Death Notice 2 Destiny

Chapter 6

As he spoke, he turned to look at the entrance to the hall not far away, where a sign that read "Silence" stood, and two dignified guards stood guard beside it.

"Got a cold?" Zhu Xiaozhi asked, beckoning the man with her hand. The man understood and quickly freed one hand to take out his ID and hand it over.

It was an electronic card from the public security system. The card reader showed that the visitor was Officer Xu Zhankun from the Criminal Investigation Team of the Dongcheng Branch. Zhu Xiaozhi looked up, wanting to compare the man's face with her own, but unexpectedly, the man suddenly sneezed. Although she covered her face with a handkerchief, Zhu Xiaozhi still seemed to feel a spittle splash on her face. She immediately showed a very obvious expression of disgust.

"I'm sorry!" the man hurriedly apologized, turned his body to the side, and then hit the ground even louder.

"Go in." Zhu Xiaozhi tossed out the electronic card and waved her hand urging them on. The temperature had dropped these past few days, and there was a flu outbreak; she didn't want to catch it.

The man went into the archives area, and when he came out ten minutes later, he had a stack of file folders in his hand.

"Please make copies of these materials for me, thank you," he said, still covering his mouth and nose with a handkerchief. According to regulations, the archives cannot be borrowed. To take them away for reading, only photocopying is permitted.

There were over a dozen files, totaling several hundred pages of information. While Zhu Xiaozhi was working on them, the man consciously stepped back to the side.

After all the work was completed, Zhu Xiaozhi pushed the thick stack of documents and a detailed list onto the table: "The photocopying fee is seventy-nine yuan. Please sign this detailed list."

The man paid the money first, then took a pen and signed his name on the receipt: Xu Zhankun. He wrote each stroke very carefully.

Zhu Xiaozhi pursed her lips in surprise. It was the first time she had ever seen someone sign their name in such a standard Song typeface. It was so neat, as if it had been printed.

However, she didn't think much of it. As she folded up the list and put it away, the man had already left the archives quickly with the documents he had found.

"I'm going to get bored again," Zhu Xiaozhi muttered to herself. Then she found a rag and carefully wiped the places the man had touched, as if that would remove the annoying cold germs.

Luo Fei had originally planned to visit Wu Yinwu at the hospital that evening with Mu Jianyun, but now that plan had to be changed. This was because Zeng Rihua had provided an even more urgent lead.

The situation is roughly as follows:

Around 3 PM this afternoon, Officer Xu Zhankun of the Dongcheng Public Security Bureau's Criminal Investigation Team was attacked by an unidentified assailant while on plainclothes investigating a case. Subsequent analysis revealed that the attacker administered the sedative triazolam from behind, causing Xu to briefly lose consciousness. Upon regaining consciousness, Xu immediately reported the incident to his superiors, who initially believed the attack was related to his ongoing mission. Around 6 PM, Xu returned to the unit's canteen for lunch and discovered his electronic police card was missing. He realized the afternoon's incident might have been an attempt to steal his card. He contacted the network department, headed by Zeng Rihua, to check the card's usage records. The records showed the cardholder had retrieved a large amount of criminal investigation data from the Public Security Bureau's archives management center. Zeng Rihua's subordinates subsequently found the intruder's signature at the archives management center; it was this peculiar signature that greatly surprised Zeng Rihua.

The Song typeface, which looked like it had been printed, left the police with no way to analyze the handwriting—this was Eumenides' usual style!

Luo Fei and Zeng Rihua rushed to the archives management center. There, they spoke separately with Xu Zhankun and Zhu Xiaozhi, the parties involved in the incident.

Because Xu Zhankun was attacked from behind in a secluded place, he was basically unable to provide any valuable clues; while Zhu Xiaozhi could only say that the perpetrator was relatively tall, but could not describe his appearance, because the perpetrator always covered most of his face with a large handkerchief.

"Was he wearing gloves?" Zeng Rihua asked after listening to Zhu Xiaozhi's account.

"It seems not..." Zhu Xiaozhi thought for a moment, then nodded firmly, "No!"

"Then he would have left fingerprints!" Zeng Rihua exclaimed excitedly. "What about the pen he used?"

Zhu Xiaozhi pointed to the pen, which was right next to the computer monitor.

"Quick, put it away." Zeng Rihua looked at Luo Fei. He wasn't a criminal investigator and wouldn't carry evidence bags or similar items.

Luo Fei took out a bag and handed it to him: "Take it if you're interested, I don't think it makes any sense."

Zeng Rihua's enthusiasm was dampened, and he looked at Luo Fei in frustration.

“There are many ways to hide fingerprints, and you don’t necessarily have to wear gloves.” Seeing Zeng Rihua’s eyes widen, Luo Fei further explained, “The simplest and most invisible way is to apply a layer of glue to the inside of your palm. So forget about fingerprints—we don’t expect an opponent like Eumenides to make such a basic mistake.”

