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

At 7:30 PM, Wang Shuai led his team back to the Criminal Investigation Detachment and reported the investigation results to Lu Chuan. "Team Leader Lu, through surveillance footage, we successfully identified the last passenger on the deceased Zhang Tiancheng's vehicle. The man is approximately 178-183 cm tall, of medium build, wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and dark pants, a black baseball cap, and carrying a black backpack. He has a noticeable scar on his left cheek and is a prime suspect," Wang Shuai said. "We tracked the man's movements to the intersection of Binhe East Road and Jiankang Street, but the trail went cold because that area is a blind spot for surveillance cameras. We haven't found him yet."

After hearing the report, Lu Chuan's expression turned grave. Although Wang Shuai's team had identified a prime suspect, the lack of leads had once again brought the investigation to a standstill. "Wang Shuai, immediately arrange for your team to conduct a thorough search of the urban villages, sports park, and surrounding residential areas around the intersection of Binhe East Road and Jiankang Street, based on the man's characteristics. Ask residents if they have seen him, and post reward notices to encourage the public to provide clues. The technical department should continue processing the man's profile image to try to reconstruct his face. At the same time, speed up the examination of physical evidence and autopsy samples collected from the scene, focusing on comparing unfamiliar fingerprints, cigarette butt DNA, and information in the database to try to find a breakthrough."

"Understood!" Wang Shuai nodded immediately, then turned and led his team back into their intense work. In the Criminal Investigation Division's conference room, the lights were still bright. Lu Chuan stood by the window, gazing at the dark night sky outside, his brow furrowed. This taxi driver murder case, from the crime scene investigation and forensic autopsy to the review of surveillance footage, had been fraught with difficulties and challenges at every step. Although a prime suspect had been identified, the lack of leads made the investigation extremely difficult. But Lu Chuan knew that as the head of the Criminal Investigation Division, he could not back down in the slightest. He had to lead his team to persevere, searching for clues in every detail until the suspect was brought to justice.

While Wang Shuai's team was engrossed in monitoring, investigating, and tracking the suspect with a scar on his left cheek, Zhang Hui, following Lu Chuan's instructions, led the fourth investigation team to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the interpersonal relationships of the deceased, Zhang Tiancheng. Lu Chuan's instructions from the morning meeting were as clear as yesterday: "Zhang Tiancheng's social relationships are the breakthrough point. From his family, friends, and classmates to his colleagues at the taxi company, visit them one by one, focusing on investigating grudges, debt disputes, especially clues that could easily lead to conflict, such as gambling and loans." At 1:30 p.m., Zhang Hui divided the team into three groups: one group, led by himself, was responsible for visiting Zhang Tiancheng's family to understand his family relationships and recent abnormalities; the second group was responsible for contacting Zhang Tiancheng's friends and classmates to verify his social circle and recent whereabouts; the third group went directly to the Chengxin Taxi Company where Zhang Tiancheng worked to investigate his interpersonal relationships and points of conflict at work.

At 2:10 PM, Zhang Hui, along with team members Li Ming and Zhao Qian, arrived at Zhang Tiancheng's home in Xingfu Community, Chengbei District. The community grid worker was already waiting downstairs. Seeing the police car arrive, he immediately stepped forward to guide them: "Officer Zhang, Zhang Tiancheng's wife, Liu Mei, is home. She heard about the accident this morning and fainted from crying; she's quite emotionally unstable." Zhang Hui nodded and instructed, "We need to be careful with our questioning. First, calm her down, then gradually gather information."

Knocking on the door of apartment 501, unit 2, building 3, a heavy atmosphere of sorrow immediately enveloped them. Liu Mei, dressed in dark loungewear, had eyes swollen and red like walnuts. Upon seeing Zhang Hui and the others in police uniforms, her lips trembled, and tears welled up again: "Officers, Tiancheng... he's really gone?" Zhang Hui showed his police ID and softened his tone: "Ms. Liu, we understand your feelings, and we are heartbroken as well. But in order to find out the truth as soon as possible and give Zhang Tiancheng justice, we need your cooperation in answering some questions."

Upon entering the house, Zhang Tiancheng's ID photo was displayed on the coffee table in the living room, along with several taxi operating receipts and unopened blood pressure medication. Liu Mei poured water for everyone and sat down, her hands tightly gripping the hem of her clothes. Zhang Hui spoke first: "Ms. Liu, how are Zhang Tiancheng's relationships with others? Has he ever argued with anyone or made enemies?"

Liu Mei wiped away her tears and choked out, "Tiancheng is a quiet person, not very talkative, but honest. He's been driving a taxi for over ten years and has never argued with a passenger. He's also very polite to his colleagues. It's just... he likes to have a drink or two. Every day after finishing his shift, he pours himself a couple of ounces of baijiu to relax. Even when he's drunk, he doesn't cause trouble; he just sits there in a daze." "Does he have any hobbies? Like playing cards or chess?" Zhang Hui pressed, watching Liu Mei's expression closely.

At this point, Liu Mei suddenly became agitated, her voice rising several decibels: "Hobbies? What decent hobbies does he have! All he knows is gambling! A few years ago, he was arrested by the police for gambling in an underground card room. He was fined and had a criminal record. I argued with him countless times, and every time he swore he would never gamble again, but he would go back to it right away!" At this point, Liu Mei covered her face and cried, "Last winter, he secretly took the 30,000 yuan of emergency money we had saved at home and gambled it all away, and even owed more than 10,000 yuan to others. I only found out later. I threatened to divorce him, and he knelt down and begged me, saying he would never dare to do it again. I didn't divorce him for the sake of the children."

Zhang Hui quickly handed her a tissue and pressed her for details: "Has he paid off all his debts? Whom did he owe? Has anyone come to his door to collect the debt or threaten him?" Liu Mei calmed herself down and shook her head, saying, "He never tells me who he owes money to, he just says they're all friends. If I press him, he argues with me. Later, I don't know where he got the money, but he paid off the debts. But ever since then, he's always complained about the pressure, he often has insomnia at night, and he's been working later and later."

"Has he mentioned being short of money recently? Or has he had any conflicts with anyone about money?" Li Ming added. Liu Mei thought for a moment and said, "A while ago, he mentioned wanting to borrow some money from my brother, Li Wei. I didn't agree. I told him that if he borrowed money from my brother to gamble again, I would never forgive him. He didn't say anything at the time, and I don't know if he ended up going to my brother." Zhang Hui's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly asked, "Your brother, Li Wei? What's his relationship with Zhang Tiancheng like? Have they been in contact recently?"

“Their relationship is so-so. Li Wei is a lazy bum and a gambler, so I usually don’t let them get too close,” Liu Mei sighed. “About two weeks ago, Li Wei came to our house to see Tiancheng. The two of them talked in the study for almost an hour. I don’t know exactly what they talked about, but I heard them arguing a bit. Li Wei didn’t look too good when he left.” (End of Chapter)