Case 021

"Captain Zheng, what brings you here?" Li Hui asked in surprise.

"A homicide has occurred—how could I possibly sit still at the station?" Zheng Kaixuan replied.

"With you here overseeing things, I feel much more at ease," Zeng Ping said.

Zheng Kaixuan nodded, his expression turning serious. "Han Bin is right. Based on my years of experience, the victim was most likely murdered."

"Jianbin, you died so terribly..." The woman on the sofa, upon hearing her husband had been killed, rushed forward, crying out, "You've left us alone—how are we supposed to go on?"

"Mrs. Li, please restrain your grief. If your husband has any awareness in the afterlife, he surely wouldn’t want to see you so heartbroken," Tian Li said gently.

Li Yu continued to sob.

"Take Mrs. Li aside; don’t disturb the crime scene," Zeng Ping instructed.

Zheng Kaixuan knelt down to examine the body. "The deceased, Xing Jianbin, appears to have been strangled with a rope."

"If this is indeed a homicide, then it's up to us to investigate."

"I checked earlier—there were no signs of a forced entry. The suspect likely knew the victim," Zeng Ping remarked.

"To disguise the murder as a suicide, it's highly probable the perpetrator was someone familiar," Zheng Kaixuan added.

Once Li Yu had calmed, Han Bin and Tian Li took charge of recording her statement.

"Name?" Han Bin asked.

"Li Yu."

"What was your relationship to the deceased?"

"We were married."

"How was your marriage?"

"It was alright. We argued occasionally," Li Yu replied.

"Did your husband, Xing Jianbin, act unusually yesterday?"

"No, it was like any other day. We had dinner, I went to the night shift, and he washed the dishes," Li Yu said.

"What time did you leave home?" Han Bin continued.

"Eight o'clock in the evening."

"Did he mention meeting anyone?" Tian Li inquired.

"No."

"What was your husband's occupation?" Han Bin asked.

"He didn’t have a regular job, just some small business here and there," Li Yu answered, frowning.

Han Bin stroked his chin. When people are nervous or under pressure, they instinctively furrow their brows. Li Yu repeated his question, showing signs of lying.

"I'll ask again. Answer honestly: What kind of business did your husband do?" Han Bin pressed.

Li Yu glanced to the right. "He drove a truck."

Looking left is recalling; looking right is fabricating. Han Bin grunted, "Li Hui, check Xing Jianbin—see if he has a criminal record."

"No… don't check," Li Yu blurted, panic in her voice. "He does have a record. He used to be involved in pyramid schemes."

"Why did you lie?" Han Bin scolded.

"I just thought it had nothing to do with the case," Li Yu replied.

"That's not your decision to make. When questioned, you must answer truthfully. Understood?"

"Understood."

"Did your husband have any enemies?"

"Yes."

"Names?"

"I can't say for sure. After being released from prison, many people from the pyramid scheme came to cause trouble. There were too many," Li Yu explained.

"When you entered, did you touch anything? What was the scene like?" Han Bin asked.

"The front door was closed but not locked. The inner door was locked. When I opened it, I saw..." Li Yu choked up, pausing briefly. "Jianbin had hanged himself."

"I didn't dare touch him, I called the police immediately."

"Was there anything else missing in the house?" Han Bin continued.

"Yes—cash we hid in the bedroom was stolen."

"How much?"

"Two hundred thousand US dollars and over three hundred thousand yuan."

"Why did you keep so much money at home!" Tian Li exclaimed.

Two hundred thousand US dollars is about 1.04 million yuan, plus over three hundred thousand, totaling more than 1.7 million yuan.

"He was afraid of debt collectors, didn't dare deposit it in the bank, so we kept it at home," Li Yu explained.

"Any other clues?"

"No."

"If you think of anything, contact our Criminal Investigation Unit."

...

After gathering information and examining the scene, Zheng Kaixuan assembled everyone in the courtyard to analyze the case.

"Everyone knows the situation now. Has anyone discovered other clues?" Zheng Kaixuan asked.

No one responded.

"Glasses, did your technical team find anything?" Zheng Kaixuan asked.

"We found only the victim’s, Li Yu’s, and a child’s fingerprints at the scene. The child’s prints should be Li Yu’s son. No suspicious fingerprints were discovered," Lu Wen replied.

"Anything else?"

"I checked—the body shows no obvious signs of struggle, but we’ll need the forensic report for specifics," Lu Wen said.

At that moment, the scent of disinfectant wafted in.

Zheng Kaixuan chuckled, "Speak of the devil, and here she comes."

Soon after, a tall, slender woman with short hair entered, carrying a case and wearing white gloves—it was the bureau’s forensic doctor, Wu Xia, with her assistant, a young man named Qiao Ziming, following behind.

"Dr. Wu, you finally made it," Zeng Ping greeted.

"Sorry—the body at Team One just got handled," Wu Xia replied.

"Thank you for your hard work."

"It’s my duty," Wu Xia nodded, then entered the house.

After inspecting, Wu Xia called out, "Homicide. He was strangled from behind."

"Time of death?"

"At least nine hours ago."

"Can you identify the murder weapon?" Zheng Kaixuan asked.

"I’ll provide a detailed report after the autopsy at the station," Wu Xia said impatiently.

Zheng Kaixuan shrugged and turned to the second team. "Alright, let’s continue."

"Captain Zheng, two hundred thousand dollars and three hundred thousand yuan is no small sum. I think the suspect likely used a vehicle—we could trace them by car," Han Bin suggested.

"This urban village isn’t like the city; there’s much less surveillance," Li Hui noted.

"We could interview residents—maybe someone saw something," Tian Li proposed.

"I believe we should investigate the murder method. The killer disguised the death as a hanging—not the most sophisticated, but it was planned. He may have a criminal record," Zeng Ping added.

"Our clues are still too few. Let’s split up and collect information—see if anyone stands out as a suspect," Zheng Kaixuan said, then turned to Zeng Ping. "Old Zeng, assign the tasks."

"Captain Zheng, with you here, do I really need to?" Zeng Ping joked.

Zheng Kaixuan waved him off, "Enough banter, give the orders."

"Zhao Ming, check the area for surveillance footage of suspicious vehicles. Don’t overlook private cameras," Zeng Ping instructed.

"Tian Li, pull Xing Jianbin’s file at the station. Talk to officers who handled pyramid scheme cases—see if any of those people held a grudge against him."

"Han Bin, Li Hui, interview local residents. Find out if anyone saw suspicious vehicles or individuals between eight and twelve last night."

"Understood," they all replied.