Chapter 323: Change the Target

"Do you still have the key to Yin Fei's warehouse back door and the printed paper?" the interrogator pressed on.

Zhang Xiang's eyes gleamed with the sharpness of a 120-kilogram bodybuilder: "Of course—I stored them in a bank safe. Six hundred a year."

The Jigeren in the surveillance room showed slight changes in expression.

So no one is truly stupid—even Zhang Xiang, this big, burly fool who looked like he'd fried his brain with steroids, still used his few remaining brain cells to make the right choice.

The interrogator couldn't help but praise: "Not bad—you knew to store it in a safe."

"To keep someone from coming to my house and burning it down," said the current arsonist Zhang Xiang, grinning as if he'd unlocked the secrets of the universe.

The interrogator paused, then asked offhand: "What other fires have you been involved in?"

Zhang Xiang's gaze shifted—clearly lying: "Just that one time. That one was bad enough—who goes around setting fires for fun?"

The interrogator frowned but didn't pursue aimlessly; he quickly returned: "Did you go to Yin Fei on your own initiative?"

"Yes."

"What was the trigger? Why then, at that moment, did you go to Yin Fei? And why with a knife, entering through the back door?"

Zhang Xiang recalled: "We had to sign the contract. The logistics company Yin Fei picked was hostile to us."

"I told her not to, but she treated us like trash. She couldn't even get into bed with him—she's just a mistress—and she puts on airs with us..."

As he spoke, Zhang Xiang grew increasingly furious.

It seemed he was deeply sensitive to hierarchies.

People who stay too long in an organization often mistake its unwritten rules for universal social laws—and even enforce them.

The interrogator found no flaw in Zhang Xiang's words and continued: "Do you know who gave you the key?"

"To be honest? I don't know." Zhang Xiang shook his head.

"Guess."

"Can't guess."

The interrogator frowned: "Someone gave you the key—the key to Yin Fei's warehouse back door—and even wrote instructions on printed paper. Didn't you ever wonder who it was, or why?"

"Probably someone from Jianyuan. Who exactly? I can't say." Zhang Xiang shrugged.

"All these years, you never thought of investigating yourself?"

Zhang Xiang blinked, then laughed: "I get what you're hinting at—you want me to finger someone. Honestly, if I named someone who hired me to kill, would I avoid the death penalty? But I can't name anyone—I'd make enemies, and then I'd die faster."

"Jianyuan isn't as powerful as you think. Your case is handled by the Changyang City Criminal Investigation Brigade—they can't interfere."

"Maybe. But I have no evidence. Who am I supposed to name?" Zhang Xiang spread his hands.

"Breaking and entering, two deaths, arson to burn corpses—each of these can carry the death penalty. If you name an accomplice or the mastermind, you might get a suspended sentence. Otherwise, you'll almost certainly be executed immediately." The interrogator dropped the pretense, pressing hard on Zhang Xiang.

Zhang Xiang's face flushed crimson; the interrogation chair creaked loudly, yet he still produced nothing useful.

An accomplice couldn't be invented out of thin air; the mastermind was even harder to prove. Thinking back on his past actions, his earnings, the things he'd taken—Zhang Xiang found it harder to choose. After all, the knife hadn't truly been pressed to his throat.

Office.

Jiang Yuan and the others waited as the dispatched officers returned with the items Zhang Xiang had stored in the bank: a key, a note, a plastic bag, and a stone.

Jiang Yuan focused intently on the key.

Yu Wenshu and the others watched Jiang Yuan anxiously, hoping for good news.

Jiang Yuan examined them slowly—first the key, then the other three items.

In fact, the moment he touched the key, he had already

confirmed: this key was indeed the one that had scratched the lock cylinder but failed to open the back door.

The key even bore extremely fine powder—microscopic evidence that would likely match the lock on the back door.

The problem was, identifying the key didn't help much.

Jiang Yuan could potentially match it to the key-cutting machine—if he found the machine, and if its cutting blades hadn't been replaced. From a timeline perspective, unless the machine had been perfectly sealed away years ago, that was unlikely.

He could also analyze the note and its printed text.

Level 3 Document Examination skill was designed for this.

But Level 3 Document Examination was still just a "skillful housewife" level—it couldn't cook without rice... like the key, it needed comparison samples.

Fingerprints became the king of evidence, and later DNA cracked major cases, because of mature, direct fingerprint and DNA databases.

Trace and document databases were far weaker, offering little help.

Jiang Yuan studied and thought for a long time, then finally shrugged: "At this point, these items don't help much."

"Not finding anything is normal," Shen Hui Guo quickly reassured Jiang Yuan.

Shen Yao Wei added: "Maybe he just said it to get out of trouble."

"Yeah. With just these few items, it's naturally hard to find clues."

Yu Wenshu trailed off, a faint disappointment creeping in.

He quickly suppressed his emotions.

Then he turned inward: Yu Wenshu, this thinking is wrong. You can't expect Jiang Yuan to solve everything. Jiang Yuan is rented, not bought—he might die on a scene any day. What then?

His mind instantly supplied the correct answer: Of course, while Jiang Yuan's rental period lasts, make him till the most land, reap the most grain, slay the most killers, and build a pyramid of skulls.

Base layer: large-brained violent criminals. Middle layer: pairs of attractive men and women. Top layer: the skulls of notorious criminals with symbolic cases...

Yu Wenshu watched Jiang Yuan pack up the evidence and said: "If there are no leads, we can put this case on hold for now. Send two people to clean up and monitor. Even if this person Zhang Xiang mentioned is real, it's hard to convict or sentence him. Death penalty or murder charges are unlikely..."

In truth, if the person had merely paid money and provided the key without incitement or substantive bribery, even if convicted, it would only be a prison term.

Jiang Yuan's mind flashed through several names, then said: "If we have no leads on the key's owner, I suggest we start by checking the parking lot security at Jianyuan Pharmaceutical."

Yu Wenshu immediately looked at Shen Yao Guo.

Shen Yao Guo paused, then, seeing Jiang Yuan's serious expression, nodded: "Checking them won't hurt. But doing it without cause might offend Jianyuan Pharmaceutical—Yuan Jiansheng is a known name in the province."

"This isn't without cause. If we're talking offense, Yuan's eldest son is in prison because of me. His second son—I performed the autopsy." Jiang Yuan clapped his hands, clean and unbothered.

Shen Yao Guo owed Jiang Yuan a favor—he couldn't refuse. He nodded firmly: "Fine, let's do it. But if we're doing it, my advice: gather solid evidence, take them all down at once."

"Of course." Jiang Yuan glanced at Yu Wenshu: "Then let's focus on this case next."

"Fine." Yu Wenshu didn't care—he had no attachment to Qinghe City's corporations. He only asked: "How do you plan to proceed?"

Jiang Yuan smiled, pointed at the screen showing Zhang Xiang, then added: "Let's also look for unsolved cases near Jianyuan's factory or warehouse—we can solve them while we're at it."

Yu Wenshu had no objection—but in his mind, for no reason at all, an image surfaced: Jianyuan Pharmaceutical's parking lot, and inside it, not a blue guard booth,

but a modest, grim pyramid of skulls.