Chapter 142 - 142 138 Closing the Case

Words : 1954 Updated : Sep 17th, 2025

142: Chapter 138: Closing the Case 142: Chapter 138: Closing the Case The driver who provided the clue was a local, who drove to Longde Village to eat pig intestine and chicken. In fact, most of the cars in the parking lot that day were there for the pig intestine and chicken. Although there were other food stalls and snack stands nearby, they catered to local residents and didn’t have people specifically driving over to eat there. It was only this restaurant’s pig intestine and chicken that was so renowned for some reason; it seemed as if visitors to Longli County felt their trip would be wasted if they didn’t eat there once. With generous servings, truly delicious flavors, and very affordable prices, the place was always busy and had convenient parking nearby. As for the residents who originally parked there, there were actually very few, and most used their cars for commuting. Hou Lejia swiftly sent a team to the parking lot to investigate the scene and obtained the parking lot’s car entry and exit records, then cross-referenced them with the license plates captured on video. Jiang Yuan followed the Longli County police dog squad, searching for the source of the blood scent. The Longli County police dog squad currently has three dogs, one of which was in training, still a rookie. One was in its prime, a hardworking slacker dog. The other was the meritorious dog Heizi, a two-time honoree that had two food bowls, as famous as the twice-honored Jiang Yuan. In terms of using police dogs, Longli County had some fame within the province. They did indeed make good use of them. Now, although Heizi was older and had reduced working hours, there was a new prime-age police dog, “Collar,” to take over, and the third generation of police dogs was in training. It was rare in the province to see such a tradition of skills passed down through generations of dogs, old, middle-aged, and young. The dog deployed that day was the meritorious dog Heizi. Heizi’s back was a straight line, with the Dobermann’s characteristic pointed ears standing erect. With its head only slightly lowered, it led the way briskly towards the source of the blood scent. Heizi, who ate 75 yuan worth of food a day, didn’t show its age at all. It was like men, women, and people of LGBTQIAPKDXREW in their forties still battling it out on the front lines of nightclubs, with only a defiant sparkle in their eyes, showing their resistance to growing old. Woof! Heizi barked, and seven or eight people rushed over immediately. Jiang Yuan also ran over, needing to make sure that some overly excited youngster didn’t spoil the scene. No need to say it wasn’t possible or couldn’t happen; anyone who had been to enough crime scenes knew that there were all kinds of stupid thieves out there, as well as not-so-smart bumbling cops. Once at the location, they saw a clear drainage channel with no obvious bloodstains. “I guess the suspect stood here and changed out of the bloody clothes,” said Captain Zheng Xiangqian of the serious crime squad, looking up for cameras and making his judgment. He squatted down to sniff closely at the ground, then stood up and said, “Even took a pee here.” Heizi barked twice in what seemed like displeasure at someone taking its job. Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuan had a moment of realization. Indeed, if the suspect didn’t change out of the bloody clothes before driving into the city, being seen with blood on their person would spell trouble. Changing at the parking lot was a very appropriate place to do so. At that moment, a young detective speculated, “Since he carried clothes with him, could it be a premeditated murder?” Jiang Yuan glanced at the young man. This guy belonged to the not-so-smart category, and his eager participation showed he didn’t realize it. “Premeditated murder, but bringing clothes and not a weapon?” Zheng Xiangqian muttered, shutting down that line of inquiry. This was about the direction of the investigation, and he wouldn’t let a foolish kid interfere. From the current evidence, the likelihood of premeditated murder was too low. Plus, the basic fact was, the suspect already had a car, so why premeditate the murder of a scrap-picking old man? If there was a longstanding grudge, then surely they would’ve used a weapon that could quickly kill. Even if it was just a beating out of anger, they could have been more prepared. Preparing clothes to change into for a parking lot entry and exit would just be foolish. Everyone ignored the foolish kid’s remarks. Jiang Yuan put on a mask and collected samples together with Longli County’s own forensics team from the drainage channel. The drainage channel was somewhat smelly, but to be honest, after dealing with corpses, dealing with a drainage channel was nothing. The smell of the urine from the previous day was even fainter in the channel. The only slight discomfort was that the work environment was too outdoorsy. The stares of people passing through the parking lot and of Heizi, the police dog next to him, made Jiang Yuan a bit embarrassed. After Jiang Yuan collected the samples, he stared intently at Heizi for a while. If he were familiar with this dog, and if it had been Dazhuang giving him such a stare, Jiang Yuan would’ve plucked it bald. “That’s enough.” Jiang Yuan placed the sample box in the car and informed Zheng Xiangqian. Although they might not be useful during the investigative stage, these items could play a role during the trial phase. Against a stubbornly resistant