novelraw Chapter 469 - 279: Unexpected Situation
Chapter 469 - 279: Unexpected Situation
"Captain Li, your guidance team is not only excellent but also so diligent. You truly are a model for us at the grassroots level to learn from."
"Captain Jiang, you’re too kind. Come in, have a seat, and enjoy a cup of tea."
"Sure."
It was the first time the two captains, Jiang Tuo and Li Xiang, of the task force and the guidance team, had a one-on-one conversation. Jiang Tuo seized this opportunity and did not hurry back; instead, he followed Li Xiang to the office.
It was late in the evening, and the temperature was already low, dropping even further at night.
Even with the air conditioning on in the office, it still felt chilly to the bones.
A hot cup of tea at this time was truly heartwarming.
As the two of them drank tea and chatted casually, their conversation gradually shifted to the August 12 kidnapping case.
"Captain Jiang, there are still some parts of this case I’m not quite clear about. Shen Youlin’s lover, Li Xiaofang, remains a significant suspect in this case. In Fuhui, Shen Youlin was not familiar with the area, making the probability of him being kidnapped quite low. Generally, in kidnapping cases, the suspects must have a thorough understanding of the victim’s family situation and know he’s wealthy before they would kidnap him."
"Initially, our task force thought the same, and we listed Shen Youlin’s lover, Li Xiaofang, and his business partner in Fuhui, Du Hua, as suspects, conducting a covert investigation into them. As you mentioned, in kidnapping cases, the suspects usually resort to kidnapping for ransom out of financial desperation.
We investigated all of Li Xiaofang’s bank transactions and phone records during that period and found nothing suspicious. She also didn’t have the time to commit the crime, which ruled her out as a suspect.
Then there’s Du Hua. At first, we wondered if he had financial issues in his business dealings, which might have led him astray. However, our investigation revealed everything was normal with his business operations. He had no bad habits, no financial pressures, and thus no need to take desperate measures. Moreover, he had no motive for the crime during that period, so we also excluded him as a suspect.
After going in circles, we realized we might have fallen into a trap by treating this as a kidnapping case. The suspect may have deliberately misled the police. You see, a normal kidnapper would demand ransom; they wouldn’t just send a text with a foreign bank account number and be done with it, showing no real intention of collecting the ransom. The killer likely just wanted the money in that bank account."
On the night of August 6, after Shen Youlin had dinner with Li Xiaofang, and she left for her night shift, Shen Youlin disappeared. It wasn’t until 1 a.m. on August 9 that a mysterious woman withdrew the money from the card in batches at an ATM in Lantian, because the ATM had a withdrawal limit, the withdrawals continued for four days.
Only after they finished taking out the money did they send Sheng Yehong a ransom demand text, by which time it’s likely Shen Youlin was already dead.
Listening to Jiang Tuo’s analysis, Li Xiang reviewed all the clues in his mind and nodded: "So you’re suggesting this was a robbery-homicide disguised as a kidnapping?"
The investigative directions for a kidnapping and a robbery-homicide are completely different. If the classification of the case was mistaken from the start, the investigation would be completely off track.
"It’s a possibility we can’t rule out. In fact, the strangeness of this case isn’t limited to just kidnapping and robbery-homicide; there’s also the possibility of it being a murder case."
"A murder case?"
Jiang Tuo had been pursuing this case for three years. He was intimately familiar with it, inside and out. They had speculated on all sorts of possibilities.
"That’s right. Based on our analysis of the case, after Shen Youlin’s death, the one who benefits is Sheng Yehong. We also can’t rule out the possibility that Sheng Yehong, upon discovering her husband had a lover in Fuhui, developed a desire for revenge, hired a killer, and afterward could reasonably inherit her husband’s estate."
Before Li Xiang could speak, Jiang Tuo continued: "We then investigated Sheng Yehong, monitored all her bank transactions, and tracked every penny. We found no traces of her hiring a killer, so the trail went cold. Our task force got divided into three factions because of this. Some favored continuing the investigation as a kidnapping case, others supported the robbery-homicide motive, and some believed Sheng Yehong had a strong motive for murder because she was evasive when investigators asked if she knew her husband had a lover, raising suspicions."
After talking with Jiang Tuo for three hours, Li Xiang gained a more comprehensive grasp of the case’s details.
Undoubtedly, the case’s complexity exceeded Li Xiang’s expectations. To date, the actual motive behind the crime remains unclear, explaining why the case is still unsolved.
Three main lines of investigation, and none have led to a breakthrough.
"Captain Jiang, you should head home and rest now, or your wife will start urging you."
Li Xiang looked at the time; it was already half past midnight, so he decided not to keep Jiang Tuo any longer to discuss the case.
They had work again early the next morning.
"Talking about the case makes time fly by so quickly. I’ll head home then, and you all should get some sleep too. It’s only the second day; there’s a long way ahead."
Jiang Tuo did not expect that with the guidance team’s arrival, the case would immediately see a breakthrough; otherwise, it would reflect poorly on the task force’s competence.
After Jiang Tuo left the office, Li Xiang looked at the guidance team members still engrossed in their research and said, "Everyone, go home and get some sleep. Staying up late isn’t efficient. Only by resting well can your minds stay sharp. Go on, head home."