Chapter 944: The Case Is Even More Complex

"Just tell me if you can have any sense of propriety~"

Qin Jingru was angrily tidying up the kitchen, muttering about the two who returned home late.

"Even if there's something, there's always time to make a phone call home~"

"Went to take a bath."

Han Jiankun is really good at explaining; his wife clearly said they were late because of something, but he wasn't afraid of things getting bigger, insisting on saying they went to take a bath.

"Dare!"

Qin Jingru brought a basin of braised pork out and placed it on the table, glared at Han Jiankun, and said: "You went out to be carefree, and left us mother and children at home to be terrified!"

Han Jiankun glanced at the basin of braised pork, his mouth couldn't help twitching, and he lowered his head without speaking.

He didn't care about his wife's nagging; these words weren't meant for him!

He is a driver, so he has to listen to the leader wherever he goes; he won't take the blame for this.

Li Xuewu could hear the subtext in her words, but didn't care; now he isn't the boss at home, Gu Ning is.

As Gu Ning's belly gets bigger and bigger and her movements become more and more inconvenient, Qin Jingru's attitude has become more and more cautious.

Every day when she goes back from here, she has to urge Li Xuewu not to sleep too soundly at night and to look after Gu Ning when she gets up to go to the bathroom.

Because of the body structure of pregnant women, the bigger the fetus grows, the higher the frequency of going to the bathroom will be.

Don't look at Qin Jingru just getting married and not having children yet; she is very familiar with the work of taking care of pregnant women, as there has never been a shortage of children in her family since she was a child.

Plus the instructions from Liu Yin when she returned to the Sihe Academy a few months ago, and the arrangements made by the old lady when she was here, she is extra careful about nutrition, sleep, and rest.

Therefore, Li Xuewu, who often challenges these rules, has become the object of Qin Jingru's vigilance.

"Why did you think of stewing meat?"

Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows slightly, looking at the basin of braised pork with surprise.

Even if the family is living well, the opportunity to truly eat stewed meat is not much; it's not that the family doesn't have enough meat, but that Qin Jingru herself is reluctant.

"Sister Xiao Ning wanted to eat it."

Qin Jingru stood to the side with a helpless expression and said: "She mentioned it in the afternoon, but she only ate two bites after it was made in the evening."

"You guys eat~"

She was just saying this when she found that both of them were looking at her.

"What are you looking at me for? Do I have braised pork on my face? Eat quickly, so I can wash the dishes; I'm busy all day~."

Watching Qin Jingru go to the living room to coax the children, Li Xuewu and Han Jiankun looked at each other, their gazes both placed on the braised pork.

"Jiankun, eat meat."

"Leader, you eat."

"Why be polite~ Eat~ eat, eat more."

"You eat~ you eat, you eat too~"

Li Xuewu hates corpses and such the most; his gentle and elegant literary youth temperament is not suitable for handling this kind of case.

Saw that thing in the afternoon, and when he got home in the evening, it was braised pork; this is disgusting.

Just letting each other like this, he and Han Jiankun each finished half a basin of braised pork.

Hmm, really didn't eat much.

The last bit of meat soup was used by Han Jiankun to dip in steamed buns and eat; it was clean, and the basin didn't even need to be washed.

Qin Jingru came in and took a look; good guy, it's fortunate that she only made one basin; if she had made less, they would have eaten the basin too.

The mutual politeness just now wasn't influenced by that thing in the afternoon at all; it was purely because eating meat is not easy in this era.

What?

Disgusting?

Then you haven't seen anything more disgusting; it was okay in the trenches in winter, but if it was summer, that smell, it was refreshing.

Especially in the rainforest area, when the front line issued canned food, just listen.

A new recruit in the next trench "blew" a sound, and the old soldier on this side "slurped" without caring at all.

The severed limbs on the ground were really in the way; pick them up and throw them out, wipe your hands on your pants and continue eating.

The main thing is you vomit yours, I eat mine, don't disturb anyone.

Don't eat?

Stay hungry; are you waiting for the squad leader to come over and coax you like a child to eat?

