Chapter 414: Chapter 391 Shampoo Girl_1
November 7, 2012
Before seven o’clock, Zhou Ning and his team had already arrived at the Criminal Police Brigade. After last night’s little barbecue session, the interns and the new Mr. Wang were less anxious and eager to gain some real-world experience today.
Mr. Huang’s eyes were somewhat bloodshot, but he was in very good spirits. He walked towards Zhou Ning and his team together with Doctor Cao, with a smile on his face.
"You guys are quite early, but wait a moment, the search warrant will be retrieved soon."
Zhou Ning knew that the timing was not up to them, since they needed the cooperation of other departments.
"No rush, has Zhang Hongwei been brought back?"
Mr. Huang nodded.
"Zhang Hongwei has been found. His flight is at eight o’clock, flying directly to Qindao. Everything has been arranged at the airport, and people have been dispatched to pick him up. We estimate he’ll reach us by one o’clock in the afternoon.
As for Fu Chunyu’s old home in Huining, thanks to the people you helped contact last night, they’ve already gone to verify. We’ll wait for their phone call. As for Fu Chunyu’s cellphone, I had someone pull the call records. The last call was made at noon on October 20th.
The number was a landline, which we called and asked about. It turned out to be the number for the maternity department of the Third Hospital. Seems like our previous analysis wasn’t bad, Fu Chunyu was probably contacting them about giving birth. Sadly, no one at the Third Hospital remembers the call from Fu Chunyu, after all, they get too many inquiries."
This briefing was quite detailed, almost like a work report. Zhou Ning felt a bit embarrassed. He didn’t need to tell him so much, but Huang Youdao was sincere enough and treated them with the same regard they would an expert. Zhou Ning hurriedly replied:
"Mr. Huang, there’s no need for such a detailed introduction, you’re making me blush. We’ll follow your arrangements for the next step. Whether we go to Yang Liang’s home or Fu Chunyu’s, we’ll follow your command. By the way, any news from Yang Liang’s side?"
Mr. Huang shook his head and rubbed his short hair with his hand.
"The surveillance team reports that Yang Liang is business as usual. He went to the greenhouse at four in the morning to collect vegetables, loaded up a truck, and has now gone to Anjia Village in the eastern part of the city. There’s a market there on the second, fourth, sixth, and eighth days. Oh right, he also caught a few chickens."
Liu Yongxin, upon hearing this, interjected:
"Agricultural tricycle?"
Mr. Huang nodded. He understood what Liu Yongxin meant, especially since traces of oil and tire marks were found on Menqiao Village bridge.
"Right, it’s a diesel-fueled agricultural tricycle. In the villages surrounding the urban area, almost every household has one, as they are a tool of production. Director Zhou, the bloodstains you collected on Menqiao Village bridge last night, has the test report come out?"
Zhou Ning took out his phone to show Huang Youdao the test report from his email.
"We came over early this morning because we received this test report. The dilute bloodstain sample collected from Menqiao Village bridge is indeed the blood of the victim from the October 27th dismemberment case. As for the oil droplets, we found a lot of metal scraps, and it’s confirmed to be diesel. If we find the suspect vehicle, we can compare, as the oil residue differs slightly from vehicle to vehicle."
Huang Youdao’s eyes lit up upon hearing this, as finally, after so many days, they had found some clues, and if the victim’s identity was confirmed, the case wouldn’t be far from being solved.
Mr. Zhao came over, glanced at the two photographs in Huang Youdao’s hand, one of Zhang Hongwei and the other of Yang Liang. Both men were on the thin side, not very tall, around 170 centimeters.
That height was normal for an older man, but for a younger man, particularly in Ludong, it would be somewhat difficult to find a partner, especially Zhang Hongwei who looked nearly malnourished and unhealthy, whereas Yang Liang had a bit of a hunchback.
"Wow, these two indeed fit the profile we deduced yesterday, not very tall and thin in stature. But, they seem to have a fair amount of strength in their hands."
Before anyone could speak, a thin, tall detective hurried over with several search warrants in hand.
Huang Youdao chuckled, patted the detective on the shoulder, and waved his hand saying:
"Not bad, that was quick. Da Wang’er, stop dawdling and quickly gather the team, we’re setting off right now."
Da Wang’er blinked.
"Mr. Huang, where are we headed first? The manpower has all been assigned already, there’s not much left."
Huang Youdao, in high spirits, wasn’t concerned about this.
"No need to leave anyone behind, take as many as we have. Let’s all go with me first to Fu Chunyu’s house. Call Wu Chunming and have him tighten surveillance on Yang Liang and his old house. We’ll visit that place later. As for Zhang Hongwei’s home, didn’t we find the address? Send a few people to stake out the area."
This arrangement was very thorough, and Zhou Ning and his team also turned and followed Huang Youdao downstairs. Amidst the clatter of numerous footsteps, quite a few people followed them down, some in plain clothes, some in uniform, everyone sporting an excited expression.
It was clear that this case had been a tough challenge for them.
At Huang Youdao’s command, everyone got into their vehicles. With the sirens wailing, they sped off towards the textile district, and before long, they arrived under building number seven. The presence of so many police at this early hour, just after seven o’clock, attracted many onlookers as people were just getting up to go to work; heads poked out of windows.
Upon stepping out of the car, Mr. Huang gestured, and the division of labor was clear. The entrance to the second unit of the building was cordoned off with police tape, and some elderly men and women began to gather around, whispering to each other or continuously inquiring.
A woman came out of the unit, the same lady they had seen in apartment 302 yesterday. Huang Youdao promptly nodded to her.
"Good morning, sister!"
