Emergency room.
Iron wheels rolled across the ground and rushed into the glass door, then the red light outside the room was on. There were people coming and going on the far side of the corridor. Yan Xie gasped, slowly slid against the wall, and sat on the cold ground.
Crash, blood, a bag of evidence, sirens coming from a distance… Countless sounds were intertwined in his mind, like a huge net covering the deep sea of fear, and the devil was slowly rising from the bottom of the sea while staring at him with his sinister eyes.
Who did this to Fang Zhenghong's car?
What's in that evidence bag?
The sound of several leather shoes came rushing from a distance. Everyone in the corridor looked back, one after another, but Yan Xie didn't seem to hear anything. It wasn't until the footsteps stopped in front of him that Yan Xie raised his head and saw several uniformed police officers standing in front of him. The surrounding atmosphere was as if they were facing an enemy.
"I'm sorry, Vice-Captain Yan." The man in the lead showed his police card: "You know the procedure; come with us."
Several policemen were on guard, seemingly afraid that Yan Xie would suddenly rebel, and one of them even reached into his back and held the handcuffs.
But their fears didn't come true.
Yan Xie's eyes swept across their nervous faces one by one. He suddenly smiled, got up, and patted the hem of his clothes.
"Let's go," he said.
...…
Jianning Municipal Bureau.
The interrogation room seemed much darker than usual. A few dying rays of light passed through the iron bars on the window, reflecting the floating dust in the air and drawing the twisted and slender shadows of the iron table, lamp, and interrogation chair. The words "Leniency to those who confess, severity to those who resist" on the whiteboard on the opposite wall were slightly faint because of time.
There was a vague noise in the distance: "What's going on with our brother Yan. You should at least bring a cup of hot water in…"
"Sorry, we have rules, no one can enter!"
"What happened? There might be a mistake. Hey, you guys…"
Bang—
The chaotic human voices disappeared, and the sound of the iron door banging echoed in the empty corridor for a long time, reaching into the deepest interrogation room.
Yan Xie sat upright in the chair. The darkness could not block his clear and deep cheek lines, and the skin on the straight bridge of the nose reflected an indifferent shimmer.
After some time, two or three people's footsteps could be heard moving slowly from the end of the hallway to the door. When the guard opened the door, a figure that appeared to be always plump, firm, and unhurried appeared at the door of the interrogation room and met Yan Xie's gaze.
—Chief Lu.
"Okay, I know, you all can go."
Chief Lu walked into the room and instructed the guards behind him. Then, while the other party locked the door and left according to his words, he sat across from the interrogation table with a large tea mug, raised his wrinkled eyelids, looked at Yan Xie, and said:
"The accelerator and brakes of Old Fang's car had been damaged. He has suffered from a head injury and is still being rescued."
This was his first sentence.
Yan Xie was silent for a long time. The icy air was like glass, enveloping them in the small room.
"On the evening of your birthday at the end of August, you called the traffic police brigade to stop a car from following you east of Worker's Avenue. The car was a silver-gray Hyundai Elantra, and the model and characteristics of the car that Old Fang was in during the accident today are the same. After investigating, it was discovered that the vehicle that followed you that night had the license plate used by an informant of the anti-drug division in an operation."
Chief Lu paused and said slowly: "That is to say, Fang Zhenghong was following you, and you know it."
Yan Xie's expression was cold and firm, and he spat out a few words: "I know."
Chief Lu nodded and said:
"This morning, in the Four Seas Guest House in Gaorong County, Gongzhou City, a waitress was almost hit by an emotional Fang Zhenghong while delivering a towel. According to the waitress, you were standing at the doorway of an open room at the time, and Old Fang was furious, shouting: 'Surname Yan, I didn't want to hurt you, I have an alibi on the night when the shooting happened. Wait for my call!' — Was there such a thing?"
"..." Yan Xie said, "Yes."
Behind the single-sided glass, several deputy directors, directors, and interrogators looked at each other, everyone's eyes flickering with suspicion.
