Xian Shengrong, male, 40 years old, was imprisoned for stealing and selling Ecstasy pills in various places. After he was released from prison, he went to work in Jiangyang County.
An anti-theft camera of a small supermarket near the provincial road in Jiangyang County captured the last back view of Xian Shengrong when he hurriedly left the scene. A few hours later, Wei Yao, Huang Xing, and others extracted a 9mm Luger cartridge case from where he was standing. Half a month later, his decomposing body was found somewhere on the national highway 60 kilometers away.
Cause of death, traffic accident.
"God knows if it was an accident or intentional, but he has already been smashed into a pulp anyway." The sound of Gou Li snorting while eating noodles came from the car's Bluetooth, he said, "Hey boss, give me another braised egg and add some chili, thank you… The preliminary autopsy report did not reveal any abnormalities, and the second autopsy also didn't provide a single clue. In short, traffic accidents are one of the methods of intentional homicide most difficult to identify. Our forensic work has already been done, so I suggest you go back and continue to have a love-hate relationship with the surveillance cameras."
The car was speeding on the highway, and Yan Xie sat in the front passenger seat. He subconsciously grabbed his hair that he hadn't had time to apply hairspray on when he was discharged from the hospital this morning: "You're the director of the forensic department, and you say that the autopsy didn't find anything? Are you on the same level as a county forensic doctor?"
Gou Li was sitting in the noodle restaurant eating happily with an earphone hanging from his ear. When he heard the words, he snorted contemptuously: "Stop this. Back then, it was you who kept instigating and persuading me to work overtime for half a month and dissect the entire series of poisoning cases by myself — I'm telling you, after so many years, your aggressive method won't work on me anymore. Don't even think about me going back to do a third autopsy!"
"Okay, send the second autopsy report for me to take a look at." Yan Xie said helplessly and indulgently, "Can't really say no to you."
Gou Li shivered with disgust and hung up the phone.
After a while, the phone buzzed, and the second autopsy report was sent.
Jiang Ting drove calmly. Yan Xie sat on the passenger seat, flipped through Gou Li's notes with one hand, and put the other hand on the driver's lap dishonestly. Every few minutes, he tentatively moved it between his legs and was unceremoniously caught by Jiang Ting.
Originally, according to Yan Xie, as long as the husband still has breath left in his body, the wife must not be allowed to drive. This was a matter of a man's status and dignity. But because he had just been discharged from the hospital, Jiang Ting was worried about him driving back to Jianning for more than two hours, and said that he now had a psychological shadow of Yan Xie's driving — rising to the level of PTSD — forcing him into the passenger seat.
Yan Xie deeply felt that his belief in male chauvinism was being challenged, but on second thought, when he was discharged from the hospital in the morning, he didn't have time to wash his hair, bathe, change clothes, shave, or style his hair, causing his personal image to drop from a starting price of 50,000 to 800 buy two get one free overnight. If Jiang Ting was driving, then he wouldn't have time to pay attention to him, so he readily agreed.
"Xian Shengrong once went to a sports school to major in shooting, no wonder he was hired as a killer." Yan Xie muttered while looking at the phone, "But his death was quite tragic. Severely worn back muscles and ribs, soft tissue contusions, and even his lungs became smaller. The direct cause of death was difficulty in breathing and excessive blood loss caused by pneumothorax…"
"A typical case of death by accident," Jiang Ting said while holding the steering wheel.
Yan Xie nodded, "He should've been dragged for a long distance, but because the body was found too late, the local traffic police squadron couldn't properly protect the scene, so it was impossible to accurately determine the section of road where the crime occurred. To be honest, this is really the most annoying traffic accident case. First, there is no specific time, and second, there is no precise location. How do we even know where to start looking in the surveillance monitoring?"
Jiang Ting asked: "Have you checked Xian Shengrong's social relations, income status, family and friends, etc.?"
"It's said that after the investigation had been carried out, the friends who usually interact with him have not asked anything about the situation, and the bank flow was normal. Only old banknotes of 50,000 yuan in cash are kept at home."
——Old banknotes.
No matter who hired Xian Shengrong, the person's anti-reconnaissance ability was already quite strong.
"…Only fifty thousand," Jiang Ting muttered.
Yan Xie looked at him teasingly: "Why, your husband's life is cheaper than yours, are you proud?"
