A few fishermen laughed good-naturedly. Old Huang blushed slightly, mentally cursing his bad luck. He quickly yanked his shoe off the hook and tried to throw it back into the reservoir, but then he noticed something floating up from the water not far away. He rubbed his eyes, then rubbed them again in disbelief, his hands trembling as he shrieked, "What...what is that? Look, what's floating up there?"
The other fishermen narrowed their eyes. One of them fell to the ground with a thud and began to crawl backwards, screaming as he ran: "Murder! Someone's dead! Murder!"
When Lan Qingshan arrived at the scene with Group 5 and Group 6, the reservoir was already surrounded by people. Even the bodies had been fished out. No one knew who was so brave.
The reservoir was built before the Liberation Army and is located on the border of the oil field. The fisherman reported the crime and naturally went to the oil field. For a murder case of this magnitude, Lan Qingshan personally led two teams to investigate, vowing to solve the case in the shortest possible time!
Although there's no requirement to solve a murder case, a matter of this magnitude will inevitably spread throughout the oil fields. If the murderer isn't caught quickly, the people will inevitably live in fear every day, significantly impacting their daily lives and production. Everyone at the scene understood this, and each of the dozen or so people had a graver expression than the last.
Jiang Nan had prepared himself, but upon seeing the swollen, foul-smelling corpse, he still vomited his breakfast. The rest of Group Six wasn't much better. Zou Li and Wen Qiang, though experienced, also turned pale. Wang Zili and Wang Gengsheng vomited even more violently than Jiang Nan. Only Zhou Zhixing managed to hold his own. Despite his serious expression, he managed to hold his own, saving some face for Group Six. Remember, three of the four people in Group Five remained calm.
Shao Yong, the leader of Group 5, whistled provocatively at the three people vomiting violently and expressed deep sympathy for Zhou Zhixing: "Xiao Zhou, you've worked hard."
Jiang Nan swore that if it weren't for Shao Yong's decent looks and good figure, she would have punched him without hesitation! Right at that face, punch!
Alas, she is just too kind and forgives handsome men too easily!
Zhou Zhixing seemed to sense something, raised an eyebrow, and hooked his arm around Shao Yong's shoulder as they went to examine the body. The body had already taken on a gigantic size, making it difficult to discern its features. The clothes were wrinkled from being soaked, and due to the haste with which they had been salvaged, the shirt had been torn by the weeds.
Jiang Nan steeled herself mentally once more, taking heavy steps. She tried to keep her gaze fixed on the clothes. As a designer in her past life, she was particularly sensitive to clothing and shoes. She observed them for a moment, then pondered, "The clothes on the corpse look a bit like what Zheng Guohua mentioned earlier, the ones Meng Zhenfang wore when she ran away from home."
Upon hearing this, Lan Qingshan asked Wang Zilii and Wang Gengsheng, who were still vomiting, to go to the commune to ask for help. In any murder case, the identity of the body must be determined first, otherwise they would not know where to start the investigation.
He looked at Zhou Zhixing and said, "You lead the team and ask about the circumstances of the discovery of the body. Leave this to me and Shao Yong."
Shao Yong chuckled twice, looking very arrogant.
Jiang Nan rolled his eyes and went with Zhou Zhixing to ask Lao Huang and a few other fishermen.
The fishermen were already pale with fear, and faced with the police's questioning, they trembled and couldn't get to the point for a long time. Fortunately, Jiang Nan was patient and asked them about the circumstances before and after the discovery of the body.
The place where the body was found is located on the east side of the reservoir. Not far ahead, less than one kilometer away, is the railway that transports crude oil from the oil field. It seems that Meng Zhenfang really wanted to escape by jumping on the train.
However, Jiang Nan still had questions. Based on the descriptions of her neighbors and Meng Zhengang, Meng Zhenfang shouldn't be so bold. Furthermore, she had feelings for her parents' home, so she should have visited them on the East River before leaving. Why did she just jump on the train?
Soon, Zheng Guohua, Mrs. Zheng, and Meng Zhenggang were all called in to identify the body. Zheng Guohua and Mrs. Zheng were so frightened that their legs were trembling, and they stood at a distance, not daring to approach. Meng Zhenggang's eyes were red, and after a long time of calming down, he walked over to the body. However, the body was blurry, and he couldn't recognize it. However, he said, "My sister went to the mountains to pick wild fruits when she was a child. She broke her right leg and still has the scar. There is also a scar on her right arm that is as long as her little finger. Could you please check if you have these two characteristics, police officer?"
