Chapter 268 - 268 252 His Home

Words : 2318 Updated : Sep 29th, 2025

268: Chapter 252: His Home 268: Chapter 252: His Home Jiang Yuan put on his duty uniform and cautiously walked to the right of Wei Zhenguo. On Wei Zhenguo’s left was Wen Ming, his senior apprentice, specially called over for this occasion. To the left of Wen Ming was Mu Zhiyang, the junior apprentice, also specially rushed over. The setup of this four-person team was now similar to the one Jiang Yuan had encountered on the day he met the old hunter on Mount Wulong. The difference, however, was that none of the four were armed this time. Xu Taining had arranged a squad of armed police in the lead, and there was a squad of special police officers armed as well, but the ordinary policemen were not. On one hand, the command headquarters had assessed that the criminal’s capacity for violence wasn’t considered high. There weren’t many young people in Fangjin Township, and it was highly probable that the perpetrator was middle-aged or elderly and showed no sign of possessing weapons. Furthermore, the primary objective of this case was to find Liu Jinghui. Even if the policemen were carrying guns, their first choice would be to capture him alive. In that case, carrying firearms would be asking for trouble. In fact, under normal working conditions, the police were also reluctant to carry guns. When the police apprehend suspects, the emphasis is on numerical superiority; to put it more elegantly, “even if there’s only one suspect, we would deploy an entire squad,” or more bluntly, “if there’s just one suspect, let’s all go at him!!” When Wei Zhenguo called over Wen Ming and Mu Zhiyang, he was thinking along the lines of overwhelming the suspect with numbers. The prerequisite was to catch someone again. For a case of this magnitude, as long as they could squeeze a confession out of the criminal, they would instantly qualify for a third-class merit. If they could manage to extract confessions from each other, they would be on their way to a second-class merit. Wen Ming and Mu Zhiyang were very happy to follow Jiang Yuan, and both their eyes were vigilantly watching their surroundings. “Let’s start from the crossroad,” Wei Zhenguo crossed the street and walked into the nearest print shop. After letting the people out, he said with a warm smile, “Boss, we have a few more questions we’d like to ask you.” “Haven’t you already asked everything?” The shop owner grumbled unhappily as he looked at the four policemen at the door but still let them in. “Do you have a driver’s license?” Wei Zhenguo asked with a broad smile. “Yes.” “Could you show us your driver’s license?” Wei Zhenguo could obtain the corresponding information by reporting an identity card number or scanning a face with his police device, but he still wanted to observe the shop owner’s actions. Jiang Yuan was watching on the side, in more of a learning mode. Conducting searches or interrogations involves skill. For an ordinary detective team member, the first two or three years under the guidance of a mentor generally involve learning these methods. Wei Zhenguo was quite adept at this. In his younger days, he had caught thieves at train and bus stations and robbers in the rural-urban fringe areas. Except for those he caught at the scene, he mostly relied on searches and tips. At this moment, Wei Zhenguo, while watching the shop owner’s actions, still found time to keep an eye on the other people in the shop. This print shop was different from others in the township in that both the shop owner and the employees were relatively young, in their thirties or forties, qualifying as the township’s top “fresh meat.” The shop owner’s driving license seemed to be in order as well. After checking it, Wei Zhenguo asked, “Where’s your car? Can we take a look?” “It’s parked in the backyard,” the boss said. Wei Zhenguo immediately moved to the backyard. In China, there’s no “fruit of the poisonous tree” doctrine; when necessary, secret investigations can be conducted. That Wei Zhenguo even asked was quite polite. In the backyard was a Wuling Hongguang van, a bit dirty, but not too dirty. Jiang Yuan took the initiative to inspect it while Mu Zhiyang and Wen Ming blocked the two gates of the yard, preventing a sudden charge from a lunatic with a kitchen knife. After looking for a while, Jiang Yuan shook his head disappointingly at Wei Zhenguo, then asked the shop owner, “Where’s your motorcycle? What about the electric bicycle?” “Inside that door over there,” the shop