Attending ex-girlfriend's wedding, arresting the groom's officer on the spot

Third, thoroughly investigate the dispute between Zhao Zhiqiang and Hongwei Building Materials, especially the reason for the suspension of social security payments in 2022; fourth, investigate Li Weiguo's fellow inmates to confirm whether any accomplices were involved in disposing of the body.

As the crowd dispersed, the 3D model on the projector continued to rotate, the point cloud data around the blue van flickering like countless eyes awaiting the truth. Lu Chuan took one last look at Zhao Zhiqiang's photo; the scar on his right ring finger was exceptionally clear in the sunlight, seemingly forming a hidden echo with the blurry fingerprint on the steering wheel—and all of this would gradually reveal its clear outline in the subsequent investigation.

Wang Shuai's police car was parked at the weighbridge station on the suburban freight route for two whole days. The surveillance video was playing on the computer screen. At 9:17 a.m. on July 20, the white Haval H6 finally appeared in the picture. "The license plate number is Yu A8X372," he zoomed in on the screenshot. The mud on the rear license plate had been washed away by the rain, revealing the complete number. "The registered owner is Zhao Jianguo from the suburbs, 58 years old, a retired worker."

When we found Zhao Jianguo, he was pruning roses in the community garden. His Haval H6 was parked downstairs, with a piece of red tape covering the deformed part of the rear bumper. "This car belongs to my son," he said, wiping the sap from the pruning shears. "He drove it to Dongzhou on July 18th, saying he was delivering medicine to his mother-in-law. He didn't come back until the 22nd." He pulled out his son's high-speed rail ticket: G1806, July 18th, 8:05 AM, seat number 12-03A. "Look at this ticket stub. How could he have had time to go to the parking lot?"

Hotel surveillance footage from Dongzhou confirmed Zhao Jianguo's account. At 8 PM on July 18th, Zhao Jianguo's son checked into the Zhongzhou Hotel, and the facial recognition system showed he didn't check out until the morning of the 22nd. "He was at the hospital with his son every day during that time," the attending physician said, reviewing the visitation records. "He was still at the payment counter at 1 AM on July 19th, as evidenced by surveillance footage and signatures. It's impossible for him to be at an abandoned parking lot 200 kilometers away."

The weighbridge record showed that the Haval H6 had a load of 1.2 tons on the morning of July 20. "My son took an old refrigerator to Dongzhou," Zhao Jianguo said, pointing to the scratches on the trunk. "This thing caused the damage, and the rear bumper was also damaged when the refrigerator was being loaded." He suddenly remembered something. "Oh right, on the afternoon of July 17, I was washing my car at the entrance of the community when a guy in blue overalls asked to borrow my car, saying he wanted to haul some goods for his boss. I didn't agree."

Wang Shuai reviewed the community's surveillance footage. At 3 PM on July 17th, a man in blue overalls was indeed seen loitering near a Haval H6. He had a mole on his cheek, perfectly matching the image captured by the gas station's surveillance cameras. "This man is Li Tao from the nearby auto repair shop," the community police officer provided. "He has a prior theft conviction and suddenly resigned on July 19th; we can't contact him now." He is 165cm tall and wears size 42 shoes, matching the shoe prints found at the scene.

In the auto repair shop's tool shed, Li Tao's locker was still emptied. His dark blue work clothes were stained with dark brown cotton-polyester fibers, 65% cotton, perfectly matching the fibers found in the parking lot. "He took leave on the afternoon of July 18th, saying he was going to help a friend," the owner recalled. "He also borrowed a crowbar, saying he'd use it to remove tires, and hasn't returned it yet." The crowbar was 5 centimeters in diameter, matching the impact marks on the steel pipe.

When Li Tao's DNA was compared with the mixed DNA profile found under the victim's fingernails, the results showed a perfect match. "But he's not the murderer," Wang Shuai stared at the report. "The STR profile shows that he only had contact with the victim and didn't directly participate in the murder." Surveillance footage showed that at 11 p.m. on July 22, Li Tao pried open the van's door and took a black plastic bag from the passenger-side storage compartment. "He probably discovered the body while stealing the car and wanted to take something valuable, but he was scared away by the security guard's noise from prying open the car."

Zhao Jianguo's Haval H6 was ultimately cleared of suspicion. The rapeseed oil stains on the car were found to have been deliberately spilled by Li Tao when he failed to borrow the car, in an attempt to frame the owner. "He often comes into contact with rapeseed oil at the auto repair shop," the shop owner pointed to the oil drum on the ground, "It's this stuff, used to lubricate parts, and its composition is the same as the one on the steel pipe."

On Wang Shuai's statement notebook, the suspicion surrounding the Haval H6 was crossed out, but new clues surfaced: Li Tao's sudden disappearance, his relationship with Li Weiguo, and the black plastic bag that had been taken. "Li Tao definitely knows who the killer is," he said into the walkie-talkie. "Check his call records, focusing on his contacts with Li Weiguo around July 18th." The abandoned parking lot in the distance remained silent. Although the truth about the white Haval H6 had been revealed, the real killer remained shrouded in mystery.

Zhang Hui's fingers crumpled as he rummaged through the employee files at Hongwei Building Materials. Zhao Zhiqiang's new employee photo, yellowed under the fluorescent light, revealed a scar on his right ring finger that resembled a curled-up centipede. The papers in the file folder exuded the musty smell of old paper. He carefully pulled out the 2021 onboarding form, its handwriting neat and strong. The "emergency contact" section listed his wife's name and phone number, the last four digits of which were "5211," conveying a sense of warmth. "Joined in March 2021, warehouse manager," he circled the departure date in red pen. "July 15, 2022, reason given as 'personal reasons,' but the payslip shows he only received half a month's salary that month, and the reason for the lapse in social security contributions is marked as 'voluntary resignation.'" The HR manager handed over the attendance sheet. On the yellowed pages, the clock-in records were densely packed with blue ballpoint pen strokes. The last clock-in time was 5:23 PM on July 14th, followed by large blank spaces.

"How does Zhao Zhiqiang usually perform at the company?" Zhang Hui asked, tapping his fingers on the table with a rhythmic sound. The HR manager pushed up her glasses, lost in thought: "He's a very honest person, just straightforward and stubborn. Warehouse work is quite tiring, but he never complains. He's just a bit argumentative sometimes. For example, if the specifications of the materials entering the warehouse are slightly off, he'll argue with the deliveryman for ages." She pulled out a record of awards and punishments from her drawer. "Look, he even received an Outstanding Employee Award at the end of 2021, with a bonus of 500 yuan."

An old warehouse employee smoked under the shade of a tree, cigarette butts piling up at his feet. Summer sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground. Old Li stubbed out his cigarette with the sole of his shoe, the ash scattered in the grass by the wind. "Zhiqiang is such a stubborn guy," he took a deep breath, as if inhaling all the memories of the past. "In the summer of 2022, he kept saying there was something wrong with the steel bars in the warehouse, the specifications were wrong, but the ledger said they were national standards. He complained to General Manager Zhou three times, the last time the whole office building could hear him." Old Li gestured in the air, imitating the scene of the argument. "General Manager Zhou was so angry he smashed his water glass, saying he was meddling and would be fired if he kept making a fuss. Zhiqiang didn't back down either, saying it was damaging the company's reputation and everyone's livelihood. The two of them argued until they were red in the face." (End of Chapter)