Hmm, wait; wait for the big flying foot to come up and kick you until you cry like a child, and you'll know to eat.

Li Xuewu never needs anyone to persuade him to eat; he fell into the habit of being hungry in the few years he was at home in the army. At twelve, thirteen, or fourteen, he would eat at eleven o'clock at noon, and by twelve-thirty, he would be a half-grown boy hungry.

Li Shun's salary was high enough, and he earned quite a bit when he first started working, but the family didn't add much furniture; it was all filled into the mouths of these children.

Other families' children were hungry and quacking, while the four Li children grew rapidly, and there was fat on their cheeks.

Neighbors used to be jealous of the Li children, saying Li Shun wasn't a doctor at the hospital, but a pig farmer at the farm.

Li Xuewu ate well when he was young, and grew well; the family let him eat his fill, but he couldn't stand running around playing, and there was nothing in his stomach.

Children in this era are not worth money, and people are not worth money; anyway, what grows in the ground, what flies in the sky, what swims in the river, others can't eat to death, and everyone eats along.

By the time he got to the army, when regular training started, Li Xuewu, this big guy, could eat even more.

His habit of eating fast was formed at that time; others might be full after eating three big steamed buns, but he had to eat six, but the time was the same.

So in front of braised pork or dry rice, no problem is a problem.

Not to mention him, even those old cadres and old teachers who went down to labor, they were all gentle in the past, but after going to the countryside, there were plenty who hid in the toilet in the middle of the night to gnaw on stolen radishes.

When they weren't hungry, they were all strong-mouthed; when they were really hungry, they would call you grandpa if you gave them a bite to eat, and calling you ancestor would work too.

You can't compare city life with the countryside, and you can't compare the life of a cadre's dual-employee household with ordinary people.

The beginning of the 21st century didn't eliminate the problem of food and clothing; think about this era and you will know. Yin Mancang called him, and half of the people in the next village were gone.

Don't ask where the people went; asking is natural and man-made disasters, ten rooms and five empty.

City people see little; go to the countryside and walk more. Place names like Wang Village, Li Village, Zhao Village, these names were mostly changed in the fifties.

But ask how many people in the village are really surnamed Wang, Li, or Zhao; if there aren't many left, it's basically that reason.

If you are rich, even if you are farming, it is a mistake; the land in your family was saved by your ancestors, so you are also a landlord.

If there are many surnames left in the village, ask the old people if their ancestors were really surnamed this; the answer will really be different.

In the face of death, changing your surname might be a condition and instinct for survival; ancestors don't provide food.

Zhang moves into Li Village, the whole village is surnamed Li, you are surnamed Zhang, are you looking for bad luck?

You don't have to look far for this situation; just ask around the Four Nine Cities, and there will be some.

Entering December, especially after mid-December, the weather becomes freezing cold.

"Gaga" is not an adjective, but an onomatopoeia; you will make a "ga, ga" sound when you break many things.

Soft things are frozen hard, and hard things are frozen broken.

Li Xuewu is used to wearing a jacket when going to work, and then a woolen overcoat outside; after all, he spends more time in the office and less time going out.

But with the experience of appearing at the scene yesterday, and the fact that this case doesn't look like it can be solved in a day or two, he hurriedly found his cotton overcoat when he went out.

Han Jiankun is also a fool who looks at the neighbor during the New Year; seeing Li Xuewu preparing a cotton overcoat, he also found one here.

The warehouse on the basement level must be explained clearly; Li Xuewu absolutely cannot compare to this couple who knows more, because the things were all organized and stored by them.

Li Xuewu was busy in the factory for a while on the 16th, and also reported the situation of assisting in the investigation to Li Huai De.

Li Huai De supports it, but also requires Li Xuewu not to put down the work in the factory.

The guarantee Li Xuewu gave was that he would absolutely not delay the work here, and it would be based on the work in the factory.

Human favors, Li Huai De understands; who owes whom is already unclear. Everyone is mixing in this circle of the East City, looking down and seeing each other, so this matter cannot be blocked.

Coming out of the factory, he rushed to the garrison of the Third Regiment to hold a meeting, and also processed some documents.

