The summer breeze brought the suspect back to the police station, attracting many envious and jealous looks.
In recent years, the crime rate had remained high while the case solving rate stubbornly refused to rise, putting considerable pressure on the police. But on closer thought, one knew that with cases increasing yet the solving rate not falling, the efforts police had put in could only have increased, not decreased.
That feeling of cracking a case within an hour of receiving it was damn wonderful. No policeman could resist such good fortune, not even Jifeng who was known as the rising star of the force.
His performance score for the month had risen another tenth of a point.
He happily began interrogating Sun Bing, and after finishing the transcript, next would be Lv Weiguo.
It was at this moment that he received a WeChat message from Jianjing.
Her request was not unreasonable, and Jifeng was willing to give her this favor.
Thus, when Lv Weiguo was describing how he had moved Lv Xue's remains to the book signing venue, Jifeng suddenly interjected, "So you're saying, moving Lv Xue's remains was your personal decision?"
Lv Weiguo: "Yes."
"For what reason?"
"I wanted to find the person who killed my daughter." He simply replied.
Jifeng smiled gently – those familiar with him knew he often used this amiable way to gain the trust of interrogation subjects – and slowly said, "You wanted to scare him, make the murderer panic and reveal himself, that's what you mean right?"
Lv Weiguo nodded.
"Then that's very strange, you suspected the bookstore manager, but you put the corpse at Jianjing's book signing." Jifeng laid a trap, "According to what you said, putting it in the manager's office would have been more fitting, no?"
Lv Weiguo froze for a moment, explaining, "There were many people there, I wanted to make a big fuss."
"So the sabotaged second floor security cameras were also your doing?" He followed up.
Lv Weiguo said, "I didn't know those were broken, I didn't think about anything, officer, I just wanted to find my daughter's killer."
"You didn't know the cameras were broken, yet coincidentally walked right in their blind spots?" Jifeng picked up pen and paper, hastily sketched a simple map, "You didn't know the cameras were broken, so you should have walked however which way, but look, to avoid the other cameras, you had to take such a winding path."
He slapped the paper in front of Lv Weiguo with a "pa", his tone turning cold, "Tell me, why did you have to take such a roundabout way? Summoning spirits?"
Lv Weiguo's lips moved slightly as he stammered, unable to explain.
"Just confess, who told you to do this?" Jifeng pressed.
Perhaps policemen held an innate deterrence over ordinary citizens. Lv Weiguo didn't hold out long before confessing. The idea to move the corpse was someone else's.
"He said he could help me, as long as I did as he said. I had no other way, I don't know anything, officer, the greatest wish in my life is to find my daughter's killer, he said this could work, of course I had to try." Lv Weiguo vainly defended himself, "I don't know anything else."
Jifeng asked again, "How did he contact you?"
"When I returned home, he found me and told me before leaving." Lv Weiguo answered.
"Did you see what he looked like?"
"I didn't see him. It was raining that day, he was holding an umbrella, all I saw was... that's right, he had a scar on his hand." Lv Weiguo gestured on the back of his hand, "That's all I know."
Jifeng could tell he was telling the truth.
He didn't press the old man further, of course he didn't release him either – when he arrived at the bookstore, Lv Weiguo had been about to attack Manager Sun – handing over the subsequent interrogation to colleagues while he himself looked into the call made to the event manager.
The result was unsurprising, it was a stolen number that had already been reported lost.
The trail went cold.
Jifeng took out a cigarette to light, unable to restrain his curiosity: this man was clearly targeting Jianjing, what was he trying to do?
*
"Famous novelist assists police in solving skeleton case"
"A perfect marketing stunt: did you see through the significance of the book signing?"
"Demon doctor book signing, readers line up in long queue outside bookstore"
"Skeleton case: An exciting live deduction show"
...
In the new media era, it was never too early for the news to come out at night. Starting that very night, various media successively reported on the case at the signing. The difference lay in that those who had taken Golden Crow's money sang high praises, while those who had taken money from others questioned if it was hype.
Passersby watched the commotion, joining in the discussion. Some said that since the police had released a statement, it must be real. Others said mentioning it in passing and giving it such prominent coverage must be for hype and book sales.
Of course the fans disagreed, doing their utmost to defend her.
Top comment 1: Can't you read? The police statement is right there, read it properly! It was Jianjing who helped catch the murderer!
