Free Web NovelChapter 35: Chapter 35: The two DNAs on the nylon rope
December 11, 14:30
The investigation officially began, and information for each building had been distributed. Due to the vast amount of work required, personnel from the port police station were called in, and, after a meeting to allocate tasks, they started their action.
Zhou Ning was paired with Zhao Xinli, and they weren’t assigned a particular building number but instead stood in the plaza waiting.
After all, it was Saturday, and so many police had arrived in the community that many onlookers, mostly elderly men and women, came down to see the commotion.
Zhao Xinli, with his keen eyes, spotted the plump old lady from the morning amidst the crowd and quickly pulled Zhou Ning over to her.
"Auntie, do you remember me?"
The plump old lady looked surprised but then smiled.
"Remember, remember, young man what are you all up to? Didn’t you find that old man with the surname Chen?"
The plump old lady was addressing Zhou Ning. Being good-looking has its advantages, and regardless of age, facing such a handsome face, people tend to be three times more friendly. Zhou Ning gestured for the few people to move to the stone tables in the plaza, and the three of them sat down before Zhou Ning finally asked.
"Auntie, you’ve been in this community for a long time, could you tell me in detail about this Chen Zhenya?"
"Chen Zhenya? You mean Old Chen’s head?"
Zhou Ning nodded.
"Yes, that’s him. We would like to understand the situation from you. Who is Chen Zhenya usually close to in the community, or who has a particularly bad relationship with him, even if it involves arguments, anything you know, please tell us."
The plump old lady was no longer smiling, her face now carrying a hint of caution.
"Young man, tell your auntie what this man did wrong, why are so many police investigating?"
Zhou Ning paused. The details of the case had not yet been finalized, and it would not be appropriate to disclose them. But Zhao Xinli, not having thought so much, leaned in close to the plump old lady, lowering his voice as he spoke:
"Auntie, I can only reveal a little to you. Chen Zhenya was murdered, and we haven’t found the murderer yet. We want to understand more so we can catch the murderer sooner. You’ll feel safer living here too, won’t you?"
Zhou Ning was taken aback, glancing at Zhao Xinli, who winked at him.
As expected, the old lady displayed a knowing look and slapped her thigh.
"I guessed right. That stubborn old man was so odd. It was only a matter of time before he caused trouble."
Zhao Xinli crouched on the ground, leaning close to the plump old lady as if gossiping, and asked with great curiosity:
"Auntie, tell us. We are not making official records, just chatting casually. Tell me what you’ve seen or heard, but don’t worry, we will investigate further, and it won’t involve you at all. Aren’t we all just looking out for the safety of our children and families? If the murderer lives in the same community, you wouldn’t be able to sleep either, right?"
Zhou Ning didn’t speak, as Zhao Xinli was good at making conversation, and his words had struck a chord with the plump old lady.
"This chubby kid makes sense. Then, I’ll babble on. I’ve mentioned it before to my son and daughter-in-law, and they told me not to meddle in other people’s business. But Old Chen’s character is not good; we all steer clear of him."
"What do you mean by bad character? I thought you said earlier that this old man kept looking for a partner. Is there something else?"
The plump old lady leaned forward, scanning around, and whispered in a mysterious tone:
"Such nasty business, who would openly talk about it? During the summer this year, a little girl from Building 3 went missing. We all helped look for her, and eventually found her at a pavilion outside the community, terrified.
After soothing her for a while, she finally said that an old grandfather had taken her to the pavilion and had touched her all over. Even her underpants had been taken off. When the parents heard this, they immediately asked which grandfather, and the girl pointed to Old Chen, saying it was this ’black grandfather.’
The parents argued with Old Chen, almost coming to blows. Old Chen, holding a stick, ranted that you couldn’t trust the word of a four or five-year-old, claiming he was just fishing by the pond near the pavilion and suggested calling the police.
The argument lasted for a long time, but eventually the family, worrying about their reputation, took their child and left without calling the police or anything, as there were no surveillance cameras or evidence. They couldn’t just rely on the child’s narrative, but we all warned the kids not to approach Old Chen alone."
Hearing this, Zhou Ning was stunned. The old man was indeed depraved.
Suddenly, he thought of Yu Jingwei, who had gone on a trip with his daughter. Could it be...
Zhao Xinli’s eyes widened, disbelief etched on his face.
"Really? With his age, could he do such a thing?"
The plump old lady’s face was serious as she tilted her head and said:
"Even though there was no police report, I believe the child wouldn’t lie about such matters. That family lives in Unit 601 of Building 3, No. 2. You can ask them if you don’t believe me, but I should tell you, the parents are tight-lipped, and they may not say much, perhaps to protect their child."
