Captain Zhang had just left the substation when he received a call from Brother Huang. After listening to him for a couple of sentences, his face grew grim. He reduced his speed and, at a red light, turned into a side alley and stopped the car.
As he pulled the handbrake, Brother Huang's voice continued to speak, "Currently, we don't know how much of what Jiang Pingxin said is credible. Although some minor details have revealed inconsistencies, the overall logical sequence is quite tight. This girl has hidden depths.
Everyone had assumed that Jiang Pingxin, though stubborn and insincere, was also reckless and simple-minded, incapable of fabricating sophisticated lies or making false accusations. This time, however, she had thoroughly surprised them.
But given her age and inexperience, when she lies to the police, she would unconsciously reveal some truths that she considers unimportant," Brother Huang added with a self-deprecating chuckle. I suspect that she mixed up two different events.
Jiang Pingxin had a habit of patrolling near the riverbank around 10 PM after finishing her homework, a routine she had maintained for years. That matched with the weather records showing it started raining at that time. Only someone who had experienced it would recall such precise timing details.
Moreover, Jiang Pingxin's reactions when describing the scene were too realistic. The fear and unease in her eyes were natural and not just an act.
She might not have seen the murder itself, but she likely stumbled upon Zheng Xianwen shortly after he had killed someone. She had also encountered Wang Yifei and had close contact with him, hence her familiarity with his appearance.
“Additionally, Wang Yifei arrived in the outskirts around 2 AM but didn’t leave until nearly 7 AM. What was he doing all that time?” Brother Huang wondered. “If he hadn’t later met with Captain He, I’d have thought he was already dead by then.”
Captain Zhang rolled down the window.
The midnight breeze had lost the day's heat and finally felt cool as it should in April. He rested his arm outside the window, tapping on the door as he quietly waited for Brother Huang to finish. Then he replied thoughtfully, “Jiang Pingxin's problem isn't significant. Her improvised parts were poorly done. We can scare the truth out of her tomorrow. The crucial thing is the murder weapon.”
“We’ve interviewed the nearby residents, and none of them saw anyone suspicious. We’ve combed the unmonitored areas repeatedly, nearly digging up the ground, but still didn’t find the weapon or the bloody clothes. If Zheng Xianwen lives that close to the crime scene, he likely took the items home.”
This also explained why Han Songshan would go to such a remote place.
He wanted to meet Zheng Xianwen without being seen, so he chose a secluded area with no surveillance around Zheng’s house.
Captain Zhang gripped the steering wheel and reversed the car out of the alley. “I’m heading back now. Let's have a quick meeting with the team.”
---
He Chuan Zhou sat on the sofa, deep in thought, for a long time. When she snapped out of it, she closed the laptop and turned to see Zhou Tuoxing staring at her. She forgot that he was still in the room.
Momentarily surprised, she quickly masked her reaction and asked with concern, “Do you have work tomorrow? You can sleep in my room. I have to leave at 7 AM.”
“I can go with you,” Zhou Tuoxing offered, pointing to his work. “Do you still need to look at the rest of this?”
He Chuan Zhou declined, encouraging him with a straight face, “We’ll look at it when we get back. It's very helpful. Thank you.”
Zhou Tuoxing felt guilty for thinking it, but he suspected that her kindness wasn’t from genuine gratitude but to ensure the continued free labor. Yet, when she walked past him and bent down to kiss his cheek softly, that thought vanished.
Even if the gesture was slightly awkward and delayed.
Around 5:30 AM, He Chuan Zhou was dressed and ready. There was a faint dark circle under her eyes, indicating a restless night or no sleep at all.
Zhou Tuoxing got in the car with her, initially thinking they were heading to the outskirts to find Zheng Xianwen. Instead, she drove to the back of a commercial street in the West District.
As they got out, a familiar figure emerged from a narrow alley.
He Chuan Zhou quickly approached, blocking Wang Gaozhan's path, and asked, “Can I take two minutes of your time?”
Wang Gaozhan looked back at her quietly. His eyes were too murky, and his eyebrows drooped with the wrinkles, showing no clear emotion when expressionless.
He hesitated for a few seconds before nodding.
He Chuan Zhou said, “Let’s talk in my car. It’s quieter.”
Meanwhile, Brother Huang downed two cups of coffee to jolt himself awake, then brewed a pot of goji berries for sustenance and drove to the outskirts.
He assigned Shao Zhixin and another officer to wait outside Zheng Xianwen’s house for Captain Zhang’s instructions. He himself, along with a colleague, headed to Jiang Pingxin’s home.
The narrow corridor was lined with brightly colored clothes hanging to dry. A shoe rack by the door emitted a strong, lingering stench. The scene was almost identical to their last visit, except for an unidentified house with exceptionally smelly shoes.
Jiang Pingxin quickly opened the door, already in her school uniform but with her hair still uncombed, making it look messy and tangled.
