Chapter 844

Meng Chengbiao was organizing the documents sheet by sheet; the folder on his right was already as thick and wide as a whole roasted lamb.

Don't be fooled by interrogations where many police officers slam a thick file onto the table with a "Duang!"—in reality, most of those documents are old props, and some are even temporary ones.

Criminal suspects or readers with a bit of experience know deep down when facing this situation that the other party hasn't actually obtained much information. In the end, they are purely relying on intimidation and suppression to extract a confession... It's just that, most of the time, everyone cooperates to keep the act going, and if a successful confession is made, that's that.

But this time, the two criminal suspects would never easily admit to being the big bosses, and Meng Chengbiao really had accumulated quite a lot of information in his hands.

Chickpea and Feng Shui Master—or rather, the two identities—had, up to this point, no human lives on their hands. Their roles were somewhat similar, effectively serving as the organization ministers and administrative staff for their respective lines. Therefore, they had neither directly participated in the trafficking and manufacturing of drugs nor lacked the conditions to perform meritorious service.

Because of this, although the two were mid-to-high-level members of the gang, they would basically not face the death penalty.

But if they admitted to being Purple Crystal and Huang Shuijing, then as the gang leaders, the two would be implicating all the gang members in their own meritorious service, which would likely end in a death sentence.

Meng Chengbiao could almost imagine what the upcoming trial scene would be like—a veritable slaughterhouse, a place of sharp tongues and swords, of flashing blades and shadows.

Meng Chengbiao tapped the documents on the table lightly with his hand.

These were all pieces of evidence he had meticulously prepared.

Although there were already a great many, Meng Chengbiao still felt unsatisfied.

Purple Crystal and Huang Shuijing each commanded a line within the drug gang. Over the years, the various crimes they committed, including murder, were too numerous to count. If it were a normal person, even for a single murder charge, the accumulated material could be as thick as a dictionary, let alone dozens of murders and hundreds of various other cases.

However, the key to the problem was not proving the guilt of Purple Crystal and Huang Shuijing, but proving that Chickpea and Feng Shui Master were Purple Crystal and Huang Shuijing, respectively!

Meng Chengbiao frowned while thinking, his expression even more solemn than when he was watching a football match.

"Old Meng, how are your preparations coming along?" A somewhat soft female voice came from the interrogation expert, Sun Fangyuan.

Sun Fangyuan was about the same age as Meng Chengbiao, but unlike Meng Chengbiao, who had struggled to get ahead despite 20 years of police service, Sun Fangyuan had been a famous heroine in Shannan Province 10 years ago. She had won a First-Class Merit, had been a March 8th Red Banner Holder, and had long been selected for the Provincial Department's expert pool. The heads of the drug lords she had interrogated, if piled together, could fill a naan oven.

This time, Song Beishou had specifically borrowed Sun Fangyuan just to break down the two Crystals.

After arriving in Changyang City, Sun Fangyuan had been familiarizing herself with the case files day and night, studying the threads of the case... However, not to mention the hundreds or thousands of suspects in the entire "Drug Capture Network," the case files involving just Chickpea and Feng Shui Master, along with Purple Crystal and Huang Shuijing, were so voluminous that they were impossible to finish reading. Therefore, Sun Fangyuan was particularly reliant on Meng Chengbiao, who had been following Jiang Yuan the entire time.

"Still the same old story. The evidence is there, but to prove that Chickpea is Purple Crystal and Feng Shui Master is Huang Shuijing, we still lack compelling evidence." Meng Chengbiao rubbed his face, not wanting to appear overly bitter and deep.

Regardless, his partner was a policewoman, so it wouldn't do to be too unkempt. Although he still looked like a man suffering from extreme exhaustion.

"There are always more solutions than problems." Sun Fangyuan had come specifically for this case and instead encouraged Meng Chengbiao: "Actually, there are simple ways, I just don't want to use them."

"Oh? What simple ways?" Meng Chengbiao was a bit surprised.

Sun Fangyuan said calmly: "Chickpea and Feng Shui Master are already mid-to-high-level members of the drug trafficking group; is it really possible they are only worth a suspended death sentence? As long as we find enough evidence and communicate well with the prosecutor, we can just lay our cards on the table and tell them both: regardless of whether they are the Crystals or not, we are demanding the death penalty for them. I'd like to see if they can remain so calm."

Meng Chengbiao let out a "Heh": "That's truly vicious."

Everyone is equal before death. How much difference can there be between a drug lord, a drug dealer, and a drug addict? It's just like how many company bosses remain as foolish as ever, and many unit leaders remain as lazy and incompetent as ever. Drug lords are just people who, through a twist of fate, became gang leaders. To say they are less afraid of death than small-time drug addicts is probably not true.

If they were truly not afraid of death, the three Crystals wouldn't have had to rack their brains and heartlessly kill off their old brothers who knew them, just to hide their identities. They were even willing to compromise their command structure just to leave themselves a way out.

Therefore, Sun Fangyuan's method of cutting off their escape routes is definitely highly practical.

Meng Chengbiao put himself in the shoes of Chickpea and Feng Shui Master and felt that if his own fake identity were also sentenced to "immediate execution," he would truly be cursing his ancestors.

"However, this plan would only result in the execution of these two drug dealers; for the sake of justice, it's still not quite enough. That's why I don't want to use this method." Sun Fangyuan added an explanation.

