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

Chapter 522 You broke your promise (Seeking monthly votes)

Shi Jian's behavior was consistent with his identity as an illiterate hoodlum.

In such a situation, a normal person would either immediately call the police or be so frightened that they would stay away from trouble.

Only those with low morals and blinded by greed would immediately think of extortion and blackmail to make a fortune.

Trying to negotiate with a tiger for its skin will only lead to your death in its jaws.

The real question is, why did Miao Genhua call Shi Jian to the hospital on July 26th, and why did she tell him the truth?

Her previous statement was undoubtedly false.

By investigating the call records.

They also sent people to the county hospital to visit and investigate medical staff, patients in the same ward and their families, as well as the Ping An Supermarket across from the hospital.

It was confirmed that Miao Genhua made a phone call on July 26th, which was to Shi Jian's pager.

However, on July 27th, Miao Genhua made a total of three phone calls.

The supermarket owner was very impressed; after all, a woman who called three times in one day while wearing a hospital gown was easy to remember.

The first time was in the morning. I called Shi Jian, and the landlady said the page message was just four words: Call back as soon as possible.

But Miao Genhua waited for more than half an hour and still didn't receive the call she was waiting for.

The proprietress was very kind and told her to leave her name so she could remember it if the other party called.

But Miao Genhua politely declined and left.

Judging from the timing of the call, it was close to noon, so it must have been made after Zhou Yi and Ma Weichang had left.

The second call was in the afternoon, again to Shi Jian. This time, the landlady didn't hear the message, but Miao Genhua didn't wait and left in a hurry after making the call.

The third call was in the evening. This time, it wasn't to Shi Jian, but to the village committee office in Xipinggou.

Without a doubt, the call was directed to Miao Dongfang.

The content of the call is unknown, but it lasted for about three minutes.

The owner wasn't in the store at the time. The clerk on duty said that when Miao Genhua was on the phone, she had her back to the counter, so she didn't see her expression, but she looked unhappy when she paid.

Yang Chuan quickly returned from Miao Tiejun's house with two pieces of evidence: Ma Weichang's cell phone and the towel.

Later, Zhou Yi consulted Song Yiming and Xu Nian and learned that if Ma Weichang hadn't died from the smothering method used by Miao Tiejun, he would have been essentially crippled.

This is an acute hypoxia, which can cause brain damage and permanent sequelae in mild cases, and respiratory arrest and cardiac arrest in severe cases.

Because unlike using ether, this doesn't induce unconsciousness through the action of drugs.

This method is essentially equivalent to suffocating a person.

Ma Weichang got his phone back, but the battery was missing.

According to Miao Tiejun, he wrapped the phone and battery together in a towel and then hid them in his rain boots.

But when Yang Chuan found the items, the phone was inside a rain boot, the battery was nowhere to be found, and the towel was just casually placed on top of the boot.

So it's possible that Miao Tiejun's two children touched the rain boots, causing the batteries to be lost.

When Yang Chuan asked Miao Tiejun's wife, she knew nothing about the phone.

However, she wasn't stupid. She knew that the police had dug up a body from Uncle Dong's house that morning, and that her husband and Uncle Dong were as close as father and son. In addition, a group of people said they went to rescue Miao Zhuang that morning, but Miao Zhuang and Miao Tiejun were the only ones who didn't come back. They said they were taken away by the police.

When the two things came together, she already had a bad feeling.

When Yang Chuan arrived with his men, her face was already grim, and she kept protecting her two children.

Yang Chuan said that Miao Tiejun's son is still young and doesn't understand things yet, but his eldest daughter is already sensible. He heard the little girl ask two questions in a low voice.

Why did the police come to our house? My brother and I didn't misbehave.

When is Dad coming home? I miss him.

Zhou Yi asked Yang Chuan to relay these two sentences to Miao Tiejun later.

Miao Tiejun's wife also confirmed that on the evening of July 26, around 8 p.m., Uncle Dong suddenly knocked on their door, saying he had something to discuss with Miao Tiejun, and then took him away.

