Police officer Chen Shu

Chapter 116 Inquiry Ends
Zhongshan Police Station, second floor security office
Chen Shu chased Zhu Chaoran and Xu Lei, the intern police officer who had shamelessly followed him, out of the office and gave them a stern warning at the door: they must not eavesdrop.

He slammed the door shut, returned to his office seat, turned on his body camera and computer, and began questioning the victim with Zheng Huihui.

The reason for placing the interrogation in this large security office on the second floor is mainly because the crime scenes of archery cases often occur in small spaces, and the interrogation room is also small, which could easily cause repeated emotional fluctuations in the victim.

"Name," Chen Shu asked as he typed into the computer.

Zheng Huihui went to the water dispenser, filled a cup with hot water, and placed it on the coffee table in front of Liu Wanying. Then she sat down beside her. As a female police officer who did not handle cases, her role during questioning was only to look after the female victim; she would not interfere with the investigation or evidence collection.

The young woman sat on the sofa and answered softly, "Liu Wanying."

A good name; a cultured person.

Chen Shu and Zheng Huihui exchanged a glance, both of them distinguishing her from the other young ladies who had reported crimes before.

During the question-and-answer session, Chen Shu meticulously recorded Liu Wanying's age, address, household registration, mobile phone number, and other information. When asked about her occupation, she appeared somewhat flustered and hesitated noticeably.

It doesn't seem like someone without a legitimate job; they probably don't want to reveal their specific workplace, fearing that people around them will find out.

Yes, she had previously refused to let the police come to pick her up.

Chen Shu comforted him, "Just tell me your general occupation, you don't need to mention the name of your company."

Liu Wanying looked at Chen Shu and Zheng Huihui from left to right, biting her lip: "Kindergarten teacher."

"What? Oilstone? PetroChina?" Chen Shu couldn't hear clearly.

“Preschool teacher, kindergarten teacher.” Zheng Huihui, who was sitting to the side, understood and explained to Chen Shu word by word.

teacher?

A kindergarten teacher?

A heartwarming scene flashed through Chen Shu's mind: a young woman standing in the yard leading the children in morning exercises.

With utmost respect, he meticulously recorded the statement during the subsequent questioning, using the gentlest possible tone.

According to Liu Wanying's statement, after drinking with a group of friends at a karaoke bar last night, she, her boyfriend, and two other male friends, a total of four people, went to the Wanwang Hotel in Zhongshan and booked two rooms.

She and her boyfriend's room was on the sixth floor, while their two friends' room was on the second floor.

Liu Wanying spent some time with her boyfriend in the room. After taking a shower, she wrapped herself in a towel and went to the second floor to get some things from her friend. On her way back, she encountered a middle-aged man in the elevator. It was this man who dragged her out of the elevator and raped her on the fire escape staircase on the fifth floor.

Her boyfriend waited in the room for a long time, but Liu Wanying didn't return. He called a friend on the second floor and learned that Liu Wanying had already left. So he ran out of the room and searched floor by floor, finally finding the two of them in the fire escape staircase on the fifth floor.

Her boyfriend beat the other person up, and then they all left. It wasn't until tonight that Liu Wanying remembered to call the police.

Chen Shu glanced at the transcript, then out of the corner of his eye, he saw Liu Wanying sitting quietly on the sofa with her head down, and a few questions arose in his mind.

First, why didn't Liu Wanying report the assault to the police immediately afterward? Why did she have to wait 24 hours? It should be understood that in such a long time, some evidence can easily be lost.

Secondly, if Liu Wanying came to the police station alone to report the crime in order to hide the fact that she had been raped from her boyfriend, that would be understandable. However, in this case, her boyfriend was fully aware of what had happened, so why didn't he accompany her to report the crime tonight?
Finally, Liu Wanying, who is from another province, didn't call 110 to report the incident, but instead dialed the duty phone number of the local police station. Why? For her, what was the difference between the two?

With questions in his mind, Chen Shu tidied up the transcript and handed it to the other party: "Liu Wanying, please take a look at the transcript." Liu Wanying nodded, placed the transcript on her lap, and carefully flipped through it page by page with her head down.

A few minutes later, she confirmed the contents of the record and, under Chen Shu's guidance, signed and affixed her fingerprint to the record paper.

After the questioning, Zheng Huihui sat down next to Liu Wanying, offered a few words of comfort, and reminded her to take birth control pills and HIV prevention medication in a timely manner.

Afterwards, Chen Shu led Liu Wanying downstairs and walked towards the gate of Zhongshan Institute.

The two didn't exchange a single word the rest of the way. Liu Wanying neither pressed the police about when they would arrest the person, nor did Chen Shu mention anything related to the proposal.

As Chen Shu escorted Liu Wanying to the door, he said slowly before parting, "Liu Wanying, don't share a room with anyone tonight. Tomorrow morning at nine o'clock, wait for me at the entrance of Zhongshan People's Hospital."

Fearing that Liu Wanying might not understand, Chen Shu added, "Don't take a shower tonight either, and don't wash your private parts with water."

Liu Wanying nodded and left silently.

Standing at the entrance of the police station, Chen Shu watched the other person leave, with some questions lingering in his mind.

This girl was too calm! So calm, unlike someone who had been raped! Any of the other women who came to report such incidents before were far more hysterical than her. At the very least, they shed a few tears.

In contrast, consider Liu Wanying's performance.

Is it the indifference, emptiness, and numbness that comes after extreme grief?

Chen Shu lit a cigarette, his expression growing increasingly serious.

"Chen Shu, I'll be going now." Zheng Huihui followed him out of the police station.

Chen Shu felt apologetic towards the policewoman who had been pulled out of bed in the middle of the night to work: "Sister Huihui, you should go now. You've really worked too hard tonight."

Zheng Huihui: "What are you saying? You guys are the ones who are working hard! Working overtime and on duty day and night. Okay, I won't say any more. I'm leaving. You should go upstairs and get some rest too."

Chen Shu smiled wryly, thinking to himself that with this big case, there would be no time to rest. However, he still smiled and said goodbye to Zheng Huihui.

He threw away his cigarette, stomped it out, and hurried back to his office on the second floor. He then printed out all the information on guests staying at the Wanwang Hotel for the past three days through the police intranet. With the case materials in hand, he contacted Zhu Chaoran, and the two headed straight to the scene of the crime—the Wanwang Hotel.

Along the way, Zhu Chaoran encountered a constant stream of problems.

"Brother Shu, why do you insist on taking several hours to take a statement instead of immediately arresting the man who raped you? What if he runs away?"

Chen Shu patiently explained, "If we rush out to arrest people without having a general understanding of the case, we could easily be used as pawns. Secondly, this case happened last night, but the victim only reported it this morning, which feels suspicious. So, our next step is not to arrest people, but to go to the crime scene to collect evidence."

Zhu Chaoran nodded: "Brother Shu, I'll listen to you."

Night had fallen, and the lights of Dongzhou City flickered and dimmed like fireflies in the distance, as most people had already drifted off to sleep.

As always, police cars sped past on the wide road.

(End of this chapter)