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墨書 Inktalez
Hearing Zhai Qiang's words, a mix of emotions surged within the group, leaving them uncertain about how to respond. It was unexpected that just three nights ago, when Zhai Qiang went to collect a debt from Li Erdan, not only did he fail to retrieve the money, but he also witnessed someone digging up Entrails. The coincidence was uncanny and rather unfortunate.
Zhai Qiang's words did not seem fabricated; if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have known the details about the body being dug up and the sponges being used. However, it seemed Zhai Qiang mistook the white sponge for drugs. He had met Li Erdan before and could confirm that the person in front of him was not Li Erdan.
This meant that the perpetrator who was digging up the body was not Li Erdan, and Li Erdan was not the killer. But if Li Erdan was neither the murderer nor the one digging up Entrails, where did he get the intestines? Why did Li Erdan flee? What was he afraid of?
The situation became increasingly convoluted. It seemed that to understand why Li Erdan fled, they would need to capture him first.
"When you saw that person, what time was it exactly?" Old Shao asked Zhai Qiang.
At this point, Zhai Qiang had already said too much to hold back any longer. He replied, "I can't be sure of the exact time; it was probably around nine o'clock. I had arranged to meet Li Erdan at eight, but by the time I arrived, it was already half past eight."
"Isn't that just our luck? If I had known this job would turn out like this, I wouldn't have taken it," Zhai Qiang lamented as he slumped onto the ground. "You didn't get your money back, and I almost lost my life out there. But honestly, I didn't get a good look at that person's face."
Old Shao nodded and sat back down in his chair. "About one seventy in height, wearing a light blue tracksuit—was it a complete set?"
"A complete set!" Zhai Qiang confirmed. "It should be Adidas, brand name stuff. From what I saw, it looked genuine, not fake."
Jiang He agreed wholeheartedly because based on the wounds on the corpse, they were very neat and indicated that the killer was meticulous and likely relatively affluent. In contrast, Li Erdan appeared to be quite disheveled; just looking at his home decor made it clear that he had no concept of cleanliness—his chances of being a murderer were high.
As Jiang He pondered this, he realized he could now explain whose blood was in the bathroom: it wasn't Zhu Liang's blood; it was actually Li Erdan's own blood. According to Zhai Qiang, they had beaten Li Erdan badly, leaving blood everywhere before nearly drowning him in water, which washed away most of the evidence.
However, what Jiang He couldn't explain was what had happened with that person's large intestine.
"Are you sure you didn't see their face clearly?" Old Shao pressed further.
Zhai Qiang shook his head. "I really didn’t see their face."
"Any other details? Think carefully," Elder Shao urged.
Seeing the serious expressions on their faces made Zhai Qiang feel like he had walked into a den of tigers. They kept pressing him with questions without directly threatening him; logically speaking, if they had seen his face, they should have acted by now. Unsure of who these people were or what they wanted from him, Zhai Qiang decided to speak honestly.
"Details," Zhai Qiang scratched his head and said. "Oh! I think I remember there being a tree nearby with a bottle hanging from it. The scene was terrifying—more frightening than any horror movie I've ever seen. That's all I can recall; after that, I just ran."
Recalling that moment still sent shivers down Zhai Qiang's spine: "I ran for my life and lost all sense of direction; all I remember is running deeper into the woods without daring to use my phone for light—I only relied on moonlight to guide me forward. I saw yellow paper scattered everywhere and thought I caught sight of something red; I have no idea what it was."
"Are you sure?" Old Shao asked, looking at the shards of glass scattered on the ground.
Zhai Qiang raised his right hand and extended three fingers. "I swear, that's all I saw. After that, I ran out of the woods and took a taxi home from that road, you know, the one with the hidden meaning."
It seemed that Zhai Qiang truly had nothing more to say. Old Shao glanced around at the others and said, "Since there's nothing else, let's go."
"Where to?" Zhai Qiang was drenched in cold sweat at Old Shao's words.
"To the police station," Shao the Elder replied.
Zhai Qiang slumped to the ground. "You... you really are police officers?"
"Of course!" Yuan Jun chimed in from the side. "Didn’t we tell you that from the beginning?"
Finally managing to stand up, Zhai Qiang said, "You guys scared me so much my legs went weak. In my life, I've never felt that police officers could be so friendly, really..."
Xu Yiman conducted tests on the entrails found at Li Erdan's house, and the results came back quickly.
The intestines discovered were indeed human, and those organs found at Big Spoon Restaurant were also confirmed to belong to a human. Testing revealed that all these organs belonged to one person: Zhu Liang.