lawyer, some could even have a major impact. Of course, running a DNA test when they got back and comparing it with the DNA Jiang Yuan had previously swabbed was also a good additional precaution. The group had arrived excitedly, only to leave in disappointment. Not to mention finding the expected bloody clothing or the weapon, they didn’t even get a small consolation. Fortunately, the police officers who went out on another leads brought back some good news. It’s not just good news, but also suspects, vehicles, and a heap of other messy physical evidence! “So, the person has been apprehended?” Wu Jun, who had woken up from a night’s sleep, had come directly to the Criminal Police Division from the guest house. Jiang Yuan muttered a “Hmm,” and said, “They’re interrogating him now, a young man in his twenties.” Wu Jun gave the young Jiang Yuan a sidelong glance and said, “So, is it a crime of passion?” “It seems there’s been some repetition.” Jiang Yuan shook his head and said, “I just saw members of the Major Case Squad go out, they must be going to conduct an investigation and gather evidence.” “What else is there to gather evidence for? All that blood in the car sealed his fate. The murder weapon?” “The murder weapon and the bloodstained clothing were burned together, reportedly a plastic water pipe used for home decoration, a PPR hot water pipe, from what I heard them say,” Jiang Yuan replied, then added, “The burning wasn’t thorough, the remains were all collected.” Wu Jun couldn’t help but chuckle softly, “The guy had some tricks up his sleeve, huh? The murder weapon is always a tough problem to solve, but he wasn’t professional about it. He should have practiced more in advance. How did he burn it? Where did he burn it?” “At a camping site, lit inside a large iron drum,” Jiang Yuan was just as curious. Erasing evidence is something the clever ones have attempted throughout history. There are some interesting choices, like a dagger made of ice that melts away after the murder, leaving no weapon to be found (not a science lesson... do not attempt). A stick made of plastic, however, has a similar cleverness but isn’t as straightforward during the act of murder. Burning it produces too much black smoke. Two police officers from the Major Case Squad returned in a hurry with a young girl. The girl looked to be anywhere from 18 to 48 years old, wearing light makeup, with long pants, a white T-shirt, and appeared very clean. Her hair was tied in a high, slightly tousled, and playful ponytail. Jiang Yuan exchanged a glance with his mentor, understanding that the interrogation must be nearing its end. This newly arrived witness, whoever she was, might turn out to be a witness or something else. While Jiang Yuan was still guessing, Wu Jun went straight into the interrogation center to watch the surveillance footage. Jiang Yuan didn’t have the cheek to go; there were many people there, and he wasn’t in such a hurry. Not long after, the girl came out and left without hesitation. Some time passed before Wu Jun emerged with a grave expression. “This is...” Jiang Yuan couldn’t help but be curious. Wu Jun sighed, mumbled to himself, then said, “Let’s go outside for a smoke and talk.” Jiang Yuan deftly unwrapped a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes, handed one to Wu Jun at the door, and lit it for him. Wu Jun took a deep draw, exhaled the smoke, then inhaled it back in before exhaling again, and finally said, “The murderer is the young guy we caught today, but the motive... it’s different from what we thought.” “Is it because of that girl?” “Yeah, after the young man split from his companion, he saw this girl and started pestering her for her WeChat. She wouldn’t give it to him, so he followed her all the way, and then Zhang Hong, a scavenger, saw them,” Wu Jun said, taking another puff of his cigarette and exhaling again. “Zhang Hong stepped forward to stop the suspect, and the girl took the opportunity to run away. The more the suspect thought about it, the angrier he got, so he chased Zhang Hong back to his place and beat him to death.” Jiang Yuan’s eyelids twitched as he listened, “All this for that? Just couldn’t swallow his pride?” “What’s making me uncomfortable isn’t just that.” Wu Jun glanced toward the gate and said, “That girl who was harassed didn’t even call the police afterward, and when the police found her yesterday, she didn’t say a thing...” Jiang Yuan fell silent for a few seconds. A sense of debt isn’t something the law requires. If someone doesn’t want to acknowledge it, there’s nothing the police can do. Jiang Yuan asked, “So how did you find this girl? Did the suspect tell you?” “Yeah,” Wu Jun sighed, “Otherwise, we couldn’t clarify the cause of death. None of them could.” Jiang Yuan knew he meant the suspect and Zhang Hong. This felt like a messed-up situation, and Jiang Yuan kicked the stair in front of him a bit too hard, wincing at the pain in his toe. The secondhand smoke was irritating, making him cough involuntarily. Wu Jun, however, was staring into the distance with a distant look in his eyes. After finishing his cigarette and stamping out the butt, Wu Jun patted Jiang Yuan on the arm and said, “As long as the case is solved, that’s what’s important. Right and wrong, the twists of human nature, are too complex to figure out. Let’s just do the best we can.” Jiang Yuan responded with a nod, “Hmm.” “Master, shall we go get a meal of fat intestines and chicken gizzard stew? That place isn’t bad.”

Chapter 142 - 142 138 Closing the Case

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