“Okay…you are indeed an expert in this area…” Zeng Rihua scratched his head awkwardly and changed the subject, “Then let’s quickly see what files he took away. We need to know what that guy is planning to do next.”

Luo Fei nodded; this was the right approach. He took the stack of files in his hands and then instructed, "Immediately notify all members of the task force to hold a meeting in one hour!"

8:46 PM.

The members of the task force gathered together again, taking turns looking through the files that Luo Fei had just brought back.

Yin Jian was the last to arrive at the conference room, looking anxious and exhausted. He had spent the entire day searching for Han Hao, a search that clearly had not yielded satisfactory results.

"What's the situation now?" Luo Fei had already reviewed the information beforehand, so he had time to discuss other things with Yin Jian.

"A robbery occurred at noon by the Niujiao River. The victims were a couple, and based on their description, the perpetrator was Han Hao." This was the only clue Yin Jian had obtained so far.

Luo Fei didn't show any particular expression. In fact, he had expected this situation: Han Hao had no money when he fled, and he knew that the police would definitely monitor his family and friends, so theft or robbery was something he had to do.

"How much money did he steal?" Luo Fei was particularly concerned about this; he needed to determine how long the robbery could sustain the perpetrators.

"More than six hundred yuan. He also stole the male victim's jacket, which he will probably use to change his appearance. I have added the jacket's features to the missing person notice."

"Get it off quickly," Luo Fei immediately interrupted Yin Jian. "He already has over six hundred yuan in cash, so he has plenty of options to change his appearance. Stealing this jacket is just a ruse; he's trying to mislead us."

Yin Jian quickly took out his phone and followed up on the matter.

Eumenides took thirteen files in total, and the group spent about twenty minutes quickly browsing through them. Seeing that it was about time, Luo Fei asked everyone, "What do you think?"

"I can't figure it out," Mu Jianyun shook his head first. "There's absolutely no pattern to it."

This is the consensus of everyone. These thirteen criminal investigation files belong to thirteen different cases. In terms of case type, they range from murder to theft; in terms of time of occurrence, they range from decades ago to just one or two years ago; in terms of suspects, they include men and women, young and old, some already brought to justice, and some still serving time in prison; in terms of the investigating units, multiple branches of the provincial capital are involved. In short, no matter how you look at it, you can't find anything in common among these thirteen cases.

"What exactly is he trying to do?" Liu Song from the SWAT team was also puzzled. "These are all cases that have been solved, and the criminals have already been punished. Why would he take such a big risk to find this information?"

This was indeed puzzling. After a moment of silence, Zeng Rihua said, "Perhaps it wasn't aimed at those criminals... he was just inquiring about something?"

Mu Jianyun immediately took over: "I really can't think of anything that could involve so many random cases."

Zeng Rihua grinned, speechless.

Luo Fei, who had already given it much thought, finally spoke at this moment.

"The absence of a pattern is itself a pattern," he said meaningfully.

Everyone paused, then seemed to grasp the meaning. Zeng Rihua, however, was the quickest to react, clapping his hands and saying, "Yes! This is the pattern Eumenides wanted. He's misleading us! Only one file is what he's looking for; the other twelve are just decoys, like the jacket Han Hao stole!"

When Zeng Rihua said this, everyone else nodded silently. They had actually thought of this as well, but he had said it first.

“So that file is crucial.” Whether she agreed or disagreed, Mu Jianyun seemed to enjoy picking up on Zeng Rihua’s points. “Eumenides took such a big risk to search for it, and went to great lengths to mislead the police. That file must contain some very important information!”

The logic was obvious, Liu Song said with a troubled expression, pointing out the crux of the problem: "But how do we know which of these thirteen portions it is?"

Luo Fei crossed his arms, his thumbs circling each other. Although he didn't speak, his expression suggested he already had some ideas.

Half an hour later.

Luo Fei and Zeng Rihua returned to the archives management center. In the small hall to their left were criminal investigation files from the past few decades that had been closed; the files Eumenides had copied all came from this hall.

The filing cabinets on all four walls were densely packed with documents, arranged in chronological order.

Because these are all old archives, few people usually come to browse them, so most of the materials are arranged neatly. A layer of dust has accumulated on the seams of the file folders, but it is not enough to cover the file summaries marked on the seams.

Eumenides took thirteen files from them. Which one was his real target?

Luo Fei's eyes scanned back and forth among the documents, searching for the original locations of the thirteen files. Then he took out a pen and drew a circle the size of a bowl on the edge of the file folder around the empty space.

"Alright, go turn off the lights." After all thirteen circles were drawn, Luo Fei instructed Zeng Rihua, who was waiting nearby.

Although Zeng Rihua didn't understand why, he obediently did as he was told. The archives room was plunged into darkness.

A moment later, a faint light appeared in the darkness, emanating from a fluorescent lamp in Luo Fei's hand. This was one of the devices frequently used by criminal investigators, often in conjunction with fingerprint powder to detect fingerprints left by criminal suspects.

