Chapter 1350: Exceptionally Favored

Jiang Yuan quite liked the style of Pingzhou people.

They were straightforward, generous, and didn't fuss over cost-effectiveness.

It was like at a banquet reception, Yin Feisong publicly led out a cow and a sheep, and personally held a knife to slit the sheep's throat.

The cow was slaughtered by a professional butcher; similarly, after bleeding it was hung up, letting everyone freely choose their preferred cuts—whether they liked hot pot, grilled, or stir-fried, someone would prepare it.

Jiang Yuan felt a familiar joy, somewhat like returning home.

Jiang Yuan then took out the beef jerky he carried on his person and distributed it to those around him.

Liu Zhuangshi toasted two rounds of wine, feeling slightly tipsy, and upon receiving Jiang Yuan's beef jerky, he was a bit dazed: "When did you prepare this?"

"I brought it from home." Jiang Yuan explained with a smile: "My family also raises cattle; this is beef jerky made from our own ranch. Try it—is it tasty?"

"Delicious." Liu Zhuangshi gulped it down without chewing, answered first, then his eyes flickered as he asked: "But even if it's very tasty beef jerky, why did you bring it over? We Pingzhou have plenty of cattle and plenty of beef jerky—don't you trust that our Pingzhou cattle can produce good beef jerky?"

Jiang Yuan smiled without speaking; to some extent, he indeed did not believe it.

Liu Zhuangshi exploded on the spot: "Brothers! Come look—what is this?!"

A group of Pingzhou criminal investigators gathered around, and what met their eyes was Jiang Yuan and the beef jerky in his hand.

"Director Jiang brought this beef jerky from his own home—Ningtai beef jerky!" Liu Zhuangshi lamented bitterly.

He didn't need to say more; everyone present were police officers, whose capacity for imagination certainly exceeded that of the protagonists in cheap erotic comics.

For a moment, emotions ran high:

"This won't do!"

"What's wrong with our Pingzhou cattle? How could they possibly not match Ningtai's cattle?"

"Ningtai's coroners are impressive, but the cattle aren't!"

Yin Feisong, who had just drunk four liquor dispensers during the toast, now had unfocused eyes, swaying as he walked over and stared at the beef jerky in Jiang Yuan's hand.

"Director Jiang!" Yin Feisong said solemnly: "You saved my son; my life ought to be yours. But the cow is innocent—our cow shouldn't have died for nothing."

"Not at all, not at all..." Jiang Yuan waved his hands repeatedly.

"Director Jiang, look at this cow's eyes!" Yin Feisong pulled Jiang Yuan over to look at the cow's eyes, then said: "I'll personally make you a grilled cow eye!"

Having said that, Yin Feisong picked up a small knife, removed the cow's eye along with some cheek meat, had the barbecue master adjust the fire, personally took over grilling, singing as he cooked, and from time to time poured Maotai onto the flames!

Hearing his song, Liu Zhuangshi stomped his feet rhythmically, and as he softly sang along, he actually stood up and began singing and dancing.

Following his lead, many people in the courtyard held cups, jugs, and bottles, drinking while dancing, the atmosphere lively like a ball.

After dancing a while, Liu Zhuangshi even pulled Jiang Yuan to dance together, loudly saying: "Director Jiang, working with you on cases is truly exhilarating. Earlier I went to see the kidnappers' corpses—I fired a full magazine of 15 bullets, hit 13, and haven't felt this satisfied shooting in years."

"Actually, 13 bullets aren't even necessary." Jiang Yuan recalled the bullet casings he picked up during the autopsy, then added: "He was hit by more than 13 bullets anyway."

"I was afraid he'd pull the trigger, so I wanted to shoot off his fingers—best case. Since I was behind, I already saw those in front aiming at the head and chest." Liu Zhuangshi spoke very eloquently.

Jiang Yuan followed the steps of the "dancer" ahead, glanced doubtfully at Liu Zhuangshi, and said: "The kidnappers' fingers were intact."

"Yes, I didn't hit them—all bullets went into his stomach." Liu Zhuangshi felt deep regret, adjusted his glasses, and felt the regret of a student who didn't score full marks on an exam.

