[Is his mouth a lethal weapon or something?]
In the case of Zhou Wanxi, Lu Ting’an was the primary force behind the decision-making. Had he not made the bold deduction that Zhou Jinyao was the killer, Major Crimes Unit 1 would have wasted significant time on detours; in fact, they might not have even had the chance to save Jiang Caiting.
After some discussion, Unit 1 unanimously agreed to credit the success to Lu Ting’an, which included handing over the responsibility of writing the final case report to him.
In the afternoon, Yu Qiyin arrived at the Logistics Unit with a partially completed draft. She happened to see Lu Ting’an sitting upright at his desk, focused and diligently transcribing something.
Being well-acquainted with him now, she leaned in. “Master Lu, what are you writing so seriously?”
She leaned down curiously, only to see the words on the paper: Direct Confrontation: Avoid direct confrontation whenever possible, but remain prepared. Should you encounter a suspect fleeing the scene, your preparations should include: maintaining firearm readiness, utilizing cover, and staying alert to your surroundings…
Yu Qiyin’s mouth twitched. “…Officer Gu punished you?”
Lu Ting’an’s hand paused. He gave a faint, flat “mm.”
Yu Qiyin gave an awkward laugh. As a former frequent recipient of such punishments herself, she knew Gu Yingzhou well. She tried to console him: “Officer Gu surely has his reasons. He’s the Captain; he’s responsible for every member of the Major Crimes Unit. You’ll get used to it, Master Lu. I’ve copied the Police Manual at least ten times—I can practically recite it backward now.”
Lu Ting’an continued transcribing, noncommittal. If Yu Qiyin had looked closely, she would have noticed that by this third copy, he barely even needed to look at the original manual anymore.
However, her mind was currently set on the case report—after all, once the case was closed, they could finally start their vacation.
“Master Lu…”
“Just call me Lu Ting’an.”
“Fine, Ting’an.” Yu Qiyin placed the case report on the desk. “Put the manual aside for a moment. I’ll walk you through the details of the primary crime scene, the forensic reports, and Zhou Jinyao’s own confession during the interrogation. Ah Hai should have examples of other case reports; why don’t you study them and try writing this one?”
As she said this, Yu Qiyin felt a bit guilty.
While the case report determined who got the credit, writing one was an immense hassle. If the logic, wording, or testimony was slightly off or inconsistent with the facts, it had to be scrapped and rewritten. The higher-ups took homicides extremely seriously; every report was personally inspected.
And who didn’t know Lu Ting’an’s reputation in Hong Kong? He wasn’t well-educated and hated studying most of all. Rumor had it he was a notorious delinquent leader back in secondary school, doing whatever he wanted because of his family’s wealth and never showing a shred of respect to his teachers. Eventually, the school gave up on his family’s hefty donations and told Lu Chenhu to just take his son home.
Now the station was asking Lu Ting’an to learn how to write a formal report? This was like asking for trouble.
Yu Qiyin felt that Fu Yirong and the others had ulterior motives for assigning this task to her.
To her surprise, however, Lu Ting’an actually cooperated. He moved his transcription paper aside and pulled a fresh sheet of draft paper from his drawer. “Go ahead. I’ll take some brief notes.”
Yu Qiyin breathed a sigh of relief. Switching to a professional tone, she began: “Forensic Pathologist Li has brought the head from Room 303 back to the lab. The wounds on the head match the wounds on the body; it is confirmed to be the same person.”
“Based on our neighborhood canvassing, only Zhou Jinyao and Zhou Wanxi were seen entering and exiting Room 303 recently. We also got verification from the homeowner; he left Hong Kong on the 4th and was away for nearly a week. Furthermore, we found several used condoms in the trash hidden by the killer. Tests confirmed the semen belongs to Zhou Jinyao, and there were traces of Zhou Wanxi’s skin tissue on the exterior. All evidence points to Zhou Jinyao alone, ruling out the possibility of accomplices. An hour ago, a man named Old Wu from Pingnan Ridge came forward to identify him. He said he saw an old man loitering in the alley on the night of the crime, but he was drunk at the time and didn’t realize it was actually the killer hunched over with a body on his back.”
Lu Ting’an’s pen stopped, leaving a dark ink blot on the paper. He looked up and challenged her: “Can a drunkard’s word be used as testimony?”
Yu Qiyin paused, surprised by his sharpness.
“Alcohol impairs a witness’s perception, memory, and ability to communicate, which affects the reliability of the testimony. Generally, we don’t treat a drunkard’s words as valid evidence,” Yu Qiyin explained. “However, officers vetted Old Wu’s statement. The timeline he provided matches the time of the body disposal, so it’s certain he did indeed see the killer.”
Lu Ting’an nodded. “Since he saw it so long ago, why didn’t he provide the lead to the police earlier?”
At this, Yu Qiyin curled her lip in annoyance. “He was afraid we’d think he was lying and arrest him.”