owner pointed at the storage room. Jiang Yuan went to check and still found nothing, then said, “You shouldn’t store them inside in the future; it’s not safe for fire prevention.” Turning around, Jiang Yuan carefully examined several areas within the room before slowly emerging from the yard. He was looking for bloodstains, chain saws, physical evidence from the victims, or from the crime scene. After all, with just so many people in Fangjin Township, each household with a motorcycle had to be meticulously identified. There were only a little over a thousand motorcycles in total. If they really started searching by groups, it would be quick. Truth be told, the previous search had been conducted quickly and methodically as well. Yet, compared to the last search, Jiang Yuan’s attitude this time was much more assertive. Digging three feet into the ground was Jiang Yuan’s real intention. That’s what he thought, and that’s what he did. From the occurrence of the case until now, Jiang Yuan had been involved throughout the entire process. He was familiar with all sorts of evidence and circumstances, including the body and messages from the technical investigation team. Logically, with so much information converging, the culprit should have surfaced by now. What is meant by surfacing is that you keep pouring water, keep pouring, and when enough evidence is poured in, the truth slowly rises to the top. However, since the case was still stalled with no result, in Jiang Yuan’s view, although the net had been cast wide enough, the depth was insufficient. This was Jiang Yuan’s conclusion after cracking several cases. Sometimes, the plan is good, the idea is sound, but if the execution isn’t in place, it’s a missed opportunity. After thinking it through, Jiang Yuan believed that the motorcycle was still the best breakthrough point. The classification of garbage can provide a lot of information, but it’s not specific enough. The jewelry that was picked out can also illustrate the condition of the victim and their family, but it’s of no help to the case. Each piece of information has its strengths and weaknesses, but in Jiang Yuan’s view, the motorcycle is the most closely tied to the case. It’s a mode of transportation, necessary for the transport of a corpse. The body bag on the corpse also proves the motorcycle’s involvement. On the other hand, this is a big-ticket item. Whether an individual or a family has ever bought a motorcycle, ridden one, or even sold one, neighbors and relatives can help verify that information; you can’t hide it. Jiang Yuan rushed to Fangjin Township precisely to implement this investigative approach. Luckily, Xu Taining wasn’t the kind of leader who insisted on having his own way. Or maybe, because he had dealt with many large-scale operations and encountered various situations, he didn’t have the habit of being autocratic. With adequate manpower and resources, he was still willing to let criminal investigators like Jiang Yuan execute their own strategies. As for the outcome... if the case was cracked, everyone was a contributing hero, sharing the honor. If the case faltered, they would just disperse quietly. Jiang Yuan felt he had thought things through clearly, and upon arriving at the scene, he no longer dwelled on what-ifs or possibilities. He focused solely on following the list in order. From time to time, Jiang Yuan would check his phone for updates from other groups. After checking twenty groups on his team, the WeChat group “Ningtai Zifeng Police Group” was filled with lamentation: Criminal Investigator Liu Wenkai: [We’re halfway through our checks, nothing yet. It’s similar to last time.] Crime Scene Investigator Zhang Mingyuan: [If you use the same method as last time to check the same families, how can you expect anything different? Unlike us, who use different methods on the same families and still come to the same conclusions!] Criminal Investigator Liu Wenkai: [Would you get the same results using the same method to find girls, whether they’re the same or different? Maybe this time they got sick or something.] Huang Qiangmin: [@Criminal Investigator Liu Wenkai?] Criminal Investigator Liu Wenkai: [What I mean is, everyone plays football the same way, plays the same positions, uses the same tactics, but some national football teams can produce different results. I’m talking about Sri Lanka.] Crime Scene Investigator Zhang Mingyuan: [Don’t the results of our national football team always turn out the same? I’m talking about the Sri Lanka