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

Chapter 480 A Scheme
According to Zhu Mingxiang and Lao Shen, the case occurred in October 1979.

Sun Guobin, the factory manager of Liuliqiao Towel Factory, took the jade Buddha that he had dug out from under the factory building and boarded a train heading east from Hongcheng.

Later investigations revealed that Sun Guobin found a buyer from out of town who was willing to pay a high price through a friend, and then took the jade Buddha to the transaction.

According to the testimonies of other cadres in the factory, not much of value was actually unearthed from the grave under the factory building. The items were taken to the antique market but did not fetch much money.

This jade Buddha statue was the most valuable one, so Sun Guobin carefully inquired with many people, hoping to get a good price to save his towel factory from bankruptcy.

However, the price has never been ideal.

In the end, somehow they found a buyer willing to pay a high price, but the condition was that the goods must be delivered to their door and the transaction must take place in another city.

That's why Sun Guobin took the jade Buddha with him and left Hongcheng by train.

For safety reasons, Sun Guobin also brought along a young and strong worker from the factory named Zhao Yang.

However, the jade Buddha was kept in the custody of Sun Guobin throughout the entire process, and Zhao Yang's task was to protect Sun Guobin, so he never had any contact with the jade Buddha.

According to Zhao Yang, Sun Guobin valued the jade Buddha more than his own life because it was the factory's only hope. Therefore, he always kept the jade Buddha hidden in the bag he carried with him. For safety, Sun Guobin even tied the bag strap to his body with a rope and made a tight knot, so he never took the bag off his body, even when he went to the toilet.

As a result, something went wrong when he went to the toilet.

Although the bag was never out of his sight, the jade Buddha inside was gone, and what's worse, he lost his life.

On the way, Sun Guobin went to the restroom, but he didn't come back for a long time. Zhao Yang felt something was wrong and was about to get up to look for him.

Then we heard a woman screaming that someone was dead.

The shout startled the entire carriage. Zhao Yang immediately sensed something was wrong and squeezed through the crowd to see what was happening, only to be dumbfounded.

Sun Guobin died in the toilet, his neck and body covered in blood.

The bag that was tied to the body with rope was still there, but the zipper was open and the contents were gone.

Although murder is a major case anywhere, murder on a train is still very rare. The railway police who arrived at the scene were also shocked and immediately launched an investigation.

"I heard from colleagues who were involved in the case that it had a huge impact at the time because they searched all the passengers on the train, which made the passengers very unhappy, but in the end they found nothing, and the case was just dropped," Lao Shen said.

Zhou Yi asked, "So, this is an unsolved case?"

The two nodded: "Yes, it's an unsolved case."

Old Shen sighed and shook his head helplessly, saying, "Sigh, because the whole train search caused so much controversy, almost everyone who handled the case back then was implicated, and some even lost their jobs."

The fact that a police officer lost his job is enough to show how significant this incident was.

Zhu Mingxiang did not go into great detail about the case, but the gist was that Sun Guobin was strangled to death with fishing line, and then the jade Buddha was stolen. The method was very clean and efficient, leaving no clues.

And because the incident occurred at night, there were few witnesses.

When the body was discovered later, the train car was crowded and chaotic, which completely ruined the scene.

After listening, Zhou Yi asked, "So, the Uncle Li we arrested last time, could he be the murderer in the Sun Guobin case?"

"No, that's not true. It would be great if it were such a coincidence. But Uncle Li did provide us with some useful clues, and we are investigating them."

Zhu Mingxiang said that this Uncle Li's surname is not actually Li, but Li, and he can be considered a half-founding master in the pickpocketing industry.

According to his own account, he was in a semi-retired state, meaning he didn't do the work himself, but only helped his apprentices dispose of stolen goods.

This kind of seasoned veteran is very slick. Even though he was caught red-handed, he remained stubborn and never mentioned the dirty deeds he had done in the past.

So after several interrogations, the railway police knew this was a tough nut to crack.

So they turned their pressure on his other accomplices, and the effect was remarkable.

The others each confessed to some things, and interestingly, everyone downplayed their seriousness, only confessing to things that were detrimental to others, trying their best to make themselves look innocent and even appear to be reporting and exposing others, thus redeeming themselves through meritorious service.

