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墨書 Inktalez
"You don't need to keep me in suspense." I straightened up and said, "And you don't need to change the subject. We will definitely investigate the matters that need clarification. I can assure you that Hu Ningning is not dead. Hu Ningning did not participate in the abuse of your children; you wouldn't indiscriminately kill the innocent, would you?"
I pointed at Ha Li Min and continued, "So you'd better tell me where Hu Ningning is and clarify the situation regarding Wu Zui. Your son is already dead, and as a mother, you should understand what it feels like for a white person to send a black child to their death. Hu Ningning is the same age as your child, and I do not wish for her to suffer a fate similar to what your child endured."
Ha Li Min nodded and said, "I admit that I was the one who killed him. If you want me to answer your questions, I have only one request."
"To release your husband?" I asked. "You want to take all the blame on yourself?"
To my surprise, Ha Li Min scoffed at my words and said, "You capturing Zhang Zijun is your business; I couldn't care less about him. As a man, he is as weak as a dog. We divorced long ago; I am single now, with no husband."
I frowned and asked, "Then what is your request?"
Ha Li Min stood up, startling the two police officers beside her who instinctively reached for their guns.
I raised my hand to stop them and stood up as well. "What is your request?"
"I know that after doing something like this, even if those three scoundrels deserved it, my fate is clear now that you've caught me. You also know that there’s no one left in my family; my only relative is my child. So after I die, all I ask is for you to bury me and my son in the same place."
With that, Ha Li Min knelt on the ground, yet her tone remained defiant. "I have only this one request; otherwise, I won't tell you where Hu Ningning is."
While alive, she never got to spend a complete day with her son; after death, they could finally be together.
"Alright," I said. "Take her back to the station. The rest of you continue investigating this house and gather more evidence. Chen Bo, take a few people and bring Ha Li Min back."
Chen Bo nodded.
At eleven o'clock noon, we returned to the police station.
Having agreed to Ha Li Min's conditions, she readily shared everything with us.
Half a year ago, when Ha Li Min and Zhang Zijun rode their bicycles and stumbled upon a corpse, their world shattered in that moment. They brought the body home and were overwhelmed with grief as they looked at it. But after crying, they still had to live on. When they wanted to dress their son in new clothes, they discovered countless scars covering his body.
The children had done well; wherever skin was exposed outside of clothing, there were no marks left behind. However, beneath the fabric lay an array of wounds—evidence of being punched and kicked, beaten with sticks or metal rods, cut and burned.
The various scars, hidden beneath the fabric, meant nothing.
Not being seen does not mean they do not exist.
They finally saw it.
Both of them knew there was something wrong, but Zhang Zijun chose to go public and report it to the police for an investigation. However, Ha Li Min stopped Zhang Zijun's actions because she understood one thing. If it was the teacher who did this, such evidence could keep him in prison for life.
But what if it was a classmate?
The oldest student was only thirteen years old, and the Juvenile Protection Law informed Ha Li Min that children of this age would not bear criminal responsibility. In other words, these children would not receive the punishment they deserved. Even if older ones ended up in juvenile detention, such punishment seemed far too lenient to Ha Li Min.
A child's life, with decades of future ahead, was ended by a few others, while the price these children paid was merely a year in juvenile detention, or perhaps not even that with some connections. These children would continue attending classes, playing, growing up, and even continue to bully others.
What Ha Li Min wanted was not this; she wanted others to die.
For the first time, the usually indecisive Ha Li Min firmly made Zhang Zijun afraid. Zhang Zijun suddenly felt immense regret; he had the ability to send his child to a better school but chose not to.
Is it the environment that changes people, or do people change their environment?
This is an eternal dilemma.
This time, Zhang Zijun finally listened to his wife.
That night, Zhang Zijun and Ha Li Min packed a few things from their home and left with the body. They moved quickly, so much so that the residents didn’t even have time to react. They left behind all the furniture because they knew that staying too long would surely lead someone to call the police; the authorities would come.
And the best way to avoid the police was to leave quickly.
To transport a child's body, all they needed was a travel bag.
What followed was quite routine; under everyone's ignorance, they processed Zhang Zuocheng's transfer paperwork. The careless school leader didn’t even pay attention to where their child had transferred. Taishan Academy was not a good school, so transfers were quite normal.