Chief Lu asked: "In other words, a few hours before Fang Zhenghong's accident, you were the last outsider who had contact with him and had a serious dispute?"
"..."
After a moment of silence in the interrogation room, Chief Lu changed the way of questioning: "Can you explain why you appeared in Gaorong County, how many people were there, why, and what was the reason and content of the dispute with Fang Zhenghong?"
Yan Xie remained silent.
This kind of icy silence and resistance was the last thing criminal investigators wanted to face, and it was also one of the most important bases of speculation that the subject of interrogation was indeed guilty.
In other words, Yan Xie's attitude simply tipped the balance in everyone's hearts to the unfavorable side.
"Yan Xie," Chief Lu looked at him, his every word carrying an indescribable weight, "You are an experienced criminal investigator who has worked for more than ten years, and now you can be convicted without a confession. I don't think you need me to tell you. If you don't want to explain anything, our investigation and inference will be very detrimental to you. Do you understand?"
Countless eyes from inside and outside turned to Yan Xie, and even his pursed blade-like lips could be seen clearly.
After a while, he said, "I understand."
"—You understand." Chief Lu repeated in a serious tone and nodded: "Then can you at least tell me why you were downstairs in Fang Zhenghong's house when he had an accident? "
This was clearly a very simple question, but Yan Xie was silent for a long time. His body was still sitting behind the interrogation table, where everyone's eyes were focused, but no one knew where his soul was floating, as if it was suspended in mid-air, staring coldly at everyone inside and outside the interrogation room.
The interrogator was visibly agitated.
Outside the one-sided window, Deputy Chief Wei's forehead was almost pressed against the glass, his cheeks were tense to the point of twisting, and his hands were tightly clenched into fists in his trouser pockets.
"I can't." Suddenly, Yan Xie spoke up, but every word spit out from those thin lips made his heart sink infinitely into the abyss. He said, "I can't tell you."
Everyone's expressions changed greatly. Deputy Chief Wei couldn't stand for a while and swayed several times!
Chief Lu stomped the tea mug in his hand on the table with a "clang," and he leaned back into the back of the chair and exhaled.
"Since you clearly know what the consequences of concealment will be, and you insist on choosing to do so, then I have nothing to say." Chief Lu nodded slowly and then said, "Okay, okay, okay… Yan Xie, I'll ask you the last question. If you really don't want to say it, I can't do anything about it. The last person who approached the vehicle at the crime scene when Fang Zhenghong was not there, was it you?!"
—No.
Yan Xie was as silent as a statue, his back turned to the meager light shining through the barred window, and the answer to this question automatically appeared in his mind: Jiang Ting.
He closed his eyes and said solemnly, after a few seconds, "It was me."
Chief Lu suddenly got up and walked out.
"Wait."
No one expected Yan Xie to make a sound at this time. Everyone outside was stunned and was about to rush out to grab Deputy Chief Wei, who was cursing Chief Lu when he suddenly twisted his body 90 degrees, and the light of anticipation burst out on his old face.
But then the brilliance dimmed—
When Chief Lu turned back to look at the interrogation table, Yan Xie raised his chin slightly, so that his originally angular face, slender neck, and broad muscular shoulders looked particularly eye-catching, like a dark vortex in the backlight.
He asked, "Was it you?"
These three words were very light, and no one knew what they meant.
"…You're asking me?"
Chief Lu's eyelids twitched as if he felt ridiculous. Then he snorted and asked in a very stern voice: "Whether I say yes or no, can you believe it in the absence of evidence? Yan Xie, do you still have any basic qualities of a criminal investigator?!"
There was silence inside and outside the interrogation room.
The iron door rattled, and Chief Lu slammed the door of the interrogation room and went out.