But no matter how much they try to pin their accusations on each other, there's one person who can't escape.

This is Uncle Li.

After being betrayed by his apprentices, the old fox was stunned when a series of old stories were laid bare before him, and he cursed these traitors.

But faced with numerous crimes, he had no way to defend himself.

Then he said he would report and expose others to atone for his crimes.

He said that he had taken on an apprentice in his early years, but they later parted ways because the person was too ruthless and cruel, more like a bandit than a thief.

Later, I heard that he hooked up with a female con artist, and the two became husband and wife, and did a lot of bad things.

Then came the murder of Sun Guobin.

This is a big deal not only for the railway police, but also a huge shock in the pickpocketing industry.

In principle, pickpockets only target valuables; if they are forced to harm others to escape, it is already a last resort.

Murder and robbery would be an even worse option.

Uncle Li said that according to the rules of their ancestral thief gang, this was already an act of betraying their master and ancestors.

Back when he was young, if someone did that, according to the rules of the trade, their tendons would be severed and they would be expelled from the thief's guild.

In other words, the younger generation no longer follows the rules.

But Sun Guobin's incident also had a great impact on them, because for a long time after the incident, they were unable to "do business" at all, because the railway was cracking down hard, and there were police officers in uniform everywhere in the stations and on the trains, as well as many more plainclothes officers mixed in with the crowd.

Many people were injured or killed at that time.

So they had no choice but to back down and wait for the storm to pass.

When a person's path to wealth is as dangerous as killing their parents, while the railway police are searching the world for this murderer, the pickpockets are also looking for this person who broke the rules to settle scores.

However, after some private conversations, no one knew who had done it, so the matter was dropped.

About six months later, Uncle Li said that his apprentice suddenly came to him, saying that he had a treasure he wanted to sell, but he was having trouble finding a suitable buyer, so he came to ask his master for help, knowing that he had a wide network of connections.

Then the other party took out a tightly wrapped bag, and when opened, inside was a crystal-clear jade Buddha, about the size of a palm.

Uncle Li said that he fell in love with the jade Buddha the moment he saw it and couldn't put it down.

I asked him where he got such a good thing from?
But the other party gave a vague answer, saying that they just happened to have received it from the countryside.

Uncle Li said he knew he was lying. It was possible that the pots and pans were taken away because the country folk didn't recognize their value, but how could such a large jade Buddha statue be taken away so easily? It would be kept as a family heirloom.

However, he did not connect it to Sun Guobin's case at the time, because from the perspective of pickpockets, they did not know what the treasure lost in Sun Guobin's case was.

Uncle Li said that he immediately had the idea of ​​eating it.

Then they started nitpicking.

Then he actually found a flaw: there was a very small crack on the bottom of the jade Buddha statue's base.

He told his apprentice that the item had flaws, so the price wouldn't be too high, at most three thousand. He was willing to take a loss and add another eight hundred, so he would buy it for three thousand eight.

Back in 1980, the national average wage was only 700 or 800 yuan. For 99% of people, 3,800 yuan was an astronomical figure.

But when the apprentice heard the price, he flew into a rage, snatched the jade Buddha back, and said, "You old bastard, are you trying to cheat me? Don't think you're something just because I call you master."

Uncle Li said he was furious at the time, but he held back for the sake of the jade Buddha.

Then, smiling, he told him not to get excited and that he could name a price.

Uncle Li said he thought 10,000 yuan was the maximum. After all, back then, a person with 10,000 yuan could walk with impunity. If the other party really wanted 10,000 yuan, he would sell everything he owned to get the jade Buddha.

The apprentice then held up three fingers and said: Thirty thousand!
Uncle Li was terrified and scolded him for being delusional, saying that he would be stuck with this price for the rest of his life.

The two parted on bad terms and never spoke to each other again.

Zhou Yi calculated the average wage in 1980 and compared it with the average wage in 2020. The 30,000 yuan back then was equivalent to more than 3 million yuan forty years later. As cultural relics and antiques, it might not be very expensive, but as stolen goods, it was indeed quite valuable.

Uncle Li said that he pondered it for a long time afterward, unable to figure out where the other party got such a good thing.

