Chapter 244: The Suspect
“Yang Xinwu? I’ve never heard of this transmigrator,” Su Wan said, pouring tea for Mu Min.
“He’s a transmigrator teacher at Fangcaodi. He has no official position, so he’s not well-known.”
“A teacher at Fangcaodi? That really makes one’s imagination run wild,” Su Wan said maliciously.
“Obviously, this Transmigrator Yang and his life secretary are the biggest suspects in this case. From a purely case-solving perspective, the case is almost clear. However, the chain of evidence is not yet complete, especially the so-called record of Yang Jihong sending Lin Xiaoya away at 10:10 PM that night, which plays a rather troublesome role.”
“This little trick proves nothing. The body is right here in the residential area. It’s a case of ‘the buried treasure is not here’…”
“I also find this a bit strange, because if the body had been taken out and dumped, it would have caused more trouble for the investigation.” Mu Min nodded. “However, in most cases, criminals are flustered. There are not many people who can think calmly and consider all aspects.”
The residential area was deserted. It was working hours, and almost all the transmigrators had gone out. The maids were either busy with housework at home or out shopping. There were only a few cleaners sweeping the streets in the residential area.
The crime scene remained as it was. Because there were no transmigrator police officers or forensic doctors in Lingao at the time of the incident, those who came to the scene were their apprentices, so their level was naturally a cause for concern. Therefore, at that time, besides recording the situation at the crime scene and taking some photos, not much was done to disturb the scene. A cordon was set up around it, and no one was allowed to enter or exit. The rooftop of the third floor where the fall occurred was also sealed off.
The position of the body, marked with lime, was clear within the cordon. The bloodstains on the cinder ground were still clearly visible.
“Where is the body?” she asked Wu Xiang.
“It’s been sent to the forensic center.”
“When will the autopsy report be out?”
“I’m afraid it will be a few days. Chief Su has gone to Kaohsiung, and the General Office said she won’t be back for several days.”
A naturalized citizen police officer was guarding the scene. Seeing the arrival of a senior police officer, the police officer who had been standing guard with a crooked posture immediately stood at attention and saluted.
Mu Min was annoyed at the sight of the naturalized citizen police officer. Although they wore the same uniform, the staff of the Political Security Bureau, regardless of age, were all capable and upright, exuding the air of “secret police.” In contrast, the police officers under her command were all sleazy-looking, and some were even lightly disabled soldiers who had been transferred from the army. Not only did they lack the spirit of the others, but their uniforms were invariably worn like flour sacks, with their belts hanging loosely on their bodies. He had an old 9mm revolver and a baton.
“Name? Officer,” Mu Min asked without taking her eyes off the position of the body.
“Yao Dacheng, Regional Commander!”
“Alright,” Mu Min asked in a gentle voice, “When was it discovered?”
“Last night at 10:16 PM, Chief. We were on duty at the time. After receiving a call from the duty room here, we handled it as a top priority. We were here in 10 minutes.” Yao Dacheng seemed very proud of his speed.
“Who found him?”
Yao Dacheng pointed behind his shoulder.
A slightly plump, middle-aged naturalized citizen woman in a gray skirt “cadre uniform” walked over. She was the manager of the transmigrator service center here. Her face was ashen, and she looked very dejected.
“How did you find the body?”
“My dormitory is on the third floor. I got up at night to use the toilet. On my way back from the toilet, I saw that the door to the roof was open. That door is usually not locked, but it’s always closed. I went up to have a look and saw a body downstairs.”
The female manager seemed to be still in shock. She pressed her chest: “It was horrible, so much blood…”
“Did you hear any unusual noises before that?”
“No, I was asleep.”
“Why were you sleeping here? Which transmigrators live in this transmigrator dormitory building? Is there a list?” Mu Min felt that this building where the incident occurred was a bit strange—it was much smaller than the other buildings.
“This is not a transmigrator’s dormitory building,” the service center manager said with a sad face. “This is the service center’s building.”
Such a major incident had occurred in the transmigrator residential area, and this girl had the misfortune to fall to her death at the foot of the service center’s building. Not only would she lose her position as manager, but she might also be arrested and tortured, and become a scapegoat…
The service center, as its name suggests, was an institution that served the transmigrators in the residential area. The building housed a large laundry room with integrated washing, ironing, and pressing services; a convenience store that provided simple fast food, snacks, and daily necessities for the transmigrators; a sewing cooperative that provided clothing making and mending services… The offices and staff dormitories of the cleaning and gardening teams that served the residential area were also located in this building.
“How many people were in the building on the night of the incident?”
