Chapter 391: Chapter 373 The Taste on the Phone Watch_1
Along the way, Sun Gaotie gripped the back of his head—Yang Xuetong had hit him with full force.
This guy really deserved a beating, and none of them consoled Liu Yufei anymore on the road. After all, talking too much was useless, and the more they tried to console her, the less likely she was to think positively.
The motorcade roared into Yingtaogou Village; this place was not far from the last Xi Anzi Village, both belonging to the same jurisdiction. This area was a typical hilly region, connected to the Tongshan Scenic Area, without any particularly tall mountains.
These not-so-tall hills, although they were in the mountainous areas where irrigation was difficult, the Qindao Area was foggy and rainy with suitable temperatures, hence the fruits planted here were high in sugar content and tasted good, especially in this region where every household had cherry, plum, apricot, peach, and pear trees.
It was probably seeing the neighbors make money that Liu Yufei’s cousin also came back to engage in planting. However, this was hard-earned money, toiling day and night in the mountains, especially when the fruits ripened; then one had to guard them diligently as villains could appear at any time.
The car unswervingly arrived at a small village, which was actually just a road leading up the mountain. Along both sides of the road, there were many stone houses with no two touching each other.
Liu Yufei quickly moved to the front of the crowd, followed by Zhou Ning and others, while Mr. Zhao directly stopped Sun Gaotie.
"Gao Tie, don’t worry. You needn’t feel guilty. It’s good for you to change your habit of wearing headphones and not listening to case discussions on the road. You blurt out whatever is on your mind, and who can bear that, right? It’s only because Mrs. Fei isn’t in the mind to deal with you, otherwise, a broken rib would have been the least of your worries."
Sun Gaotie nodded like smashing garlic, non-stop agreeing with Mr. Zhao.
At this moment, he felt very apologetic and was just about to speak when Mr. Zhao covered his mouth.
"Don’t go apologizing to Liu Yufei now. Finding the child is the most important thing. Later, just do more and talk less. Take samples when asked, do whatever you’re told to do, don’t make statements, and respond promptly—that would be faultless. Got it?"
Sun Gaotie quickly nodded, and Mr. Zhao finally let go of him, rubbing his clothes and then making way for the canine team who came with two German Shepherds, as they had previously found the remains of a skating team member, and the dogs had played a major role.
Entering the courtyard, they saw Tao Da—now to be addressed as Director Tao. Liu Yufei had probably already called him, and without much small talk, Tao Zhenshan briefed the situation on the scene.
"I questioned Zhu Weihua alone. This person is definitely hiding something. His answers came too readily, but from his expression and gestures, I feel he’s concealing something. However, finding the person is the top priority right now. I’ve already sent the old lady to get unwashed clothes of the child. Are the canine team members here?"
Liu Yufei pointed backward, and the team leader of the canine squad hurried over to greet him.
After mutual nods, Tao Zhenshan promptly instructed:
"The missing is Liu Da’s nephew. We must treat this as our own family matter. The missing child’s clothes are ready, and photos are printed for distribution. We will head to the mountains to search immediately. Mr. Zeng, you lead a team, and Yufei, you lead a team. No problem, right?"
"No problem!"
Liu Yufei glanced at Zhou Ning, the meaning was clear—she hoped Zhou Ning would have Mr. Qu help check the surveillance. However, Tao Zhenshan could command like this, suggesting there must be a reason, perhaps a clue.
"Don’t worry, Mrs. Fei. I’ve asked Mr. Qu to help with the surveillance. Mr. Zhao and Mr. Yang will each follow a team. You go ahead!"
Feeling reassured, Liu Yufei nodded, and the two teams swiftly headed towards the mountain. At the forefront of each team were the handlers with canines leading the way, each holding a metal can containing the child’s clothes.
After all, everyone was experienced; the scent needed to be preserved and not contaminated. As the two teams moved into the distance, the courtyard became emptier. An old woman, clutching her chest, sat in front of the house door, gasping for breath as snot and tears streamed down, her complexion pale.
Seeing her state of urgency and continuously trembling hands, it wasn’t difficult to guess that she was Liu Yufei’s aunt.
With her only child missing suddenly, she was overwhelmed with self-blame, worry, and panic; she also had high blood pressure.
Zhou Ning gestured with his hand signaling Zhu Xingxing to come over. Zhu Xingxing immediately stepped forward to help the old woman measure her blood pressure, while Zhou Ning walked over to Tao Zhenshan and offered him a cigarette.
"Director Tao, were there bloodstains in their house, or any other findings?"
Tao Zhenshan shook his head.
"No bloodstains, no signs of struggle or resistance. The child is only eight years old, in the second grade. But what puzzles me is, how could a child go out by himself after eight o’clock at night?
Their courtyard wall isn’t high, roughly one meter sixty. There were no ladders or stools against the wall; the gate was even locked from the inside. I had people check the four functioning village surveillance cameras, but they didn’t find anything. I feel Zhu Weihua’s attitude is odd—not worried, but somewhat panicky."
Zhou Ning knew this was an old detective’s intuition, which was often very accurate. It wasn’t about being biased; experience had taught them about the malevolence of human hearts.
"Don’t worry, Director Tao. I’ve asked Mr. Qu to check the surrounding surveillance. Please tell Mr. Qu about the child’s photo and the style and color of the clothes he was wearing."
Tao Zhenshan nodded, called for an investigator, and they began to search the surveillance footage in the courtyard. They had already checked the village’s cameras, so they decided to reverse their approach and examine the cameras outside the village and on other surrounding roads.
