In the police car, Ping An, drinking cola and rubbing his sleepy eyes, said to Mei Qian, who was sitting beside him, "I'll take you somewhere, and then you'll understand everything. Alas, when we first met, I said I wanted to take you there, but you insisted on bringing me back, which delayed us for more than two hours."
"We were just following procedure and questioning you normally," Mei Qian replied.
"The last time I spoke to Niu Jian was on the evening of the 9th at 9 PM. You can check his phone, you should know. We had spoken a few times before that, but we really never met," Ping An said. "In fact, if you two, Liu Kedou and yourself, hadn't just been transferred from out of town, and if I hadn't seen my old brother Yan Qing just now who vouched for you, I wouldn't have casually taken anyone, or rather, any police officer I didn't trust, to that place. Don't ask me why, because what Niu Jian told me is really too inconvenient for you to know."
"What is it exactly? And what place is it?" Liu Kedou, who was driving, couldn't help but turn back and ask.
"Airport Avenue, Warehouse Zone 6, Lane 3, Section H. You'll know when we get there." The journey was still far. After giving the address, Ping An stopped talking, closed his eyes, and quietly fell asleep.
At this moment, he needed absolute calm to make judgments, because he vaguely felt that Niu Jian's case was not simple. Things had happened too quickly, and he needed to think it through.
The setting sun cast a rosy glow, the setting sun was like blood. Ping An, who had just returned from a business trip out of town, was dragged into this inexplicable "Niu Jian case" before he even had time to go home and take a shower. He was no stranger to murder cases, nor was he afraid of them. Five years ago, by chance, he had participated in a case as an investigative reporter and, by finding a crucial clue, became a hero in solving the case. Since then, he had begun his career as an amateur detective.
However, was this just an ordinary case?
The car headed north. Ping An, pretending to be asleep with his eyes closed, had a taut string in his mind. As mentioned earlier, this time, he seemed unable to continue investigating leisurely as an outsider, because he had already become a part of this case through some process he was completely unaware of. He didn't actually dislike Officer Mei Qian's stubborn suspicion, because he knew that if he were Mei Qian, he would also deeply suspect himself. Thinking of the documents in the warehouse, he felt fear and dread for the first time—this was definitely not a simple murder case; the conspiracy within it was chilling.
"Reporter Ping An, we're here. Please tell us which warehouse it is," Liu Kedou said as the car stopped.
"All the way to the end, the first one," Ping An said, stretching lazily.
Getting out of the car, he took out the keys and unlocked the padlock on the roller shutter of the warehouse. Ping An took a deep breath, but instead of opening it in one go, he turned back to look at Mei Qian and said, "What I need to show you today is solely for the purpose of solving the case. After the case is solved, I may hand it over to the procuratorate or your disciplinary inspection office. Therefore, I hope that, for the sake of discipline and secrecy, or to avoid suspicion, you will not publish what you see today. If necessary, please seek instructions from Director Yan."
"You're being so mysterious. Stop dawdling and open it so we can see," the usually calm Mei Qian was finally drawn into Ping An's rhythm and said impatiently.
"You can't look, only listen. Smelling is not recommended! Come on, welcome to my world." Ping An said as he opened the roller shutter of the warehouse.
The door opened, and a pair of red underwear fell from the wall.
Embarrassing. In such a tense moment, what was this? It was his own fault. He had left in a hurry last time and forgotten to take away his underwear. Ping An picked up the underwear without changing his expression and then put it in his pocket.
"No wonder smelling is not recommended. They really do smell..." Mei Qian couldn't help but grumble.
"Don't mind the details!" Ping An decisively interrupted Mei Qian's complaint and said without changing his expression, "Don't forget the purpose of our trip."
Entering the warehouse, Mei Qian carefully examined the environment inside. Because the warehouse was airtight, there was a damp smell that he found very unpleasant.
After pinching his nose, he began to observe carefully. This was just an ordinary warehouse, about 30 square meters in size. Along the left wall of the warehouse hung various maps and photos. On the right wall were a row of cabinets less than a meter high. Looking further into the depths, a black Honda CBR400 motorcycle was parked next to the cabinets. However, the front wheel of the motorcycle had been removed and was placed aside, clearly an unfinished project. The left and right sides of the warehouse were filled with things, but on the front wall of the warehouse hung a large curtain, covering the wall tightly.
