Reborn in 97, I solved a cold case at the Municipal Bureau

Chapter 296 Checking the Water Meter

"Ms. Zhang, we apologize, but we cannot disclose specific details of the case to you at this time, as the case is still under investigation," Zhou Yi said.

"At least... at least tell me whether he was murdered, it was an accident, or he couldn't think straight."

Zhou Yi nodded: "The family has a basic right to know. Based on the information we have so far, the police have basically ruled out the possibility of suicide or accidental death."

Tears welled up in Zhang Xianglan's eyes instantly, and she asked excitedly, "Have you caught the murderer? No, if you have, you'll definitely tell us, right?"

“Ms. Zhang, please calm down. The case is currently under investigation. We’ve come to you to understand the situation so that we can find out who killed your husband as soon as possible…” Chen Yan comforted her.

But before she could finish speaking, Zhang Xianglan slowly slid down the wall and collapsed to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably, "What am I going to do now...?"

Passersby glanced at the scene, but only for a moment, after all, this was a hospital, a place where countless life-and-death separations occurred every day.

Everyone has gotten used to it.

Zhou Yi went to the nurses' station and asked for a disposable cup. He then went to the end of the corridor, poured half a cup of hot water, and handed it to Zhang Xianglan.

Only after she had calmed down did they continue asking questions.

Since the basic information had already been obtained in the afternoon, the focus of the subsequent questioning was on three questions.

The first question is, does Li Youqiang have a homemade gun?
Zhang Xianglan nodded: "He does have a homemade gun, which was left to me by my father-in-law. Later, I was afraid something might happen, so I asked him to hand the gun over to the police station."

Did he pay it?

“He told me he paid. How…how did you know?” Zhang Xianglan realized something was wrong.

“When I went to pick up your son, your son Xiaowei told me that he had seen Li Youqiang hiding a homemade gun, which should be the same one you mentioned.”

"Then...then he lied to me. What is he trying to do?"

"Let me explain first that we have already applied for a search warrant for your house, mainly to confirm the whereabouts of this gun. We hope you can understand and cooperate. Don't worry, we won't touch your personal belongings."

Zhang Xianglan nodded.

"The second question is, who has Li Youqiang made enemies with?"

Zhang Xianglan thought it over and over and said that it didn't seem so. Although Li Youqiang was unreliable, he didn't have any violent tendencies. He was just idle and didn't do any proper work. He had never hit her or her son in all these years.

"What happened to the fact that you were fired from the agricultural machinery factory for fighting?"

"Hey, he was just stupid. A coworker he was close to was being bullied, and he insisted on standing up for him, breaking the man's head and almost going to jail. It was my mother-in-law who had to plead with the other party, and they ended up settling the matter privately by paying a lot of money. He was just stupid. In the end, the coworker he helped didn't stand up for him at all."

Zhou Yi wasn't surprised by this; he could only blame Li Youqiang for being too impulsive and thoughtless.

Most of the time, colleagues are just colleagues. It's lucky if they become friends, and it's good if they don't become enemies. Once you leave this particular environment, you become strangers, after all, everyone has their own life to live.

"Then why does he like handling dangerous things like knives and guns?" Chen Yan asked.

"He really enjoys watching martial arts and gunfight movies, and he especially admires the heroes and chivalrous figures in them, the kind who would stand up for what's right when they see injustice. You know, he's getting on in years, with elderly parents and young children to support, how can he not just settle down and work steadily?"

Zhou Yi thought to himself, "Oh, so he's a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) sufferer."

Zhang Xianglan thought and thought, but couldn't think of anyone who had a grudge against him.

Zhou Yi's third question was about the relationship between Li Youqiang and Fu Daqing, including how they met and whether they had any mutual friends.

Zhang Xianglan said she didn't know exactly how they met, but she had heard Li Youqiang mention the name "Gua Ge" about two years ago. At that time, he even said that he wanted to go into business with Gua Ge, but nothing came of it in the end.

As for mutual friends, she only knew one nicknamed Dajun.

On another occasion, Li Youqiang got drunk and was brought back by someone who called himself Dajun. He said that he and Brother Gua had been drinking together.

As for his appearance, she didn't see it clearly at all, because it was already late at night. All she knew was that he was quite tall.

She didn't know much about Li Youqiang's affairs outside. She had to go to work, take care of her son, and manage the household chores. She didn't have the extra energy to deal with Li Youqiang.

She said that as long as he doesn't break the law or do anything wrong outside, it's fine.

After asking their questions, Zhou Yi and Chen Yan prepared to leave.

Zhang Xianglan asked cautiously, "Officer, when can we collect my husband's body? I... I want to take him home."

“This case is being handled by Anyuan City, so the deceased’s body is still being kept there. You can go to Anyuan to identify the body, but…” Zhou Yi paused, “I suggest you take care of your family first. The elderly and the young need your care. You can pick him up after the case is over.”

Zhang Xianglan nodded weakly.

As Zhou Yi and Chen Yan left, soft sobbing could be heard behind them.