Top comment 2: Jianjing really does have true skills and learning, keep being sour why don't you [lemon emoji]
Top comment 3: Helping solve cases as a conscientious citizen isn't unique to her. When something happened at my neighbor's house, I also provided surveillance footage to the police. Did I go around telling everyone about it?
Top comment 4: Did you catch the murderer, or get the murderer to turn himself in??
...
The two sides argued vigorously, even trending top search for half a day. But Jianjing was still just a "relatively unknown" new author at this time. Of China's population of over 1 billion, not many knew her.
When gossip of dubious veracity about a certain celebrity came out that night, people quickly dove into the new melon patch.[footnote: Chinese slang meaning juicy gossip]
But the crane leaves traces in its path; each time she appeared in the news recently, Jianjing's name was like a seed, shallowly buried in the public's hearts. Every future mention would be water and fertilizer. Given enough time, it would one day grow into a towering tree. By then, even if she dominated headlines, people would nod and acknowledge "well deserved".
Of course, that was all still in the future. Jianjing could not foresee what was to come. At this moment, she was still worried about the case. A skeleton appearing at her book signing was clearly targeting her.
What was the point of doing this?
Ruining her signing benefited her competitors the most, but this approach was clearly unsuited to business competition. As for targeting her personally, it seemed a bit futile.
A deranged stalker?
At the thought, goosebumps rose all over her, and she decisively agreed to Kang Mucheng's suggestion to upgrade home security.
Money spent on personal safety was absolutely worthwhile.
But could such a minor incident really qualify for a permit?
The answer was: yes, it could.
President Kang was true to his word. In just a few days, he obtained the permit and found a security company he was familiar with to carry out renovations inside and out.
Jianjing's knowledge expanded greatly. The mechanical tricks and technology combined in this parallel world resulted in some extremely ingenious structural designs.
Tear gas ejectors were hidden inside the central air conditioning vents, utterly undetectable from outside. The switch was just an AC remote, which could be used normally. But inputting a special password unlocked a new interface.
To impede vision, concealed compartments were also installed behind the doors. If someone tried to disable the password and leave, it would trigger alarms and set off the fire alarm, drenching them like a drowned rat in an instant.
Jianjing: o( ̄▽ ̄)d
When she was eating with Jifeng, she happened to mention this.
"I didn't expect this could also fall under personal protection orders." Jianjing marveled, taking it as yet another characteristic of this world.
"No, that's not right." Jifeng was treating her to this meal mainly to thank Jianjing for the assist with his performance metrics. He didn't expect to dig up something interesting and said, "That bouquet alone couldn't have gotten a permit approved."
Jianjing was taken aback, completely astonished. "But I do have one."
"Not private security?" Jifeng raised a brow.
Private security operated in legal gray areas. But that wasn't the case for Jianjing. She brought up the e-version, "See for yourself, this isn't fake is it?"
Jifeng took it and carefully scrutinized the format and seals, even more surprised than her. "It's real, how is that possible?!"
Jianjing said, "Seeing is believing."
"Then that proves my hunch may have been right." He put down his chopsticks, looking at her with great interest, "Someone has their eye on you."
The restaurant they were eating at was a hole-in-the-wall nestled in a residential area, taking numerous twists and turns down small alleyways before arriving. But it was extremely popular, with over a dozen tables inside and in the courtyard completely filled during mealtimes. The hot steam of dishes came in waves, accompanied by the bitter taste of beer and human sweat, permeated with the mundane aroma of life.
Yet in such a lively place, Jianjing sitting there felt chills running up her spine, goosebumps rising.
"Officer Jifeng, are you serious?" she asked.
"No need to be so formal, just call me by name." Jifeng pinched an unlit cigarette between his lips, resisting the urge to light it, "It's definitely real, but just my intuition, can't say for certain."
"Is that possible?" Jianjing laughed drily. "Don't forget, someone got full scores in all subjects graduating from the Police Academy, specially recruited into the Criminal Investigation Division. Top student."
Jifeng clicked his tongue. "You looked me up?"
"It was in the news reports." Jianjing said. "Otherwise how could I dare go out to eat with you alone?"
He guffawed. "Come on, you weren't that wary of me before."
"Going out together publicly is one thing, having a private meal alone is another." Jianjing saw it as only natural. This world was more dangerous than her original one, better safe than sorry.
