Interrogation Room.
Zeng Ping was the lead interrogator, and Tian Li handled the notes.
"Name, gender, age, place of origin..."
"Yu Hefeng, male, fifty years old…"
"Officer, I've told you everything. I'm innocent!" Yu Hefeng pleaded.
After Yu Hefeng was arrested, the victim received another blackmail letter. This fact strongly suggested that Yu might not be the blackmailer.
Of course, it was still possible he had an accomplice. He couldn't be fully ruled out yet.
"Yu Hefeng, how's life in the holding cell?" Zeng Ping asked.
"It sucks," Yu grumbled.
"Well, maybe you shouldn't have been secretly filming people and extorting them. Then you wouldn't be stuck there."
"I admit to the filming… but I didn't blackmail anyone," Yu said, looking genuinely distressed.
"The video was found on your computer. If you didn't send it, who did?" Zeng Ping slammed the table, hoping to rattle him into revealing something.
"I really don't know!"
"Did you ever make a copy of the video from your computer?" Zeng Ping shifted tactics.
"No. I just watched it directly on the laptop," Yu replied confidently.
"Did anyone else use your computer?"
Yu thought for a moment. "Wait… now that you mention it, I did have it repaired recently."
Zeng Ping frowned. "Why didn't you say this during the first interrogation?"
"I was too shocked that time. I couldn't think straight," Yu sighed.
He had been arrested in front of his wife and daughter—for voyeurism. His mind had gone blank from the shame and panic.
"When did you get it repaired?"
"Over a month ago, I think."
"Where?"
"At Huijie Computer Repair on Weiming Road."
"What's the name of the technician?"
"I don't remember… but it's a small shop, only one guy works there."
"Listen up," Zeng Ping said. "Jail isn't a vacation. Think carefully. Is there anything else you're hiding?"
"Yes, sir."
With this new lead, Zeng Ping left the interrogation room, planning to bring in the repair technician.
Just outside, Lu Wen walked up.
"Captain Zeng, I was just looking for you."
"What's up?"
"I collected fingerprints from the computer. Besides Yu Hefeng's, I found another set."
"Did you run them through the database?"
"No matches," Lu Wen shook his head.
"Are the second set of prints all over the computer?"
"Keyboard and mouse—definitely someone who used the machine."
"Great. This is an important lead. Good work."
Now with a possible second suspect, Zeng Ping quickly assembled the team to prepare for an arrest.
Half an hour later – Weiming Road
The team met up near the repair shop.
Zhao Ming had even darker circles under his eyes than Han Bin—he had pulled an all-nighter surveilling Anyang Apartments, with no results.
"Captain Zeng, what's the rush this time?" Li Hui asked.
"This morning, I interrogated Yu Hefeng again. He gave us a new suspect. Captain Zheng is applying for a search and summons warrant now."
"Who's the suspect?"
"The guy who repaired Yu Hefeng's laptop. It's likely he saw the video," Zeng Ping explained.
"If that's true, then the technician's very suspicious."
"Captain Zeng, is the repair shop nearby?" Han Bin asked.
Zeng Ping pointed ahead. "Huijie Computer Repair—GPS says about 500 meters ahead."
"Want me and Han Bin to scout it out first?" Li Hui offered.
"Go ahead. Stall the suspect. Once we have the warrants, we'll go in."
"Understood."
Han Bin and Li Hui walked down the sidewalk.
"Binzi, what'd you do this morning?"
"Analyzed the blackmail photos and video."
"You spent all morning on that?" Li Hui asked, his tone a bit teasing.
"What are you trying to say?" Han Bin shot him a look.
"I… I mean, did you find anything?" Li Hui changed the subject.
"Of course I did."
"What was it?" Li Hui looked curious.
"I'll explain later. Let's finish this arrest first," Han Bin said, nodding toward the shop ahead.
"Huijie Computer Repair," Li Hui mumbled.
Han Bin walked right in. The store was small, just over 20 square meters. A man inside was wiping down a glass display case.
"Need something?" the man asked.
"Are you the owner?" Han Bin asked, sizing him up.
"Yeah."
Han Bin glanced at the counter. "How much is this mouse?"
"You want wireless or wired?"
"Which one's better?"
"Depends. For office work, wireless is more convenient. For gaming, wired is more stable."
"Then give me a wired one."
"I've got three models: this one's 60, this one's 89, and this one is 168."
"Wow, that's pricey," Li Hui chimed in.
"These are big-brand items. More expensive, yeah, but the cheap ones don't last."
"By the way, do you repair laptops?" Han Bin asked casually.
"Sure do. Desktop or laptop?"
"Laptop."
"No problem. Just bring it in."
"How much do you charge?" Han Bin kept the conversation going, waiting for backup.
A few more minutes passed.
The shop owner was getting impatient. "Are you guys buying the mouse or not? I already knocked it down from 168 to 140. Can't go any lower."
Tap tap tap… Right then, Zheng Kaixuan entered with Zeng Ping and two others.
The owner froze. "You guys buying or repairing?"
"We're police. We need your cooperation on a case," Zheng Kaixuan said bluntly.
"What kind of case?"
"Do you recognize this man?" Zheng showed him a photo of Yu Hefeng.
"Looks familiar… not 100% sure though."
"He came here about a month ago to get his laptop fixed."
"Oh yeah! Now I remember. White Apple laptop—I reinstalled the system."
"Glad you remember. You'll need to come with us."
"You can't just take people! You got a warrant?" The owner stepped back, only to realize Han Bin and Li Hui had silently moved behind him.
"Here's our badge and summons," Zeng Ping showed the documents.
The man looked shaken. "What's this about?"
"You're suspected of involvement in a blackmail case. We need you to come to the station," Zeng Ping explained.
"Blackmail? Me?! How could I be involved in that?"
"Also, we've got a search warrant," Zheng Kaixuan said, flashing it before ordering:
"Search the place!"
(End of Chapter)