She had traveled thousands of miles to get here, not just to add two more souls to the underworld.

Meng Chengbiao raised his eyelids; this was bringing the conversation back to the point.

Sun Fangyuan smiled when she saw this and said: "Since we can't use the simple method, let's use the complex one."

Meng Chengbiao looked up at Sun Fangyuan, picked up his water cup and took a sip. Seeing Sun Fangyuan waiting without speaking, he sighed silently and played along: "What complex method?"

"To deal with people like this, I have two tricks. One, I call it 'sincerity for sincerity.' I chat with them sincerely, treat them well, tell them the truth—constant dripping wears away the stone. There's a high probability the suspect will confess." Sun Fangyuan looked at Meng Chengbiao as she said this, also judging his level.

Sun Fangyuan's strategy sounded a bit far-fetched. Sincerity? Modern people don't believe in this at all, let alone drug lords.

But in reality, experienced criminal police officers basically know how to use this trick. A typical example is fugitive pursuit. When police officers catch a suspect outside, they are usually the type to show concern, buying the suspect the food they like when they are hungry, treating them to drinks they themselves are reluctant to drink when they are thirsty, and for suspects who want to smoke, they even personally light the cigarette for them.

A similar story is the Japanese police's "pork cutlet bowl." It is said to have originated from the famous post-war kidnapping case, the "Yoshinobu Kidnapping and Murder Case." The police bought the criminal a bowl of pork cutlet rice during the interrogation, and the criminal, moved, confessed to the crime.

So, even for the most heinous criminals, although they must be sent to hell, they also have a sincere side.

For an interrogation expert like Sun Fangyuan, moving a criminal with sincerity cannot be called a basic skill, but it is a required course on the path to becoming advanced.

If Meng Chengbiao didn't understand, Sun Fangyuan was prepared to use him as a tool.

Meng Chengbiao understood Sun Fangyuan, understood her, and said: "This trick might take a very long time."

Sun Fangyuan said: "That's why I said constant dripping wears away the stone. How long have you held out at most?"

"15 days," Meng Chengbiao explained: "A murder case."

"The longest I've taken was 22 days. A theft case." Sun Fangyuan exchanged qualifications belonging to interrogation experts with Meng Chengbiao and added: "Since we both have experience, I suggest we use this trick. I'll take charge of Feng Shui Master, how about you take charge of Chickpea?"

Feng Shui Master had nearly escaped; compared to Chickpea, who was caught directly, he felt a bit sharper. In addition, the importance of Purple Crystal was slightly higher than Huang Shuijing, so Sun Fangyuan's allocation could be considered a concession.

Meng Chengbiao did not object and said: "Are we using such a soft plan? Can Chief Song wait?"

"Before they became Purple Crystal and Huang Shuijing, they were also desperate criminals who didn't value their lives. Intimidation and oppression might not be useful." Sun Fangyuan's female aura grew stronger as she said this: "I can withstand Chief Song's pressure, what about you?"

"You'll be the lead in the interrogation, so I'll listen to you." Meng Chengbiao didn't show any intense reaction, which made Sun Fangyuan slightly disappointed.

"Then, the fallback plan is 'sincerity for sincerity'." After Sun Fangyuan confirmed this, she patted the documents in front of Meng Chengbiao again and said: "The second trick will have to rely on your Team Leader Jiang."

Meng Chengbiao said "Oh" without any surprise. Everyone is a planter; who wouldn't feel itchy when they see a super-large combine harvester parked in the village, wanting to borrow it for a spin?

Unless the plot of land is truly too small to mention, one must at least ask for a refusal before one can return to work with peace of mind.

"If Team Leader Jiang can produce more evidence to prove the connection between Purple Crystal and Chickpea, or prove the connection between Feng Shui Master and Huang Shuijing, then our interrogation will be a sure thing." Sun Fangyuan smiled and added: "Of course, we might not even need to do it, but we have to try this path, don't we?"

"Team Leader Jiang is definitely already doing it. But these two guys cut ties very thoroughly. If there were ironclad evidence, it would have been settled long ago." Having said this, Meng Chengbiao repeated Sun Fangyuan's words from just now: "Otherwise, they wouldn't need us."

"That's right, so we have to provide more evidence to Team Leader Jiang through interrogation." Sun Fangyuan stood up as she said this: "Let's go, let's start with the fallback plan first."

While Meng Chengbiao was still in a daze, Sun Fangyuan had already entered the elevator empty-handed.

Afternoon.

Meng Chengbiao walked out of the interrogation room with his back straight, pounding his broken waist hard a few times.

"Team Leader Meng." A police officer passed by and called out, carrying a food tray in his hand.

"What is this?" Meng Chengbiao smelled a pleasant aroma.

"Oil-splashed noodles. Team Leader Sun ordered them." The police officer replied: "She specifically asked for a cook from Xishan to make them fresh and deliver them. I have to hurry over; if the noodles get soggy, Team Leader Sun won't be happy."

"One more question, the suspect asked for oil-splashed noodles? Is he from Xishan?" Meng Chengbiao asked hurriedly.

"Seems like it. He also asked for garlic."

"Alright. Go ahead." Meng Chengbiao frowned. Starting from dinner, they had actually managed to ask something out.