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

The date on the note was barely visible, only the characters "year, month, day" remained. The edges of the paper showed obvious signs of tearing, as if it had been deliberately damaged. "Old Zhao, are there any loan sharks around here who regularly lend money to migrant workers at exorbitant interest rates?" Zhang Hui asked, placing the IOU into the evidence bag.

“That’s quite a lot.” Old Zhao scratched his head. “There are many construction sites in the western suburbs. Migrant workers with a little cash on hand are easily targeted. Loan sharks use all sorts of tricks to solicit business. Their names are all quite varied, like Wang Hu, Li San, Scarface… Nobody can say for sure which one it is. They all avoid the police and don’t show their faces much.”

Team member Yang Lei found a rusty iron box in a hidden compartment of the wardrobe. Inside, there was no cash, only a stack of crumpled lottery tickets and several photos of a woman—the woman in the photos was wearing a cheap dress, standing side-by-side with Zhang Dahai at the park entrance; the background was blurry, making her features unclear. “Team Leader Zhang, this woman doesn’t look like Liu Fang. There’s no photo of her in Liu Fang’s file,” Yang Lei said, handing the photos to Zhang Hui. “The lottery tickets are from three months ago; they’ve expired. Looks like Zhang Dahai still buys lottery tickets to try his luck.”

"Keep the photos and IOUs safe. Let's go visit the neighbor next door first." Zhang Hui handed the metal box to his team member and turned to walk towards Room 102. The door to Room 102 was ajar. Hearing footsteps, an elderly woman with gray hair peeked out. She paused when she saw the police uniform, then sighed, "Are you investigating Zhang Dahai's case? Come in and sit down. I'll tell you everything I know about this kid."

The old lady, surnamed Zhou, was sixty-eight years old and had lived in Xingfu Community her entire life. For the five years since Zhang Dahai moved in, she had been his closest neighbor. As soon as she sat down, Old Lady Zhou brought over two glasses of cooled boiled water, her tone tinged with helplessness: "That boy is a real handful. He comes home late every night, either humming a tune or cursing. He smashes beer bottles on the ground, and the whole building can hear it. Several times when I got up in the middle of the night, I heard a woman's voice coming from his room. It wasn't his wife, Liu Fang; Liu Fang speaks softly. That woman has a loud voice and they often argue."

"What did that woman look like? Do you remember her?" Zhang Hui took out his notebook. "For example, what were she wearing? Did she have any distinctive features?"

"I didn't see her face clearly, I only saw her back once. She had long hair and was wearing a red coat." Old Mrs. Zhou shook her head. "One morning I came back from buying groceries and saw that woman coming out of his house in a hurry. She seemed to have been crying, her eyes were red. Not long after, Liu Fang came and knocked on the door for a long time before Zhang Dahai finally opened it. The two of them started arguing as soon as they went in. Then I heard a 'slap' sound, like a slap, and Liu Fang ran away crying."

"Does Zhang Dahai often beat Liu Fang? Has he ever had any conflicts with the neighbors?"

"Hit him! Why didn't you hit him?" Old Mrs. Zhou slapped her thigh. "Liu Fang is an honest girl. She works odd jobs at the supermarket, and Zhang Dahai takes all the money she earns to drink and gamble. He'll hit her at the slightest provocation. One night last month, I heard him shout, 'You dare hide money?' Then I heard Liu Fang crying. I knocked on the door to try and stop the fight, and he cursed at me through the door, 'You old hag, mind your own business!' I was so scared that I didn't dare say another word."

Just then, a cough came from outside the door, and an old man carrying a hoe walked in. It was Old Li, who lived on the second floor. Hearing that the police were investigating Zhang Dahai, Old Li put down his hoe and started cursing: "That bastard deserved to die! Last winter, my grandson had a fever, and he was playing cards at home in the middle of the night, making so much noise that the child couldn't sleep. I went upstairs to argue with him, and he pushed me. I fell down the stairs, and my back still hurts."

"Does he often play cards at home? What kind of people does he play with?" Zhang Hui pressed. "Is there anyone with a scar on their face, or someone named Wang Hu?"

“They were all strange men, in groups of three or four, some tall, some short, some fat, some thin, I can’t remember their names.” Old Li frowned. “There was a man with a scar on his face, wearing a black jacket. He came twice last month. Each time he came, he talked to Zhang Dahai behind closed doors, his voice was very low, I couldn’t hear what he was saying. When he left, Zhang Dahai’s face was not good, as if he had been threatened.”

"When did that man come last month?" "Probably at the beginning of the month, I can't remember the exact day, but it seemed to be drizzling that day. I was taking in the laundry on the balcony when I saw him walking away with a black umbrella." Old Li added, "After he left, Zhang Dahai rarely went out. Occasionally he would go out to buy a pack of cigarettes, but he would always be looking down, absent-minded."

After leaving Grandma Zhou's house, Zhang Hui asked his team members to verify the information of other residents in the community, while he took Yang Lei to the "Good Luck Chess and Card Room" near the community—the sign for this chess and card room was in the background of Zhang Dahai's photo. The chess and card room had just opened when the owner, who was sweeping, saw the police. His expression changed, but he quickly put on a smile: "Officer, this is a legitimate business; we don't gamble."

"We'd like to ask you about someone. Do you know Zhang Dahai?" Zhang Hui took out a photo of Zhang Dahai and placed it on the counter.

The shop owner's gaze lingered on the photo for a few seconds before he mumbled, "It looks familiar. I think I've been here a few times, but I can't quite remember. We have a lot of people here, and the turnover is high, so I can't remember who's who."

"Does he come here to gamble often? Does he owe anyone money here?" Zhang Hui stared into the boss's eyes. "We've already interviewed his neighbors and know that he comes here every month. If you conceal the situation, you're obstructing the investigation."

The boss broke out in a cold sweat and rubbed his hands. "He's been here a few times, playing Dou Dizhu with some coworkers. The stakes aren't high, just five or ten yuan. He's unlucky and often loses. He owes a guy called 'Old Huang' money, only a thousand or two yuan. Old Huang urged him to pay it back, and he said he'd pay it back as soon as he got paid."

"Where is Lao Huang now? Is he at the construction site?"

"I don't know. Old Huang only comes occasionally. I heard he works on a construction site in the eastern suburbs, but I don't know which one." The boss quickly waved his hand. "Zhang Dahai hasn't been here for three months. We thought he moved somewhere else, but we didn't expect..."

After leaving the card room, Zhang Hui called Lu Chuan to report on the investigation: "Captain Lu, Zhang Dahai's interpersonal relationships are very complicated. He owes high-interest loans, has a woman outside, and has conflicts with his neighbors. The man with the scar on his face is a suspect, but his identity is unknown; there are no clues about the woman in the photo either. Liu Fang may know something about the situation."

Lu Chuan was silent for a moment on the other end of the phone: "The technical department's results are in. The deceased is confirmed to be Zhang Dahai, but the DNA on the cigarette butt didn't match in the database. It's not Li Tiezhu's, nor is it anyone with a known criminal record. The key's teeth marks were compared with those of locksmiths in the area; it's a very common old-fashioned door key. At least a dozen residential areas have used this type of key, so we can't pinpoint its exact origin." (End of Chapter)