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

They knew that as long as they maintained a rigorous and meticulous work attitude and did not overlook any detail, they would definitely be able to overcome the difficulties, catch the murderer, and bring justice to Li Baochun.

By this time, Zhang Hui had been working continuously for nearly four days. The bloodshot eyes were becoming increasingly prominent, and the stubble on his chin was growing thicker and thicker, but he remained steadfast at his post, leading his team to sort through clues and analyze data. His team members, like him, had given up their rest and devoted themselves entirely to the investigation. They had only one goal in mind: to solve the case as quickly as possible, apprehend the murderer, and bring justice to the community.

"Zhang Hui, I'm assigning you two teams to be fully responsible for investigating Li Baochun's interpersonal relationships. From his family, colleagues, and classmates to his business partners, get to know them one by one, especially those with whom he has conflicts of interest or old grudges. Make sure to find the people behind them who are connected to him."

Zhang Hui raised his hand in salute, the bloodshot eyes more pronounced from days of hard work, and the stubble on his chin messy, yet they couldn't conceal his professionalism and determination: "Don't worry, Captain Lu, I guarantee a thorough investigation, and I won't overlook a single suspicious point." For the previous four days, he had been working almost non-stop, leading teams on site visits and investigations during the day, and reviewing clues and debriefing at night. When exhausted, he would curl up on the folding bed in his office for half an hour of sleep. Receiving this clear instruction now felt like a shot of adrenaline. He immediately gathered his team members and broke down the investigation task into three groups, forming a closed loop: one group would contact Li Baochun's family to understand the family's internal relationships and recent anomalies; the second group would visit his business partners and peers to investigate economic disputes and industry grudges; and the third group would delve into interpersonal relationships from primary and secondary school to early adulthood, focusing on investigating old grudges.

The first team, led by team member Xiao Li, headed to Li Baochun's residence in the Lijing residential area on the outskirts of the city. When they knocked on the door, Li Baochun's wife, Liu Mei, was sitting on the sofa, holding their child and wiping away tears. A photo of Li Baochun sat on the coffee table in the living room, and the air was thick with sadness and oppression. Upon seeing the investigators, Liu Mei broke down again, choking back sobs and unable to speak coherently. Xiao Li handed her tissues and patiently comforted her for nearly twenty minutes until she gradually calmed down. "Baochun... he wasn't an easy person to deal with, but he shouldn't have ended up like this," Liu Mei's voice was broken, her fingers tightly gripping the hem of her clothes. "He'd been in the scrap metal recycling business for five years, leaving early and returning late every day, dealing with all sorts of people, and he rarely talked to me about business when he came home. If I asked too many questions, he'd get angry."

When talking about Li Baochun's condition before his disappearance, Liu Mei's eyes showed a hint of panic: "Three nights before he disappeared, he came home very late, smelled of alcohol, and had several bruises. I asked him if he had been in a fight, and he only said, 'I accidentally bumped into something while collecting recyclables,' and then sat on the balcony smoking all night. The next morning before leaving, he suddenly said to me, 'If I don't come back, you take the child and go back to your parents' house. Take care of yourself.' At the time, I thought he was just saying it out of anger, and I even argued with him a bit. Now that I think about it..." She broke down in tears again halfway through her sentence.

Taking the opportunity, Xiao Li pressed further, "Has he ever mentioned owing anyone money, or anyone owing him money? Has he had any conflicts with anyone, even minor ones?" Liu Mei shook her head, then, as if suddenly remembering something, added, "A while ago, he kept saying he didn't have enough money and secretly took some of the family savings. When I asked him what he used it for, he wouldn't say. One night, I got up to get some water and heard him on the balcony making a phone call. His tone was particularly fierce, as if he was chasing someone for a debt, saying, 'If you don't pay me back, I'll take this to the Industry and Commerce Bureau.' After hanging up, his face looked very grim, and he said, 'This is a big problem.'" As for who it was specifically, Liu Mei said she didn't know. Li Baochun never allowed her to get involved in business matters, and his phone was always password-protected and never left his side.

Later, Xiao Li contacted Li Baochun's parents. The two elderly people lived in the countryside and rushed over after receiving the notification. Upon learning of their son's murder, they collapsed to the ground. According to the elderly couple, Li Baochun had been rebellious and short-tempered since childhood, often bullying classmates in school, for which they had repeatedly apologized and compensated at the school. "Once, he beat a classmate so badly that he had to be hospitalized, and we had to pay a lot of money. I think the boy's surname was Zhao or Zhang. Later, he transferred schools and we never contacted him again." Li Baochun's father wiped away tears, his voice trembling. "He refused to continue his studies after graduating from junior high school and insisted on going out to work. He rarely contacted his family. We only knew that he was doing scrap metal recycling and occasionally sent some money back. We knew nothing else. We advised him to control his temper and not offend people, but he wouldn't listen." The old man's words led the investigation team to initially identify the "old grudge" as the cause of the conflict.

Meanwhile, Zhang Hui's second team was navigating the scrap metal recycling market on the outskirts of the city. The environment was chaotic, a mingled mix of rust, oil, and the smell of discarded goods. Vendors gathered in small groups, hawking their wares and negotiating prices, creating a complex and fluid atmosphere. Li Baochun didn't have a fixed stall; he only rented a simple warehouse on the outskirts to store scrap. He usually worked alone, occasionally hiring temporary workers to help with loading and unloading. Zhang Hui found Zhang Qiang, who had previously worked odd jobs for Li Baochun. Zhang Qiang couldn't help but complain about Li Baochun: "Boss Li is too mean. He often delays paying wages and is always swearing. Last time I went with him to a factory in the suburbs to collect scrap lead, we got into an argument over weighing, and he shoved the factory's logistics manager. We almost got into a fight; I had to intervene to prevent it from escalating."

Zhang Qiang also revealed that in the past month, two strange men had repeatedly come to see Li Baochun. They were tall and burly, wearing black coats, masks, and hats, so their faces were obscured. Each time, they would pull Li Baochun to a corner of the warehouse to talk, speaking in a very aggressive tone, as if they were harassing him for a debt. "Once I heard them arguing. The two men said, 'If you drag this out any longer, we'll break your arm.' Li Baochun seemed very afraid of them, keeping his head down and not daring to argue back. Only after the two men left did he squat on the ground and start cursing," Zhang Qiang recalled. "The two men drove a black, unlicensed van with many scratches on it, looking very old. Every time they came, they would park on the roadside not far from the warehouse, stay for about ten minutes, and then leave." Zhang Hui immediately asked his team members to retrieve the surveillance footage from the area around the warehouse. Unfortunately, the warehouse was located in a remote area, and the few surveillance cameras they had were already broken, making it impossible to extract any useful footage.

Subsequently, Zhang Hui led a team to visit several scrap metal suppliers with whom Li Baochun had long-term cooperation. Zhao Lei, the owner of Xinyuan Scrap Metal Supply Station, was full of resentment when Li Baochun was mentioned: "That Li Baochun is so dishonest! Two months ago, he took a batch of scrap lead from me, worth 50,000 yuan, agreeing to settle the payment within a month, but he still hasn't paid. I've asked him several times, but he either avoids me or says he has no money, and even threatened to report me for illegally recycling heavy metals if I kept pressing for payment." (End of Chapter)