Chapter 22 So, There’s Another Victim?…

Chapter 22: So, there's another victim?…

At 3 a.m., the entire city had quieted down, but the office of the Second Squad of the Criminal Investigation Brigade in Pingjiang District Public Security Bureau remained brightly lit.

After several long nights of overtime, everyone had dark circles under their eyes and sallow complexions. Some were slumped in chairs, others slumped over desks, and a few even slept on the conference table, snoring loud enough to wake the dead.

Xu Nian was also half-leaning in his chair, catching some sleep when hurried footsteps echoed down the hall. A uniformed technician rushed into the office in a rush.

"Captain Xu," the technician exclaimed excitedly as he approached Xu Nian, "the lab results are in. The two victims have been confirmed to be Pang Zhiye and Pang Wenze, the father and son who went missing on May 2nd."

The excited voice woke the sleeping colleagues. Xu Nian opened his eyes, quickly took the documents from the technician, skimmed through them, and stood up. "Have we located the last known location of the two victims before they went missing?"

Qi Bai, rubbing his eyes, replied, "Yes, it’s a small river five kilometers further in from the second body disposal site discovered at Cuiping Mountain. I’ve spoken with the victims’ relatives and also found chat records from a colleague of Pang Zhiye’s phone dated May 2nd. The chats include photos and location data, confirming it as their last known location before disappearance."

"Then let’s move out," Xu Nian said, heading for the door.

The others quickly followed. As Qi Bai passed Wang Yu’s desk, he casually grabbed the half-eaten bag of biscuits lying there.

Wang Yu noticed out of the corner of her eye and made sure to get into the same car as Qi Bai. As soon as she was inside, she reached into his pocket, retrieved the crackers, and took half for herself before stuffing them into her mouth.

Qi Bai pouted. "You’re making a fuss over half a bag of crackers? All those bao I bought you were clearly wasted."

Wang Yu ignored him, but when she ate a chocolate bar, she broke off half and handed it to Qi Bai.

Qi Bai immediately perked up and shamelessly asked, "Got any more? Give me a bit more. At this hour, going up into the mountains, we might not be back until tomorrow afternoon."

"None left," Wang Yu said. "This was the last of my stash. Otherwise, why would I chase you down to grab half?"

Qi Bai sighed dramatically. "I should’ve eaten more tonight. I really regret not finishing that soup—beef bone soup, full of energy! Luckily, it’s hot now. Besides being hungry, at least we won’t freeze tonight."

Xu Nian, who had been sitting in the passenger seat with his eyes closed, deep in thought, was disturbed by Qi Bai’s chatter. Rubbing his forehead in irritation, he finally spoke up, "Just drive. I’ve already messaged Director Ren. You won’t go hungry tomorrow morning."

Qi Bai immediately cheered up instantly. "I knew Captain Xu had our backs. Captain, you sleep, you sleep. I’ll drive nice and steady."

Wang Yu, sitting in the back seat, turned away, cringing at the display.

Returning to the temporary parking lot they had visited before, everyone got out of the car. Qi Bai naturally took the lead and soon stopped in front of a dirty, rundown minivan that looked like it was old and beat-up.

"This is the vehicle," Qi Bai said. "The victim Pang Zhiye drove this minivan when he and Pang Wenze went out fishing on the morning of May 2nd."

Since it had rained two nights prior, the minivan’s windows were too grimy to see through. Wang Yu cleverly pulled out a wet wipe and wiped a small patch clean on the glass.

Xu Nian pressed his face close to the cleared spot and carefully observed the interior. Qi Bai, standing to the side, mouthed "brown-noser" at Wang Yu.

Wang Yu tilted her head and smiled triumphantly.

After several minutes of observation, Xu Nian straightened up and said, "Check the engine. See if it malfunctioned, preventing the vehicle from starting."

The team immediately gathered around the front of the vehicle. After a while, one of them reported, "Captain Xu, the fuel filter is clogged. We can’t tell if it was tampered with. We’ll need to tow the vehicle back for a thorough inspection."

"Then have it towed back," Xu Nian instructed before stepping aside to call Jiang Yingyao.

"Brother Jiang, how’s it going on your end?" Xu Nian got straight to the point.

Jiang Yingyao let out a big yawn, sounding exhausted. "There are too many biological traces in that vehicle. The entire forensics team has been working around the clock almost 24/7. The hairs suspected to be from the perpetrator found on the driver’s seat have been confirmed to be synthetic wig fibers. We tried tracing the manufacturer through those wig hairs, but the material is too common. We’ve hit a wall with this lead. However, the bloodstains in the trunk have been matched to several victims, including Case 1129, Case 725, and the two latest victims. But there’s another issue: the forensics team found blood from a fifth person, unrelated to these four victims. We’ve run it through the database—no match. No prior criminal record or history."

