In the dead of night, Shui Ping, knowing Old Man Hua’s habit of sleeping early, had impersonated Shui Gang outside, performing his work. Old Man Hua, believing it to be Shui Gang, remained unaware. Meanwhile, Shui Gang had secretly climbed onto the rooftop, his motives hidden, to spy on the police's actions. Subsequently, after being discovered and escaping from the underground parking garage for the first time, Shui Gang arrived behind the community supermarket. Timing it precisely, he scaled the wall and, poking his head over the community's protective railing, waited for Shui Ping to pass by.
“You, of course, timed it perfectly, carrying a load of steel pipes, returning from outside the community. After seeing your brother on the railing, you used the pipes to shield your face and walked boldly towards the main gate!” Ping explained to Shui Ping. “Because the direction you returned from and the direction your brother’s head was extending were the same, you used the moonlight and the pipes to obscure your face. If the security guard hadn’t listened, he wouldn’t have known who you were. So, as Shui Gang watched you walk in, he spoke to the guard at just the right moment. The guard was very familiar with your brother and instantly recognized his voice, taking you for Shui Gang – tut tut, what a brilliant alibi!”
“But why didn’t Shui Gang just jump over the railing? Wouldn’t that have been safer?” Gao Xiaofei asked from the side.
“He couldn’t, because Shui Gang still needed to appear in the community. And at that time, I was already searching for him throughout the underground parking garage. If I hadn’t found him, I would have naturally assumed he had jumped over the railing. And at that precise moment, he coincidentally returned from outside – would you have suspected him then?” Ping replied. “He wanted to create a false impression. The shadowy figure had never left the community. And as he appeared, Shui Gang coincidentally returned from outside, with a security guard as a witness! Impressive, isn’t it? This was irrefutable evidence! If it weren’t for that inadvertently captured video of him, I would never have been certain the shadowy figure was him! Nor would I have deduced such a clever disguise!”
The rest was simple. After successfully entering the community, Shui Ping found a place to hide. Then, when the community fell into chaos after Han Xiao was murdered, she seized an opportunity to emerge openly and maintain order.
“At the last moment, your brother made a mistake, and it was because of this that I began to suspect him!” Ping said, glancing at his watch, growing impatient. “During the chase in the shadows at the bottom of the building, your brother appeared by accident, just as ‘he’ was returning from outside the community, taking a shortcut home. He coincidentally encountered the shadowy figure and was kicked. Following that, the glass in the stairwell shattered from the inside out, making it appear as though someone from inside had broken the glass to let the shadowy figure into the stairwell!”
Tower Read & Little “Your brother is too clever. His objective was to prove once again that he and the shadowy figure were not the same person. By then, he might have guessed we were starting to suspect him. Only by putting himself in a desperate situation could he clear himself of suspicion. If it were just him, he couldn’t have broken the glass from the inside out. But if the glass had been broken from the outside in, Shui Gang would have also considered that we would suspect him of breaking the glass from outside and playing the game of the thief crying 'stop thief.' However, if the glass was broken from the inside out, it would subtly create a new suspect in our minds, lessening our suspicion of your brother, or even abandoning it entirely,” Ping explained. “A cunning rabbit has three burrows! Your brother not only created an alibi but also attempted to mislead our thoughts and judgment. Unfortunately, he shouldn't have pre-cut the glass, leaving no shards behind, and he certainly shouldn't have involved his own son in this dirty crime!” “What? You’re talking nonsense! What does this have to do with a child?” Shui Ping glared fiercely at Ping. “Don’t rush! It seems you also don’t know who actually broke the glass that night!” Ping said. “Before, I kept harping on this matter, and Xiao Fei and the others said I was obsessed. Later, they even gave a direct order, making Director Liu search for glass fragments in the heavy rain! Tell me, why would I say all this?” Ping paused dramatically. “Looking for fingerprints?” Shui Ping asked, puzzled. “No! We were looking for this!” Ping signaled to Gao Xiaofei. Without a word, Gao Xiaofei brought up a drawing on his phone. The drawing depicted a brave little boy, holding a wooden stick, fiercely striking a dark-colored windowpane… “Familiar, isn’t it? This drawing was found by someone I assigned, yes, Gao Da, who, while Director Liu was organizing the collection of glass shards, took advantage of everyone's distraction and retrieved it from Shui Ping’s trash can,” Ping said. “After learning about the relationship between Shui Gang and Wang Huan'an, I became increasingly convinced that Shui Gang couldn’t escape suspicion. But in the face of evidence, I was helpless, unless there was something that could convince me, even if it wasn’t