Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 659 A Farce

"Instructor Zheng, Xu Sanhe has been brought back!"

As soon as Zhu Jun entered, he found Zheng Mingxing. His expression was somewhat strange, but he still said directly, "He admitted to having a conflict with Yan Yun, but refused to admit that the arson incident was related to him. When we found him at his house, he was playing mahjong all night with three friends. All three can serve as witnesses to prove that Xu Sanhe was at home when the incident occurred. If we judge based on this alone, he does have an alibi for the arson incident."

Lin Ge, who was about to go back to the cat shelter for a nap, looked up in surprise upon hearing this.

Zheng Mingxing put down the duty log in his hand, looked up at Zhu Jun and said, "Since you reported in this tone, does that mean that even though Xu Sanhe has an alibi, you still believe that Xu Sanhe is suspected of being involved in the case?"

"Yes!"

Zhu Jun nodded without hesitation.

Before Zheng Mingxing could ask any more questions, he said directly, "Through a brief inquiry with those three mahjong players, I judged that Xu Sanhe must have done something. Because around the time of the arson incident, he told the three of them that he would make Yan Yun pay, and that she would know how powerful I am and would come begging to me sooner or later, and so on. One of the mahjong players said that Xu Sanhe's expression was very excited at that time, giving him the feeling that he had already done something and was in complete control."

"What does this prove?"

Zheng Mingxing raised an eyebrow; the police wouldn't solve a case based on guesswork.

"This proves that Xu Sanhe has his eye on Yan Yun."

Zhu Jun nodded and said, "Yan Yun has money but doesn't cherish it. She's pampered by a group of men, and she spends money recklessly because it comes easily to her. In some ways, she's the easiest target for blackmail. She makes money too easily, so she won't feel bad about being blackmailed."

Seeing Zheng Mingxing nod, Zhu Jun continued, "As for Xu Sanhe... he's facing financial difficulties after being released from prison and is having trouble finding work. He finally found a job that didn't mind his criminal record, but then he failed in his food delivery job, and the rental company swallowed his deposit. Without a car, he has no job, and he even has to borrow money from his mahjong partners. He must be desperately in need of money to live on. If this is just my guess, then the plan sheet I found in Xu Sanhe's house; the various criminal plans written on it, are enough to prove that Xu Sanhe is indeed planning to do something and is looking for targets."

"Then this conflict led him to discover Yan Yun's problems, and he decided to intimidate and even blackmail her?"

Zheng Mingxing understood Zhu Jun's meaning and, upon reflection, realized that Zhu Jun's deduction wasn't entirely wrong. Xu Sanhe, having been released from prison, was in a state of recklessness and was planning to engage in shady dealings when he discovered a wealthy but careless individual who might indeed be targeting her.

The piece of paper that Zhu Jun found in Xu Sanhe's house might be a criminal plan, or it might not have been implemented yet.

Whether Xu Sanhe committed any crimes remains to be seen, but there is no doubt that someone like Yan Yun is indeed a high-quality target for extortion.

"Without evidence, there is no point in saying these things."

Zheng Mingxing remained more cautious. Faced with Zhu Jun's confident reasoning, he calmly said, "Although you have said so much, since no evidence has been found that Xu Sanhe was involved in the arson, then everything is just speculation and castles in the air, and cannot be used as evidence in the case. As long as Xu Sanhe has not committed any substantial crime against Yan Yun, no matter how harsh or fierce he speaks in his own home, it is just talk and will not be included in the scope of suspects."

At this point, Zheng Mingxing couldn't help but yawn. Working 24 hours a day, including the day shift and the night shift, was already very tiring, and it was really hard to keep going now.

Moreover, the problem now is that Xu Sanhe is a suspect, but the police station has no evidence.

If the police station cannot produce substantial evidence against Xu Sanhe in a short period of time, the suspicion against Xu Sanhe can only be handled through normal channels.

Although the police station is a law enforcement agency, it cannot arbitrarily control or detain anyone. Therefore, after being questioned at the police station, Xu Sanhe was able to regain his freedom and go home.

