When I came out of the room after receiving the file from the Director-General, the celebration party was over.
The police officers had all gone home, and the waiters were cleaning the tables. Only Dali was still slumped in his seat, seemingly very drunk.
I found a chair to sit down on and opened the file to study it carefully.
This was the first case that Director-General Cheng mentioned, which happened in the nearby Wuqu City. It happened three months ago, in a family of four. They were all dead. The male head of the family was a general manager of a large multinational company, aged 36, and could be described as a rising young talent. The other three were his wife and children, and the youngest daughter was only one year old. They used to be a close-knit family. The husband and wife usually loved each other very much, but one night three months ago, they were somehow suddenly in a fierce fight with each other.
During the meeting, a colleague called and the man violently said a few words and threw the phone aside, but did not hang up. The colleague was frightened because the man who was usually very polite and gentle-mannered was arguing with his wife and using the word ‘fuck.’
The colleague heard the couple cursed each other in extremely vicious language. The ten-year-old son also kept screaming and throwing things, while the daughter kept crying. Overall, it sounded like a terrible scene!
According to his interview, the colleague felt as if the family was possessed by demons, and his temperament changed completely. He could not hear the end because the mobile phone was trampled by either the man or his wife.
The neighbors also heard the commotion. One of the neighbors who was an old man knocked on the door twice. The first time they ignored him; shortly after, he knocked on the door for the second time, and the noise calmed down. The old man thought that everything had returned to normal, so he left. But in truth, it was silent because the whole family was dead...
The sequence of events went like this: the son grabbed his sister’s legs and threw her to the floor. The wife killed her son by smashing his head with a glass bottle. Then the man stabbed his wife with a knife three times, all in crucial parts of the body. Finally, the husband knelt in front of the family and committed suicide by cutting his throat with the same knife!
The crime scene was completely sealed. It was impossible for outsiders to break in. The blood, fingerprints and hairs found at the scene all belonged to the family.
A nanny was hired at the house, but she went back after dinner. The police initially focused on the nanny. However, during the questioning, the nanny vehemently insisted that she was innocent. The coroner did not find any suspicious drugs in the victims’ systems. The police finally used the polygraph, and the babysitter passed smoothly, proving that she was not involved in the crime.
Although the file was written in a very plain language, when I read this text, I still felt chills down my spine. This case was just too bizarre!
Huang Xiaotao suddenly tapped my shoulder. It was only then that I realized she had been sitting next to me all this time and was reading the file with me too.
“How is it, Song Yang? Any ideas?” Huang Xiaotao asked.
“Do you want to hear the truth?” I laughed.
“Of course!” Huang Xiaotao said.
“I’m completely clueless,” I replied. “In fact, I’m getting more and more confused!”
“Then why did you promise the Director-General earlier?” asked Huang Xiaotao, her almond eyes staring at me.
I smiled and said, “Having confidence and being certain are two different things. This file was written by a police officer according to his own investigation. I think if I can go to the scene of the murder, I might be able to find some clues.”
Huang Xiaotao sighed.
“But this time you might have to go to Wuqu City alone,” she said. “I’m worried if the police over there will refuse to cooperate with you…”
“Who said I’m going there alone?” I asked. “You’re coming with me!”
“Excuse me?” said Huang Xiaotao, “The special investigation order given by Director-General Cheng only contained your name. Wuqu City has its own police force, and Sun Tiger is a stingy man. Do you think he’d let me work in another city?”
As she spoke, a burly figure appeared behind Huang Xiaotao.
“Who’s talking about me behind my back!”
Huang Xiaotao was so shocked she almost fell from her chair, she sprang up to her feet and made a salute then said, “Director! I was only talking with Song Yang about the case.”
“All right, all right, sit down,” he said. “I knew what you people like to call me behind my back a long time ago.”
He then sat down on the chair that Xiaotao was sitting on. Xiaotao didn’t get another chair, but remained standing beside the table.
Sun Tiger patted my shoulder and said, “How is it, kiddo? Do you feel confident about this case?”
“Reasonably, yes.” I said.
“You do your best,” he said. “Don't worry about making me look bad. I believe in the knowledge and skills passed down in the Song family.”
“Uncle Sun, how is Auntie lately?” I asked.
“Well, I heard that she just gave birth to a big fat boy.”
“You… heard?” I asked.
“I’ve long been divorced, kiddo,” he said, laughing. “We policemen are never at home for more than three days a week. We’re destined to live the lives of lonely people. Your grandfather was wise for not allowing you to become a policeman!"
He then added, “Kiddo, whatever needs to be done to help you solve this case, just give me a word. I will do whatever I can to help you.”
“I want to bring a few people to Wuqu City with me,” I said.
“Okay, just name them!” Sun Tiger nodded.
“Huang Xiaotao, Wang Yuanchao...” I looked at Dali, who was sleeping like a dead pig, and added, “And my classmate Wang Dali.”
Huang Xiaotao was slightly surprised, but Sun Tiger agreed quickly.
“Okay! You are all going there to help with a case, so all expenses will be covered!”
“And one more thing,” I added. “I am planning to leave tonight!”
“Do you need to be in such a hurry? Why not just leave first thing in the morning tomorrow? I will ask someone to be your driver!”
“Didn’t Director-General Cheng say that the most recent case occurred three days ago?” I said. “For any murder case, three days would’ve late enough to start an investigation. Every second counts in a murder investigation, so I want to go tonight!”
Sun Tiger smiled and patted me, saying “You get all worked up just like your grandfather! The moment he heard about a case, he’d get all excited and no one could stop him!”
“But didn’t you often complain to me how it would be harder to ask for Grandpa’s help than to ask for God’s help?”
“That is when it’s just an ordinary case,” he said. “Whenever we encountered a strange and difficult case, he wouldn’t wait for a second. He’d often demand me to bring him to a crime scene immediately, as if I could fly! You really do take after him!” He then burst out in laughter.
“Xiaotao!” said Sun Tiger. “Go get Wang Yuanchao here, and bring Song Yang and his little classmate here with you and leave immediately. When you return after solving the case, I’ll personally treat all of you to a grand dinner!”
Huang Xiaotao made a salute and said, “Yes, Director!”
Sun Tiger then went back. After a while, Wang Yuanchao arrived. I thought he didn't drink any alcohol, but as I got close to him, I could smell a thick stench of alcohol. He probably drank even more than Dali!
Huang Xiaotao briefly explained the situation, then asked Wang Yuanchao to carry the drunken Dali outside. It seemed that the heavy responsibility of driving fell on Huang Xiaotao.
On our way to the parking lot, Xiaotao asked me, “Why do you insist on bringing Wang Yuanchao? I know he’s strong and capable, but this person has a dangerous temper. You probably don’t know that three years ago, he broke the leg of a cadet in the Armed Forces.”
“Shit, he really did that?” I widened my eyes.
“Why else do you think someone in his thirties would be sent down to be an ordinary policeman with no rank?” she said. “Based on his experience, he could’ve been promoted to a much higher rank than mine, so you can imagine how bad his temper is. To be honest, I was a little bit hesitant when he was first transferred here. But Captain Lin said that he should be given something to do, otherwise he would spend his days drinking. When he’s drunk, no one can control him, and no one would dare to try.”
“Are you afraid that he would beat your ass up?” I asked.
Huang Xiaotao gave me a look. “Come on, let’s go!” she said.
What I needed from Wang Yuanchao was his strength and fighting power, of course. He jumped over tall buildings just to capture a murderer. This kind of courage could not be found in just anyone. I believed that Wang Yuanchao was definitely a diamond in the rough.