national football team.] Jiang Yuan put away his phone. Liu Jinghui, down in the spring... No, during his disappearance, probably didn’t have a mobile phone to play with, so there was no reason for Jiang Yuan to chat in the group either. Passing by another shop with its door closed, Wen Ming knocked it open to ask questions. The shop owner didn’t expect to be disturbed with the door closed and mumbled complaints irritably. Wei Zhenguo then said, “Then tell us, around here, whose family has a motorcycle that hasn’t been asked about two or three times?” The shop owner looked around: “Nowadays, who can’t afford a motorcycle? You might as well ask every family directly.” “That’s practically what we’re doing,” Wei Zhenguo replied. “If you notice anyone we missed, point them out; we have rewards. For verifying a motorcycle, a minimum of 5,000 yuan.” It was like offering a bounty for tips. The county bureau could now publish relevant information. The shop manager hummed and hawed, and just as Wei Zhenguo was about to leave, he suddenly said, “I know someone who’s loaned out motorcycles; does that count?” “You’re talking about Tang from the street repair shop,” Wei Zhenguo said, becoming familiar with the surroundings. “You know about it?” the shop manager grunted displeased, “He loaned the motorcycle to someone, but you can’t track them down, so what’s the point in finding anyone?” Jiang Yuan listened and looked at Wei Zhenguo. Wei Zhenguo replied calmly, “They keep a ledger. The motorcycles at his shop are all loaned to customers, those who come to get their vehicles serviced and temporarily need a vehicle, so they’ll borrow one from his shop. It doesn’t delay their business. The service model is similar to that of luxury car dealerships, only the pricing is significantly reduced.” Jiang Yuan nodded in understanding and then said, “Let’s go check it out first. There will be many people who have borrowed bikes.” The four quickly finished their investigation at the current location and then hurried off to the repair shop. The owner was a rotund man with a large belly. Just by his appearance, he didn’t seem to have the capacity for regularly dumping bodies. If this was a serious murderer, they’d likely have worked out quite a lot. Murder is, after all, an activity that requires strong confrontation, and seeing as how the shop owner was well over two hundred pounds and had the look of someone who had never been injured, that would be too much like a martial arts fantasy. Wei Zhenguo raised an eyebrow at Jiang Yuan, having not prioritized this shop for intensive investigation for a reason. “Let’s mainly look at the people who borrowed motorcycles,” Jiang Yuan said. “You’ve reviewed the ledger several times and even took photos, didn’t you?” the chubby shop owner fished out a booklet from under the counter and placed it on the glass counter for them to look at themselves. Jiang Yuan flipped through it briefly and then used his forensic skills to inspect it. The ledger was a simple record of loaned vehicles, not very frequent, just a few times a month. Aside from repairs, the shop also had a car wash garage and a workshop for repairs. The motorcycle rental was just a side project with only three bikes lonesomely placed in a corner. “Are there any borrowers not listed in the ledger?” Jiang Yuan’s question didn’t differ from the previous ones. The shop owner replied calmly, “They’re mostly recorded here. And, for each loan, there’s a return; it’s not possible to omit them twice.” Jiang Yuan nodded, continuing to review the accounts. He was quickly reaching the end of the ledger, but just as Jiang Yuan was about to close it and return it, a term caught his eye. “What does ‘monthly fee’ mean?” Jiang Yuan pointed at a number followed by parentheses. “It means it’s paid monthly,” the shop owner replied offhandedly. “Old Fu from the power supply company often has to run trips to the mountainous areas, so he borrowed a vehicle from me, which can be reimbursed with an invoice.” Before Jiang Yuan could speak, everyone perked up. “Why does he borrow vehicles from you?” Wei Zhenguo took over the questioning. “He can’t use a private vehicle for public affairs, can he? That’s what he told me. He used to have me issue invoices for that,” the shop owner chuckled, adding, “Old Fu is a good guy. Every time he returns the vehicle, he even washes it clean.” “Old Fu... Where does he live?” Wei Zhenguo became excited.

Chapter 268 - 268 252 His Home

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