Another possibility was that it was a crime of passion. Yang Fan, riding her bike past Shian Bridge, might have been attacked by a stranger, the only reason being her youth and beauty. If that were the case, the chances of solving the case were exceedingly slim.
"If I hadn't gone drinking with the guys from the provincial capital and had taken Yang Fan home, none of this would have happened." This thought had surged from the depths of his consciousness countless times, grinning maliciously as it gnawed at Hou Dali's soul. Standing at the edge of the bridge, he unleashed a powerful scream at the river below, trying to vent the frustration and despair that had built up inside him.
Cracking the Fraud Case
At 7 PM, Hou Dali drove along the riverside road back into the city, his mood still shrouded in darkness. Yang Fan's love letter flashed in his mind, the neat and delicate handwriting leaping out at him, line by line. He read the letter in this unique way, and any trace of his usual carefree demeanor had long since disappeared.
As he turned onto a side road, a truck slowly lumbered in front of him, blocking the way.
The truck's rear end swayed back and forth in front of Hou Dali, triggering a sudden "clink" in his mind. After that sound, a hidden switch flipped in his brain, revealing a 3D image of the "Yongfa Electric" truck involved in the case. The vehicle in his memory differed from the one before him in two obvious ways: the license plate was different, and it lacked the "Yongfa Electric" logo. But there were also two similarities: the model and color were the same, and the truck's rear had two oval-shaped paint patches that matched the crime vehicle exactly in color, position, and shape.
Compared to his experience in the TV show "Super Spot the Difference," finding the similarities between the truck in his mind and the one before him was a piece of cake. Hou Dali was certain that the truck in front of him was the one used by the fraudster. This truly fulfilled the old saying, "You wear out iron shoes in a fruitless search, only to find what you seek without effort."
As soon as the alley widened slightly, Hou Dali revved his engine, and his SUV roared as it pulled alongside the truck.
"Speed it up, will you? You've been blocking the road forever!" Hou Dali shouted angrily.
The truck driver, who looked to be in his forties, didn't have a mustache and wasn't wearing sunglasses. He turned his head and spat, "The road is only so wide; where do you expect me to go?"
"Get down here! I'm going to teach you a lesson today!" Hou Dali demanded.
The truck driver assumed Hou Dali was just another road-raging driver, never guessing that he was a cop. Having recently been released from a labor camp, he grabbed a wrench and jumped out of the truck, snarling, "Think you're hot stuff just because you drive an SUV? I specialize in dealing with punks like you!"
"So do I!" Hou Dali shouted back, pointing at the man to distract him. Then, when the driver was off guard, he grabbed the man's wrist, twisted it backward, and slammed him to the ground, making him scream like a stuck pig.
Pinning the driver down, Hou Dali didn't give him a chance to react. "You ran over my dog in front of Yongfa Market and then took off!"
The driver, reeling from the sudden attack, stammered, "Who ran over a dog?"
"You parked your truck at Yongfa Market a few days ago. When you left, you hit a dog by Red Moon, didn't even stop. Don't deny it, or I'll break your arm." Hou Dali spoke quickly, setting the driver up while twisting his wrist further.
"Ah, ah, ah, ease up!" the driver groaned. "You're trying to scam me! I didn't hit any dog."
Hou Dali relaxed his grip slightly. "It was definitely you. There were still packing boxes in the back of your truck; I saw them clearly."
The driver, now doubting himself because of Hou Dali's detailed accusation, protested, "There are lots of trucks loading by Red Moon. How do you know it was me? You've got the wrong guy."
Other than the two oval paint patches, Hou Dali had no evidence linking the driver to the fraud. He continued probing the driver with questions to see if he was mistaken, but based on the driver's responses and overall demeanor, he was sure this was the fraudster.
Spectators gathered quickly, as they always did in Jiangzhou. Normally invisible, they emerged from nowhere whenever something happened, forming a crowd to watch the show.
Hou Dali decisively pulled out a pair of handcuffs and restrained the driver.
Upon realizing that Hou Dali was a cop, the driver became cockier, shouting, "You've got no evidence. What gives you the right to arrest me? This is police brutality; I'm going to file a complaint!"