But speaking of which, she hadn't previously known Jifeng's credentials were so outstanding: top student at the Police Academy with perfect scores across the board, directly specially recruited into the CID after graduating instead of interning at a local station first. He participated in cracking a major case in his very first year, lauded by media as the rising star of the force.
For someone like him to say, you're being watched, don't take it lightly – she'd have to be a fool not to heed the warning.
"I don't have evidence, just intuition." Jifeng said, "Lv Xue's case, it was him saying...how to put it, hello, I'm here, do you see me? You get what I mean right?"
When talking about cases he was inevitably excited, finally unable to resist the urge and taking out a lighter to light his cigarette. "But there's a problem, such an abrupt introduction on first meeting is a bit odd. So at first I didn't think too much of it. What if it wasn't the first time?"
Jianjing immediately grew wary. "Not the first time?"
"He recognizes you." The handsome police officer smiled, revealing a row of straight, white teeth. "Don't you know this person?"
Jianjing fell into contemplation.
When she first laid eyes on Aixin, she had instinctively felt uneasy. What Jiefeng said made sense, it could explain the odd feeling in her heart.
The problem was, she had no impression of such a person.
"I don't remember anything like that," she said cautiously. "I have absolutely no memory of it."
"Ask Kangmucheng," Jiefeng flicked off some cigarette ash, clearly taken by keen interest. "Some cases have high security clearances, so I don't have access. But he can apply for clearance. He might know something."
Jianjing raised her brow. Crossing her arms, she said, "So this dinner today wasn't to thank me, but to set a trap."
"Don't you want to know?" He coaxed gently.
Jianjing smiled slightly and firmly said, "I don't."
"Why not?" Jiefeng was very curious.
"You have no evidence," she turned the tables on him. "Without evidence, how can I ask?"
Jiefeng shook his head, affirming, "You don't want to ask."
Jianjing did not reply, nor did she deny it. If both their intuitions were correct, it would mean the memories she had inherited were incomplete. And Kangmucheng might be privy to the truth, but chose to conceal it.
This was clearly no trivial matter. She didn't want to act rashly and reveal her memory issues.
"Oh well, it's your business after all," Jiefeng extinguished his cigarette, not pushing her further.
Although he had caught a whiff of something unusual, lack of evidence was a fatal flaw. He and Jianjing had only just met, far from the level of trust for her to confide in him. It was only natural she would hold back.
"I have to get back for my shift," Jiefeng looked at his watch and shamelessly made a request, "Give me a ride back."
Jianjing sized him up. Expressionless, she said, "I took a taxi here."
He shook his beer can, then pointed at her Coke bottle. "You didn't drink."
"I don't like drinking," she lied.
"Last time when I helped you park, I saw a convenience store receipt for a case of beer in your car," Jiefeng thoroughly enjoyed teasing suspects. Lazily, he said, "Also, there's mud stuck to the bottom of your shoes. If you took a taxi and stopped on concrete roads, how could you get mud on them? The parking spaces here are tiny. You must have stepped in the landscaping when parking your own car."
Jianjing peered at her shoe soles doubtfully.
What mud?
"Kidding," he succeeded in deceiving her. "I saw your car when I got here."
Jianjing: "..."
"Check please," he slapped his pants and stood up. "Teacher Jian, let's go. I have the night shift tonight."
Having lost this round, she had no choice but to go along.
Jianjing took a detour to drop Jiefeng off at the police station.
On the drive, neon lights glittered brightly and the night breeze was cool.
"We're here," she slammed the brakes, the wheels locked perfectly at the entrance. "Please exit, Officer Jie."
"Are you angry?" Jiefeng undid his seatbelt but didn't get out. Arm slung over the door, grinning, he said, "Don't be, Teacher Jian. I really enjoyed this meal you treated me to. If something like this comes up again, remember to call me."
Jianjing knitted her brows. "Again? I don't want to run into any more cases. Don't jinx me."
"I'm serious. I feel the same way," he looked at her, eyes full of laughter. "But can you honestly say you didn't feel a sense of satisfaction when you cracked the case?"
She raised her brow.
"You have a sense of justice and you're capable. More importantly, you don't dislike solving cases," the young, handsome officer stood in the night breeze. Leisurely, he said, "Once at the hospital, once at school, once at the bookstore. In the future, you'll have a next time and a time after that."
"We're the same kind of person. You're already enjoying the process."
