At 2:30 in the afternoon, the conversation in the coffee shop continued..
Lu Junchi’s three views were refreshed. After listening to Su Hui’s description, he couldn’t respond, he lowered his head in thought.
Su Hui glanced at Lu Junchi, blinked his eyes, and corrected him rigorously: “So, Captain Lu, you used the wrong word just now. The murderer is a pervert, but he is not a lunatic. He is very clear about what he is doing. His thinking is very meticulous, and is very good at concealing himself. The reason why you found different traces in those cars is because he turned those things into lucrative commodities.”
“Commodities?” Lu Junchi frowned and digested the information, “Could it be that Huadu has such an invisible consumer network that specializes in selling these things?”
“In this world, there are people who sell women, children, organs, and even corpses for genital kinship. In places where ordinary people don’t pay attention, there are too many dirty things that go beyond the bottom line. What can’t be sold?” Su Hui paused and said, “As long as there is demand, there will be a market. Although it is unimaginable, some people like these things, and some people provide them. But this kind of hobby also has certain characteristics. Most people who like hands rarely like feet. Therefore, these two products are aimed at different customer groups.”
Lu Junchi reacted and said, “So those cars are…”
Su Hui nodded: “Some people left some evidence and traces on those cars, but those were left by the people who bought them, they are not the murderers. The murderer encountered a problem when selling those stumps, that is his customers didn’t have a fixed, safe place to store their residual limbs, so he thought of using the black market of abandoned cars to solve the customers’ worries. It also made them feel safer, and his business would be better. And the car keys for those scrap cars may have been bought by him from car thieves.”
Lu Junchi’s brows furrowed deeper, but Su Hui’s words explained the strange state in front of him very well.
“If my inference is correct…” Su Hui raised his eyes and looked at him slowly.
Lu Junchi sorted out his thoughts: “The murderer may be selling stumps through a network of underground connections. He sells those stumps to people with special hobbies, and provides scrap cars as their storage rooms and playgrounds, telling them the rules and how to use them. “
Su Hui nodded: “The murderer probably also realized the danger of this storage method. He wanted to isolate the clues from his customers through multiple scrap cars. This plan almost succeeded.”
If it wasn’t for the kids who happened to break the window of one of the junk cars…
Su Hui looked at him, he liked Lu Junchi a little bit, his kind gave him a sense of accomplishment as a teacher.
Lu Junchi continued to understand the logic in Su Hui’s words,”So, the murderer is customizing according to the needs of the customer? Then why did he do such a thing again? Is it for money?”
“No…” Su Hui’s pupils looked a little hazy under the sunlight, but they were very clear, “You can tell from the details of the case and the murderer’s behavior, he is highly educated, he is very smart, he has sufficient time, such a person should not be short of money. He may be using this to contact more monsters like him and weaken his guilt.”
“Moreover, the murderer also has things he likes. He likes to kill. For serial killers, spoils of war can make them relive the process of murdering repeatedly and satisfy their desire for control. He must also like to hoard collections, and then he thought of selling them for profit.However, his collection may be different from these people’s preferences. You haven’t found his totem…”
Hearing this, Lu Junchi remembered what that person had said to him before, that most serial killers would collect some victims’ items as their spoils of war. During the investigation, those items would be used by the police as the totem of the murderer because of their uniqueness. This murderer should be no exception.
After explaining all this, Lu Junchi’s thinking became much clearer.
Under the sun, Su Hui’s face looked pale, his expression was tranquil, and his face was handsome. Seeing such a
*pleasing beauty only made people feel that the world was beautiful, but what came out of his mouth was the darkest in the world. That part was
*extremely disturbing.Show/Hide Note
*(shang xin yue mu) Lit: Warms the heart delights the eye (idiom) – pleasing; delightful
Show/Hide Note
*(jing xin dong po) Lit: shocking one to the core; hair-raising; extremely disturbing
At this time, Qiao Ze came over with his laptop. Several videos could be seen on the computer. In the corner of the video, there was a “woman” with long hair, but she was taller than the average woman. His face was not ugly, even a little feminine and charming, so that he did not look out of sorts when wearing women’s clothes, which is probably the reason why no one had discovered and exposed him.
