Chapter 1: The Tianyuan Huafu Shooting Incident

The light was not on in the room, yet Xiao Gang still gently knocked on the door, which surprisingly was not closed

Ling Li chuckled lightly: "If that were the case, then the deceased would not have died in the living room, but rather in his own room, or even in his own bed"

Ling Li briefly recounted the situation, and Mo Shaoping's originally slightly furrowed brows became tightly knitted: "Xiao Gang had quite a few conflicts over Huang Xiaolan and Du Hongze back in the day; otherwise, he wouldn't have received a demotion. He should have long been the captain of the narcotics team. Alas, how is it that after so many years, this is happening again..."

What is the situation? Ling Li pulled aside the warning line and walked into the villa

In Lingdui, a shooting incident occurred in the Yuhua Lake Tianyuan Huafu villa area, resulting in the death of Du Hongze

Jiao Nan, who had been silent all along, asked: "Or could it be that the murderer opened the door themselves?"

Xiao Gang glanced at his watch; it was ten minutes to eight. He extinguished his cigarette, tossed it to the ground, and lightly crushed it with his foot. Adjusting the collar of his trench coat, he took out a pair of sunglasses from his pocket and put them on. With his polished leather shoes stepping over the puddles, he walked towards the nearby "Jingzi" bar.

The wife's expression was somewhat melancholic, yet she still smiled and said, "It's alright, drive slowly, and pay attention to safety on the road"

Mo Shaoping did not continue speaking and turned to ask: "Have you contacted Xiao Gang?"

Regarding the individual Xiao Gang, Fan Cheng believes he knows him quite well. Although Xiao Gang has a bad temper and is prone to impulsiveness, he possesses a strong sense of work responsibility and is able to uphold his principles. Fan Cheng cannot believe that Xiao Gang would do such a thing.

The young criminal police officer Xing Weidong glanced at the female forensic expert Qiao Nan, who said: "The killing was at close range, with the distance between the murderer and the victim being less than two meters. The victim was shot in the center of the forehead, dying instantly."

People nowadays do not like to meddle in others' affairs, which Lingli can understand, but did the security guards in the community not hear anything

He is already aware of the shooting incident at Tianfu Huayuan. Du Hongze, a well-known real estate developer from Qiaocheng, was shot dead in his own home. Who knows what kind of impact this will have. Moreover, that phone call from Ling Li made him even more restless. Although Ling Li only mentioned on the phone that the bullet might have been fired from a police gun, this drove Mo Shaoping somewhat crazy.

Fan Cheng remained silent, merely listening quietly. After all, this was the domain of the criminal police team, and he was just a spectator. In his heart, he couldn't help but feel pity for Xiao Gang. How had such an outstanding police officer fallen to this state?

"Sorry, the number you have dialed is turned off." A cold voice came from the receiver, and Xiao Gang's heart sank instantly. He waved to the waiter and placed a one-hundred-yuan bill on the table: "No need for change." Then he quickly left the bar

The weather in Guizhou is like winter when it rains, even in summer it brings a sense of chill

However, this report is written in a detailed and convincing manner, making it hard not to believe it

Xiao Gang took out his mobile phone and entered a phone number

Mo Shaoping supported his right elbow with his left hand, holding a cigarette between his right fingers, furrowing his brows as he paced back and forth in the office. Not long ago, he had also called Ling Li out of bed with a phone call.

The Tianyuan Huafu consists of three districts: District A and District B are high-rise and small high-rise residential areas, while District C is a villa area. Districts A and B share a single entrance and exit, whereas District C has its own independent entrance and exit. However, there is a buffer zone between Districts A, B, and C, which is a central leisure garden within Tianyuan Huafu. This means that although District C has its own entrance and exit, it is not truly independent and enclosed, as one can also reach District C from Districts A and B by passing through the central leisure garden.

Xiao Gang suddenly became alert, his right hand went into the pocket of his trench coat, gripping the pistol hidden within, while his left hand slowly pushed the door open

Ling Li asked Xing Weidong again, have you retrieved the surveillance footage from the community? High-end residential areas like Tianfu Huayuan have 24-hour monitoring.

