[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-chasing-the-criminal-case":3,"chapter-chasing-the-criminal-case-chasing-the-criminal-case-chapter-56":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},2328824,4554,"Chapter 56: Ransom Call","chasing-the-criminal-case-chapter-56",56,"\u003Cp>Someone who can cook you a midnight snack in the middle of the night—aside from your own parents or your lover—you’d be hard-pressed to find another.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gu Changzheng and Hu Jinquan were undoubtedly lucky; in a city far from home, encountering such a kind family was rare. After eating dumplings, with hours still left before dawn, the two spent the night on the living room sofa at Lu’s house.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Early the next morning, Jiang Xiao—who rarely woke up early—rose unusually early and rode his bicycle toward the Jiangdong Branch. He didn’t know what had happened to Xiao Fang, but if the Criminal Investigation Unit had been alerted, the matter must be serious! The two officers had waited half the night without seeing the girl or Xiao Fang appear, and Jiang Xiao felt a strange excitement—he barely slept at all. When he checked the time in the morning and realized the Public Security Bureau should be open, he got up quickly, put on his new cotton-padded jacket, and rode his bicycle eagerly toward the Jiangdong Branch!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>————\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Early in the morning, Chief Gao Jianjun stepped into the office from the cold outside, and a wave of warmth hit him. Winter in their city was particularly awkward—located neither north nor south, it had the chill of the north but no centralized heating. For years, their police station had limited funds, and running the air conditioner in winter was a careful calculation of every watt. Only after he took office, solved several major cases, and applied to the district finance bureau and the branch for funding, did they install heating from the city’s thermal power plant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With improved working conditions, he aimed to produce more results. Gao Jianjun had clear career goals and knew exactly what he wanted, so he sometimes acted pragmatically—but he had genuinely accomplished a great deal. In short, he was a good cop and a good leader.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sitting in his warm office, he was about to review the January 10 case when his phone rang. He picked up the receiver, but before he could say “Hello,” a man’s anxious voice came through: “Chief Gao! We received a ransom call! My brother-in-law has been kidnapped!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a brief mental search, he remembered—the brother and sister who had come to the station days earlier to report a missing person. He had given the younger brother his office number back then.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What?!” He sat bolt upright. With the New Year approaching, so many violent crimes had erupted! The dismemberment case still had no leads, and now a kidnapping and ransom case had surfaced!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This added even greater pressure to Gao Jianjun’s already taut nerves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After his initial shock, he quickly steadied himself and said: “Wu Yuhe, right? Don’t panic. Take your time and tell me exactly what happened.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps his calm tone reassured the caller; Wu Yuhe took a deep breath and said: “Chief Gao, after we reported the disappearance at the station the other day, my sister still couldn’t rest easy, so I accompanied her to ask around his friends, hoping someone might have seen him...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Jianjun listened as Wu Yuhe droned on with irrelevant details, then cleared his throat softly: “I understand. Focus on the ransom call—tell me about that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuhe finally snapped to: “Just now, I’ve been staying at my sister’s place these past few days. I just got up when I heard my sister screaming my name from upstairs. I ran up and found her in tears: ‘Yuhe! What do we do?! Your brother-in-law’s been kidnapped! They’re demanding fifty thousand! Where am I supposed to get that kind of money?!’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuhe launched into another long monologue. Gao Jianjun endured it patiently, then interjected during his breath: “Was the caller male or female? What was the phone number? Landline or mobile? Did they say when to pay the ransom? Where? And what accent did they have—local or outsider?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He fired off all the questions he needed, thinking: Surely now you won’t ramble anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuhe finally stopped talking: “Ah! Wait a second—I’ll ask my sister!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Jianjun sighed helplessly: “Give me your exact address. Stay put. We’re on our way.” He then shouted: “Xiao Wu! Come here!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Wu Yuhe clearly gave the address, Gao Jianjun saw Xiao Wu standing before him and said: “Start the car. We’re responding to a call.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuxian’s home was in Zizhen City’s rare gated residential complex—Citizen’s New Village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In 1990s inland cities, this was a novel concept. Wang Heshan and Wu Yuxian were among Zizhen’s first to grow wealthy; they bought two adjacent units and merged them into a duplex.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Word had it Wang Heshan got the idea while studying photography in Hong Kong. When they finally earned enough money, just as Citizen’s New Village was being developed, they bought both units.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The station’s only car was a Fukang sedan. Officer Xiao Wu had already started the engine and turned on the heater, waiting for Gao Jianjun. The car arrived quickly at Citizen’s New Village, where Wu Yuhe was already waiting at the gate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Gao Jianjun’s police car, he hurried over. The complex was small, but cars were plentiful—anyone living here was clearly well-off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Jianjun entered Wu Yuxian’s home. She sat on the sofa, wiping tears, and immediately stood up, sobbing: “Chief Gao, what do we do?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Jianjun quickly said: “Don’t get agitated. Sit down. Tell me everything clearly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuhe comforted his sister as he spoke: “Chief Gao, it was a man who called. He sounded about thirty, with a local accent. He didn’t say when to pay—just told my sister to prepare the cash today, and he’d call again tonight. He didn’t say when, then hung up. I checked the call log—the number was a landline, and the area code suggests it’s from Jiangdong District.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For once, Wu Yuhe gave no extra words—he clearly delivered every detail Gao Jianjun needed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Jianjun signaled Xiao Wu to check the phone. Xiao Wu examined it: the most recent incoming call showed 8:27 a.m. today, duration 15 seconds. The number was from Jiangdong District’s prefix. (Zizhen City had just switched to digital phone systems, and district codes were identifiable by the first digit.) Xiao Wu dialed the number back—it went unanswered. Clearly, it was a payphone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gao Jianjun said: “Immediately contact the city telecom department and trace the installation address of this number.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned to Wu Yuhe: “Are you familiar with all your brother-in-law’s friends?” He knew Wu Yuhe had worked with Wang Heshan and wanted to see if a known acquaintance might be involved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuhe said: “I know most of my brother-in-law’s friends...” Before he could finish, Gao Jianjun interrupted: “If they call again, you answer. Listen carefully—does the voice sound like anyone you know among Wang Heshan’s friends?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuhe nodded. He understood police procedure—investigations always started with acquaintances.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Indeed, Gao Jianjun continued: “Has your brother-in-law recently had any major business deals or earned a large sum of money?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu Yuhe thought for a moment, then shook his head: “No. Our photo studio does small jobs—no single job ever brings in big money.”\u003C\u002Fp>",1190,"2026-06-20T19:35:30.807Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","0e73c9fd0e0c608da5ca4a3f1bba40797af75890bf651fa0a028ed8e784771f0","chasing-the-criminal-case-chapter-57","chasing-the-criminal-case-chapter-55",276,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fchasing-the-criminal-case-cover.jpg"]