In the surveillance screen, his eyes kept falling on Tong Xiao.
At that time, Tong Xiao, who was in danger, didn’t notice…
“It is very likely that the murderer is this person. Can we confirm his information through his payment method?” Lu Junchi asked. If the other party made an online payment, then they would be able to find out his identity.
Qiao Ze said regrettably: “It’s all cash…”
“What about facial analysis?”
“The murderer is wearing makeup, and the pixels are not enough, it may be more difficult to find out.”
“Notify the managers of all coffee shops in Huadu, and let them pay attention to whether there are similar customers. If someone goes missing, they should contact the police immediately.” Lu Junchi quickly made a decision, “Call the other two coffee shops and check the surveillance cameras nearby. See if you can find the suspect’s route, or the vehicle.”
Lu Junchi pondered for a while on how else he might be able to find the murderer.
After Su Hui finished his lunch, he stood up and said, “Thank you Captain Lu for your hospitality. I can also help you with a little suggestion.” He paused and said, “I think you can look for it, he visited the coffee shops as a customer and later, the trash was taken out by those coffee shops.”
“Trash?” Qiao Ze lamented.
“Yes, trash can tell us a lot of information, especially the cutlery, paper cups, and food scraps that the murderer had eaten. If you are lucky, there may be his fingerprints and DNA on them.” Looking at Qiao Ze and Lu Junchi, Su Hui went a step further and explained, “Generally, coffee shops will use special garbage bags for their trash. These garbage are sent to the garbage disposal site, and it may not be able to be filled in a few months.”
Qiao Ze frowned, “But with so much garbage, how can we tell which ones were left by the murderer?”
Lu Jun thought for a while and clarified his thoughts: “According to the surveillance footage, it can be seen that the murderer usually arrived at the store in the afternoon when there were few customers. According to the regulations of the cafe, the employees must empty the trash before getting off work, so it is plausible that the trash left by these people must be in the smallest garbage bags. Many guests will throw away the receipt, which can help us determine the date and time.”
On the surveillance footage, they could see what the murderer bought. He had been there several times, and they could collect the trash of the corresponding dates for comparison.
“The Captain is still smart!” Qiao Ze was excited, “Thank you, Teacher Su…”
Lu Junchi also thanked Su Hui, this method was meticulous workmanship, although it was a bit troublesome, but it was theoretically feasible. In addition to hard work, it also required a little luck. Maybe the fingerprints and information of the murderer could be found soon, or it may take a long time to investigate.
Fortunately, the murderer’s crimes and behavior had begun to progressively go from indistinct to clear.
A policeman came over to report to Lu Junchi. By the time he had dealt with the problem, Su Hui had already left the restaurant and crossed the street ahead.
It was only then that Lu Junchi remembered that he forgot to ask for Su Hui’s WeChat.
Five days after the discovery of the stump, the case finally made a breakthrough.
In the early hours of the morning, the police officers in charge of stake out caught a sneaky man next to the third group of junk cars.
After verification, they quickly confirmed that the person had left fingerprints in the junk car.
When Lu Junchi arrived at the General Bureau that morning, the man had already been locked in the interrogation room and the interrogation started.
When he walked into the observation room, Zheng Bo and Qiao Ze were inside questioning.
Seeing Lu Junchi arrive, Xia Mingxi, a female criminal police officer of the Major Crimes Unit in charge of the record, handed over the relevant information.
Lu Junchi’s eyes swept across the form. This man’s name is Zhan Xingrong, a small boss who handled interior decoration materials. He was 32 years old and had a higher education. He looked like a healthy little fat man. If it weren’t for solid evidence, it would be difficult for people to connect the man in front of him with this cruel case, let alone with those strange hobbies.
“…I’m really innocent, and I’m also curious… Besides, when I bought it, I didn’t know whether it was from a dead person or a living person. I have nothing to do with this murderer.”
