by Gangxueyin
Twenty yards . . . ten yards . . . five yards . . . one yard . . . paths crossed . . . no one clearly saw what happened, only that Zhao Chaoming suddenly flew in an arc and crashed to the ground. When the other officers charged from their ambush spots, the policewoman was already on top of Zhao Chaoming, a single-blade knife on the ground and gleaming in the pitch-black night.
The officers handcuffed Zhao Chaoming and pulled him to his feet. The policewoman’s jacket had been cut through. She had a gash in her abdomen. Luckily, the cut wasn’t deep.
The task force interrogated Zhao Chaoming immediately.
They had caught the suspect and seized the lethal weapon used in the crimes. Confronted with such conclusive evidence and relentless interrogators, Zhao Chaoming confessed to everything. But Zhao Chaoming’s ever-present smile, as he gave a detailed account of every crime, infuriated the police. When he described how he tortured the victims, his smile grew wider.
The Taiping Town serial killings had been solved, though the case had been truly arduous. They had gone through four Public Security Bureau chiefs in nine years. More than three hundred officers had been involved, ten thousand Taiping Town residents had been investigated—with more than a thousand key suspects—and the files contained more than seventy thousand pages. Once they solved the case, many of the officers on the task force hugged each other and burst into tears. Han Yin was deeply inspired by this indomitable spirit.
There was no case that could not be cracked.
Early the next morning, Han Yin’s mind was back on the Wang Li case as he anxiously returned to J City. T City had arranged for a special car to take him back, and he spent the entire ride going over articles on his phone to see how the media reported on that small-town maniac. Some of the media had heard from an unknown source about the interrogation of Zhao Chaoming the previous night. His eternal smile throughout the session, showing no remorse, earned him condemnation—callous, brutal, bloodthirsty, merciless, twisted. He was dubbed the Smiling Killer.
Han Yin was very sure about one thing: Zhao Chaoming was no different from any other serial killer.
They all smiled out of self-pity.
17
THE WRITER SUSPECT
Han Yin arrived back in J City around evening. He called Ye Xi and checked in. She said there hadn’t been any new developments and encouraged him to get a good rest before they met to talk it over the next morning.
Having been delayed several days in Taiping Town, Han Yin still felt bad about being away from the Wang Li and Yin Aijun cases. So he ignored her suggestion and his own fatigue, went to the cold case group, and brought back an armload of files.
A little over three months after beginning classes at Old Capital University, Yin Aijun had been killed. Her schoolmates and teachers called her quiet, introverted, and reticent. The only thing she did outside of walking back and forth between the campus and the dorm was browse bookshops. According to her schoolmates, she’d been seen on several occasions talking with a man. Other students in the dorm said Yin Aijun had claimed she’d met a writer in a bookstore, and he’d even given her a volume of collected poetry. But the police found no such book in her room. The police came up with a composite sketch of the man based on eyewitnesses and located the so-called writer.
In the 1980s, Old Capital University established a creative writing class in the Adult Education School. The students there were mostly literature lovers, and a few were would-be writers of minor merit. Most of them were locals or from the surrounding area. They tended to be older, with some degree of economic security, and to preserve a quiet, creative environment, they often chose to live in single quarters around the university.
At the time, the university only had one class in the creative writing course. One of the students in the class, Xu Sanpi, was the man Yin Aijun had met at the bookstore.
Xu Sanpi, local, thirty years old, had published lyric poetry and articles in a number of newspapers and magazines. He rented a small courtyard house near Jade Bird Road.
The police had him in custody, and they conducted a very thorough search of his living quarters while they questioned him.
Xu Sanpi denied being a killer and said he never sent Yin Aijun a poetry collection, but the police did find a volume of poetry where he lived. Some of the students said the book’s cover was very similar to the one Yin Aijun had brought back to the dorm. Confronted with this evidence, Xu Sanpi gave all kinds of excuses as to how and why the book was at his place. The police had also noticed that he had no knives. Xu Sanpi claimed he often ate at the campus restaurant and had no use for knives. The landlord couldn’t remember seeing any knives there.