While Mei Qian was observing the warehouse, Ping An had already taken out a voice recorder from a cabinet. "Hey! Hey! Stop looking. Are you still listening?" Seeing Mei Qian staring at his warehouse so brazenly, Ping An said angrily.
"What's behind the curtain?" Mei Qian, with his professional instinct, really wanted to know.
"Niu Jian's head. I've hidden it in medicinal solution," Ping An said expressionlessly.
"What?" Mei Qian and Liu Kedou were so agitated that they almost drew their guns.
"You really believe that? Letting you come here is already my greatest sincerity. Otherwise, I could have called Director Yan, and it would have been the same. So, I've exhausted all my patience today, and you can't do anything to me, so just listen obediently and then leave." There was actually nothing behind the curtain. Ping An pulled it aside to let the two of them look, and said impatiently.
What a weirdo!
Mei Qian stopped talking and opened the voice recorder. The sound of answering a phone call came through.
"Hello, who is this?" The voice sounded like Ping An.
"Is this Reporter Ping An?" a deep voice came through. Mei Qian looked at Ping An with surprise.
Ping An gestured to his mouth with his hand, signaling him to listen quietly.
"Yes, it is. Who is this?" Ping An said into the voice recorder.
"My name is Niu Jian, and I'm a taxi driver. I have a big scoop I want to report to you," Niu Jian said.
"You can come to my office during work hours," Ping An said.
"I can't. I can't show my face. I'm scared," Niu Jian said.
"What exactly do you want to say?" Ping An said.
"I want to report!" Niu Jian said.
"Report? Are 'black taxis' stealing your business again?" Ping An said.
"Not that. I want to report a police officer. He has committed serious illegal acts." Niu Jian said.
"Are you sure you haven't been drinking and talking nonsense?" Ping An said.
"No. Reporter Ping An, if you're interested, wait for me to call you again. My phone is set to only make calls, not receive them, so don't call me," Niu Jian said anxiously, as if he was in a hurry.
"If you say so, I'll take it as a joke. I'm hanging up," Ping An said.
"Well, that's all for today!" Niu Jian hung up, and the recording ended.
After listening to the recording, neither Mei Qian nor Liu Kedou spoke. They stared fixedly at Ping An.
"This is the first call Niu Jian made to me on the morning of the 1st of this month, around 9 AM," Ping An said. "Keep listening, there's more."
With that, Ping An opened the voice recorder again.
"Reporter Ping An, it's Niu Jian!" Niu Jian's voice sounded again.
"You're really persistent. Is it interesting? If you want to report something, go to the procuratorate! We're not allowed to write negative reports now." Ping An said.
"Reporter Ping An, listen to me. What I'm saying is true. You are the most conscientious reporter in Hechuan City. If you don't intervene, no one else will dare to," Niu Jian said.
"How do I know what you're saying is true?" Ping An said.
"I gave a ride to two passengers a few days ago. They were drunk and were chatting in the back seat. I overheard them," Niu Jian said.
"Then how do you know they weren't just making things up about someone else? Can you provide evidence?" Ping An said.
"I don't have evidence. It's just that after those two discovered that I had overheard them, they quietly took note of my license plate. Then, someone came to my house and threatened me, telling me to keep my mouth shut." Niu Jian said.
"Why didn't you call the police?" Ping An said.
"Don't you remember! The person I want to report is a police officer, and a high-ranking one at that." Niu Jian said.
"Who exactly do you want to report? Do you have any evidence?" Ping An said.
"I have evidence, a very important piece of evidence." Niu Jian said.
"As an ordinary taxi driver, how could you possibly have important evidence?" Ping An said.
"Next time, wait for my call. We'll arrange a meeting place. I feel like I'm being followed when I go out these days. I don't even dare to make phone calls, for fear that someone might overhear," Niu Jian said.
"Okay, I'll wait for your call," Ping An said.
The second recording ended. Mei Qian had recovered from his initial shock and was now thinking seriously about these words.
"This is the second call Niu Jian made to me on the afternoon of the 2nd of this month, at 4 PM," Ping An said as he continued to open the voice recorder.
"Reporter Ping An, can we meet tomorrow morning? They're here again, saying they're going to break my legs." Niu Jian said.
"Don't panic. I need to report this matter to my superior," Ping An said. "Moreover, I'm about to go on a business trip. How about we discuss it after I return?"
"Alright. I'll go into hiding for a few days," Niu Jian said.
"Go to the police. Go to the Municipal Public Security Bureau and find Deputy Director Yan Qing. He is an absolutely trustworthy person!" Ping An instructed.
