[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-chasing-the-criminal-case":3,"chapter-chasing-the-criminal-case-chasing-the-criminal-case-chapter-242":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Chasing the Criminal Case",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2329010,4554,"Chapter 242","chasing-the-criminal-case-chapter-242",242,"\u003Cp>“Orphan? Zhou Hui?!” Gu Changzheng gasped in shock! This can’t be a coincidence!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On Fang Yuan’s file, under family relations, the adoptive parent was listed as: Zhou Hui.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is the killer really this Fang Yuan?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s not hard to verify—based on the saliva residue left on the cigarette butts found at the crime scene and a DNA match with Fang Yuan, we can confirm whether he’s the murderer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Gu Changzheng was curious about his motive—and whether his relationship with Zhang Shaodong and Zhou Hui concealed some enormous secret.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>———\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Hui’s autopsy report was out: she died approximately half a month ago, killed by having her abdomen slit open and her internal organs torn out...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng calculated the timeline: the last time he saw Zhou Hui was the day Luo Fei was attacked at the Angel Orphanage. So the bloodstains on the rocking chair that day were indeed hers—but who took her body away? Could the “hoodie” that appeared that day be Fang Yuan?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng felt there must have been at least two “hoodies” at the scene—but then how to explain why only one person’s traces were detected?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After thinking for a while, he decided to first confirm whether the cigarette butts found at the crime scenes belonged to Fang Yuan, then find a way to break him open—every mystery would naturally unravel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The DNA comparison results were in: the saliva on the cigarette butts indeed belonged to Fang Yuan. Gu Changzheng returned to the interrogation room and laid the evidence before him. Fang Yuan glanced at it, then curled his lips into a faint, cold sneer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re finally willing to talk?” Gu Changzheng asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You really think it’s this simple to uncover the truth?” Fang Yuan spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No matter how complex it is, we’ll get to the bottom of it. Why did you kill those girls and Zhou Hui? She adopted you! And what does Zhang Shaodong have to do with this?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Yuan’s gaze turned icy and cruel: “Because they deserved to die. That so-called orphanage? Zhou Hui was the most hypocritical demon on this earth. I was just cleaning up trash.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng froze slightly! Why did Fang Yuan harbor such hatred toward Zhou Hui? Had he been raised in the orphanage too? After all, there was no record of Fang Yuan in the orphanage’s files!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“As for Xiao Dong—he was a victim, a pitiful soul destroyed by that orphanage, by that demon wearing a mask of virtue!” Fang Yuan spat with venom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng frowned. The situation matched his earlier deduction: Fang Yuan and Zhang Shaodong were likely accomplices.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Zhou Hui adopted you—she gave you life! Why do you hate her so much?” Gu Changzheng asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Yuan slowly lifted his head, his eyes cold and ruthless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He let out a cold chuckle: “Yes! Everyone says she gave me a second life, raised me, sent me to university, gave me a coveted job... as if any disrespect toward her were unforgivable treason! But you all only see the surface! Who knows what monstrous cruelty hid behind that gentle face!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hahahaha!” Fang Yuan threw his head back, his posture straightening. After a few bitter laughs, he said: “I killed them all. I was simply ridding this world of trash. Whatever you want to know—I’ll tell you today!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng stared at Fang Yuan with an odd gaze. Fang Yuan’s sudden shift in demeanor made him suspicious—suspicion rooted in his belief that there was more than one “hoodie.” Still, he wanted to hear Fang Yuan’s confession. For him, lies didn’t matter—the more he spoke, the more chances he’d slip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Fine! I’ll accept that you thought Zhou Hui was a hypocritical monster. But what about Xia Fei, Su Yuqing, Chen Mengyao, Fang Sheng, Yang Xiaoli, Xiao Hualing? What did they do wrong? Tell me! How insane are you? Can you even sleep at night?” Gu Changzheng listed the names of the girls murdered in the past month, his voice rising in fury.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Gu Changzheng shouted out the girls’ names, Fang Yuan’s expression twisted uncontrollably—shifting from cold malice to distortion, revulsion, cruelty, excitement, fear... even a hint of lewdness. These varied emotions flickered across his eyes, his face, his entire body in shifting postures.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, his body began trembling uncontrollably. He clenched his teeth so hard his jaw muscles spasmed. Suddenly, he let out a low “hehehe”—initially suppressed and hoarse—but as his shoulders shook, the laughter burst free, shrill and arrogant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng watched coldly as Fang Yuan’s face reddened and contorted, his eyes blazing crimson. After a while, Fang Yuan’s laughter faded into silence. Gu Changzheng spoke slowly: “Enough. Tell me—why did you kill these girls?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fang Yuan leaned his mouth toward his left hand, bound to the interrogation chair, and wiped away the saliva at his lips: “Good. You’re different.” He challenged Gu Changzheng with a smirk: “But I don’t think you found me by your own strength. Maybe you should thank your injured subordinate—he’s the one who led you to me!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng smiled faintly, stroking his salt-and-pepper stubble: “Maybe. But the result is the same—you’re here. So tell me everything you’ve done. Otherwise, who’s to say your so-called evils even exist?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hah!” Fang Yuan’s mouth gaped wide enough to swallow a pear. “I’m not falling for your provocation! But I do have a need to perform—yeah, not speaking would make me miserable!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng suppressed the urge to storm forward and beat him senseless, his voice calm: “Begin.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Jiejiejieje!” The demon inside Fang Yuan had fully unleashed: “So satisfying! I’ve found the same thrill here as when I slit open those bitches’ bellies! Those women! Oh right—the first two, what were their names? I forgot. I picked them at random—pedestrians. But honestly, they didn’t compare to the later ones.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Ye, the officer taking notes, was on the verge of snapping. Hearing this, he slammed his pen onto the table, scowled, and glared—ready to explode. But Gu Changzheng gripped his hand, warmth spreading through it. Gao Ye snapped back to himself, turned away in fury, as if looking at the monster another second would make him lose control.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pedestrians?” Gu Changzheng said. “Are their lives so worthless to you that you can take them at will?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Heh. Not randomly. I don’t kill just anyone. But if they happened to cross my path—and met my criteria—then... hahaha!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng swallowed hard, as if forcing down the tidal wave of rage in his chest: “Criteria? What criteria?”\u003C\u002Fp>",1083,"2026-06-20T19:35:31.675Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","56373e8115c5d07a41f730c4f3e7abea4a643b2233cb39c1f6b18ee1e930d0d1","chasing-the-criminal-case-chapter-243","chasing-the-criminal-case-chapter-241",276,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fchasing-the-criminal-case-cover.jpg"]