The police found no traces of evidence in the house or the courtyard. But there were contradictions in Xu Sanpi’s statements. Many of his explanations were unclear, and the area matched where Yin Aijun had last been seen. Xu Sanpi also had no witnesses to his alibi, so he was a strong suspect. Strangely, just as the task force was about to subject Xu Sanpi to heavier interrogation, they received an order from the municipal Public Security Bureau to release him.
After this, the task force could only secretly monitor Xu Sanpi’s movements and whereabouts, but they never found anything suspicious. Three months later, Xu Sanpi left for the United States.
Han Yin frowned. Why had Xu Sanpi been released so suddenly? And why had he gone abroad in such a hurry? Where was Xu Sanpi now? Could he have been the murderer in the Yin Aijun case? Was he somehow connected to the recent Wang Li case?
Han Yin glanced at the file. It was heavily creased and faded, markedly more beat-up than the other files he’d gone over. Fu Changlin was clearly unable to tear himself away from the Yin Aijun case and must have leafed through the file repeatedly.
Han Yin decided that first thing tomorrow he’d find Fu Changlin and get every detail about Xu Sanpi from him. Maybe some things never made it into the file.
Early the next morning, Han Yin bumped into Kang Xiaobei in the breakfast area; he’d spent last night watching Feng Wenhao. Over breakfast, Kang Xiaobei told Han Yin about everything that had happened with their various suspects while Han Yin was out of town.
Everyone had secrets, just as Han Yin had said, and after tailing this group, it was clear they all had a hidden side to them.
After Yin Aijun’s former class master, Huang Chuanjun, had divorced, his former wife remarried. In 2011, by sheer coincidence, these two rekindled their old flame. According to his former wife, they often took advantage of their spouses being away on business. To avoid their neighbors bumping into them and spreading rumors, they usually met at hotels. On New Year’s Eve, she and Huang Chuanjun stayed together. The hotel’s surveillance tapes proved she’d been telling the truth.
In comparison, Liu Xiangming’s problems were much worse.
The reason for Liu Xiangming’s flash marriage and divorce was that he had been gay all along. Almost every day after leaving work, he’d fool around with guys he’d met at bars and parties. One such man admitted that he and Liu Xiangming had spent the entire New Year’s holiday together.
But Wang Wei and Xue Min’s life was comparatively normal. Their coworkers and neighbors saw their relationship as pretty good, though Xue Min was headstrong and haughty. Occasionally, her outbursts would embarrass Wang Wei. Fortunately, he was easygoing and could put up with her. Their home life was peaceful and unremarkable. They had an eight-year-old son, who, for study-related reasons, stayed with his grandparents. One of the neighbors recalled seeing the couple on the morning of January 4, when Wang Wei drove Xue Min to work. Everything seemed fine.
Han Yin believed these three groups of suspects could be eliminated from the case. The biggest suspect at present was the physician, Feng Wenhao, who was now under surveillance by Kang Xiaobei.
An analysis of Feng Wenhao’s activities showed that he might have had another dwelling in the cluster of rental apartments in the alley behind the bar. This meant he had independent space where he could impr
ison a victim and dismember the corpse. Over the several hours he’d disappeared, maybe he had gone to the apartment to relive his kicks. But this puzzled Han Yin. If Feng Wenhao had discovered that the police were tailing him, why would he do this?
Han Yin ordered Kang Xiaobei to keep a close watch on Feng Wenhao and to assign several officers to take Feng Wenhao’s picture to the neighborhood around the rental apartments to ask if any of the residents might know him or his place. He hoped this might uncover the secret nest.
Han Yin wanted to get hold of Fu Changlin and find out about Xu Sanpi. When he arrived at the Gulou substation doorway, he luckily saw Fu Changlin getting into his car.
“Chief Fu, there’s something I’d like to ask you about.”
Chief Fu stopped and leaned against the car. “What’s that?”
“It’s about Xu Sanpi.”
Chief Fu winced and gave Han Yin a long look. “It’s all there in the file. Look for yourself.”
“I don’t think it’s all there, and I’d like to find out what didn’t make the file.” Han Yin smiled.
