"What kind of person is he?"
"He, sigh, he's a bit of a gambler, and he hits people. I remember he was divorced. His first wife was so scared of him that she left with their daughter. As for me, I liked gambling just like him, so we got together. Didn't he go back for a while? It's been over 48 hours, and I can't get through to him. His family said he didn't go back. He's never like this, so I feel something is very wrong, that's why I reported it!"
At that moment, four words popped into my mind: birds of a feather. And then, fortunately, you still knew to call the police, otherwise, we wouldn't have found this place yet.
No wonder people used to say that even scoundrels can find partners, as long as the other person is also a scoundrel.
Liu Yuning also questioned Qian Zhiqiang's current wife and found that this couple often went out to play mahjong and poker on holidays. Although there was suspicion of illegal gambling, it was not within our jurisdiction. So, after bidding her farewell, we took the blood back.
Back at the provincial department, after comparison by the toxicology department, it was confirmed that the deceased was indeed Qian Zhiqiang. This was good, otherwise, the number of victims would have been greater than imagined.
Since it was confirmed to be Qian Zhiqiang, I asked Gao Mingqiang to notify his parents. Although cruel, it was unavoidable.
This kind of thing would be known sooner or later.
We asked He Xin to investigate Qian Zhiqiang's work situation. According to the time he went missing two days ago, we contacted the traffic management bureau and found surveillance footage near the factory. We saw him leaving work two nights ago, making a phone call in a nearby parking lot, and then getting into a car and leaving.
According to tracking from the driving recorder and the SkyNet system, the Volkswagen eventually disappeared in the area of Huagui Village. Interestingly, Huagui Village is located upstream of the river where the crime occurred.
It seemed that Qian Zhiqiang was likely murdered in some corner of Huagui Village. At the criminal case discussion meeting, I said to everyone: "Based on the clues we've gathered so far, I suggest we split into two groups. Liu Yuning, Xiao Yuande, and I will investigate Huagui Village, while Xia Hou, Gao Mingqiang, and Zhang Keying, you will investigate Qian Zhiqiang's ex-wife."
"Received!" Everyone seemed to have no objections, so the meeting was adjourned and we set out.
We drove directly to Huagui Village in a private car. Although not far, the road was rugged. Several times in the car, Xiao Yuande couldn't help but speak and accidentally bit his tongue, so he dared not speak anymore.
Besides him, we had actually brought two other police officers with us this time.
Upon arriving at the village, we found it was not deserted and looked very simple. The surrounding houses were connected, with red and green walls. The eaves were covered with dense tiles, and many security windows were installed. Many village houses also had courtyards and fields, with lush green crops planted behind them. Clear streams flowed through, reflecting colorful hues in the bright sunshine, dazzling to the eyes as they passed.
After we parked, everyone closed their car doors and wanted to enter the village immediately, but I stopped them. I bought a few packs of cigarettes at a small convenience store nearby. Xiao Yuande said, "Team Leader He, is that necessary? It's too extravagant!"
"Villagers like this!" I didn't explain much, just said casually, and then entered the village. Under a large banyan tree, several old men were playing chess, and many others were resting nearby, chatting. Seeing us approach, a few villagers cast curious glances.
They looked like they recognized us as strangers, but they didn't speak. We approached the old men playing chess and felt there was no need to hide, so we identified ourselves. Upon learning we were police officers, one of the chess-playing old men said impatiently, "Our villagers are simple and honest, good citizens. Why are the police here this time?"
"Elderly sir, the matter is like this..."
Upon hearing that someone might have been dismembered and dumped here, the old man immediately said in surprise, "Impossible! Our village would have such a case? It must be some damned person who tricked someone here to harm us. It definitely wasn't someone from our village!"
"Old man, are you so sure?"
"No, our villagers are very timid and law-abiding. They wouldn't even dare to step on an ant, how could they dare to kill someone!" The old man exchanged a look with his chess partners, but I could tell he was holding something back. I had no choice but to take out a pack of cigarettes and offer it to them.
The old men's eyes lit up. They opened the cigarettes and started smoking, puffing clouds of smoke. The old man who had been talking to me raised his thumb and praised, "Young man, no wonder your position is so high at such a young age. You know how to behave. Alright, actually, we have encountered some unusual situations recently!"
"Please tell us." I said politely.
The old man squinted, scratched the back of his head with his left hand as if thinking, then flicked the ash from his cigarette with his right index finger and took another deep drag before saying, "Alas, I heard there was some commotion at Honghua's place. You know, Honghua hasn't been here for a long time!"
"What do you mean?"
Seeing our anxious expressions, the old man then told us a story.
He said that three years ago, Honghua was a madwoman in their village. She drank a lot of pesticide at home and then suffocated herself in a large jar. At that time, for some reason, her eyes were missing. When her body was found, many roundworms were crawling out of her eye sockets, and insects were crawling from the crevices of her facial features. Several villagers were so terrified that they were sent to a mental hospital.
It was rumored that those villagers were all related to Honghua's death, and some people discovered they had an ambiguous relationship with Honghua. However, this case was never investigated, and Honghua's house was abandoned.
Just two days ago, several passing villagers heard rustling sounds from Honghua's house. It was late at night, and one villager said he saw a woman without eyes, wearing a red shirt, standing by the window of Honghua's house. The villager was so scared that he fell to the ground, trembling all over, screamed, and turned to run. Later, he hid at home, afraid to come out, and still is.
After listening to the old man finish, I asked, "Then how did you know?"
"Her daughter said so. However, that night, it seems that other people also passed by Honghua's house and saw similar phenomena. Then everyone compared notes, and most of them were similar. I think Honghua has come back for revenge, or her soul has never left that dilapidated village house!"
The old man recalled, looking somewhat scared himself. He hugged his clothes tightly, sweat beading on his forehead, and said somewhat awkwardly, "Well, I need to go back now!"
"Okay!"
Then everyone else dispersed. Watching their retreating backs, Liu Yuning said, "Probably just hearsay again!"