Qiao Ze sneered and pierced him: “Mr. Zhan, when you went there last night, weren’t you trying your luck and wanting to get your things back?”
“I…” Zhan Xingrong was stunned for a while, he wiped the corners of his eyes, “I’m like this, I don’t break the law ba…”
“When you made that transaction, you’d already committed a crime.” Zheng Bai followed suit, “You’d better explain honestly now, where did you buy it from, maybe if you have a good attitude, you can ask for a lighter sentence.”
The little fat man began to cry with his face covered, “Don’t tell my family back home about this. If someone finds out, I will die socially…” This secret is like a skeleton hidden in a closet.
Zheng Bo didn’t sympathize with him, and said coldly, “You confess first, and we’ll talk about the rest.”
Zhan Xingrong’s eyes were red, he hesitated for a while, knowing that he could not escape his guilt, but he still said honestly: “He was introduced to me by an old man in the circle before, he said that there is a reliable person to ship, it is a little bit expensive… Then I added a number on the Internet with the mentality of trying it out. I also worried about being cheated. After all, it is a lot of money, and no one’s money comes from the wind. When I tried to check it, I found out that his IP is abroad. I can give you the number, but I haven’t seen him log in since then…”
“The mode of the transaction, when was it?” Seeing Zhan Xingrong’s quick confession, Qiao Ze asked a follow-up question.
“At first it said 150,000 even, but I said I didn’t have that much, and it was changed to 80,000. I said, I don’t have a place to store them, and he said, add another 20,000, and he would provide a junk car for storage. That guy…he only accepts cash, the transaction is in a designated junk car. I received a car key, opened the door and put 100,000 in the compartment in the front of the car. I received it again the next day: Two keys, and instructions for use. After I went back, I found a box under the back seat of a car…”
Speaking of this, a trace of fear flashed in Zhan Xingrong’s eyes: “I… I really thought he was working in a crematorium, so he was able to get the goods. If I knew there was a problem, lend me courage and I would also not dare…”
“What else did the other party say? Or are there any other details you can think of?”
“At that time, there were a lot of
*rules. For example, the time to go can’t be earlier than ten o’clock in the evening, no later than six o’clock in the morning, when you are in the car, you have to lock the door, you can’t turn on the lights, you can only use a flashlight when you take it out. In the future, I could only look at it in another car with tinted windows, and put it back in the box afterward…”
Show/Hide Note
*(gui ju) Lite: Compass and set square – Fig: Established standards/ rules
Qiao Ze asked the key question: “Do you know the name of the person who shipped it?”
Zhan Xingrong paused and swallowed: “I only know that people in the circle call him ‘The
Butcher‘. He can meet people’s various needs, even more, if you have enough money…”
Show/Hide Note
*(tu fu) Lit: Butcher – Fig: murderous dictator.Hearing this, Xia Mingxi, who was in charge of the recording, couldn’t listen anymore, and whispered, “Truly perverted… To go as far as mutilating the victim’s remains and selling it.”
Lu Junchi folded his arms and said, “He has killed several people. What moral bottom line do you expect such a person to have?”
What surprised Lu Junchi was that the situation described by the victim was basically the same as Su Hui’s previous analysis. That Teacher Su wasn’t as simple as he seemed.
The case finally progressed, and the police finally knew who the opponent they were facing was…
Butcher.
Treating innocent women as lambs, even as commodities. This murderer was as his name suggested, bold, extremely twisted, and at the same time thoughtful.
When Su Hui came to Baihushan Prison for the second time, it was a bit later than the last time. He was already familiar with the prison guards and greeted them before the interrogation began.
After Song Rongjiang came in, he was obviously a lot more depressed than when he saw him last time. His hair was disheveled and dark circles had appeared under his eyes.
It was less than ten days before Song Rongjiang’s execution. He had always had a big heart, but at such a time, he also began to be afraid.
The countdown to life was putting a lot of pressure on him.