Jiang Ting waved his hand and seemed to want to hit him, but Yan Xie grabbed it in the air and pinched the palm of his hand.
"Don't make trouble." Jiang Ting immediately pulled his hand back and held the steering wheel. His handsome face seemed to be serious, and he focused on the road ahead: "I was just wondering how it could be so cheap. It doesn't feel right… It doesn't make sense."
Yan Xie sighed: "I now believe that you've never been in love before."
It just happened that the red light at the highway intersection turned on at this time. Jiang Ting slowly stepped on the brakes and glanced at Yan Xie strangely.
"If you give me a chance to buy a killer to kill the King of Spades and I am almost 100% sure of success, I wouldn't spend millions to hire a world-class killer, and even spending 50,000 will be counted as giving face to the King of Spades. Do you understand this kind of mentality? Killing a chicken with an ox cleaver is itself a compliment to the chicken. In fact, this little ant-like character isn't even worth lifting my foot to step on, so why would I waste millions on him?"
Jiang Ting gave a puzzled and inexplicable look.
"So," Yan Xie said affectionately, "You won't understand this kind of subtle hatred between males."
"..." Jiang Ting thought to himself, what kind of anti-scientific theory is this? You're just talking nonsense.
Yan Xie shook his index finger, his face incomprehensible as if he was an expert on male emotional problems.
At this time, the green light came on. Jiang Ting stepped on the accelerator, and along with the high-speed traffic, he slowly drove up the bridge leading to Jianning city.
"I don't know much about the internal structure of this drug cartel, but I have paid close attention to it." Jiang Ting frowned and said, "The King of Spades should have a dedicated team specially responsible for the aftermath and silencing, and when doing some cases that would inevitably leave clues, the killers would choose to kill themselves to protect their employers. These death squads were collected from very poor places in Myanmar, and the remuneration was also paid to their families there, so even if the domestic police traced the killers who had committed suicide, it would be very difficult to follow the flow of foreign funds to find out the connection between the killer and the King of Spades. It is a very perfect killing mechanism."
Jiang Ting glanced at Yan Xie again and seemed a little suspicious: "So why did he use an "outsider" like Xian Shengrong this time?…"
Using an "outsider" to assassinate Yan Xie and taking so much trouble to silence Xian Shengrong afterward. Although the "traffic accident" was done as neatly as A-Jie killing Fan Si on the highway—a typical King of Spades style—it was not the most efficient solution in itself.
Was it really like what Yan Xie said—why use an ox cleaver to kill a chicken? In the eyes of the King of Spades, was every penny spent on Yan Xie's life a waste?
"You and I are not perverts, and you wouldn't understand the mentality of the King of Spades." Yan Xie patted Jiang Ting's thigh and said, "The fastest entry point is the Type-92 police gun used by Xian Shengrong."
Jiang Ting thought for a long time and nodded in agreement: "Yes, we still need to track down that gun first."
Yan Xie's expression was very serious, but his hand started to slide inward little by little again. After a while, Jiang Ting, with his usually calm expression, held the bottom of the steering wheel at six o'clock with one hand, grabbed the restless big hand with the other, and put it on his thigh.
Yan Xie probably thought this position was also acceptable, so he didn't fight for himself any further and instead asked, "When are you going to go to Gongzhou to find Qi Sihao?"
"We don't have any more time to waste. If the King of Spades starts investigating the outflow of blue gold in advance, it'll be too late." Jiang Ting thought for a while and said, "I'll probably leave within these two days."
Yan Xie nodded and said nothing. The car passed through the urban area of Jianning City, and after a while, the familiar scenery in front of the Criminal Investigation Division of the Municipal Public Security Bureau appeared in front of them. Jiang Ting took out his sunglasses and baseball cap and put them on. As usual, he didn't park his car at the main entrance. He put Yan Xie down a block away and let him go to the city bureau by himself.
"I'll go to the bureau to sign and come back; wait for me to take you to dinner." Yan Xie just turned around to leave, but suddenly stopped, looked around to make sure no one was paying attention, and quickly pulled Jiang Ting's hand and kissed the palm of his hand, whispering, "Don't eat by yourself. You must not eat random things to pass time, it's not good for your health."
Then, without waiting for Jiang Ting's answer, he laughed, waved his hand, turned around, and walked along the sidewalk of the Jianning Municipal Bureau.
Behind him, Jiang Ting's ear was slightly warm, and after a long while, he said silently, "Smooth and crooked."