Before he could finish, the phone call from the branch bureau chased him.

Li Xuewu knows the investigation of the case too well; as long as it is in his hands, there is no time to be idle.

He is now leading two salaries, so he must coordinate well with the two units, otherwise, this belongs to doing private work.

Zheng Fuhua also said yesterday that this was agreed by the ministry, and there should be a coordination letter coming down after determining the case later.

If the investigation time is long, there should be subsidies, and there should be personnel letters; no one can ask for leave at will.

When Li Xuewu received the call and rushed to the branch bureau, the conference room here was already waiting.

Case analysis meeting, first re-determined the investigation group organization of the case, that is, Zheng Fuhua in charge, Lai Shanchuan in charge of handling, and newly added Li Xuewu responsible for assisting in handling.

Behind Li Xuewu's assisting in handling was a parenthesis, the content is interrogation and guidance.

The meaning is very clear; he is not the person in charge of handling, and his working hours have the characteristic of being flexible and adjustable.

Everyone was waiting for him at this meeting today, which can explain the problem very well.

Of course, don't think it's very awesome; this is a very normal phenomenon in work, and it's not a good thing for Li Xuewu.

Valuing you so much, respecting you so much, if there is no real skill shown, no real results expressed, then without others saying it, you yourself will have no face.

"The conclusion given by the forensic doctor."

An office worker helped Li Xuewu organize the materials and handed them to his hand; Lai Shanchuan, who presided over the seminar, introduced: "Zhang Shuqin should have died two months ago, very likely on the 29th."

Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows slightly, continuing to look at the materials in his hand; he didn't understand the argument content in front, but the conclusion was very vague.

After all, the time is too long, two months, and it is a season with large climate changes; more precise time can no longer be determined.

"Talk about the reasons."

Zheng Fuhua raised his hand, signaled Lai Shanchuan to speak, and said: "At the same time, talk about the situation of the deceased."

"Okay."

Lai Shanchuan opened the notebook in his hand, looked at Zheng Fuhua and reported: "According to the investigation results, Zhang Shuqin left with a colleague after picking up the money; this point can be proven by someone at the credit cooperative."

"And Zhang Shuqin's colleague confirmed that the two separated on the road in front of the Wangfujing Mall."

He reported to here, looked at the notes in his hand, and opened his mouth to speak again: "The investigation of her Supply and Marketing Cooperative colleague shows that she has shopping receipts in the mall."

"There is a witness, right?"

Zheng Fuhua tapped the table, which was a reminder to himself, and also a reminder to Li Xuewu.

"I remember it was handled as a theft case at the time, and relevant personnel had to be investigated."

"Yes, there is a witness in the mall."

Lai Shanchuan confirmed: "According to the investigation results of the visits at the time, she even talked to the salesperson about being a salesperson herself because of the price when buying leather shoes; this point is very clear."

"Although the salesperson's transcript and relevant counter receipts show that she was buying goods alone, it cannot prove when the two separated."

"So we must first determine whether the salesperson at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative lied!"

Zheng Fuhua tapped the table with his fingers, his gaze looked at Li Xuewu, and said: "In a while, we will see your psychology technology."

"Psychology is not omnipotent, and it is not a lie detector either."

Li Xuewu smiled helplessly and said: "Comprehensive judgment; Division Chief Lai, continue."

"I am also suspicious."

Lai Shanchuan frowned and said: "I was thinking before if I could find some clues from her."

Speaking of this, he shook his head again and said: "Now that the corpse appeared in Jin Yuchi, unless she participated in group crime, otherwise there is absolutely no time to commit the crime alone."

One side was saying, one side was showing the investigation materials and said: "We have done experiments and comparative investigations; the two separated at 2:11 PM, and the counter salesperson gave the approximate meeting time as around 2:30 PM."

"According to the time consumed by the purchase receipts, and the time she met acquaintances when she returned home, there is absolutely no time to commit the crime."

"This is our experimental result."

Lai Shanchuan pushed a document to Li Xuewu's front, signaling him to take a look.