Luo Fei already knew that Eumenides couldn't possibly leave fingerprints, so what was he planning to do by taking out this fluorescent light?

Luo Fei shone a fluorescent light on the circles he had just drawn. He examined them very carefully, looking at each circle one by one, sometimes tilting his head to change the angle of his observation. Clearly, he was looking for something.

Zeng Rihua also went over, but he really couldn't see anything amiss. The fluorescent light illuminated Luo Fei's face, his expression serious, which made the atmosphere even more somber in the darkness.

After a long while, Luo Fei finally finished looking at all thirteen circles. He then let out a soft sigh of relief, a look of satisfaction on his face as if he had accomplished a great task.

Zeng Rihua's anxiety subsided, and he asked expectantly, "Captain Luo, is there any progress?"

"Come here, look here." Luo Fei shone a fluorescent light on a circle in the lower left corner of the filing cabinet, while moving aside to beckon Zeng Rihua to come and look.

Zeng Rihua crouched down, looking in the direction of the fluorescent light. Different reflections appeared within the circle, showing varying degrees of dust accumulation on the seams of the file folder.

"Look here," Luo Fei pointed out the key point. "The dust on the edges of several file folders has come off, which are marks from fingers recently turning them over. Can you imagine what it was like? He flipped through them one by one, checking the summaries on the edges, and finally found his target and pulled out one of the files."

“Hmm.” Zeng Rihua nodded, easily imagining Eumenides’ movements from the traces. In fact, this was a common action most people would take when searching for something among a pile of letters.

“Alright, let’s look at the other circles.” Luo Fei moved the fluorescent light to another key area. “Look, the dust on the seams of the file folders near the empty spaces is intact. What does that mean? It means that he didn’t search for the files when he took them from these places. He just randomly pulled them out, quickly and hurriedly, because he wasn’t very confident that he would stay in the archives for a long time.”

“Yes!” Zeng Rihua fully understood Luo Fei’s meaning and couldn’t help but applaud. “So all these distractions are just a pretext; the file in the lower left corner is Eumenides’ only target.”

"Look what that is."

Zeng Rihua quickly turned on the light. He had brought all thirteen files with him, and he easily found the one he had taken from the empty seat in the corner by date.

The file was from 1984, a sensitive year that immediately made Luo Fei's brow furrow. On the cover of the file folder was a title: "The 130 Malicious Hostage Situation."

What kind of case is this? Luo Fei frowned, trying hard to recall, but couldn't find much of an impression. Judging from the title, the case occurred on January 30, 1984, just over two months before the April 18 Incident.

What is its connection to the April 18 Incident? Why is Eumenides so fond of this file? These questions can only be answered after a careful examination of its contents.

9:24 PM.

Just as the city's nightlife was reaching its peak, the Balala Bar was packed with people.

A scantily clad female singer swayed wildly across the center of the bar, her rhythmic music and husky, unrestrained vocals spreading an alluring atmosphere throughout the bar.

Some people were playing drinking games, while others were swaying and dancing wildly. The lights flickered on and off, making the faces of these men and women look like ghosts, unrecognizable and illusory.

Finding someone in such an environment would obviously be very difficult.

Therefore, Han Hao chose to recuperate here.

Although he has successfully escaped from prison, the road ahead for him remains extremely dangerous.

He was familiar with the police's search methods; he couldn't go to a hotel, nor could he seek refuge with relatives or friends; he couldn't even take a taxi. In this city, he was practically trapped in a desperate situation, unable to move an inch!

At noon, he was forced to rob a couple. He could never forget the look in the young people's eyes when they looked at him—surprise, fear, disgust. That look made him feel a deep sense of depravity, a pain that pierced his very soul!

He had become a criminal, a despicable character whom he once loathed and wished to eradicate.

When he arrived at the bar, he ordered a bottle of ice-cold beer and downed it in one gulp. Only after the icy sensation spread throughout his body did he calm down a little.

He must control his emotions in order to find a glimmer of hope in this desperate situation.

During the robbery at noon, he also took the young man's jacket as a cover-up; he quickly threw the jacket into a roadside trash can. However, he knew this deception wouldn't last long, especially in front of Luo Fei.

He had to find a place to stay as soon as possible, a place he rarely went to before but which was now absolutely safe.

Where can you find such a place?

Amidst the frenetic music, Han Hao was already getting a headache from thinking.

He had finished the bottle of wine and didn't want to order any more, because he needed to stay clear-headed.

However, someone seemed determined to antagonize him, placing a dozen freshly opened beers in front of him.

Han Hao looked up alertly and saw a heavily made-up woman sitting opposite him.

"Brother, let's have a drink!" the woman shouted at the top of her lungs. In the noisy environment of the bar, this was a common way of speaking.

"Go away, I don't need it." Han Hao waved his hand impatiently. "I just want to be alone."

But the woman didn't leave; instead, she moved closer to Han Hao. This time, she put her lips to Han Hao's ear and whispered, "It's on the house, Brother Han."