solid proof, just something new for me to discover!” “Remember when I first went to Shui Gang’s house, you said your nephew had a talent for drawing and could depict what he saw as a diary,” Ping said. “These pieces of evidence, not considered concrete proof, were the most important in my eyes. So, I assigned Gao Da to quietly watch Shui Gang’s garbage. Sure enough, this child is clearly autistic, which is why he draws things he considers stimulating or important. For example, when we suddenly showed up, although he didn’t know why, he sensed his father’s panic, so he panicked too, and would draw us. If Shui Gang had used his son to break the glass from the inside out, this child would surely have suffered a traumatic memory, and would likely have drawn it. Then, while you were all distracted by the glass shards, Gao Da quietly completed the retrieval!” “Despicable! You wouldn’t even spare a child! You’re all plotting!” Shui Ping said angrily. First Release & : Tower >- Read Novel “Wrong! It’s you who wouldn’t spare a child for the sake of crime!” Ping said, somewhat agitated. “Do you know how sad I was when I saw this drawing! How Shui Gang coaxed his son, waited until midnight, then went out alone to smash the glass! And then how he made his son forget about it! Isn’t such behavior despicable?” “This drawing made me completely suspect Shui Gang! Exposing your trick of misdirection was only a matter of time!” Ping said. “Now that it has come to this, for the sake of the child, tell us, where is Gao Da!” “He cannot live!” Shui Ping muttered to herself, seemingly lost in pain and conflict. “This child thinks of his mother every night… sometimes, he thinks of her twice… Gao Da said that in those few days, he picked up Shui Gang’s garbage every day, spread out the child’s drawings one by one, and looked at them little by little. Do you know what he told me? He said this child is a pitiful child, and he, in this way, was reading the child’s loneliness, reading the child’s scars! He understands this child better than you so-called relatives!” Ping suddenly stood up, grabbed Shui Ping’s collar, and roared furiously, “So, please, for God’s sake, tell me where Old Gao is!” Gao Da’s wife had died of illness at the age of forty. Once, Ping, Gao Xiaofei, and Mei Qian had gotten Gao Da drunk. Gao Da had told them that before his wife died, she had repeatedly instructed him to remarry at the age of sixty; he was not to go down early, or she would haunt him as a ghost. Hearing the old man say this, everyone present sighed with emotion, marveling at Gao Da’s having such a devoted and understanding wife. But before Gao Da passed out, he said with regret, “You don’t understand anything. Letting me remarry only at sixty means I’d be a bachelor for nearly twenty years… My wife, heh, I’m still mad about it!” After this summer, Gao Da would celebrate his sixtieth birthday. If nothing unexpected happened, he would be enjoying his twilight years with Ms. Wu Ping. The first task was nearing completion, but the second depended on heaven’s will… Hei Dou never expected that he had been so close to the kidnapped Gao Da. Gao Xiaofei also never expected that Shui Gang would hide Gao Da at Wang Huan’an’s house. Original Text ^. @ From Tower Read Novel. Right next door… In front of Wang Huan’an’s house, technicians were cautiously opening the locked security door. Ping, hands in his pockets, stared intently at the door. Gao Xiaofei rubbed his hands together, urging the technicians to hurry. Hei Dou felt the most guilt, standing far behind the crowd, suppressing a surge of killing intent. The door opened. Gao Xiaofei was the first to rush in. The room was shrouded in darkness, with the curtains tightly drawn. He couldn’t see anything but was startled to hear a faint gasp. The room's curtains were pulled back, and blinding sunlight flooded the living room. Gao Da was bound hand and foot. His white shirt was stained red with blood, and the several dark bloodstains on his forehead had scabbed over. Most terrifying was his arm, where a scar the size of a bowl still bore traces of flesh that had been cleanly cut away… “Brutal!” His injuries were severe, and he had lost a lot of blood. Gao Da’s breathing seemed to be only exhales, with no inhales. Ping carefully lifted his neck and gently cut the sewing thread from his mouth, only to find a ball of thread inside. Ping began to pull the thread, but the ball of thread seemed to grow longer and longer. It was obvious that this ball of thread had been forcibly stuffed into his stomach. Ping’s hands trembled. For a moment, he hesitated to pull the thread out, fearing that he might pass away if he did. Emergency doctors finally arrived. They carefully placed Gao Da onto a stretcher and kindly collected the pieces of human flesh lying on the bloodstained floor. Original Text ^. @ From Tower Read Novel. The operating room light flickered. Ping, sitting on the long bench, anxiously rubbed his hands. “How is it?” Gao Xiaofei ran up to the operating room. “He’s still in rescue. Xiao Gao just signed the critical patient notice. He’s gone downstairs to buy emergency medicine. These emergency medicines aren’t reimbursed and are quite expensive. Fei Keqing was afraid Xiao Gao wouldn’t have enough money, so she went with him,” Ping said, rambling. “I contacted Mei Qian just now. Mei Qian