Chapter 181

The case of Hong Bo is being urgently investigated by the police due to pressure from the Red Committee.

In recent days, Qin Shuo, who was a primary focus, has suddenly been ruled out as a suspect.

This turn of events began with a visit from the police to Qin’s neighbors.

That night, a neighbor happened to see Qin Shuo, providing him with an alibi.

When Qin Shuo heard the police mention this, he breathed a sigh of relief and was happy to finally be cleared.

However, once the police left, his smile vanished.

If not for the two elderly family members he had to take care of, he would have taken a knife to Hong Bo when he first returned.

When he heard that Hong Bo had been killed, he laughed with tears in his eyes.

No matter who killed him, they were a benefactor to the Qin family.

Thus, he preferred to be suspected in order to buy time for the benefactor and to confuse the investigators.

Ideally, the case would drag on until the statute of limitations expired.

He was never worried about becoming the scapegoat.

After all, he didn’t actually commit the crime, and his family had just been exonerated. With the two elderly bedridden due to their suffering during their exile, the police wouldn’t dare to act without sufficient evidence.

Targeting them right after their exoneration would be a slap in the face to the higher-ups, and no one would dare to do that.

In the worst-case scenario, he still had witnesses; he just hadn’t told the police the truth to buy more time. He hadn’t expected the police to find the neighbor witness so soon.

With the Qin family ruled out, the police’s focus shifted to the Lou family.

However, the Lou family’s situation was so tragic that the police felt reluctant to approach them.

Another week passed with no progress, and the pressure from the Red Committee increased.

The officers at the police station were at their wit’s end.

Finally, one officer suggested, “Should we expand the scope and start with people who interacted with both the Qin and Lou families?”

His suggestion was unanimously agreed upon.

However, due to the recent exonerations, there were no visiting relatives or friends.

Even if they had friends, they wouldn’t dare visit due to the terrifying experiences during their exile.

With no visitors, the police still had options.

Their first focus was on a man in a photo with the Lou family’s granddaughter.

The police questioned the old Mr. Lou.

The old man looked at the photo, his eyes dimming, “That was my best friend’s grandson, but later their family changed names and moved away. That’s all I know. You should understand, our family was exiled back then and lost contact long ago.”

The police made a note and took a good look at the photo.

However, the features in the photo were blurred, making it hard to see clearly.

They felt the photo was even more blurred than before, but upon closer inspection, it seemed the same.

After leaving the Lou family, the police returned to the station to report.

Everyone agreed that, regardless of the man’s level of suspicion, he was a lead, which was better than floundering aimlessly.

They were under immense pressure.

The Red Committee was pressing because the higher-ups were scared.

Hong Bo had been involved in many activities, and some leaders were implicated. Although Hong Bo had taken the initiative to flatter them, they had enjoyed the benefits.

Without finding the murderer soon, how could they sleep at night?

The atmosphere in the station was tense.

They borrowed the photo from the old man, but it was too blurry, and so many years had passed. Who knew if the man’s appearance had changed?

It wasn’t an easy investigation.

Officer Li then suggested, “How about we ask Captain Lu’s wife at the barracks if she can draw it?”

Everyone looked puzzled.

Draw what?

Officer Li explained, “When we were investigating connections at the barracks, we learned that Captain Lu’s wife, Teacher Shi, is a skilled artist. During New Year, she recreated a suspect’s portrait from a child’s messy description. Her dog has also made significant contributions.”

Unfortunately, the dog might not be of much use now, Officer Li thought.

They had used police dogs during the investigation, but they just circled around without finding anything.

The team suspected the killer had cleaned the scene or used substances to interfere with the dogs’ sense of smell.

Officer Li’s suggestion intrigued them.

However, their recent investigation at the barracks had somewhat offended the people there.

After all, they had considered them suspects, and now they needed their help, which would be awkward for anyone.

The key issue was that Hong Bo had offended Teacher Shi before, so she might not be willing to help.

“We have to give it a try. We need to show our dedication to the task, regardless of the outcome,” replied the team leader.

Thus, the task fell to Officer Li.

Officer Li tried his best to maintain a smile.

Finally, he raised his hand and said, “Um… Team Leader, if I’m going to ask for help, it wouldn’t be appropriate to go empty-handed. I was thinking of bringing something over. Would that be reimbursed?”

The team leader couldn’t help but twitch his mouth but still said, “Reimbursed!”

Officer Li sighed in relief, “With your assurance, I’m at ease.”

It was thanks to Commissar Guo that he even knew about Shi Tingyu’s portrait skills in the first place.

When Captain Han went to meet with Lu Weiguo and his wife, Commissar Guo had told him about the many achievements of Lu Weiguo and Shi Tingyu.

The purpose was clear: to let him know that these two were valuable talents in the military district and had made significant contributions. They were definitely not involved in such murders.

Thanks to Commissar Guo’s groundwork, their subsequent inquiries were straightforward.

This time, Officer Li went to the barracks without wearing his uniform.

When asking for favors and bringing gifts, it’s not appropriate to wear a uniform.

Besides, he sensed that Commissar Guo and Captain Han probably didn’t want him to go in uniform.

Shi Tingyu was surprised to see Officer Li coming to the barracks again after such a long time.

This time, he was at the family quarters, but was stopped by the guards outside.

Shi Tingyu had to bring him in.

Back at home, Officer Li immediately noticed Lijian playing in the yard, especially the food bowl near the doghouse.

Being from the police station, he naturally knew the meaning of the writing on the food bowl.

He thought to himself, it seems Commissar Guo was telling the truth.

After pouring a glass of water for him, Shi Tingyu got straight to the point, “Officer Li, is there something you didn’t clarify last time?”

Although she said this, Shi Tingyu knew he wasn’t here for that reason, seeing him in plain clothes and carrying gifts.

Officer Li smiled warmly, “Teacher Shi, please don’t take last time to heart. We never doubted you, we just had to go through the motions.”

Shi Tingyu smiled, knowing that merely going through the motions wasn’t something that could be easily claimed.

However, she also understood that a murder case required a thorough investigation, and she couldn’t fault the police for that.

“You’re too kind. It’s your duty to investigate,” Shi Tingyu replied, then asked, “So, what brings you here this time?”