Chapter 443: Xu Mo's Guess

Seeing this uncle run off without a word, the police also sensed something was off and immediately gave chase.

Anyone who bolts the moment they see an officer must have something to hide; even if unrelated to this arson case, they're linked to other cases.

It's possible this uncle is even an escapee.

The officers are top‑class physically; chasing people is their strong suit.

This mainly thanks to their job, which often requires pursuing suspects; after doing it repeatedly, their fitness is built up.

Compared with the strong, robust officers, the uncle's fitness is considerably poorer; after all, his age shows, he can't deny getting old.

Moreover, the hospital corridor is crowded, so he can't run fast; thus he was caught after only a short distance, pinned to the ground by the officers.

In the corridor, the onlookers in the ward also stood aside, watching the spectacle.

Even a "well‑meaning" bystander who didn't know the situation stepped forward to criticize the officers' actions.

"What are you doing? How can you bully an elderly man?"

Someone started, and immediately others echoed.

"In broad daylight, you bully an old man right in front of all of us? Let him go!"

In this situation, more and more "justice‑seekers" stepped forward, repeatedly condemning the officers' behavior.

"In daylight you commit crimes… Who gave you the nerve? Let the uncle go, and if you've got the guts, come at us!"

"Exactly, do you even have law in your eyes?"

In broad daylight, a group of young men forcefully pinned the uncle to the ground; anyone watching couldn't stand it.

Is there any sense of justice?

Is there any rule of law?!

The crowd was filled with righteous indignation.

The more timid ones hid behind, spewing words and constantly denouncing the officers' actions.

The braver ones even stepped forward, ready to "rescue" the uncle.

After fully subduing the uncle, the officers finally found time to explain.

One of the officers who had pinned the uncle down, after confirming his comrades had the uncle under control, released his grip, stood up, took his Police Badge from his pocket, and explained.

"Everyone, don't misunderstand us; we're not bad people, we're police, investigating a case, and he's related to the case we're looking into…"

After a brief explanation of the reason.

The crowd instantly fell silent; their gaze at the pinned uncle no longer held any pity.

So it's the police investigating… then it's fine.

"You should have said something earlier! They thought those guys were bad guys, and the uncle was the victim, but actually the uncle on the ground is the villain."

The crowd looked at the uncle lying face‑down on the floor and instantly painted him in their minds as a despicable scoundrel.

The person the police focus on isn't necessarily a bad guy; they might just want information.

But the one who's been pinned and treated like that can't possibly be a good person!

Public opinion shifted instantly; people stopped blaming the officers and began to lambaste the uncle.

Even the first onlooker who had led the criticism of the officers turned his fire toward the uncle at this point.

"I've long seen that old thing isn't good; shifty eyes, a thief's look—obviously a bad egg! Good catch!"

Crowd: "……"

"You were the one who started it just now, weren't you!"

"Changing your tune when things look bad? Well played!"

"Exactly, I've long known he's not a good guy, don't know what he's done though."

"I said it's a misunderstanding, you all still don't believe it, even defending this villain, almost ruining the police comrades' cause!"

"Don't look ahead, step aside, don't block the police comrades' way!"

"……"

Officer: "……"

They've seen scenes like this many times; almost every undercover mission brings this up, and they're used to it.

Under the crowd's gaze, they escorted the uncle out of the hospital.

……

Combining the victim's behavior and the victim's father's flight when he saw the police, Xu Mo roughly guessed the truth of the case.

Of course, it's only a guess; the exact result still needs verification.

Interrogation Room.

The uncle sat on the interrogation chair, curiously yet nervously scanning his surroundings.

Interrogation Room, it's his first time here.

"You're Ms. Gao's father? Why did you run when you saw us just now?" Xu Mo stared into the uncle's eyes and asked.

His gaze was very aggressive; the uncle grew even more nervous.

He stammered in reply.

"I—I didn't run… I just… I suddenly needed to pee, yeah, I needed to pee, wanted to go to the restroom."

"So that means it was a coincidence, huh?" Xu Mo said teasingly to the uncle.

"Yes, yes, a coincidence!" the uncle kept nodding, stepping down the steps: "It's just a coincidence, you've arrested the wrong person, let me go, I still have to see my daughter at the hospital."

Letting him go was impossible; the uncle clearly knew something, and Xu Mo still hoped to pry a confession from him to verify his theory, so he wouldn't just release him.

"The Music Shop where Ms. Gao works burned down without cause last night; we found a large amount of gasoline residue on site, it was deliberate arson… How much do you know about this, or do you have anyone you suspect?"

The uncle was already nervous; Xu Mo's question made him even more nervous.

"No, nothing… we just learned about this too, know nothing."

"You? Besides you, who else—your wife?" Xu Mo asked again.

The uncle's body shivered, his pupils involuntarily contracted a notch, and he nodded.

"Where was she? When you were at the hospital just now, why wasn't she by your side?"

"She didn't go to the hospital."

"Didn't go? Your daughter was gravely injured, teetering on the brink of death, and she didn't even say she'd go to the hospital to check?"

The uncle felt a chill in his heart under Xu Mo's stare, dared not meet his gaze, his eyes flickered uncertainly.

"She… she's been feeling unwell lately, so I didn't let her go."

For the next minute, Xu Mo asked no further questions.

The Interrogation Room was very quiet.

The uncle could even hear his own heartbeat.

Yet just as he thought he had gotten away with it, Xu Mo suddenly stood, took out his phone, played a video, and thrust the phone in front of him.

"We captured the entire arson on the on‑site surveillance; the arsonist at the Music Shop is the woman in the video—do you know her?"

As he said that, Xu Mo continued watching the uncle's reaction.

The moment the uncle saw the video, his body instantly went rigid, his face filled with shock and worry, and his lips trembled uncontrollably.

Xu Mo also saw a hint of anger in his eyes.

His demeanor differed from the victim's, yet there were similarities.

Combining the uncle's answers and behavior from the earlier questions, Xu Mo could almost be certain his prior conjecture was correct.

The arsonist is this uncle's wife, and also the victim's mother.

Of course, Xu Mo only inferred this from the uncle's behavior; as for the arsonist's motive, he couldn't guess it.

But this doubt, I suppose…