is with her parents. You know, the military hospital where they are is one of the best in the country. It could be useful at a critical moment. Oh, and I also called Director Xiang. An’s, An’s has a company plane. If worst comes to worst…” “Don’t worry, the old man should be alright!” Gao Xiaofei said, sitting down and catching his breath. “Old Man Hua, on the other hand, is fine. As soon as Sister Wu Ping heard what happened, she fainted!” “Sigh!” Ping said. “Did Old Man Hua say anything?” “He hit himself on the head with a shovel and was taken to the hospital once he woke up. What do you expect me to ask?” Gao Xiaofei said. Old Gao was still in critical condition. Ping, at this moment, had no inclination to inquire about the next steps of the case. Even so, the case would not stagnate because of Gao Da. On the contrary, with the emergence of the Shui Gang and Shui Ping siblings, the four murdered voyeurs finally had their justice. However, new problems had arisen. What was hidden in the bracelet? What were Shui Gang’s objectives? Why would the harmless Gao Da endure such torture? Who was the murderer of Wang Huan’an? This must have been a rainy summer. Just moments ago, the sun had been shining brightly; now, it was pouring rain. Kou Kou 563743675 Ping walked to the end of the corridor and onto the balcony, gazing at the vast expanse of dark clouds at the horizon. He fumbled in his pocket for a long time before pulling out a cigarette. He sighed silently, lit it, and took a deep drag. https:/ “Are there any of Gao Da’s family members here?” From the other end of the corridor, the emergency room door opened, and a doctor in a blue emergency suit poked his head out and called out anxiously. “Yes, yes, I’m here! I’m his son!” Xiao Gao jumped out of the elevator and approached the emergency room door. “Prepare yourself mentally… His organs are severely failing…” The doctor spoke with the gentlest tone, delivering the most merciless words. On the balcony, the lit cigarette end had been wetted by the rain at some point. Ping, however, was completely unaware. He mechanically raised his right hand, brought the cigarette butt to his lips, took a hard drag, and then mechanically lowered his hand. “Hei Dou!” Ping inadvertently glanced down from the balcony and saw a dark figure sitting on the steps in the rain. The lonely figure looked pitiful. “What are you sitting there for? Don’t you know it’s raining!” Kou Kou 563743675 Ping shouted. Hei Dou didn’t look up. Self-blame and guilt burned like a fire in his chest. He had clearly heard movement in Wang Huan’an’s house, so why didn’t he check it out? What a joke, a special forces operator! Hei Dou naturally heard Ping’s shout, but he lowered his head even further. When the emergency room door opened again, the rain had stopped outside. “We’ve managed to save his life for now!” the doctor said, shaking his body wearily, in a tone that indicated they had done their best. “The rest depends on the patient himself!” At eight o'clock that evening, Gao Xiaofei received a call from the bureau. The technical department, after tireless efforts, had finally cracked the bracelet and successfully retrieved 23 video files. And among these video files was one that… “It’s been confirmed, the victim was not Wang Huan’an! Judging by the structure, the location is at Fengdian Community. It’s a video of a man strangling an old man with a towel!” Gao Xiaofei said to Ping as they walked towards the municipal bureau. “You absolutely wouldn’t guess it, but the recording time of this video was the day Wang Huan’an faked his death! That is, June 28th!” As expected, there was something fishy! It turned out that another murder had occurred in the community, and the police were unaware of it. “Can you determine any further information?” Ping asked. “The video has been sent to you. Oh, you can watch it now!” Gao Xiaofei said after starting the car. Ping opened his phone and clicked on the video. The image was frozen on a balcony window. Inside the window, an old man was sitting in a chair, drinking water, facing the camera. About a few minutes later, a shadowy, masked figure quietly approached from behind the old man and, while he was not paying attention, wrapped a towel around his neck. Over the next few minutes, the old man was strangled. The man in black tested the old man’s breathing and then suddenly stood by the balcony window, as if observing the movements of the opposite building. About two minutes later, the man in black took out a walkie-talkie and said something. At this point, the camera clearly swayed left and right, followed by a ripping sound, and then a man’s voice – “Enjoying the show?” … After a moment of silence, a stranger's voice suddenly rang out. “Who are you? Why are you on our channel?” Someone trembled and asked. “Oh, I caught one!” “If you see what you shouldn’t, you have to pay a price!” “Why aren’t you all speaking?” This article. First Published Site “Then I’ll find you!” “Let me count – one floor, two floors, three floors, four floors, five floors, six floors, seven floors…” The video ended here. After watching the video, Ping suddenly felt dizzy. The car’s movement nearly made him vomit. “Watch the video of Wang Huan’an’s first murder again!” Gao Xiaofei, whose nerves were usually quite thick, didn’t notice Ping’s reaction and sent him another