Chapter 691: Chapter 655: Guessing the Identity_1
Zhou Ning also took a deep breath. He knew Xu Dayuan wouldn’t turn against him, since their job at the moment was to make these people slip up; otherwise, it would be hard to eliminate the problem thoroughly. After all, the most effective way to eradicate an abscess is to force it to surface all at once. Digging deep is the only way to remove the rot and promote healthy tissue growth.
He glanced at Mr. Zhao and gave him a look, holding his phone behind his back with the name Qu Heping written on it. Mr. Zhao didn’t linger and hurried inside to find Mr. Qu and report all the evidence, after all, Mr. Hu and his team were waiting for just that piece of news.
Huang Yubin and Xing Shusheng opposite them couldn’t understand why Xu Dayuan had stopped smiling, but before they could react, Xu Dayuan spoke directly.
"I picked up something on the way. Bai Qishan can’t get away. The special case team meeting starts at eight, followed by the hearing. We need to eat something first. Would you two like to join us?"
Huang Yubin turned to Xing Shusheng, and seeing that Xing Shusheng shook his head, Huang Yubin also smiled as he gestured with his hands.
"You go ahead. I’m truly exhausted these days. I’ll take Director Xing and the others to the conference room to prepare for the meeting. We’ll see you in a while."
Xu Dayuan nodded, about to turn away, when he addressed Huang Yubin,
"By the way, Mr. Huang, considering that you are the deputy team leader of the special case group, I wanted to ask about the three areas you’re in charge of. How are things going? Have you found the purchase route for mercury? Have you discovered the origin of the missing people in the Tianshan area? Have the details of the Yagelangha been clarified?"
Huang Yubin was taken aback.
"This... this... this..."
He opened his mouth, but struggled to say a second word.
Xu Dayuan knew he wouldn’t be able to summarize. The reason the special case team was formed was to investigate what Zhou Ning and his team found in that hole, especially the eight children who were murdered twenty years ago. That was the initial purpose for establishing the special case group.
As for the treasure in the coffin and the pile of things later discovered, and linking them to Zhou Xiangrong’s murder and the loss of Ganzhou City Public Security Bureau’s files, and the spy activities involving many people in Ganzhou City, all these emerged because of that source.
Moreover, Xu Dayuan had been reporting to the leadership of both provinces consistently. Although the case involved many issues of national security, it was deeply entangled with Longyou Province, making it difficult to determine how many people were involved. After all, according to their deductions, Zhou Xiangrong’s superiors had already defected back then.
Thus, the investigation of this case had been slow to hand over. In just six days, the nature of the case had changed constantly, and materials reported to both provinces were continuously updated, causing a delay in the ministries’ response.
But that delay was not the same as not reporting. Xu Dayuan had just informed Mr. Hu of the discovery that Qindao was deeply involved. Their initial assistance in the investigation could now actively control the progress because it involved the city-destroying plan and full-scale poisoning. If implemented, the casualties among the ordinary citizens would be incalculable.
Xing Shusheng looked at Xu Dayuan and directly laughed.
"Director Xu, don’t embarrass Mr. Huang. If he had your ability, he wouldn’t have asked for your help in the first place."
Huang Yubin appeared somewhat embarrassed.
"We did conduct investigations, but it’s hard to verify a lot of the information due to how long ago it happened. Take mercury, for instance; back then, there was no need for the kinds of registrations and various certifications needed now for sales. There were many illegal workshops, especially around Mingjia Mountain of Hui County.
Illegal mining was rampant at that time, and I believe the materials came from these people. After all, according to our calculations, their mercury usage was only a few hundred kilograms, and getting ten or so tons from here was not a problem.
Regarding the missing people, we found some records. The missing person cases that were reported to the provincial office back then, Ganzhou had assisted with a few of them, all pointing towards a few private mental hospitals in the Tianshan area and orphanages. However, this is still being investigated.
As for Yagelangha, we didn’t get much information, only finding relevant records from various tourism bureaus. It seems to be a temple fair with ethnic characteristics. Of course, we don’t rule out that someone might exploit the fair to carry out other activities. Mainly because the investigation on this side was heating up, I was anxious to come back and help."
Xu Dayuan smiled again, noticing Mr. Zhao gesturing towards him with two fingers from the restaurant’s entrance. He nodded and said,
"Indeed, we’re too busy here. If you hadn’t come back today, I would have had to call to hurry you. After all, many of our investigative findings have completely exceeded our control, and inter-departmental cooperation is needed for the investigation. Why don’t you go to the conference room first? We’ll be up in about ten minutes after we finish eating."
This change from Xu Dayuan caught the two off guard, but they quickly nodded and headed towards the upstairs conference room without further ado.
Arriving at the canteen, the group found a corner and quickly ate breakfast. They all had an understanding, not discussing too much, since Mr. Qu had already set up a group and had introduced the information that was just reported in detail, with screenshots included.
Then, Mr. Hu was summarily dragged into the group. Mr. Hu entered and posted several question marks. Xu Dayuan couldn’t help but laugh and gave Mr. Qu a thumbs up.
"You’re ruthless, kid!"
He typed a message on the screen.
