The wind and snow had stopped. When Zhen Wuyu and Liu Duan were outside the factory’s back door, they got a message from their colleagues: the people had been sent to the hospital. The initial check showed the four were out of immediate danger, and follow-up examinations were ongoing.
Even though they had judged earlier that no one would die, a doctor’s conclusion was what really counted. Liu Duan finally let out a breath. When he turned back, he saw the smaller snowflakes drifting lightly, landing in scattered bits on Zhen Wuyu’s head as he squatted on the ground.
Such a handsome young man, and he had zero image when he worked a case; he was poking at some frozen black pellets with a stick.
Chen Liao was squatting beside him too, studying with sincere devotion.
“These black lumps are…? Are they clues? Did the killer leave them?”
Zhen Wuyu: “Feces.”
Chen Liao: “…..”
Liu Duan took one look and knew it was animal sign. “That’s a lot. There’s a snow rabbit burrow nearby.”
He read the subtle shift in Zhen Wuyu’s expression and reversed out what this ecological detail meant. His brows lifted slightly as he looked around.
“Snow rabbits are extremely timid. If they can build a burrow nearby, and this feces is partly frozen but still sitting on the surface, not buried by snowfall, that means they were still active around here within the last hour.”
“So at minimum, there was no commotion outside this area. Chen Qing didn’t escape out here and get caught by Luo Hong; otherwise two adults fighting would’ve left noise and marks.”
“But we searched everywhere inside. There’s no trace of Luo Hong or Chen Qing, and we can’t find that masked man either. Where did the three of them go?”
“And there are no snow vehicle tracks here either.”
It was like everything happened and ended inside the factory, without affecting the outside.
But people couldn’t just vanish into thin air.
They couldn’t possibly burrow underground like snow rabbits, right?
So where were they?
Liu Duan said, “It reminds me of the Snow Spirit Night Walk case. They piled wood into a bonfire mound like an ancient cremation. Bureau Chief Zhan lay inside and was burned alive, but she didn’t move at all. Snow covered everything; it was thick. But there were no footprints, no signs of transporting a body, no signs of carrying wood. It was like the Snow Spirit walked on snow without leaving tracks and used some kind of technique to send her in there to be burned. You know what the locals said back then?”
“Ah, I forgot; you’re not even from Changlin.”
Zhen Wuyu wasn’t local. He had transferred to Changlin for school, probably from the south. He had no memory of what happened in the north over a decade ago; he had only been a few years old, how would he know about major cases like that.
So he looked puzzled but didn’t ask. Liu Duan would say it himself anyway.
Liu Duan held a cigarette, sniffed it, didn’t light it. He took a deep breath and tucked it behind his ear before continuing.
“They said it was a sky burial. After Bureau Chief Zhan died, the killings stopped. A sky-burial ritual offering; the Snow Spirit’s anger was appeased.”
Disgust showed on Zhen Wuyu’s face. “Ghost stories leave no trace, but human evil leaves marks everywhere.”
When a cultured person cursed, it really hit.
“So if someone does evil, they will always leave traces. Where are those three hiding? Did they disappear like the Snow Spirit too?”
“A sudden snowstorm blocks travel, but it also becomes a witness of time. No matter how you calculate it, if they left this factory within this window, they would have to use a snow vehicle, and it would definitely leave marks.”
Liu Duan gave a bitter smile and looked back toward the cellar. “Did we search the cellar thoroughly? I’ll go look again. Maybe there’s a hidden room.”
Zhen Wuyu didn’t stop him. He stood up, brushed his hands clean, looked out at the vast, deep forest and sea of snow, and said two lines.
“I keep feeling like I’m inside their control too.”
“As if they’re certain I won’t be able to find where they’re hiding.”
Chen Liao scratched his head. “You suspect Su Li because you think she knows you, and can control you?”
Zhen Wuyu paused, then denied it.
Chen Liao: “Then you found them?”
This station really didn’t have many people who knew how to talk nicely.
Zhen Wuyu: “No. I really can’t find them.”
He frowned. He truly felt like someone was pressing him down.
And he couldn’t figure out where those three could be hiding.
Forest, factory, the cellar outside; what other places were there?
“Maybe there’s someone who can help me.”
Chen Liao’s eyes lit up.
