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墨書 Inktalez
After Zhong Anguo was arrested, there was little movement from the Zhong family. The only communication came from the elderly matriarch, who made a few phone calls and cried several times. Besides that, his son had not sent any news, claiming he was on a business trip and could not return immediately.
Early the next morning, Lin Yuan arrived at the district police station with dark circles under his eyes. He wasn't sure if it was because this case was related to others within the system, but he had been tormented by it all night.
"Lin Yuan?" The officer at the entrance eyed him suspiciously. The young man looked like he had pulled an all-nighter; usually, this kind of appearance suggested a night spent gaming.
Is this person really the designated consultant for the bureau? Lin Yuan nodded in affirmation. Recognizing him from the photo he had seen, the officer handed him a temporary identification number. Regardless of whether Lin Yuan would become an official consultant for the district later on, this step was necessary.
"You need to find Zheng Yunyin. She will handle all your issues during your time as a temporary consultant. She's familiar with the officers in the records room and information technology department," the officer explained. He was an experienced cop and knew the internal workings of the station well; they wouldn't have sent him here otherwise.
After acknowledging receipt of the identification number, Lin Yuan understood what he needed to do. There were private offices available in the police station, but Lin Yuan wasn't yet in a position to occupy one alone, so he was assigned to work in the records room.
The officers in the records room were busy, but they were curious about Lin Yuan's arrival. One by one, they peeked over to take a look at him but didn’t engage in conversation. Seeing a pile of documents on his desk, Lin Yuan felt inclined to ask someone about his tasks for the day. Unfortunately, everyone seemed too occupied to spare him any attention, so he settled down and began reviewing the case information himself.
Meanwhile, Zheng Yunyin, who was supposed to be responsible for Lin Yuan, hurriedly printed materials on the third floor. Normally, she wouldn’t be this busy; however, this time there was an urgent request from above for cases from several years ago.
The autopsies had been completed long ago—where could she find people now? When she finally reached the conference room, several unfamiliar faces glanced over at her with mild interest.
"I thought there was a dedicated database in the district? Why has it taken so long?" Before Zheng Yunyin could explain herself, one of them frowned and spoke up again.
"Forget it; just bring what you have for now. You can leave afterward."
Zheng Yunyin didn’t say much in response; she glanced at her superior from the criminal investigation team before turning to leave. As she stepped out, she spotted Wu Cong, an officer who worked alongside Team Leader Zhang Yao. They had both entered the police station around the same time and could easily strike up a conversation under such circumstances.
Zheng Yunyin was at a loss for words.
Although it was a murder case, the family had requested cremation and burial, so they couldn't just keep the body indefinitely, could they?
Wu Cong, who had seen more people than she had while working alongside the captain of the criminal investigation team, chuckled. "They're not formal police officers and don't know much about the precinct. The captain will explain things to them. Aren't you responsible for Lin Yuan today? Why not head over now?"
Why was Zheng Yunyin in charge? It was because when the bureau chief left, he noticed that Lin Yuan and Zheng Yunyin seemed to get along well, so he made that arrangement.
At this point, Zheng Yunyin suddenly remembered and slapped her forehead in annoyance. "Oh no! I completely forgot about this! Today's task isn't just to look through those case files in the office; there are people waiting!"
"Huh?" Wu Cong looked puzzled. "There aren't many people in the precinct connected to Lin Yuan. Who's waiting?"
It wasn't until nearly ten o'clock that Zheng Yunyin finally appeared before Lin Yuan.
By then, Lin Yuan had almost finished reviewing the cases on his desk. Aside from one file in his hand, the rest were stacked together. If someone didn’t know better, they might think he had just started looking at them.
For instance, Zheng Yunyin, who had just arrived, didn't notice the bewildered expressions of the surrounding officers as she slightly panted while approaching Lin Yuan.
"Sorry to keep you waiting so long. Shall we go?"
After finishing the last case file in his hand, Lin Yuan closed his eyes briefly. Instead of standing up, he asked in return, "I checked the time; these are all cases from last year. Were there this many cases from the year before?"
Though she didn't understand why he asked that, Zheng Yunyin assumed he had simply glanced at the dates and nodded. "Pretty much. However, most of the cases from the year before have been resolved. With today's technological methods, many of last year's cases occurred in places without surveillance."
This also made it difficult for investigations to proceed.
Lin Yuan stood up thoughtfully and pushed those case files toward a nearby officer. He had noticed that all the cases were uniformly organized by that person.
"Please take these away; I’ll reach out if I need anything later," he said while glancing at Zheng Yunyin.
The officer silently collected the files.
Seeing this, Zheng Yunyin was momentarily taken aback, but retrieving these files wasn't difficult; Lin Yuan glanced through them and confirmed they were sufficient.
On their way, Zheng Yunyin briefly explained Lin Yuan's tasks for today, which were related to those cases to help him get acquainted with them.
However, what mattered more was the situation with Zhong Anguo at hand.
They had unearthed quite a bit from Zhong Anguo's account; it just felt like they hadn't hit the right point yet. The only person who could break through Zhong Anguo's defenses was Lin Yuan.
The case needed to be resolved quickly for the benefit of the police department, so this morning, Zhong Anguo found himself sitting in the interrogation room. After nearly three hours of tedious waiting, he finally saw Lin Yuan's figure.
The last time he was interrogated, it was by Zhou Changfeng, who was much older than Lin Yuan. Seeing such a young man, dressed in civilian clothes rather than a police uniform, left Zhong Anguo feeling somewhat perplexed.
Lin Yuan pulled out a chair and sat down. Zheng Yun, unsure of the interrogation methods, stayed outside and watched. To be honest, she was quite curious about Lin Yuan's approach.
"Mr. Zhong," Lin Yuan began with a faint smile, "perhaps another title would suit you better—Scapegoat?"
Noticing the change in Zhong Anguo's expression, Lin Yuan continued smoothly, "What you heard last time was what I told Officer Zhou. Isn't it strange that the raincoat wasn't processed? Do you want to know who did it?"
Zhong Anguo's face changed completely at the mention of handcuffs. He instinctively glanced at the unremarkable reflective glass before averting his gaze. This person was clearly trying to break through his psychological defenses with such words.
He steadied his mind and replied, "That item was handled by me; it’s of no use to you anyway. What? Are you trying to threaten me with a used raincoat?"
As soon as he spoke, Lin Yuan crossed his hands on the table and maintained his smile. "Are you so sure it’s a clean raincoat? If there’s anything on it, you wouldn’t be able to convict me using the blood from the bridge. This officer is too young; it was me and no one else."
"Why don’t we save ourselves some trouble and just end me?" Zhong Anguo had long since become indifferent to life or death; after living for so long, he had grown weary of it all. Now that the police were after him, he felt resigned.
After a long pause, Lin Yuan clapped his hands slowly. "What do you call it in your family? Oh right, filial piety."
As the applause stopped, Lin Yuan's eyes held a calmness that belied the tension in the room. "There are several suspicious funds in Zhong Wei's accounts. If an investigation is initiated, they will all be frozen. Your son has only been in office for a year, right? Why do you think he was given such a high position? Have you never considered the reason?"
Zhong Anguo had thought about it but dismissed it as irrelevant. What could the police do to them?
"Mr. Zhong," Lin Yuan pressed on, "the one manipulating you from behind is not your son. Do you think that if you enter the police station, your son will be safe?"
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