"We'll see!" Niu Jian hung up.
"This is the third call Niu Jian made to me on the morning of the 3rd of this month, at 11:20 AM. I had already been assigned to a business trip and left town with the municipal government delegation that afternoon," Ping An said. "Niu Jian kept calling, and I felt this matter was not simple. Just in case, before leaving, I saved all the recordings on my phone in the warehouse. Then, for five days from the 4th to the 8th, Niu Jian did not call me again, until the evening of the 9th."
Having said this, Ping An put down the voice recorder and took out his phone, opening the recording software.
"Reporter Ping, have you returned?" Niu Jian's voice.
"I won't be back until the 11th," Ping An said.
"But, but..." Niu Jian said.
"What's wrong?" Ping An said.
"It's nothing, it's nothing. Reporter Ping, I was just joking with you. There's no such thing as a report," Niu Jian said.
"Oh." Ping An only replied faintly after waiting for more than a minute.
"I also have to take care of my uncle. My uncle is very important. Uh, you also pay attention to getting enough rest. When you're out and about, be steady, be down-to-earth, be healthy..." On the other end, Niu Jian's voice gradually faded.
"This is the last call I received from Niu Jian on the evening of the 9th, around 10 PM," Ping An said. "Since then, I haven't received any calls from him until this morning, the 11th, when I returned to Hechuan. I had just reported to my unit when you took me away."
After saying these words, Ping An took out a cigarette from his shirt pocket, lit it, took a deep puff, and remained silent.
Silence. In the oppressive warehouse, the three men looked at each other. Mei Qian and Liu Kedou were both shocked by these four recorded phone calls. If these recordings were completely accurate, they would point to the direction of his cause of death.
An ordinary taxi driver, by chance, overheard something he shouldn't have, and with a sense of justice, sought help from a reporter. However, for various reasons, before this information could be revealed, he was silenced. Of course, it was also possible that this person named Niu Jian, out of boredom, or due to mental illness, or even for money, made these calls. However, given that Niu Jian had been murdered, as police officers, they were more inclined to believe that Niu Jian's report was true.
A simple deduction, a case that seemed complicated but was actually simple. Could it really be classified and its investigative direction set based on these four recordings? Mei Qian was somewhat at a loss. As a detective with ten years of experience, he had handled complex cases before, but this case, he still couldn't understand or figure out.
"I need to take these recordings as evidence," Mei Qian said.
"As you wish. You can take the voice recorder for now. I'll send you the recordings on my phone via WeChat later," Ping An said, raising his phone and opening WeChat, gesturing for Mei Qian to add him as a friend.
"You don't have a backup?" Mei Qian asked while adding Ping An as a WeChat friend.
"Of course, I do," Ping An said.
"These are evidence," Mei Qian said.
"I know they are evidence, but not just evidence for a murder case, but also evidence that the procuratorate needs to possess," Ping An said.
"Keeping these things in your hands won't do you any good," Mei Qian said.
"If Niu Jian really died because of this matter, then it concerns me. You know my profession; I am a reporter, and I need to conduct my own investigation," Ping An said.
"This is not child's play!" Mei Qian said loudly.
"Then please respect my profession," Ping An retorted loudly.
"Alright, let's go. I need to report this matter to Director Yan personally," Mei Qian said, looking at his phone and finding that the audio files had been transferred. He left in a hurry and said, "For safety's sake, let's exchange flashlight numbers. If anything comes up, you can contact me anytime, and I'll contact you if I have any questions."
"Okay!" After exchanging phone numbers with Mei Qian, Ping An pointed outside, signaling them to leave.
At this moment, night had fallen, and an airplane glided across the sky and landed on the nearby runway. Mei Qian and Liu Kedou, holding the voice recorder, drove away. Watching the two leave, Ping An returned to the warehouse and lowered the roller shutter.
Inside the warehouse, a small lamp hung in the air, illuminating only a small area. Ping An leaned against the roller shutter, rubbed his eyes with both hands, and exhaled deeply. From returning from his business trip this morning to being taken away by the police, for the past ten hours, he had appeared calm and composed, but in reality, his nerves had been taut the entire time. Why did Niu Jian die? Was there really a report? Who killed him? Was the killer targeting him too?
In the past few years, Ping An had participated in the investigation of some cases, but each time he was an outsider, so he had never felt fear. But this time, he seemed to have fallen into a bottomless abyss, and he couldn't imagine what else might happen. At this moment, he needed extreme calmness to prepare for whatever was to come. After smoking another cigarette, Ping An finally calmed down. He opened his phone and dialed a number.
