(1) Body Parts

The whole night passed, and there was some progress in the case.

The current status of Cheng Li had been investigated. He had been hiding in Xuzhou for two years, and fearing capture, he had not contacted his family during this period.

Cheng Li’s business had become quite successful over the past two years, to the point that he moved from an apartment to a large villa. It’s possible he didn’t even know the new address of his family.

During these two years, he rented a small room on the outskirts of the city and worked as a bricklayer at a construction site. His coworkers said he lived a decent life, though some also mentioned that ever since he started working at the site, people had been losing money, and everyone had become cautious about carrying cash.

Cheng Li was not well-regarded among his coworkers, they said he was silent, hot-tempered, and would often raise his fists. No one dared to provoke him easily.

He had no friends and paid his yearly rent in January. Even the landlord wasn’t familiar with him.

He truly resembled a fugitive.

Meanwhile, the overworked detectives were also investigating Yang Chunling and Wu Yaoming.

Wu Yaoming was married, but like many men with some money, he couldn’t help but indulge in affairs. Yang Chunling was one of his mistresses.

Their relationship was very discreet. If Wu Yaoming hadn’t appeared at the municipal police station, it might never have been discovered.

As for why Wu Yaoming would stand up for Yang Chunling, that was also clarified.

A few of Wu Yaoming’s friends said that despite having many mistresses, Yang Chunling was his favorite.

Yang Chunling had a good figure, was easygoing, and understood him very well.

When they went out, she could give him enough face. Even when he scolded and hit her, she would smile and take it.

She knew what Wu Yaoming wanted and made sure he was comfortable. Wu Yaoming enjoyed spending time with her.

However, their relationship had not lasted long—only three months.

In just three months, Wu Yaoming had already become inseparable from her.

Tao Jiang said, “We’ve found Wu Yaoming’s transaction records to Yang Chunling. She’s now quite the little rich woman and even has plans to buy a house. We didn’t manage to get this information yesterday because we were in a hurry. If Wu Yaoming is determined to protect Yang Chunling, we’ll need more concrete evidence to make her speak.”

Xiang Dong took notes and asked, “Can we talk to Wu Yaoming’s wife? No wife would accept a husband’s infidelity. I think she would still have some resentment.”

Tao Jiang glanced at Xiang Dong and said, “Of course, we’ve already contacted her. Unfortunately, she doesn’t want to get involved. I heard she’s heading to ‘^[1]“馬牛羊新亞” (Ma Niu Yang Xin Ya) is a funny misunderstanding caused by hearing or misinterpreting the phrase “馬來西亞” (Mǎláixīyà), which means Malaysia. 馬 (mǎ) = horse 牛 … Continue reading)Maniuyang Xin Ya’ today for a vacation.”

Cui Luo was confused. She knew about Maniuyang, but what was ‘Maniuyang Xin Ya’?

Was someone going to a place related to Maniuyang for vacation?

Shen Wanwan asked, “Is it Malaysia?”

“Yes, yes, that’s the place,” Tao Jiang looked at Shen Wanwan for a moment, “Have you been there?”

Shen Wanwan shook her head, “I’ve only heard of it.”

In the 1990s, the internet was not yet widespread, and people had limited knowledge about foreign countries. Many couldn’t even distinguish between neighboring nations.

This wasn’t because Shen Wanwan was particularly knowledgeable, nor because Tao Jiang was especially ignorant—it was simply a limitation of the times.

Even so, Shen Wanwan’s answer still impressed Cui Luo and the others. “Wow, you know even that?”

Shen Wanwan replied vaguely, “I think I saw it on a map or something, but I’m not entirely sure.”

As everyone chatted, Xiang Dong wore a stiff smile, holding a pen in his hand but no longer continuing with the detailed notes.

Where Wu Yaoming’s wife went for vacation wasn’t important. What mattered was that she couldn’t be used as a breakthrough.

Cui Luo slumped in her chair and sighed. “These murderers, seriously. Everything was fine, and they just had to go kill someone—two people, even! And now we can’t even figure out why. Part of the younger brother’s corpse showed up at the older brother’s mistress’ house, and we still can’t get the mistress to talk. What even is this situation?”