She didn't even know when Miao Tiejun returned, because it was at least midnight.

The next day, she asked her husband, "What did Uncle Dong want from you in the middle of the night?"

He stammered and couldn't give a clear answer, and finally said impatiently, "Women shouldn't meddle in men's affairs."

Then on July 27th, starting in the afternoon, she noticed that something was wrong with him; he seemed distracted and absent-minded.

After all, couples who share a bed are the most likely to notice anything amiss.

During dinner, Miao Tiejun said that he would help Uncle Dong with some chores that night and asked her not to wait for him and to put the child to bed early.

She didn't dare ask too many questions, because Miao Tiejun had a rather impulsive temper, but he was quite good to her and the child.

She also heard yesterday that someone had died at the quarry, and many people from the village went to see it.

Miao Tiejun also went, but she didn't go because her two children were too young and she didn't want to take them to that kind of place, as it could easily cause them to have night terrors.

When Miao Tiejun returned, she asked, "Who died?"

Miao Tiejun said it was Boss Ma from the quarry. He heard from them that he had apparently hanged himself. He wondered if it was related to the little girl who had gone missing a few days ago.

She said she didn't notice anything unusual about her husband at the time, but she heard Miao Tiejun complaining that he didn't know what would happen to the quarry work after this happened.

Another point is that she had never heard Miao Tiejun mention Ma Weichang before. After all, Ma Weichang was the boss, while she was just a worker. Moreover, their family and Miao Genhua's family had basically no contact.

When her mother-in-law was still alive, she and Miao Genhua's mother, Hu Shuzhen, didn't get along and acted like enemies whenever they met.

Her mother-in-law had said many bad things about Old Mrs. Hu in front of her, although she didn't know what grudge the two old women held against each other.

Since the battery is lost, I need to get a replacement battery to turn the phone on, or I need to go to the city's telecommunications department to retrieve my call records, which will take some time.

Zhou Yi hopes to find out something by looking at the information on Ma Weichang's phone.

On July 27th, shortly after he and Zhao Liang left the hospital, Ma Weichang also left, but to this day, they do not know where Ma Weichang went.

At least he didn't go to Zhang Guifen or Ma Weichang's own parents.

According to Miao Tiejun's confession, Miao Dongfang called Ma Weichang at 9:30.

They wanted to arrive as late as possible, so that when Ma Weichang's car passed through the village, everyone would be asleep.

He said that when Ma Weichang arrived at the quarry, it was already past ten o'clock.

Therefore, the time of death is basically consistent with Zhou Yi's initial examination assessment.

So the question is, where did Ma Weichang go during this period?

The only answer for now is to look for information about the phone's communication channels.

After learning about the current progress, Li Linglong left with his phone and charger, which had just been charged, because Miao Dongfang had not yet been captured, and he needed to direct the search operation.

From yesterday until now, Director Li has been working on the front line for twenty or thirty hours. Although he still walks with a brisk pace, he eventually shows signs of fatigue on his face.

Before leaving, he said one sentence: "I'm entrusting the rear area to you."

Yang Chuan immediately replied loudly, "Don't worry, Director Li, with Zhou Yi and me here, there's no problem we can't solve!"

After Li Linglong left, Yang Chuan asked Zhou Yi, "Should we interrogate Miao Genhua next?"

Zhou Yi pondered for a moment.

Now, besides arresting Miao Dongfang, the most important things are interrogating Miao Genhua and finding Ge Fangfang.

The problem is that there are no more manpower available; all available police resources have been used for the search and arrest operation.

The remaining personnel are the technical department and the household registration police.

But besides looking for Ge Fangfang, there are other things that need to be done.

The first issue to address is the problem of mobile phone communication records.

Then we need to find out who the previous owner of the quarry was, Mr. Huang, and get information about the situation.

Furthermore, the quarry's own operations and financial situation also need to be investigated.

