Discours étrange - Chapitre 13
After learning that the murderer had been apprehended, I rushed to the police station to speak with the detective and get more information.
The person who asked these questions wasn't just an eyewitness at the scene, but also a reporter. That day, after Tang finished his report, Director Zong, upon learning that I was the first to discover the body and had such a connection to it, immediately ordered me to write a lengthy feature article after the case was solved. Tang was extremely unhappy about this, because such a long feature article was clearly a high-reward opportunity. But there was nothing he could do; my circumstances were exceptionally favorable. If I were more diligent, he wouldn't even get that small reward for the first report.
But after hearing what I said, the detective smiled strangely and shook his head.
"There's no rush to talk about the murderer."
"Oh, is there anything more important?" I asked curiously.
The detective stared at me, his face darkening, but he didn't answer. Instead, he grabbed the telephone on the table and made a call.
The place where he received me was an empty room. When I walked in, I felt that this was a place where police officers interrogated criminals, at least it was somewhat similar to the small room where I had my statement taken that day.
The atmosphere was uncomfortably cold. Just as I was about to say something, the door opened and a young police officer walked in.
"Take a statement," the detective said.
"What are you doing? You still doubt me?" I said somewhat indignantly.
"I hope you will answer my questions truthfully."
"Okay, what do you want to ask?"
"Did you omit anything in your statement during the last interview?"
"No, I have told you everything I know that is related to this case."
"Is that so?" the detective retorted rather unfriendly.
"Yes." We looked into each other's eyes, and I clearly conveyed my dissatisfaction.
"So, where did you go this time last week?"
What happened this time last week?
Seeing my hesitation, the detective added, "Do I need to remind you? You weren't in Shanghai that morning, were you?"
"I went to Datang Village." It seems he already knew, so there's no way he can deny it. He probably found out after He Xi and I left Datang Village, when local or Shanghai police investigated.
"What are you going to do?"
"I need to know some information." I thought to myself, you already know everything, why are you asking me?
"After Huang Zhi died, you went to Datang Village and impersonated a policeman to ask all sorts of questions. Do you still dare to say that you didn't hide anything from the police?"
"I didn't impersonate a police officer; the person who went with me was..."
"It's forensic doctor He, right? She's a forensic doctor, which is different from a criminal police officer qualified to solve this case. Also, the day before yesterday, she investigated a former midwife of the First Maternity and Infant Hospital through a household registration police officer in Yangpu District. Why was that? Is it related to this case? In the past few days, forensic doctor He has shown unusual enthusiasm for Huang Zhi's body. Judging from the autopsy report she handed me, I have no idea what caused her enthusiasm."
Why don't you just ask He Xi directly?
“Now it’s my turn to ask you.” The detective slammed his hand on the table. “I will naturally go and ask Doctor He.” He continued.
I sensed a lack of confidence in the latter part of his statement, and I knew in my heart that He Xi's identity as a forensic doctor was not so simple. He couldn't interrogate He Xi the same way he interrogated me. He might even have run into a snag with He Xi and taken his anger out on me.
"It is indeed related to Huang Zhi, but it's not that I concealed it when I first gave my statement. Rather, there are some things I only learned after Huang Zhi died."
"Then why didn't you tell the police about the new situation directly, instead of choosing to investigate on your own?" the detective questioned me aggressively.
"First of all, although these things are related to Huang Zhi, I'm not sure if they are related to her death. Secondly, I think even if I told you, you wouldn't take it seriously, and you might even think I'm crazy."
"How I judge is my business. Now, tell me everything, and don't let me find out you're hiding anything!"
I shrugged and began to recount everything from when He Xi told me about the dead baby in the Korean refrigerator, all the way to today's visit to Yue Wenying, including some of my own thoughts.
As I was speaking, the young policeman taking my statement kept looking up at me with strange eyes. Meanwhile, Detective Wang's indifferent expression grew stronger, and several times I saw him about to interrupt me.
"This is absurd, this is absurd!" After I finished speaking, the detective glared at me and said, "Do you think I'm a fool, or a delusional maniac, that I would believe what you're saying?"
"Whether you believe it or not, you can verify what I've said. As for my judgments, just consider me a delusional person. Perhaps you can make some more reasonable inferences. In fact, I'd also like to draw some less exaggerated conclusions."
The detective shook his head again, saying, "Of course I'll investigate, but I must say, sir, your imagination is truly boundless. What kind of world do you think we live in…?"
"What kind of world do you think we live in?" I blurted out to him, asking him in return.
"Um?"
"I'm sure you know why departments like the Special Affairs Division were established within the public security system."
"The Special Affairs Department?" The detective frowned, then gave me a meaningful look. I think he should remember by now that I had cooperated with the Special Affairs Department quite a bit.
Sure enough, his expression softened a little, and he asked me again, "You just said that you took a picture at Yue Wenying's place today?"
I honestly took out my digital camera.
The detective narrowed his eyes as he looked at the photo displayed on the LCD screen. He turned to the young policeman and said, "Make a copy of this photo, print out a clear one, and bring it along with the portrait drawn based on the villagers' descriptions."
The policeman responded and got up to leave.
“The villagers of Datang Village saw that a stranger had been in contact with Huang Zhi’s daughter, Zhou Qianqian, on several occasions. Based on the description, we asked an expert to make a simulation,” the detective explained to me.
