Chapter Sixty-Two: Who Is the Real Murderer?

Li Hong immediately nodded and stepped forward to subdue the chief. The chief shouted that someone was trying to frame him, and as he yelled, he reached for his gun. But in front of Li Hong, he had no chance to pull the trigger. With a single, swift move—like a lion pouncing on a rabbit—Li Hong pinned the chief down.

The chief fell to his knees, sobbing. "Which son of a bitch is framing me? Who is it?"

Old Lin asked, "Chief, yesterday, didn’t this dog follow you?"

The chief wailed, "The murderer is too twisted. I was afraid he’d come after me, so I tied the police dog up in my yard to deter the criminal. But in the middle of the night, someone let the dog loose. I looked for ages and couldn’t find it..."

I said, "The wolfdog I saw yesterday must have been this police dog. When the killer came to dump the body, the dog followed. To mislead us, the killer deliberately threw the dog into the river, making it look like the dog jumped in."

"And early this morning, where did you drive the police car?"

The chief hurried to explain, "I went to this very river. Someone called in, reporting that their life was in danger. So I drove here, but found nothing. I swear it wasn’t me—someone is framing me on purpose!"

Old Lin said, "No one can deny the evidence. Of course, just this isn’t enough to convict you. We’ll have to wait for the county hospital’s test results on the lipstick mark on the cigarette butt!"

The chief wept so hard he was shaking with fear. I told Li Hong to escort him back to the detention center and keep him under watch around the clock.

Xiao Li lit a cigarette, sighing gloomily, "I don’t think our chief could do this. He spoils his child, but he wouldn’t go so far as to kill..."

Old Lin asked, "Then do you suspect Chief Huang’s son, Huang Miaomiao?"

Xiao Li shook his head vigorously, "No, no, please don’t say that, Mr. Lin. I just... when I saw Lai San’er’s body, I remembered something. But I’m not sure it’s related. Forget it, I’d better not say."

Old Lin’s expression turned grave. "Xiao Li, withholding information has consequences."

Xiao Li sighed, "It’s not that I don’t want to say, Mr. Lin, but it’s really not my place. If I’m wrong, and they come after me, I’ll never recover. Besides, it’s just my own speculation. If I say it, it might cloud your judgment. Please don’t force me."

Old Lin tried to reassure him, "No matter how big the matter, I’ll take responsibility. And we’ll keep your secret."

Only then did Xiao Li breathe easier. "It’s just a wild guess, you’ll have to investigate further. Yesterday, Lai San’er kept saying he was thirsty. We all disliked him, so none of us gave him any water. But in the end he drank some—guess who gave it to him?"

"Huang Miaomiao?" Old Lin guessed. After all, apart from the police, only Huang Miaomiao was present.

Xiao Li nodded, "Yes. Huang Miaomiao gave him the water. But she did it right under our noses, and we all drank from that same bottle. None of us were poisoned, so I think it’s unlikely she did it."

Old Lin said, "Poison doesn’t have to be in the water; it could be on the cup."

Xiao Li fell silent for a long time before finally muttering, "I didn’t say a thing just now."

When the body was pulled from the water, it was indeed a young girl. She looked no older than thirteen or fourteen. Having been submerged for so long, her body was badly swollen, her face bloated as well, and there was even the mark of a dog’s tooth.

It seemed the police dog had tried to drag the body out, but failed.

Seeing the girl's body, Old Lin was visibly agitated. He told us to search the scene for clues, then, holding his forehead, turned and got into the car.

Staring at the girl’s body, Xiao Li, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke. "I... I think I know her."

I quickly asked, "Who is she?"

"Xiang’er," Xiao Li replied. "She recently came to the station with Huang Miaomiao. I’ve seen her."

I was taken aback. "So Huang Miaomiao was seeing Xiang’er? The last time Huang Miaomiao fought with Wang Dalong over a girl, was it her?"

Xiao Li said nothing, only looked at us with grief. "Do you really suspect Chief Huang and his son?"

I didn’t answer. It was evident—all the evidence pointed to Chief Huang. We couldn’t help but suspect him.

Seeing our silence, Xiao Li said urgently, "I swear on my life, Chief Huang would never do such a thing!"

Tang Jingjing retorted coldly, "To be honest, we don’t believe he could either. But we only trust evidence—do you understand evidence?"

Xiao Li said nothing, just took two steps back and said he needed a break. He was about to crouch down.

I stepped forward quickly, grabbing Xiao Li by the arm and pulling him up. Behind him, there was a spent cigarette butt lying quietly on the ground.

Luckily, I had sharp eyes—otherwise, Xiao Li would have destroyed a crucial piece of evidence!

Tang Jingjing glared furiously at Xiao Li. He looked embarrassed and stammered, "I really didn’t see it, I swear."

I was certain Xiao Li would shield Chief Huang; if he saw evidence, he’d probably destroy it rather than show us. I said, "Xiao Li, wait in the car."

Xiao Li said nothing, just smoked in silence and walked to the car.

Tang Jingjing shook her head, half laughing, half exasperated. "Do you think he’s been brainwashed? What kind of benefits did the chief give him to make him so loyal?"

I replied that people are made of flesh and blood—no one wants to believe their boss is a murderer.

Tang Jingjing scoffed. Before Chief Wang arrived, the previous chief had treated her terribly, always leering at her. She used to wish he’d kill someone so she could interrogate him herself.

What a twisted way of thinking.

We collected more footprints at the scene. Tang Jingjing, sharp-eyed as ever, recognized them at once. "Aren’t these the chief’s dress shoes? The sole is clearly from the Golden Monkey brand."

I photographed the prints, then called the station to have the body taken back.

After comparing the footprints, it was confirmed—they belonged to the chief. The fact that Huang Miaomiao gave water to Lai San’er was also corroborated by others. Just then, the county hospital sent over the test results: the lipstick mark on the cigarette butt matched the chief’s.

The evidence was overwhelming. The case seemed all but closed.

Old Lin called a brief meeting, gathering all the officers from the station. He concisely explained the evidence, then asked if anyone had anything to say.

No one spoke, except Xiao Li, who suggested, "Shouldn’t we double-check?"

Old Lin agreed they should. When no one else spoke, he dismissed everyone except the members of the major crimes unit.

Li Hong turned to Old Lin. "Sir, I can’t shake off this feeling."

Old Lin smiled. "Tell me."

"I don’t think the chief did it. He’s being framed," Li Hong said.

Old Lin asked, "What makes you say that?"

"If the chief really wanted to kill someone, he wouldn’t leave such obvious evidence. The killer is cunning, deliberately pointing everything at the chief. But the clues are too obvious—it’s almost clumsy..."

That was exactly my suspicion as well.

Old Lin looked at Tang Jingjing. "Jingjing, what do you think?"

She replied firmly, "I’m sure the chief isn’t the murderer."

Old Lin didn’t press further. He turned to me. "What about you, Xiaoyang?"

"I’m sure of it too," I replied.

Old Lin nodded. "I think so as well."

"Then who is the real killer?" I asked.

Old Lin pointed at Tang Jingjing. "I’m afraid only she knows."