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

Chapter 50 The victim's husband.

Jianmin Road, noodle shop.

A sign outside the door reads "Temporarily Closed".

Inside the shop, Sun Lu sat dejectedly on a bench. On the table were a bowl of peanuts, two empty beer bottles, and a bowl of stirred corn porridge.

A bamboo cradle was placed in the middle of the aisle, and his and Zhang Xiaoying's child was lying inside, sleeping on his side.

But the child's eyelashes were wet, suggesting that he had just cried before going to sleep.

At this time, the door was pushed open.

Sun Lu said without looking up, "Didn't you see that sign outside? It says we're closed for the next few days!"

But the footsteps continued to approach. Sun Lu angrily raised his face and saw that it was Zheng Kang and Yang Jinwen. His expression froze, and he quickly stood up.

"Uncle Zheng, Officer Yang."

Zheng Kang nodded to him, and upon seeing the child in the cradle, his tense expression immediately relaxed.

He asked softly, "Asleep?"

Sun Lu nodded: "Just fell asleep."

"Would it be convenient for us to chat?"

"Sure, I'll take the child to the kitchen. There's a bed board there, and my son and I spent the night in the shop last night."

"Row."

Sun Lu carefully picked up the child and went to the kitchen to put the child down.

Yang Jinwen glanced at the empty beer bottles on the table. It was only afternoon, and Sun Lu had already drunk so much.

Because Sun Lu's home was the crime scene, the police needed to re-examine it again and again, so he had to move out and live there for a period of time.

Staying in a guesthouse costs money, so he had no choice but to move into the shop with his child.

After Sun Lu came out, he greeted in a hoarse voice, "Uncle Zheng, would you like something to eat? We have some food ready."

Zheng Kang frowned, smelling the alcohol on him, and said, "Can you talk? If not, we can come back tomorrow?"

Sun Lu let out a burp and waved his hand, saying, "I'm not drunk."

“Alright then.” Zheng Kang sat down on the bench opposite him.

Yang Jinwen found a stool and sat down beside them.

After Sun Lu sat down, Zheng Kang pursed his lips and said, "Sun Lu, let me tell you something from my heart. Can you listen?"

"Uncle Zheng, please speak."

Zheng Kang straightened his face and said, "If you're a man, you must hold on. Don't let Xiao Ying's death ruin your life. Fanfan is still young and needs someone to take care of him."

I am also very saddened by Xiaoying's death. She was a good child. I promise we will catch the murderer and she will not die in vain!

Sun Lu's eyes were bloodshot. He nodded and asked, "Uncle Zheng, do you think the murderer is the robber from three years ago?"

Zheng Kang waved his hand: "It's not him, that person is still in jail."

“I understand.” Sun Lu swallowed hard, lowered his head, and said slowly, “Now when I close my eyes, all I see is the image of Xiao Ying dying in front of me. I… I keep thinking that it’s all my fault, that I shouldn’t have let her go home first every night.”

She works so hard, taking care of the child and helping me at the same time. I... as a man, I feel so sorry for her, Uncle Zheng. Really, I'm not a man, I haven't fulfilled my responsibilities..."

Seeing that he was getting more and more agitated, Yang Jinwen reached out and patted his shoulder: "Don't cry. Wait until we catch the murderer before you cry. If you're a man, you should hold it in."

"Okay, okay, I'll hold it in."

Sun Lu took a breath, swallowed the saliva in his throat, and wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes with the back of his hand.

Yang Jinwen looked at Zheng Kang, who nodded to him.

So he opened his notebook, placed it on the table, and unscrewed the cap of his fountain pen.

"I'll ask you questions, you answer them, and we'll take your statement again."

Sun Lu nodded.

"What time did you lock the door in the early morning of June 14th?"

"Two in the morning."

Do you usually close at this time?

"Not necessarily. If there are no customers, it might be even earlier."

"Is the noodle shop really that popular?"

When this question came up, Sun Lu hesitated.

Yang Jinwen reminded him, "Mr. Sun, just say what you have to say."

"Last year, the shop would stop doing business at midnight. At that time, I would go home with Xiaoying."

Business started to pick up in May this year, and the customers are mainly... the women who loiter around here on the streets.

Yang Jinwen knew about this; they were all laid-off female workers struggling to make ends meet. "What time did you get home?"

“There’s a small path back from Jianmin Road, but it’s too dark, so I always take the main road, which is a bit longer. It takes about half an hour to get home.”

"Are there still streetlights on the road at two in the morning?"

"Yes, it's a main road, and the power went out at 5 a.m.

Yang Jinwen confirmed, "So, you got home at 2:30 a.m.?"

"Yes."

"When you got home, you found the door lock had been broken. When you went inside, you saw Zhang Xiaoying dead in the bedroom?"

"Yes."

Yang Jinwen sat up straight and asked the question that had been on his mind: "Where was the child back then?"

"On the bed, Fanfan was sitting on the bed, and he kept crying."

Sun Lu swallowed hard, his expression turning terrified: "I was terrified. I saw that Xiao Ying was dead, and then I saw the child. I immediately grabbed the child and ran outside, shouting for help as I ran."

"What did you shout?"

"Help! I screamed for help!"

Yang Jinwen's brows furrowed: "How long have you been shouting?"

"I do not remember."

Were the convenience stores outside the alley closed at that time?

"closed."

"Who was the first person to hear you scream for help and immediately run out?"

"Old Wan, the owner of the convenience store."

How long after you cried for help did he reach you?

"I was holding my child at the time, my mind was a mess, I don't know..."

Yang Jinwen emphasized, "This is very important. Think about it carefully."

"About ten minutes."

"Does this old Wan sleep at the convenience store every day?"

"Yes, his convenience store was robbed before, and he lived in the convenience store."

What was his condition at the time?

Sun Lu recalled, "It looked like he had just woken up."

"Besides you, who was the first person to enter the room?"

"Old Wan."

"Was it him who helped Zhang Xiaoying untie the ropes on her wrists?"

"Yes."

"Then who covered Zhang Xiaoying's lower body with clothes?"

"Old Wan."

"Was it Lao Wan who called the police?"

"Yes."

"Did he bring it up himself, or did you ask him to call the police?"

"He was the one who said to call the police immediately."

At this point in the question, Sun Lu sensed something was wrong and asked in return, "Officer Yang... do you suspect that Lao Wan killed my wife?"

“No,” Yang Jinwen answered without hesitation.

Old Wan's real name is Wan Chaogui. Right now, he's at the local police station with his prized hunting rifle.

Yang Jinwen pondered for a moment, then continued, "Mr. Sun, have you noticed anything suspicious about the customers who have come to your noodle shop these past few days?"

When committing burglary, perpetrators will scout the location beforehand; they would never blindly choose a house to target.

Even if someone were to rob a random house, that's the kind of thing that habitual thieves do; they wouldn't be so brazen as to break the locks.

No one knows better than them the magnitude of the crimes committed by those who rape women and those who commit murder.

Burglary usually results in a few years in prison, but serious crimes can lead to execution.

Therefore, Yang Jinwen and Zheng Kang both agreed that, just as Lao Wan said, Sun Lu and Zhang Xiaoying were definitely targeted by the murderer beforehand!

(End of this chapter)