"From the credit cooperative to Wangfujing Mall is 2.6 kilometers, cycling takes fifteen to eighteen minutes."

"Assuming the two separated at Wangfujing, then the time Zhang Shuqin took to Jin Yuchi and home if she cycled alone is exactly half."

"The distance from Wangfujing Mall to Jin Yuchi is basically a branch line, 2.3 kilometers, fourteen or fifteen minutes to get there."

"And the distance from Wangfujing Mall to the deceased's home in Qian'er Hutong is about 5.5 kilometers, cycling takes about half an hour."

"The very special thing is here."

Lai Shanchuan stared and said: "According to the nearest cycling distance, that is, Zhang Shuqin's daily commuting trajectory, she only needs to walk a few steps to Jin Yuchi at the turning point of Zhushikou East Street."

"Now I don't understand; she took the money and said she went shopping with her colleague, which is understandable."

"Now that it involves 50,000 yuan in fraud, she still has to take her colleague with her; this is exactly the reason why we suspect she absconded with money."

"But now she died in Jin Yuchi; what did she go to Jin Yuchi for?!"

"If she wanted to take the train to leave, then she cycled too far!"

"Hmm, this is a key point."

Zheng Fuhua frowned and nodded: "If we follow this conjecture to investigate, then from the time she acted alone after separating from Wangfujing, was she alive or dead during this distance?"

The system and management of this era have defects; on one hand, there is no electronic office, no traces can be traced, and on the other hand, there is no surveillance to investigate by head count.

So there will be what is shown in the case file: the accountant and cashier of the credit cooperative are the same person, and the cashier of the Supply and Marketing Cooperative can take the public money and go shopping alone.

Li Xuewu specifically considered whether anyone would take advantage of the loopholes here, so he looked at the environmental investigation data in the case file very carefully.

Especially the key point of this case, where did that 50,000 yuan disappear to?

The investigation of the credit cooperative's management environment shows that the establishment and system of the credit cooperative are mainly divided into two stages.

The first stage is from the early days of liberation to 1958; this period is the period of universal establishment and great development of credit cooperatives.

At that time, according to the instructions of the organization above to promote the cooperative policy, "three major cooperatives" were promoted in the vast rural areas, namely: production cooperatives, supply and marketing cooperatives, and credit cooperatives.

Although the credit cooperatives at that time were developed from small-scale peasant economy and the scale was relatively small, and the management level was low, the development of our country's credit cooperative cause started from here.

The second stage is from 1958 to the present; this period is the period of management twists and turns and adjustment of credit cooperatives.

At this time, the entire national economic system has changed under the influence of special guidelines and special policies.

Especially the credit cooperative cause bore the brunt, and the changes were the greatest.

Especially this year, the port management of rural credit cooperatives has been handed over to the commune and brigade, and the management in terms of authority and personnel system is very irregular.

Because they are in the same cooperative system, a part of the goods and funds of the Supply and Marketing Cooperative is stored and managed in the credit cooperative.

Li Xuewu looked at the management loopholes in the data, feeling both tangled and fucking helpless.

Don't be very surprised; many management systems in this era are irregular, all relying on self-consciousness and moral quality to constrain.

You don't even say, except for individual special cases, this kind of moral constraint is quite high, even higher than the law.

You look at the management model of later generations and you will understand; why is it said that a pile of seemingly stupid operating systems were summarized from bloody lessons? In fact, it is determined by the backward system specification formulation model.

Only after something happens do you know how to plug the loopholes; the loss is not big, and the plugging is not comprehensive, as if deliberately leaving a gap here for those smart people to commit crimes.

You just say whether the accountant and cashier can be the same person, whether the cashier can take public money out to go shopping; this problem was not learned until the end of the nineties.

After Lai Shanchuan finished reporting, Li Xuewu closed the materials in his hand, looked at Lai Shanchuan and asked: "Did you find the deceased's bicycle?"

"What?"

Lai Shanchuan was stunned by his question, then looked at the person in charge of the criminal investigation section sitting on the side of the table.

"Searched, when looking for Zhang Shuqin at the time of the case, I investigated how the deceased disappeared, and paid attention to the bicycle."

