Animal Detective

Chapter 133 Growing Suspicion

I've been with the Criminal Investigation Division for a few months now, not too long, not too short.

For the first time, Shen Xin experienced what it felt like to be so busy that he was practically running around in circles.

During the day, he ran around everywhere, verifying various social facts about Wang Lei and Zhang Qingpeng.

I also have to take care of three dogs in my spare time.

Let's not even talk about the training.

Shen Xin had bought the anti-bite suit some time ago, but hadn't had a chance to start training yet.

They also completely neglected DouDou's drug and explosives detection training.

The tabby cat was left unattended and slacked off every day, yet it somehow gained a lot of weight.

We also have to worry about their food and drink.

Wang Xihai even urged him to film a video.

Not only was he urging, but the fans were also urging. DouDou's videos had been inactive for more than ten days. Some fans even went to the police station entrance to ask if DouDou had heroically sacrificed himself.

And that's three more at home.

Da Mei, the bully, and Da Mei's damn son, always running around and jumping around. Every time I come home and open the door, it's like opening a blind box.

There's also Xiao Hong's case.

After going through all the files and finding nothing, Sun Zhao and Chen Chao met and decided to expand their search and push the timeline back two years.

Perhaps because the case was reopened, Gao Liyun became more frequent at the branch office, coming to inquire about the progress every few days.

And here she is again, this weekend.

"Sorry, there's no news yet." These were Sun Zhao's exact words.

The details of the investigation certainly cannot be disclosed to the public; she came several times, and that was the same response she received each time.

She also brought her son along today.

His name is Xiao Haitao.

He has a chubby face and his eyebrows and eyes are somewhat similar to Xiao Hong's.

When Gao Liyun entered Sun Zhao's office to speak, he sat at the desk next to Shen Xin and waited.

He's always picking his nose or fiddling with things on the table; he's a restless little guy.

Perhaps noticing that Shen Xin was watching him, he waved to Shen Xin.

"What's wrong?" Shen Xin sat down next to him.

Xiao Haitao turned his head and glanced at the tightly closed office door, then lowered his voice and said, "Uncle, have you not been able to find the murderer?"

Shen Xin's expression changed slightly. Just as he was about to say, "Don't worry, we will definitely find the murderer," Xiao Haitao continued, "If we really can't find him, then can we stop looking?"

Shen Xin was stunned.

After a long while, Shen Xin finally came to his senses and asked him what he meant.

"It's so annoying." Xiao Haitao pulled out the thorns from the cactus on Zhao Tianxing's table one by one, and said, "My mom keeps coming over to ask you guys about it, and after you go back home, she's always angry. It's so annoying."

To be honest, Shen Xin wasn't very good at playing with kids and didn't understand what these young children were thinking.

After thinking for a moment, Shen Xin countered with, "Don't you miss your father?"

Xiao Haitao shook his head: "I've never seen him before."

Shen Xin suddenly realized.

That's true. When Xiao Hong died, Xiao Haitao was only a few months old and had no memory of his father.

Xiao Haitao continued, "The main problem is that my mom keeps saying it, making everyone know that my dad was murdered. I used to tell people that my dad died of illness, but now people ask me how my dad was murdered, whether it was like on TV."

"How should I know? Anyway, it's driving me crazy."

"Officer, if you can't find him, then don't bother looking anymore. He's already dead anyway."

Shen Xin rubbed his head, feeling a sudden tightness in her chest.

Shen Xin didn't think the child was cold-blooded or heartless.

He had no memory of Xiao Hong.

From childhood to adulthood, everything he knew about Xiao Hong came from Gao Liyun.

I know my father was murdered and the killer has never been found.

Gao Liyun wanted justice and always said that at least her son should know how his father died.

But perhaps, six-year-old Xiao Haitao doesn't want to know.

It's possible that in his heart, he would rather his father had just died of illness, so that no children would keep asking him how his father was killed.

Every time Gao Liyun came to the police station for questioning, she was actually reminding him repeatedly that he had a father who had been murdered.

These things may have become a burden for him.

Shen Xin really wanted to ask him if he missed Xiao Hong.

But he swallowed the words back.

What good would it do to ask?

In his heart, he already lacked paternal love, which then became a scar that was repeatedly reopened.

"Don't worry, I have a feeling your father's case will be solved soon, then everything will be fine," Shen Xin said with a smile.

Xiao Haitao made a face at Shen Xin, then lay on the table and continued pulling out the thorns from the cactus.

Gao Liyun remained the same as always, only asking about the situation without causing a scene, then bowing to express her gratitude before leaving.

