You're supposed to be a security officer, what case are you solving?

Chapter 180 Major Clue! (Seeking Monthly Tickets)
The following day, the third day after the incident.

The steamed bun shop opposite the county bureau's guesthouse.

Breakfast in Lingmeng County is not much different from that in An'nan City. It's either steamed buns and porridge, or soy milk and fried dough sticks, or rice noodles. A bowl of vegetarian food costs one yuan, and if you want to add some minced meat, you have to pay an extra 50 cents.

When they're out on a case, their meals are subsidized by the municipal bureau, so Yang Jinwen, Maozi, and Qi Bin don't skimp on themselves.

One person ordered a bowl of rice noodles with minced meat, and also ordered three steamers of xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) from next door, which were also made with pure meat.

Because it was too cold, the cat added two spoonfuls of chili oil, and its mouth was all greasy from eating.

Qi Bin was a strong man, and this was not enough for him at all, so he ordered another bowl of rice noodles. He picked at the noodles with his chopsticks, then looked down and inhaled them in a gust of wind.

"Slurp, slurp..."

"I must say, the rice noodles in Lingnan County are really delicious."

Cat clicked its tongue and said, "It's a little thicker than the rice noodles in our An'nan City, so it has a better texture."

"Brother Cat, you've finished eating, would you like another bowl?"

The cat shook its head: "I can't eat anymore, I still have some steamed buns to eat."

"It's so delicious when you dip it in chili oil."

"is it?"

The cat used chopsticks to pick up a steamed bun, bit open the bun skin, and then used a spoon to scoop some chili oil and put it into the bun filling.

Qi Bin added, "Squeeze it a bit, make sure the chili pepper goes down smoothly, otherwise it will be too greasy to eat."

Cat is a very obedient person, so she did as she was told.

He blinked: "Can we eat now?"

Qi Bin nodded: "Try it and see if it tastes good."

Cat couldn't help but swallow, then popped the steamed bun into its mouth and chewed it twice.

Qi Bin immediately asked, "How is it?"

The cat answered, turning its head, rubbing its forehead with its hand, squinting its eyes, and humming twice in its throat.

Then he gave a thumbs up: "That was awesome!"

Qi Bin grinned: "I'll have one too."

At this moment, Yang Jinwen raised his head and stared at the two fierce men.

"Seriously, does having breakfast have to be such a big deal?"

Cat swallowed the bun and exclaimed, "Captain Yang, it's really delicious! You should try it. You'll sweat all over after eating it, feel refreshed, and warm up too."

Yang Jinwen ignored this: "By the way, have you figured out what I asked you to find out?"

Cat nodded: "I understand. There is only one brick factory in Lingmeng County, but some rural areas still retain the habit of firing kilns. So to check the self-built houses in the countryside, we have to call the local police station and ask them to inquire about the situation."

So today, besides checking the brick factory's supply, we also need to check those private kilns in the countryside. That's quite a workload.

Getting down to business, Qi Bin put down his chopsticks and said seriously, "Captain Yang, Director Wen said that a special task force will be set up soon. Let's investigate after we have enough people. If it's just the three of us, it will take at least several days."

Yang Jinwen shook his head: "We can't delay, we have to act quickly. Lingmeng County is only so big, if nothing unexpected happens, this group should have already escaped."

The cat ate another bun: "What should we do then?"

Yang Jinwen said, "Call people."

Yang Jinwen got up and left, then went to the guesthouse to make a phone call.

Not long after, He Jinbo drove Yao Weihua and Cai Ting over.

He Jinbo handed his mobile phone to Yang Jinwen: "Take this and use it first. If there is any news or if you need support, notify me immediately."

I've already spoken to Director Wan about the investigation into self-built houses in rural areas. He's currently contacting the police stations in various townships, and they'll call you once they have any information.

I'll stay in the county, with Zhang Yong and the others, using the sketches you drew, to investigate the migrant population throughout the county over the past few days, and see if we can find anything.

