Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Guan Deng had already contacted the leadership of Dragon City Fourth High School, and he sent a photo of the boy's face to the school authorities. By the time Jiang He and Xu Yiman arrived on campus, Principal Zhou had already gathered basic information about the child. He had also called out the homeroom teacher of the class.
The identity of the body had been confirmed: Deng Xiangyu, a sixteen-year-old student in the third year of junior high.
Since it was the first day of school for the newly promoted third-year students, there were no classes that day; instead, they were busy with distributing textbooks and cleaning the classrooms. The homeroom teacher for the third year had also just been replaced, so attendance had not yet been taken, and no one was aware that a student named Deng Xiangyu was missing from the class.
"We have sternly criticized the teachers for their negligence," Principal Zhou said. "But in reality, today is the first day of school, and it is indeed quite hectic. We change classes every semester, and during such a critical time as third year, this is even more pronounced. We cannot place all the blame on the school; we have already begun contacting Deng Xiangyu's parents..."
Jiang He interrupted Principal Zhou. "This is not the time to shift responsibility. I am here to investigate Deng Xiangyu's death..."
According to school policy, every semester at this junior high involved changing classes. Each grade typically had about ten classes: one Rocket Class, two Fast Classes, four Medium Classes, and three Slow Classes. Students in the Rocket Class were most likely to be admitted to the local Key High School, while those in Fast Classes could attend decent schools. Students in Medium Classes could generally get into high school without issue, while those in Slow Classes were simply completing their nine years of compulsory education.
In Dragon City Fourth High School's junior high, class changes occurred every semester based on academic performance rankings across four exams: monthly tests, midterms, and finals. The top fifty students would be placed in Rocket Class, with others ranked accordingly. As a result, many students and teachers did not know each other well; some students with stable grades might remain in the same class for three years, while others with fluctuating grades would move between classes frequently. Deng Xiangyu was one such student whose performance varied significantly; he started in Fast Class during entrance exams but had since fallen to Slow Class.
Several teachers had little impression of Deng Xiangyu; they only knew that he was quiet and not particularly studious. Beyond that, they were unaware of any deeper details.
"I need you to find six people," Jiang He stated.
"Six people?" Principal Zhou frowned. "Is Deng Xiangyu's death related to these six individuals?"
Jiang He nodded but then shook his head. "I can't be entirely sure yet, but I need your help to locate these six people."
With that, Jiang He pulled out his phone and opened a video on Weibo. "This video should feature students from your Fourth Middle School. I need to know who these individuals are."
Principal Zhou watched the video and replied, "I don't know every student in each class. Let me consult with the grade director first."
Jiang He insisted, "I need this done quickly. Gather all junior high and high school teachers immediately and show them this video in the conference room. I want to know who the others are within ten minutes."
Jiang He's words left Principal Zhou with little time to argue.
Soon, Principal Zhou called all the teachers together to watch the video. In less than ten minutes, the names of the six individuals appeared before everyone:
The girl known as the Cowgirl was named Ge Dongyun, and she was the leader among them. Standing next to Ge Dongyun was a girl named Zhuang Qinyun, while the other girl was Liu Huairou. Although these three girls were not in the same class, they were all students from the slow class.
The remaining two girls were obscured from view, almost hidden behind the others, so Jiang He did not inquire further.
Among the assailants were three boys, one of whom was Deng Xiangyu, who was already deceased. The other two boys were named Li Liangcai and Wang Liguo. These two were not in the slow class but in the average class; however, their homeroom teacher did not have a strong impression of them.
The last individual was the girl who had been attacked in the video. This girl was in the Fast Class and was named Xiao Xuanmiao. She had above-average academic performance and generally behaved well in class, capable of getting into a decent high school.
Of these individuals, only Ge Dongyun was a first-year high school student; the others were all third-year middle school students, all sixteen years old except for Ge Dongyun, who was seventeen.
"Bring these people out; I need to ask them some questions," Jiang He said.
"Understood," nodded each homeroom teacher.