Hou Dali knew this was a reckless move, but the opportunity was fleeting, and he wasn't about to let it slip away. As he dialed Li Dazui's number, a long series of police sirens blared down the street. Several police cars, lights flashing, sped into the alley, creating a scene of overwhelming force.
The driver, mouth agape, stammered, "Officer, is this for a tiny case like mine? Isn't this a bit much?"
At first, even Hou Dali was baffled by the sudden arrival of so many police cars. Then it dawned on him that there must be a major case elsewhere. As he worried about securing evidence against the driver, the man, intimidated by the swarm of police, confessed on the spot, much to Hou Dali's delight.
With a grimace, the driver said, "Officer, if I confess now, does it count as turning myself in? And I can also give you a tip-off: Big Pockmark hit the sugar factory safe."
Several police cars parked in the alley, and uniformed and plainclothes officers hurried past without even glancing at the two men. One uniformed cop at the back yelled, "Move that SUV and truck; they're blocking the way." He noticed Hou Dali flashing his badge and saw the cuffed suspect, gave a slight nod, and continued on his way.
Captain Zhu Lin, along with a slightly pudgy officer, walked into the alley. Zhu Lin had weathered countless major cases and had developed nerves of steel. His expression remained neutral, and his pace steady. When he spotted Hou Dali, he stopped and asked, "What are you doing here?"
Hou Dali stepped forward to report the situation.
Zhu Lin glanced at the cuffed man. "Hey, it's you, Dirt Sun? How many times have you been inside?"
Dirt Sun sheepishly grinned. "Three times now, Officer Zhu."
Zhu Lin, who had once been a young officer himself, had arrested the notorious thief known as "Dirt Sun" more than once. Over the years, the young cop had risen to become Captain Zhu, while Dirt Sun, after three stints in prison, had become an old crook. Zhu Lin knew that Dirt Sun was incorrigible, but he still spoke to him with a heavy heart. "Three times in prison, and you're still at it? Do you plan to spend the rest of your life behind bars?"
Dirt Sun chuckled awkwardly. "To be honest, Officer Zhu, when I get old, I wouldn't mind it. The routine is regular, the living conditions are secure, healthcare is free, and the food is pretty healthy."
Zhu Lin glanced at Hou Dali and said, "Handle the case solidly."
At this point, Dirt Sun realized that these officers were not here for him. He regretted his earlier admission and started shouting, "Officer, on what grounds are you arresting me? I studied law in the labor camp!"
Hou Dali glared at him and said, "Quit your nonsense and stop asking for trouble!"
Dirt Sun chuckled and said, "What I said earlier doesn't count. Without evidence, you can't just arrest people."
After a while, Li Dazui arrived at the alley in his car. Hou Dali, unable to contain his curiosity, whispered a few words to Li Dazui and then followed the other officers to the crime scene. The investigation at the crime scene was still ongoing, with many people standing outside the police cordon, craning their necks to see what was happening.
After listening to the discussions for a while, Hou Dali returned to the alley.
"What kind of case is it?" he asked.
"Master, a young female teacher was murdered," Hou Dali replied.
"Sigh, another murder case. Once you've dealt with enough cases, you won't even want to go to the crime scenes anymore. Let's head to Dirt Sun's house and see what we find," Li Dazui suggested.
Dirt Sun began shouting again, "Do you have a search warrant? The police can't just barge into someone's house."
"Save it. We'll get the paperwork later," Li Dazui said sternly, tightening the handcuffs and tossing Dirt Sun into the police car.
At Dirt Sun's home, Li Dazui, Hou Dali, and a factory delivery worker who had come along to identify the stolen goods found the refrigerator and television. They also located the stolen freezer being used at a small convenience store downstairs. The store owner, pale with fear after learning the items were stolen goods, stammered, "Sun Weibing is an old neighbor. Everyone knows he's a thief. He has many faults, but one good thing is that he never harms his neighbors."
Li Dazui said sternly, "Why did he give you the freezer? You could be charged with fencing stolen goods."
