Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Three days later, Zhao Yu checked the system in his head and attempted to press the unlock button. As expected, the system kept true to its word and wouldn’t budge. It seemed Zhao Yu would have to wait until the suspension period was over before he could unlock it.
Alright, if that’s the case then forget it. Ever since the Demon Case, Zhao Yu felt like he had become a lot less reliant on the system. Whether or not it unlocked, he would follow his gut.
Glancing over at the sleeping Miao Ying, Zhao Yu felt weird. It was unlike him to not have argued with her the night before. Thinking back, after Zhao Yu and Miao Ying had agreed on the next steps to take in the investigation, they had put their issues aside to focus on Wu Fangfang.
Right up until three in the morning, they were busy tidying and sorting out Wu Fangfang’s life in Gao Lanqi. Alas, they were too tired to continue and immediately fell asleep, not even changing out of their clothes. For Zhao Yu, sleeping was also difficult considering his burns were still fairly fresh.
Miao Ying had woken up from her sleep and went to hug Zhao Yu, kissing his neck. Eyes still half-closed, she slowly got out of bed and began preparing to head out.
After last night’s session, they had compiled a list of Wu Fangfang’s teachers and classmates from her school days. They also found her neighbors, relatives, and some colleagues. Everything was set for the day’s investigation. Because Wu Fangfang and her fiancé, Shi Hai, were childhood friends, they decided to also use the information they had on Shi Hai’s time in Gao Lanqi, and investigate them simultaneously.
Needless to say, with that many people to investigate, they were unable to go door-to-door and speak with each person individually. They had to prioritize who they considered to be the most important people. Eventually, they decided they would personally visit those they deemed a priority, while the lower priority would be left to Wu Xiumei, who could question them over the phone.
The duo’s objective was clear: investigate every lead relating to Wu Fangfang and Jiang Ke’s photo. During the process of figuring out whether or not Yu Fusheng was the mystery person, the photos were the only piece of evidence that could not be explained. So, if they uncovered the secret behind the photos, it might lead to more clues.
Based on what he had previously learned from Jiang Ke, Zhao Yu also knew that the photograph was taken after the Rural Cooperatives Homicide Case. At that time, Wu Fangfang was in her 20s. Not only was she a student at the police academy, but her exceptional grades got her transferred onto the Special Investigation Team where they were tasked with investigating the Rural Homicide case.
Although the case hit a dead end, Wu Fangfang’s work had attracted the attention of the higher-ups. After graduating from the academy, she was assigned to Gao Lanqi’s criminal police team. Not long after her arrival, she succeeded in her attempt to become a member of the criminal office and left Gao Lanqi.
That meant the pictures were probably taken between the time of the Rural Homicide case and when she took her test to become a member of the criminal office. That was a duration of no more than two years.
Zhao Yu and Miao Ying felt that the main focus of the investigation should be Wu Fangfang’s colleagues and friends from that time period. They might know if she had any secrets.
Jiang Ke mentioned that when the photo was taken, Wu Fangfang was not only drunk but had also consumed drugs. That meant that he probably approached her at a bar or a nightclub. The location where the actual photos were taken could have been a hotel. Determining the location was also part of the duo’s investigative goals.
“Dear,” Miao Ying said, quickly changing her clothes. “It’s still early, rest a bit more! You haven’t been sleeping well these past few nights. I have to report to the police station to see if there’s anything new. After that, I’ll investigate Wu Fangfang. Don’t worry, I’ll handle Wu Xiumei. I won’t leave out anything important!”
“Ah, okay!” Zhao Yu said from the bed. “Take extra care, let me know immediately if anything happens!”
“Alright…” Miao Ying said, taking her belongings. “If everything goes well, I should be back by noon. Should I bring back some western food?”
“Okay!” Zhao Yu said, blowing a kiss towards Miao Ying as she left the house.
Once the doors closed, Zhao Yu felt a sense of disappointment and frustration. He wanted badly to go out and investigate the case with Miao Ying. Unfortunately, even if he wasn’t officially a fugitive, he still couldn’t go out and openly investigate. That meant the investigation had to be done by Miao Ying alone. Zhao Yu had reminded Miao Ying to record every single visit so he could analyze them all himself.
Argh! Zhao Yu felt like going back to sleep, but his stubborn nature had reached the point of paranoia. He eventually got up and changed into his suit, washing his face and taking a seat at his work desk to look through the information. Since Miao Ying was working, he couldn’t just sit around, no matter how tired he was!
Even though Zhao Yu had been a hooligan in his past life, he was a very stubborn one. This dog-eat-dog world had made him a person who wouldn’t stop until his objectives were met. Whether he was a hooligan or a police officer, he had to finish what he started. No matter the cost, it had to be done.
Although he had given Miao Ying a deadline of two days, it had been a guise. He had long planned that if nothing came out of investigating Wu Fangfang and Shi Hai, the next step would be to investigate Jiang Ke’s past movements in Gao Lanqi. After that, it would be Yu Fusheng, followed by Cao Sifen, until eventually, they could find a lead.
Last night, Zhao Yu had already flipped through all of the data they had on Wu Fangfang and Shi Hai. Still, he wanted to take another more detailed look at it. Looking through the data, Zhao Yu learned that Wu Fangfang had taken the photo with Jiang Ke while Shi Hai was training at the prefecture’s police academy. He wasn’t anywhere near Wu Fangfang, which gave Jiang Ke the opportunity he needed.
Jiang Ke once said that his original intention was to blackmail Wu Fangfang with the photos because her appearance gave him the impression that she was rich. Unfortunately for him, he found out she was a police officer so he gave up on his plan.
But, those photos… why would they be in her drawers? Also, did Wu Fangfang know about his plan? If not… A thought popped into his mind. He wanted to take a look at Wu Fangfang’s photos to see if he could find anything. If her eyes showed signs of depression, then it might mean that she knew about the photos. Due to Wu Fangfang’s hot-tempered personality, anything was possible!
The more he thought it over, the more confident he felt. It wasn’t difficult to view the photos since Wu Xiumei was investigating around the Jing Hai area where Wu Fangfang lived.
Realizing this, Zhao Yu turned on his computer and used Miao Ying’s credentials to log in to the Special Investigation Team’s intranet. He used Miao Ying’s name to give orders to Wu Xiumei. He asked her to hurry to Wu Fangfang’s house and get him the photos in her albums.
To his surprise, Wu Xiumei replied immediately, saying that she was already at Wu Fangfang’s house investigating! Wu Fangfang was a narcissistic person and had five to six photo albums full of pictures. She said she would immediately take photos of the albums and send them over.
That’s great! Zhao Yu thought. He quickly told Wu Xiumei to send photos of when Wu Fangfang was in her 20s. Wu Xiumei was efficient and, within a few seconds, the pictures she had taken were transferred onto Zhao Yu’s computer.
Zhao Yu quickly opened the photos to check but realized that he was wasting his time. Wu Fangfang was full of life in them. There were all types of poses, from silly to sad to sexy. None of the photos had dates so he didn’t know when they were taken.
Zhao Yu shook his head. It seemed like this was a dead end. Unless… What if he were to check the backgrounds of the people they were questioning and see if they could be related to the case? What if the location of the photo where she was in bed with Jiang Ke could be found?
As he looked through the photos one by one, he realized something odd. In some of Wu Fangfang’s photos, there were scratch marks over someone’s face!
