Chapter 33: The Real Culprit Brought to Justice

Lin Dongxue asked in surprise, “How can you be so sure? Maybe it was just an accident?”

“Because if it were me, I would do the same! Did you bring a gun?”

Lin Dongxue patted her clothes, “I did… but just so you know, my shooting skills are average.”

Two other police officers came out of the house and asked a nurse, “Where’s the fire?”

The nurse replied, “It seems to be in a warehouse on the east side. There’s not much else, but there are some oxygen tanks inside, and we’re worried about an explosion. The fire department has already been contacted.”

The nurse hurried off, and the two officers exchanged glances. Officer Xiao Zhang said, “Let’s go help put out the fire!”

Officer Lao Zhang, with twenty years of experience, said, “This is definitely a diversion by the suspect. We can’t leave this room for a second. The fire is on the east side; we’re on the west side. It won’t affect us.”

Chen Shi said, “You two stay here. I’ll go watch the stairs.”

He pulled Lin Dongxue along with him. Nurses ran by in the hallway, almost colliding with them. Lin Dongxue said, “Hey, it’s dangerous. Don’t run around!”

“Fool, where do you think Kong Wende would go?”

“Isn’t it here?”

“The news reported that the boy is in a coma, so he will definitely go to the ICU!”

Lin Dongxue suddenly understood.

As chaos erupted in the hospital, a shadow sneaked in, quietly opening the doors of ICU rooms one by one, checking the patients inside. Finding no one he was looking for, he quietly left, intending to go to another room.

At that moment, a gun was pressed against his temple, and he instinctively raised his hands.

“Kong Wende, you are under arrest!” Lin Dongxue said, throwing a pair of handcuffs to Chen Shi on the other side.

Chen Shi caught them and swiftly pinned Kong Wende against the wall, cuffing his hands. Kong Wende, wearing a hoodie that covered his head, anxiously asked, “Where is my son?”

“You still care about seeing your son?” Chen Shi sneered. “He’s out of danger and in a regular ward. He can be discharged tomorrow.”

“The report said…” Kong Wende turned to look at Chen Shi and suddenly realized it was a trap. Regret came too late. Since the day he committed the crime, he had thought of this outcome countless times. As the handcuffs clicked on, the tight string in his heart finally relaxed.

“Let me see him, please!” Kong Wende begged. “I’ll do whatever you want after seeing him.”

Chen Shi said, “You can see him, but don’t you worry about leaving a shadow in his heart seeing you like this? His mind has just recovered. Think about him!”

Kong Wende’s lips trembled as he slowly squatted down, crying out loud, “I am an incompetent father.”

Seeing this middle-aged man crying, Lin Dongxue felt a bit of sympathy, but when she thought about what he had done, that sympathy vanished. He deserved it!

“Where did you start the fire?” Chen Shi asked.

Kong Wende, sobbing, replied, “I didn’t set a fire. I just used a lighter to trigger the fire alarm. My son is in this hospital. How could I set a fire?”

So it was a false alarm.

Lin Dongxue notified the two officers. Hearing that the suspect had been captured, they were shocked. Then, they escorted Kong Wende to the car.

Lin Dongxue checked her watch. It was three in the afternoon, just within the 48-hour deadline set by the task force.

After Kong Wende was brought back to the station, Lin Qiupu, shocked, recalled all the officers from the field and announced that the case was solved. The conference room erupted in applause and cheers, except for Xu Xiaodong, who didn’t look happy.

When everyone quieted down, Lin Qiupu stood on stage and said, “To solve this case within 48 hours, we have to mention one person. He is…”

Everyone held their breath.

Lin Qiupu looked around and said, “Where is he?”

Lin Dongxue said, “He said he was hungry and went out to eat.”

“Bring him in!”

Lin Dongxue found Chen Shi in a nearby restaurant, just about to start eating a bowl of beef noodles. Hearing that Captain Lin wanted to praise him, Chen Shi frowned, “Are you kidding me? He had issues with me before and now he’s changing his tune?”

“Do you think my brother is that petty? He has to acknowledge your contribution.”

“I’m not going. We agreed the credit would go to you. Besides, I’m not a cop. I’m just a concerned citizen.”

“Come on, everyone is waiting for you!”

“I’ll finish my noodles first.”

“Check, please!” Lin Dongxue threw money on the table and dragged Chen Shi away, “I’ll treat you to something better later.”

Chen Shi was brought back to the meeting room. Though Lin Qiupu looked a bit displeased, he cleared his throat and said, “Thanks to Mr. Chen Shi’s help, we solved the case. He is not part of our team, so there’s no official commendation. I suggest we give him a round of applause.”

Everyone clapped together. Normally confident, Chen Shi looked a bit embarrassed.

Lin Qiupu smiled and said, “Mr. Chen, say a few words!”

“No, no,” Chen Shi waved.

“Come on!”

“Go on!” Lin Dongxue pushed him from behind.

Chen Shi complained, “These siblings!” He walked up to the stage, looking at the expectant eyes, and after a few seconds of silence, he pulled out some receipts from his pocket, “I know I won’t get any bonus, but can these receipts be reimbursed? That’s all I have to say. Thank you!”

With that, he bowed and stepped off the stage under everyone’s astonished gaze.

Lin Qiupu coughed, “Alright, the case is over, but there’s still a lot of follow-up work to do. Get back to it!”

After the meeting, Xu Xiaodong found Chen Shi and handed him two concert tickets, “Brother Chen, I admit my loss. I’m not as good as you.”

“Wow, I didn’t expect you to be so honest!” Chen Shi took the tickets, “Were you planning to take Lin Dongxue?”

Xu Xiaodong shamefully admitted, “I lost the tickets to you. What else can I say?”

Chen Shi put his hand on Xu Xiaodong’s shoulder and placed the tickets back in his hand, “I was joking! Did you really think I wanted your tickets? If you like her, be brave and ask her out!”

Xu Xiaodong was surprised. Were these words supposed to come from a rival?

Or had he been wrong all along, and Chen Shi wasn’t his rival?

“Do you really not want them?”

“I don’t want them. We ’90s kids listen to Jay Chou. Who’s this ‘God of Songs’? I don’t even know him.” Chen Shi laughed and walked towards the interrogation room. He didn’t want to miss the upcoming interrogation.

Xu Xiaodong shouted at his back, “You’re a ’90s kid?”

“1890s, got a problem?” Chen Shi replied with a smile.

Xu Xiaodong looked at the tickets in his hand, now even more precious, planning to give them to Lin Dongxue today.