"Okay." Yang Jinwen took the mobile phone and put it in his handbag.

He Jinbo instructed, "Now that you're the deputy captain, you need to learn how to lead people. Whether our Major Crimes Unit can make a name for itself depends on you. Be careful in everything you do."

Yang Jinwen nodded: "I know."

He Jinbo glanced at the cat and said disdainfully, "Your mouth is all greasy from eating. Wipe your mouth clean."

Next, five people in one car headed to the largest brick factory in Lingmeng County.

The brick factory was semi-state-owned and semi-privately owned, and the owner lived in the factory.

After Yang Jinwen showed him his credentials, he cooperated and immediately took out the list of brick factory's shipments for the past month and handed it to Yang Jinwen to review.

The shipment volume of red bricks is very large, and some are even supplied to An'nan City. Yang Jinwen felt his scalp tingle as he looked at the dense list of names and units, making it difficult to find the specific location.

To investigate this lead, the first thing to consider is that the red brick powder on the nylon tape proves that the tape came from construction sites, brick factories, and places where self-built houses are under construction.

The nylon straps are very new, almost unused, so they must have been purchased recently, meaning the project was also recently started.

Yang Jinwen and his team spent the whole day yesterday running around, and they didn't use any of the 1.5cm wide nylon straps, at least not in the county town or the surrounding construction sites.

Therefore, we can only start with self-built houses in rural areas to see if we can find any clues.

Besides that, Yang Jinwen had another question on his mind.

Why did this family annihilation tragedy occur in Lingmeng County?

The family annihilation case in August 1996 took place in Yuncheng, the provincial capital, where there are many wealthy people and the local residents have more savings than those in county towns.

Moreover, the biggest problem is that Lingmeng County is not a big town, just a small county town.

Everyone knows everyone else, and even strangers will have mutual acquaintances; it's just a small circle.

In a small county town with a small population and a backward economy, these burglars who broke into homes and committed murder were highly skilled in counter-surveillance and were all veterans. It was impossible for them to commit such a big crime in such a place.

In Yuncheng, there are many people and many eyes, and the city is so big that it is easier to interfere with the police investigation.

Why didn't these criminals choose to commit their crimes in Anan City or the neighboring Dayan City, which are not far from Lingmeng County?
Is it really necessary to commit such a serious criminal case in such a small place?
Yang Jinwen had only one guess: there must be locals from Lingmeng County among this gang of thugs!
Moreover, they don't live in the county seat; they might be from a nearby town or village, and they are rarely home, or they rarely go home.

This was the question Yang Jinwen kept hidden in his heart. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about it, but it was just a speculation without any physical evidence, no different from a castle in the air.

He was afraid that if he said it at the meeting, it would interfere with the county bureau's investigation.

For example, this gang of thugs might happen to be passing through Lingmeng County, and since they're out of money, they might think of committing one crime. They figure they can kill someone and leave immediately, and the police won't be able to track them down.

This is also possible.

After searching for a long time without finding anything at the brick factory, Yang Jinwen received a phone call.

"Captain Yang, right?"

"I am Yang Jinwen, you speak."

“I am the deputy director of the Tiantai Township Police Station in Lingmeng County. My surname is Zhang.”

"Director Zhang, hello."

"Director Wan personally called and said, 'You want to investigate the rural houses currently under construction in Tiantai Township?'"

"Yes."

"Alright, I'll send someone to investigate. What are your requirements?"

"Director Zhang, there are several points to consider. First, people who have recently returned from other provinces or cities, both men and women, must be included. Second, whether red bricks were used in self-built houses in rural areas. Third, whether 1.5 cm white nylon straps were used, even the shoulder straps used for baskets and bamboo baskets, must be checked."

If these three come together, please let me know.

In addition, when conducting investigations and interviews, one should change clothes to avoid alerting the suspects.

"OK, I see."

With that, the other party hung up the phone.