Xing Weidong paused at this point: "The security duty room in Area C is located about three hundred meters from the villa where Du Hongze resides. There are a total of three security guards on duty; two of them said they did not hear anything, while the other mentioned that he seemed to have heard something but could not confirm whether it was gunfire. It is said that every hour, two security guards are supposed to patrol Area C, so the murderer must have chosen the gap in their patrol to commit the crime"

Having consumed more than half a bottle of beer, Xiao Gang glanced at his watch again. It was 8:15. He frowned slightly; it was already a quarter past the agreed time. Could something have gone wrong?

"Ling Dui, you should take a look at this first." Xing Weidong's expression suddenly became serious as he held a transparent evidence bag containing a bullet casing.

Ling Li glanced at it, and his expression also turned grim: "5.8 centimeters in caliber, QSZ92 model"

Ling Li closed the door after entering: "Director Mo."

The bridge city in July is shrouded in continuous rain

Ling Li pointed at the cigarette: "Oh?"

Xing Weidong sighed: "Based on the height of the perpetrator and his attire, he closely resembles Captain Xiao of the Narcotics Team, wearing a black trench coat and sunglasses. More importantly, the person in the footage possesses strong counter-surveillance skills; although more than a dozen cameras captured his figure, not a single clear face was recorded."

"A shooting occurred at 1 AM, and only now is the police being notified? Who reported the case?" Ling Li looked towards Xing Weidong and asked

After finishing a cigarette, he let out a soft sigh, acknowledging that people do change

Ling Li and Fan Cheng arrived at the scene almost simultaneously. The two nodded to each other as a form of greeting, and the expressions on their faces were quite serious.

Ling Li stood up with a wry smile and said, "Then I shall take my leave."

Fan Cheng stood by the window, smoking a cigarette, his brows furrowed into the shape of the character "川".

Mo Shaoping leaned back and asked Ling Li, "Have you reported this matter to Director Tan?"

Xing Weidong smiled bitterly: "It was Du Hongze's wife, Huang Xiaolan, who reported the incident. She was playing cards with a few friends last night and didn't leave until after 3 AM. When she returned home, she saw this scene. Du Hongze has a son and a daughter, both of whom are attending boarding high school. They originally had a nanny, but she quit a few days ago. We asked the neighbors around, and indeed some of them heard the gunshots, but they didn't take it seriously."

Ling Li's face flushed slightly: "Not yet, I was thinking that since my master is in charge of the anti-drug team, I should inform him first. I will go report to Director Tan right away."

Qiao Nan's mouth twitched slightly, but she did not speak. Ling Li was right; she had just checked upstairs and could tell that Du Hongze had indeed gotten out of bed, and he showed no signs of panic.

The girl widened her eyes: "This is the car I called!" However, Xiao Gang had already closed the car door. The taxi driver cast a disdainful glance at Xiao Gang, shook his head, and drove away.

Watching Ling Li's departing figure, Mo Shaoping picked up the mobile phone on the coffee table, hesitated for a moment, and then placed the phone back on the table

Mo Shaoping's expression darkened as he pointed at Ling Li and said, "You little rascal, this is a violation of discipline!"

Mo Shaoping pressed his lips together and squinted his eyes. He was unable to contact Xiao Gang; could it really be that this kid was responsible? How could that be? Xiao Gang, like Ling Li, had grown up under Mo Shaoping's watch. Although this guy had a bit of a bad temper and was somewhat impulsive in his words and actions, he would never stoop to such deeds.

Time of death? Ling Li furrowed his brows, and Qiao Nan said: "Around one o'clock in the morning"

Xing Weidong pressed his lips together and said: "We have reviewed the surveillance footage from the time of the incident, and we did indeed find images of the perpetrator. However, the perpetrator was very cunning, and we did not see their face from beginning to end, but..."