“There is indeed no direct evidence, so I requested to take Mimi to Xu Sanhe’s house for a second investigation! I still believe that he is another suspect in the arson case, and there must be something in his house that can be used as evidence of the crime!”

Zhu Jun spoke firmly, then turned to look at Lin Ge.

"What's it to me!"

Lin Ge looked at Zhu Jun speechlessly.

He's already exhausted, okay?
He spent the entire night shift with Zheng Mingxing today, and didn't even get much rest yesterday. And yet he still has to keep working? Isn't Zhu Jun being a bit too harsh on the cat?
Lin Ge felt that Zhu Jun was definitely too excited and needed to complain to Jiang Yiyi about him to calm him down!

"Mimi?"

Zheng Mingxing knew, of course, that Lin Ge had already worked incredibly hard, but this case involved potentially more serious consequences in the future. Preventing such things from happening in advance was crucial; that's the very purpose of the police.

As for the hardships, it can only be said that compared to the safety of the public, the hardships of the police are insignificant.

Who made Mimi... a police cat?

"How about I come with you? We can work overtime together, and neither of us will sneak away, okay?"

Zheng Mingxing coaxed Lin Ge like a child, but halfway through his sentence, he shook his head helplessly.

"He said he'd go to the museum with Zheng Jiacheng today, looks like he's going to break his promise. Haha... This is Lao Nie's only day shift day off this month, his sick leave is really ill-timed, I hope he recovers soon."

"Ok?"

Zheng Mingxing's sudden mention of Nie Guoqiang left Lin Ge stunned.

He then realized that he hadn't seen Nie Guoqiang since returning to Zhanghe Police Station yesterday.

Has this guy's old illness relapsed? Or did something happen at the police station while he was on a business trip to the southern province?
Lin Ge couldn't help but worry.

"Until Chief Nie recovers and returns, we must guard the police station for him! We absolutely cannot allow any trouble to occur just because he is temporarily away from the jurisdiction; wouldn't that make us look utterly useless?"

Zhu Jun clenched his fist.

"Why are you getting so worked up? Even if Nie Guoqiang is injured and hospitalized, it doesn't mean he's not coming back. Even if he's on extended leave, there's no need to make such a fuss, is there? Does he mean his injury is serious? Or has something else happened at the institute recently?"

While expressing his doubts, Lin Ge belatedly realized that the atmosphere in the police station seemed to have changed subtly from yesterday to today.

Aside from Nie Guoqiang's absence, the others seemed to be behaving strangely. Both Zhu Jun and Zhao Zhigang were more proactive than usual. Even Zheng Mingxing, an instructor, was personally on the front lines, whereas he used to always sit in the center during night shifts.

"Old Nie may be leaving."

On the way to Xu Sanhe's house, Zheng Mingxing told Lin Ge the truth.

"what?"

Lin Ge was taken aback.

Nie Guoqiang, who's willing to risk his life to solve cases, is actually going to desert? How could that be? Where could he go if he's transferred now? Away from the front lines? But how could Nie Guoqiang be the type to compromise because of illness?

"Last Friday night, Lao Nie was on duty when the police station received a report. Several young men were riding heavily armed motorcycles and causing a disturbance in the city. When Lao Nie and Zhu Jun went to stop them, one of the young men who was running away bumped into him, injuring his lower back... In addition, his rheumatism has been getting worse, and he can only rely on painkillers every day. Therefore, after discussion within the organization, it was recommended that he retire from his frontline position..."

Zheng Mingxing spoke in a deep voice, his tone heavy and serious.

But after hearing his words, although Lin Ge felt sorry for and worried about Nie Guoqiang, he inexplicably felt relieved.

So that's how it is! It's not that Nie Guoqiang voluntarily requested medical retirement or a job transfer. As for the organization's opinion, whether Nie Guoqiang listens to it or not is another matter! He himself doesn't agree to leave the front line, and no one in this world can force him.

However, Lin Ge finally understood why the people in the institute had become more proactive than before these past two days.