Jiang Yuan truly thought back carefully, then said: "So you hit 9 bullets, and the 4 to the chest were also yours."

"Huh, how do you know…… no, how did you figure that out?" Liu Zhuangshi was greatly surprised.

Jiang Yuan said: "Under the microscope, I incidentally scanned the bullets. Also, among the shooters, only you used an old Type 92; the others using Type 92s were all 92G—new guns, and your barrel shows considerable wear."

Liu Zhuangshi suddenly understood, then immediately realized Jiang Yuan's autopsy was absolutely not a casual glance as imagined. He could not possibly have messed up who shot whom how many times, or which bullet truly caused death—everything was determined.

For this case, it's not particularly useful, but for Jiang Yuan, it might be as simple as skinning a sheep while butchering it.

Liu Zhuangshi felt moved, drained his cup, hooked his arm through Jiang Yuan's, and while dancing the grassland dance, he laughed: "Director Jiang, if I may say, you should stay a few more days in Anwan. I'll take you around properly—see our Pingzhou beautiful sheep, beautiful cattle, beautiful people, so beautiful……"

"I actually do have this plan, Liu Zhi—if you're willing to cooperate, that would be best." Jiang Yuan had previously discussed borrowing Anwan for the case with Huang Qiangmin.

Liu Zhuangshi exclaimed delightedly: "Cooperate—I'm more than willing to cooperate!"

Having said that, Liu Zhuangshi shouted loudly: "Captain Jiang is staying in Anwan!"

The singing and dancing crowd paused, then surged forward.

Mu Zhiyang let out an "Ao" cry: "No crowding allowed—these few days, just see Director Jiang casually, don't crowd!"

Jiang Yuan had drunk some alcohol but still had the energy to wave his arms.

Finding a good cooperative partner is also not easy; Jiang Yuan, whenever he reaches a region, why does he need to solve several cases before leaving? Because case-solving requires mutual trust, and solving one case together is the best mutual trust.

Otherwise, like this case involving criminal crime, especially vicious crime, if both sides lack mutual trust, the problems encountered will be numerous.

Today Yin Feisong was willing to, for his son, produce gold of equal weight as ransom; in the future, Yin Di Jing will likewise be willing to, for his son, produce gold of equal weight to struggle.

Liu Zhuangshi's character is bold and unrestrained, and he is also a high-ranking detachment commander—this satisfies the basic conditions for case-solving.

Of course, the most important thing is still that this place, Pingzhou, is rather special.

Pingzhou borders Shannan Province closely; the nearest point to Ningtai County is only a few hundred kilometers away, and driving on the highway makes arrival easy in half a day.

Yet Pingzhou is also a border province, possessing vast grasslands and a long border line; as long as one has a vehicle with off-road capability, the difficulty of sneaking across the border is not great.

As for things like satellite scanning or border walls—those are things even Americans can't handle well. Ordinary criminals simply don't qualify for such treatment.

Thus, criminals from Shannan Province, when something happens, like to flee to Pingzhou, then use Pingzhou as a springboard—either hiding their names and going underground, or escaping abroad.

Handling Pingzhou's criminal cases in batches will definitely improve Shannan Province's public security.

This is mutually beneficial, just like how Ningtai County used to be: without Jiang Yuan, every year they had to divert personnel to handle various backlog cases, deal with family inquiries, track down out-of-town leads, etc.

Correspondingly, if Pingzhou's cases can be handled to some extent—especially those that have generated strong public response, resolving a few—this also helps maintain Ningtai County's high standard of peace and security.

The chaotic atmosphere paused slightly.

Liu Zhuangshi immediately asked Jiang Yuan: "Which case do you want to handle? I'll arrange it right away."

"This time, I'm considering wanting to first look at fingerprint-related cases." Jiang Yuan had previously explained the reason: "I found Pingzhou's weather conditions especially favorable for fingerprint preservation over time; additionally, offenders generally commit crimes in a bold manner, usually not liking to spend hours meticulously wiping crime scenes—feeling suitable for catching people via fingerprints."

Liu Zhuangshi was stunned: "I never imagined our Pingzhou still has such a heaven-bestowed advantage."