Xiao Gang! Ling Li gasped in surprise, and then recalled that Xiao Gang's sidearm was indeed the QSZ92 pistol

Knock, knock! The sound of knocking on the door echoed, and Mo Shaoping halted his steps, his expression suddenly turning solemn: "Come in"

Xiao Gang stepped into the alley and stopped in front of a dilapidated two-story building

Ling Li's words are certainly pointed; he knows Ling Li quite well. This criminal police captain is not someone who speaks carelessly, and there must be a reason behind his statement

In the early morning, around six o'clock, in the office of Mo Shaoping, the Deputy Director of the Public Security Bureau of Qiaocheng City

However, he still harbored a glimmer of hope, hoping that this material was a mistake, or perhaps it was entirely fictitious

Xing Weidong nodded and said, "That's right"

At 4:30 in the morning, Ling Li, the captain of the Criminal Investigation Team of the Public Security Bureau of Qiaocheng City, was abruptly awakened from his slumber by a series of urgent phone rings. His intuition told him that a major case must have occurred.

This type of firearm is currently only equipped by the military, and even our municipal bureau has very few of them. Ling Li furrowed his brows tightly.

He arrived at the bureau almost simultaneously with Xiao Gang. Although their working styles are completely different on ordinary days, he still recognizes Xiao Gang as a person.

Just as he pushed open the door, there seemed to be some noise inside the room. Xiao Gang reached with his left hand towards the light switch by the door and called out softly, "Who is it?"

However, he is not in the mood to appreciate the night view of the Xishan Grand Bridge; he is waiting for someone, a very important person

He originally intended to contact Xiao Gang, but if it was indeed Xiao Gang who did this, then his call would be tantamount to alerting him. Such a violation of principles is something Mo Shaoping would certainly not do

On the desk lies a document, reporting anonymously that Xiao Gang, the deputy captain of the Anti-Drug Team in Qiao City, is involved in misconduct

Lazi Alley is located in the old town, within the red line area of the shantytown renovation. On the walls of the houses on both sides, there are large white characters and illustrations of the word "demolish" written in lime.

A taxi was just hailed by a girl when Xiao Gang rushed ahead of her and opened the door, saying: "Lazi Alley, please hurry up."

At this moment, Ling Li, who had been observing several windows on the first floor, interjected: "The deceased is wearing pajamas, so they must have gotten up from bed, right? There are no signs of damage on the door or windows, which suggests that the murderer was likely let in by the deceased."

The Xishan Bridge at night is particularly beautiful under the illumination of lights. Xiao Gang, an enthusiast of photography, once won third place in a photography competition for his work "Xishan Bridge in Wind and Rain"

However, what? Ling Li felt somewhat displeased

How could such a thing happen? Fan Cheng was also taken aback when he received the call in the middle of the night, immediately jumping out of bed; he needed to go to the scene to see what was going on.

What kind of person wears sunglasses at night, lacking in manners!" The girl stomped her foot in anger, as hailing a taxi on a rainy day is not an easy task.

There is a case, I must rush over immediately, and I may not be able to return to see you by tomorrow morning. As he spoke, Ling Li had already dressed and was filled with regret in his eyes

He looked around and did not find anything unusual before walking to the second door on the first floor

If the report is true, then Xiao Gang has serious disciplinary and legal violations

Ling Li suddenly sat up, and his wife beside him, still half-asleep, asked: "Old Ling, what happened?"

Unable to get in touch, no one answers the phone. Ling Li lit a cigarette and said softly

Mo Shaoping threw him a cigarette and said, "Quickly tell me what exactly is going on"

Xing Weidong said, "I suspect that this bullet was fired from a police gun"

Ling Li lowered his head, and Mo Shaoping said sharply: "Why are you still standing there? Hurry up and report to Director Tan immediately"

Tan Kaishan is the deputy director in charge of criminal investigation, which is why Mo Shaoping would ask such a question

Sitting down at the innermost table, he ordered two bottles of "Jianjiang Beer," and Xiao Gang's gaze turned towards the floor-to-ceiling glass window outside