Chapter 10
Visiting

Li Ji looked at Xie Qing, who nodded, signaling him to speak.

Li Ke straightforwardly said, “Captain, we came up with three lists, but the basis for each isn’t very reliable.”

Captain Huang said, “Alright, let’s hear them. I can learn something, too.”

Li Ke held up an A4 paper and pointed to a name marked with two stars, “This person often works around Wangjiang Community and occasionally goes to Qingjiang Park. He’s 35 years old, fitting the profile of a serial killer. Some drivers say he has a bad temper and gets angry easily. I don’t think he’s necessarily a killer, but he should be questioned.”

Huang Zhenyi rubbed his chin, “Good. Li Ji, what do you think?”

Li Ji, who had been working for over a year and was more tactful than Li Ke, said, “Captain, I selected a few suspects based on the analysis from Brother Du and Brother Liu. I also chose the one Li Ke mentioned, inspired by the old town case where the killer’s violent temper led to multiple stabbings.”

He added to Li Ke’s explanation.

“Not bad,” Huang Zhenyi said with a smile. “What about you, Xiao Xie?”

Xie Qing felt a bit stuck. The two of them had given such perfunctory answers. How could she give a detailed analysis?

She said, “Captain Huang, I’m just joining in the fun, making random guesses.”

Huang Zhenyi pointed at her with his index finger, “You, young lady, are quite clever. They brought you in because you have more ideas than they do. Go ahead!”

The two nodded in agreement.

Li Ke said, “Exactly, we can learn from you.”

Xie Qing thought, “Alright, I’m a forensic doctor, and you’re detectives. Our career paths are different, so I’ll just say it.”

She explained her analysis and concluded, “Captain Huang, my thoughts are too subjective, not much different from random guesses. Just take it as expanding your thinking.”

Huang Zhenyi sat down, rubbing his chin, which hadn’t been shaved for two days, making a “shush” sound with each stroke.

Li Ji and Li Ke looked at him expectantly, hoping for clear instructions.

After a minute or two, Huang Zhenyi said, “Rationally, Xiao Xie’s method seems risky, but it makes some sense psychologically. We can give it a try.” He tapped the table lightly. “I’ll ask Old Li and Old Liu to help you investigate these seven people.”

Assigning four people, including two veteran detectives, was quite generous but could easily cause resentment among the veterans.

Xie Qing quickly said, “Captain Huang, why don’t I talk to my mentor and let the three of us handle it? It’s only seven people, not much work.”

“You three?” Huang Zhenyi shook his head. “No, no.”

Li Ji understood Xie Qing and said, “Don’t worry, Captain. We won’t alert the suspects.”

Li Ke nodded emphatically, “Don’t worry, Captain!”

Huang Zhenyi, a shrewd man, understood their intentions. He clicked his tongue, “Alright, but be careful. If anything goes wrong, I’ll hold you responsible.”

He warned Li Ji and went to his office.

Li Ji flexed his muscles and whispered, “Great, this case might depend on us.”

Li Ke jumped lightly, “I have the same feeling.”

Xie Qing sighed, “Where do you get this confidence?”

“From you, of course,” Li Ke hugged her arm. “Didn’t you see Captain Huang agreed to investigate based on your list?”

Xie Qing said seriously, “Confidence is good, but be prepared for no results.”

“Alright, don’t worry,” Li Ke pulled her outside. “Actually, I think your analysis is less reliable than ours.”

Li Ji laughed, and although he didn’t agree, his attitude was clear.

Xie Qing felt relieved but also a bit defiant—she was a forensic doctor and rarely did profiling, but her profiles were usually accurate.

…

The police station was in Fengshan District, and the old town, also known as Feng’an District, was to the northwest. It was too far to bike, so the three took a bus.

Li Ji, familiar with the old town, planned the route. They visited the neighborhood committees and seven households, finishing by 5 PM.

Among the seven people, three had living parents. They didn’t list their parents as emergency contacts because their parents’ homes had no phones, so they used neighbors’ or siblings’ contacts.

After gathering information, four suspects remained: Meng Wenkai, Zhao Weizhi, Sun Zhifeng, and Fan Xiaoshan.

Combining the old town case with the Huang Qi case wasn’t absolute, and narrowing it down from over a hundred people was already a stretch.

Now, with only four suspects left, finding the killer among them seemed like a stroke of luck.

As a result, Xie Qing faced merciless teasing from Li Ke and Li Ji.

Xie Qing wasn’t angry. She wasn’t a deity or Sherlock Holmes, and she hadn’t seen the crime scenes. She never expected to solve cases just by looking at files and profiling.

Generally, taxi drivers change shifts near their homes, so two drivers likely lived in the same district, not far apart.

Since they were already there, they decided to do everything they could and headed to one of the drivers’ homes.

The driver, surnamed Chang, lived in Jiazi Alley. Meng Wenkai drove the night shift and usually changed shifts at the alley entrance.

