"What direction are you talking about?"
Han Bin stood up, walked out of the surveillance room, and asked one of the staff,
"Do you have an underground garage here?"
"Yes, we do."
"Are there security cameras down there?"
"About a dozen or so."
"Damn..." Zhao Ming slapped his forehead. "Can the two of us really go through all of that?"
"Same thing as before — focus on key time frames," Han Bin sighed.
The lack of surveillance in this complex actually made things harder. If there had just been a camera at the unit door, they wouldn't need to check the footage from the complex entrance at all.
They'd been reviewing footage since just past 10 a.m., and it was already noon when Tian Li ordered takeout and called them to come back for lunch.
Building 5, Unit 2, Apartment 2704
A delicious smell of food wafted through the hallway. To avoid contaminating the crime scene, all the officers sat in the corridor to eat — some on the stair steps, some directly on the floor, with a simple boxed meal and bottled water.
Han Bin opened his lunch box and smiled,
"Hey, not bad today — duck leg, egg, greens, tofu, and rice."
Li Hui rolled his eyes.
"Bin, just admit this is S County's specialty lunch."
Han Bin took a swig of water.
"You need to stop eating instant noodles all the time."
"What's wrong with that? I rotate flavors daily: beef today, chicken-mushroom tomorrow, pickled cabbage the next, then spare rib the day after. Never repeat!"
Zheng Kaixuan chuckled.
"Nice taste, young man. Tian Li, take note — from now on, just get Li Hui a noodle budget."
"Yes, Captain Zheng."
Everyone burst out laughing.
After lunch, they cleaned up and gathered in the living room for a case briefing.
"Let's talk — did the morning investigation turn up anything?" Zheng Kaixuan asked.
"Captain, there's way too much footage to go through," Zhao Ming complained. "Bin and I can't finish it all."
"What's your take, Han Bin?"
"Focus on suspicious time windows, but we also need new leads. We should learn more about our suspect," Han Bin replied.
"Any suspicious people show up on camera?" Zheng asked again.
"At 8:55 a.m. yesterday, Xu Yan's husband took the elevator and left the complex. He was carrying a travel bag," Han Bin reported.
"How big was the bag?"
Zhao Ming didn't hesitate.
"Easily big enough to hold 200,000 yuan in cash."
Zheng Kaixuan nodded thoughtfully — that piece of info mattered.
"What about your interviews, Tian Li and Li Hui?"
"As you said, this place used to be part of Linfang Village. Most residents are locals and a bit wary of outsiders. We spoke to a few, but no one saw any strangers come or go," Li Hui replied.
"What about at night — any guards?"
"There's a guy, more like a doorman than a proper guard. Looked over 50. Probably dozes off late at night in the duty room. Didn't give us anything useful—"
Before he could finish, the bedroom door creaked open.
"Creak…"
Xu Yan stepped out.
"Officer Zheng, my husband's back."
"Where is he now?"
"He just entered the complex."
"Tell him to come up. We'll take his statement."
So far, no other suspects had surfaced — her husband was still the most likely.
Not long after, a man in his 30s walked in. Seeing all the officers around, he looked a bit out of place.
"Chang, you're back," Xu Yan stood up and greeted him.
"Yanzi, did they find the money?" the man asked.
"Not yet." Xu Yan gestured toward Zheng Kaixuan.
"This is Officer Zheng from the Criminal Investigation Unit."
"Hello, Officer Zheng," the man said and shook his hand.
Zheng studied him for a moment.
"Good timing. I wanted to ask you a few things."
"Like what?"
"You were the last one to leave the apartment yesterday, right?"
"Yes, that's right."
"Li Hui, take the statement," Zheng instructed.
"Yes, sir."
Li Hui turned on his body cam and took out a notepad.
"Name?"
"Song Jinchang."
"Occupation?"
"Sales."
"What time did you leave home yesterday?"
"Around 9 a.m."
"Where did you go?"
"Hanbo City."
"When you left, was the bag of cash still in the house?"
"Yes, definitely."
Li Hui rephrased,
"Did you touch the bag?"
"No."
"Do you have any suspects in mind?"
Song Jinchang shook his head.
"Isn't that your job?"
Zheng Kaixuan picked up on his tone.
"You sound upset."
"No, I'm fine."
"We saw in the footage that you left with a travel bag. What was in it?"
Song Jinchang shot back,
"What are you trying to say?"
"As you said — it's our job to find suspects," Li Hui replied.
"So you're suspecting me now?" Song suddenly stood up.
"We're not accusing you. Just a routine inquiry."
"This is my home. That was my money. Stealing from myself — what am I, crazy or stupid?" he snapped.
Xu Yan spoke up,
"Chang… if you did take the money, please bring it back. I'm begging you."
"You don't trust me either?" Song pointed to himself, hurt.
"Chang, I know… You weren't happy about borrowing money for my dad's surgery. But he's my father. I'm his daughter — I couldn't just watch him die," Xu Yan choked up.
"We don't have the money, Yanzi," Song said. "We just bought an apartment. Our kid's about to start middle school. There's tutoring today, extracurriculars tomorrow — all of it costs money."
"Money can be earned back. Family is more important," Xu Yan replied.
"Then why didn't your brother pay? He's the son — it's his job."
"He did! He gave over 10,000."
"And what's 10,000 gonna do?"
"My brother just bought a place too. His mortgage is over 3,000 a month. He's worse off than we are."
"Then it should be fair, shouldn't it?"
"My dad raised me. If he's sick, shouldn't I help?" Xu Yan said firmly.
"Your dad worked all his life. He didn't save anything? Where's his money?"
Xu Yan was about to speak… but held back.
"He gave it all to your brother, didn't he? That big 3-bedroom government-subsidized apartment didn't come cheap," Song scoffed.
"Xu Yan, wake up already."
Xu Yan stared at him.
"Chang, just tell me the truth — did you take the money?"
"Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you," Song snapped. Then he turned to the officers and gave a stiff bow.
"Officers… I was a little harsh just now. I didn't mean it toward you. Please understand."
Li Hui sighed.
"Yeah… life's tough for everyone."
(End of Chapter)