Street Hustler and His Policewoman Wife

Chapter 207 207: Midnight Moonlight!

Zhao Hai is a suspect.

He knows Xiong Ruru, Xue Xiangdi, You You, and Wu Rui.

Especially, You You and Wu Rui have even robbed him.

In Zhao Hai's account, he didn't want trouble, so upon being blocked, he handed over all the money.

Later, Xue Xiangdi felt guilty and retrieved a thousand yuan from her companions.

This part of the story is both reasonable and unreasonable.

Generally, it's rare for robbers to return the money.

Once a mistake is made, compensating doesn't help much.

Yet, one cannot dismiss the possibility that Zhao Hai's words are true.

Because Zhao Xiaoyu seems very normal.

If a young child faced with stranger's harm, she wouldn't appear calm.

She couldn't even pretend!

Chen Xiao shook his head, temporarily pushing aside thoughts about Zhao Hai.

At this time, Xiaoji and the others bought some late-night snacks.

Chen Xiao sent a message to Lin Yao, but Lin Yao didn't respond, likely asleep with Zhao Xiaoyu.

The four of them sat together, eating snacks while Chen Xiao briefed Xiaoji and the others about the current case.

Chen Xiao still hoped Xiaoji and Xiaoji Knife Man would make progress.

He could tell that Xiaoji was the one with the most potential, likely to become his strongest ally in the future.

Xiaoji put down his skewer, as Chen Xiao recounted his encounter with Zhao Hai and Zhao Hai's claims, making Xiaoji's expression turn odd.

"Thought of something?"

Xiaoji, hesitatingly, said, "Among the people we've seen so far, Zhao Hai's suspicion is significant. He has the motive to commit the crime, and a murder case has appeared in his life."

"Do you think his motive holds up?"

"It doesn't fully hold up, because as per the case details, Xiaoyu hasn't suffered any harm."

"Yes, that's the issue. So, neither I nor Xie Wensheng can place a label on him as a suspect, only suspect him."

Chen Xiao said, seeing Liu Dayou had finished eating, he then said:

"Take out your old turtle shell and give it a shake."

"Shake for what?"

"Let's cast a fortune for Captain Xie, see if everything goes smoothly tonight."

"Without his birth characters, can't tell."

Chen Xiao chuckled, "Seems so, prying into a detective captain's birth characters doesn't seem right. Hmm, wonder what he's found by now."

"Bro, do you think the killer will dump a body again tonight?" Xiaoji asked quizzically.

Chen Xiao shook his head, "Not sure, but consider the current season and the dumping frequency. Shencheng City is hot now, accelerating decomposition. Forget multiple corpses; even one's smell is unbearable."

Xiaoji realized, and Xiaoji Knife Man asked, "The bodies weren't frozen?"

"No, frozen bodies are detectable upon discovery."

"Thus, the killer indeed hastened the disposal rate. Previously, there was a gap of several days between Xiong Ruru and Xue Xiangdi, but Xue Xiangdi to the third victim had only one day apart."

"True, the longer the delay, the harder it is to manage the odor!" Chen Xiao responded, Xiaoji Knife Man voluntarily tidying night snack remnants.

After a while, they returned to their respective rooms.

Chen Xiao lay alone on his bed, quietly closed his eyes, contemplating the calendar.

It was August 30.

Another unprecedented day—Golden God Seven Evils Day!

...

In Shencheng City's streets, police cars were noticeably more than usual.

Patrol vehicles were similarly increased.

Xie Wensheng led several subordinates through alleys and lanes.

Bits of information continued to accumulate.

"Captain Qin, no activity at Yangguan School…."

"Captain Qin, nothing at Sixteenth Primary School…."

"Nothing at Fenghua School either…."

Xie Wensheng received these updates and crossed off items one by one on the list.

As the names neared completion, a subordinate remarked:

"Captain Xie, maybe the killer won't dump tonight? Should we station people at each spot?"

"It's possible he won't, we're exposed while the killer's in hiding; the killer holds all the initiative."

"Then should we start guarding?"

"No, we must search first. That Mr. Chen is a talent, his instincts shouldn't be wrong."

"Should we follow him entirely?"

Xie Wensheng glanced at his subordinate, saying, "You think I'm blindly following, or I too believe the killer might act?"

"But he just disposed of a body recently?"

"Use your brain to consider the season now; unfrozen bodies emit unbearable stench."

The subordinate fell silent, seeing Xie Wensheng scrutinize the list: "Tonight remains possible, the accelerated disposal frequency indicates urgency. His urgency equals ours; let's see who's more anxious."

Saying this, another message arrived, Xie Wensheng crossed off another name.

As the list grew shorter, Xie Wensheng began frowning.

"Could there be an oversight?" Xie Wensheng muttered.

The subordinate replied, "Shouldn't be, all related schools are listed!"

"Let me think, did we miss any?"

As Xie Wensheng spoke, his gaze suddenly widened: "Oh no, indeed missed one! Damn, the suspect must either be local and elderly or have lived here long!"

Swearing, Xie Wensheng disregarded his subordinates' shock, swinging the car around in another direction.

Arriving at a desolate, rundown primary school, his subordinates froze on sight.

"Captain Xie, when was there an old school like this?"

"School's long abandoned, no other plans for the land yet. Were it not for studying here, even I'd forget."

As Xie Wensheng spoke, his face darkened surveying the padlock-free school.

"Spread out and search, start within the campus then extend to the forest outside if needed."

Aside, Xie Wensheng eyed a female officer, instructed: "You team with Xiaozheng."

"Captain Xie, I'm not afraid. Though I'm a girl, I'm a cop! Separate actions save a lot of time!"

"Up to you, stay safe!"

Xie Wensheng wasted no time, heading straight into the dilapidated, cobweb-covered classrooms.

Fortunately, the buildings weren't tall, the highest being two stories.

Dorms were mere low-rise structures.

Upon approach, his nose twitched.

Shoulders provide the initial evidence, not eyes.

However, classrooms reeked of mold, hindering Xie Wensheng.

Yet, once on the second floor, his flashlight revealed liquid drips on the stairs!

Why liquid?

Decomposition induced!

Xie Wensheng sprinted upstairs!

Reaching above, a smell hit his nose faintly.

Tracking the scent, he cautiously opened a door.

"Squeak…."

The aged classroom door screeched sharply.

The moonlight bathed Xie Wensheng as his eyes slowly widened.

On the platform… truly… stood a person!