Chapter 658: Chapter 629: Crossing the Bridge with Both Hands
Xu Chunliang shook his head: "No, thank you. I don’t smoke."
Xie Yuanzheng said: "It’s good for young people not to smoke, unlike us smokers who have been at it for twenty years, knowing it’s bad but unable to quit."
Xu Chunliang said: "If you really want to quit, you can. It only proves you don’t want to."
Xie Yuanzheng laughed heartily: "How did your conversation go?"
Xu Chunliang replied, "How do you think it went?"
Xie Yuanzheng said: "She’s a pretty girl, unfortunately, with Ji Buyao’s death, all these unspeakable things at Blue Star have fallen on her."
Xu Chunliang heard that he was intentionally saying this for him to hear: "Ji Buyao is dead?"
Xie Yuanzheng said: "More or less. A finger was found in the fish tank. Based on current identification, it can be confirmed that it belonged to Ji Buyao. Over thirty piranhas—if a person falls in, not even a trace is left."
Xu Chunliang said: "You’re concluding he’s dead based on one finger? Maybe he cut the finger off himself and threw it into the fish tank."
Xie Yuanzheng said: "Impossible. Would someone as smart as Ji Buyao do something so foolish?"
"You’re the one who said he’s smart. Smart people often do unexpected things. Just last night, he was talking to me about helping treat his daughter’s illness."
Xie Yuanzheng said: "After what happened, are you still willing to treat his daughter?"
Xu Chunliang said: "It’s not about whether I’m willing, it’s about whether I have the capability. His daughter has ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), a disease for which, if you check, you’ll find there’s no solution globally at present."
Xie Yuanzheng said: "Do you know where his daughter is?"
Xu Chunliang thought, ’Old Xie is quite the actor. While I was talking to Hua Zhuyue earlier, you were monitoring us the whole time. You know exactly what we talked about,’ but he didn’t bother to expose him: "I heard she’s in the Capital City."
"Can you contact her?"
Xu Chunliang said: "Isn’t contacting the deceased’s relatives the police’s job?"
Xie Yuanzheng laughed: "Do you have time to go find Ji Jiajia with us?"
Xu Chunliang looked at Xie Yuanzheng, knowing he wanted to use him in the investigation. Earlier, Hua Zhuyue had told him where Ji Jiajia often appeared, and Xie Yuanzheng likely heard it too.
Xie Yuanzheng sensed Xu Chunliang’s wariness and said sincerely: "Mr. Xu, you want to help Miss Hua clear her name as soon as possible too, right? Ji Jiajia is very crucial."
To prove if Ji Buyao is dead or alive, the best way is to find his body. Currently, in the aquarium, only a finger belonging to Ji Buyao has been found. Following conventional theory, Ji Buyao might have been devoured by the piranhas, so the most direct way to find his body is to dissect all over thirty piranhas. If human tissue belonging to Ji Buyao is found among them, it can basically be confirmed that Ji Buyao is dead.
The police are divided into two opinions: one suggests dissecting the sharks, while the other opposes it, arguing that over thirty lives shouldn’t be taken to confirm if Ji Buyao is dead.
Xie Yuanzheng insists on the latter opinion. From his years of investigation experience, he believes dissection is unnecessary, as Ji Buyao likely pulled off a trick. He intentionally used a wheelchair and his finger to create the illusion of accidentally falling into the aquarium, misleading the police investigation.
Even if they were to dissect, nothing would be found besides the finger. There would be no more human tissue.
Xu Chunliang decided to cooperate with Xie Yuanzheng mainly to help Hua Zhuyue get out of trouble sooner.
According to Hua Zhuyue, Ji Jiajia has been in the Capital City recently, mingling with a group of outdoor enthusiasts. The location is the Moat Bridge. Recently, for some unknown reason, Moat Bridge has become an internet-famous bridge.
A bunch of rock climbers and outdoor fitness enthusiasts gather there, challenging themselves. From initially crossing the bridge with both arms to one hand, now they’re challenging themselves to cross up and down with both hands. There’s no lack of new tricks, and more and more challengers join in.
When Xu Chunliang and Xie Yuanzheng arrived, they saw a group of people gathered under the bridge competing. A shirtless young man was doing pull-ups under the bridge, with the surrounding people cheering.
To avoid alerting the target, Xie Yuanzheng parked the car far away, and then he and Xu Chunliang walked over.
The young man clung to the iron beam under the bridge with both hands. As he swung his body and exerted force, he tried to catch the edge of the bridge, but unfortunately, he exerted too early and fell into the river.
The crowd gasped in surprise and then laughed. Some quickly went over to help. Such is the simple joy of youth.
Soon, someone else followed the challenge. Xu Chunliang watched for a while, but none of the next five challengers succeeded in crossing the bridge with both hands.
Xie Yuanzheng nudged Xu Chunliang with his arm. Following Xie Yuanzheng’s gaze, Xu Chunliang saw a dark-skinned girl skateboarding toward the Moat Bridge.
Though Xu Chunliang had just seen a photo of Ji Jiajia last night, he didn’t recognize her at first glance. In the photo Ji Buyao showed him, Ji Jiajia was fair-skinned and beautiful. The Ji Jiajia before him was nearly 1.7 meters tall, with skin so dark it was almost oily.
Needless to say, kids these days grow up so fast. Ji Jiajia is only fifteen, but she looks like a young lady. Judging by her build, it’s clear she regularly engages in outdoor exercise. If Ji Buyao hadn’t told him in advance that she had ALS, Xu Chunliang wouldn’t have been able to tell she was ill. He wondered if Ji Buyao was lying.