“Besides me, there were probably five or six others. According to the regulations of the General Office, every department has someone on duty to serve the transmigrators at any time.”
“Give me a list.”
“Yes, Chief.”
“Let’s go to the roof.”
The roof was a rare flat roof in the residential area. According to the female manager, it was mainly for the convenience of the laundry room to dry clothes.
“The person probably fell from here,” Wu Xiang said, pointing to a place where the railing was broken.
There was a photo of this place in the case file. The railing on the roof was made of wood and was very simple. At the gap, the top of the two railings was completely broken off, and the one below was intact.
“Where is the top railing?”
“It’s been sent to the identification center.”
“The broken part has severe signs of corrosion. It should have rotted through long ago. It broke after being hit by a heavy object,” Wu Xiang said.
Mu Min did not speak. The National Police did not have professional identification personnel. The so-called identification center was something they, a few criminal police officers, had cobbled together based on materials from the Great Library and things they had learned from the TV series CSI, combined with their own experience. Only God knew what useful things could be found on the railing.
Besides that, there were no other useful clues left on the roof: no footprints worth extracting, no fragments of clothing, or any other residue.
However, by now Mu Min had a general understanding of the case, and the suspect was also largely clear. Although the motive was not yet clear, the case itself was very simple.
“Alright, tell them they can clean up the scene,” Mu Min said, taking off her gloves. “Let them take statements. Xiao Wu, you go to the General Office’s transportation office this afternoon and take a statement from the coachman who sent Lin Xiaoya out last night.”
“Yes, Chief.”
“The coachman obviously couldn’t have seen Lin Xiaoya,” Su Wan said.
“Yes, after the coachman drove the carriage to the entrance of the dormitory building, Yang Jihong came out and asked him to go upstairs to move things, and then told him that he was going to send someone out with him. After arriving at the destination, Bairen City Station, Yang Jihong asked him to go to the station store to buy something. When he came back, he said the person had already entered the station and left. The coachman never saw this person who went out with him in the carriage.”
“That’s a lie, of course.”
“The evidence has to form a chain,” Mu Min continued. “My people showed Lin Xiaoya’s photo to the police officers on duty at the station during that time, the ticket sellers, and the clerks in the nearby stores. No one said they had seen her.”
“Actually, there’s no need to investigate this case any further. Transmigrator Yang and his life secretary are the biggest suspects.”
“Yes, maybe the identification center can find some new clues from the railing. That would undoubtedly be the weapon used to beat Lin Xiaoya.”
At this point, both of them fell silent. The next step was to summon and question Transmigrator Yang, which was beyond the scope of the police’s authority. It required the approval of the Executive Committee, and even the Standing Committee of the Senate.
“This process will probably drag on for a long time…”
“Not necessarily,” Mu Min said. “A transmigrator kills a naturalized citizen, and it’s just a slap on the wrist.” She let out a breath of frustration. “What a pity, such a young girl, in the prime of her life…”
She suppressed her emotions and returned to the narrative of the case.
After leaving the residential area, Mu Min first did some paperwork. She sent a letter to the General Office, requesting to see Yang Jihong’s personal file, and also, if possible, Yang Xinwu’s organization department file. Then she went to the maid school. Because she had a pass issued by the General Office, she was able to enter this place that was very mysterious even to the transmigrators.
Led by a female staff member, Mu Min walked along the open corridor towards the office of the director of the “General Office Life Secretary Training Center.” On one side of the corridor was the central garden, lush and green with blooming flowers. On the other side were classrooms with large glass windows. Through the glass windows, you could see the students in class. The sound of teaching could be heard from time to time in the corridor.
“…Now let’s review section seventeen. Pay attention to the beat, and the movements must be steady…”
“…When cooking noodles, the first thing to pay attention to is controlling the heat…”
“…The arrival of the transmigrators has freed our vast suffering people from the sea of misery…”
“…Outside the long pavilion, by the ancient road, the setting sun connects with the green sky…”
…
Dong Weiwei was already waiting for Mu Min in her office. Mu Min had called in advance.
“Thank you for your trouble, making a special trip.”
“Not at all. You’re the one who has it hard. You have a child to take care of at home, and you still have to be here for the transmigrators, um…”
“Raising concubines,” Dong Weiwei sighed. “As a woman, this job is really disgusting. But it’s much more relaxed here than at the Social Work Department. I’ll change my post when the child is older. What do you want to investigate?”
“I want to investigate Lin Xiaoya’s situation at the school.”
“I’ve already prepared Lin Xiaoya’s file,” Dong Weiwei said, handing a file on her desk to Mu Min. “Poor child, she was supposed to report to Fangcaodi in three days.”