Chapter 026: Clues to the Murder Case

This story is purely fictional.

In Director Ma Shengwei’s office, a young man placed a package on the director’s desk and said, “Director Ma, my boss asked me to bring this to you. It’s the water fee for this month. Also, she wanted me to tell you to have your subordinates ease up on the internet cafes in Hedong District. Lately, the patrol officers in Hedong have been hanging around every day, constantly going into the internet cafes under the pretense of routine checks to prevent minors from going online. But right now, it’s just before the high school entrance exams—there’s no way any minors are in there. They’re just making trouble for no reason, going in to cool off. This has made the customers uneasy—no one dares to play in the cafes anymore, and as a result, our betting volume plummeted last month, and our revenue has dropped significantly.”

“It’s not just about checking for minors. The World Football Championship is about to begin, and as usual, there are always necessary routine checks in the weeks leading up to the games. The provincial bureau knows that over a month before the World Cup, the clientele in internet cafes becomes more complicated. The higher-ups aren’t unaware of this. So, the message from the provincial bureau is that, given the sharp rise in serious incidents during the last World Cup, this year they plan to launch several special enforcement campaigns. So, go back and tell your boss—better to be prepared than to have problems later. Especially if there’s a homicide, it’ll be hard to clean up the mess. You’re just in it for the money—don’t stir up trouble!” Ma Shengwei spoke with an air of authority.

“I understand, I’ll relay your message truthfully and carry it out carefully,” the young man replied, bowing repeatedly.

Ma Shengwei glanced at the package of money and then at the young man. “Didn’t you used to just put it straight into my safe? This is risky. Let me tell you, surveillance these days is powerful—there’s almost no privacy at all. If you have to come, at least be discreet. Are you out of your mind? Don’t come here unless it’s necessary; we don’t want extra complications. As for the money, you can hang onto it for now. Don’t let anyone know about our relationship.” His tone was reproachful.

“Take the money with you for now. You know the villa I own on the eastern outskirts of the city. Last time, I asked you to renovate the swimming pool—how’s that coming along? I must emphasize, the people you hire have to be reliable. The work underneath the pool—waterproofing must be done properly. I want quality guaranteed. Make sure the workers enter discreetly. I don’t want anyone to know about the villa’s location or the renovations. You know what to do, right?” Ma Shengwei instructed the young man.

“Understood, I won’t come unless necessary. I’ll update you on the project’s progress in the safe as well,” the young man replied, bowing as he took his leave.

Carrying the package meant for constructing the vault, the young man left Ma Shengwei’s office. In his haste, he collided with Wu Zhengzhe at the bend in the corridor, scattering the drafts Wu carried everywhere.

“Sorry, sorry!” The young man bent down to help pick up the papers, but Xiao Jin stopped him, glanced at him, and said, “It’s fine, you go ahead.”

As Wu Zhengzhe picked up the scattered documents, he looked back at the departing young man. The only office at that end was the director’s; he figured the young man must have come from there.

He and Xiao Jin gathered the papers and headed toward the director’s office. Xiao Jin glanced at Wu Zhengzhe, noticing his unusually serious expression. Normally, Wu didn’t look like this. Ever since they’d encountered that young man in the hallway, Wu seemed to have discovered something significant.

“Judging by your face, and based on years of knowing you and my intuition, I’d say you’ve figured something out. Could that young man have something to do with the case we’re investigating?”

Wu Zhengzhe shook his head. “I can’t say for sure if he’s connected to the case. But my instincts tell me that young man has appeared at our crime scenes several times. Wearing sunglasses and a hat in the police building—he obviously doesn’t want to be recognized. I can’t say for certain it’s the same person, but he has this strong body odor I’d never forget. Also, the way he walks is unusual—kind of a spiral-legged gait. I also feel like I’ve known him for a long time, that we’ve crossed paths before.”

Xiao Jin knocked on the director’s door. From inside came, “Come in.”

Xiao Jin and Wu Zhengzhe entered, one after the other. Ma Shengwei sat in his revolving chair, back to the door, gazing at a plaque on the wall, smoke curling around him.

The calligraphy on the plaque was the authentic work of Qiu Yizhen, a renowned calligrapher of the Dahe region. The bold characters read, “Law Enforcement for the People.” The strength of the strokes demanded respect, making one feel awe for the professionalism of public servants, and for this iron-fisted chief before them.