A short while later, the young policeman returned with two pictures.
The detective compared the two pictures, nodded, and then showed them to me.
"It seems you've provided us with another very important piece of information. We had a misunderstanding earlier and our attitude towards you was not good. I apologize to you."
I said it was okay, and then carefully compared the pictures on the two sheets of paper. One was an enlarged version of the photograph, with Xue Ying's face in the back row circled in red. The other sheet contained three computer-generated images of different profiles of faces.
They do look very similar, especially the eyes, nose, and face shape, which are almost identical.
"Send this photo to Kunshan immediately and have them verify with the relevant villagers in Datang to see if it's this person," the detective told the young policeman.
"Didn't you say on the phone earlier that the murderer had been caught? How come it seems the case isn't closed yet?" I asked.
"The murderer has indeed been caught, and he has confessed. The case is now closed, but..." The detective clicked his tongue at this point.
"However, the motive for the crime is still unclear. The suspect has said it was for money or sex, but based on the situation at the scene, neither of these reasons holds water. Nevertheless, the person was indeed murdered, that much is certain. But since the motive is unclear, we cannot rule out the possibility that there are other perpetrators behind it."
"Can I meet the murderer, as a journalist?"
Perhaps out of a sense of compensation, the detective readily agreed to my request, only asking me to inform the police before writing the report.
"Hmm, I have an idea, what do you think about doing this..."
I told the detective about the idea that had suddenly popped into my head. He glanced at me and said, "Why not give it a try? I think it's a shame you're not a detective."
"Ha, the Special Affairs Department seems quite keen for me to join," I said with a laugh.
The suspect who was caught is named Lü Wanqiang, a 23-year-old migrant worker from another province.
That morning at eight o'clock, he lingered near the small hotel for a while, occasionally looking up at the building. He also bought two pancakes from a nearby pancake stall, ate one and a half, and threw the remaining half on the roadside. He confessed to all of this, and it was also confirmed by eyewitnesses.
The plump woman had suffered from insomnia the night before and slept poorly. When she sat in front of the inn in the morning, she became drowsy. Just as she was slumped over the counter trying to catch up on sleep, Lü Wanqiang entered the small inn. He went up to the third floor, knocked on Huang Zhi's door, and struck her temple, causing her to faint. He then used a nylon rope he had brought to tie her to a chair and finally strangled her to death.
As Lü Wanqiang went downstairs, he exchanged a glance with a waiter on the second floor. This glance became a crucial clue for the police, leading to their swift capture of him.
After killing the man, Lü Wanqiang did not attempt to flee. Instead, he acted as if nothing had happened, traveling around Shanghai and returning to his rented apartment to sleep at night until he was arrested by the police.
I took Detective Wang's police car to the detention center where Lü Wanqiang was being held. He had everything arranged for me, and I just had to wait in the visiting room.
The meeting room was divided in two by thick bulletproof glass. I waited a short while, and then I saw the door to the opposite half of the room open, and a guard brought in a young man in handcuffs.
"Lü Wanqiang?" I said.
He glanced at me but didn't say anything.
"This is Lü Wanqiang," the guard said to me, then he asked Lü Wanqiang to sit down opposite me.
"Answer properly," he said, then turned and left.
Lü Wanqiang had a square face, a buzz cut, fine downy hair on his upper lip, and acne on his face. To be honest, this murderer who brutally killed Huang Zhi was still a young man.
"Hello, I'm Nado, a reporter from Morning Star." I greeted him as if he were any other interviewee. Of course, I would usually say "Nice to meet you," but I didn't this time.
He nodded and gave me a smile that wasn't very genuine in response.
How many years have you been working away from home?
“Five years.” Lü Wanqiang seemed somewhat surprised, because I hadn’t asked about the murder case right away.
What kinds of jobs have you done?
"Construction workers, security guards, water carriers, and deliverymen."
"Do you have a wife yet?"
He shook his head.
"Do you want to make money so you can go home and find a wife?"
"I want to get a Shanghai." He grinned, and at that moment he even seemed a little innocent.
"It's good to have something to look forward to, so why did you kill someone? Were you short of money?"
He immediately stopped smiling, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "Kill me if you want."
"For money?"
"Kill me if you want." He turned his face slightly to the side and repeated.
I frowned. I had just set the atmosphere for a good time and was thinking of asking him something in a relaxed manner, but as soon as I touched on it, he seemed to have touched a forbidden area in his heart and immediately shut the door to communication.
"Is it for the money?"
"A little."
"It seems you told the police that you were attracted to her because she was pretty, so..."
“A little bit of both. I’ve said it before, I’ll kill if I want to.” He raised an eyebrow, looking at me defiantly.
"But you didn't touch her, did you? Neither money nor sex, you didn't touch her."
"I panicked when I killed him, so I ran away."
"Then how did you know where Huang Zhi lived? You've met her before, right?" I changed the subject.
“I saw it the day before, when I was shopping. It was quite pretty, so I noticed it.”
"You followed her to the hotel where she was staying?"
Lu Wanqiang smiled strangely: "I saw a man who was following her, which was a bit odd, so I followed him."
Haha, so it turns out that when the stalker was following Huang Zhi that day, there was actually someone hanging behind him.
Why didn't you do it then?
"I hesitated at the time, but made up my mind the next day."