"Mr. Hu, after we collected evidence from Zhou Xiaozhou’s house this morning, we noticed changes among the police guards from the Ganzhou City Bureau. They’re not the same people we arranged yesterday. Xing Shusheng and Huang Yubin were both there, and Huang Yubin’s reaction was completely different from our previous visits to Ganzhou. I don’t know if it has anything to do with our investigation.
Also, you mentioned personnel from the special investigation group within the department: what time will they arrive? If they come, we will step back, as the interrogation of Bai Qishan hasn’t yielded any results. Moreover, the nature of the case has completely changed, requiring internal investigation by the National Security Department.
We can’t find out who was Zhou Xiangrong’s superior back then, as well as the real identity of An Liwei and the whereabouts of An Lishuai. As for the ’Hyena’, Bai Qishan’s boss, and the killer, I suspect they are in Ganzhou, perhaps even within the Ganzhou City Bureau. They are also the ones who should be apprehending these individuals."
Mr. Hu: "After I received your call, I’ve already reported it. The information I got is that both departments have established a special investigation group, and they are en route, estimated to arrive in two hours. We have coordinated actions here as well, but I can’t disclose the specific plans. You all need to be safe and watch out for desperate acts."
After reading the information, everyone put away their phones. Xu Dayuan and the others headed outside first. Zhou Ning tidied up the trash on the table. Mr. Qu, who was closer, quickly handed him the trash bin. As they were cleaning up, Zhou Ning bowed his head.
"Mr. Qu, let’s set up one of those signal jamming devices here. I remember you made one before. We should be able to activate it with a single button if needed, especially now that there are too many people here and all the key witnesses and evidence are present, just in case..."
"Director Zhou, I get it. I’ve placed several control terminals in the main building and the annex building, even in the cafeteria and those dilapidated warehouses. If anything happens, I can cut off signals in a second."
Zhou Ning nodded, feeling slightly less worried.
The interrogation results from Qindao, Mr. Hu only mentioned in the car to Xu Dayuan. If the two men didn’t confess anything, they couldn’t have talked for so long and so much, with Xu Dayuan constantly affirming, he certainly didn’t want the conversation content to be leaked. But what exactly did they find out?
Zhou Ning was very curious, especially thinking of the man with narrow eyes, a hooked nose, thin lips, and a face full of pockmarks, between 182-184 cm tall, weighing around 110 kg. This sense of familiarity was puzzling to him.
As these thoughts occupied his mind, he was already following Xu Dayuan into the main building’s north entrance. Ahead, two young men were pulling each other along, quickly greeting Zhou Ning and his group as they passed by.
"Boss, have you had lunch? What tasks do we have next?"
Zhou Ning waved his hand.
"All the work that needed to be done here is finished. We’re waiting for Mrs. Cui’s report. Also, were the samples collected yesterday sent off to the provincial capital and Qindao?"
Zou Jialong and Pang Tianhang nodded. Pang Tianhang spoke first.
"I checked the courier company I contacted. This morning, I saw the courier information; both packages have been dispatched. One will arrive this morning, and the other will probably reach Qindao in the afternoon."
Zhou Ning hmmed in response.
"Follow me upstairs. We’ll all listen to the special case meeting."
The two men quickened their pace up the stairs, but Zhou Ning’s steps slowed. From the back, both Zou Jialong and Pang Tianhang were tall and slim. They were of similar age and often together, making their silhouettes from behind and side views appear more alike.
He quickly pulled out his tablet, which had the surveillance footage screenshots taken by Mr. Qu yesterday, as well as the arrest photos Xu Dayuan received last night. Seeing Zhou Ning’s actions, Mr. Zhao came from behind and covered the screen of Zhou Ning’s phone with his hand.
"Don’t look at it here, let’s go over there."
After speaking, he pulled Zhou Ning around the corner on the second floor and directly into the observation room. Fang Mu saw this from behind and quickly caught up with Xu Dayuan, whispering something to him. Xu Dayuan instructed Fang Mu to lead their men in to meet with Liu Yufei and said they would start the meeting once he arrived.
Xu Dayuan quickly entered the room where Zhou Ning was. Zhou Ning was in the midst of comparing when Xu Dayuan arrived. Zhou Ning lifted the tablet to show him.
"This is Zhu Xingmin we caught yesterday, and this is the food delivery driver from last night. These two look extremely similar, both around 182-184 cm tall, with slim builds, narrow eyes, high cheekbones, hooked noses, thin lips, and pockmarked faces. The only difference might be their limps.
According to our analysis, the person who tried to assassinate me had a leg problem and was left-handed, matching the food delivery driver in the footage. In my memory, these two images are very close to the appearance of Huangmao.
The only difference is that Huangmao was skinnier and I didn’t see if his leg had a limp because when he barged into the room, he was behind Wang Guanli. He fell once during the intrusion and kept stooping to pull at Wang Guanli while escaping."
Mr. Zhao’s eyes widened with understanding, despite Zhou Ning speaking hurriedly and chaotically.
"Are you saying that this killer is related to the now captured Zhu Xingmin, likely brothers, and that Huangmao, who broke into your house years ago, might be this killer?"
