Binjiang Police Affairs

Chapter 1550 - 310: Major Breakthrough!

It’s mealtime, many customers are here at "Chuanfu Old Chen" for a meal, and quite a few are also dining at the small restaurants next door.Standing outside the police car didn’t feel appropriate, so Han Yu simply opened the car door and let Zhang Hongmei get in.

It was Zhang Hongmei’s first time in a police car, but she couldn’t care less about the differences between a police car and a taxi, as she took the flashlight handed over by her brother-in-law and racked her brain to recall the victim’s photo.

"No rush, take your time to think."

It’s like searching high and low only to find it right under your nose.

Han Yu was both excited and tense, worried that his little cousin’s girlfriend might be nervous too, so he asked in the calmest tone possible, "Did she ever dine at Chuanfu? Did you see her in the restaurant?"

"Probably not, let me think again."

"When did you see her? You should have some impression."

"Seems like yesterday. If not yesterday, then the day before. Anyway, it was within the last two days."

After some troublemakers caused a stir at Chuanfu last time, the police station asked Boss Chen to install surveillance cameras. Han Yu was about to go in and check the store’s surveillance tapes when Zhang Hongmei suddenly said, "I remember now, it was yesterday afternoon!"

"You deal with customers every day, could you be mistaken?"

"No way!"

"Why is your impression of her so deep?"

"She’s pretty, and her clothes are nice!" Zhang Hongmei finally recalled, pointing at the photo with a smile: "We didn’t see her in the restaurant, we saw her at the noodle house in the back alley. I told Aidong I liked her outfit, and Aidong said we’d go buy it when we get paid, wear it for the New Year!"

Han Yu’s heart was pounding with excitement, and he pressed, "What time yesterday afternoon?"

"Around four-thirty. We had just finished tidying up the newly rented rooms and were leaving when she happened to come out of the noodle house too, that’s how we met."

"Newly rented rooms?"

"Yes, the store spaces rented for brother-in-law to open a sour and spicy noodle shop, those two rooms." Zhang Hongmei was afraid her brother-in-law wouldn’t believe her, so she quickly added, "We start work at five, and have to change into work clothes, so we left at 4:30."

Han Yu realized, laughing as he asked, "Was she alone or with someone when you saw her?"

"It seemed like two people. She came out first and seemed unfamiliar with this area, she should have gone east, but she went the wrong way after leaving the noodle house, heading into the alley and ran into us. A man shouted from behind, and she turned around and walked with us toward the main road."

"How old was the man, what did he look like?"

"Not very old, I don’t remember what he looked like, I was focused on her outfit."

"Not very old, how old?"

"In his twenties."

"What was the man wearing?"

"I can’t remember, it was ordinary. Not very handsome, else I would have remembered."

Turns out the little cousin’s girlfriend paid attention to the victim because she liked her outfit!

Realizing no more information could be gleaned, Han Yu got out of the car, easily found the kitchen of Chuanfu, and without caring that his little cousin was busy, called him into the hallway, using the flashlight to identify the photo.

"She looks like the girl from yesterday."

"How similar?"

"Very similar, should be her."

"What about the guy?"

"I don’t have much impression of the guy, but I remember now, he had a motorcycle and took the girl away on it!"

"What kind of motorcycle?"

"Qianjiang 125."

Sis really made a great call earlier!

If not for sis calling to meet at Chuanfu and greet Dad and Mom, such a significant breakthrough wouldn’t have been had.

Han Yu’s blood was boiling with excitement, and he smilingly asked the little cousin, "You don’t remember what the guy looked like, but recall it was a Qianjiang 125. Aidong, how do you remember so clearly?"

Xiang Aidong scratched his neck, smiling sheepishly, "I’ve been wanting to buy a motorcycle."

"Got it, go ahead with your work."

"Brother-in-law, I’ll head back in."

"Alright, go ahead, or the dining customers might send back their dishes."

Han Yu patted his little cousin’s arm and opened the back door of Chuanfu, walking through the corridor out of the restaurant.

Zhang Hongmei caught up to ask, "Brother-in-law, aren’t you staying to eat?"

"I can’t, I have an urgent matter, please let your sister know."

"Ok."

...

Cracking a case is all about racing against time.

Han Yu couldn’t afford any delay. He called on driver Old Ding and rushed straight for the back alley.

Sure enough, there was a small noodle shop at the alley entrance, and it was quite busy, with bicycles parked at the entrance.

"Green pepper shredded pork noodles ready, whose order is this?"

"Mine."

"Please make some room, be careful, don’t let the soup spill on you."

"Boss Lady, where’s my pickled mustard greens with shredded pork noodles?"

"Almost ready, just a moment!"

It was obvious that this was a husband-and-wife run shop.

The husband was inside cooking noodles, while the wife worked as the waitress and cashier outside.

They were busy with a lot of customers; it wasn’t appropriate to question them now.

Han Yu let Old Ding go inside to see if he could share a table with other customers and then went to the alley to call Deputy Director Li Guangrong.

"Director Han, what’s going on?"

"I’ve made a major discovery on my end. The victim likely came to Liu Da Noodle House behind Wenfeng around four o’clock yesterday. This matches the stomach contents collected during the autopsy."

Li Guangrong paused for a moment, then asked eagerly, "How did you find this out?"

"My cousin and his wife saw them yesterday afternoon; they recognized them immediately!"

"Director Han, your cousin and his wife have done a great job. By the way, you did say ’them’ just now, right?"