Lan Qingshan looked at the forensic doctor Xie Yongping. Forensic doctor Xie carefully examined the two places and nodded. Meng Zhenggang's tears fell, which made Jiang Nan feel uncomfortable.
The body had been confirmed to be Meng Zhenfang's, and the next step was an autopsy. Wang Zili and Wang Gengsheng escorted Meng Zhengang back to his room. Xie Yongping then calmly said, "Preliminary observations indicate the deceased died five days ago by drowning. She had been assaulted before her death. Aside from signs of struggle, there were no fatal injuries."
The specific results have not yet come out. After taking photos at the scene, the police station carried the body back to the funeral home morgue to await an autopsy. Everyone returned to the police station and began to discuss the case.
Shao Yong described the situation at the scene: "The place where the body was found was not the primary scene. We circled along the reservoir and found the place where the person first drowned."
Shao Yong opened his notebook and described the initial scene. "The scene is located approximately 300 meters southeast of where the body was found. Fabric matching the deceased's shirt was found in the grass, along with a suspicious footprint. The footprint is a size 46, so we infer the owner must have been at least 1.75 meters tall, otherwise it would be difficult to have such large feet. We've already sent the footprints to a footprint identification expert, and I'm confident the owner's condition will be known soon."
Jiang Nan was curious: "Does our police station have a footprint identification expert? Why haven't I heard of them?"
Lan Qingshan smiled: "He's not from our police station, he's from the Duzishan Brigade, he's Shao Yong's cousin."
He looked at Shao Yong and said seriously, "Shao Yong, this is a murder case. Please, Master Shi, please come out. I leave this matter to you. Find the suspect's appearance as soon as possible."
Shao Yong stood at attention: "Yes, I will complete the task."
Lan Qingshan looked at Zhou Zhixing and the others. "Has Xu Jianshe not been questioned yet? Zhou Zhixing will take two people to ask him this afternoon. After that, we'll go revisit Zheng Guohua's neighbors. We can't miss any clues. Zou Li, take two people with the rest of Group 5 to the East River Bank Brigade to inquire about the situation. Focus on investigating whether Meng Zhenfang has been back and the Meng family's social connections in East River Bank."
He clapped his hands and encouraged everyone, saying, "Everyone, work harder and strive to solve the murder case as soon as possible and seek justice for the deceased."
Everyone nodded. Because of the urgency of the case, no one mentioned going home for dinner. Instead, they hurried to the police station cafeteria, ate a few quick bites, and then headed off to their destinations. Some, with less mental fortitude, couldn't even eat. The thought of the corpse they'd seen that morning made them sick, and they went off to their mission hungry.
Seeing Wang Zili and Wang Gengsheng's pale faces, Zhou Zhixing pulled out two White Rabbit snacks from his pocket and handed them to each other, saying, "Carry some snacks with you from now on. If you can't eat, you can replenish your sugars and avoid fainting from hypoglycemia. Okay, go carry out the mission, and don't embarrass Team Six."
The two brothers nodded and followed Zou Li. Zhou Zhixing took Jiang Nan and Wen Qiang to the commune's Xu Jianshe office.
Because Meng Zhenfang had escaped, Xu Jianshe had lost his chance for a promotion, and he was already feeling down. And with Zheng Guohua taking another unexpected leave, Xu Jianshe felt even worse. He had a sullen face during the afternoon shift, and he was unimpressed by anyone who approached him. When Jiang Nan and the other two arrived, Xu Jianshe was in the middle of berating a subordinate, his spit flying. He didn't have the demeanor of a deputy director at all, but rather acted like a shrew.
Seeing that there were strangers, Xu Jianshe let his subordinates go back.
Jiang Nan and the other two explained their purpose, and Xu Jianshe's eyes flickered. As a leader, he'd taken advantage of more than just Zheng Guohua. It wasn't clear which one had gone wrong, but Xu Jianshe remained unmoved, chuckling and inviting the three to sit down.
Xu Jianshe was only 1.7 meters tall, and his feet were no larger than a size 42, which didn't match the footprints' owner's characteristics. Jiang Nan was disappointed, but she still perked up and began questioning. Xu Jianshe was much more cunning than Zheng Guohua. Initially, he denied any connection to Meng Zhenfang, but only relented when they heard he was suspected of murder and wanted to be taken to the police station to assist in the investigation.