No matter what his heart thought, the body began to resist and fear death instinctively.
Song Rongjiang took the cigarette that Su Hui handed over, and first said, “Teacher. Su, you are late. I thought you might not come.”
Before Su Hui appeared, he was already a little restless waiting. As the countdown to death began, he didn’t know why, but he began to look forward to this conversation.
Su replied, “I’m sorry, there was a traffic jam in the city today.”
Song Rongjiang was stunned for a moment, then came to his senses: “Today is Friday.” Then he looked at Su Hui and asked, “Will you come to see my execution?”
Su Hui believed that the relationship built between them was successful. At present, Song Rongjiang had no initial precautions, in addition, because no one had visited him for a long time and he was nearing death, he had some minor dependence on him.
Su Hui asked, “Do you want me to come?”
Song Rongjiang hesitated for a moment, as if imagining what Su Hui would do when he came back, then he shook his head and said, “Forget it, don’t come, there’s nothing good to see.”
Today’s topic was a continuation of the last topic. Su Hui focused on asking Song Rongjiang’s feelings towards people, which included both men and women.
Those people had existed in his life, relatives, mother, father, classmates, teachers, colleagues.
Su Hui’s questioning was very meticulous, as if he hoped to build up the entire first half of Song Rongjiang’s life through these character relationships.
He had even done his homework in advance on some of them, and even inquired about them over the phone. As the conversation went on, he got closer to Song Rongjiang’s world.
He used different words when referring to men and women.
Su Hui perceptively found that he had strong doubts about women, and a sense of contempt and disgust.
Just as he turned a deaf ear to the victim’s denial in the first case, he only believed in the result he thought, and this attitude permeated all his interactions with women.
Fundamentally, Song Rongjiang believed that many women were lying, and did not believe them.
Correspondingly, he only believed in his own judgments about them, some of which were even made up by himself.
Su Hui judged that this habit may have something to do with Song Rongjiang’s mother-son relationship, or it may have originated from the betrayal and harm he received in his youth.
These are also related to his choice of victims.
Su Hui could also capture a sense of nostalgia from some of Song Rongjiang’s words, which he was looking for.
However, in his repeated attempts, he did not find a clear related person or event.
Song Rongjiang protected this very well. Whenever Su Hui asked relevant questions, he would hurriedly bypass them.
Obviously, just like Pei Weiwei’s location, this is a protection point for Song Rongjiang, a restricted area that no one else knows about and cannot step into.
Su Hui realized that Song Rongjiang would not tell the truth on these issues.
He wanted to die with these secrets.
As Su Hui repeatedly asked about his youth, Song Rongjiang finally showed obvious impatience. He took a heavy puff of cigarette and said, “Those things have nothing to do with my current crime. When will today’s conversation end? “
“It’s almost over.” Su Hui said, coughing a few times and turning his head to the side because of the smell of smoke. He again led the question to some details of the day of the crime. He needed to bring the topic into Song Rongjiang’s comfort zone. There will be expectations for the conversation, and more useful information will be said, and more valuable truths will be told.
Song Rongjiang was obviously excited again.
“Did you know? Teacher Su, when they stopped struggling, it felt so wonderful. I felt like I was completely integrated with them.” Song Rongjiang paused, his eyes flashing, and he spat out a whiff of white smoke, “I feel like I gave them back to death…”
This was Dickinson’s poem, she had a
double understanding of death.
Su Hui took a deep breath and coughed a few times because of the smell of smoke.
He could read these people, he could walk into their minds, like walking into a maze, he solved the mysteries one by one, but that doesn’t mean he liked them.
But he had to do it that way, so that he could unravel untold secrets and uncover haunting mysteries.
Su Hui could feel that he was getting closer and closer to the answer he was looking for.
TN:
So Give Me Back to Death – Emily Dickinson
So give me back to Death —
The Death I never feared
Except that it deprived of thee —
And now, by Life deprived,
In my own Grave I breathe
And estimate its size —
Its size is all that Hell can guess —
And all that Heaven was —
