Chapter 141

As soon as Shi Tingyu finished her new portrait, a police officer stepped forward to take a look. His breath caught as he recognized the face.

With a grim expression, he said, “Isn’t this Wang Laizi from Wanghe Village?”

This young officer had accompanied Xie Lin on the previous visit and knew the villagers well.

Seeing that the officer recognized him, Shi Tingyu knew that Wang Laizi was most likely the culprit.

The officer quickly retrieved the records from the initial investigation.

During the initial screening, they focused on tall men with big eyes but did not overlook others, especially idle men.

When asked for an alibi, Wang Laizi’s mother vouched for him.

Although a relative’s testimony is weak evidence, it was better than having no alibi, which many others lacked.

After all, it was early morning, almost dawn, and since it was still New Year, there wasn’t much work, so most people were still asleep. Hence, many didn’t have alibis.

Their primary targets were tall men, and while Wang Laizi might be considered tall in the south, he wasn’t in their area.

Moreover, his eyes weren’t big, but they had a lot of whites.

This matched the eyes in Shi Tingyu’s drawing perfectly.

With a clear suspect, the police quickly went to Wanghe Village to inform their colleagues to make an arrest.

Shi Tingyu and Lu Weiguo followed them.

Lu Weiguo borrowed a police bicycle to carry Shi Tingyu, while the other officers rode their own bicycles.

When they arrived in Wanghe Village, it was in an uproar.

In the midst of the commotion, an old lady was wailing and crying.

“There’s no justice! The police dog bit someone!”

“If you don’t give me an explanation, I’ll go to the capital to sue you!”

“Pay up! You must compensate!”

As she spoke, the old lady sitting on the ground slapped her hands, kicking up a cloud of dust.

In the center of the crowd, Lu Weibing was struggling to hold the leash, trying to get the Lijian to release its bite.

Villagers were pointing and talking amongst themselves.

Meanwhile, Xie Lin was staring intently at Wang Laizi’s eyes, not even hearing his colleague calling him.

In his mind, he saw the eyes Shi Tingyu had drawn yesterday.

“What’s going on here?” Lu Weiguo’s voice came from outside the crowd.

As he approached, he heard the Lijian whining and someone shouting that the police dog had bitten someone.

Could the Lijian have bitten someone?

The villagers recognized Lu Weiguo. His distinctive appearance was unforgettable, and they remembered that the dog was his.

When he first came to the village with the police, he was the one who took the dog away.

A kind old man told him, “Your dog bit someone and won’t let go. This is serious. Be prepared to pay up.”

Wang Laizi was notorious in the village, and his mother was known for causing trouble. If her son was bitten by a dog, she wouldn’t let it go easily.

Hearing someone say the dog owner had arrived, the crowd made way for Lu Weiguo and his group.

Lu Weiguo walked over first, followed by Shi Tingyu and the young officer.

Seeing the person the Lijian had bitten, the three of them felt a sense of resolution.

If Shi Tingyu’s drawing had led them to Wang Laizi, then the Lijian’s refusal to let go confirmed their suspicion.

Wang Laizi must be the culprit.

The Lijian, seeing Lu Weiguo and Shi Tingyu approach, wagged its tail happily but didn’t let go of Wang Laizi’s arm. Its previously dull eyes now shone with a different light.

It bit Wang Laizi’s arm firmly, trying to drag him towards Shi Tingyu.

The message was clear—it had caught the person!

The scene was full of pride and satisfaction, as the Lijian’s previous disgrace was avenged.

Wearing a thick cotton jacket, Wang Laizi didn’t feel much pain from the Lijian’s bite, but the sudden pull made him feel a twinge of pain, causing him to struggle.

Old Lady Wang started another round of wailing.

This time, she shifted her target.

Letting go of Lu Weibing’s pants leg, she reached out to grab Shi Tingyu.

She knew that Lu Weiguo and Shi Tingyu were a couple and that the dog belonged to them. However, she thought Lu Weiguo looked formidable and aimed to grab Shi Tingyu’s pants instead.

She couldn’t let the person with the money escape.

But before she could touch Shi Tingyu, Lu Weiguo pulled her away, avoiding the old lady’s grasp.

Old Lady Wang missed.

Seeing the old lady trying to grab its owner, the Lijian’s protective instinct kicked in, making it let go of Wang Laizi and turn to bite the old lady’s outstretched hand.

Shi Tingyu quickly shouted, “Lijian, stop!”

The Lijian, already charging at the old lady, stopped reflexively, causing Lu Weibing to almost fall due to the sudden slack.

Seeing the Lijian stop, Shi Tingyu sighed in relief. The Lijian biting Wang Laizi could be justified as catching a suspect—a public duty. However, if it bit the old lady, given her behavior, she wouldn’t let it go easily.

They could handle it, but dealing with such a troublesome person would be exhausting.

With the Lijian finally releasing its bite, Lu Weibing firmly grabbed the leash this time.

The young officer who had come with Lu Weiguo whispered to Xie Lin about Shi Tingyu’s portrait identifying Wang Laizi.

Xie Lin, already suspicious of Wang Laizi due to the Lijian’s reaction, had his doubts confirmed by the young officer’s words.

Nodding, Xie Lin exchanged a look with the young officer, and the next moment, they both moved to subdue Wang Laizi.

It all happened in an instant. The surrounding people were still unsure of what was happening when they saw the two officers arresting Wang Laizi.

Those quick to understand guessed that the matter with Liu Zhiqing was likely related to Wang Laizi.

No wonder the military dog bit him and no one else.

Seeing her son being arrested, Old Lady Wang panicked. She didn’t know what her son had done.

When the police had questioned her before, she claimed she was up early making breakfast and saw her son sleeping.

She had lied to keep her son from being implicated.

Her son’s reputation in the brigade wasn’t good, and she feared others would suspect him in connection with the deceased educated youth.

“What are you doing? Why are you arresting my son?!”

The old lady scrambled up to confront them, but other officers stopped her.

Lu Weibing, now realizing what was happening, looked in disbelief at the Lijian’s proud face.

He found it strange; the Lijian had always been obedient. Everything was fine until it suddenly bit Wang Laizi during a routine inquiry.

It wouldn’t let go despite his efforts to pull it away.

So, they had found the real culprit.

Thinking this, he patted the Lijian’s head and sincerely praised it, “Well done, Lijian!”