In truth, it was just 20/20 hindsight. He had been so drunk that his memory of the scene wasn’t clear, and he feared the police would constantly harass him for details. Plus, with the killer still at large, he was terrified of retaliation if word got out he was talking to the cops.
Once Zhou Jinyao was caught, Old Wu checked the dates and realized he had actually witnessed the disposal. He came forward to testify—and to try and claim some credit while he was at it.
Yu Qiyin was actually glad he hadn’t reported it sooner; based on his description of an “old man,” it would have been another massive stumbling block in determining the suspect’s age.
Finally, Yu Qiyin summarized Zhou Jinyao’s confession of the crime.
He claimed that Zhou Wanxi was depressed after seeing Hu Zounan on a date with Jiang Caiting, which is why she went with him to Monkey Four’s place to drink. She cried the whole time, but he was happy—as long as Hu Zounan didn’t marry her, he felt he still had a chance. Initially, he hadn’t intended to kill her. But after he confessed his feelings, she looked at him with eyes full of disgust and confusion. It wounded him deeply, and he couldn’t suppress his rage. He claimed it was “accidental” killing.
He said he regretted it afterward, but then he realized that in death, Zhou Wanxi could stay by his side in a different form. Furthermore, with her body dead, she would never belong to anyone else. Thus, he felt no remorse and even planned to kill Jiang Caiting as well.
As for why he dumped the headless torso in a public toilet? It was because Zhou Jinyao thought Zhou Wanxi was “dirty.”
The thought of her body having been with so many other men disgusted him to his core. That was why he chose the latrine.
Yu Qiyin felt she would never forget the look on Zhou Jinyao’s face—arrogant and unrepentant. So much of his life had been supported by Zhou Wanxi; without her care, he might have died of neglect from Zhou Daqing when he was a child.
Yet in the end, not only did he not repent, he felt his actions had brought a “dignified” end to her “filthy” life…
A beast like that didn’t deserve to be called human.
…
By evening, after placing the summarized case report in the Major Crimes office, Lu Ting’an prepared to leave work right on schedule.
However, he didn’t make it out of the police station gates smoothly today. Xue Meimei had unleashed her inner shrew, single-handedly blocking every officer in the building.
“Let my son go! You must have made a mistake—how could my son be a killer? I know him best; he’s been honest and timid since he was a kid, he wouldn’t even dare kill a chicken! Look into it again, he’s been framed!”
Xue Meimei was being held back by a female officer. Whenever anyone tried to leave the station, she would shove the officer aside and lunge forward with a howl, as if screaming louder would somehow grant Zhou Jinyao a miracle acquittal.
If not for strict police regulations, the female officer would have loved to sweep her onto the ground and give her a good stomping.
The killer was the product of this unreasonable woman’s upbringing; what kind of family raises such an ungrateful wolf that he’d even murder his own aunt?
The female officer grabbed her arm and, holding her breath to block the woman’s scent, explained, “Ma’am, your son has already confessed. It was he who murdered Zhou Wanxi and desecrated her remains.”
Xue Meimei wiped her tears fiercely. “It must have been that woman who seduced him! You all know what her job was, right? My son has never even had a girlfriend; he’s pure. Zhou Wanxi must have seduced him into doing such a thing.”
The officer’s face went cold. “Ma’am, speak with evidence. Ms. Zhou was also your sister. These words of yours constitute slander.”
The officer meant it as a warning, but the moment Xue Meimei heard the word “sister,” she suddenly latched onto a new angle.
She grabbed the officer’s hand excitedly, screaming at the top of her lungs, “You’re right! Zhou Wanxi is my sister! This is a Zhou family private matter! Let my son out right now—we’ll handle our family matters ourselves, we don’t need the police sticking their noses in!”
The officer finally couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “Premeditated murder is a major, violent criminal offense; it does not fall under the scope of private settlement. Ma’am, your behavior now qualifies as picking quarrels and provoking trouble. If you continue this harassment, I will have to arrest you.”
Xue Meimei still had a shred of fear regarding the police.
She jerked her hand away as if burnt, but remained stubbornly rooted to the spot, muttering incessantly: “I only have this one son, he can’t go to prison, he can’t go to prison…”
It was at this moment that Lu Ting’an stepped slowly toward her.
With an incredibly gentle voice—soft as a warm spring breeze—he told her, “Ms. Xue, don’t you worry. Your son won’t be going to prison.”
The madness faded from Xue Meimei’s face as her reason returned. She saw a flicker of hope and gazed at Lu Ting’an excitedly. “Really? Truly no prison?”
The surrounding officers stared at Lu Ting’an with utter confusion.
Lu Ting’an acted as if he didn’t notice, simply smiling as he told Xue Meimei with absolute certainty: “Of course. Why would he go to prison? He’s getting the death penalty.”
“AH!!”
Xue Meimei let out a short, sharp shriek and collapsed onto the ground, her soul seemingly drained.
Lu Ting’an leaned down slightly and continued, “The circumstances of his crime are severe. If all goes as expected, the execution will be carried out within a day or two. The timing is perfect, isn’t it? You can hold the funerals together—save yourself a few tables of banquet food and some firecracker money.”
