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

Chapter 311 Accusation! (Begging for monthly votes)

"what happened?"

"That person just now..."

"You're leaving, Xu Liu. What's wrong? You look terrible. Are you feeling unwell?"

The woman named Xu Liu shook her head: "It's nothing."

"How about I take you home?"

"Okay." Xu Liu nodded.

She went into the inner room, picked up the photo again, and examined it closely, her eyes turning red.

Tears welled up in her eyes, and she wanted to scream, but her throat felt blocked, and she couldn't make a sound.

After a long period of emotional buildup, she wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, put the photo into her handbag, turned off the fan, and locked the door of the hair salon.

Teacher Zhou rode his motorcycle to the door.

'Xu Liu' sat sideways on the back of the motorcycle, carrying a bag.

Teacher Zhou reminded him, "Sit tight, this car is second-hand, and the brakes have some problems."

"Teacher Zhou, let's go eat fish."

"Not tomorrow, right?"

"Just tonight."

"Should I invite Sister Hua?"

"No need, it's just the two of us."

"Good, good."

With a smile on his face, Teacher Zhou stomped hard on the start lever.

The motorcycle emitted a piercing roar and sped into the garden.

The roads in Shaping Town are winding and meandering. They are located halfway up the mountain, and the place to eat grilled fish is at the dock below.

The motorcycle continued downhill towards the dock.

As night fell, the sunset on the horizon slowly faded, as if it were reluctant to leave.

The motorcycle sped along the highway, tousling Xu Liu's hair.

The wind stung her eyes and dried her tears.

She gripped the back seat tightly with both hands, then gently rested her face on Teacher Zhou's back.

Teacher Zhou felt a surge of excitement and couldn't help but step on the gas.

At the dock in Shaping Town, rows of sheds are built along the street, and the light bulbs under the eaves form a line, like a colorful ribbon at night.

They chose a grilled fish restaurant they frequented, and the proprietress set up a table outside.

They were all regular customers. When the proprietress saw that Teacher Zhou was with a beautiful woman, she smiled and said, "Teacher Zhou, your life is full of sunshine, isn't it?"

Teacher Zhou was very happy and smiled shyly: "Give me a fish, a bowl of salted peanuts, and some cold beef salad..."

Standing to the side, Xu Liu said, "I want to eat guokui (a type of flatbread)."

The proprietress said with difficulty, "We don't have any in our shop. If you want to eat guokui (a type of flatbread), you can find it in the market behind the shop, but it's probably already closed for the day."

Teacher Zhou said, "I'll go buy it."

Xu Liu said, "I want brown sugar."

"it is good."

Teacher Zhou went out, got on his motorcycle, and said with a smile, "Wait for me a moment, I'll be there soon."

Xu Liu nodded and sat down on the small stool.

After Teacher Zhou left, the diners eating in the shed all looked towards 'Xu Liu'.

Even though she intentionally cut her hair short and dressed simply, her face still attracted men's attention.

Dockworkers and porters who knew her started gossiping about it privately.

"Does this woman own a hair salon?"

"Yes, I've been there once."

"Is it for that kind of work?"

"Don't talk nonsense, they're just getting a proper haircut."

"Really?"

"of course it's true."

"Such a beautiful woman, what a waste of that guy from earlier."

"That's just how life is. But if you're too beautiful, men will easily covet you."

"That's true. Don't keep staring at other people; it's embarrassing."

The proprietress brought over several plates of cold dishes and placed them on the table at 'Xu Liu'.

"Want to drink?"

"Drink, baijiu (Chinese liquor)."

"it is good."

The proprietress brought over a bottle of baijiu (Chinese liquor). Xu Liu twisted open the cap, poured himself a glass, and then drank it all in one gulp.

She slammed her wine glass down on the table and looked down at the river below the breakwater.

After a long while, Teacher Zhou returned on his motorcycle, bringing a guokui (a type of flatbread) wrapped in newspaper.

"Be careful, it's hot."

"Thank you." Xu Liu took the guokui (a type of flatbread), unfolded the newspaper, and took a small bite.

The pastry was warm but tasteless. She took another bite, and the scalding hot brown sugar and pastry filled her mouth. She chewed gently, and after tasting the sweetness, tears streamed down her face.

When Teacher Zhou saw her crying, she quickly asked, "What's wrong?"

Xu Liu shook her head, trying hard to control her emotions.

"No, it's nothing. Let's eat."

Teacher Zhou tore off a few tissues and handed them to her. Then he poured himself a glass of baijiu (Chinese liquor), tilted his head back and drank it all. He felt a burning sensation in his throat. After hesitating for a while, he finally spoke.

"Let me take this opportunity to tell you the truth: I like you. You are very beautiful, and I feel that I am not good enough for you. I am divorced and have a child. My salary as a teacher is not high."

But if you're willing to live with me, I swear, I will always be good to you, forever and ever!

After saying this, he blushed and lowered his head, not daring to look at Xu Liu's face.

The diners sitting around stopped eating and drinking, and started listening intently.

Xu Liu remained silent, holding the newspaper-wrapped guokui (a type of flatbread) in both hands and eating it bite by bite, her expression appearing very dazed.

Her eyes were fixed on the rolling river and on the stars appearing in the night sky.

Only after she finished eating the whole guokui (a type of flatbread) did Teacher Zhou cautiously ask, "Would you like to, Xu Liu?"

Xu Liu turned her face and shook her head slightly.

Teacher Zhou sighed deeply, gave a bitter smile, poured himself another glass of baijiu, downed it in one gulp, and coughed a few times. "Teacher Zhou, you're a good person. It's not that I'm unwilling, but that I'm not good enough for you..."

“How could that be?” Teacher Zhou immediately retorted.