"So, there’s another victim?" Xu Nian felt a cold dread. "At least we found body parts of these four, but this fifth one seems to have come out of nowhere, with no clues at all."

Jiang Yingyao was silent for a moment before responding, "What worries me is whether there could be a sixth or seventh victim, and we know nothing about them."

Xu Nian also fell silent, his mind racing. After a moment, he said, "Judging from the remains in Case 1129 seven years ago, it didn’t seem like the perpetrator’s first time. Director Ren, who was in charge of cracking that case back then, told me they suspected there were other victims before that. They tried searching for earlier victims to find more traces of the perpetrator but never found anything."

Jiang Yingyao sighed. "This bastard is really good at hiding. I can hardly believe it myself. The forensics team scrubbed that car inside and out, especially the driver’s seat where the perpetrator spent a lot of time, but we couldn’t find a single usable fingerprint. I’m starting to think this guy wore gloves the entire time he was in the car. Otherwise, it’s inexplicable that a vehicle that hasn’t been washed properly in years has no fingerprints."

"Also, this bastard must have more than just this one vehicle," Jiang Yingyao continued. "I took a team to survey the area. The parking spot is in the middle of nowhere. The nearest place is an abandoned factory that shut down. The area's pretty accessible though. Even though the roads around the factory haven’t been maintained since it closed, vehicles can still pass through. It connects to four villages and two provincial highways. We’ve checked all available surveillance footage and found nothing."

Jiang Yingyao paused before adding, "But speaking of which, Captain Xu, those four villages are remote, but there’s a well-paved road nearby that leads straight into the city. I’ve had someone check that road too. It passes by your residential complex and is the first small commercial district those four villages encounter on their way into the city. Within three kilometers, there are malls, supermarkets, and a hospital. I’m thinking since the perpetrator parked the car there, he must be very familiar with the area or even live nearby. Is it possible he spends a lot of time in that small commercial district? Should we review the surveillance footage?"

Xu Nian thought carefully for a moment before rejecting the idea. "We only have a general idea of the perpetrator’s physique. There are countless young and middle-aged men who fit that description. Even if he did appear on surveillance footage, we might not recognize him. Unless we’re truly at a dead end, there’s no need to undertake such needle-in-a-haystack work. Have you visited those four villages?"

Jiang Yingyao replied, "Yes. The four villages have a combined population of around 3,000. Over half grow vegetables in greenhouses, apparently with government subsidies. The produce from the greenhouses is supplied to the city—to markets, supermarkets, and some sell at stalls themselves. The rest mostly work in the city. Since there’s a direct road to the city, transportation is relatively convenient, so they continue to live in the villages."

Xu Nian immediately felt a headache brewing. "It seems like unless we hit a dead end, we can’t easily conduct a door-to-door investigation. But we’re still far from that point."

Jiang Yingyao perked up. "Captain Xu, did you find something?"

Xu Nian grunted in agreement. "We just confirmed the identities of the two latest victims tonight. Pang Zhiye, male, 43 years old, and Pang Wenze, male, 16 years old. Father and son, they went missing on the morning of May 2nd after going out fishing. We’ve now reached their last known location before disappearance and found the vehicle they used. Initial inspection shows the victims’ vehicle couldn’t start due to a clogged fuel filter. Another important point: Pang Zhiye had a history of abusing his wife, and Pang Wenze had also assaulted his mother before going missing."

Jiang Yingyao’s voice shot up excitedly. "So, Captain Xu, you suspect the perpetrator selects victims based on the commonality of domestic violence? If we investigate based on this and the time of disappearance, we might have a chance to identify the victims from Case 1129 and Case 725."

Xu Nian added, "Although Pang Zhiye had a history of abusing his wife, there are no police records or hospital records. I suspect the victims from Case 1129 and Case 725 might have similar situations."

"Understood, understood," Jiang Yingyao said eagerly. "I’ll take a team to investigate right away. Once we confirm the identities of these two victims, we can pinpoint the perpetrator’s activity area. Then we’ll be close to catching this bastard."

With that, Jiang Yingyao hung up.

…

Concerned about grocery shopping, Guan Xia made a point of waking up early the next day. She first reconfirmed the arrival time with the scheduled housekeeping service before hastily eating some bread, changing her shoes, and heading out.

As she left, Guan Xia made a point of checking the time—just past 7 a.m. She thought she was early, but when she reached the entrance to her apartment complex, she saw the tricycle already surrounded by elderly residents buying groceries.

Not daring to push through the crowd, Guan Xia stood to the side, waiting for an opportunity to slip in. She had listed all the groceries she needed in her phone’s notes app the night before, so she shopped while checking the list, moving fairly quickly.

