I was afraid he would hang up suddenly, so I quickly asked, "What information do you want?"
Originally, I thought they might ask me to release Li Dapeng or Li Xia, but they wanted me to steal information instead. So, I wanted to test what information they were after. Maybe I could find clues about the kidnappers from the information they wanted.
"I can't tell you for now. Call me once you access Zhao Mingzhu's computer. You have five hours... beep, beep, beep..." He hung up.
Who are these people? Are they connected to Li Dapeng? A series of questions flooded my mind. At the same time, I began to ponder what I should do.
When I first realized my mom had been kidnapped, I thought it was someone behind Li Dapeng, wanting me to exchange Li Dapeng or Li Xia for my mom. If that was the case, it would have been easier to deal with since, as long as they didn't get Li Dapeng or Li Xia, they wouldn't dare harm my mom.
However, knowing they wanted me to steal information from Zhao Mingzhu's computer made things more complicated.
Thinking it through, I started analyzing the case, trying to find clues from the kidnappers' methods.
First, the culprit was very bold. The arson wasn't to cover up a murder but to demonstrate their power. This was evident from the phone number they deliberately left in the surveillance footage.
Second, the crime was premeditated and targeted specific police officers. Their purpose was very clear—to obtain information from our captain's computer. This level of detail was only accessible to our cold case investigation team, not ordinary people.
However, why target me, a rookie detective? This suggested the person specifically sought me out, likely due to a personal grudge.
Reflecting on my six months in the force, the only person I had recently antagonized was Li Dapeng. So, I suspected someone connected to Li Dapeng was behind this. Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence that both my mom and Zhang Yihan's father had incidents on the same morning?
After thinking it through, I quietly returned to my apartment building. Looking at the charred balcony of my home, I felt a myriad of emotions.
I couldn't understand the point of being a police officer if I couldn't even protect my own mother. Why did I become a police officer?
My initial motive was to investigate my father's wrongful conviction. But soon after becoming an officer, I had already brought trouble upon my mother...
I thought about many things and wrestled with my feelings for a long time. Finally, before making a decision, I called Zhang Yihan.
I heard from Captain Zhao that Zhang Yihan hadn't gone back to see her father but stayed behind to interrogate the suspects. I intended to ask about the progress of the case, hoping for good news. But as soon as she answered, she gave me terrible news.
She told me, "Xiao Lin, be careful. Zhao Xiaotian and Captain Ge have disappeared. No one knows where they went; it's like they vanished into thin air." She also mentioned that all local police and armed police were searching for them.
Hearing this, combined with what happened to our families in the morning, made my scalp tingle with fear.
It became clear that our adversaries weren't ordinary people. They seemed like a hidden terrorist organization, bold and blatant, openly defying national laws.
What troubled us the most was that every move they made was meticulously planned, making them hard to anticipate because they didn't follow any conventional rules.
Take this case, for instance. Over the past three years, more than ten people had died in Guojia Village's well, yet they managed to cover it up every time. They had insiders within our system acting as their shields. This wasn't a movie; it was a real-life version of "Infernal Affairs."
If it weren't for the nationwide attention drawn by the boy's eyes being gouged out, Guojia Village would likely continue its ghost story of Yan Wang Well.
It's now evident that this isn't a simple serial killer case. Clearly, Li Dapeng might not be the mastermind.
Next, Zhang Yihan updated me on the case's progress.
She said that Li Dapeng's sister jumped to her death when summoned to the police station in the morning.
Through an investigation at the construction bureau, they found a real estate developer interested in the land around Guojia Village, planning to build an industrial park. However, it was still just a potential investment, not yet confirmed.
Zhang Yihan mentioned that this information was a local construction bureau's top secret, known only to a few county officials and Li Dapeng's sister, the director of urban and rural planning.