Wei Yao turned around on the spot as if he had suddenly lost his direction. But when he saw Chief Lu walking past the door of the interrogation room, he immediately stumbled out and grabbed him, like a jammed barrel of a submachine gun exploding: "Old Lu, listen to me! This matter involving Fang Zhenghong must be carefully investigated; it's really not Yan Xie!"
"Chief Lu, Chief Lu," Secretary Zhang hurriedly rushed over, interrupting Deputy Chief Wei, whose face was red with anxiety: "The phone in our bureau has been continuously ringing. The provincial party committee director Liu has made the third call, saying that he will come to see you in person to understand the situation, and now the situation…"
"No."
Secretary Zhang: "What?"
Chief Lu's tone was calm, but the white, fat, and kind face of the Maitreya Buddha seemed to have undergone an invisible change, from the low eyebrow of a Bodhisattva to the angry look of a Vajra, making people frightened when they saw it.
"No." He said calmly, under the worried gazes of Secretary Zhang, Deputy Chief Wei, and the rest, "From now on, I will send food and drink to Yan Xie personally, and whoever wants to visit must get my signature and approval. Until the case is clearly investigated, even if the provincial governor comes, I don't want to see anyone."
In the surrounding dead silence, Chief Lu looked around at everyone and said coldly:
"No one is allowed to step into the iron door of the interrogation room!"
...…
Late that night.
A red Toyota drove past the prosperous gate of the Sleepless Palace KTV, turned into the alley, and stopped not far from the back door.
A young girl in a pullover hoodie, jeans, and white shoes hurriedly got out of the car, grabbed her schoolbag, and ran down the dark path. There was a faint light at the back door of the KTV in front. Yang Mei, who was wearing fur clothing and holding a small bag, had been waiting for a long time. Suddenly, she heard footsteps and looked back, and was immediately overjoyed: "Little Han!"
"Sister Meimei!"
The young girl lifted her hood, showing a young and anxious face without any makeup — it was Han Xiaomei, for whom Yang Mei had been waiting for half the night.
"Chief Lu really said that?"
In the KTV office area upstairs, Han Xiaomei was so hungry that she nodded while munching on a hamburger: "Mmmmm…" Yang Mei quickly opened a bottle of Coke for her, and Han Xiaomei immediately raised her head, gulped down a few mouthfuls, and finally made room to speak.
"Yes, that's what he said; the news spread all over the bureau. Director Liu came to our city bureau in person for this matter, but he was stopped by Chief Lu, saying that Captain Yan was a high-level suspect with a sensitive identity and background, and anyone who saw him may obstruct… hiccup! Obstruct justice!"
"…What does he mean?" Yang Mei was surprised, "Why does it seem like he is guarding against someone who wants Yan Xie's life?"
Han Xiaomei shrugged with her mouth full.
When the two arrived at the door of the suite, Yang Mei knocked on the door: "Brother Jiang?"
"Come in."
Han Xiaomei did not dare to be presumptuous in front of the young and gentle Consultant Lu. She subconsciously swallowed the hamburger with difficulty and timidly followed Yang Mei into the room. She saw Jiang Ting standing under the lamp. The table was full, and when she got closer, she saw several different ID documents, household registration books, bank cards, new mobile phones, and phone cards…
Probably seeing Han Xiaomei's stunned gaze, Yang Mei introduced with a wry smile: "It was all prepared by Brother Jiang a few years ago, just to prevent an accident one day."
Han Xiaomei was stunned, thinking that it was no wonder that she couldn't get in touch with Consultant Lu just now. It turned out that when Captain Yan had an accident, he changed both his phone and phone card — the so-called professional level of caution was nothing more than that.
Jiang Ting didn't say a word; he was wearing gloves, carefully checking the key clue left by Fang Zhenghong in the sealed plastic bag: the old dark blue pants.
"Nothing was found." After a while, Jiang Ting pinched the edge of the fabric and said, "There is no note, handwriting, unusual folding marks, smell, or residue that can be identified with the naked eye. Since Fang Zhenghong believes that it is a key clue, he must have his reasons. It is best to send it for a professional trace examination and physical and chemical analysis."