The person in charge of the criminal investigation section frowned and said: "But nothing was found, as if it disappeared with the deceased."

"At the time, we were also thinking, was it discarded along the way, or hidden somewhere?"

He said with some doubt: "Since the corpse was discovered yesterday, we have also been considering this problem, is it in Jin Yuchi?"

"Any results?"

Zheng Fuhua raised his eyebrows slightly and said: "Did you leave someone at Jin Yuchi yesterday?"

"Yes, there is someone on duty."

The person in charge of the security group nodded and took the conversation: "We have arranged for people to monitor, and someone did secretly get on the ice last night, but nothing was found."

"Don't be careless."

Zheng Fuhua frowned slightly and said: "Be prepared for secondary concealment; this situation is possible."

"That is, if clues are found, worry about being monitored, and mark and hide them."

Lai Shanchuan explained to the person in charge of the security group: "Director Zheng's meaning is to ensure the supervision of their suspicious behavior on the basis of not alerting the enemy."

"This..."

The person in charge of the security group hesitated and said: "Daytime is okay to say, but when it gets to the night, you can't see clearly when there is moonlight."

"If you catch up with no moonlight, you can only rely on manpower to control and supervise; there is no other way."

"No, someone is monitoring, this move won't work."

Zheng Fuhua frowned and tapped the table, placing his gaze on Li Xuewu.

Li Xuewu was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said: "It's so close to the Third Regiment garrison here; it's a matter of a phone call for you."

"I make a phone call, where is it as convenient as finding you directly?"

Zheng Fuhua pointed at Li Xuewu to the person in charge of the security group and signaled: "Borrow an infrared night vision device from Team Leader Li; that thing might be useful."

"Team Leader Li..."

The person in charge of the security group stood up to salute Li Xuewu, but was stopped by the other party raising his hand.

Li Xuewu waved his hand to signal him to sit down and talk, nodded, and said: "After the meeting, I will make a phone call, and you go get it."

"I've used that thing; good guy, the battery alone is 29 jin, it's tiring to carry."

"It's like a searchlight when installed on a gun; we all take it off to use. Large targets like tanks can be seen from one kilometer away."

Li Xuewu explained to the other party: "If you want to shine on people, three hundred meters is the limit; I estimate that close-range monitoring is needed, about one hundred meters is appropriate."

"Having it is better than not having it!"

The person in charge of the security group grinned and said: "This 'night vision eye' is always more useful than our eyes; at worst, we'll dig a pit and drill into it to monitor, it's just a bit cold."

"Think of a way, overcome it."

Lai Shanchuan nodded and said: "Let's do this for now, and see the specific situation later."

The infrared night vision device mentioned by Zheng Fuhua and Li Xuewu is not high-tech; the Germans were using it during the Second World War.

What we are using now is imitated from the war trophies captured during the anti-aid period, and it was successfully developed by the Jicheng Optical Machine Institute in 1958.

Li Xuewu's role was reflected for the first time in the case; although it was not a key node, it still brought respect to his eyes from the crowd.

"Talk about the case."

Zheng Fuhua asked Li Xuewu: "What do you think?"

"I still think there are many suspicious points."

Li Xuewu shook his head slightly and said: "From the current materials and results, Zhang Shuqin's murder is certain, and the inducement is very likely this money."

"The murderer is very likely to have taken her identity proof and written letters in various places to confuse your vision."

"The reason, well, it's very simple."

Li Xuewu looked at Lai Shanchuan and said: "Because you found her social relations, it might have touched the first fuse of this case."

"It's... premeditated murder..."

Lai Shanchuan was startled, then thought about it and seemed to be the case; they had always been judging it as a crime of passion.

It's very simple; from the current perspective, it is very likely a robbery and murder case.

But if you follow Li Xuewu's train of thought to investigate, it becomes a premeditated murder case.

The difference between the two is too big; it's not an investigation train of thought at all.

"I am also assuming and analyzing."

Li Xuewu saw the surprise of Lai Shanchuan and others and explained: "First of all, Zhang Shuqin should not have been prepared to abscond with money; you should be clear about this point."