Privately, they had asked around through higher-ups and connections in the public security system about this young criminal investigation expert sent down from the Provincial Bureau. They didn’t know much else; only that he had studied under a famous mentor, had powerful backing in the judicial world, and strong connections. Not only was his own ability solid, but if something was hard to check—like forensics, criminal investigation science, psychology—he could call in big names from those circles.
If these big names could help with the pressure Changlin had been under since the 315 case, and help with the masked man case now, then solving it would be only a matter of time.
At the hospital, after the doctor notified them that Su Li had woken up, Chen Liao stared blankly as Zhen Wuyu arrived and opened with a blunt first sentence.
“Su Li, do you know where the masked man and Luo Hong are hiding?”
So direct; way too direct.
Direct to the point of being awkward.
So Expert Zhen’s “help” was the victim herself?
Or… was it just a test?
Chen Liao didn’t say a word. He just watched from the side.
Su Li’s face was pale. She wasn’t the optimistic, cheerful, chatterbox rich girl from when she bought mala tang before being drugged and taken. And she wasn’t the glossy-on-the-surface, rotten-underneath arrogant “bad girl” from middle school either.
Weak. Haggard. Confused.
Yes. The look she gave Zhen Wuyu was confused.
“Luo Hong? Didn’t he die? Don’t tell me he didn’t die!”
Zhen Wuyu: “Why did you think he died? Because of the videotape?”
Su Li: “There really is a tape? I knew something was off with that red light in the broadcast… I wasn’t mistaken; it was an overseas model…”
Zhen Wuyu: “You know about this? Don’t tell me the company you started sells this. So importing these things is easy for you.”
Su Li: “No. It’s just that a lot of my classmates and friends work in these industries; electronics, basic materials, that sort of thing.”
Zhen Wuyu: “That coincidental?”
Su Li: “Not really. Isn’t my family background right there? But that masked man said Luo Hong was dead, so he really isn’t? Is Chen Qing dead? What about the others? Don’t tell me they’re all in on it! So in the end I’m the only innocent one? They teamed up to screw me over? For money?”
Zhen Wuyu: “It’s not confirmed yet. We still have to investigate. Don’t overthink it. Based on your earlier performance, you did some reconnaissance on the scene. That masked man was in a wheelchair; do you think he could leave the shoe factory that fast? After you were poisoned, did you have any awareness? For example, when you were moved to the cellar, did you see them? Do you remember anything about the masked man’s appearance?”
Su Li: “So it really was Hongfeng Shoe Factory. I guessed right… leave? Looks like you didn’t find them. How do I put it; I was just observing and guessing on the spot, trying to leave clues for the police to save me. As for where they went, I really have no idea.”
“I only remember that when I was lying in the cage at the start, I vaguely heard the sound of a cart being pulled… then later I heard Luo Hong scream…”
“Can’t they drive away? Why do you think they would hide?”
Zhen Wuyu: “There are no tracks. In trace analysis, as long as an object moves, there will be traces, unless the snowfall amount and time are enough to cover them. But the time gap back then wasn’t enough.”
Su Li: “Could the tape’s timestamp be fake?”
Zhen Wuyu: “We verified it. It’s real. It wasn’t edited.”
Su Li frowned, leaning back against the hospital bed, looking like she had a headache. “So you asked me this because you wanted me to give some clues?”
Zhen Wuyu: “Mainly because you made very precise judgments and hints under those conditions. You might be more useful than Lin Zong and the others. And they won’t tell the truth; they’ll lie about everything. But you might not.”
Might not.
That word carried weight.
Chen Liao looked back and forth between them, barely daring to breathe.
Then he saw Su Li, who looked weak, reply without hesitation.
“You suspect me?”
Zhen Wuyu: “It’s trust. I think you can help the police investigate.”
Su Li: “So you suspect me while using me.”
Chen Liao: “…..”
Zhen Wuyu: “Your judgment was accurate. Do you have any deeper judgment about Luo Hong and the others?”
Su Li fell silent for a moment, then said, “Lin Zong and the others are under police control now. You’ll definitely learn more than I did, so I won’t say much. But if you’re saying Chen Qing, Luo Hong, and that masked man all vanished, then you haven’t had direct contact with those three. I can give you some information; honestly, I think Luo Hong’s physical condition is very good.”