At this moment, Yang Jinwen and his group's car was parked on the side of the road in the county town. He was sitting behind the steering wheel, while Cai Ting, being a woman, was sitting in the passenger seat.

Yao Weihua and Qi Bin sat on either side of the back seat, while Maozi was squeezed in the middle.

The group looked at each other, and Yao Weihua said, "Captain Yang, let's stay here and not go anywhere."

Just as Yang Jinwen was about to answer, another phone call came in.

"Hello, this is Wanjia Township Police Station, Lingmeng County. Are you Comrade Yang Jinwen?"

“I am…” Yang Jinwen repeated the words as before.

In this way, more than a dozen calls came in one after another, and Yang Jinwen kept answering the phone.

Yao Weihua was truly helpless and shouted, "Captain Yang, we can't just stay here, we have to get moving!"

Yang Jinwen turned around and asked, "Aren't we investigating?"

Cat laughed and said, "Old Yao, I thought you were indifferent to whether the case could be solved or not."

"Bullshit! When did I become without desires or wants?"

Qi Bin said, "Old Yao is just pretending to be high-minded. He's even more eager to solve the case than we are."

"I'm too lazy to talk to you guys, I'm going downstairs for a smoke."

Cai Ting, sitting in the passenger seat, caught on to what Yang Jinwen meant and asked curiously, "Captain Yang, do you think there are locals among the perpetrators?"

"Just a guess."

Are we just going to wait like this?

"Otherwise what? Although Lingmeng County is not big, there are so many towns and villages. How can we possibly visit them all?"

"That's right."

And so, the Santana sedan remained parked on the side of the road, from morning to noon, and from noon to afternoon.

During this time, Yao Weihua sat in the car for a while, squatted by the roadside for a while, and smoked a whole pack of cigarettes. Maozi and Qi Bin took a nap with their heads touching.

Even Cai Ting couldn't hold back anymore, yawning repeatedly.

As darkness fell, Yang Jinwen, without a care in the world, said, "We didn't find anything, let's go back first."

Yao Weihua complained, "We've been sitting by the roadside all day, what have we found out? I don't know why you brought us here."

Qi Bin yawned: "I did get a good night's sleep."

Cai Ting glanced at Yang Jinwen's profile and felt a little like complaining.

The cat sitting in the back seat said, "You don't know anything. Captain Yang definitely has a way. He called you here to give you a chance to make a contribution, and you're still not happy about it."

Yao Weihua chuckled and said, "Where are you going to make a name for yourself? In your dreams?"

The cat had slept the longest in the car, and he immediately felt a little embarrassed.

Yang Jinwen glanced at the rearview mirror, offered no explanation, and ignored them.

Just as the car was approaching the county town, a phone call came in.

Yang Jinwen held the steering wheel with one hand as he answered the phone.

"I am Yang Jinwen."

"Hello, Captain Yang, I am the instructor of Shuanglong Township Police Station. We spoke on the phone this morning."

"Hello, Instructor Wu."

"Regarding the situation you mentioned this morning, we have uncovered a lead."

Yang Jinwen immediately slowed down, frowned, and said, "You speak."

“In our Shuanglong Township, in the eleventh village on the outskirts of the township, there is a self-built house. The family’s surname is Gao, and their son’s name is Gao Mingliang. He just came back from outside.”

"anything else?"

“The 1.5 cm nylon tape you mentioned is available in our town. Gao Mingliang’s father bought this kind of nylon tape when he went to the market because he was repairing his house recently.”

Is it white?

"It's white."

Upon hearing this, Yang Jinwen turned the steering wheel fully with one hand, and the car quickly made a U-turn on the two-lane road, causing Yao Weihua, Maozi, and Qi Bin, who were sitting in the back seat, to fall over.

Cat quickly asked, "Captain Yang? What's going on?"

Yang Jinwen hung up the phone, only replying, "Did everyone bring their guns?"

(End of this chapter)