"The old man from Sun Weibing's family helped my family a lot in the past. Whenever he owed something at the store, I'd have him sign for it, but I never made him pay it back. A few days ago, he said he'd give me a freezer to cover what he owed," the store owner, trembling, found an old notebook full of Sun Weibing's signatures for items he'd taken on credit, dating back seven or eight years, with quite a substantial total.
The factory delivery worker had initially thought he'd be able to retrieve the stolen goods immediately. When he learned that the police were going to take the refrigerator, freezer, and air conditioner back to the station, his face fell, and he started muttering under his breath.
Li Dazui, used to this kind of situation, pretended not to notice.
Hou Dali, young and impetuous, scolded loudly, "These are stolen goods and crucial evidence for solving the case. Once the process is complete, they'll be returned to you as per regulations. We worked hard to recover your property, and instead of being grateful, you're giving us attitude. Have you no conscience?"
As a second-generation wealthy young man, Hou Dali still had some blind spots in his thinking. He considered the value of the stolen goods to be insignificant. However, for the factory delivery worker, it wasn't just about the money; it was also about responsibility. With a woeful expression, the worker defended himself, "Officer Hou, I wasn't trying to be difficult. If I don't get the goods back, I'll be fined heavily, and I might even lose my job."
Li Dazui smoothed things over, gently persuading the factory worker to cooperate with the removal of the items.
Back at the second squad, Ding Hao was pleased and gave Hou Dali a hearty slap on the shoulder, saying, "You're really something. You managed to identify Dirt Sun based solely on the repair marks on his truck, and you caught him red-handed with the stolen goods."
"Captain Ding, it was just good luck, pure luck." Ding Hao's slap was hard and strong, causing Hou Dali to wince and pull his shoulder back.
"It may seem like luck, but if you analyze it closely, it shows that you have a meticulous work ethic. If you hadn't reviewed those photos repeatedly, you wouldn't have remembered the details of Dirt Sun's vehicle," Ding Hao praised him briefly, then his expression turned serious. "But your method was risky. If you hadn't found the stolen goods, you'd be in a tough spot. This kind of approach can only be used once—don't make it a habit. Also, I still think Dirt Sun isn't smart enough to come up with such a simple yet effective scheme on his own. Fraud in Jiangzhou has two distinct characteristics: most perpetrators are repeat offenders, and they prefer working in teams. When interrogating Dirt Sun, see if you can dig up any accomplices."
Dirt Sun, however, stubbornly insisted he acted alone and had no accomplices.
During the interrogation, Hou Dali closely observed Sun Weibing and concluded that Sun Weibing's eyes darted nervously, avoiding direct eye contact with the officers whenever he claimed to have acted alone. This made it highly likely he was lying.
After the first round of questioning, Hou Dali returned to the duty room to review previously copied surveillance footage.
Dirt Sun must have scouted the area beforehand, and if he had, he would have left some trace behind. As Hou Dali carefully reviewed the footage provided by Red Moon, he indeed spotted a young man next to Dirt Sun. When Hou Dali saw this young man, he couldn't believe his eyes: the person with Dirt Sun was his former high school classmate, Chen Lei, who had once pursued Yang Fan.
Upon recognizing Chen Lei, Hou Dali felt as though he had been transported back to the day Yang Fan disappeared. He paused for a moment, then refocused on the case at hand: Chen Lei had a criminal record and was seen with Dirt Sun at the scene, which raised the possibility of a group crime.
The current challenge was that the footage only proved that Dirt Sun and Chen Lei were at the scene together; it didn't prove that Chen Lei had committed the crime. Dirt Sun, who clearly lacked the willpower to resist, quickly confessed to the details of the crime, which matched the circumstances of the incident perfectly. However, when it came to Chen Lei, he stubbornly insisted that Chen Lei had only come to Jiangyang District to attend his elder brother's birthday celebration and knew nothing about the crime.
Further investigation revealed that Dirt Sun's elder brother did indeed host a fiftieth birthday party that day, at Yongfa Restaurant, located not far from Yongfa Electric. The banquet had fourteen tables in the restaurant's main hall. It made sense that Chen Lei, as a friend of Dirt Sun, would have come for the celebration.
At this point, the case was essentially ready for closure.
