Because he said this with great certainty, I sat down. Gao Mingqiang finally spoke to Gong Shucheng Cheng: "I know you must have something to do with the 'Dao Zuì Zhě' (导罪者). After all, you were one of their drivers. The others might have been hired by them, so they could easily trick us?"
"You traitor, I saw you before. I didn't expect you to be a police officer!"
"Heh heh, Gong Shucheng Cheng, you're finally willing to admit it. If we've met each other, how could you escape my notice? You should tell us the locations of the others. It would be very beneficial for you. You don't need to risk your life for those criminals, understand? Although you used to be quite well-known internally, it's time to change your stance. Cooperate with us to solve the case or abet evil, you should know the different consequences of different decisions!"
When this was brought up, Gong Shucheng Cheng fell silent, as if he were hesitating and didn't dare to decide what to do. Gao Mingqiang didn't wait for him to recover and continued, "Let me tell you, when I was still in the organization, I saw those people. Although they were wearing masks at the time, I knew their height and weight. I've already told the police all of this."
"Heh heh, so what? Those people are just the worst teachers among our 'Dao Zuì Zhě'."
"I understand. The minor leaders of your internal criminal group are also called teachers, right? I heard they even took people to play the stock market? Play investments? They defrauded people in some stock companies, claiming that by investing and becoming a shareholder, they could make a lot of money. However, after a few months, your people disappeared, and the money vanished without a trace."
"Gao Mingqiang, it seems you were completely investigating cases when you were in the organization. We were all fooled by you. You scoundrel, with your honest and sincere appearance, you have so many wicked ideas behind your back."
"You're the scoundrel! If I don't investigate criminals like you, are you going to get away with it? I've always been a police officer. I'm a police officer in life and a ghost for the police in death. You actually think a few sweet words could brainwash me? You're utterly ignorant!"
"That's right. If we hadn't underestimated you back then, I probably wouldn't be sitting here today."
"It's time for you to confess. Stop dawdling, or my fist, as big as a boulder, will smash into your mouth next time, understand? I don't care about taking off this police uniform, you know. My sister is still in your hands. I'm willing to pay any price for her!" As Gao Mingqiang spoke, he didn't forget to gesture with his fist in front of Gong Shucheng Cheng, staring at the suspect with a fierce expression.
Mature, skillful, and with a balance of threats and benefits, Gong Shucheng Cheng instantly understood his current predicament. A person struggling to climb out of a cage would definitely think of finding an exit. If he continued to wander in the maze, there would only be a dead end.
Gao Mingqiang had indeed become much more capable than before, now even able to complete such a troublesome interrogation alone.
Gong Shucheng Cheng nodded, finally loosening his lips: "That's right, I was the driver internally, but the people in those cars were not our people. We just found them from outside. Their identities were ordinary people from the city. We were looking for targets by chance. There were a total of 12 people, plus me, that makes 13."
The crew of an armored vehicle is the rated personnel capacity of a single armored vehicle. The crew of an infantry fighting vehicle is generally 8 or 9, while the crew of an armored personnel carrier is generally 8-13, so Gong Shucheng Cheng's statement is accurate.
Gao Mingqiang continued to ask, "When did they leave the bamboo forest?"
"Heh heh, that's a good question. Actually, when you went to Lester, they knew you might betray them and left. Our people investigated your identity; you were a member of the 'Chéng Zuì' (惩罪) squad before. If it were another police officer, they would still be confident in completely controlling them, but you were brought out by He Sheng. Our boss thought you were problematic, so after you left, everyone transferred. As for me, I deliberately waited until you found the bamboo forest before moving. I bought them quite a bit of time. I don't know where they went now. Mingqiang, you could tell before, I was just a driver internally. My boss and the others would definitely not tell me so many secrets. At that time, my relationship with them was even worse than yours. If it weren't for my excellent driving skills, they probably would have kicked me out long ago."
Hearing Gong Shucheng Cheng say this, Gao Mingqiang fell silent for a moment, resting his elbow on the interrogation chair and staring at Gong Shucheng Cheng from a close distance, as if observing whether he was lying.
I sat behind, not saying a word, wanting to see how Gao Mingqiang would continue to question him. Then Gao Mingqiang spoke again, "I know all of this. It seems you really don't know the appearance of that 'Bai Mao' (白毛, White Hair) nor where he went."
"Don't call my boss that. He just has a congenital illness that caused his hair to turn this way when he was young."
"I understand. It's leukemia, isn't it? I wonder how long that fellow can live."
"Mingqiang, we worked together for a while, how can you be so disrespectful to the boss?"
"Bah! Work together with whom? When have I ever wanted to work with you? That was all a disguise, understand? Don't try to sow discord here. This person! Director He is my superior. He is not your boss. He is very rational and will not be influenced by you!"
"He's a director?"
At that moment, Gong Shucheng Cheng seemed completely unaware of this secret, looking at me in shock. He seemed to be afraid of those high-ranking officials. I quickly nodded: "Gong Shucheng Cheng, I'm interrogating you personally. You should say more about what you know. I will have a good chance to help you get leniency. After all, the crimes you've committed are not very serious. I also found out you have a family. If you can get out after a few years, won't you be able to reunite with your family sooner?"
Gong Shucheng Cheng, who was already wavering, became even more hesitant to hide anything. He thought about it. Since things had come to this, he was going to be imprisoned for several years anyway. During this time, even if he leaked some internal information, the 'Dao Zuì Zhě' couldn't do anything to him. So he spoke.
He told us: "Actually, before 'Bai Mao' left, he mentioned a place called 'Tu Hai Town' (图海镇), but I don't know their exact location there. However, you can go and check there first."
"Are you saying that 'Bai Mao' and the others are still in Guangming City and haven't left yet?"