Chapter 645: Diversion

Chen Shi and Lin Dongxue went to the hotel to verify Wang Mengqi’s alibi for the previous night. Leaving the hotel, Chen Shi was visibly troubled and remained silent despite Lin Dongxue’s attempts to engage him.

“The second victim wasn’t killed by Wang Mengqi, but the method was identical,” Chen Shi said.

“Anyone can see that. I think it’s a different case,” Lin Dongxue replied.

“Is it really another case? That student couldn’t afford the 400,000 yuan for the poison. The buyer would ensure the death seemed ‘natural’ to avoid police attention. But this student was found posed just like Geng Changle, in a public place, almost as if it was staged for us to find. I suspect Wang Mengqi bribed Xu Fa to help him, creating a fake serial killer to confuse us.”

Lin Dongxue checked her phone, “My brother wants us to check the student’s relationships at school.”

“No, we need to do something else,” Chen Shi said, getting into the car. Lin Dongxue, puzzled, followed. He believed his theory that these two identical murders were no coincidence and decided to re-interrogate Lin Tao.

The drug dealer Lin Tao, arrested earlier, had been uncooperative, answering every question with “Go to hell,” and a disdainful smirk. This time was no different.

Chen Shi asked Lin Dongxue to turn off the recorder. Lin Dongxue hesitated, “That’s against the rules.”

“Then step outside for a moment. I’ll handle him alone.”

“Don’t do anything reckless,” Lin Dongxue warned, leaving reluctantly.

Alone with Lin Tao, Chen Shi created a tense atmosphere by clenching his fists. Lin Tao looked at him disdainfully, though his trembling legs betrayed his nervousness.

“Did you give Wang Mengqi the poison?” Chen Shi asked.

Lin Tao’s face briefly showed panic before he retorted, “Who’s Wang Mengqi? Your dad?”

“Do you know where Xu Fa lives?”

Lin Tao shook his head, “I don’t know any Xu Fa.”

Chen Shi observed his microexpressions, confirming Lin Tao knew Xu Fa’s whereabouts but had reached the limit of what he could extract without breaking him.

“Do you want drugs?” Chen Shi asked quietly.

Lin Tao’s eyes widened, pupils contracting. He hadn’t had any drugs since his arrest, and his craving was evident.

“Don’t bullshit me. Cops don’t do that.”

“I can get it.”

Lin Tao swallowed hard, “Stop bluffing…”

Chen Shi went to Lin Qiupu for drugs, explaining that the narcotics squad had recently confiscated some methamphetamine that hadn’t been handed over yet. Lin Qiupu was firm, “That’s against the rules. We can’t let suspects use drugs.”

“Captain Lin, I believe this poisoning case is about to turn into a serial murder. Confusing the police has always been Zhou Tiannan’s specialty. Remember the case with the mailed guns? Sixteen guns were sent to different people to distract us. Xu Fa is Zhou Tiannan’s man and knows this tactic well. We need to do whatever it takes to get information. The seized drugs are going to be destroyed anyway. Letting this scum have a hit won’t matter.”

“Taking confiscated drugs to trade for information is a severe violation,” Lin Qiupu insisted.

“Rules over human lives?” Chen Shi retorted angrily.

Lin Qiupu frowned, “It’s just your theory.”

“We’ve faced Zhou Tiannan and his men many times. You should understand their tricks by now. Are we going to keep reacting after the fact, cleaning up their messes? Haven’t you had enough setbacks?”

Lin Qiupu, stung by Chen Shi’s words, sighed but remained firm, “You have no proof.”

“By the time we have proof, it’ll be too late. Remember the past cases!”

After a moment of silence, Lin Qiupu sighed, “I’ll go with you.”

He brought a small bag of methamphetamine from the evidence room and joined Chen Shi in the interrogation room. Lin Tao, an expert, recognized the crystalline powder immediately, his eyes lighting up with desperate longing.

“Give me a hit! I’ll tell you everything,” Lin Tao begged.

Lin Qiupu dangled the bag, “Where’s Xu Fa?”

“Let me hit first!” Lin Tao, drenched in sweat, eyes fixed on the powder, pleaded.

“Where’s Xu Fa? This is your last chance. Give us some information, and we’ll consider it.”

Knowing he had no bargaining power, Lin Tao gave an address. Lin Qiupu put the bag away, “We’ll verify it first, then talk.”

“You’re liars! Liars!” Lin Tao screamed.

“At least give him a dose of methadone,” Chen Shi suggested.

“I’m not bending the rules. Once we cross that line, it’s hard to stop. We’re a lawful force, and if we don’t follow the regulations you find ridiculous, we’d be no different from criminals. Once we confirm the information, I’ll get him some methadone to keep him from disturbing the others,” Lin Qiupu replied firmly.

“I’ll go check it out,” Chen Shi said.

Chen Shi and Lin Dongxue immediately went to the address. At the door, Lin Dongxue pulled out a peephole viewer to look inside, “No one’s home.”

“I’ll pick the lock.”

Chen Shi quickly picked the lock. The place seemed uninhabited for a while, with sparse furniture and a computer by the window. Chen Shi powered it up and encountered a password. He called Sun Zhen, asking him to send a cracking tool to his phone. Using a data cable, he bypassed the password and told Lin Dongxue, “Simple hacking.”

The computer was filled with games. Opening a chat application, Chen Shi found the logs wiped clean. Criminals often did this as a basic precaution. He called Sun Zhen for further help. Sun Zhen said, “Turn off the antivirus and log into this website. I’ll handle it remotely.”

“Sorry, it’s urgent,” Chen Shi replied.

Logging into the website, the computer loaded malware. The cursor began moving on its own as Sun Zhen took over. A video window opened, and Sun Zhen’s face appeared, “Hey, sister-in-law… Chen, what do you need?”

“The chat logs were wiped. Can you recover them?”

“On it!”

Picking locks and hacking were already illegal. Chen Shi mused that Lin Qiupu had exaggerated the consequences.

Then he reconsidered. Not being a cop, he had fewer restraints, but good cops, while not strictly following every rule, still adhered to their conscience.

Recovering the chat logs was easy. Soon, Chen Shi found a file with a conversation from the night of November 24th:

—Mr. Xu, the police are onto me. Detective Chen is incredible. It’s like he saw everything himself.

—You’re just unlucky. He got involved in your case.

—I need a favor!

—Kill Chen? If you do it yourself, I’ll give you the poison for free. If you want me to do it, not even a billion would persuade me.

—No, your poison is undetectable by the police. Thanks! I need two more doses. Don’t deliver them to me directly; use them for random killings. I’ll pay you.