They were lucky. Before reaching Jiazi Alley, they saw a red Xiali car approaching. The license plate matched Meng Wenkai’s car.

Xie Qing said, “Li Ji, are you going home? If not, we’ll take a taxi back.”

Li Ji hesitated.

Li Ke said, “You’re not Yu the Great, no need to avoid home. Go home, and we’ll talk to him.”

Li Ji said, “Alright, I’ll have dinner with my parents. Call me if you need anything.”

Li Ke waved at the taxi, “Of course, we’ll call you.”

Li Ji left, and the taxi stopped. The window rolled down, revealing a smiling face, “Where to, ladies?”

Li Ke hesitated and looked at Xie Qing—she wasn’t sure if they should reveal their identities.

Xie Qing opened the front passenger door, “Police station.”

Meng Wenkai didn’t react to the words ‘police station,’ “Which one?”

Xie Qing said, “Fengshan District Bureau.”

“Wow, big job,” Meng Wenkai’s admiring gaze fell on Xie Qing’s profile. “Miss, what are you going to the bureau for? Everyone’s off work.”

Xie Qing said, “My classmate works there. We’re meeting for barbecuing.”

“Barbecue is best in the old town.”

“He doesn’t get off work on time and doesn’t go home at night. It’s easier to find him.”

“That’s true, but it’s not very safe now. I heard a child was killed recently, and the police suspect a taxi driver. They’re investigating everywhere.”

“We heard too. It’s fine. My classmate will drive us back.”

“That’s good.”

“Driver, do you think someone in your line of work killed the child?”

“Hard to say. There are all kinds of people in this job.”

“Really? Don’t the traffic police manage you?”

“Mainly the traffic bureau. You can’t judge a book by its cover. Bad people don’t have it written on their faces, right?”

They got off at the police station and watched Meng Wenkai disappear into the traffic.

Xie Qing said, “This person is almost certainly not the killer.”

Li Ke didn’t understand, “Why?”

Xie Qing laughed, “Didn’t you notice he kept looking at your chest through the rearview mirror? The killer holds himself in high regard and wouldn’t do something so vulgar.”

Li Ke covered her chest with her hands, angrily saying, “Pervert!”

It was dinner time, so the two of them went to the cafeteria.

Captain Huang was there too. After they got their food, he called out, “Xiao Xie, Xiao Li, there’s a free spot here.”

Reluctantly, Xie Qing and Li Ke sat down.

Captain Huang put down his chopsticks, “So, any progress?”

Li Ke lowered her head, “Still…”

Xie Qing interrupted her, “We’ve visited all seven people we identified and have ruled out four. There are three left. Let me explain the details, and Captain Huang can help us analyze them…”

The first one is Zhao Weizhi, a high school graduate, 26 years old, has a girlfriend, and is unmarried. He has been driving a taxi for six years, working the night shift. His emergency contact is his cousin. His parents died of gas poisoning before his college entrance exams. Zhao Weizhi was boarding at school at the time and escaped the incident, but it affected his exam performance, and he didn’t get into college. The Zhao family wasn’t wealthy, so Zhao Weizhi didn’t retake the exams. Instead, he chose to do odd jobs and learned to drive, eventually becoming a taxi driver. The neighborhood committee said Zhao Weizhi had given them rides a few times and was friendly and cheerful, unlikely to be a bad person.

The second one is Sun Zhifeng, who is 30 years old and a high school graduate. His emergency contact is his neighbor. His parents divorced early, and his mother remarried. He grew up with his father, who had a mild tendency for domestic violence. As an adult, he often fought with his father. He got married last year, and his child just turned one. The neighborhood committee said Sun Zhifeng had a bad temper, often arguing with people while driving and frequently cursing.

The third one is Fan Xiaoshan, a car owner, 29 years old, married two years ago, and has a one-and-a-half-year-old child. His father died early, and his mother raised him and his sister alone. The neighborhood committee said his mother had a bad reputation and was suspected of being a prostitute, while his sister worked at a nightclub. Fan Xiaoshan did well in school and graduated from a technical secondary school. He worked in a factory, but it went bankrupt shortly after he started. His mother borrowed money to buy a taxi, and he worked day and night to pay off the debt, which he managed to do a few years ago.

After listening to Xie Qing’s explanation of the three people, Captain Huang pondered for a moment and said, “They all drive night shifts and have red Xiali cars, but none have a criminal record. Based on this alone, we can’t determine anything.”

“Indeed, we can’t assume someone is a suspect just because they come from a disadvantaged background.”

“Children from such families often have psychological issues, and many end up committing crimes.”

“That’s true, but there are also good ones, right? It’s not fair to label people without evidence.”

The veteran detectives sitting with Huang Zhenyi started discussing.

Huang Zhenyi looked at Li Ke, “What do you think, Xiao Li?”

Li Ke said, “We’ve come this far. If we don’t have more clues, I want to keep investigating.”

At the crucial moment, she chose to trust Xie Qing.

Despite her lack of experience, Xie Qing was pleased.