"Meng Zhenfang seduced me. She wasn't happy with Zheng Guohua being just a small clerk and wanted to be the boss's wife. Officer, my wife has been dead for two years. I... I didn't stand the test and made some small mistakes, but I didn't kill anyone. I wouldn't even dare to kill a chicken, so how could I possibly kill someone?"
Jiang Nan: "Five days ago, on the night of March 14th, what were you doing?"
Xu Jianshe thought about it and his eyes began to roll.
Jiang Nan was so angry that he laughed: "Comrade Xu Jianshe, this is a murder case! If you don't tell the truth, let's go to the police station interrogation room. Once there, you will definitely tell the truth, right?"
Xu Jianshe's face twitched twice, and he stammered, "Well, I... I went to visit Comrade Xing Ming's home and stayed there for one night."
He coughed twice. "Comrade Xing Ming and... and his wife can all testify for me."
Jiang Nan rolled her eyes. How could such a person have gotten this far? She suppressed her nausea and pushed the transcript over to Xu Jianshe for his signature. For the first time, she didn't even want to maintain a facade and walked away with a cold face.
Xu Jianshe was not a suspect, and there was no clue as to who the murderer was. However, the news of the murder in the operation department spread like wildfire to all the family compounds.
Jiang Nan and Zhou Zhixing worked all day, not only finding no leads, but also getting pissed off by Xu Jianshe. Of course, it was Jiang Nan who was the main offender; Zhou Zhixing didn't usually get mad at people who weren't involved. When the two of them arrived at the gate of the residential compound on their bikes, they were immediately surrounded by elderly men and women sitting and chatting downstairs.
Old Lady Liu's face was filled with anxiety. "Xiao Nan, has there really been a murder in our oil field? Is it specifically targeting young women? Has the murderer been caught?"
Even Tong Lili, a young wife who usually disdained to associate with old men and women, looked eagerly at Jiang Nan. If he was specifically targeting young women, then they would be in danger. There was no need to worry.
Jiang Nan didn't answer the question, but said seriously, "Grandma Liu, the case is still under investigation, and there are no clues yet. Everyone should be as careful as possible when going out. Don't go out alone, and it's best to have a man with you."
Dong Jiaojiao scoffed. "That's easy to say. Almost all the men in the family compound have jobs. Who would accompany us out? Jiang Nan, you police officers are so useless, aren't you? This is a murder case. If you don't catch the murderer quickly, how dare you leave work?"
"Oh my, who did I think it was? It's Miss Dong, who tried to plot against my son-in-law but failed and ended up getting herself into trouble." Jiang Mancheng snorted and retorted bluntly, "Police officers can't leave their jobs? So, you're saying that doctors have to save lives all day and can't rest, right? And oil workers have to pump oil all day, because we contribute oil to the motherland. What's the matter? We're in a new society now, how can you exploit people even more than the black-hearted landlords of the old society?"
He raised his voice and demanded, "What's wrong with the police? They need a break too! My daughter has been out there every day, braving the elements, looking for evidence. What are you doing? You're here making sarcastic remarks. How dare you do that? You're so ignorant!"
Dong Jiaojiao put her hands on her hips and said, "What's wrong? The police haven't caught the murderer, so we, the people, can't say a word? Ask me, who wouldn't be scared when a murder happened in the oil field? I can't even ask a few questions? They're still the people's police, but they're not serving the people wholeheartedly."
Jiang Nan's face turned stern, and Zhou Zhixing spoke first, "Uncle Jiang, we came back to take a shower and change clothes. We have to go back to work overtime soon, so we don't have time to talk to you all here. Please make something filling for dinner. Xiaonan didn't eat much at lunch today, so he must be hungry now."
Jiang Mancheng glared at Dong Jiaojiao fiercely, then turned around and helped his daughter home with Chen Jinhua.
Jiang Mancheng muttered dissatisfiedly: "Are you going to work overtime all night?"
Jiang Nan whispered, "There are no clues in the case yet. After dinner, we have to go back to the police station to discuss the case." The key is whether Group 5 has made any discoveries in Donghe'an Village. We need to discuss it again, but there is no need to say this in public.
Although the two spoke in low voices, some people could still hear them. Everyone was embarrassed and soon dispersed.
It was the first time in two lifetimes that Jiang Nan had seen such a terrifying thing. Even in her shower, she sighed, "No matter what job you do, it's not easy." In her previous life, she'd pulled all-nighters to finish her manuscripts. In this life, she'd pull all-nighters to solve cases.
This is progress, it is progress.
After eating two meat buns and a bowl of grits porridge, Jiang Mancheng packed a box of peach cakes and glutinous rice noodles for his daughter, and then watched Jiang Nan and Zhou Zhixing leave.