However, Chen Lei's presence in the video as a recently released convict was too suspicious to ignore, and Hou Dali felt compelled to pursue it further. He explained his reasoning to Ding Hao and requested permission to conduct one last investigation of Chen Lei before the case was forwarded to the prosecutor's office.
Ding Hao, also suspecting that Dirt Sun had an accomplice, agreed to let Li Dazui and Hou Dali investigate Chen Lei. If no new leads emerged, they would close the case.
As usual, Hou Dali drove the police car while Li Dazui sat in the passenger seat, reclining comfortably. He turned his head to scrutinize Hou Dali and asked, "You seem to have a keen interest in Chen Lei. Why is that?"
Hou Dali replied, "Dirt Sun is a petty thief. He's good at breaking into places, but he's not smart enough to pull off this kind of clean, efficient crime. Since Chen Lei and Dirt Sun were in prison together, it's likely they committed the crime together."
Li Dazui shook his head and said, "I've been a detective for many years, and my gut tells me you have a special interest in Chen Lei. No specific reason, just a hunch. Your expression, tone, and body language all tell me that."
"Chen Lei and I were classmates in high school. He was involved in a motorcycle theft case back then, which caused quite a stir. Now that I'm an intern with a heart full of passion for justice, of course, I'm eager to solve this case," Hou Dali replied, still reluctant to bring up the Yang Fan case.
Li Dazui pursed his lips in disbelief. Just then, his phone rang. It was a cheap model with a loud ringer, and the voice of his wife, Hu Xiu, blared through the speaker as she scolded him, ordering him to come home immediately. Li Dazui, ignoring Hou Dali's presence, responded meekly and apologetically.
After hanging up, Li Dazui seemed to forget the previous topic and assumed the role of mentor, advising, "Don't laugh. When you're a detective, you're often too busy to care for your family, so everything falls on your wife. We owe our families a lot and must accept their discipline. It's not about fear—it's about love."
Hou Dali replied, "I understand, I really do."
Li Dazui, however, thought his apprentice was just being dismissive and said, "You've only been on the job a few days; you don't understand a thing. Just wait until you have a wife, go a few days without coming home or answering your phone, and you'll see what happens."
As they spoke, the car pulled up in front of Chen Lei's company, which had a strange name: Jiangzhou Leiren Business Company. Chen Lei was about 1.7 meters tall, very slim, with a gentle and refined appearance.
After checking Li Dazui's identification, Chen Lei politely led them to a luxurious reception room. The air conditioning was strong, and a pretty girl was seated behind a tea set, serving the guests.
Once they were seated, Chen Lei looked at Hou Dali and said, "Graduated yet?"
Hou Dali replied, "Not yet. I'm still interning with the second squad."
"Life is unpredictable. Back in school, your grades were much worse than mine. I'm not bragging, but even while out in the world, I never stopped learning, and my grades were still pretty good. Who would've thought you'd get into Sannan University of Law, while I ended up in the labor camp and had to study in the school of hard knocks," said Chen Lei. After going through the labor reform, Chen Lei had completely shed his youthful innocence, and his eyes held a darkness uncommon among people his age.
After the small talk, Li Dazui's expression turned serious and stern, devoid of the slightly comical look he often showed his colleagues.
Throughout the conversation, Chen Lei maintained a calm demeanor and a sincere attitude, admitting to two things: first, that he and Dirt Sun had been in the labor camp together and had a good relationship; second, that they had been drinking near Yongfa Market.
An hour later, Li Dazui and Hou Dali left the company. Once they were in the car, Li Dazui asked, "What do you think?"
Hou Dali replied, "Everything matches up."
"The case ends here. You need to write the closing report. Writing a closing report is valuable for rookies like you; it's not just about completing the task but also about training your thinking. You should understand how to lay out the people, time, location, cause, process, and outcome of the entire case as a criminal investigation student, right?"
"Understood. Thank you, Master." Hou Dali had learned a lot of theoretical knowledge in criminal investigation school, but there was a significant gap between theory and practice. He truly needed an experienced detective like Li Dazui to guide him.