Xue Meimei shrieked again. Unable to withstand the agony of losing her son, she fainted dead away.
The nearby officers were startled.
They knew Lu Ting’an was talking nonsense, but Xue Meimei didn’t. Did he really just provoke her into a heart attack with a few sentences?
The female officer from before hurried over to check her breathing. Once she confirmed the woman was still alive, she stepped aside and called for an ambulance.
Not a single person among the crowd went over to help Xue Meimei up; everyone felt a sense of immense satisfaction.
When this woman first heard Zhou Wanxi was dead, her first words were about how much compensation she could get—she had nothing but money in her eyes. Only when she realized her son was the killer did she “remember” that Zhou Wanxi was family and try for a private settlement. Setting aside the law, how could there be such a convenient deal in this world?
Lu Ting’an’s behavior didn’t exactly fit police protocol, but it truly taught this harridan a lesson.
As the saying goes: it takes a villain to grind down a villain. Young Master Lu was born with a “wicked” streak; so what if he was unconventional? No one was going to call him on it anyway.
…
After leaving the station, Lu Ting’an spotted Zhou Daqing behind a pillar.
Zhou Daqing looked much more haggard than he had this morning. In a single day, his hair had gone largely white and his beard was overgrown; he looked like a man too consumed by worry to eat.
After glancing at him twice, Lu Ting’an decided not to let him off either.
“Zhou Daqing, a question has been on my mind for a while, and I wonder if you know the answer. You said Zhou Wanxi made a lot of money and had plenty of fine jewelry—so why did she keep a plain, inexpensive jade pendant tucked at her waist?”
Zhou Daqing kept his head down, his entire body shuddering.
Seeing his reaction, Lu Ting’an knew he had guessed correctly. “It must have been something you gave her. I checked it; the words ‘Peace and Safety’ were carved into the jade. I figured only a family member would give such a blessing. It’s a pity. Let’s hope she truly finds peace in her next life.”
Zhou Daqing’s shoulders shook violently. He bit his lower lip hard, but eventually, he could no longer suppress several agonizing sobs of grief.
In the end, he knelt at the police station entrance, bowing until his head struck the ground, wailing uncontrollably.
Lu Ting’an had guessed right. That jade pendant was one he had taken to a temple to have blessed for Zhou Wanxi ten years ago.
At that time, the Zhou family had no money and no home. While working a manual labor job, he saw a vendor selling Hetian jade. The carving was delicate, but it cost dozens of dollars. Dozens of dollars was a lot for Zhou Daqing back then, but he could scrape it together. Realizing he had never given his sister anything nice in her life, he bought it and took it to the temple with a sincere heart to be blessed. He had hoped Zhou Wanxi would live a life of joy and safety, and find a good man to be happy with.
Zhou Wanxi had loved the gift dearly and wore it around her neck constantly. Later, when she became famous at the Baihui Club, she had more and more jewelry and had to take the pendant off to match her outfits. She came up with a clever solution: she turned it into a unique waist charm—the only one of its kind at the Club. For all these years, she had treasured that pendant above all else.
But why did it have to end like this? Zhou Wanxi, Zhou Jinyao… why did every member of the Zhou family have to meet such a miserable end?
Zhou Daqing was consumed by regret. If only he had been more capable, if only he could have provided a better life for the family, perhaps Wanxi would never have stepped onto that path of no return in the first place. If only he had been stronger, if he had divorced Xue Meimei sooner and stood up for Wanxi when she was being insulted, their home wouldn’t have been such a chaotic mess, and Wanxi wouldn’t have been too afraid to come home.
Most importantly, if he had been a responsible father—if he had paid more attention to Zhou Jinyao and stopped him when he started acting strange or repeatedly asking for Wanxi’s photos… would things have turned out differently?
Hearing that the Zhou family was causing a scene at the station, Fu Yirong hurriedly followed Gu Yingzhou downstairs. What they saw instead was Xue Meimei lying on the ground, her state unknown, while Zhou Daqing knelt at the entrance, banging his head against the floor until he was bloody and battered.
Fu Yirong was startled and quickly pulled a female officer aside.
“What’s going on? Are they possessed?”
The officer shook her head. “No. Young Master Lu just had a few words with them.”
Fu Yirong’s jaw nearly hit the floor in shock. “They ended up like this just from a few words? Is his mouth a lethal weapon or something?!”
The female officer offered a small smile but said nothing.
In her mind, Lu Ting’an’s words were sharper than any blade. A knife takes a life—cold steel in, red blood out—but with just a few sentences, he could inflict such profound agony upon the wicked.
Gu Yingzhou, meanwhile, recalled the moment in Room 303 when Lu Ting’an had provoked Zhou Jinyao like a lit firecracker.
A ghost of a smile touched his lips as he cast a thoughtful glance at Fu Yirong. “Whether his mouth is a lethal weapon or not… haven’t you already experienced it yourself?”
Fu Yirong: “…”