Just then, a young man who looked familiar walked in.

Yang Chuan turned around and immediately called out, "Xiao Hai, you're back?"

This young man was the police officer who went to Antong last night to investigate the situation. Zhou Yi had heard Yang Chuan mention him; he was a new recruit in their criminal investigation team and was the same age as Zhou Yi.

He has a rather shy personality, and Captain Zhou always says he lacks presence and is not suitable to be a criminal police officer.

This morning, after he returned from Antong, he brought back the message that Miao Zhuang had not lied.

However, Zhou Yi had doubts about this matter, so he offered some suggestions. Li Linglong asked Xiao Hai to make another trip and investigate further in Zhou Yi's direction.

So he was unaware of the search and arrest operation when everyone else went out to search for him.

"Brother Chuan, what happened? I saw my colleagues setting up checkpoints and investigating along the way," Xiao Hai asked, feeling like he had missed a lot of things since he went out on his trip.

"Xiao Hai, you've come at the right time. There's no one else available, so it's just me and Zhou Yi left."

"Oh, is there anything you need me to do? Just tell me, Brother Chuan."

At this moment, Zhou Yi said, "Xiao Hai, let's hear what you've found out. You must have made some discoveries, right?"

Xiao Hai nodded and began to explain his discovery.

After listening, Zhou Yi made a decision.

"Brother Chuan, interrogate Miao Zhuang first, then Miao Genhua."

……

In the interrogation room, Miao Zhuang, his face bruised and swollen, huddled in a chair like a hedgehog.

"Miao Zhuang, how did you sleep last night?" Zhou Yi asked with a smile.

Miao Zhuang looked like he was about to cry, and asked, "When are you going to put those two guys who hit me in jail? Hitting someone is illegal." "That's none of your concern. I don't know if they'll go to jail, but I know you'll definitely go to jail before them."

Miao Zhuang was utterly shocked, his lips trembling as he asked, "I...I'm breaking the law if I get beaten?"

Zhou Yi slammed his hand on the table, his face ashen, and said, "You're about to die and you're still pretending to be stupid with me?"

"I didn't do anything!"

"Heh, you didn't do anything? Fine, then let me ask you, on July 22nd, when you went to Antong to get the account books, who did you go with?"

Upon hearing this question, Miao Zhuang immediately became nervous, but still stubbornly replied, "It's...it's just me. If you don't believe me, go ask An Tong. The security guard and the manager can both vouch for me."

“We have already asked Antong, and the security guard and manager have confirmed that you went in alone and took the ledger.”

Upon hearing this, Miao Zhuang visibly breathed a sigh of relief, and his body straightened up a bit.

"See, I wasn't lying."

"But why didn't you drive the car in? The warehouse door was open, so why did you park the car across the street?"

Miao Zhuang seemed surprised that Zhou Yi would ask this question, and immediately retorted, "Didn't I drive in back then?"

Zhou Yi countered with, "What do you think?"

"Oh, right, I didn't drive in. That...that's because...because..."

He clearly had no answer to this question, because the matter itself was too trivial.

Miao Dongfang must have instructed him to do this, but he certainly didn't expect the police to ask such detailed questions.

Therefore, given Miao Zhuang's limited intelligence, he couldn't provide an answer.

So he was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, frowning and racking his brains.

"Forget it, don't think about it anymore. I'll find you an answer," Zhou Yi said.

Miao Zhuang immediately looked up at Zhou Yi, his eyes filled with unease and confusion.

Zhou Yi smiled slightly: "Because Ma Weichang was in the car at the time, and you didn't want the people in the warehouse to find out, so you parked the car on the other side of the road instead of driving in."

Miao Zhuang blurted out, "How did you know...?"

But he immediately realized he had said the wrong thing and quickly corrected himself: "No...no, I just...I was just too lazy to drive there."