"Yes, I was suspicious before."

Lai Shanchuan nodded and said: "At first, we suspected that Zhang Shuqin had defrauded and absconded, but we couldn't find her departure channel and traces."

"Later, we suspected that Zhang Shuqin might have had an accident; either she was killed by an accomplice, or she was killed by someone who saw money and became greedy."

"But the appearance of that letter disturbed our vision and train of thought, plus the pressure... and we returned to the origin, pursuing the fraud and absconding case."

"Hmm, now thinking about it, there is indeed a problem."

He frowned and thought, nodding and saying: "Zhang Shuqin didn't tell her husband, and didn't even pack the valuables at home, and even her documents were at home; it really doesn't make sense."

"Also, according to this investigation, even if the motive for shopping with public money is normal."

Li Xuewu pointed to the file and reminded: "Her sudden move to leave with her colleague in front of the mall has problems and doubts; have you investigated it?"

"Yes."

The person in charge of the criminal investigation section opened his mouth and said: "We asked the deceased's colleague; she left by bicycle, and didn't linger in front of the mall."

"That's strange, where did she go?"

Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and said: "She clearly knew she was holding public money, and was holding the money from fraud; what was she going to do?"

"According to normal thinking."

Lai Shanchuan pointed to his head and said: "She should have taken the money and flown far away; since she called her colleague to come over, she should have transferred this danger to the other party."

"I think so too."

Li Xuewu frowned and said: "All clues show that there are many problems; a premeditated fraudster couldn't possibly not prepare a way out for herself."

"So, there are three directions now."

Li Xuewu looked at Zheng Fuhua and said: "One is to determine whether Zhang Shuqin really defrauded, whether this money was taken by her, and who else came into contact with this money."

"The second is to investigate Zhang Shuqin's social relations, including her lover, to see if there is an accomplice assisting, crossing the river and tearing down the bridge to kill."

"The third is to investigate her cause of death, trace her personal items and bicycle, trace the murderer's means and habits of committing the crime."

"Also, investigate the murder weapon and the first crime scene to see if there was a robbery; this point cannot be careless."

"Yes!"

Lai Shanchuan added: "Check whether the deceased had the motive for fraud, and what she wanted to do with this money; it is absolutely not going to Hong Kong!"

"If we exclude crimes of passion, have an accomplice as a way out, worry about the plan being exposed, not take documents, and maintain normal life and work habits, it is also possible."

"It might not even be death on the 29th; if that's the case, this case will be a big trouble."

"Hmm."

Zheng Fuhua nodded and said: "It makes sense; the third point, although the possibility is very small, cannot be careless."

"Then investigate; investigate her social relations, investigate the payment handover and receipts of the credit cooperative, investigate the death factors."

"Like this."

He pointed to Li Xuewu's direction and instructed Lai Shanchuan: "For all those involving re-investigation of transcripts, please ask Team Leader Li to help look at them and keep an eye on them."

"Okay, no problem."

Lai Shanchuan, because the case analysis was very successful and he had new investigation directions, also raised his spirit.

"In a while, I will re-interrogate Yu Lanfang, and also call the relevant personnel involved in the Supply and Marketing Cooperative and Credit Cooperative to do an investigation; just ask Team Leader Li to help."

"Then let's do it; divide into several groups and start acting."

Zheng Fuhua closed the notebook in front of him, raised his hand to look at the time, and said to Li Xuewu: "Work must be done, but lunch must also be eaten."

After finishing, he smiled at Lai Shanchuan and said: "Team Leader Li doesn't like the craftsmanship of our kitchen master; tell Master Zhang to make a few more hard dishes."

"Forget it, forget it, eat whatever there is."

Li Xuewu waved his hand to stop Lai Shanchuan, turned to Zheng Fuhua and said: "It's been a long time since I ate food with a gasoline taste; I miss it."

"Hahahaha~"

Lai Shanchuan and others laughed loudly and said: "Branch bureau specialty dish, you're welcome to come again, so our restaurant is called 'Good Come Again'."

"..."