This celebrated figure of Dahe had been a mere precinct chief in a rural station a decade ago. After helping the provincial bureau crack a major drug ring, he was promoted to deputy director of the provincial narcotics division. His career soared—three ranks in a row—before being appointed chief of the Dahe Police Bureau.

Since taking office in Dahe, he’d enforced discipline strictly; “discipline” was always on his lips.

He turned his chair toward the door, looking at his two trusted officers.

Ma Shengwei continued to puff at his pipe, glancing sidelong at Xiao Jin and noticing his unkempt collar. He tapped his pipe on the desk. “Uniform, uniform; discipline, discipline! I keep emphasizing discipline, but you two never seem to listen. And you, Wu Zhengzhe, have you even checked your phone? Do you know how many missed calls you have? Not answering your phone in an emergency—isn’t that dangerous? Time is life. If you had to save someone’s life and missed the call, losing the chance, who’s responsible? Can you bear that responsibility? It’s outrageous!” Ma Shengwei scolded them.

Blue smoke swirled in the office. The smell made Wu Zhengzhe queasy—he felt the urge to vomit, holding his stomach.

“Now my words make you want to throw up?” Ma Shengwei glared.

“No, no. I just overdid it last night with some friends. I drank too much and still feel unwell—and I skipped breakfast. It won’t happen again,” Wu Zhengzhe replied with a sheepish grin.

Xiao Jin, standing beside him, quickly straightened his collar, standing tall and attentive as the chief lectured Wu Zhengzhe.

Seeing that Wu still grinned, Ma Shengwei let the matter drop.

“Now, report on the Reed Marsh homicide case. The provincial leaders are very concerned about the investigation’s progress.” When he finished, Wu Zhengzhe took out his field notes and carefully recalled the scene as he began his report.

“The day we arrived at Shi Tou’s friend Guo Yang’s house, his friend had already died from blood loss. He seemed as if he wanted to say something to Xiao Jin and me—but before he could speak, he passed away.

From our investigation, Shi Tou’s friend was unemployed, formerly a worker at a wire factory. According to neighbors, Shi Tou often visited his friend in Hexi—they were well known locally. Every time he visited, he’d bring food items like milk, cereal, fruit, and lots of beer.

Whatever he brought, he never kept for himself—always shared the food and fruit with neighbors.”

“So, could Guo Yang have had any enemies?” Ma Shengwei asked.

“If you’re asking about grudges, it seems unlikely. That’s what the villagers say,” Xiao Jin replied.

“There wasn’t much valuable evidence left at the scene. We did notice the surveillance equipment for the residential complex had been destroyed. According to the neighborhood committee, the cameras had been broken since the time Shi Tou was killed. But from older footage, we identified someone. We can’t be sure yet, but this man is also the boss of Duhao,” Wu Zhengzhe interjected.

Ma Shengwei’s heart skipped a beat as he looked at Wu Zhengzhe.

“We went to Duhao to investigate and learned that the man’s name is Lu Jiahui. Not long ago, when Duhao opened, the deputy mayor in charge of economic affairs attended and gave a speech. We don’t know yet what Lu Jiahui’s background is,” Wu continued.

“There’s something I can’t figure out. Every time we find a clue, it immediately gets cut off—unexpected things always happen. I don’t know where the problem is.” Wu Zhengzhe kept tapping his head with his hand.

“Our preliminary suspicion is that Shi Tou’s friend was killed for a clear reason: he must have known too many of the killer’s secrets. When it became obvious the truth was about to come out, the killer decided to silence him,” Wu Zhengzhe said with conviction.

“Good, good. That’s the logical conclusion. Solving cases isn’t easy—you can’t expect to crack it in just a few rounds. You need patience, Comrade Zhengzhe!” Ma Shengwei encouraged him.

“But,” Wu continued, “there was an important discovery at the makeshift dorm in his friend’s house—a strip of cloth with a string of English letters and Arabic numerals printed on it: ASF030125988.”

“What cloth? Let me see,” Ma Shengwei demanded.

Wu handed over the strip of cloth. Ma Shengwei examined it and felt a jolt in his heart—he knew exactly what it was. “How could these fools be so careless, leaving something so important at the scene?” (To be continued)