Xu Yiman stated, "However, these entrails do not constitute a complete set; some of the more obscure entrails are still missing. The forensic expert confirmed that all entrails and even meat from the cafeteria were tested without omission. So there are only two possibilities: either those entrails are not at Ladle, or they have already been consumed."
Upon hearing Xu Yiman's words, Yuan Jun exclaimed, "Thank goodness we didn't get a chance to eat before running into Aunt Zhao and Fat Lady fighting. Otherwise, we might have ended up eating this Internal Offal Rice ourselves. I wonder what those female workers from Sponge Factory are thinking; they probably won't touch entrails for the rest of their lives."
Indeed, besides organs like the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, stomach, and intestines, there are also some relatively obscure organs in the human body. These organs may have already been chopped up by Ladle and turned into Internal Offal Rice consumed by others.
The blood brought back from Li Erdan's house was also identified as belonging to Li Erdan himself. This further confirmed that Zhai Qiang was indeed telling the truth.
Captain Liu was responsible for taking Zhai Qiang's statement while the others took a break to find a restaurant for a meal; they had been busy all afternoon without eating anything.
"Order a few dishes," Shao the Elder said. "Tonight we’ll check near the crematorium for bodies."
Xu Yiman nodded and replied, "I've already prepared Lumino Reagent; it's in the toolbox."
"Come on, try some of our specialty dishes," the restaurant owner said politely. "Our Stir-Fried Pork Intestines, Spicy Kidney, and Stir-Fried Pig Liver are all quite good..."
After a meal devoid of meat, the group waited in the dark.
Old Shao sat outside the police station, smoking and watching the sun set. Jiang He took a seat beside him.
"The matter with Wang Chao..." Jiang He sighed and asked.
This caught Old Shao off guard; Jiang He had never asked such questions before. He replied, "Everything has been arranged. The issue with Wang Chao is behind us."
Jiang He lowered his head and said, "But Wang Qingmei... I still find this situation very suspicious."
Old Shao gently patted Jiang He's shoulder and subtly shifted the topic. "Naturally, there are arrangements for Wang Chao's situation from above. For now, we need to focus on this case. Do you think it might be related to the Criminal Consultant?"
Jiang He paused for a moment before shaking his head. "Using the same methods in a short period is unwise. Besides, Wei Demian is already dead; I believe he will take some time to regroup. However, I suspect he will soon strike at us again. Wei Demian's dying wish was to see you suffer."
Jiang He looked at Old Shao.
Old Shao crushed his cigarette butt underfoot and said, "In this life, we experience many things, which allows us to let go of many others. Living is a gradual process of feeling pain—saying goodbye to friends when young, parting with parents in middle age, and ultimately bidding farewell to one's spouse."
"We live our lives to experience separation and loss," Old Shao continued, cradling his head as he spoke to Jiang He. "But that is also the essence of life; only when you see through it can you truly understand why we live towards death and why we must continue living."
Jiang He couldn't fully grasp Old Shao's words at that moment, but he understood why so many regarded Old Shao as the most formidable detective.
A great detective not only captures criminals but also teaches people how to live.
The sun slowly descended in the west, leaving only fiery clouds on the horizon—a breathtaking sight.
"We're heading out," Old Shao declared.
Yuan Jun drove the group toward Qingchun Road in search of the abandoned corpse. Based on Zhai Qiang's description, it seemed that at that time, the murderer was still handling the body; in other words, they had not yet hidden it in the morgue. This meant that even knowing they had been exposed, the murderer still chose to conceal the body there.
If the murderer knew they were exposed, would they still commit a crime? If so, where would they hide the body?
As Old Shao pondered these questions, he had already arrived at the middle of Qingchun Road. The Loess was still in the center of the road, untouched by anyone.
Yuan Jun parked the car by the side of the road.
A few people got out of the car, and Xu Yiman said, "Turn off the headlights; I need to spray the reagent."
Yuan Jun switched off the headlights, and immediately, Qingchun Road was engulfed in darkness.
Xu Yiman took out the reagent from her toolbox and began spraying it over the Loess. Moments later, a shimmering blue light appeared on the highway, glowing with a purplish hue.
"This is blood," Xu Yiman remarked as she continued to spray in circles. Soon, a bright blue-purple path emerged along the roadside.
"Follow the trail of blood," Xu Yiman instructed.
Jiang He and the others followed the glowing blue path until they reached deep into the fields, where the blood trail disappeared.
Jiang He bent down and examined the disturbed Loess. "There are signs of disturbance in the Loess; the body should be right beneath!"
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