Zhou Yi thought to himself, "They are indeed stupid enough, but is this 'not shedding tears until they see the coffin' characteristic of Xipinggou?"
"Since you insist on being stubborn, don't blame us for being impolite. Miao Zhuang, I'm giving you one last chance. Confess yourself, and we can consider it as a voluntary admission of guilt. Otherwise, you'll have to bear the consequences."

After Zhou Yi finished speaking, Miao Zhuang's breathing became rapid. He was very nervous and was obviously weighing his options.

He couldn't help but ask tentatively, "You...besides arresting my sister...did you arrest anyone else?"

"Who are you referring to as 'other people'?"

He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Uncle... Uncle Dong?"

Zhou Yi calmly retorted, "What do you think?"

In terms of psychological warfare, Miao Zhuang is no match for Zhou Yi, not even a greenhorn.

"Since you won't tell me, then I will."

As soon as Zhou Yi finished speaking, Miao Zhuang immediately shouted, "I'll talk, I'll talk!"

Zhou Yi pointed at him and said, "Don't try anything funny. If anything you say doesn't match what we know, you won't have to say anything more."

Miao Zhuang nodded his pig head repeatedly, "I know, I know."

“You’re right, I didn’t drive the car in because my brother-in-law was in the back seat. I didn’t want them to find out.”

"why?"

"Because Uncle Dong told me to do it."

Yang Chuan said impatiently, "Confess yourself. Answer every question. Do you think we're your teachers?"

Miao Zhuang was trembling with fear, especially after Yang Chuan pulled out a gun to intimidate him in the morning, which almost scared him to death.

Miao Zhuang began to ramble incoherently, his words somewhat disordered, but he was not lying, and the information he found matched perfectly with what Xiao Hai had discovered.

First of all, Miao Zhuang was unaware of Miao Dongfang's plan. His only involvement was on July 22nd, when he tried to create an invalid alibi for Ma Weichang.

Or to put it another way, it's about why Ge Fangfang disappeared on July 22nd, and not at some other time.

The whole plan was passively waiting for Ma Weichang's schedule and for Miao Dongfang to decide when the plan could be implemented.

Miao Genhua was deeply involved in this case because Miao Zhuang told her about Ma Weichang's schedule, which was clearly her information that was then relayed to Miao Dongfang.

Miao Tiejun was only responsible for helping Miao Dongfang commit murder; Miao Genhua was the real accomplice in this case.

When they learned that Ma Weichang was going to Antong to check the accounts on July 22, Miao Dongfang instructed Miao Zhuang to secretly put drugs in Ma Weichang's thermos before he left, and also gave him a packet of sleeping pills that had been prepared in advance.

Ma Weichang habitually keeps a thermos in his car, even in summer, because he keeps goji berries and other nourishing and aphrodisiac ingredients in it.

When Ma Weichang falls asleep, Miao Zhuang will go to retrieve the ledger alone after arriving in Antong, thus completing the design that "Ma Weichang's alibi cannot be proven".

Miao Zhuang said he asked Uncle Dong why he was doing this, and Uncle Dong told him not to worry about anything, not to ask anything, and just to do as he was told.

He was also instructed that if anyone asked later, he should insist that he went alone that day, and that Ma Weichang was originally going to go, but later said he had a headache and didn't go, so he slept in the quarry office.

Miao Dongfang promised him that he would give him a thousand yuan to gamble with.

Upon hearing about the large sum of money, Miao Zhuang agreed without hesitation.

Zhou Yi asked him if he didn't find it strange to do that.

Miao Zhuang's answer was that he was too lazy to think about it, it was too much of a brain drain, as long as he could make money, that was enough.

However, on July 22nd, when they were preparing to set off, a situation arose that left Miao Zhuang somewhat bewildered.

Ma Weichang filled his own water cup before getting into the car, meaning he had no chance to drug the person.

This left him momentarily at a loss, because although Antong was not a short distance away, there was little opportunity to get water along the way.

So he was distracted the whole time.

He said he didn't care whether he could complete the task assigned by Uncle Dong, but he was unwilling to accept the 1,000 yuan kickback.