...…
"Brother Yan!"
"Captain Yan!"
Colleagues in the corridor greeted him one after another. Yan Xie's footsteps were hurried, and before he could enter the large office of the Criminal Investigation Division, he saw a black shadow flying toward him. Ma Xiang flew toward him like a swallow in the forest: "Waa waa, my brother Yan, we all thought we would never see you again. Waa waa…"
Yan Xie dodged sideways, grabbed Ma Xiang's back collar, and lifted him up, pushing away his crying face with a palm: "Stop it. "Who cried and made a fuss two days ago and wanted to return to Jianning right away, claiming that if he slept on the hospital's hard bed, he would have a herniated disc in his waist?"
Ma Xiang felt very aggrieved and thought to himself that it was because you were so lovey-dovey and sticky with consultant Lu in the hospital all day long that my 24K titanium alloy dog's eyes were blinded in the blink of an eye.
The younger brothers of the Criminal Investigation Division expressed their sincere congratulations and ardent thoughts to the eldest brother one after another. It was said that this week, when Yan Xie was away, Yu Zhu personally sat in the Division every day. Under the serious and kind face of Captain Yu, they didn't even dare to steal the city bureau's wifi, let alone use the office's small treasury to buy cigarettes, skewers, and potato chips. Life was not bad, but there was no taste.
Even Han Xiaomei, who always looked at Yan Xie like a mouse looking at a cat, came over to give him a discharge gift—a box of scrambled eggs with leeks.
This was what Han Xiaomei said: "I heard that you had a car accident and stayed in the hospital for several days. I was worried that you were weak and thought you might need to make up for it."
"..." Yan Xie stared blankly at the leeks. After a long time, he said gently, "Consultant Lu will thank you very much."
Han Xiaomei didn't know why, but she was quite proud and left happily.
Yan Xie put the box of scrambled eggs with leeks on the table, intending to put them in the pot tonight. Suddenly, he heard the office door being knocked lightly twice. Gao Panqing was standing at the door with an unnoticeably tense expression on her face: "Brother Yan, Chief Lu is looking for you."
"Oh," Yan Xie responded, "Is there progress in the investigation of medicinal wine?"
Gao Panqing wanted to speak, but stopped immediately and looked behind him to make sure there was no one in the corridor. Then he closed the office door with his backhand, walked to Yan Xie's side, and whispered a few words in his ear.
"Fang Zhenghong said that?" Yan Xie asked in a low voice after a while.
Gao Panqing nodded and repeated the story of the day when Chief Lu personally interrogated Fang Zhenghong, as well as the words with which he expressed his trust in Fang Zhenghong after he came out. Then he added: "Although Chief Lu did not believe that Fang Zhenghong was suspicious, Captain Yu was strongly opposed to Chief Lu's approach, and the two fought for a long time. Finally, Deputy Chief Wei came out to smooth the situation, and it was agreed that Captain Fang would be temporarily suspended for further investigation."
The light in Yan Xie's eyes flickered slightly, and he suddenly asked, "What was Fang Zhenghong's reaction?"
"Nothing."
Yan Xie asked, "Fang Zhenghong was so fierce when he was questioned, but he didn't respond after being suspended?"
Gao Panqing was also a little puzzled but nodded affirmatively.
Yan Xie nodded without saying a word and asked again, "What's going on in the bureau now?"
"The situation is calm, and there's nothing to talk about." Gao Panqing explained: "Chief Lu wants to control public opinion. Only a few bureau leaders like the director of forensics, Dr. Gou, the director of technical investigation, Huang Xing, and a few people like Xiao Ma and I know about you being poisoned. No one knows about the fact that Captain Fang has become a suspect. Moreover, the Captain has been on leave for so long due to injuries and illnesses that if he didn't go to work for a period of time, no one would suspect anything."
——The result of this handling was obviously not good for Yan Xie or even for the entire Criminal Investigation Division.
"Okay, I see." Yan Xie's face remained calm, and he stood up and patted his shoulder, saying, "Go back first; I'll go to Chief Lu."
Gao Panqing was obviously very worried, but he had already been in the City Bureau for many years and was no longer a young criminal policeman like Ma Xiang and Han Xiaomei. Knowing that he couldn't do anything with his status, he nodded and left the office.