Looking at her daughter's back, Chen Jinhua felt a little regretful: "Mancheng, do you think she won't have a nightmare? I heard that the corpse today was very scary. Xiaonan's face turned blue just now, and she didn't even eat lunch..."
Even though Jiang Mancheng often nags about not letting his daughter become a police officer, when Chen Jinhua also starts nagging, he can firmly say: "Don't worry, our daughter is born to do this job, she will be fine."
He lowered his voice: "Have you forgotten what our daughter has? She will know who the murderer is at a glance, don't worry."
Chen Jinhua finally breathed a sigh of relief, but the two of them didn't know that Jiang Nan had never seen the murderer and didn't know who killed Meng Zhenfang.
At 7:30, Groups 5 and 6 gathered at the police station, and both Directors Lan Qingshan and Shen Mingguang were present.
Zou Li, representing the three people from Group 5 and Group 6, introduced the situation of the investigation at the Donghe'an Brigade.
"On the east bank of the river, the Meng family has a good reputation. People generally say they are fair and have good relationships with their neighbors. Although there are minor frictions, there are no enmities. As for Meng Zhenfang, most villagers envy her for being able to marry into the commune.
According to investigations, Meng Zhenfang was the most popular girl in her village when she was young, and many young men from different families wanted to marry her. However, the Meng family loved their daughter and did not want her to suffer hardship while marrying a farmer. So they asked a matchmaker from the commune to arrange a marriage for Meng Zhenfang with the Zheng family. It is said that when the wedding was about to take place, several young men tried to embarrass Zheng Guohua, hoping to embarrass him when he arrived to pick up the bride.
We also investigated the four families involved in the incident during the bride's reception, focusing on the four young men. They hadn't left the village in the past five days, essentially ruling out murder. Furthermore, no one on the east bank of the river had seen Meng Zhenfang five days prior. She had escaped and hadn't returned to the village.
The police station was unusually quiet, and there were no clues on the east bank of the river, which meant that the murder case might be at a dead end.
Zhou Zhixing stood up and introduced Xu Jianshe's situation, as well as the results of a revisit to Zheng Guohua's home and his neighbors.
Simply put, there are no clues.
Xu Jianshe was cleared of murder suspicion, and Zheng Guohua didn't match the footprints' description. Lan Qingshan frowned and looked at Xie Yongping, who had arrived late. Xie Yongping, panting, flipped through the latest autopsy results.
"The deceased's specific time of death was between 9pm and 12pm five days ago, and the cause of death was drowning. There were signs of struggle on his body, as well as old injuries, which were caused by prolonged beatings."
He adjusted his glasses, his voice like the ticking of a clock, precise yet without any fluctuations: "The deceased had been sexually assaulted. There were scars, but no vaginal discharge was found."
Lan Qingshan immediately looked at Zhou Zhixing: "Zheng Guohua suffers from azoospermia?"
Zhou Zhixing nodded. "Yes, but Zheng Guohua was at home at that time. He got up around 10:30 to go to the public restroom. A neighbor testified to that."
Xie Yongping: "Azoospermia is one possibility. Another possibility is that the murderer is a woman. Meng Zhenfang was not assaulted, but was simply fabricated to confuse the police."
Everyone present was no idiot, and they all nodded in agreement. Lan Qingshan glanced at his watch, clapped his hands, and said, "Alright, the autopsy results have yielded some new findings. Let's all work towards that tomorrow. Shao Yong, are the footprint identification results in? Do you have any information on the owner of the footprints?"
Shao Yong nodded. "It's out. My cousin said at dinner that the shoe prints belonged to someone with small feet wearing large shoes. Judging from the depth of the footprints, the owner is about 1.75 meters tall and weighs around 140 kilograms. Their actual foot size is no more than 42. And judging by the way they walk, it's likely a woman."
Lan Qingshan clapped his hands again: "Alright! It's already nine o'clock, everyone go back and rest. No need to come to the police station tomorrow, just visit directly. We will gather again at 7:30 to discuss the case."
He encouraged them, "Thank you all for your hard work these past few days. This is a murder case, and the leaders of the oil field and the city are paying close attention. Everyone must work harder to solve the case as soon as possible."
Shen Mingguang also spoke up, "Don't worry, everyone. We will ensure the supply of supplies over the next few days. The police station cafeteria will have plenty of meat and vegetables, so everyone can eat and drink their fill before investigating the case!"
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