"Er Zuizi, it's Ping An. Please help me inquire about someone. His name is Niu Jian. I'll tell you upfront, this person was killed the day before yesterday." After a pause, Ping An continued, "He was a taxi driver. You're in the same line of work, so you should be able to find him. I want you to dig up all the information about this person, including his relatives and friends, and whether he had any enemies. I want everything. Don't worry, I'll double the payment this time."
After hanging up, without pausing, he made a second call. "Jing Jing, it's your brother. You should stay at the training class for the next few days. I think I've offended some people. Don't ask too many questions. I'll be with the police every day for the next few days. Oh, and my salary card is still with you, right? Remember to withdraw 5000 yuan in cash for me tomorrow morning and bring it to my unit during lunch break. Also, bring me a pair of replacement underwear, not red ones, some with little dots. And don't go out recklessly for the next few days. Oh, forget it. Do you have any money left in your WeChat? Transfer whatever you have to me. Then, take my card and find a bank nearby to withdraw money. You don't need to come to see me. What? You insist on coming? We'll talk about it tomorrow..."
Hanging up again, Ping An still didn't pause. He made a third call. "A serving of spicy shredded pork with rice, delivered to the airport warehouse. You don't need to know the door number. When you get in, shout 'Don't move, police!' three times. I'll come out when I hear you. You must shout! I'll give you a good review and an extra twenty yuan for your hard work."
After making several calls, Ping An broke out in a sweat. He took off his shirt and took a mattress from a cabinet, laying it on top of the cabinet, turning it into a single bed. After tidying up the bed, he took out an old-fashioned slingshot from the saddlebag on the motorcycle. This slingshot was clearly not for show. Its wooden handle was dark all over, and two black rubber bands were tightly tied to it. Ping An casually pulled the rubber bands and fired an empty shot, which produced a "bang." He placed the slingshot aside and took out a small tin box the size of his palm. Opening the box, it was full of steel balls.
If there were a professional hunter, they would recognize at a glance that this was not an ordinary toy slingshot but a hunting slingshot, also known as a standard survival slingshot, previously used for hunting leopards. Within five to eight meters, an adult could hit a person with a large lump with full force. Within one to two meters, an adult shooting at soft tissue like the neck could even kill someone.
This slingshot was Ping An's weapon of self-defense for many years. It was said that Ping An, who grew up in a sports compound, had developed good martial arts skills from childhood. With a slingshot, he could hit anything he aimed at, and his shots were always accurate. Two years ago, he was cornered in an alley by a group of ruffians. The leader was clearly instructed to break one of his legs. Relying on this slingshot, he repelled the group in an alley about 15 meters long and 6 meters wide. Later, when the police arrived, they counted that three people were injured by his slingshot, and the rest were also beaten with large lumps on their faces. The police wanted to confiscate the slingshot, but Ping An refused, saying that a slingshot was not a controlled weapon or a firearm. With the slingshot in hand now, Ping An felt much more at ease. He prepared to think carefully about what to do next.
"Wall slam! Police!" At this moment, a lewd voice came from outside the warehouse.
"Wall slam! Police!"
"Wall slam! Police!"
"Wall slam your sister! It's 'Don't move, don't move!' How can you shout so lewdly!" In the corridor outside the warehouse, a胖子 wearing a yellow delivery uniform was shouting loudly at the empty warehouse area. After coming out of his warehouse, Ping An stealthily hid in the shadows, keeping an eye and ear out, until he was sure that only he and the lewd,胖子 delivery man were in the warehouse, then he walked out.
"Brother Ping An, this is your food." Seeing Ping An come out, the胖子 delivery man happily handed over the food.
"Alright, you can go. Come and bring me breakfast tomorrow morning. A bowl of oil tea and two fried dough twists will be fine. I won't order anything else. After I eat, you can give me a ride back to the city. It will be 50 yuan in total." Ping An instructed.
"Sure. I love doing business with Brother Ping An," the胖子 delivery man said.
"Also, come a little earlier tomorrow morning, around 6:30 AM. When you come, it's the same old rule: first shout 'Run quickly, there are police!' three times. Do you understand? Remember!" Ping An instructed.
"Got it, got it. You literati love to play new tricks. I understand," the胖子 delivery man said lewdly.
"Get lost!" Ping An pointed towards the exit of the warehouse area helplessly.