Shen Wanwan recalled everything that happened last night, and the corner of her lips curved into a strange smile.

Xiang Dong’s gaze had been fixed on her the whole time. When he saw her smile, he felt strangely uncomfortable. “Wanwan, everyone’s worrying right now. What’s so funny?”

For some reason, his tone was sharper than usual, completely different from yesterday when he was still trying to take care of Shen Wanwan.

There were few women on the team. Since Shen Wanwan could endure hardship and seemed pretty clever, Cui Luo had always had a bit of a protective attitude toward her. She said, “Xiang Dong, don’t overstep.”

“I just think we should all focus on the case right now,” Xiang Dong said with implied meaning. “After all, we don’t have any leads.”

Tao Jiang frowned and gave Xiang Dong an impatient look, then turned to Shen Wanwan. “You just thought of something?”

Shen Wanwan didn’t hide anything and answered directly, “Captain Tao, I have a method that might get Yang Chunling to cooperate. It’s worth a try.”

Her words made the office fall into brief silence.

Xiang Dong’s eyelids twitched several times, clearly unsettled, and he glanced over nervously.

Cui Luo didn’t expect much and didn’t even look at Shen Wanwan. She said lazily, “Wu Yaoming knows a lot of people and he’s ruthless. I think we should try a different approach. Yang Chunling was Cheng Liang’s lover, but not Cheng Li’s, right? Let’s first confirm whether the same person killed both brothers.”

Shen Wanwan said, “I really think it’s worth a try, Captain Tao. It won’t take too much time.”

The murder of the two brothers had already caused quite a stir in Xuzhou.

Even so, the team had enough personnel—they could spare at least a couple of people.

Tao Jiang waved her hand. “You and Cui Luo, go quickly and come back quickly.”

Although Cui Luo didn’t know what Shen Wanwan had in mind to get Yang Chunling to talk, she would still do her best to carry out the task assigned by Tao Jiang.

Shen Wanwan and Cui Luo rode bikes to Yang Chunling’s home. They weren’t riding fast, giving them time to chat.

Cui Luo wanted to confirm Shen Wanwan’s thoughts. “You still suspect Yang Chunling? You think she’s lying?”

Shen Wanwan didn’t deny it. “She has connections to both victims, so she must be hiding something. Most of Cheng Li’s body parts were dumped in public areas, but Yang Chunling’s home was the only private location. She also had a past with Cheng Liang—it’s hard to say she’s not involved.”

Cui Luo agreed with that but had other doubts. “But could the one who killed Cheng Liang also be the one who killed Cheng Li? Reassembling Cheng Li’s body would take time, and we haven’t gotten the autopsy report yet. If the victims weren’t brothers, it’d be really hard to link the two deaths.”

On the way to Yang Chunling’s place, the two went over the clues once more.

The area beneath Yang Chunling’s building was a small, lively market. Shen Wanwan and Cui Luo arrived early, and many of the stalls hadn’t packed up yet.

They hadn’t informed Yang Chunling beforehand. Earlier that morning, Tao Jiang had tried calling her, but she didn’t answer.

Just as Cui Luo was about to head into the building, Shen Wanwan tugged her arm. “Look over there.”

Not far away, in front of the building, there was a noodle stall set up. A large metal pot was bubbling with hot noodles, and two small tables stood nearby with vinegar and chili oil set out on top.

Yang Chunling was wearing a tight red dress, her long legs crossed. One hand twirled her wavy hair while the other held a pair of chopsticks as she ate noodles.

Under the morning sun, her skin looked bright and fair, with a faint rosy glow—she really was quite the beauty.

Shen Wanwan walked over and sat down in front of her. Seeing that she was eating plain noodles, she smiled and asked, “The braised chicken leg from this stall smells amazing—sure you don’t want one?”

Yang Chunling looked up at her with a displeased expression. “I already told you everything clearly—don’t bother me unless you have evidence.”

Shen Wanwan glanced at the impressive view on Yang Chunling’s chest. It looked kind of familiar.

She asked sincerely, “Really don’t want one? Does Mr. Wu’s driver like them? Maybe we should get one for him?”