"Mr. Jiang? Yeah, I know him, but it’s been a while since I’ve seen him co fishing. He used to be here every day." The young man gave Wang Lan a brilliant smile.
"Oh? Are you familiar with him?"
"Not really! We’ve chatted a few tis while fishing together. Seems like he’s a chef. Ah, I’ve got a bite..."
The young man suddenly stood up and rapidly reeled in his rod. Wang Lan stepped back and watched. Suddenly, the young man let out a surprised yelp.
"Sothing’s not right. It’s so heavy, but there’s no movent... Could it be snagged on a branch?" He quickly reeled in the line again, and soon sothing resembling a hemp sack was pulled out of the water.
"Damn, what the hell is this?"
The commotion caught the attention of the surrounding anglers, and a few ran over.
"Liu, hold on a second... This doesn’t look right."
"It looks a bit like a Water Ghost," an angler in his thirties said gravely.
Water Ghost is a term used among fishing enthusiasts for murder victims whose bodies are dumped into a lake. Such incidents aren’t uncommon in the fishing community. Especially since fishing has beco more popular recently, anglers can be found on every river. In the past, it was difficult to find bodies dumped in lakes. However, with anglers now present, many victims have been fished out by enthusiasts.
"I don’t think so. While the sack is large, its shape doesn’t resemble a Water Ghost."
"Should we pull it up? If it’s not a Water Ghost, fine. But if it is, and we don’t pull it out and call the police, the Water Ghost’s resentnt will fixate on us, and we’ll be in for bad luck."
"Let’s pull it up," an older man nearby said. "Whatever it is, let’s get it out first and then see."
Wang Lan watched as several anglers clumsily ca forward to help, hauling the sack up from the riverbank. The mouth of the sack was tied with a very professional knot. As they lifted it, water gushed out, and oil slicks floated on the surface, illuminated by a flashlight.
Liu took out a karambit and cut the knot. Prying the sack open, he shone his flashlight inside. Liu imdiately scread, throwing the flashlight away and collapsing to the ground.
"What’s wrong?"
"Liu, is it really a Water Ghost?"
"Chopped to pieces... UGH—"
"Quick, call the police!"
Wang Lan quickly stepped forward, pulled open the mouth of the sack, and took just one glance before his expression changed. He let go of the sack, stepped back, and took out his phone to dial Hu Qing’s number.
After about fifteen minutes, the wail of police sirens approached.
Hu Qing, accompanied by several officers, strode in. The officers imdiately moved to disperse the crowd.
"Lanzi, how did you end up finding a body here while tracking the killer?"
"It was a coincidence. I followed the trail all the way to the reservoir; the killer likely escaped into the water. With the reservoir being so large, he could have co ashore anywhere. The chances of continuing the trail are slim. I just happened to see these anglers fish up a sack, so I called you. To chop soone up like that before dumping them in the lake... this killer is remarkably composed."
"Alright, I’ll let my n handle things here. I need to give so instructions."
"Yeah."
The case of the dismbered body fished from the lake was horrifying. However, it didn’t seem closely related to Wang Lan’s current investigation; he had rely stumbled upon it by chance. After Hu Qing returned, Wang Lan joined him to the side.
"Did you find any new clues?"
"There are likely two killers; Cha Shengming is one. We just tested the sen found in the two victims, and it matches two individuals. One is Cha Shengming; the other is unknown but is probably a mber of the Demon Cult."
"So Cha Shengming had a very specific target. It wasn’t a coincidence that he killed that family of four."
"Yes. But from what I’ve checked, that family of four seems to have no connection with Cha Shengming or the Demon Cult. The elderly couple owned a supermarket. The woman was married to a local private entrepreneur, and the girl was a freshman at Suzhou University..."
DING-A-LING—
The wail of police sirens sounded again as another police car arrived.
Several officers got out, among them Hu Qing’s wife, Qin Xiaoling. Seeing Hu Qing and Wang Lan, Qin Xiaoling hurried over.
"What are you two doing here? We just received a report about a dismbered body found here and ca over."
"And you?" Hu Qing asked. "Don’t you work an office job? What are you doing out here too?"
"You reassigned the evidence departnt personnel, and the station was short-staffed, so I got roped into helping out. What, is this case related to your investigation?"
"The dismbered body was a coincidence, probably unrelated," Hu Qing replied with a smile.
"Oh, right!" Qin Xiaoling suddenly said seriously. "The information you sent back earlier was to identify the victims of that family annihilation case, correct?"
"Yes. Did you find anything?"
"I just checked the information. One of the victims had recently reported a case. It’s the woman I ntioned when we had lunch yesterday—the one who suspected her husband wasn’t her actual husband."
Instantly, Wang Lan’s and Hu Qing’s expressions changed.
There couldn’t be such a coincidence in the world! Previously, it was unclear why this family had t such a grueso end. But if this report was connected, then everything beca clear.
Wang Lan and Hu Qing hurried back to their car. Hu Qing grabbed his phone and dialed a number.
"Investigate Zhu ng’s husband’s identity. Where is he now?"