After transferring schools, Ha Li Min and Zhang Zijun got divorced.
Before this, everything Ha Li Min described aligned with my suspicions, but as she continued, her words took a drastically different turn.
Ha Li Min went on, "I wanted revenge, but coward Zhang Zijun didn't dare to act. He was too afraid to kill, so I took it upon myself. After our divorce, I began my investigation, searching for answers until I devised this plan. The girl Hu Ningning was useful; she provided me with the information I needed, and I relied on her to carry out the killings."
I shook my head and said, "Do you really believe a child's words? Just because someone is a sadist doesn't mean they are guilty."
Ha Li Min let out a cold laugh. "I used to ignore children's feelings, which is why my son died. If I had paid attention sooner, perhaps my son Zhang Zuocheng wouldn't have died. So how could I not believe a child's words?"
She shook the handcuffs on her wrists. "At this point, there's no need for me to lie. This is how it is: I started killing. While driving, I studied the surveillance cameras around the school to find blind spots where I wouldn't be seen and figured out the best places to strike. Yet, I never expected you would find me just through Fishhook."
I lightly tapped the table. "No, you're lying. The caller who identified himself as the Murderer was a man. Although his voice was disguised, we can determine through technical means that it was a man's voice. Yours is clearly different from that of a rough man; otherwise, why not try to imitate it?"
Ha Li Min replied, "I altered my voice using a voice changer."
"Fine, what about your car?" I asked. "You had a vehicle when you abducted people, and that car belonged to Zhang Zijun. If there was no connection between you two, why were you driving his car? You also stayed in the room Zhang Zijun rented for some time; you only separated after the murders, right?"
Ha Li Min scoffed. "I don't know why you think there's any connection between Zhang Zijun and me, but do as you wish; I won't concern myself with the rest. My dealings with you are over. After that, I used my own car to start abducting people and torturing them before coming here."
"What if those kids never abused your son?"
I looked into Ha Li Min's eyes and said, "Everything you're saying is based on your or Hu Ningning's assumptions. These individuals may have indeed harmed others, but that doesn't mean they abused your child; perhaps someone else did that. What gives you the right to kill?"
Ha Li Min met my gaze and replied, "I don't know; I can't be sure they are the ones I want to kill. But as long as they have hurt others or bullied them, killing these three won't be unjustified. Life is too long; these kids have lived rich lives—what more do they need?"
"Shameful," Mary interjected.
Ha Li Min countered, "It's better than being hypocritical. If I reported it to the police, what would happen? They'd call these kids in for a lecture while my child would still be dead? This was the best choice I could make. So listen carefully: my name is Ha Li Min; Zhang Zuocheng is my child; I kidnapped Hu Ningning and killed Li Jun, Liang Zhengyu, and Guo Li. I'm confessing—it's that simple."
I sighed; it seemed Ha Li Min had resolved to take all the blame upon herself. From their wedding photo, it was clear that Zhang Zijun deeply loved Ha Li Min, yet at a critical moment, he let his wife bear all the responsibility. I hadn't seen any photos in Ha Li Min's rented place, but at this moment, she seemed intent on dying in hopes of freeing Zhang Zijun.
What are the different choices, and what is love, after all?
"I'll ask you one last time, did Wu Zui provide you with any assistance?" I inquired.
"What is Wu Zui?" Ha Li Min replied, "I don't know what you're talking about; I don't know this person."
I pressed my hand against my temple. This was clearly the style of Wu Zui, and the methods used to handle the aftermath were remarkably skillful.
With that thought in mind, I asked, "Then why did you clean up the bloodstains afterward?"
"Bloodstains?" Ha Li Min looked puzzled. "I left right after the murder; I never cleaned up anything. I don't know what you're talking about. Are you sure you're not mistaken? Who exactly is this Wu Zui that makes you so anxious?"
"You didn't clean up?" I pressed on. "You didn't erase your own traces?"
Ha Li Min shook her head.
That made things strange. If Ha Li Min hadn't removed those traces, then it must have been Wu Zui's people who did it. But why would Wu Zui's people help Ha Li Min cover up the evidence? This meant that Wu Zui was involved but had not revealed themselves to Ha Li Min.
Things were getting odd.
"What about Hu Ningning?"
I asked.
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