Sun Zhao saw the mother and son off to the door. After they were out of sight, he sighed and suddenly said, "Xiao Shen, as you said, let's issue another reward. I'll discuss it with Director Lü in a bit and see if we can increase the reward amount a little more."

Shen Xin nodded quickly. The branch office had limited manpower, and even if they asked the local police stations for help, it wouldn't work; they were too busy.

The archives yielded no useful clues, and investigations and visits also yielded no results.

In Shen Xin's view, the best way to conduct large-scale screening is to offer a reward.

Online bounties, in particular, have a wide-ranging impact.

He led Shen Xin back, asking as they walked, "Hey you, the one who died of rabies, how's your investigation going? Can you confirm it was homicide? If there's no clear evidence, don't keep pressing him."

“Especially you, you need to get your job done.”

He pointed at Shen Xin.

“Captain Sun, my job is to solve cases,” Shen Xin retorted.

Sun Zhao said, "I didn't say I wouldn't let you solve the case. You're already following Xiao Hong's case, aren't you? I was talking about training the dogs. If you train those three dogs, they'll be just as useful as solving the case."

Shen Xin smiled wryly and said, "They're training them, and they're definitely faster than the police dog training base."

"Hurry up, Old Jiang was urging me yesterday," Sun Zhao added before going upstairs to find Lü Youwei.

come back to the office.

Just then, Ding Yuwei returned.

She pulled over a whiteboard next to her, which was covered with dates and timelines.

Chen Chao's thoughts.

An investigation was conducted into Wang Lei's social connections.

If he was murdered under a pretext, then there must have been a motive, which would be one of three things: money, affection, or revenge.

Regarding the money, I checked.

He runs his own media business, is responsible for his own profits and losses, and his bank statements are in perfect order.

I didn't borrow money from anyone, nor did I have any property disputes with anyone.

The situation has been investigated.

I'm still single; the last time I had a girlfriend was two years ago.

He also met his parents. They were from Baidian Town, Xinbei District, ordinary farmers in the countryside, honest and simple, with no complicated social connections.

Therefore, the "hatred" factor can also be ruled out.

The second point is to investigate the cause of death.

Chen Chao's idea was to check the timeline.

He was bitten by a dog and consulted Dr. Qian, who believed that since the wound was on his chin, close to his brain, the incubation period should be very short, probably within two weeks.

Then we can work backwards to find the itinerary from October 10th to October 6th.

Find out exactly where Wang Lei went and what he did each day.

If another sick dog is found in the same location, and its movements overlap, then the cause of death can be determined.

We got his phone and even checked his phone signal location. Basically, we've figured out his movements over the past few days.

"I got a foot massage, took a taxi to Yulanxuan, ordered the 689 yuan set meal, and paid in cash."

Ding Yuwei quickly drank some water and filled in the last gap in the timeline for October 8th, from 7 pm to 9 pm.

Shen Xin stepped forward and scanned the entire whiteboard.

With this point clarified, all travel itineraries from the 6th to the 10th have now been fully investigated.

"Is the technician alright?" Shen Xin asked.

Ding Yuwei blushed slightly and said, "It's okay, she was on duty when we went, but I still suggest she get a rabies vaccine."

Shen Xin examined the entire whiteboard.

For example, the itinerary for this last day that was added later.

The alarm was set for 7 a.m., but it was almost 10 a.m. before the community's surveillance cameras captured Wang Lei coming downstairs in his pajamas to have breakfast at his usual breakfast stall outside the community.

We ate a bowl of mixed wontons and a small steamed bun.

Then I went to a nearby supermarket to buy snacks, and got home around 11 o'clock. I edited videos and browsed the web.

The browser's records can prove this.

I ordered takeout at 1:30 pm.

Around 2 PM, I went downstairs to film a video; the elderly people in the neighborhood can attest to that.

I filmed for two hours and then went home.

Then we went out to eat before six o'clock, and had stir-fried dishes.

After finishing their meal, just as Ding Yuwei had predicted, they went to wash their feet.

I didn't get home until after 9 PM, and I did a live stream that evening; it's in my account history.

The live stream lasted until after 11 p.m., and they even ordered spicy hot pot for a late-night snack.

The other days were similar; he was a typical stay-at-home guy with a fairly regular lifestyle, and there were no unusual occurrences, plus he had the opportunity to come into contact with the sick dog.

"That's strange. Could it have been bitten even earlier?"

Shen Xin frowned.

The question is no longer whether there is a possibility of homicide; rather, the more we investigate, the more we discover that Wang Lei had no possibility of coming into contact with the sick dog.

But he died of rabies.

Compared to the suspicious points surrounding Zhang Qingpeng, this suspicious point is growing increasingly larger.

(End of this chapter)