So, they just didn't want to see Nie Guoqiang risk his life by insisting on going on duty despite his injuries because he was worried about the police station, so everyone did their best to perform so that Nie Guoqiang could feel at ease.

But in Lin Ge's view, none of this mattered. Nie Guoqiang would never leave Zhanghe Police Station unless he was truly unable to walk or move his legs. Otherwise, as long as he could still manage, he would appear at the police station leaning on his crutches.

Of course, after learning about this, Lin Ge no longer felt like complaining. Even if it was just to allow Nie Guoqiang to rest peacefully in the hospital, he had to solve the case so as not to disturb his rest.

When the police car arrived at Xu Sanhe's house, it was empty.

Xu Sanhe once had a wife and daughter, but after he was arrested and imprisoned, his wife chose to divorce him and took their daughter with her, but left the house to him.

Now that Xu Sanhe has been released from prison, the house is still a mess, with no trace of tidying up. Apart from the room with the mahjong table, the rest of the house is still covered in dust that has accumulated for more than two years, and it looks like it has never been cleaned.

It's fair to say that the house is exactly the same as it was when he was in prison and his wife left him. You can even tell from the messy footprints on the floor and the piles of dishes in the kitchen sink that Xu Sanhe really has no intention of settling down after his release.

He's been out for so long, yet he hasn't even cleaned his own home once. Is this the attitude of someone who wants to live a peaceful and fulfilling life?

However, the messy footprints on the ground were good news for the police.

Lin Ge didn't even need to focus too much; he only needed to follow the footprints to find out which places Xu Sanhe had touched.

"Mimi! I'll take care of the high places, and you can have the rest of the positions."

Zhu Jun put on gloves and started working, then assigned tasks to Lin Ge as well. As for Zheng Mingxing, he stared blankly at the beer cans on the coffee table in the living room, the trash cans piled high with takeout garbage, and the television in front of him.

Lin Ge and Zhu Jun checked the room and found that Xu Sanhe hadn't touched any of the cabinets or drawers.

The grease and grime on the range hood and the cobweb-covered wok clearly showed that Xu Sanhe had been back for quite some time, yet he hadn't turned on the stove even once. The dishes and utensils in the sink weren't for his own cooking, but rather for making it easier to eat takeout by pouring it into a large plate. Even so, he showed no intention of washing the dishes, clearly indicating that he didn't plan to stay long and undoubtedly had other plans in mind.

From this perspective, Zhu Jun's judgment that Xu Sanhe intended to commit crimes was not nonsense.

Of course, since everything was still in the planning stages, Xu Sanhe hadn't left anything in the house to corroborate the plan. Zhu Jun was already lucky to have found the note; finding anything else seemed unlikely.

Lin Ge searched the house for a long time, unwilling to give up. He left more cat paw prints on the floor than Xu Sanhe's shoe prints, but he still found no clues.

Zhu Jun then went upstairs to inquire with Xu Sanhe's neighbors, but obtained no valuable information. Aside from stating that Xu Sanhe played mahjong until late every night, causing a disturbance, they could offer no other useful information.

After all, everyone in the neighborhood knew that Xu Sanhe had gone to jail for assault. Even now that he's been released, the neighbors are still afraid to have much contact with him.

"Xu Sanhe is being far too cautious. Apart from a note he used to make plans, there's nothing else in his house related to the case. This is making me wonder if my suspicions about him are misplaced. Could it be that I've misjudged him?"

Zhu Jun rubbed his chin, the stubble of his beard touching his fingertips with a satisfying feeling.

"No! He is indeed a prime suspect."

Zheng Mingxing turned on the TV and was checking its contents.

Xu Sanhe, who was too lazy to even tidy up his house, had still bought memberships to several video apps. Zheng Mingxing checked the viewing history of the apps on the online TV platform and found that it was full of crime-solving dramas and movies.

Then, the most recent films in the history section all tell stories related to extortion, intimidation, and blackmail.

Lin Ge even saw something strange on it, something called "Detective Conan"...

"This guy... could he be planning to use methods from anime to commit a crime?"