But Brother Huang felt this was nothing compared to his nearly exploding brain cells. He asked cheerfully, “Getting ready for school?”
Jiang Pingxin remained silent, feeling a chill down her spine at his seemingly friendly but subtly menacing smile.
Brother Huang asked, “Do you know why we’re here?”
He didn’t expect her to answer, gesturing inside, “Do you want to come to the station with us or talk here?”
Without hesitation, Jiang Pingxin stepped aside. Brother Huang entered, turned on the main light, and drew the curtains, signaling her to sit at the dining table.
He hadn’t slept all night, new wrinkles were forming on his face, and his facial muscles felt stiff. Lacking the energy to control his expression, he forced a grim smile and asked, “Do you think that just because you’re a high schooler, you can lie to the police without consequences?”
Jiang Pingxin sat dejectedly, her voice barely audible, “No.”
Brother Huang opened the folder, pulled out a stack of printed surveillance screenshots, and threw them on the table.
“Did you forget? Although the wasteland by the river has no surveillance, your neighborhood does. We reviewed the street surveillance and confirmed you went out at around 11 PM on the 16th, returning after about half an hour. That matches your statement. But you went out again around 6 AM, when it was already light out.”
Jiang Pingxin, feeling his suppressed anger, didn’t dare look at him or the papers on the table, her hands resting on her knees, head hanging low in silence.
Brother Huang coldly asked, “Any excuses?”
Jiang Pingxin sat tensely, bracing for his outburst. When none came, she thought that he was waiting for her to respond and shook her head slightly.
“Wang Yifei arrived in the outskirts around 2 AM. You went out at 11 PM. Did you see a ghost?”
Brother Huang threw the remaining papers in the folder onto the table, startling Jiang Pingxin with a shiver.
Brother Huang paced quickly in front of Jiang Pingxin, his demeanor sharp and commanding. Seeing her slumped and listless, he snapped, "Lift your head!"
Instinctively, Jiang Pingxin straightened her back, her gaze landing briefly on his face before skittering away in every direction.
Brother Huang's voice was cold as he questioned, "How much of what you've said is true? Are you playing games with us, wasting our time?"
Jiang Pingxin stammered, "I... I'm not."
Brother Huang let out a cold laugh, "Not? Did you really see Wang Yifei? What's your grudge against him? Do you know that giving false testimony is a crime? Don't think you can avoid jail just because you're under 18!"
Jiang Pingxin's earlier sharpness and defiance was gone. The script she had mentally prepared crumbled under Brother Huang’s pressure, leaving her opening and closing her mouth soundlessly, desperately searching for the right words.
With a sudden slam of his hand on the table, Brother Huang's voice boomed, "Speak!"
Jiang Pingxin flinched, her neck retracting as her eyes welled up with tears. "He... he told me to say that. He begged me to! And I wasn't completely lying. I did see Wang Yifei by the riverbank the second time I went out..."
Her voice grew softer, trembling and indistinct. Brother Huang remained unmoved, a mocking smile playing on his lips. "Wang Yifei asked you to frame him? Do you even think that's plausible?"
Jiang Pingxin's chest heaved with anxiety. Gathering her courage, she raised her voice slightly, "He did! He said the killer was someone he knew, that he had asked the person to do it, but he regretted it. He said he wouldn't live long anyway and wanted to take the blame to give him a chance."
Brother Huang feigned another threatening move, "You think we don't know who you really saw that night? Let me tell you, the police know a lot more than you think! We know you're lying, and we know about the close ties between Zheng Xianwen and Han Songshan. Do you need to see the evidence to start telling the truth?"
Desperation edged Jiang Pingxin's voice, "It's true! I don't know why he would take the blame for Xianwen, but he said so! He even recorded a message saying if the truth came out, it wasn't my fault, that he was forcing me.”
"Oh..." Brother Huang dragged out the sound, finally sitting down and softening his tone, "Tell me everything in detail."
The car door closed, muting the street vendors' calls and honking horns, turning them into distant, indistinct sounds.
After starting the engine, He Chuan Zhou turned on the air conditioner, the vents emitting a soft, steady breeze.
These sounds created an invisible barrier, isolating them from the outside world.
Wang Gaozhan spoke first, "I don't know where Yifei went."
He Chuan Zhou replied, "Neither do I."
She pulled a freshly bought cup of soy milk from the console, offering it to Wang Gaozhan, who declined with a wave of his hand.
Undeterred, He Chuan Zhou asked, "How did you meet Zheng Xianwen?"
Wang Gaozhan shook his head, refusing to answer.
He Chuan Zhou continued, "On the 16th, did you lend him your phone?"
Wang Gaozhan finally lifted his gaze, confusion mingling with a flicker of panic in his otherwise despondent eyes as he looked at He Chuan Zhou.
"You might not know much about modern phones," He Chuan Zhou said gently. "Once set up, they can easily track your location and show where you've been." She paused, choosing her words carefully, "I suspect Yifei used your phone's location to return to City A."