Chapter 189: Chapter 188 Figure Skater_1
Zhou Ning pointed at the address and spoke quickly:
"Look at this address, No. 16 Kangning Road, Gulou District, Qindao City, it’s the housing dormitory of the Sports Bureau."
"I know the place, a single building, houses from the year 2000, without property management or anything. Initially, it was the dormitory for the Sports Bureau, but after the housing reform, it was all allocated to individuals. Zhou Xiaozhou, why do you get excited when you see this address?"
Zhou Ning pulled out his cellphone and flipped to the X-rays he had recorded yesterday, explaining non-stop:
"Don’t you understand? Based on the analysis of the victim’s fractures, she could have sustained multiple fractures due to excessive activities like dancing or sports.
The murderer cut off her feet because one could determine her profession just by looking at them. So, it’s very likely that she was a professional athlete, with very distinctive feet, the kind that someone could recognize at a glance.
Especially this address, being the Sports Bureau dormitory, even if the victim had borrowed an identity, she would need someone familiar. I think it’s too much of a coincidence. We should call this person first to confirm if they know such a girl, right?"
Xu Dayuan had also come around by this time and hurriedly dialed the number.
Initially, I hadn’t paid attention to this person’s information, mainly because her marked age was 35, which was too far from the age of the victim to be considered.
But then again, are plastic surgeons blind? Can’t they differentiate between an 18-22-year-old girl and someone who’s 30+?
The call from Xu Dayuan went through, and after ten rings, someone answered with a "hello." Xu Dayuan breathed a sigh of relief and glanced at the name that was marked.
"Hello, may I speak with Zhuang Chunlan?"
"This is she, who’s this?"
"I am Xu Dayuan from Team One of the Criminal Police Detachment in the Qindao City Bureau. I need to verify something with you and ask that you answer truthfully. Did you undergo surgery at the plastic surgery department of Lu University Hospital on July 22, 2009?"
The other party was clearly taken aback but subconsciously uttered half a sentence.
"I have never had surgery... what did you say the date was? I didn’t hear you clearly just now."
Xu Dayuan repeated his question, and the caller seemed to be doing something, as the noise of a TV news broadcast could suddenly be heard in the background. Then, it vanished altogether, apparently, because she had covered the receiver. It seemed there was someone with her, and this analysis made Xu Dayuan feel as if he had grasped a thread of hope, and his tone of voice changed instantly.
"Hello, Zhuang Chunlan, please answer my question and don’t consult with anyone else. Like I told you before, we’re from the Criminal Police Detachment in the City Bureau. It wouldn’t look good on you if we had to bring you in for an investigation, right?"
Just then, the other party hung up the phone.
This caught Xu Dayuan by surprise, and he stood up gesturing to everyone.
"Mr. Liu, take some people with me. Mr. Zeng, you stay here and keep calling."
Liu Yufei reacted quickly, grabbing her police jacket and rushing out. Before leaving, she even gestured a "yeah" to Mr. Zeng, who realized a moment later that everyone had already left.
He pointed at the door, still unable to comprehend.
"Wait, why am I the one staying behind? Taking Liu Yufei along?"
"The person on the other side is a woman; it’s more convenient to have Mrs. Liu there."
Mr. Zeng blinked, his expression clearly one of disgruntlement – a look Zhou Ning often saw on Mr. Zhao’s face.
"But why still make calls?"
Zhou Ning patted his shoulder and let out a soft sigh.
"We naturally have to verify each call, it’s a process of elimination. We can only conclude this part of the investigation once we’ve confirmed that Zhuang Chunlan knew the victim or was related in some way. Don’t be discouraged, pal."
Mr. Zeng waved his hand, signaling everyone to keep at it. There were quite a few people from out of province, each diligently using Mandarin to verify identities. Zhou Ning stood up and walked to the window.
Half an hour later, Xu Dayuan’s car stopped downstairs. The siren had ceased its blaring, and a man and a woman were led out of the car, uncuffed. Liu Yufei was very discreetly pulling on a woman’s arm.
The woman appeared panicked and looked as if she might burst into tears at any second. The man beside her was furious, yelling about something. Mr. Zeng and the others, hearing the commotion, gathered at the window.
"Wow, two for one?"
Zhou Ning couldn’t help but laugh at his credulous look.
"Don’t say I didn’t warn you; if your boss comes in and sees you gawking while your calls aren’t done, you’ll be the first to get it."
Mr. Zeng shrank his neck as if the roaring Xu Dayuan was right before his eyes and quickly went back to making calls.
As Zhou Ning walked over from the window, Xu Dayuan had already stepped into the office briskly, took a drink of water, and looked around at everyone busily at work. He motioned to Zhou Ning.
"Let’s go, come and listen."
Zhou Ning didn’t waste words; he knew Xu Dayuan’s temperament. Serving as a mascot wasn’t so bad anyway. He followed Xu Dayuan into the interrogation room.
The man and woman were already seated inside the interrogation room. The woman’s jaw was trembling slightly, while the man was holding a phone, seemingly about to make a call.
"Stop scaring me; so what if it’s the criminal police? We haven’t done anything illegal, yet you come up and arrest people. Do you know who I am?"
Liu Yufei was extremely indifferent, slightly shaking her head.
