Chapter 362: The Interrogation of Xu Xiaodong

At 4 PM, Xu Xiaodong sat in the interrogation room. An interrogator from the Criminal Police Team Three asked, “Xu Xiaodong, how did you know the deceased?”

“How did she die? She was fine last night. You’re not telling me anything. How am I supposed to answer your questions?” Xu Xiaodong was utterly confused, only vaguely aware that Li Mengran had been killed.

The interrogator banged on the table, “You’re a cop. You should know the interrogation process. We can’t disclose case details. Right now, you’re a suspect. Just tell us what you know.”

“I didn’t kill anyone!”

“Whether you did or didn’t is for us to determine.”

“I really didn’t kill anyone! Bring out a lie detector, and I’ll prove it!”

“Answer the questions!”

Xu Xiaodong glanced helplessly at the one-way mirror. He felt heartbroken over Li Mengran’s death but had to clear his name. “During that scam case, I went undercover as a student and met Li Mengran.”

“What scam case?”

“Check with the police or ask Chen.”

“We’re asking you now!”

“Don’t treat me like a criminal!”

“Talk!”

Gritting his teeth, Xu Xiaodong recounted the entire scam case. The interrogator then asked, “Were you involved with the deceased?”

“No, I have a girlfriend and I’m a cop. I wouldn’t do such a thing. Yesterday, she said her father hit her and she ran away from home. I had just finished work, so I drove to find her. I talked to her and dropped her off at her place around 10 PM.”

“The surveillance at the victim’s complex didn’t capture you two arriving at 10 PM,” the interrogator said, though in reality, the complex’s surveillance was down for system upgrades and didn’t record anything.

“You can check the parking lot footage. I dropped her off and then went to get my car around 10 PM.”

The interrogator picked up a record sheet. “But the victim’s family said she didn’t return after leaving in the afternoon.”

“I saw her go upstairs! I swear it was at 10 PM!”

“Alright, alright, no need to swear. Did you have any physical contact with the victim?”

“What do you mean?” Xu Xiaodong was getting irritated.

The interrogator produced a lab report. “A hair of yours was found in the victim’s hair. How do you explain that?”

“I remember now. It was cold yesterday, so I gave her my jacket. It must have gotten on her then.”

“That’s plausible.”

“What do you mean plausible? It’s the truth. Do you think I’m making this up?” Xu Xiaodong shouted.

“Calm down. This is still an investigation.”

Lin Dongxue and Chen Shi arrived at the station and saw Li pacing in the hallway, looking anxious. Lin Dongxue reassured her, “We’ve known Xiaodong for a long time. He’s not that kind of person.”

Li said, “I’m not mad at him. I’m just… Why did he suddenly become a suspect? And why is Team Three interrogating him as if he’s a criminal?”

Lin Qiupu came out of the observation room and said, “We have to avoid bias since Xiaodong is one of us. I believe he didn’t do it.”

Chen Shi beckoned Lin Qiupu, “Come here.”

“Who do you think you’re talking to?”

Chen Shi pulled Lin Qiupu aside, “What kind of captain are you? Your own man gets tangled in a case, and you just hand it over to another team to appear impartial?”

Lin Qiupu got angry, “Should we handle it ourselves? What would other teams think? That I’m shielding my subordinates?”

“So, what others think is more important? As a captain, you didn’t even try to support your subordinate. Do you lack confidence in your own fairness or in Xiaodong? You keep saying you believe in him, but have you considered how disappointed he must feel in you? Now Team Three is interrogating him and will be investigating the case. We have no initiative. I don’t know anyone in Team Three, and now we have to adapt! You as a captain… It’s frustrating enough to make me want to smoke!”

Lin Qiupu’s face turned various shades of red. Just then, Xu Xiaodong came out, handcuffed. Li started crying, “Why does he have to be handcuffed? We’re all police officers.”

The interrogator said, “Precisely because we’re police, we can’t show favoritism.”

Xu Xiaodong said, “Don’t worry. I’m innocent. It’s just a day in custody… With Chen here, I’ll clear my name.” He looked at Chen Shi but deliberately avoided eye contact with Lin Qiupu. Lin Qiupu sensed the disappointment in his gaze.

Chen Shi said, “Let’s check the evidence.”

After Chen Shi left, Lin Qiupu muttered to himself, “Who are you to lecture me?”

He wandered the hallway, finally deciding to talk to the chief to regain control of the case.

Chen Shi and Lin Dongxue went to see Peng Siyue. Peng said, “The evidence against Xiaodong is damning. He was likely the last to see the victim, and his hair was found in hers.”

Lin Dongxue said, “I found surveillance showing Xu putting his jacket on the victim, which explains the hair transfer.”

“That doesn’t prove the hair transfer. They might have had other physical contact.”

“Captain Peng, you know Xiaodong’s character.”

“The court doesn’t. They’ll only look at evidence. If you were a stranger, would you suspect him with this evidence?”

Lin Dongxue was speechless. Chen Shi said, “You’re all overthinking. The case just started. More evidence will come in, proving Xiaodong’s innocence… I’ve been in the interrogation room twice. It’s no big deal.”

Lin Dongxue smiled wryly, “I guess we’re just worried… Captain Peng, is the autopsy report out?”

“Yes… With just the head, we found this: The victim’s head was cut off with a flat, sharp tool. It wasn’t a clean cut; the killer made three attempts, severing the spinal cord. She likely wasn’t completely dead during the beheading. There was a blunt force injury to the back of her head, causing subarachnoid hemorrhage. She was in a deep coma during decapitation.”

Peng showed them some photos and drew on a paper, “An interesting detail is the uniform force on the tool. It wasn’t a knife or axe. The cut isn’t smooth, with a slight curve.”

“Could it be a makeshift guillotine?” Lin Dongxue speculated.

“Nonsense,” Chen Shi said, examining the photos. “It’s a sharp shovel. It also likely caused the blunt force trauma. Look at the soil on the cut… Captain Peng, did you test the soil?”

“It’s being tested. I’ve asked Long’an City soil experts for help to narrow down the location.”

“Who would use a shovel as a weapon? And it’s so sharp, it must’ve been sharpened beforehand,” Lin Dongxue said.

Peng took a carving knife from the evidence box, “We found the victim’s DNA on this knife, along with another set of fingerprints. It’s not the murder weapon but could indicate a second weapon. The body hasn’t been found yet. Would you investigate?”

Chen Shi examined the knife, “Is the blood fresh?”

“Old stains.”

Chen Shi looked at other evidence and suddenly noticed something. “Let’s talk to Mr. Li.”