Chapter 208: Taking Over Everything

"Xiao Miao, get Jiang Yuan a computer—something good." Hou Le's mood seemed quite good.

With a clue to press, it was like finding the end of a tangled ball of yarn; even if you couldn't say for sure you'd unravel it, the difficulty had dropped dramatically, and the person tasked with untangling it gradually calmed down.

Xiao Miao was a female officer, her duty uniform neat and clean, with large, lively eyes suggesting she was still young; if she kept working in forensic imaging for a few more years, she'd probably need glasses.

Xiao Miao replied crisply, then looked up at Jiang Yuan and smiled: "Jiang forensic, use my computer."

"Thanks. Uh… send me a copy of the images from that computer over there." Jiang Yuan sat down and gathered all the necessary software.

Meanwhile, the other two image technicians from Longli County were also working hard.

They found multiple video clips, all showing the same suspect: footage of him entering the crime scene, and later leaving with stolen goods; most of the time, he bound the stolen items with a rope he carried.

Hou Le was impressed: "When I first became a cop, there were tons of break-ins—people stealing in big bundles like this—but now it's come full circle?"

Xiao Miao asked curiously: "Back then, were clothes especially valuable—could you sell them for a lot?"

"Back then… back then was the early 2000s!" Hou Le snapped, turning to frown at Xiao Miao: "How old do you think I am?"

Xiao Miao shrank her neck and whispered: "I was born in 2000."

Hou Le did a quick mental calculation and fell silent.

Xiao Miao glanced again at Jiang Yuan and murmured: "When Jiang forensic was born, you were probably already working, Captain Hou."

Hou Le scratched his head in frustration: "Back then, we took pride in starting young!"

"I know," Xiao Miao said. "My mom said back then you had to go to Changyang City to buy clothes—no trains, no highways, just buses. People rode bikes to work… This suspect must be old too, which is why he steals bikes and big items."

Hou Le's eyes nearly turned red—he'd always thought of himself as in his prime, never imagining that young recruits would be this annoying.

The senior image technician nearby tried to rescue the team leader, cleared his throat twice, and said: "The suspect steals bikes and large items mainly because there's little cash involved—and he probably has a resale channel. Even now, bikes are expensive, electronics too. I've seen several homes where computers had their graphics cards and headphones stolen. His methods suggest he's not old…"

Hou Le nodded: "Trace his fencing network—get Lao Lu on it."

Turning back to Jiang Yuan, he asked: "Jiang forensic, what do you think?"

After a day's interaction, Hou Le, no matter how unaccustomed, had to admit: Jiang Yuan, as a technician of this level, really had something.

His conclusions were more reliable than those from many city bureau technicians.

Jiang Yuan kept staring at the screen and replied casually: "Based on footprints, the suspect is around 35, 175 cm tall, weighs about 150 pounds—probably quite strong…"

It was speculation, but Jiang Yuan's precision made Hou Le feel uneasy.

The nearby Ye forensic came to Jiang Yuan's defense: "Jiang forensic specializes in footprint analysis—he's among the top in the province."

Hou Le recalled and conceded, nodding again: "If so, the range is narrow. If he's been imprisoned, we could check the prison system—might get something…"

At that moment, the main computer Jiang Yuan was using roared loudly.

Everyone's eyes turned to Jiang Yuan.

"Wait a sec—just rendering." Jiang Yuan stood up immediately.

Now the computer was on its own—the mouse was even lagging.

The angry machine growled for a while.

Finally, a photo appeared.

It was a bit blurry—after all, it was captured by nighttime surveillance—but the pixel count was sufficient; Jiang Yuan did minor processing, and the face was now clearly visible to the naked eye.

It was good enough for a wanted poster.

If Jiang Yuan put in more effort, he could make it even clearer.

But time was precious—this kind of fugitive always moved after each crime; now he'd killed someone, who knew where he'd fled? The sooner we identified him, the better.

Jiang Yuan clicked print and saved the image.

The printer clattered out a black-and-white photo.

An inkjet printer from who-knew-when—the A4 paper came out soaked.