Li Xuewu twitched his mouth when he heard his explanation and said: "It's a waste of this good name."

"Why are you here?"

After eating lunch, Li Xuewu first followed Lai Shanchuan to re-inquire about Yu Lanfang.

He was also seeing the direct person involved in this case for the first time.

Yu Lanfang, opera actor, pillar of the drama troupe, old student role.

According to Lai Shanchuan's introduction, this Yu Lanfang is not an ordinary character; he is the adopted son of Qin Qin Jingju master Mr. Ma, a high student of Mr. Tan, and specially pointed out by Mr. Li.

So when they met, Li Xuewu saw that the other party didn't receive any care.

Qin Qin Jingju masters

Masters aren't worth much anymore, so a top student is worth even less, especially when it involves a fraud case.

Of course, if you're talking about physical suffering, that's basically unlikely; even if they started on the project earlier, they wouldn't go too far.

But looking at this person's mental state, it's certainly not very good; he must have suffered quite a bit, as professional interrogation intensity is very damaging to the spirit.

However, judging by his sitting posture and manner of speaking, this person is also an educated one; his speech is clear and logical, and his expression is slightly melancholy, yet still calm.

Only when Lai Shanchuan informed him about the situation of his wife, Zhang Shuqin, did he lose control of his emotions.

But Li Xuewu did not discover any suspicious points, even though his status as a psychology master was, well, fake.

Not finding suspicious points doesn't mean he has no problems; actors are experts at hiding their emotions and inner fluctuations, and Li Xuewu doesn't trust anyone.

So he cried his tears, and neither of them was delayed by it; they continued to ask questions.

When they came out of the interrogation room, Lai Shanchuan could see Li Xuewu's frowning expression and knew he hadn't gained anything either, so he could only continue to question the others.

Just as he stepped into the office, Li Xuewu saw Lin Tingting sitting in a chair, which was the reason for his earlier surprise.

Lin Tingting was sitting there in a daze; hearing someone enter the room, she looked toward this side, and upon seeing Li Xuewu, she also widened her eyes in surprise.

Lai Shanchuan also looked at her in surprise, then looked at Li Xuewu, and asked: "You know this person too?"

He asked this and added the word "too" because Li Xuewu also knew the person who discovered the body yesterday; this Four Nine City is truly too small.

"Yes, that... Section Chief Lai."

Li Xuewu twitched the corner of his mouth, turned his back to Lai Shanchuan, and said: "I'm afraid I have to recuse myself from this case."

"Why?"

Lai Shanchuan raised his eyebrows, gestured toward the woman sitting in the room, and asked softly: "Your relative?"

"We used to date."

Li Xuewu is a grown man, and his relationship with Lai Shanchuan is professional; there's nothing embarrassing about saying this.

Especially when it involves a case, one must not be ambiguous when it's time to apply for recusal, otherwise, if problems arise, you'll end up implicated yourself.

He is here to help, not to be a scapegoat; who knows how many people this case will implicate.

If he draws the focus of the investigation onto himself, even if there's nothing wrong, he wouldn't be willing.

Seeing Li Xuewu about to leave, Lai Shanchuan grabbed him and said: "Don't give me that; as long as she's not your wife or your relative, it has nothing to do with recusal!"

As he spoke, he pulled Li Xuewu into the room and said: "This case has finally shown a glimmer of light; if I let you go, Director Zheng would surely scold me to death!"

"It's not about that."

Li Xuewu waved his hand and said: "I really didn't know she was involved in the case; if I had known, I would have long ago..."

"It's useless; I'm the lead on this case."

Lai Shanchuan isn't stupid; so what if there was a romantic relationship? He doesn't believe Li Xuewu would pervert the law for such a connection.

If he were really using his connections to help the other party, he wouldn't have come to handle this case in person.

Besides, this woman is only a suspect, and a very, very minor one at that; if her background check hadn't been unqualified, she wouldn't be sitting here.

"I'll go talk to Director Zheng about this later; you just stay and help me with the case, you're not allowed to go anywhere."