The woman nodded slightly, scanning the crowd. Seeing that many people were watching her, she was actually quite proud and greeted them warmly, adjusting her collar and smiling.
"You’ve come!"
"Yes, we’re going up to take a look. I’ll make sure to let everyone know not to disturb your normal life."
"It’s fine, go ahead with your work, and come over to my house for some water when you’re finished!"
Without saying more, Mr. Huang led his team upstairs. The woman, having thrown away the trash, was immediately surrounded by a crowd of curious old men and women.
"Why are the police here at the young wife’s?"
The woman shook her head.
"I don’t know. They came yesterday to ask about the situation across from my door. I don’t really understand what’s going on. Can you all please not crowd around? Otherwise, the police might have to question you too!"
The old lady waved her hand dismissively, far from afraid, and even appeared excited.
"I’m just an old woman; I’m not scared. I have no idea why there are so many police officers here."
A young woman holding a child approached and whispered intelligently:
"What could it be? Our Dayao City’s economy is average, nothing major usually happens. Just a few days ago, someone died in the moat. Could it be that the deceased was from our community?"
This statement caused everyone to gasp and look at each other. They wanted to keep the conversation going with the woman, but she had already finished tossing the garbage and returned to the front of her building without getting involved in their gossip.
The police officers didn’t stop her. She went straight upstairs to her home without a second glance or pause, a display of awareness that Mr. Huang admired.
"That sister’s got class."
Liu Yongxin commented nearby:
"We visited her last night, and her husband was home. He’s on the road driving trucks every day, seems like someone who can read the room. Seeing us conduct such a thorough investigation, he must’ve instructed his wife clearly: don’t get involved, don’t comment unnecessarily, and cooperate well."
Mr. Huang smiled and nodded in agreement. At this moment, the door that the locksmith had been working on was finally opened.
Zhou Ning and his colleagues did not rush in because Mr. Huang’s phone rang. He saw it was a landline call from Huining and quickly answered it on speakerphone.
"Hello, this is Huang Youdao."
"Hello Mr. Huang, this is Zou Ming from the Huining Province Lifu City Criminal Police Brigade. We’ve contacted the parents and brother of Fu Chunyu. They totally have no knowledge about her situation, not even aware that she was pregnant.
She got married in Dayao City, and no one from her hometown attended because Fu Chunyu originally worked as a shampoo girl. After funding her brother’s wedding and house purchase, she had been out of contact since the year before last.
Her brother went to Ludong several times to search for her but failed to contact her directly. They kept asking if her sister had been a victim, and whether there were any properties that needed to be dealt with at home.
I didn’t take the bait, but we took blood samples from her parents and brother and also investigated their whereabouts. From October 1st to the present, none of them have left the province. The only vehicle in the family is a tricycle, making the possibility of them committing the crime very low."
"Alright, I really don’t know how to thank you. Helping us to rule them out is already a great favor. As for the property issue, let’s talk about that after the investigation of this case is complete. I’ll contact you. But this family, I guess, has been leeching off Fu Chunyu all along. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have gone years without contact, especially considering that Fu Chunyu herself isn’t very old."
"Indeed, this kind of situation is common here. After all, in this area, each family has many kids, with most girls dropping out of school early to work and support their brothers’ education and marriages. Although the practice of marriage exchanges has lessened over the years, the dowries are still substantial, all to benefit the other children in the family. These bad customs aren’t something we can change just by talking about them."
"Anyway, thanks a lot. I’ll call you later. Fu Chunyu owns property, but there’s some issue with how it was acquired. I’ll give you a call once it’s resolved. We’ll have a drink together sometime. I won’t bother with empty thanks now!"
The person on the other end of the line laughed. They all worked in the same field, where everyone was straightforward by nature.
"What’s there to thank for? If you want to offer a meal or a drink, just invite Director Zhou. I won’t disturb you further with your busy work. Just let me know if you need anything."
After hanging up, Mr. Huang shook his head in contemplation.
"What kind of situation is this? Gender discrimination exists here too, but such backward thinking is much less common now. Director Zhou, let’s not go inside yet. You guys take a look at the scene first."
Zhou Ning nodded without responding to Mr. Huang’s remark. Every place had its share of odd characters; it wasn’t because of a specific province. After all, having worked on so many cases, he had encountered many strange things.
"Mr. Zhao, take Da Wang’er inside to have a look. Zou Jialong and Pang Tianhang, wait outside for a while to secure the investigation route. You can come in with me afterward."
Mr. Zhao and Mr. Wang, fully equipped, approached carrying their investigation kits and entered the room. Below on the second floor landing, Da Wang’er, a subordinate of Mr. Huang, removed the barrier and hurried upstairs.
He grinned at Zhou Ning and nodded, asking:
"Director Zhou, what do you need me for? I couldn’t hear clearly from a distance."
Zhou Ning was taken aback, and Mr. Huang kicked out without a moment’s hesitation. Da Wang’er, whose mind was entirely on Zhou Ning, didn’t expect it and took the kick squarely, looking at Mr. Huang with a sense of grievance.
"Why are you hitting me, boss?"
"Stand aside, will you? Does Director Zhou recognize you? Everyone quiet down and don’t disturb their investigation of the scene."
With just one sentence, his authority was firmly established. Zhou Ning didn’t say a word and leaned at the doorway, peering inside.
The room inside was very tidy. Right next to the shoe cabinet by the entrance, there was an organizing box. Seeing this box, Zhou Ning sighed; this place wasn’t the primary crime scene. Everything was too neatly arranged, making it clear that this was indeed the real maternity package.
But on October 20th in the afternoon, what exactly did Fu Chunyu go out to do?