“Didn’t make the file? Sorry, there’s nothing I can do to help.” Fu Changlin snorted and got into the car.
It was obvious Chief Fu didn’t have a good impression of Han Yin, and if the business of Xu Sanpi involved anything suspicious, he wouldn’t likely divulge anything to him, an outsider. It was clear that Fu Changlin was being cagey about something. If Han Yin wanted his cooperation, he’d have to bring up the Yin Aijun case.
“Chief Fu, I know you’ve struggled with Xu Sanpi disappearing from the Yin Aijun investigation. You’re not alone. I also think he’s a major suspect. That year he did have close contact with Yin Aijun. Even if he’s not the killer, he may have something to do with the Wang Li case. We could use the case we’re working on now to reel him in and conduct a thorough investigation of him.”
Fu Changlin stared at Han Yin for a moment. Then he turned and pursed his lips at the passenger seat, indicating Han Yin should join him. Han Yin rushed around the car and got in.
Fu Changlin lit a cigarette, took a couple of heavy drags, and gazed at Han Yin.
“You’re wondering why we suddenly stopped our investigation of Xu Sanpi, right?”
“That’s correct. He was a prime suspect, so why let him off so easily?”
Fu Changlin coughed. There was an unreadable look to him—sour, frustrated.
“I can’t say exactly what happened there. I just remember that the leadership told the task force head to call a meeting. When the task force head returned, Xu Sanpi was released on the grounds of insufficient evidence, something that totally puzzled everyone. Later, through a secret investigation, it was discovered that Xu Sanpi had a ‘very deep’ background. He had an uncle, who at the time was in charge of large-scale enterprise in this city and was close with city leaders. Xu Sanpi and the uncle were close. The uncle had no children, and he doted on Xu Sanpi. We secretly believed he applied pressure on the PSB through a certain leader in city government and forced his release.”
“Wouldn’t that have been a breach of regulations? Is the PSB so lacking in principles now?”
“Naturally, this is all conjecture, but it was true that the PSB felt a lot of pressure from a high authority.” Fu Changlin tightened his lips. “The task force at the time really didn’t have conclusive evidence that Xu Sanpi was the killer. There were no traces of blood inside or outside his residence, and no weapons. And that book of poetry had no discernible fingerprints. Someone had probably wiped it clean.”
“Although it looks like he was hastily released, there had been sufficient reason for it.”
“You could say so,” said Fu Changlin.
“So why stay so fixated on it?” Han Yin saw the surprise on Chief Fu’s face and smiled. “I saw that the file had been worked through many times, and I figured it had to have been you.”
Fu Changlin gave a rare smile. It was the first time he’d been friendly toward Han Yin.
“You’re sharp, and you’re right. All of these years, and I’ve never been able to drop my suspicions about Xu Sanpi. If he was innocent, why would he have used powerful connections to get released? It looked even more suspicious when he left the country several months later under the care of his uncle. It sure seemed like he was lying low until everything blew over.” Fu Changlin sighed. “It’s too bad that in those days our forensic technology was so backward. Today, I’m sure we’d have found traces of blood in that little yard.”
“Does the place still exist?”
“It was demolished a long time ago. It’s a guesthouse now, backed by Xu Sanpi’s uncle.”
“What happened after Xu Sanpi went abroad?”
Fu Changlin smiled again. “It looks like I really underestimated you. You have a talent for preliminary examination.”
Han Yin laughed. “Hey, I’m not trying to question you!”
Fu Changlin waved a hand. “I looked into it. Xu Sanpi’s life abroad wasn’t so glamorous. He had no job. He just goofed off and had to rely on his uncle to survive. Then he married and quickly divorced. In 2007, he slipped back into town.”
“Wait, he’s here now?”
“Yes. I’ve kept track of his movements. But he’s living clean. Maybe something he learned from being abroad all those years. He’s more practical now. Spent all that time writing some novels. He even got into the local writers’ association. However, his books haven’t brought him any recognition; it was thanks to his uncle’s influence that he’s reached the upper echelons of society. Hang on a second.”