Just as he said earlier, Li Xuewu is a man of great wisdom; now that the case has finally made some progress, how could he let him run off?

As he spoke, he pressed Li Xuewu into a chair and said to the stunned Lin Tingting: "Since you and Team Leader Li are old acquaintances, our conversation will be much simpler."

"You should help us investigate the case as clearly as possible and tell us everything you know about the relevant issues."

Lai Shanchuan sat beside Li Xuewu and gestured to Lin Tingting: "Team Leader Li is right here; he is an investigation expert we invited. Helping me, helping him, is also helping yourself."

"I..."

Lin Tingting shifted her gaze from Li Xuewu to Lai Shanchuan and said: "I've already said everything I know; haven't the questions about me all been investigated clearly?"

"There's a new development."

Lai Shanchuan raised his eyebrows and said: "Zhang Shuqin is dead."

"What?!"

Li Xuewu could clearly see Lin Tingting's surprise; her expression at this moment did not seem fake.

"How... how could... how could this happen..."

"That is the situation."

Lai Shanchuan pursed his lips with some regret and said: "Our two months of work were in vain."

"She died two months ago, infinitely close to the day of the incident, which is to say, after the last time you saw her."

"The last time..."

The purpose of Lai Shanchuan's words was to bring her back to that point in time and re-examine whether she had missed any key details.

Lin Tingting fidgeted with her fingers, frowning in thought; the news of Zhang Shuqin's death brought her great pain.

In her heart, she wasn't just thinking about what happened during that last meeting, but also wondering how Zhang Shuqin ended up dead.

For the past few months, Zhang Shuqin's fraud and absconding with funds had seemed like a settled matter, and the questions regarding her had also been cleared up.

She hadn't expected the matter to have another twist; the fraud case had become an absconding case, and now it had become a murder case.

"Tell us the sequence of events again."

Li Xuewu saw that she couldn't figure it out, her forehead covered in sweat, so he tapped the table to remind her to follow the clues and start from the beginning.

Lin Tingting looked up at Li Xuewu and nodded: "That day I only had a half-day shift; I mentioned on the spur of the moment that I wanted to go to Wangfujing to find that pair of leather shoes I liked..."

The situation was simple; she wasn't Zhang Shuqin's partner in withdrawing money, and the day's actions had no work-related connection to the money.

No wonder Li Xuewu grimaced while reading the environmental investigation materials while holding a meeting upstairs; a cashier can execute withdrawal operations alone.

The two of them ate lunch at the supply and marketing cooperative, then rode their bikes together to the credit union; she waited outside while Zhang Shuqin withdrew the money, and then they rode together toward Wangfujing.

Lin Tingting recalled carefully, saying that both of them had reached the entrance of Wangfujing, but Zhang Shuqin suddenly stopped her and said she had something to do and needed to leave.

They had originally agreed to finish shopping at the mall together and go back together; Lin Tingting's home was near the supply and marketing cooperative, so it was all on the way.

But she didn't pay attention to Zhang Shuqin's sudden departure, assuming the other party was going back to the unit, so she went to shop at the mall by herself without even asking.

"That's all I know."

Lin Tingting looked at Li Xuewu and Lai Shanchuan, her voice trembling as she said: "This matter really has nothing to do with me."

"I'll ask, you answer."

Li Xuewu looked into her eyes and tapped his finger, reminding her to look at him.

"Okay."

Lin Tingting looked at this familiar yet somewhat strange face, her heart filled with mixed feelings.

Out of trust in Li Xuewu, she forced herself to calm her emotions and listened to his questions.

"How did you determine the time you parted ways with Zhang Shuqin?"

Li Xuewu tapped the investigation materials in the case file and asked: "This says it was precise to the minute."

"My watch, I have a watch."

Lin Tingting hesitated for a moment, then lowered her head, rolled up her sleeve, and revealed the watch inside.

Li Xuewu glanced at it and nodded; he still remembered this watch, as it was the wedding gift he had given her.

At that time, he didn't have a watch coupon, so it was Old Biaozi who helped find it.

Things have changed and people have changed; she is still the same person, but there is a table between them, and this table is very, very wide...