...…
"Hey, Captain Yan," In the corridor outside the chief's office, the secretary happened to come out with the materials in his hand. He bumped into Yan Xie head-on and pointed to the office, making a calling gesture: "He is busy, just got a call from the provincial office. Why don't you wait a few minutes?"
—Such a coincidence?
Yan Xie's eyes narrowed for a moment, then he smiled and nodded, "It's okay. I'll just stand here and wait."
The handsome, wealthy, and good-tempered Vice-Captain Yan was really popular in the city bureau, and even the secretary was very enthusiastic: "It would be tiring to stand here; why don't you come to the secretariat for a seat?"
"It doesn't matter, I have been driving all the way, standing for a while will relax my muscles. "
...….
Yan Xie stood in front of the glass window at the end of the corridor. The sun in the late autumn afternoon reflected on the white wall. The surroundings were warm and bright, but his eyes were bottomless. He remembered Gao Panqing's words that Fang Zhenghong threw away the only empty medicine bottle that could be used as physical evidence, but he couldn't give any excuse…
"I have my reasons; I don't want to say."
Maybe it was the sixth sense brought about by years of criminal investigation work, but from Fang Zhenghong's strange reaction, Yan Xie keenly sensed one thing:
Although Chief Lu trusted Fang Zhenghong, Fang Zhenghong didn't, or rather, he didn't trust Chief Lu very much.
Why?
Yan Xie rubbed the tips of his brows and exhaled; the vague and messy guesses made him unable to grasp the clue. As a criminal investigator, Yan Xie had the habit of not letting his brain be empty. After standing for a while, he turned on his mobile phone and clicked on the second autopsy note that Gou Li sent him.
According to the regulations, the direct victim, Yan Xie, should refrain from the investigation, but Gou Li cared very much about the brotherhood. Although he did not directly send him a signed report, he still took pictures of the detailed handwritten notes, which were no different from the final summary of the report, and sent them to him.
Xian Shengrong, male, 40 years old, robbery and trafficking of illegal psychotropic drugs…
The brief introduction of the corpse was already remembered by heart. Yan Xie only glanced at it briefly, but suddenly his heart moved, and he felt that something was wrong.
—Time of death.
When Xian Shengrong's body was found, it had already begun to decompose, and the condition of the body was affected by the accumulation of water on the road. In addition, the forensic equipment of the local criminal police squadron was limited, so they could only determine the time interval of death, which was eight hours.
However, Gou Li was different. After all, he was the chief forensic doctor of the city bureau and had studied countless bodies. Based on on-site clues, the autopsy, and pictures, he locked the time of death between 3:00 and 6:00 in the morning, greatly narrowing the scope of the suspect vehicles.
A thought suddenly flashed in Yan Xie's mind:
What was I doing in the middle of the night when Xian Shengrong died?
Yes, he went to see Bu Wei in the hospital that day. The young girl apologetically admitted that Wang Xingye was responsible for the kidnapping, and the city bureau immediately made an arrest. However, Wang Xingye managed to flee overnight. In order to send the notice of assistance to the major railway and bus stations, Yan Xie stayed at the city bureau until the early hours of the following morning. He was very sleepy, so he talked with Qin Chuan and went home to sleep after changing shifts—
Yes, when he returned home, he discovered Jiang Ting had fallen asleep on the sofa to wait for him. That night was the first time they shared a bed.
Yan Xie narrowed his eyes, and the logical memory chain continued to extend down: he was woken up by Qin Chuan's call the next morning and hurried to the city bureau… Wait, why was he in such a hurry?
Because he promised to change shifts with Qin Chuan early in the morning, but he overslept.
No, Qin Chuan was on the night shift as the division vice-captain; shouldn't the division captain take over in the morning?
...…
"A drug dealer that had been hidden for half a year suddenly went online at 7:00 this morning. I have been busy in the anti-drug division until now!"
"His old illness has been recurring very often these days, and once he has a recurrence, he can't be found anywhere. Who knows where Captain Fang is?"
Yan Xie's ear resounded again with Qin Chuan's frantic voice on the phone that morning, like a thunderbolt, splitting the fog in an instant—on the night when Xian Shengrong was killed, and the next day, Fang Zhenghong's "old illness flared up", so he didn't appear in the anti-drug division!
Why didn't he come?
Where was he at the time of the incident?
Yan Xie squeezed the palm of his hand hard, and a slightly damp, cold sweat had already seeped out from the palm lines.