video. This video was more familiar to Ping, as it was the video of Wang Huan’an’s first murder. “The angle is wrong. The two videos were shot from different angles, indicating they weren’t filmed by the same person,” Gao Xiaofei said. Based on the angle, the video of the old man being strangled was shot from a higher position, likely from the rooftop. “I understand what you mean. You’re suggesting that if Shui Gang hadn’t been there that night, then among the voyeurs, at least one person, while discovering Wang Huan’an, also incidentally saw the old man being murdered?” Ping said. “In the video of the old man’s murder, the killer clearly used a walkie-talkie, and on the walkie-talkie channel, there were only five of them. Therefore, the man in black who murdered the old man mistakenly thought that all four of them had seen him commit the murder, which is why he issued the warning via walkie-talkie! But the four voyeurs mistakenly thought it was the person who ‘murdered’ Wang Huan’an who was threatening them…” “It’s a bit convoluted, but that’s exactly it. And I suspect that the only person among the voyeurs who discovered both murders was Han Xiao!” Gao Xiaofei said. “Because only he had to hide from his parents and could only spy from the rooftop! And listen to the voice in that video, doesn't it sound like Han Xiao’s?” “Not bad! I didn’t expect you to have improved so much recently! So, according to your deduction, the killer of the old man is none other than Shui Gang?” Ping said. ID Card - 563743675 “That’s the direction, but I don’t know if it’s correct!” Gao Xiaofei said. “I’ve done my best brainstorming. Now, it’s up to you!” “Haven’t you noticed a fatal flaw?” Ping opened the car window and lit a cigarette. “Shui Gang is unlikely to be the murderer of the old man!” “Oh!” Gao Xiaofei thought for a moment, then asked unyieldingly, “Who else knew about the walkie-talkie? Why can’t it be Shui Gang?” “If you loved someone, would you stand by and watch others spy on her?” Ping asked. “Mmm?” “That night, if Shui Gang had been carrying the walkie-talkie all along, he would have heard the voyeurs discussing spying on Wang Huan’an. Do you think he would have let that happen?” Ping said. “From the fact that the voyeurs were spying on Wang Huan’an behind Shui Gang’s back and raped her, it’s clear that the voyeurs often did bad things behind Shui Gang’s back. Shui Gang probably didn’t carry the walkie-talkie twenty-four hours a day, otherwise, he wouldn’t have missed Wang Huan’an, nor would the voyeurs have succeeded in their misdeeds!” “Hmm, you have a point,” Gao Xiaofei nodded. “Shui Gang risked his life to protect the bracelet in order to protect the person who murdered the old man, so Shui Gang is not the killer!” Ping analyzed. “Do you remember? After Wang Huan’an was killed the second time, the voyeurs were killed consecutively. Think about it: Shui Gang likely knew about the voyeurs raping Wang Huan’an, but after that incident, he didn’t take action against those four people. Why would he rush to kill them later, disregarding the risk of being discovered by the police?” “We’re back to square one. You mean?” Gao Xiaofei said. “In any case, let’s go see that mummy first!” Ping said. Kou Kou 563743675 Under the cover of night, Gao Xiaofei drove his car through the city streets. Ping, sitting in the passenger seat, closed his eyes to rest. The incident with Gao Da had left him exhausted. Gao Xiaofei was also tired, and he was injured, but the case had finally made some progress, and tonight he had to seize the momentum with Ping. On the outskirts of Fengdian Community, a black luxury car slowly stopped by the roadside. “Finally discovered, have we?” In the car, a tall figure leaned back in the rear seat. “My apologies, I didn’t handle it promptly,” the man in the driver’s seat said with regret. “Things seem to be getting out of control, but I can’t worry about that anymore,” the person in the back seat said. “Fortunately, the key items are still out of reach for that guy named Ping,” the man in the driver’s seat said. “Don’t worry about these things. Erase all traces of contact. Anyway, I didn’t kill the person, so let Ping busy himself for a while,” the person in the back seat said. “But…” the man in the driver’s seat said with some reluctance. “It’s alright, I still have time. I’m not afraid,” the person in the back seat said leisurely. This evening, Fengdian Community seemed quite lively. Behind these two luxury cars, an inconspicuous minivan was parked by the roadside, as if waiting for someone. ID Card - 563743675 “It seems I was too hasty!” In the minivan, a man wearing sunglasses said into his phone. “I’ve waited so long, and he’s finally out. He couldn’t sit still, but I don’t know if he has any more tricks up his sleeve,” the man continued. “I never expected Shui Gang to go this far,” the man said, sounding somewhat dejected. “It’s all the fault of those few voyeurs. Otherwise, the police wouldn’t have discovered all this! Thinking back now, I wish they could die again!” the man said through clenched teeth. Just then, he noticed the luxury car in front start up. He quickly hung up the phone and started his minivan. In the jungle outside the car, a praying mantis was cautiously pouncing towards its “prey,” completely oblivious to a cicada stealthily approaching from behind…