Xiao Miao walked over and took the photo, asking cheerfully: "Who's this?"

"The suspect," Jiang Yuan replied.

Several detectives huddled in quiet discussion turned to look.

Jiang Yuan didn't drag it out: "This is the suspect's face enhanced from the image—I pulled it from footage taken a week ago…"

Jiang Yuan pulled up the original frame on the screen.

Since he wasn't from their own team, he explained more thoroughly.

The group stared at the dark, blurry surveillance frame on screen, then at Jiang Yuan's printed photo—expression blank.

Hou Le glanced at his team's senior image technician.

The Longli County image technician's skill level wasn't far off from the three in neighboring Ningtai County; they understood image enhancement a bit, but not deeply.

The technician hesitated, struggling to find words.

Xiao Miao stood beside him, feeling the same.

When Jiang Yuan first proposed bloodstain analysis, they stayed silent—they weren't crime scene investigators. When Jiang Yuan shifted the investigation direction, they stayed silent—they weren't leaders. Finally, when Jiang Yuan asked for a computer, no one stood up for them anymore…

"Let's circulate this photo and see if anyone recognizes him," Hou Le realized and decisively steered the case back on track.

Xiao Miao printed several more copies and sent the digital files to the work group.

Hou Le thought for a moment, then sent the photo to several others as inquiries.

Turning back, Hou Le stared at Jiang Yuan, lost in thought.

This guy's taking over everything today.

Though he'd desperately tried to control the investigation direction, every key decision had been made by Jiang Yuan.

Only this last part—facial recognition by people—seemed to involve them.

Hou Le felt slightly uneasy, sighed inwardly, and said: "Everyone find a place to rest tonight. Once we confirm the suspect, things will get busy again."

Human facial recognition wouldn't yield quick results unless someone recognized him outright—otherwise, they'd have to ask friends; even a whole night might not produce an answer…

Hou Le thought this, and grew slightly anxious.

A glaring fact no one had voiced today: the condition of the two-and-a-half-year-old girl the killer abducted.

Assuming the suspect isn't an especially vile pervert—based on his prior crimes, he isn't.

Then his main motive for taking the girl was likely trafficking.

A burglar turning into a trafficker isn't unusual. There may be a wall separating criminals from ordinary people, but among criminals themselves, their markets are open.

Those selling ecstasy, traffickers, thieves, and fences—all operate without barriers.

Especially this suspect, who regularly steals high-value items to sell—meaning he has a smooth sales network. Selling children—perhaps precisely because he killed someone and planned to flee—he abducted the girl to sell her and raise escape funds.

In that case, solving the case quickly became vital.

Once the child left the suspect's hands and entered a trafficking channel, retrieving her would become another complex, time-consuming case.

Anxious as he was, Hou Le remained gentle with his subordinates, telling them to find places to sleep.

Amid the chaos, another phone call came in.

"This guy's Li Weibin, from Pingjiang… I've arrested him twice…" The voice on the other end gave Hou Le the needed info quickly.

Every detective knew: right now, the caller was surely busy.

Hou Le hurriedly thanked him.

Without being told, his team sprang into action.

Now that they had the prior convict's name, they knew his fingerprints, ID number, and all other identity details—including his phone, WeChat, QQ, and any other social media or gaming accounts requiring real-name verification.

Handing these to the cyber unit, while asking the technical investigation team for help—even if the convict used someone else's phone, ID, or bank card—they still had a high chance of locating him.

In fact, over the years, to combat increasingly rampant telecom fraud, "finding people" had become highly specialized.

At least half the technical funding from ministries went toward this.

Internet giants like Tencent and Alibaba had made plenty of changes too.

Now, telecom fraud gangs had all relocated overseas—because they couldn't survive in China anymore.

Unless Li Weibin vanished into the mountains under a false identity, he'd be found sooner or later.

Jiang Yuan exhaled softly, then felt waves of fatigue wash over him—he yawned.

Xiao Miao noticed and quietly slipped him a key, whispering: "If you're tired, go sleep in the dorm."