"My cousin and his wife said two people came to have noodles together. The male was in his early twenties, but they couldn’t recall his height or features. However, they distinctly remember the man had a motorcycle. After eating, he took the victim away on it."

"What kind of motorcycle?"

"A Qianjiang 125!"

"That’s great," Li Guangrong was just as excited as Han Yu, gripping his phone tightly and saying, "The area around Wenfeng is a bustling area with many surveillance cameras near the noodle house. If we can get the license plate number, we can trace it back to the man’s identity, and then find out the victim’s identity. That man is likely the murderer!"

"Sometimes solving a case indeed relies on luck. Who would have thought that despite deploying so many people, we couldn’t track the victim’s whereabouts, let alone their identity? Yet, I just happened to visit my cousin, and they recognized the victim from the photo at once."

"So what now?"

"I’ll call the traffic police department, then make a call to Chonggang Branch. You should split your team immediately: one to seek assistance from the traffic police department and the other to get help from Chonggang Branch."

"Got it."

After nearly twenty hours of running around, there was finally a lead. Li Guangrong was thrilled and after some thought, he asked, "And what about you?"

Han Yu looked back at the noodle shop, smiling, "I’m at the noodle shop entrance. Business is bustling with the boss and his wife swamped with work. Asking them questions now would disrupt their business. I’ll let Old Ding keep an eye inside, and I’ll walk around to see if there are any cameras nearby."

"Alright, I’ll head to the traffic police department right away."

"Oh, and please report this to Director Qi and the Political Commissioner as well."

"No problem, they’ll definitely be pleased to hear about it."

...

Meanwhile, Han Xiangning was incredulously asking, "Red Plum, your brother-in-law came and left already?"

"Yes, he just left."

"He came all the way here and didn’t come in to say hi?"

"It seems he is investigating a case, the woman he was looking into has died. She was fine yesterday afternoon when I saw her with Ai Tong." Zhang Hongmei finished serving the dishes, then added, "He asked where Ai Tong and I saw her, then hurriedly left and asked me to say hi to you guys."

Han Xiangning was even more incredulous, asking in astonishment, "You and Ai Tong saw her?"

Zhang Hongmei nodded, "Yes, we saw her at the alley entrance yesterday."

Not wanting to discuss death during a rare family reunion, since it seemed inauspicious,

Master Han promptly poured drinks for the in-laws to change the subject, "In-laws, Ningning said you should go to East Sea for a while. I really think you could stay for a bit. Do us and Xiang Fan a favor."

"What favor can we do for you?"

"Help us drop off and pick up Han Han from school," Master Han smiled and turned to look at his wife.

Xiang Fan realized suddenly what he meant and laughed, "You’re the grandparents of Han Han just like us. Normally you’re so busy that you can’t spend time with Han Han, so this is a perfect chance to bond with her and enjoy the joys of family life."

Mrs. Han asked confusedly, "But what about you guys?"

"Mother-in-law, we have elders and children to care for. My mom and sister-in-law will arrive in a few days. Especially my mom, she’s travelled all the way from Xichuan to Binjiang at her age. She wouldn’t be pleased if she couldn’t see her daughter and son-in-law. If you could go to East Sea and take care of Han Han for a few days, we’d take the opportunity to spend time with my mom and fulfill our filial duties."

"But East Sea is so large, how can we find our way around with no sense of direction in an unfamiliar place..."

"East Sea is big, but the neighborhood we’re in isn’t. Han Han’s kindergarten is nearby, just across the street from our complex."

Xiang Fan worried his in-laws might not want to go, so he expectantly smiled, "Besides, we won’t just send you off. I’ll tidy up at home, and Old Han will accompany you. He’ll show you around the neighborhood, familiarize you with the environment, and then after a couple of school pickups, he’ll come back."

The maternal grandmother, aunt, cousin, and cousin-in-law were coming, so someone needed to be around for hosting.

Han Xiangning thought this was a good idea from her parents and smiled, "Dad, Mom, my sister and brother-in-law are in East Sea. You haven’t visited them even once. If they knew you were coming, they would be really pleased."

The son, daughter, and in-laws all bought properties in East Sea, yet they haven’t even visited to see which way the doors open.

Old Han became interested and looked at his wife, "How about we go spend a few days with Han Han and visit Han Ning and Jiang Kun? And then come back when Han Han’s winter break starts?"

"Alright, let’s go tomorrow."

"No need to rush," Xiang Fan quickly added, "Tomorrow, let’s first go for a thorough checkup at the hospital. I’ve already talked to Mengmeng about it."

Father-in-law and mother-in-law have been living a nomadic lifestyle, truly calling everywhere home.

With both of them ill, either in pain or discomfort, and lacking medical facilities on the river, they rely on painkillers and antibiotics for headaches and stomachaches alike.

Their health is crucial because, in a realistic sense, if they can’t handle hospitalizations, not only would the medical bills be a burden, but any impact on the shipping business due to illness would lead to substantial financial losses. Moreover, providing care during their hospital stays would be a big challenge. At that time, who would have the time to take care of them, San’er or Xiang Ning?

Precisely due to this, as early as a decade ago, Master Han strongly supported his daughter’s "mandatory" demand for the father-in-law and mother-in-law to undergo an annual comprehensive checkup at the People’s Hospital, smiling and agreeing, "Mengmeng has arranged everything. We’ll accompany you to the hospital tomorrow."