Zhen Wuyu: “Tall and sturdy?”
Su Li: “More like—back then, those two were the first to break free from the ropes. A normal person, under the effects of the drug, is already weak, and after being bound for a long time, the body is exhausted. I felt extremely tired. When they rolled around, struggled, and untied each other, it looked like simple survival actions, but it consumed a lot. Chen Qing started panting later, but Luo Hong didn’t. His breathing was steady; his chest didn’t rise and fall that hard. Based on your suspicion now, if he’s behind it, then he might not have been poisoned at all. His body state was normal, so he looked good.”
“But even if his body is good, he still can’t leave the factory without any traces…”
“Wait; is there a river over there?”
Su Li suddenly asked. Chen Liao stood up at once. “I think there is! Holy crap—did those three leave through the river? That’s exactly what happened in the 315 Qi Meijuan case!”
Zhen Wuyu said calmly, “There is a river, but it’s frozen. They can’t leave by water. And the river is two hundred meters away from the factory. They can’t walk on snow without leaving tracks.”
Su Li understood. “Then yeah, impossible… unless they flew over. They’re not monsters.”
The moment she said that, Zhen Wuyu, who had been by the window peeling an apple, stabbed the small knife straight into the apple core and stood up abruptly.
Huh?
Chen Liao looked at him. Su Li turned her head too.
Zhen Wuyu called the officers guarding the factory and told them to carefully investigate the building rooftop.
“Check for human traces up there, especially on the railings. If someone prepared to glide, there will definitely be footprints. Nobody can clean up afterward.”
And the last person to glide away would definitely leave traces.
After a while, Zhen Wuyu got an excited reply from a colleague: “Yes, there are traces. Damn it—if we waited longer to check, the later light snowfall might’ve covered it and we’d never find it.”
“There are shoe prints. Two pairs.”
Zhen Wuyu spoke a bit more, then hung up. Chen Liao asked whether two sets of prints meant Chen Qing was dead or unconscious and had been carried while gliding.
“A paraglider with sufficient specs can carry the weight of two people. With the building height, it can fly. And with the wind strength on a blizzard day, it’s enough to glide into the mountains and land successfully. Luo Hong has the basic physical ability.”
Chen Liao blurted out, “But that masked man, Zhang Baoli, can’t do it! Isn’t he disabled? No matter what, Luo Hong can’t carry two people, and he can’t fly back to carry a second batch either. That’s too much time and effort.”
Zhen Wuyu was about to speak when Su Li suddenly cut in.
“Is it possible that Zhang Baoli isn’t disabled at all?”
Both men looked at her.
Su Li’s expression was serious. “I observed his legs and the degree of disability he showed. He looked like someone with a long-term mobility disability. But the wheelchair he used was fairly new; the gear wear and the footrest wear were both light. And that electric model should be from R country. It wasn’t a new model, it was an older brand. So it’s not like he replaced it recently. If it wasn’t newly replaced, yet the wear is so light, then he hasn’t used it long; he might barely have used it.”
“In a place like Baimu Town or Changlin City, where the area is wide, transportation isn’t that convenient, and public facilities aren’t that developed, even if he has money, if he’s truly disabled, getting around is a hassle. He would basically be inseparable from a wheelchair.”
“So back then I suspected he was faking his disability.”
“Of course, that’s just my observation. Unless you can find his wheelchair…”
Her mouth really was blessed.
Very soon, Zhen Wuyu learned the other officers had found an abandoned wheelchair in a rooftop storage room.
“Zhang Baoli is highly suspicious. We must find him immediately.”
There were definitely many more things to investigate, like Hongfeng Group.
And once those people reached a condition where they could be questioned legally and medically, they would have to be interrogated…
Yes. Interrogated—especially Lin Zong and the others.
Right now they were under control at the hospital, and the police were also carefully checking their information from the past years in other places.
The easiest to check was Huang Xiuling in Changlin.
Back in Baimu Town she had been Liu Aidi, and there was also Chen Shengnan connected to her, and Liu Mei.
Zhen Wuyu was bound to be busy. Before he left, he asked Su Li to draw the rope knot from when it hadn’t been untied yet.
“Can you remember it?”
“Yes.”
Chen Liao took out paper and pen. As Su Li sketched with a pencil, Chen Liao could tell she had art training.