Hearing this, I got excited. "So, we have a motive? Li Dapeng and Xiao Li hoarded a lot of land, knowing their village might be requisitioned." Then, I paused and reconsidered, "No, if they knew about the potential requisition, they could just secretly buy the land. Why kill people?"
"That's the problem. It seems to be about land requisition, but many details don't add up," Zhang Yihan said seriously. "Li Dapeng keeps playing dead, and we can't get him to talk. Only when he opens his mouth will we understand everything. Any news about your mom?"
"Not yet," I sighed. It was clear Zhang Yihan knew about my mom.
"I'll finish interrogating Li Xia and Li Dapeng as soon as possible and come back to help you. Be careful." Zhang Yihan hung up. I could tell she was acting strange today. Her tone was unusually gentle, and she even showed concern for me. I figured she was trying to cope with her father's death by burying herself in work.
She was a strong woman, strong to the point of being cold, even heartless. Or perhaps, she was just trying to avoid facing reality, fearing she couldn't handle it.
I wanted to call her back to comfort her, but after a moment's hesitation, I gave up. Zhang Yihan wasn't like other women. She was proud and strong, not needing others' comfort, which she might see as a sign of weakness.
After talking with Zhang Yihan, I quickly made a decision.
To save my mom, I needed to see what the kidnappers wanted.
Of course, I wasn't foolish enough to actually steal files from Zhao Mingzhu's computer. That would only get my mom killed and myself into irreversible trouble.
I turned around and slowly walked back to the station. By the time I arrived, it was already 8 PM, leaving me less than half an hour before the kidnappers' deadline. They probably calculated that this was the only time I could act alone, so they gave me exactly five hours.
At this time, everyone had left the station. Zhao Mingzhu's office was separate. I pretended to take some files from my desk and sneaked into Zhao Mingzhu's office as I passed by.
Squatting in front of his computer, I pressed the power button. Fortunately, there was no password. As soon as it booted up, I called the kidnapper.
"Is the computer on?" The icy voice asked as soon as he answered.
"Yes..."
"Good. Open your internal database and search for Lin Zhenguo."
"Lin Zhenguo?" I exclaimed.
"Stop wasting time and do as I say!" He barked.
The reason I was so shocked was that my father's name was Lin Zhenguo. I wasn't sure if he meant my dad or someone with the same name. But now, I had no choice but to comply, as I was curious about my father's case files.
I followed his instructions, opened the internal database, and entered "Lin Zhenguo." To my surprise, there was only one result, and it was my dad.
Seeing this, I was both shocked and excited.
I've always wanted to see my dad's case files. The locked-room murder case from back then had always haunted me. I didn't expect to achieve this under such circumstances.
Without thinking much, I quickly scanned through the files.
For several minutes, the man on the phone remained silent. When I was halfway through my dad's file, he suddenly asked, "Have you seen the photos of your dad and that female college student? Believe me, in half an hour, you'll see your mom with another man in a similar way. This is what happens when you go against us, hmph..."
"Who are you?" I gritted my teeth and asked.
"Don't ask who I am. From now on, I am your nightmare." He laughed coldly. "I've already called the police, reporting that someone is stealing confidential files from your captain's office. I guess they'll be arriving any moment now, hahaha..."
Just then, my walkie-talkie beeped twice.
"Hmph..." I laughed coldly, looked at my phone, then turned to the window facing the Fu Hua Hotel across the street. "So far, we've been on the phone for five minutes and thirty-two seconds. If I'm right, you're monitoring me from the Fu Hua Hotel opposite, right? Let me tell you, you're not my nightmare. From this moment on, I am yours!"
I yelled into my walkie-talkie, "Action!"
No sooner had I spoken than I heard a loud bang over the phone, followed by angry shouts, "Don't move! Police!"
About twenty seconds later, a voice came over the walkie-talkie, "Officer Lin, we've apprehended the kidnapper, and your mother is here too."
"Good!" I finally breathed a sigh of relief.
But the officer added, "However, she seems to be in bad shape..."