Chapter 260: The Truth from Years Ago

Walking into the empty warehouse, Chen Shi recounted the events that had transpired here three years ago. Though the scars in his heart had long since healed, touching them still brought a dull pain.

Peng Sijue asked a critical question, “Han Luoxi’s gun could hold a maximum of eight bullets. How many shots did you hear before entering the warehouse?”

“More than three. The echoes were loud here, so it was hard to tell.”

“Do you know what the case file says?”

Chen Shi, who hadn’t seen the police file, shook his head. Peng Sijue continued, “When Han Luoxi’s gun was found, it was empty, with only her and your fingerprints on it. It was also stained with Li Mu and Han Luoxi’s blood. Five bullets were found at the scene. Han Luoxi had two in her body, and Li Mu had one in his head. The forensic report confirmed they all came from her gun.”

“I fired one shot at Zhou Xiao, which means there should only be four spent bullets at the scene. Could Zhou Xiao have obtained police-issued bullets?”

“Do you think he had that capability? Even if he did, it would have left a trail.”

“Peng, what anomalies did you find during the autopsy?”

“Li Mu had Han Luoxi’s blood on him, and vice versa. But Li Mu’s time of death was about three hours earlier. The bullet wound on his head seemed to have been tampered with.”

Chen Shi paced around the warehouse, mentally reconstructing the scene. “Where did the extra bullet come from?”

Peng Sijue suggested, “If Zhou Xiao intended to frame you, why leave one bullet for you?”

“I think it was a mistake. Han Luoxi always kept one bullet chambered in her Type 64 police pistol, making it 7+1 rounds. When I heard the gunshots and rushed in, Zhou Xiao didn’t have time to check thoroughly and hastily removed the magazine, not realizing there was still one in the chamber.”

“When you fired at him, did the gun feel lighter? Was he surprised?”

Chen Shi shook his head. “I can’t remember clearly. The details are fuzzy due to the shock… But I know I couldn’t have shot Han Luoxi or Li Mu.”

“Let’s reconstruct the scene,” Peng Sijue suggested.

They reenacted the scene, with Peng Sijue taking Zhou Xiao’s position and Chen Shi his own. Chen Shi remembered kneeling by Han Luoxi’s body, covered in her blood.

Peng Sijue had an idea. “I’ve heard the Italian mafia sometimes frame police by removing bullets from the victims and replacing them with bullets from a specific officer’s gun… Perhaps there’s no extra bullet. The one in Li Mu’s head is the same one you fired into Zhou Xiao’s shoulder, explaining why Li Mu’s head wound was tampered with.”

“Zhou Xiao pre-killed Li Mu and extracted the bullet from his wound! So Li Mu’s death time was earlier by three hours… Zhou Xiao left me a bullet to shoot? The best way to conceal a bullet is inside his own body… But what if I aimed for a fatal spot?”

“Zhou Xiao knew you wouldn’t. As a police officer, you couldn’t justify killing an unarmed suspect. If you did, it would be murder! Moreover, given your resignation and the previous framing, there was already suspicion around you.”

“I really wanted to kill him at that moment,” Chen Shi sighed. “But I deliberately aimed away, hoping to arrest him… This lunatic!”

“On the bright side, Zhou Xiao’s shoulder wound is evidence proving your innocence… if it exists!”

Peng Sijue’s last remark made Chen Shi smile bitterly. “How could Han Luoxi have been overpowered and shot with her own gun in such a short time? She was incredibly skilled.”

Chen Shi suddenly remembered a detail, “Zhou Xiao was dressed like Li Mu! He had marks on his wrists.”

“What?”

“Zhou Xiao impersonated Li Mu, lying on the ground with his back to Han Luoxi. When she turned him over to check, he knocked her out.”

“The gunshots you heard were Zhou Xiao shooting her and firing around to create confusion. He left you a bullet to shoot at him,” Peng Sijue continued. “There were traces of anesthetics found in Han Luoxi’s body.”

“I can’t believe I fell for such a trap,” Chen Shi sighed.

“Because you loved her. Han Luoxi was your weakness, and Li Mu was hers. I later learned Li Mu was her biological father. She took her mother’s surname after her parents’ divorce,” Peng Sijue explained. “To clear your name, we must capture Zhou Xiao. If that day comes, will you return to your old identity?”

Under his friend’s intense gaze, Chen Shi shook his head, “That night, Song Lang died. The name is a curse, a past I don’t want to remember. I’m fine as I am now.”

“You’re running away!”

“Think what you want.”

“One more thing. Did you see Zhou Xiao’s face?”

Chen Shi took a paper from his wallet’s hidden pocket. It was a pencil sketch he had drawn from memory. Peng Sijue studied it. “Remember our criminal profile of Zhou Xiao three years ago? You suggested he might not be alone, given the varying crime styles and targets.”

“My theory was multiple personalities.”

“But now, I agree with you. Zhou Xiao is likely a group. Extracting bullets from bodies quickly isn’t a solo act. Even if I had killed Zhou Xiao, an accomplice would complete the frame-up.”

“He really wanted to destroy you,” Peng Sijue remarked.

“Remember how we got Zhou Xiao’s name? He wrote it in the victims’ blood at the crime scenes. ‘Zhou Xiao’ became the alias for this serial killer.”

“Resourceful, elusive, clean in methods, and inconsistent targets… Now I think Zhou Xiao is a gang. Maybe someone I apprehended years ago is among them, which is why they plotted this elaborate frame-up.”

“The dead… Wang Daji, did you know him?” Peng Sijue suddenly asked.

“Yes, he was staying at my house before he was killed.”