“Miss Su, you’ve studied art?”
“A little, when I was abroad, with a friend.”
It was probably more than “a little.”
Su Li finished quickly. She made the simple but clear binding form easy to understand, and even drew the hand.
Her own hand.
Almost a one-to-one restoration.
Zhen Wuyu glanced at the paper she handed over. “Miss Su is very suited to criminal investigation.”
Insight, thinking, learning ability from intelligence, ability to disguise, scheming… there was no better seedling than her.
Su Li: “When I was little, I thought about becoming a police officer like my mom. Maybe I could even become bureau chief.”
She sounded like she was joking, but everyone present felt their hearts sink.
The room fell silent.
Zhen Wuyu held out his hand. “Why didn’t you apply to police academy? Was there some hidden reason? By rights, your mother was murdered. You should have a strong desire for the truth. What’s better than investigating it yourself?”
Here we go again.
Chen Liao’s eyelids jumped hard.
Su Li: “Keep investigating and you’ll know why, starting from my mother’s case. But I’m curious; if I had that kind of desire, would it make me look more suspicious?”
Zhen Wuyu: “It’s natural. Understandable. But I’m curious—Miss Su doesn’t seem curious at all about who I am. It’s like you recognized me early, and even knew I would get involved in this case.”
“We weren’t close at school, and it’s been so many years. My appearance has changed too.”
Thud.
Chen Liao instinctively looked at Su Li.
Su Li held the sheet of paper in one hand, and Chen Liao held it too. On it was her sketched hand and the rope.
Like binding.
Like connection.
A faint smile appeared on her pretty, innocent-looking face.
Exactly like the teasing expression she used on the boys back in middle school.
“Classmate Zhen.”
“Are you not very clear on the fact that you’re actually pretty handsome, the kind people remember after one look? And I just happened to ‘casually learn’ some drawing skills like this. It’s only because my life is good, my talent is enough, and my memory is decent.”
“And back in middle school, I always liked having unclear relationships with boys like you who had a bit of fame.”
“Isn’t that exactly why you have a fixed bias against me?”
In the awkward silence—
Someone knocked on the door.
The three of them looked over. Through the door’s glass, they could see a middle-aged man’s face.
He looked in urgently, but with manners; he even knocked.
He was an extremely good-looking middle-aged man.
Tall, handsome, refined, with fair, delicate skin, and the poise that came from long-term privilege.
He clearly had learning and upbringing.
Even the faint crow’s-feet at the corners of his eyes carried a kind of middle-aged elegance.
Like his daughter, he didn’t fit this rough, cold, vast, backward place at all.
Zhen Wuyu hadn’t seen Bureau Chief Zhan’s face yet, but from the appearance of Mr. Su when the door opened, he could guess that a significant portion of Su Li’s good looks came from Mr. Su.
Especially the eyes.
Beautiful phoenix eyes that looked purely sincere no matter who they gazed at.
But he was more melancholy, more silent. In travel-worn anxiety, he carried a haggard air.
After he entered, his gaze swept across Chen Liao’s police uniform, and he frowned.
Bodyguards and a secretary followed behind him. He removed a well-tailored overcoat, revealing a suit underneath. Wind and snow still clung to his dark hair, mixed with a little white at the temples. He took a few quick steps inside, his eyes fixed on Su Li sitting on the bed, checking her again and again. Only then did he look at Zhen Wuyu and Chen Liao and speak slowly.
“I’m grateful the police rescued my daughter.”
“But I also heard you’re investigating her—her school contacted me.”
“So you’re going to do it again, like you did back then when you investigated my wife; you’ll investigate our only daughter.”
“Do you think they’re the murderer?”
Zhen Wuyu froze. Chen Liao was stunned too.
What?
Back then, Bureau Chief Zhan…?
“It seems treating the victim as the top suspect, even finally pinning the case on them like they’re the killer, has always been the advanced investigative style your generations have passed down over the past decade.”
“When she’s a bit healthier, will you bring her into an interrogation room too?”
Mr. Su lifted his hand. The lawyer outside entered.
The refined, elegant man of power sneered, his edge fully exposed.
“This time, you can try.”
He had a clear, intense hatred and disgust, completely unable to suppress it.
It started with his wife, and was revived through his daughter.