Eyes that are the same as those of evil

Chapter 45 The Ungrateful Wolf 2
Back at the police station, Zheng Yan specifically requested permission to ask Wu Yang to go through the files for half an hour and find a file from eleven years ago.

"Wangjia Town 11.23 Serial Child Murder Case".

Looking at the contents of the file, Zheng Yan felt a tightness in his chest.

"This case shocked the whole country at the time. The murderer only targeted boys aged seven to twelve. After arresting them, he would abuse and beat them, force them to kneel down and apologize, admit that they were ungrateful. He would also make several children kill each other, and then bury them one by one. The murder weapon was a rope. Even the children who were killed were from the surrounding villages before the orchard was built."

It is highly similar to this case.

Tan Ming sensed a secret: "So detailed, were there survivors back then?"

"Yes, and he was a very special survivor—his father was the richest man in Haicheng back then, and the murderer also engaged in extortion."

"This case hasn't been solved?" Wu Yang asked in surprise as he looked behind him.

Zheng Yan shook his head: "We found the person who made the extortion call, but we didn't have time to catch him. He was killed along with the parents who lost their children. So whether he was the murderer who killed all the children, or whether he had accomplices, we can never find out."

Everyone looked at each other, somewhat shocked.

The suspect was killed by the victim's family before being convicted, which made the case a cold case that seemed to be solved but was not. They had never seen such a situation before. On the contrary, there were cases where the murderer was acquitted and then collectively killed by the victim's family.

“But the fact that the same case has reappeared means that the person in question must have had accomplices,” Zheng Yan said confidently, closing the case file.

He then called the police officer who was in charge of the case back then to inquire, and then went to his superiors to apply for a joint investigation.

Given that the details of this case, the murder weapon, the victim, and even the location of the incident were similar to the serial child murder cases, the application to merge the cases was quickly approved, and two of the police officers who were in charge of the child murder cases back then were assigned to investigate together.

As soon as the people arrived, the children's identity information was also released.

"The child who died was named Yu Dong, eight years old. Like Zhu Muyang, he was from out of town and was brought by his parents for a trip. He had recently been staying at a guesthouse in the orchard."

Zheng Yan wondered, "It's understandable if they're locals, but what about tourists from out of town? If their child goes missing in the middle of the night, doesn't anyone report it to the police?"

“There wasn’t enough time.” Tan Ming sighed as he recalled how Zhu Muyang’s mother was so excited that she knelt down and cried when he met the victims’ parents, and how Yu Dong’s mother was in disbelief and wailing.

"After dinner, a few kids went to the camping area to watch a drive-in movie. There were two dads watching over them, so everyone felt at ease. Two hours later, when the movie ended, the kids were gone. The dads, who had been drinking, didn't think much of it, assuming they had gone to play in the children's area. Then, for some reason, Yu Dong's parents started arguing and almost came to blows. Zhu Muyang's dad even tried to break it up. After the argument, everyone went to look for the kids. At that point, someone mentioned there was a lake outside the orchard, and wondered if the kids had fallen in while playing in the water. So they went to the park manager to pump out the water and retrieve the kids... That's why the orchard's security guards arrived so quickly when we got there, because they hadn't slept and were trying to retrieve the kids."

Sin ah.

Officer An, who came to assist, frowned: "Like the survivors from back then, they weren't locals. Apart from them, all the victims back then were children from villages around Wangjia Town. It was because of that out-of-town child that their crimes were discovered, leading to one death and one hiding. Eleven years later, why would they target out-of-town children who are even more dangerous?"

“Perhaps the two children did something to provoke him. We believe the murderer is a mentally ill patient who is easily angered,” Zheng Yan said, presenting Zhu Muyang’s statement. “The murderer forced them to kneel down and apologize, and even made them admit that they were ungrateful.”

"It's similar to what the survivors from eleven years ago said. We also judged at the time that the murderer was either disgusted with boys and disappointed with the parent-child relationship, or he had suffered from the damage caused by the distorted parent-child relationship since childhood. In short, he was not mentally normal."

Some people suffer psychological abuse from a young age, which twists their minds without them realizing it. This may not happen until adulthood, even in their forties or fifties, when they suddenly begin to vent their frustrations due to certain stimuli. They may have been assimilated by their parents, killing their younger selves, or perhaps they are killing children who are happier than they were.

“However,” Officer An was interested in another matter, “the survivor from back then had incredible willpower. He waited until the killer thought he was dead and buried him in the ground before digging out with his bare hands. He ran for two kilometers before collapsing in the ground and being discovered and taken to the hospital. How did this survivor escape?”

Zheng Yan glanced at Tan Ming.

"At that time... divine soldiers descended from the sky."

Officer An: "???"

Tan Shenbing Jia was brought before two police officers who were assisting with the case.

The other person stared at her in shock, scanning her up and down several times, their eyes seeming to say, "You mean this girl who looks like she skipped school to join an underground street dance club had a fantastical dream and then followed God's guidance to save the victim? Does anyone actually believe such nonsense?"

Tan Jia remained calm, and even while being scrutinized by them, she still had time to inform Zheng Yan of her examination results.

"I'm not sick, I don't have cancer, I'm perfectly healthy."

Zheng Yan patted her arm and said to the two of them, "She's like a specially hired worker in the team. She doesn't clock in or have to work regular hours; she's just responsible for dreaming."

Then he waved for her to go out and rest for a while.

Officer An was a little unable to accept the rapid development of the criminal investigation field. A few years ago, they were doing a lot of scientific crime-solving, but now it has directly turned into science fiction?

"Knock knock—" Xiao Chen knocked on the door and came in, interrupting their daze.

"Captain Zheng, I've found the direction the murderer fled in."

By examining the footprints and the trampled grass along the way, they determined that the murderer had left from the hillside behind the orchard, where it was not fenced off. Beyond the hillside lay an open, terraced plantation filled with various fruit trees.

“Most of the trees in the plantation are drought-resistant fruit trees, so they don’t need much watering and the soil is dry, making it difficult to see footprints. However, since the murderer ran towards that exit first, he must have been very familiar with the area. We guess he was a resident of one of the two nearby villages.”

Officer An finally came to his senses: "One of the murderers we found back then was from Jiuqu Village in Wangjia Town. We also suspected that if there were accomplices, they must have been from that area, but after investigation we didn't find anyone who was a suspect."

After a few seconds of contemplation, Captain Zheng said to Xiao Chen and Tan Ming, "You two should call on the police officers to come together and check each village one by one. The murderer most likely committed the crime on impulse and probably didn't take any protective measures. Although it's difficult to collect fingerprints on the body and the victim's clothing, there might be some traces left on the murderer's body. Also, the murder weapon, that thin rope is very special, find it."

As for him, he said to Officer Ann, "We're afraid we'll have to get one of the survivors from back then to come here."

Zhu Muyang is only nine years old, and many key points cannot be confirmed. Putting the testimonies of the two survivors together might reveal more details.

But Officer An shook his head: "Difficult. He hasn't set foot in Jiujiang for eleven years, and he... is rather special."

The male lead will appear in the next chapter!


(End of this chapter)