After about ten minutes, she had almost everything. Guan Xia carried the heavy bags to the weighing area and looked up to see not only the middle-aged man from yesterday but also an adorable little girl.

She looked to be around ten years old, with neat braids tied with red bows on each side. Her dress was also red, and she was buzzing around helping the man, busy weighing items, handing out bags, and even deftly giving change to those paying in cash.

Noticing Guan Xia’s gaze, the little girl turned around and flashed a big smile. "Jie Jie, have you finished picking? Let me weigh them for you."

Guan Xia glanced at her heavy bags and said, "I bought quite a lot. The bags are heavy. Let your dad help."

The little girl looked at the man, who was running around like crazy from busyness, and smiled. "It’s okay, Jie Jie. I’m very strong. Let me do it. Please give them to me."

Seeing that the man was too busy to help, Guan Xia hesitated but eventually handed over the bags.

Fortunately, the little girl was indeed strong. Though she struggled a bit, she managed to take them and began weighing each item one by one.

Guan Xia waited quietly. An elderly lady in line nearby waiting to weigh her items smiled and asked, "Qianqian, I heard from your dad yesterday that you’ve been sick these past few days. Why aren’t you resting at home? It’s cool now, but it’ll get hot soon. Be careful not to get heat stroke. Did your dad bring enough water for you? It’s better to drink warm water. Cold water might upset your stomach."

Before the little girl could respond, the middle-aged man nearby smiled and said, "This child takes after her mom—can’t sit still at home. The night before last, as soon as her fever broke, she badgered her mom to come out and help. Her mom refused, so she cried. We had no choice but to bring her along."

"Daughters are indeed thoughtful," the elderly lady remarked. "You’ve raised her well. She’s pretty, outgoing, and hardworking. She’ll surely achieve great things when she grows up."

The man beamed with pride, and the little girl’s smile widened even more. While weighing Guan Xia’s items, she took a moment to say to the elderly lady, "Thank you for the praise, Granny. My dad is great too. He works very hard."

"Yes, yes," the elderly lady laughed. "Both you and your dad are amazing. Your mom is too. The whole family is outstanding, which is why your life is doing well."

It was the first time Guan Xia had witnessed such a heartwarming scene. Though the surroundings were noisy, she didn’t feel annoyed at all and patiently waited for the little girl to finish weighing her items.

After taking some time to weigh everything, the little girl did the math for a moment and said to Guan Xia, "Sister, that’ll be seventy kuai three mao. You can just pay seventy. Sister, are you having guests over today? Here, I’ll give you some extra cilantro. It’s great in cold dishes—my mom always adds it."

Guan Xia was a bit taken aback by the little girl’s outgoing nature and paused for a moment before quickly thanking her.

The little girl smiled and said, "You’re welcome," before moving on to weigh items for the next person.

Guan Xia hurriedly paid, took her bags, and worked her way out of the crowd.

As she squeezed through the crowd, Guan Xia nearly bumped into someone. She looked up and realized it was the woman she’d seen yesterday morning—the one who had been slapped by her remarried husband. The woman was holding a cloth bag in one hand and leading her daughter with the other.

The girl was wearing the same clothes as yesterday, her head bowed silently as her mother pulled her along.

Guan Xia quickly apologized and stepped aside. The woman didn’t speak, just smiled and shook her head.

Guan Xia noticed the swelling on her face—not just on the side where she’d been hit yesterday, but the other side was slightly swollen too, with faint finger marks visible.

It seemed there had been another argument last night. Perhaps to keep her daughter from witnessing the violence, the woman had sent her out to play. That would explain why the girl had been alone so late, digging in the dirt on the lawn.

Recalling the scene from last night, Guan Xia couldn't quite put her finger on what she felt but stayed silent, watching as the woman went to buy vegetables.

As the woman appeared, the crowd quieted for a few seconds before quickly returning to its lively chatter.

Guan Xia heard the vegetable seller’s voice, "Sis, what happened to your face? Did he hit you? What kind of man did you marry, hitting a woman?"

Guan Xia didn’t hear the woman’s response—she likely didn’t answer. An elderly woman spoke up, "Exactly! Who knows what she was thinking, remarrying such a man. And it hasn’t been long since they got married, and he’s already getting physical. How can she live like this? I’m telling you, girl, get divorced sooner rather than later. Otherwise, you’ll be suffering for the rest of your life."

Again, Guan Xia didn’t hear the woman’s voice, but the vegetable seller and others continued offering advice here and there.

Guan Xia waited a few more moments but still didn’t hear the woman speak. Finally, she picked up her two heavy bags of groceries and headed home.