"Zhu ng’s husband is Huo Sijian. He’s a private entrepreneur in Suzhou City and owns three factories, primarily producing plastic products and dical equipnt. Six hours ago, Huo Sijian checked into the Grand Hyatt Hotel."
"Send the coordinates."
"Understood."
Hu Qing drove to the Grand Hyatt Hotel. As he entered the main entrance, a staff mber quickly ca to greet him.
Hu Qing took out his ID. "Police investigation. Please cooperate. Check the guest information for room 308 for ."
"Of course!" The staff mber quickly accessed the computer system. "The guest in room 308 is Huo Sijian."
"Open the door for ."
Led by the hotel employee, Wang Lan and Hu Qing reached the door of room 308. The employee swiped the card and opened it. Hu Qing instantly charged into the room, flicking on the lights.
"AAAH—"
Two screams erupted. On the large bed, four naked people—one man and three won—huddled together under the covers, shrieking. One was Huo Sijian, and the other three were heavily made-up won.
Hu Qing looked at the panicked Huo Sijian with a cold smile. "Quite the party animal, aren’t you?"
"Who are you? What do you want? Is this a kidnapping? I warn you, don’t try anything funny! I’ve already pressed the ergency alert button; the police will be here soon..."
Hu Qing flashed his badge in Huo Sijian’s face. "I am the police. All of you, get dressed and co with !"
After a few minutes, the four people, heads lowered, walked out of the room dressed. The three won trembled, fear etched on their faces, while Huo Sijian appeared relatively calm. The four were taken to the van Hu Qing had driven. Fortunately, he’d brought the van; otherwise, it wouldn’t have held them all.
Wang Lan and Hu Qing sat opposite Huo Sijian, whose eyes kept darting between their faces.
"I know you. You’re Hu Qing, the deputy chief of the Suzhou City Police," Huo Sijian said first.
"We’ve never t, have we? How do you recognize ?" Hu Qing asked with a slight laugh.
"A young, powerful leader like yourself? Of course, I’d pay attention. Chief Hu, what have I done to warrant you arresting personally? For my... indiscretions? If it’s consensual, that’s not illegal, is it? Even if it were soliciting prostitution, it wouldn’t be worth your personal intervention, would it?"
"I don’t have the ti to bother with trivialities like your love life. Your wife is Zhu ng?"
"Yes, that’s her. Did my wife report for sothing? We’re in the middle of a divorce. She wouldn’t report for tax evasion, would she?"
"Did you evade taxes?"
"No. My company has detailed financial records. You’re welco to check."
"Relax. Your wife didn’t report you for anything. Sothing happened to your wife."
"She killed herself? Then you don’t need to drag in like this, do you? Has the police departnt beco so arbitrary these days, arresting people whenever they please?"
"Your wife’s entire family was murdered—her parents and her younger sister. Didn’t you know?"
The color drained from Huo Sijian’s face. His initial bewildernt turned to shock, then disbelief...
"Chief Hu, you can’t be serious."
"Do you think I’m joking?"
"How could this... How... Wait, you don’t think I hired soone to kill them, do you?" Huo Sijian suddenly looked up, his face filled with terror as he stared at Hu Qing.
"Even if my wife and I divorce and split our assets, I’d still have several hundred million. Would I do sothing like that for money? Hundreds of millions are just numbers to . I wouldn’t hire a killer over numbers; it’s not worth it."
Wang Lan was scrolling through his phone. He suddenly paused, looked up at Huo Sijian, then back down at his phone.
"Is Jinming Plastics one of your companies?"
"Yes, why?"
"Do you know an employee at your company nad Huang Shan?" Wang Lan suddenly asked.
"I don’t know. I own three companies with thousands of employees. How could I possibly know every single one? What about this Huang Shan?"
"Nothing important. We’re looking for him. He used to work for Jinming Plastics, so I thought I’d ask."
The car drove smoothly, with occasional slight bumps. Sobs could be heard from inside from ti to ti. It was the three won, crying secretly. So now they’re crying. What were they doing before?
Hu Qing’s phone rang. It was Qin Xiaoling.
"Hello, what’s up?"
"Honey, the DNA test results for the corpse fished from the river are out. And it’s a huge shock—it’s Huo Sijian, Zhu ng’s husband! It seems Zhu ng’s suspicion was true: her husband really wasn’t her husband."
Though the voice on the phone wasn’t loud, it was exceptionally clear in the quiet car. Instantly, Wang Lan’s eyes fixed on Huo Sijian, who visibly flinched.
"You found that body..." Huo Sijian’s voice, hoarse and dry, sounded exceptionally eerie in the deathly silent car.
"Looks like we’ve accidentally caught a big one," Wang Lan said with a cold laugh.
Suddenly, black sli oozed from Huo Sijian’s body, instantly enveloping him and forming a dark, thin film. At this sight, the three won beside him turned deathly pale with fright.
BANG—
The roof of the car was instantly blasted open, and the black sli transford into a streak of black light, shooting into the sky.
"Trying to run now? Too late!"
Wang Lan’s figure materialized on the car roof, his palm slamming down hard.
BANG—
The black sli was smashed back into the car by Wang Lan’s palm.
Reviews
All reviews (0)