At that moment, Guan Deng's message arrived on Jiang He's phone: "Jiang He, I've written a program that captured all IP addresses of those who left extreme comments under the video and those who liked those comments. I have identified about twelve thousand people."
Twelve thousand was no small number, and finding someone among them who would actually commit murder would not be easy. However, Jiang He knew that Guan Deng would not send him a message unless he had solid evidence.
Jiang He continued reading: "From the twelve thousand selected IPs, I set a range for Dragon City. Out of these, one hundred thousand have alibis that confirm they were not in Dragon City at the time of the incident."
"Among the remaining twenty thousand people, it is impossible to accurately determine whether they have been to Dragon City. While some IPs have remained static, I cannot confirm if those individuals actually visited Dragon City. Among these twenty thousand, three hundred twelve are locals from Dragon City. We have already verified their addresses, and local police stations have begun investigations."
"As for those who are not from Dragon City, I have made preliminary contact with public security bureaus in various provinces; they are currently conducting urgent investigations."
The text message ended there as Jiang He put his phone away. Many people now believe that anything online is inconsequential, but once something happens, the police can quickly find information about these individuals online. Once connected to the internal network, Guan Deng can easily trace the registered phone numbers or email addresses used by these individuals, which are linked to their personal identification accounts. Essentially, a quick search yields accurate results.
During the time Jiang He was looking at his phone, all six children had already been brought into the office.
The children stood in front of Jiang He, who scrutinized each of them one by one.
Cowgirl Ge Dongyun was still dressed in her denim outfit, which seemed a bit too warm for summer. Jiang He noticed that everyone else had their heads down, except for her; she was looking directly at Jiang He and Xu Yiman, seemingly unafraid to make eye contact.
The girl who had been beaten, Xiao Xuanmiao, stood at a distance from the others, frozen in place.
Jiang He observed that among them, the cleanest was a boy. He had a delicate appearance with a neat buzz cut that looked refreshing. His sleeves, collar, and the edges of his shoes were all clean, indicating he paid attention to personal hygiene.
The rest appeared quite ordinary; Jiang He couldn't glean much from them.
However, from the brands on their clothing, Jiang He could tell that Xiao Xuanmiao came from a poorer background. Her shoes had turned slightly yellow from white and she hadn’t replaced them. The dress she wore in the video along with those shoes might have been her most expensive outfit, yet it had been taken from her by these individuals.
"Why did you resort to violence?" Jiang He asked. "Why did you hit someone?"
No matter how Jiang He questioned them, none of the six spoke up.
"Do you not know that Deng Xiangyu is dead?" Jiang He continued. "This is likely related to your video being exposed online. So now, any one of you could be next. Do you understand? Why did you act out?"
Still, no one answered.
Xu Yiman glanced at Xiao Xuanmiao, who was nervously fiddling with her fingers nearby. "We'll separate you for questioning. Xiao Xuanmiao, you stay here; the rest of you wait outside. Don’t think that being minors will allow you to escape legal consequences. Stand outside and wait until you feel ready to speak before knocking to come back in."
Xu Yiman's words were serious; it was clear she was very angry.
After those people left, Xu Yiman finally spoke up, "So, what exactly happened?"
Xiao Xuanmiao lifted her head, looking pitiful and on the verge of tears. "I don’t know, I really don’t know why Deng Xiangyu died. I have no idea; maybe I offended them somehow. I'm really scared. Please don’t ask me anymore!"
With that, Xiao Xuanmiao began to cry.
For a sixteen-year-old, the death of a peer was an immense pressure, especially since this person had once bullied her. Xu Yiman felt a pang of sympathy for the girl because she too had been mocked and bullied in her youth, simply for maturing earlier than her peers.
"It's okay. I'm a police officer, and I will stand up for you. Why did they bully you?" Xu Yiman asked again.
Xiao Xuanmiao continued to cry, offering no response.
In truth, many situations lack clear answers. Bullying others works the same way as being bullied; there’s no such thing as a one-sided situation.
"Has anyone been in contact with you recently?"
Jiang He posed a different question.
Comment 0 Comment Count