"Thank me for what? I'm your master; this is my responsibility." Li Dazui then joked about himself, saying, "I'm heading home to see your sister-in-law and prepare to kneel on the washboard. You single detectives have it best—no strings attached."
"Master, even though everything Chen Lei said matched up, I still think there's something off about him. Dirt Sun doesn't have the brains to design such a perfectly timed scam. The scam seems simple, but it's actually quite clever."
"Detectives aren't omnipotent. Many cases remain unsolved, and you need to be mentally prepared for that; otherwise, you'll end up with psychological issues sooner or later. As a detective, you can't be too sensitive—being overly sensitive will exhaust you and might even cause emotional and mental problems. Of course, you also can't be careless or numb. You have to find a balance."
"Chen Lei is probably standing at the window, smirking at us right now." Hou Dali closed his eyes and imagined Chen Lei standing by the window. In his mind, Chen Lei still hadn't shaken off the suspicion of being a murderer. His so-called alibi was full of holes.
"You're not serious, are you?" Li Dazui leaned out the car window and, sure enough, saw Chen Lei standing by the window. "Captain Ding said you're a bit of a freak, and you really are. You were born for this line of work."
By the window, Chen Lei looked down at the police car with a slight, contemptuous smile. He memorized Hou Dali's phone number, repeating it silently to himself. Hou Dali was the cat, and he was the mouse. The cat and mouse could be enemies, they could be friends, or they could be half-enemies, half-friends.
The Yongfa Market case was indeed connected to Chen Lei. After having a meal, Chen Lei and Dirt Sun went to a teahouse, where the windows happened to face Yongfa Market. Dirt Sun, who had just been released from prison, was complaining about how poor his family was, with no TV, refrigerator, or other household appliances. Chen Lei pointed to the Yongfa warehouse and said, "That's a pickup point; you can get goods there anytime."
Chen Lei had started stealing at a young age. The first time was in middle school, where he took advantage of his small size and age to be a lookout. His third theft was at Yongfa Electric. As a lookout, he had scouted the area many times and was very familiar with the surroundings of Yongfa Electric.
After being released from prison, he evolved from a simple theft specialist to a master of multiple criminal skills. With his expanded skill set, he began to look down on theft, considering it a job for people like Dirt Sun. He sought to establish his own criminal empire, believing that once he had a crew, everything else would follow.
While in prison, Chen Lei had been taught a "fuse" tactic by an older inmate: every crime needed a fuse—a person who would confess and take the fall when necessary, ensuring the case ended there.
This elder inmate had once been a big name in the criminal underworld but had lost his life in prison after dealing with someone who tried to betray him. The incident had a profound impact on Chen Lei. Now, he lived by the code of loyalty, imitating the legendary Guan Yu, and gathered a group of like-minded brothers.
All of Chen Lei's close associates knew his motto: if someone gets caught, they have to take the fall alone. If they drag their brothers into it, not only will they lose their life, but their family will suffer as well.
Dirt Sun, knowing Chen Lei well, was aware that beneath his gentle exterior lay a ruthless man. After being caught by the police, Dirt Sun kept replaying the bloody stories Chen Lei had told him and didn't say a word that could implicate Chen Lei.
As the police car drove away, disappearing into the crowd, Chen Lei slowly lit a cigarette and drifted back into his thoughts.
Back in the day, Yang Fan was the star of the school—a "school flower," as they'd say now—pure, beautiful, like a little dragon girl, admired by countless male classmates. Chen Lei, who had started mingling in the underworld at a young age, was an outcast among students. But no matter how much of an outcast he was, he was still a teenager and naturally drawn to beautiful girls. He not only wrote love letters but also frequently presented flowers to express his feelings for Yang Fan.
During his years in prison, Chen Lei would hide under his blanket and masturbate, always fantasizing about Yang Fan. Thinking about the past put Chen Lei in a foul mood. Not wanting to stay in such a dark place mentally, he forced himself to shift his focus to Hou Dali. Back in their first year of high school, Hou Dali had been a spoiled rich kid, not worth mentioning. But after studying at the University of Law, his demeanor had changed significantly—his gaze had become sharp, like a knife that could pierce through you.
