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

"Look here! Missing person: Tian Zheng, male, 48 years old, 175 cm tall, medium build, pork vendor. He was reported missing yesterday (Wednesday) morning! The person who reported him said he went out on Tuesday night and never came back. He has several old scars on his body, which were caused when he was slaughtering pigs. He usually wears a gray cotton jacket, dark trousers, and a pair of old sneakers!"

“A pork vendor! A gray coat!” Xiao Li jumped up from his chair, his voice trembling. “This matches the victim’s characteristics perfectly! 48 years old, 175 centimeters tall, a pork vendor—definitely manual labor. The scars from slaughtering pigs also match ‘old scars,’ and even the clothes he usually wore were exactly the same! The report was filed on Wednesday morning, and the victim was murdered between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning—the timeline fits perfectly!”

Xiao Wang excitedly leaned over and repeatedly checked the information on the screen: "That's right! The previous ones either had the wrong scar location or didn't mention the clothing, but this information about Tian Zheng is exactly based on the deceased's characteristics!"

Zhang Hui suppressed his excitement and typed rapidly on the keyboard, pulling up Tian Zheng's detailed police report: "The complainant is his wife, Liu Mei, phone number 138XXXX5678, who lives near the Chengdong vegetable market. The record says that Tian Zheng sells pork at the Chengdong vegetable market every day and always goes home on time after closing up shop. On Tuesday night, after closing up shop, he said he was going to meet a friend, and then he couldn't be contacted anymore. His phone was also turned off. Liu Mei had no choice but to call the police on Wednesday morning."

"Contact Liu Mei immediately to verify the exact location and number of Tian Zheng's scars, as well as the details of his going out on Tuesday night." Zhang Hui picked up his phone, quickly dialed the number, and tried to keep his tone gentle after the call was connected. "Hello, is this Ms. Liu Mei? We are from the Criminal Investigation Detachment. We would like to verify a few things with you regarding your husband Tian Zheng's disappearance."

Liu Mei's voice came through the phone, trembling with sobs and suppressed whimpers: "Officer... have you found my husband, Lao Tian? How... how is he?"

Zhang Hui's heart sank, but he still patiently asked, "Ms. Liu, please don't worry. We want to confirm exactly where Mr. Tian Zheng's scars are located and how many there are?"

Liu Mei answered through sobs, "He has several scars on his body, all from when he was slaughtering pigs. There's one on his chest, two on his arms, and one on his stomach. The most obvious one is the one on his chest, which is about 3 centimeters long. You can see it even when he's not paying attention to his clothes."

Zhang Hui's heart tightened—the location and number of scars on the deceased's torso matched Liu Mei's description perfectly. He pressed further, "What clothes was Mr. Tian Zheng wearing when he went out on Tuesday night? What did he take with him?"

“He was wearing the clothes he usually wore when he sold pork: a gray cotton jacket, dark pants, and a pair of old sneakers—the kind that don’t get dirty easily. He didn’t take anything else with him when he left, just his phone and wallet. He said he was going to meet a friend and would be back soon, but… but we haven’t heard from him since.” Liu Mei’s voice grew increasingly choked with emotion, until she could barely speak.

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Hui turned to his team members and said firmly, "The characteristics match perfectly! Tian Zheng's scar location, clothing, and whereabouts on Tuesday night all match the deceased. Arrange for someone to go to Liu Mei's house immediately to collect a DNA sample and compare it with the deceased's DNA to officially confirm the identity."

At 6:40 a.m., two team members, carrying DNA sampling equipment, drove to a residential area near the Chengdong vegetable market and successfully collected Liu Mei's DNA sample. The sample was urgently sent to the technical department, and half an hour later, the technical department brought confirmation: "Brother Hui! The DNA matched! Liu Mei's DNA matches the deceased's DNA, confirming a spousal relationship. The deceased is indeed Tian Zheng!"

Upon hearing the news, a long-suppressed cheer erupted in the verification room. Xiao Li excitedly slapped the table: "Great! Finally, their identity is confirmed! All that staying up all night was worth it!" Xiao Wang also breathed a sigh of relief, leaning back in his chair and laughing: "Now we have a direction! Next, we need to investigate Tian Zheng's social connections, especially that friend he met Tuesday night—he's most likely the suspect!"

A long-lost smile appeared on Zhang Hui's face. He picked up his phone and immediately dialed Lu Chuan's number: "Captain Lu, the deceased's identity has been confirmed! His name is Tian Zheng, 48 years old, a pork vendor at the East City vegetable market. He went out to meet a friend on Tuesday night and disappeared. He was murdered and his body was dumped in the unfinished Huijia Garden building. We'll start investigating his social connections now, focusing on his business partners, competitors, and that 'friend' who hasn't shown up yet."

On the other end of the phone, Lu Chuan's voice was filled with obvious excitement: "Great! Excellent! Zhang Hui, you've worked hard! Immediately organize a team to investigate Tian Zheng's social connections, especially his relationships at the vegetable market. Are there any debt disputes or business conflicts? We must find that 'friend' as soon as possible and find clues about the suspect!"

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Hui looked out the window. The morning light had already filled the sky, turning the once pitch-black night into a bright and warm one. The hard work and tedium of the night hadn't been in vain. From over 800 messages to over 1000, they finally grasped a crucial clue around 6 a.m., confirming the victim's identity. He knew this was only the first step in solving the case, but at least they had finally moved beyond the "groping in the dark" stage and taken a solid step towards the truth.

“Everyone, take a two-hour break. We’ll meet in the conference room at 9 a.m. to summarize Tian Zheng’s situation and formulate the next steps in the investigation.” Zhang Hui patted his team member on the shoulder, his tone full of satisfaction. Although everyone’s face showed fatigue, their eyes were full of energy—the fatigue had been replaced by the hope and excitement of solving the case the moment the victim’s identity was confirmed. The lights in the verification room were still on, but at this moment, those lights were no longer a symbol of “working late into the night,” but a “lighthouse” illuminating the path forward in the case, guiding them to continue moving towards justice.

At 9 a.m. on Thursday, the door to the Criminal Investigation Detachment's conference room closed precisely on time. The air was filled with the rich aroma of coffee, mingling with the rustling sound of papers turning. Lu Chuan sat at the head of the conference table, a thick stack of case files spread out in front of him, a black pen in his hand. His sharp eyes swept over the team members present—after a busy night, everyone's face showed fatigue, but their eyes shone with anticipation for a breakthrough in the case.

"Everyone's here, let's begin the meeting." Lu Chuan's voice broke the silence of the conference room. "Yesterday, there was significant progress in the Huijiayuan unfinished building case. The reason I've gathered everyone here today is to summarize information from various departments, clarify the case's details, and determine the next direction of the investigation. Let's start with the crime scene investigation. Yang Lin, you report on the findings after expanding the scope of the investigation." (End of Chapter)