Then he thought of the person who was strangled to death on the train six months ago.

It dawned on him.

However, he couldn't possibly call the police. He had been hoping to get his hands on the jade Buddha sometime, but then his apprentice vanished as if he'd disappeared into thin air. He figured he'd probably gone somewhere else.

The only thing he regretted was that jade Buddha, which would probably be priceless now.

“So he told us about his apprentice, and we’re investigating,” Zhu Mingxiang said. Zhou Yi asked, “What’s the progress now?”

"There are no effective leads yet, and the identity information he provided cannot be found, after all, so many years have passed."

Zhou Yi nodded and asked, "Do you need our help? I can talk to the boss about this."

"Sure, we'll report this to our leader later. He was just saying not long ago that we should learn more from you, since you've solved several major cases this year."

After listening to the story, Zhou Yi felt that the matter was not as simple as Uncle Li had described.

There are many pickpockets on trains, and Sun Guobin's actions were indeed too obvious, so it's normal that he was targeted.

But pickpockets are not bandits or robbers who kill and steal; after all, the sentencing for theft and robbery is completely different under the law.

Just like Uncle Li said, this is a violation of the rules.

Moreover, from the perspective of an ordinary pickpocket, it is too risky to kill and steal without first determining the value of the target.

What if there are only two sweet potatoes in the bag?

So either Sun Guobin revealed something on the train and was targeted by someone.

Zhou Yi felt that this possibility was very small. After all, it was a matter of life and death for the entire factory. Sun Guobin was being so careful and cautious, so the jade Buddha must have been wrapped up in layers and layers and would not have been taken out easily.

There might only be one possibility left: Sun Guobin taking the jade Buddha onto the train was likely a setup from the very beginning.

The so-called out-of-town buyer might just be a smokescreen; even if Sun Guobin actually went there, he wouldn't be able to find that buyer.

Because the person who orchestrated the scheme planned to take action in the car from the very beginning.

Whether the murder was planned from the beginning, or whether it was because Sun Guobin was too wary on the train that the killer had to resort to violence, remains unknown.

As for the credibility of Uncle Li's words, Zhou Yi had not interrogated the man and could not make a hasty conclusion.

Furthermore, since this case belongs to the railway police, it's not appropriate for us to take the initiative to get involved.

"By the way, Zhou Yi, is there something you need from us?" After chatting for so long, Zhu Mingxiang finally realized that Zhou Yi didn't know he was in the car, so he definitely wasn't here to catch up.

Zhou Yi nodded and said, "There is indeed something I'd like to ask for your help with."

……

In the hard-seat carriage, Jiang Guiyou walked through the aisle and was met by a young woman wearing jeans.

Jiang Guiyou stepped aside to make way for the other person.

The girl politely said thank you.

Just as the girl was passing by, Jiang Guiyou suddenly leaned forward, and as if he had lost his balance, he fell on top of her.

The girl was startled, pushed him away, and yelled in disgust, "What are you doing?"

Jiang Guiyou turned his head innocently and shouted, "Which bastard pushed me?"

The people sitting behind him all looked at each other in bewilderment.

Jiang Guiyou said with a grin, "Sorry, beautiful lady."

The girl glared at him, then quickly walked away in disgust and returned to her seat.

Jiang Guiyou stared at the girl's buttocks encased in jeans, licked his lips, and said, "Damn, wiggling like that, so fucking slutty."

As he passed through the connecting area between the carriages, he brushed past a thin, middle-aged man, and a gold bracelet was slipped from Jiang Guiyou's hand into the middle-aged man's hand without him noticing.

Just then, the girl's exclamation came from the carriage behind them: "Where's my bracelet? My bracelet is gone!"

Hearing the commotion behind him, Jiang Guiyou immediately strode forward.

The girl standing in the aisle happened to see his back through the glass of the carriage door and chased after him without hesitation. Her friend followed suit.

The girl rushed into the next carriage, grabbed Jiang Guiyou by the shoulder, and demanded, "Did you steal my gold bracelet?"

Jiang Guiyou turned around and cursed, "Are you fucking crazy? Who stole your things!"

"You bumped into me just now, and then my gold bracelet disappeared. Who else could it be but you?"