"I don’t know who you are, but you can make a phone call right now and see who in the sports bureau or the city can help you get out of the obligation to assist with a murder investigation," she said.
The man was startled and immediately lost his arrogance, sitting upright in the chair with a complete 180-degree change in attitude.
"They didn’t make things clear on the phone and just came to take people away. Who wouldn’t be suspicious? After all, there are so many scammers these days. Since you need assistance with the investigation, go ahead and ask," he said.
Liu Yufei didn’t linger on this issue, but rather held up the form and pointed to the date of July 22, 2009, and asked:
"On this date, Zhuang Chunlan, did you have surgery at Lu University Hospital?"
Zhuang Chunlan shook her head, not hesitantly, but giving a straightforward answer without any second thoughts.
"No, let me put it this way: I only stayed in the hospital to have a child; I’ve never been hospitalized for any other reason."
"When our team leader called you just now, why didn’t you say this? Why did you cover the phone and seek someone else’s opinion?"
Zhuang Chunlan lowered her head somewhat awkwardly, glancing at the man beside her.
"Previously, he had been reported twice, and we thought... so we were a bit cautious. I thought it might be some reporter wanting inside information or something like that since in Qindao, he’s the only one involved in figure skating."
Liu Yufei said nothing and didn’t nod, but shifted her gaze sideways to the man.
"Why not introduce yourself?" she said.
"My name is Wang Ligang, and I am a coach at the City Sports Bureau, considered to be specially hired staff. I receive a salary, and there are special allowances and rewards when the team wins medals or ranks. I coach three athletes, but for the juniors, there are about twenty children under the age of ten. Besides my wife Zhuang Chunlan who takes care of nutrition, there’s also a fitness coach, an assistant coach, and a team doctor."
"Has Zhuang Chunlan’s ID card ever been lent to someone else, or has someone else been aware of her ID information?"
"Even when buying a car, they used my ID. What exactly do you want to ask?"
Liu Yufei didn’t answer Zhuang Chunlan’s question. Wang Ligang paused, then lifted his head to look at Liu Yufei.
"A lot of people know my wife’s ID information. How should I answer that?" he said.
"Just answer whatever comes to mind," she replied.
"People from the sports bureau, our team, and finance are all aware since the bureau handles our social insurance. They also use her information to distribute bonuses. As for the athletes, when information for a guardian is needed for those who are underage, it’s typically our information that’s filled in," he explained.
Zhuang Chunlan nodded along from the side.
Liu Yufei stared at Wang Ligang, as did Xu Dayuan and Zhou Ning, all without blinking. Wang Ligang’s face remained unchanged, and his gaze steady.
Xu Dayuan typed a string of information on his mobile phone, just about to hit send when Zhou Ning stopped him. Xu Dayuan looked puzzled and turned to Zhou Ning, who was smiling.
"What’s up?" he said.
"Xu Da, listen to Mrs. Liu’s interrogation. She already knows what happened just now. Since you gave her this chance to perform, Mrs. Liu is interrogating with more dedication than anyone, hoping for your approval. Besides, Mrs. Liu is smart, and there might be better findings," Zhou Ning explained.
Xu Dayuan put away his phone, deleted the text he had just written, and turned his attention back to the interrogation room.
Liu Yufei rubbed her nose, crossed her arms, and moved closer to Wang Ligang. Her face stopped just a punch away from Wang Ligang’s.
"Oh, a coach, huh? Then please introduce your three athletes," she said.
Wang Ligang was puzzled, but since he decided to cooperate, he naturally behaved well. He put his hand on the table and began counting off on his fingers:
"One is Xing Xiaoli, twenty-one this year. He practices men’s singles skating and his technique is quite good. Last year at the national championships, he took seventh place, which makes him a key athlete in training.
The other two are girls, one named Wang Ying, a relative’s child and a local from Qindao. She’s very talented, though not yet fourteen, prepping to compete in the Winter Olympics in four years – a very promising young athlete.
The other girl is named Tan Ran, twenty years old. She and Xing Xiaoli used to skate pairs, but Xing Xiaoli didn’t grow in height or weight, so he couldn’t lift Tan Ran anymore. As a result, the partnership was dissolved, and she began to practice women’s singles skating on her own."
Upon hearing these two names, Zhou Ning clenched his fists tightly. Xing Xiaoli and Tan Ran combined formed the initials XTR.
"Xu Da, the names of these two people combined match the tattoo on the deceased’s leg," Zhou Ning said.
Xu Dayuan nodded his head, equally excited, and quickly composed another message, sending it to Liu Yufei.
After glancing at her mobile phone, Liu Yufei did not show much expression.
"Qindao doesn’t have the rich resources like the northeast for figure skating training. When did you come to the Qindao Sports Bureau? When were these athletes found?" she asked.
Wang Ligang let out a sigh.
"I was originally a fitness coach for the Liaodong Provincial Team, but I had disagreements with the supervising coach and was marginalized. Therefore, in 2006, I accepted an invitation from Qindao Sports Bureau. Xing Xiaoli and Tan Ran were athletes I brought over from the provincial team. They were about the same age as Wang Ying back then, fourteen or fifteen. They’ve been here for five or six years in the blink of an eye."
"Oh? What about your athletes? Are they on vacation?" she asked.