Zhu Jun also saw this browsing history image, which was stylistically very different from the other content, and couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"But in fact, many similar animations and comics, although they have great loopholes in terms of the methods of committing crimes and evading responsibility, still have some truth to their portrayal of the psychology of victims and perpetrators and their reactions after the incident. For ordinary people, it is naturally impossible to actually carry out criminal acts according to the methods in them. But for someone who originally intended to commit a crime, some things in them do have reference value."

Zheng Mingxing, on the other hand, had no prejudice against this kind of crime-solving animation. He not only refuted Zhu Jun's laughter, but also clicked on the episode and watched it seriously.

As he expected, the episode began with criminals stalking the victim, causing her psychological distress, and then extorting her.

Although the main plot of the series revolves around a victim who, after being repeatedly blackmailed, plots to kill the perpetrator in revenge, attempts to destroy evidence to evade punishment, and is ultimately discovered, solved, and arrested by the protagonist, even Zheng Mingxing has to admit, based on just the first few minutes and the perpetrator's self-statement, that such stalking and increasingly sophisticated blackmail can indeed cause severe psychological stress for single women.

What's worse is that it's really difficult to find evidence to convict those who stalked the victim before the extortion.

Fast forward a bit and keep watching; the two people and the cat even discover that the car fire threat in the plot is exactly the same as the case that happened last night. The person thrown out as a scapegoat by the 'victim' in the plot is one of her suitors.

What happened last night was remarkably similar to the plot of this animation.

"So... Xu Sanhe saw this episode of the cartoon, and then, imitating the crime methods that the author had conjectured out of thin air, he began to intimidate Yan Yun, ultimately aiming to extort money?"

Zhu Jun stared wide-eyed in disbelief, pointing at the 'victim' kneeling confession on the TV screen, suddenly at a loss for words.

"I just took a picture of the previous history, which shows that Xu Sanhe watched this episode around 5 PM yesterday. It happened right after his conflict with Yan Yun, but before Yan Yun's BMW was burned… Based on my guess, Xu Sanhe probably went out to look for Yan Yun and happened to see that person pouring alcohol on Yan Yun's BMW. This scene matches the animation content perfectly, so Xu Sanhe simply went along with it…"

Zheng Mingxing also smiled wryly, feeling that this scene was quite childish, but Xu Sanhe actually managed to pull it off.

Is he smart or stupid?

Zhu Jun couldn't understand it.

"Are you stupid? What would happen if we didn't investigate thoroughly and just caught the arsonist and declared the case closed? What if the police were a little negligent and careless? Would your childish idea become a reality? No matter how much Yan Yun doesn't care about that BMW, when she knows that someone is watching her all the time and doesn't mind using malicious means to treat her, do you think she would choose to compromise like in the movies?"

Zheng Mingxing's expression was very serious.

Regardless of where Xu Sanhe learned this skill, the fact is that he almost succeeded!

If the police hadn't thought things through after arresting the man, no one would have discovered Xu Sanhe's involvement. They wouldn't have known that he was about to commit even more heinous acts against the victim named Yan Yun.

Thinking of this, Zheng Mingxing glanced down at Mimi, who had wandered over to the shoe cabinet by the front door.

If Mimi hadn't insisted that there were still problems with the case this time, wouldn't Xu Sanhe have really had a chance to succeed?

Or to put it bluntly, if it were any other police station that was more perfunctory or if the police officers were only thinking about closing the case as soon as possible, would Xu Sanhe have been discovered at all?

"This guy is seriously underestimating us police officers, isn't he? Or does he really think that our country's police are all useless like in this cartoon?"

Zhu Jun gritted his teeth and laughed angrily.

"But in fact, he almost succeeded, and so far we have only made inferences and have not found any evidence of his involvement."

Zheng Mingxing remained calm, not considering it shameful that he had almost been tricked by the real culprit.

The struggle between the police and criminals is inherently a battle of wits and courage. Regardless of whose intelligence they rely on to commit the crime, if they succeed, it's a defeat for the police. Now that we've caught them red-handed, that's a victory!

"Ow!"

Lin Ge suddenly looked up and called out to the two of them.

(End of this chapter)