Yang Mei pointed to the outside and tentatively asked: "Let the surnamed Qi bring it back to Gongzhou to find their technical investigator?"
Jiang Ting shook his head, "It's too late, and I can't keep the evidence out of sight. Han Xiaomei?"
Han Xiaomei immediately stood upright: "I'm here!"
"Do you know any technical investigator classmates assigned to the police station?"
Han Xiaomei nodded like a chicken pecking rice to indicate that she did.
"Contact the other party immediately, and I'll go with you in person."
Han Xiaomei said in her mind that you may not know the current gender ratio of our police academy. It doesn't matter if you follow me or not, but if Sister Mei Mei personally follows, it will be a great encouragement and motivation to my technical investigator classmate…
Jiang Ting took off his gloves and rubbed his face heavily. It was only then that he finally showed some signs of fatigue. He sat on the edge of the bed, raised his head, and asked Han Xiaomei, "How is your brother Yan?"
He seemed to ask this casually, but for some reason, Han Xiomei suddenly felt that after asking this question, all his attention was focused on her.
"Captain Yan's situation…should be alright," Han Xiaomei recounted the news she had just told Yang Mei awkwardly and looked at Jiang Ting cautiously: "Although the situation is not favorable for Captain Yan, everyone believes that Captain Yan is not such a person and would not do anything to hurt Captain Fang. Besides, the time when Captain Fang's car was manipulated is uncertain, so we can't insist that Captain Yan is the murderer just because he happened to be at the scene when the crime happened, right? That's too unreasonable! It doesn't make any sense at all!"
Han Xiaomei was indignant, and Jiang Ting nodded: "So what did he eat at night?"
"Ah?"
Jiang Ting repeated: "What did he eat at night?"
"..." Han Xiaomei said,"…Steamed… steamed buns, and boiled eggs…"
Jiang Ting closed his eyes. A deep emotion was hidden in his plain and detached expression. He buried his face in the palm of his hand, and when he opened his eyes again, he had recovered to a flawless, icy calmness, as if the momentary weakness had just been an illusion.
"Understood." He said, "You should stay here tonight. Let's go tomorrow morning to find your classmate."
Han Xiaomei's eyes widened, What did you say? I gathered so much information, prepared a large consolation, and wrote a bunch of mental drafts, and in the end, you asked what Captain Yan ate at night? Trust me a little more!
Yang Mei was still a little worried: "Brother Jiang, are you alright?"
Although she didn't want to admit it, her rationality made her clearly realize that her brother Jiang's state was indeed different after Yan Xie's accident — his investigation steps were the same as usual, and his composure, calmness, and professionalism seemed to be the same, but there was a certain mood or aura that had undergone a chilling change.
Jiang Ting stood up and said, "It's alright. What can happen to me?"
Yang Mei was worried and hesitated.
"Go to sleep." Jiang Ting said lightly, "If my guess is correct, we are very close to the real murderer."
Yang Mei thought that Jiang Ting would stay up all night, but when she came knocking on the door uneasily later, she found that Jiang Ting had turned off the lights.
"Sleeping?" She thought to herself and at the same time breathed a sigh of relief: "It's okay, it's okay, he should rest more—"
The wind and rain outside the window darkened the sky, the north wind whistled through the window, and the night was endless.
What she didn't know was that Jiang Ting was lying in the darkness at the moment, staring at the void that was floating like a long river. He seemed to be isolated from this world; the only connection and bond had been broken, and even his perception of the outside world was gradually blurred.
Jiang Ting raised his hand to his side, and his fingertips directly touched the cold and empty sheets.
For a long time, he just lay there. Then he raised his head, closed his eyes, and sighed hoarsely.