The two started arguing back and forth, immediately attracting everyone's attention.

In the midst of the argument, Jiang Guiyou suddenly shouted, "Where's my gold ring? Where did my gold ring go?"

Then, pointing at the girl's nose, he said, "Oh, you bumped into me just now, and then my gold ring disappeared. You must have stolen it!"

This backstabbing infuriated the girl, and tears immediately streamed down her face. She cried and said, "How can you be so shameless? You stole my bracelet, but you're turning around and accusing me of stealing your ring."

When the girl started crying, the onlookers became indignant, especially since Jiang Guiyou's words and actions didn't seem like those of a good person.

Some people suggested calling the police immediately, while others comforted the girl, telling her not to be afraid and that everyone would support her.

But Jiang Guiyou calmly replied, "Call the police? Go ahead and call them if you dare. I'm not afraid of the police even if they come. Anyway, I didn't steal anything!"

Just then, someone in the carriage shouted, "The police are here!"

Zhu Mingxiang and Lao Shen, dressed in police uniforms, pushed through the crowd and asked, "What's the matter?"

The girl cried and pointed at Jiang Guiyou, saying, "I suspect he stole my gold necklace."

Jiang Guiyou immediately retorted, "Bullshit! You stole my gold ring!"

"I didn't!" the girl shouted.

"You're the one who stole it!" Jiang Guiyou shouted back defiantly.

Zhu Mingxiang glared at him and shouted, "What's all the noise about? Come on, come back with us for questioning."

As he was saying this, he reached out to grab Jiang Guiyou, but unexpectedly, Jiang Guiyou suddenly raised his arm and shook off Zhu Mingxiang's hand.

"Why should I go with you?!" Jiang Guiyou shouted. "Say it right here and now! Why should I go with you?!"

At this point, a bystander shouted, "If you don't dare to go with the police, it means you're guilty."

"That's right, that's right, they're scared, aren't they?" Everyone chimed in.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Guiyou fearlessly shouted, "I said I didn't steal it! If you don't believe me, I can strip naked right here to prove it!"

Just as everyone was about to shout, "Then take it off!", Jiang Guiyou pointed at the girl and said, "But it's not enough for just me to take it off. You stole my gold ring, so after I take it off, you have to take it off too!"

Upon hearing this, the girl, who had stopped crying when she saw the police arrive, burst into tears again.

The crowd erupted in uproar. Some were angry, while others gloated and egged them on. After all, why not see a beautiful woman taking off her clothes in public?

Seeing that the situation was about to get out of control, Lao Shen and Zhu Mingxiang quickly took control of the situation. One told the people around not to make a fuss, and the other warned Jiang Guiyou not to cause trouble.

But Jiang Guiyou shouted recklessly, "What, are you police trying to protect her?"

A man with a pointed face and monkey-like features shouted from the crowd: "That's right, you're not protecting this woman just because she's pretty, are you? The police are judging people by their appearance."

The masses tend to follow the crowd, and what they fear most is someone maliciously stirring up trouble. As soon as these words were spoken, many people began to nod in agreement.

After all, thieves don't wear their identities on their sleeves. If these two are accusing each other of theft, who knows who the real thief is?

Moreover, although this man isn't particularly good-looking, he dared to strip naked to prove his innocence, which shows he wasn't afraid.

On the other hand, this girl kept crying. Was she pretending to be pitiful to gain sympathy?
If the rhythm is off, things will become difficult to handle.

Just then, someone outside the crowd suddenly shouted, "Whose gold chain is that?"

Everyone immediately looked in the direction of the sound. Jiang Guiyou also looked out of the crowd, but he was too short and his view was blocked by the crowd.

But immediately, he saw a tall figure squeeze through the crowd and walk in.

Jiang Guiyou was immediately startled. Wasn't this the man from the soft sleeper berth in front of him?
When he saw what Zhou Yi was holding, he was even more dumbfounded.

Zhou Yi had a gold bracelet between his two fingers.

It was the very one he had just stolen from the girl and then handed over to his accomplice.

Jiang Guiyou wasn't very bright; the moment he saw the bracelet, he blurted out, "Holy crap, how did it end up with you?"

(End of this chapter)