When the two returned to the Municipal Public Security Bureau, Wu Yongcheng was already waiting for them.

Qiao Jiali said, "How come you're even later than us?" Zhou Yi replied helplessly, "Niu Fengxian suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and was taken to the hospital first. Then she took over as Zhang Xianglan's nanny. That's why we were delayed."

"Eat something quickly, Captain Wu had someone buy it." Qiao Jiali handed the two disposable chopsticks and two boxes of rice. There were some stir-fried dishes in styrofoam boxes on the table.

Zhou Yi, shoveling food into his mouth, asked, "Captain Wu, did you find anything at Fu Daqing's house?"

"Fu Daqing's house is basically empty."

Zhou Yi and Chen Yan were taken aback: "Empty? What do you mean?"

"Everything of value is gone; all that's left is furniture and a pile of junk."

"Is Fu Daqing in debt? Was his house ransacked?"

Wu Yongcheng shook his head and said, "No, there are no signs of debt collectors coming after his family. We asked the neighborhood committee and neighbors, and it's true that there were debt collectors a few years ago, but that's all in the past, and it matches his previous business failure. Some neighbors said they saw someone moving things out of Fu Daqing's house at night, but they didn't see who it was."

Jiang Biao and his group had been to Fu Daqing's house before, but no one was home. They asked the residents on the same floor, but they all said they didn't know anything about it and hadn't seen anyone at their house in a long time.

"Biaozi went to ask the scrap collectors nearby, and someone recognized Fu Daqing's photo, confirming that he sold those things himself. Guess when he sold them?"

Zhou Yi shook his head and said, "I am not knowledgeable enough to guess."

"Hey, you brat."

"If you guess correctly in a bit, you'll say it's boring. I'd rather eat more vegetables. Brother Yan, you guess."

"Oh." Chen Yan looked up and said, "I guess... it must have been before he went to the nursing home to pay for his father's medical expenses?"

Wu Yongcheng praised, "Smart. Explain your reasoning, why?"

"Hmm... We've already speculated that Fu Daqing paid a year's worth of nursing home fees for his father and bought a lot of diapers, which means he's planning to run away. So it makes perfect sense for him to sell everything he can before he runs away."

"However, his act of selling these items suggests that his financial situation was not ideal. Therefore, it is very likely that he had a motive to commit crimes for money."

“Fu Daqing and Li Youqiang originally had a good relationship. I can’t imagine what deep hatred could exist between them. But since Fu Daqing has run away, either he is the murderer of Li Youqiang, or he is involved in Li Youqiang’s death. In any case, catching Fu Daqing is the key to this case.”

Chen Yan tentatively asked, "Master, am I right?"

Wu Yongcheng gave a thumbs up and said, "You're all right."

Chen Yan asked Zhou Yi, "Zhou Yi, do you have anything to add?"

Zhou Yi looked at Wu Yongcheng, who said, "You talk, why are you looking at me?"

"Okay. Based on what Brother Yan said, I'd like to add two points. First, Fu Daqing was short of money, and he was able to secretly sell everything he could at home before he ran away, so he probably wouldn't have run south."

"Why?" Chen Yan asked.

“The South is developing rapidly, but the cost of living is also rising accordingly. Moreover, he was running away, not going to work. In crowded places, the risks and psychological pressure would be much greater.”

"So I think he will run west, to a remote area on the outskirts of the city, where it is easier to hide. We can investigate his escape route in that direction."

Jiang Biao nodded: "Leave Fu Daqing's whereabouts to me, I'll take men to investigate."

"Thanks for your hard work, Brother Biao," Zhou Yi continued. "Secondly, Li Youqiang was murdered in Anyuan about a month ago. If Fu Daqing is the murderer, what were his movements after killing Li Youqiang? He sold off his family property and settled his father's affairs before trying to flee more than a week ago, leaving a gap of more than half a month. What was he doing?"

Everyone fell silent. Chen Yan thought for a moment and then shook his head.

Zhou Yi said, "I think he has been hiding in his own home for the past two weeks."

“But we visited the neighbors, and no one had seen him,” Qiao Jiali said.

“This is simple, check the water and electricity meters. His ex-wife said he left after the Chinese New Year, which was in February. If he hasn’t come back and isn’t hiding at home, the water and electricity bills for March and April will be practically zero.”

In 1997, refrigerators, which consume a lot of electricity, were still very expensive, and Fu Daqing's family certainly didn't own one.

“I don’t believe he wouldn’t turn on the lights, watch TV, or drink water,” Zhou Yi said firmly.

Jiang Biao clapped his hands and said, "Damn, I didn't even think of that."

Wu Yongcheng was somewhat embarrassed; he hadn't expected this either. But the reason he hadn't expected it was because he hadn't anticipated that Fu Daqing would be hiding at home.

His logic was that Fu Daqing ran home, sold his belongings, settled his father, and then ran away again.

This is due to a problem related to the direction of the investigation.

"Why do you think he's been hiding at home all this time?" Wu Yongcheng asked Zhou Yi.

(End of this chapter)