After dropping Li Dazui off at home, Hou Dali turned the car around and drove to the scene of the latest murder. He parked his car a little distance away from the crime scene and entered a local restaurant he had noticed earlier when he arrested Dirt Sun. The restaurant's decor had caught his eye, and now he decided to try it out. He ordered spicy fish and chili chicken, which turned out to be very delicious.
Hou Dali quickly struck up a conversation with a waitress.
When the topic of the murder came up, the waitress lowered her voice and said, "I heard she was killed by a blow to the head, r*p*d afterward. Or was it killed first and then r*p*d? It's so terrifying and disgusting."
Hou Dali asked, "How old was the girl?"
The waitress replied, "It's so tragic. The victim's name was Chen Lingfei, and she was quite pretty. She had just started working as a teacher. After this, I'm definitely not working night shifts anymore."
Through casual conversation, Hou Dali gathered basic information about the victim, such as her hair color, clothing habits, and whether she was a local. Unbeknownst to the waitress, she provided him with many details. Although he was just an intern at the second squad and had no right to be involved in major cases handled by the serious crime division, he asked these questions out of a desire to find any clues related to Yang Fan's drowning years ago.
The victim was a young woman, which was the biggest similarity to Yang Fan. Since there was this connection, Hou Dali wanted to learn more about the case.
As he thought back to when Yang Fan drowned, the words that Zhu Lin had said at the time echoed in his mind. The scenes from that day played out vividly, unchanged in color or sound, as if it had just happened. This sharp memory brought him even more pain.
Over the years, Jiangzhou had accumulated five unsolved murder cases with no leads, and Zhu Lin was under immense pressure because of them. When Hou Dali had seen Zhu Lin a few years ago, Zhu Lin had still been a tall and upright head of the criminal police unit. But in the blink of an eye, seven years had passed, and Zhu Lin had visibly aged, with graying hair and a slight hunch.
As the head of the city's criminal police unit, Zhu Lin carried a heavy burden, as if the weight of a mountain was on his shoulders. Outsiders only saw the impressive side of his position, but they seldom witnessed the dejection he felt when he couldn't solve a case.
At that moment, Zhu Lin was sitting across from a much older detective.
Retired for two years, former Deputy Chief of Criminal Investigation Lao Jiang unscrewed his thermos and took a sip of goji berry tea. "The fact that there are no useful clues in any of these cases suggests one thing: the same person is responsible for all of them. Only then could they be done so cleanly."
"Sigh, the Chen Lingfei case might end up as another cold case. If that happens, I'll have no right to stay on as head of the criminal police unit. I'll have to step aside," Zhu Lin said, leaning back in his chair, his body radiating exhaustion.
These six murder cases had no clear investigative direction and didn't meet the criteria for linkage analysis. Lao Jiang had spent his entire career as a detective, leading the investigation of countless cases, some of which were famous nationwide. Yet, as he neared retirement, these seemingly unsophisticated but impenetrable cases left a deep sense of regret in his career, something that weighed on him constantly.
For a city of nearly five million people like Jiangzhou, having six unsolved murders over twelve years wasn't considered a big deal. Society continued to function, and life went on. The only people who remained concerned about these cases were the victims' immediate families and the investigators.
Lao Jiang handed Zhu Lin a cigarette and said, "Don't lose heart, old friend. As long as you're in this position, you can keep an eye on these murder cases. You and the other senior detectives aren't getting any younger. If you all start moving to secondary roles, these cold cases could become frozen forever, buried in the archives with no one ever touching them again. How's that intern detective you're watching over? How capable is he?"
Zhu Lin had been so absorbed in the Chen Lingfei case these past few days that he hadn't had time to "evaluate" Hou Dali. After Lao Jiang's reminder, he called the technical team. After hearing the report, he took a deep drag from his cigarette and said, "Criminal investigation graduates are different. The cigarette butt Hou Dali collected did have Dirt Sun's fingerprints, and they matched perfectly with those in the fingerprint database."
Lao Jiang replied, "Criminal investigation graduates can be idiots too. It just means this young man has a natural talent for being a detective. Old Zhu, are you really planning to let him take over those cold cases?"