Fu Changlin got out of the car and fiddled in the trunk. He got back in and handed a book to Han Yin. “This is the first one he published after his return. I don’t know if he got the info from published pictures, but there are lots of veiled allusions to the Yin Aijun dismemberment. I’ve read it several times but haven’t found anything worthwhile. You’re the expert. Take it with you and look it over.”
Han Yin took the book. It was thin with a gray cover. There were no illustrations, only the author’s name and the title: Gift.
“I understand your main mission is to solve the Wang Li case, but if you discover a break in the earlier case, please notify me.”
Han Yin met Fu Changlin’s gaze and nodded. “Don’t worry. I’m aware of how much that case weighs on you. If I find anything, I’ll share it with you.”
Han Yin thought it over, then gave a detailed account about Yu Meifen and his analysis. This shook Fu Changlin. He rubbed his hands and clenched his fists. After a moment, he calmed down. “Xu Sanpi has just come out with a new book. There’s going to be a small press release briefing this afternoon. I thought maybe I’d show up and find out what’s going on. But maybe it’d be best if you went. Your powers of observation are sharper than mine.” Chief Fu conveyed his fullest trust in Han Yin.
Perhaps Fu Changlin’s sincerity moved Han Yin, and when he was saying good-bye, he resolved a question that had been buried within Fu Changlin’s mind for over ten years: When had Yin Aijun met her end? The case of the tortured children gave Han Yin insights. After Wang Li and Wang Hong had gone missing, they’d been tied up. One had lived for a mere twenty-four hours. The other had been rescued. But there had been no bind marks on Yin Aijun’s wrists or ankles, meaning that she had been raped before she was killed.
After leaving Fu Changlin, Han Yin stared at the book titled Gift. He had five hours before the press release briefing at 2:00 p.m. Just enough time to read it.
Back at the guesthouse, Han Yin concentrated on reading. He skipped lunch, and only when he received a call from Ye Xi did he emerge from Xu Sanpi’s pages.
Soon after, Ye Xi arrived at the guesthouse and Han Yin told her about the meeting with Fu Changlin. She picked up the book. “How do you see it? Found anything interesting?”
“The writing’s pretty good. Bestseller quality. The content’s nothing special. The descriptions hinting at Yin Aijun are a far cry from what really happened to her.
His characterizations are what you’d expect from the circles he travels in. By comparison, his descriptions of a nonlocal student entering the university is far more mature. There are no hints. The case details the author refers to are already public knowledge, and it seems a bit farfetched in some places.”
“Knowing you, you’ve still got a ‘but’ coming, right?” Ye Xi joked.
Han Yin laughed, took the book from Ye Xi, and opened the cover flap. He pointed to the author’s bio. “But here’s where some problems are. Xu Sanpi was a graduate of Old Capital University’s 1994 undergraduate creative writing course. His bio should have mentioned this, but it was omitted. I don’t know if this was an editorial mistake or if Xu Sanpi wanted to distance himself from this gruesome crime.”
“I’m such a scatterbrain. According to your analysis, if this person had been a suspect in the Yin Aijun case, he couldn’t have been the murderer in the Wang Li case. But we can’t reach that conclusion so easily or just casually eliminate him from suspicion in the Wang Li case, either. We’ve got to check everything.” Ye Xi sighed. “It looks like we’re going to have to investigate the two cases together. I don’t know if that will be useful or a waste of time,” she said.
Han Yin smiled. “So you don’t have complete confidence in me?”
“No.” Ye Xi also smiled. “It’s not just you. Even I sometimes can’t tell the difference between the two. Which case we’re really investigating.”
“So we can deal with them both together. If we could find out what really happened in both, that would be amazing!”
“I highly doubt this will happen. Right now, I’m just hoping to solve this year’s case.”
“True!” Han Yin grew serious. “Sooner or later, the killer’s going to act again. We’ve got to try to catch him before he does.”
“Hmm. With you here to help, I’m much more confident.” Ye Xi gazed at Han Yin. Then she looked at her watch. “It’s almost two. I’ll go with you to meet Xu Sanpi!”