“You don’t understand what I’ve done in the past. We’ve only known each other for a few months. I’m not worth you doing this.”

"Do you have someone you like?"

Xu Liu shook her head: "I've never been able to understand why God treats me this way when I've done nothing wrong."

I've always wanted to live a good life, to live an ordinary life, but I've never had the chance.

I could only walk step by step into that turbulent river, which dragged me into the darkness…

Teacher Zhou didn't understand what she was saying, but she knew that she was lost in some kind of fantasy.

He smiled and said, "Let's not talk about it anymore, let's eat."

Xu Liu smiled and said, "Let's eat."

But her eyes remained fixed on the rolling river.

----------

When Yang Jinwen returned to the guesthouse, he did not see Yao Weihua and the others.

After waiting for a long time, the group returned, looking exhausted.

Cat pulled him along, looking him up and down: "Captain Yang, where have you been all day? You didn't answer the phone, we were so worried, we almost called the police station to report you missing."

Cai Ting noticed Yang Jinwen's hairstyle: "Did you go to get a haircut?"

Yao Weihua chuckled: "It doesn't take a whole day to get a haircut, does it?"

Cai Ting frowned: "Captain Yang, you wouldn't happen to be...?"

"Don't talk nonsense, I just went out for a walk."

Yao Weihua laughed and said, "You didn't even take me with you. I also want to wash my hair."

Yang Jinwen sighed: "Alright, let's go find something to eat."

The group left the guesthouse and found a restaurant to sit down.

Yao Weihua, smoking a cigarette, said, "Captain Yang, besides looking for you during the day, we also saw many advertisements for fake ID cards posted on walls and utility poles along the way."

"Yin Hong visited Wuhan once in 96. Do you think she might have changed her identity again?"

Cai Ting nodded: "We discussed it and it's highly likely that 'Yin Hong' did this. I think we should still go to the police station to ask around and check the people who applied for new ID cards in 96. Maybe we can find some clues."

Cat complained, "Are we going to stay here for a long time? We've almost run out of money. If it weren't for Director Wen's special approval, we would have spent our own money first and then been reimbursed."

Yang Jinwen, holding his chopsticks, glanced at Cai Ting.

"Sister Cai, do the people from the Deyang Criminal Investigation Detachment know that we've come to Jiangcheng?"

Cai Ting shook her head: "We didn't tell them. Besides, they don't care where we went."

"What about Director Wen and Captain He?"

"I haven't had a chance to tell them yet."

"Does that mean they don't know either?"

“Yes.” Cai Ting nodded, puzzled as to why Yang Jinwen asked that question.

"Let's leave tomorrow morning."

The cat asked, "Where are we going?"

"Go back to Annam, where else can we go?"

"Are we not going to investigate?"

Yang Jinwen shook his head: "How can we investigate if we can't find the person?"

Yao Weihua squinted: "Captain Yang, you're not the kind of person who gives up easily. This is such a big case, it wouldn't be right not to investigate it. How are we going to explain this to the bureau?"

"The Deyang Criminal Investigation Detachment will continue to investigate. They are more anxious than we are. We don't need to work so hard. Besides, aren't we running out of funds?"

Cat blinked, afraid of being blamed: "I was just complaining a bit, Captain Yang, isn't it easy for you to ask the bureau for funding?"

"It's decided then. We'll leave tomorrow morning. If you want to buy some local specialties to take back, you can go buy them tonight."

Yang Jinwen kept his head down, not looking at them, his heart heavy.

Early the next morning.

The group packed their luggage and took a taxi to the train station.

Because of the train delay, the train to Annam will not depart for another half hour.

Taking advantage of this time, Yang Jinwen went to the nearby specialty store to buy some gifts for Wen Ling.

Yao Weihua, Maozi, and Cai Ting were smoking outside the store.

Yao Weihua whispered, "Have you noticed that Captain Yang is acting strangely?"

Cai Ting nodded: "I could tell too, you're keeping this to yourself."

"He wouldn't actually go looking for a woman, would he?" Cat said.

Cai Ting frowned: "If he really has the guts, let's see how fast Dr. Wen's scalpel is!"

Yao Weihua shook his head: "I think Captain Yang must have found some clues."

“What clues could there be? Jiangcheng is so big, finding someone is like looking for a needle in a haystack.” Cai Ting disagreed with this view.

Cat rolled her eyes: "Could it be that 'Yin Hong' went back to An'nan City? That Ge Qi who persecuted her is still alive. Does she want to go back for revenge? Did Captain Yang find this clue?"

At this moment, Yang Jinwen, having finished shopping, came out carrying his travel bag.

Yao Weihua checked the time: "It's about time, let's go into the station."

Yang Jinwen nodded, glanced at the plaza below the steps, and then followed them to the entrance next to the station.

He held his train ticket, sighed, and turned to look at the sky over Jiangcheng. The sky was azure, and birds were flying overhead.

He turned around and was about to enter the station when he suddenly heard a gunshot.

"boom!"

The gunshot was so piercing that shouts and running immediately erupted in the square.

Yang Jinwen quickly turned around, and Yao Weihua, Maozi, and Cai Ting also quickly assumed defensive postures and turned to look at the square.

Under the azure sky, the crowd in the square scattered in all directions, shouting in panic.

Yang Jinwen searched for his target and immediately spotted a woman wearing a floral shirt standing straight in the center of the square.

Yang Jinwen saw her face clearly, and Yao Weihua, Cai Ting, and Maozi also saw her face.

The woman, who was also Zhang Chen, Yin Hong, and now called Xu Liu, held a pistol and looked at Yang Jinwen with a resolute expression.

She held her pistol high, the muzzle pointing at the azure sky.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

She pulled the trigger, and the gunshot was extremely piercing, like a lament to the heavens, expressing her strong accusation!

(End of this chapter)