The result was that he was too distracted and almost crashed into an oncoming car on one section of the road. In order to avoid it, he swerved the steering wheel sharply, and then the car went out of control and crashed into the bushes on the side of the road.

Although the car body was not damaged, only slightly scratched, one of the wheels hit a rock and blew out.

This enraged Ma Weichang, who then proceeded to hurl a torrent of abuse at him.

He said that Ma Weichang had always looked down on him and was condescending, which is why he readily agreed to help even though he didn't know what Uncle Dong and his sister were up to.

This unexpected event gave him the opportunity to delay.

Fortunately, there was a car repair shop where I had just passed, so I drove there to change the tire.

Since it was already late, and there happened to be a small restaurant nearby, the two of them grabbed a bite to eat while waiting for the tire to be changed.

Miao Zhuang took advantage of the mealtime to fawn over Ma Weichang by pouring him water and adding sleeping pills to the cup.

This is why there is a two-hour time difference.

When Xiao Hai was conducting his investigation along the road to Antong, he discovered this auto repair shop and confirmed what had happened that day.

The auto repair shop employees and the owner of the nearby restaurant all remembered Ma Weichang and Miao Zhuang, because Ma Weichang had been verbally abusing Miao Zhuang, and the insults he used were quite offensive.

After changing the tires and getting back on the road, Ma Weichang, who had drunk water laced with sleeping pills, quickly fell asleep in the back seat. That's why Miao Zhuang parked the car across the street and went to get the ledgers by himself after arriving at An Tong's warehouse.

Because Ma Weichang was fast asleep in the back seat at the time.

On the way back, Ma Weichang woke up and the first thing he asked was why they hadn't arrived yet.

Miao Zhuang handed him the account book, saying that he saw he was asleep and couldn't be woken up, so he took the account book back himself.

As a result, he was scolded by Ma Weichang again because he wanted more than just the ledgers; he also wanted to meet with the warehouse manager in person to reconcile the accounts.

What good is just having an account book?

But since they were almost at Yuanbei County, Ma Weichang said, "Forget it, we'll go again tomorrow."

Then, upon returning to Xipinggou, they learned that Ge Fangfang had disappeared.

In the following days, Ma Weichang didn't let him drive anymore, and he didn't know if Ma Weichang had gone to Antong again.

However, judging from Xiao Hai's investigation, it seems that after Ge Fangfang disappeared, Ma Weichang stopped checking the accounts and never went back.

"Officer... I've told you everything I know. I really only drugged my brother-in-law, I didn't do anything else. Can you... let me go?"

"Leave?" Yang Chuan sneered. "You've already given false testimony to the police, and you still think you can leave?"

"But I've told you everything I know, you guys... you're not keeping your word."

Zhou Yi was amused by him and asked, both laughing and crying, "No, who promised you that? You think you can just leave as soon as you say it?"

Miao Zhuang was stunned for a moment, his expression a little confused, as if he was asking himself: When did I say I could just leave after saying it?
His face contorted in pain as he said, "But I didn't kill anyone."

"Get this straight, not killing someone doesn't mean you haven't broken the law!" Zhou Yi was too lazy to explain the law to him; ignorance of the law was not an excuse for his acquittal.

"Let me ask you again, is it true that you witnessed Ma Weichang molesting Ge Fangfang while she was sleeping?"

Miao Zhuang shrank his neck and said, "No...no, that's what my sister taught me to say."

Zhou Yi took a deep breath. Miao Genhua was truly a two-faced woman.

During the interrogation, he kept insisting that he was doing everything to clear his daughter's name.

But in reality, the person who used her own daughter's innocence as a weapon of filth to stab Ma Weichang was herself!

So, did Ma Weichang actually commit any indecent acts against Ge Fangfang?

Miao Zhuang said with a long face, "I really don't know, but my brother-in-law does like my niece quite a bit."

"On the contrary, my sister and my mother don't really like Fangfang."

(End of this chapter)