Chapter 216: Netted

Jiang Fan grinned widely: “Xiao Hai! Look again—this is the man, right?”

Xiao Hai seemed to take his words as doubt about his memory; he tilted his head and frowned: “It’s exactly like this, but—”

Seeing Xiao Hai’s expression, Jiang Fan tensed: “But what?”

Xiao Hai rubbed his head: “Hmm, the face matches, but that man’s eyes and brows had a look of urgency—like he was desperate to get somewhere!”

Xiao Hai gestured earnestly; Jiang Fan looked baffled. Then the sketch artist spoke: “Urgent?” He took the drawing and swiftly revised it—*swish, swish, swish*—and soon the man in the portrait looked the same, but his brow now carried a sense of craving.

Xiao Hai immediately cried out: “Yes! That’s it!”

Jiang Fan glanced at him and asked casually: “He just bought a pack of cigarettes here, and you noticed the expression in his brows? You’re observant!”

A flicker of unease passed through Xiao Hai’s eyes, gone in an instant, too quick to catch. He spoke slowly: “I’m bored here all day, so I got used to studying how people behave when they buy things. Maybe it’s just habit. Plus, that man kept calling my grandma—I naturally paid more attention to him.”

Jiang Fan didn’t notice Xiao Hai’s change; hearing his answer, he gave a thumbs-up: “Good! Xiao Hai, you’re really sharp. Study hard—you’ll make a great detective someday, if you become a cop! Hah!”

Xiao Hai looked at Jiang Fan’s laughing face and said oddly: “Cop? Could I ever be one?”

Jiang Fan, thrilled the suspect’s sketch was done, hadn’t been paying attention to Xiao Hai and missed these details. But the sketch artist glanced at Xiao Hai and looked thoughtful.

The two finished their task, gave Xiao Hai a few more instructions, and hurried back to the bureau.

Other teams were also investigating separately. Compared to Jiang Fan’s smooth progress, Gao Ye was headachingly stuck. He went to Taogu County Public Security Bureau with the identity info from the mobile company, only to find the name “Mei Ling” belonged to a death row inmate whose ID had long been canceled. Gao Ye was stunned—had the suspect stolen this identity to open the phone account?

Just as he thought this trip was wasted, his phone rang. He quickly checked—it was Captain Gu Changzheng. He answered immediately. Gu Changzheng had anticipated resistance in verifying the suspect’s identity and told him the sketch was ready, asking where he was and if he could receive a fax.

Lucky—he was right at Taogu County Public Security Bureau. Gu Changzheng sent the sketch. Before Gao Ye could speak, the household registration officer pointed at it: “Hey, comrade—isn’t this the boyfriend of the Qiao family’s daughter? What’s his name again? Chen Junyang?”

Gao Ye grabbed his arm excitedly: “You know him? Are you sure?”

The officer, startled by his intensity, stared at the faxed sketch again, then said: “Yes! Very similar! It’s him. He’s a big shot in our county—I won’t mistake him. But the sketch looks odd… like he’s in a rush.”

“Really?” Gao Ye studied the sketch closely. In Zizhen dialect, “in a rush” didn’t mean ordinary haste—it implied strong, urgent sexual desire. That’s why he asked. But realizing this might be the man who met Lou Zhen secretly, he understood: the sketch artist was incredible—he’d captured the man’s exact expression.

With the sketch’s identity confirmed, Gao Ye immediately asked Taogu County police for details on Chen Junyang. The Qiao family, as the officer said, was the county’s richest—multiple businesses, including a glue factory that was a local star enterprise. Chen Junyang was an outsider, but brilliant, highly intelligent, and his major matched the factory’s needs. He rose from technician to core R&D staff.

Somehow, he’d started dating Qiao Li, the Qiao family’s only heir. Rumors now spread that Chairman Qiao Lao was considering promoting Chen Junyang to general manager of the glue factory. Their engagement was also rumored—Chen Junyang was about to rise to the top.

Gao Ye, now knowing all this, grew more confused: How could a man with such a bright future get tangled up with Lou Zhen?

After confirming the glue factory’s location, he rushed there—only to be told Chen had traveled to Zizhen yesterday and hadn’t returned to work yet.

Gao Ye had hoped to meet Chen Junyang today, but it was clearly impossible. Reluctantly, he decided to fully brief Gu Changzheng on his findings. But as he dialed, he had no idea Gu Changzheng was busy right then—applying for Chen Junyang’s detention warrant.

The case took a sudden, unexpected turn. Liu Han’s team, after hours of painstakingly reviewing countless surveillance videos, finally struck gold: they found a video of a man matching the sketch almost exactly. To be certain, they brought Xiao Hai back for another identification. As expected, Xiao Hai pointed without hesitation: that was the man from the sketch. This breakthrough was critical.

Next, investigators dug deeper into hotel check-in records and discovered a guest registered under “Mei Ling” on the seventh floor. When they saw the ID photo, everyone’s eyes lit up: though only five or six percent similar to Chen Junyang’s sketch, the differences were subtle—hard to spot without close comparison.

At that moment, Gao Ye relayed his findings from Taogu County to the task force. All clues and evidence converged. After comprehensive analysis, the team reached a unanimous conclusion: the mysterious man who met Lou Zhen that night was unquestionably Chen Junyang. Given his suspected involvement in her murder, Gu Changzheng decisively applied to higher authorities for his immediate detention.

The case was about to break. Gu Changzheng gazed ahead, full of hope.