...…
In fact, asking Han Xiaomei's police academy classmate for help wasn't the best way. First and foremost, as long as the inspection object was within the scope of the Jianning public security system, records would inevitably be left, leaving clues to be traced; secondly, Han Xiaomei had only recently graduated; her classmate was also a rookie in the technical investigation, and he would never have the superb professional skills that Huang Xing, director of the Municipal Bureau, possessed.
But now that everything was moving so quickly, Han Xiaomei's contacts were indeed the only way Jiang Ting could ask for help now.
Han Xiaomei's best buddy when she was in school, her fellow countryman and classmate, was assigned to the technical squadron of a police station under the Fuyang sub-bureau. The young man got these pants in the morning and said embarrassingly that the results would not be available until the next day at the earliest. After being invited to dinner at noon by the beautiful elder sister Yang Mei, the young man said that he suddenly became enthusiastic about work and life and finally made the analysis before leaving work, asking Han Xiaomei suspiciously, "What the hell is this case? Are you sure you didn't get the wrong item to be examined?"
Han Xiaomei said with a guilty conscience, "No… no?"
"But this is just a pair of ordinary pants. I have done all the tests I can think of. I didn't find any bloodstains, fine spots, gunpowder smoke, or poisonous substances from chemical examinations; I can only conclude that this person's hygiene habits are relatively average, and there are a few dog hairs caught in the seam of his pants — d@mn, you must have mistaken the evidence, right. Otherwise, why didn't you go to the city bureau but bring it to me for inspection? You're done, Han Xiaomei! You're going to be kicked away by the city bureau!"
Han Xiaomei wanted to cry without tears and said, "Thank you for reminding me."
Having said that, Han Xiaomei still took pictures of the analysis report and sent them to Yang Mei with suspicion. Her phone rang after a while; the caller ID was Yang Mei's, but when she answered it, she only heard Jiang Ting ask grimly, "Are all the analysis results here?"
Han Xiaomei stood on the street outside the police station, surrounded by car horns and pedestrians. She covered the microphone and said loudly: "Yes! It's almost certain that the last meal Captain Fang ate while wearing these pants was meat buns. There may be a few stray dogs near the house, and his personal hygiene habits are not very good! — What should we do now?!"
Han Xiaomei's heart has been shrouded in despair, and she can't imagine how anxious and helpless she would be if she could not analyze any way out with meat buns and stray dogs if she fell into this situation.
"I understand."
"Ah, ah?" Han Xiaomei said in her mind, you understand? Understand what?
"I have to go out, we'll keep in touch."
"You want to—Hello? Hello?"
Jiang Ting hung up the phone and put it down. Then he turned around and picked up his coat, grabbed the car keys, and went straight downstairs to put on his shoes. Yang Mei panicked and followed behind, shouting loudly, "Brother Jiang, where are you going? I'll go with you!"
"I'm going out of town." Jiang Ting pushed open the door: "Fang Zhenghong's idea was right; now we only need a final verification, and the answer can almost be determined. "
"Then.. then wait for me! I won't touch up my makeup, let's go now!"
Yang Mei rushed to change her clothes, but then her movements were pinned to the spot by Jiang Ting's words: "No, don't follow."
Yang Mei was stunned.
Jiang Ting stood in front of the gate and turned his head. Half of his cheeks melted in the dim light of the early winter, and he calmly said: "The danger to you may be greater."
Yang Mei racked her brain and couldn't think of what Jiang Ting saw in the short pages of the analysis report. In the evening, when Han Xiaomei came to KTV, the two girls sat knee-to-knee with frowning faces, filled with worry and anxiety.
Was Yan Xie safe in the city bureau's detention room?
Where did Jiang Ting go overnight?
In fact, not only Yang Mei and Han Xiaomei, but in the huge Jianning City, there were many people like them tossing and turning, sleepless all night. As the eastern sky gradually turned green, Yang Mei, who had been in a daze for several hours, was suddenly awakened by the ringing of the bell. She sat up and grabbed her mobile phone—
At half past six in the morning, an unread message came from Jiang Ting's new number, only a few words:
[I know who he is.]