Zhou Ning gave Zhao Xinli a look and showed him a few words on his phone, prompting Zhao Xinli to stand up and make a phone call. This matter had to be verified; if it was true, then it could very well be a case of revenge.
"Auntie, the times he was discovered, was it just this once?"
The fat old lady nodded her head.
"I only know about this one time, and it’s not exactly something to be proud of. Who would broadcast such things if they happened in their own family? It’s only because the child went missing and everyone helped to look for them that I came to know a bit about it, but hardly anyone in the neighborhood knows the details."
Zhou Ning flipped through the photos on his phone. He had saved Yu Jingwei’s picture from the earlier case meeting and showed it to the fat old lady.
"Aunt, take a look. Do you recognize this person?"
The fat old lady looked closely, then seemed to realize something.
"Isn’t this the tenant from the house the police visited yesterday?"
"Does he associate with this Chen Zhenya? Or have they had any conflicts? I understand he also has a daughter."
The fat old lady shook her head.
"I’m not very familiar with him. He didn’t actually live in the place he rented much; it was always a tall young man who came to stay. Oh, and he had a daughter too, seems like she goes to Haigang Primary School next to the neighborhood."
"Tall young man?"
The fat old lady looked Zhou Ning up and down.
"Yeah, just a few inches shorter than you, still around six feet. But he’s stockier than you. I’ve seen him but never talked to him, not sure of his name."
Zhou Ning recalled for a moment, seeming to refer to that Wang Ye, a very tall individual. He remembered Wang Ye mentioned that he and Yu Jingwei were classmates and that Yu Jingwei had left his dog with him when he went on a trip.
Just then, a man hurried over to the fat old lady’s side and quickly pulled her up from her chair, his face a mix of anxiety and caution.
"Mom, why did you come out? The kid is crying at home, let’s go back quickly."
The fat old lady stood up, being pulled by her son, and slapped his arm hard. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
"What are you pulling me for? I need to make things clear to the police, what are you rushing for?"
"You can’t keep your mouth shut, just head home quickly."
The man spoke with urgency, tugging at the fat old lady. Zhou Ning could understand the man’s reaction. After all, in society, it’s less trouble to avoid meddling, especially in homicide cases where many don’t want to be witnesses, fearing retaliation from viciously dangerous individuals, which ordinary citizens can’t handle.
Zhou Ning stood up and nodded slightly to the fat old lady.
"Thank you for your help, aunt. Rest assured, we won’t disturb your normal life."
The man didn’t say anything else and walked away with the fat old lady.
At that moment, Zhao Xinli and Xu Dayuan came back and saw the fat old lady leaving; they both looked towards Zhou Ning.
Zhou Ning repeated what the fat old lady had just told him, and Xu Dayuan kept nodding his head.
"I can understand, they all have children, nobody wants trouble. I’ve told He Chunyang to bring Yu Jingwei back. He’s already been found in Luxi Province. Zhao Xinli, take Doctor Zhou back."
Zhou Ning didn’t resist. He knew there wasn’t much he could contribute, and the follow-up would have to wait for their interrogation results.
...
By the time they got back to the forensic office, it was nearly five o’clock.
Seeing Liu Yongxin in front of the computer, Zhou Ning hurried over.
"Master, have the lab results from the city bureau come out?"
Liu Yongxin took off his reading glasses and stepped away from the computer.
"They’ve sent them. Take a look for yourself. We found sea salt, fish, and sediment in the victim’s nail grooves, and the blood analysis revealed high concentrations of nifedipine and losartan potassium in the blood and stomach contents, indicating that the victim had high blood pressure and had taken medication one to two hours before death."
Zhou Ning leaned in and reviewed the findings. The results were as expected. He flipped through a few pages and saw the sampling results on the nylon rope, which identified two DNA profiles—one belonging to the victim and the other unmatched in the system.
This discovery was almost as improbable as winning the lottery—finding the perpetrator’s DNA on a nylon rope was indeed a slim chance.
At this, Zhou Ning thought to himself.
When the killer slashed Chen Zhenya’s face, he wore latex gloves; he surely wouldn’t have strangled Chen Zhenya and then realized he hadn’t worn gloves, putting them on midway through. Thirty-two stabs weren’t just ordinary anger. Could it be that the killer didn’t notice his glove had torn?
"Master, if we find a suspect and match the DNA taken from their blood, would that be considered conclusive evidence?"
