SFTD -Chapter 278 The Disappearing Evidence (Part 11)

At this moment, Zhou Hai had already moved closer at Xu Biao’s signal and clearly heard the woman’s words. It seemed they were the eyewitnesses from that night.

The woman suddenly slapped her thigh.

“Right, I remember now!”

“The curtain suddenly moved and then dropped back down.

I lay there for quite a while afterward and endured another wave of labor pain. The more I thought about it, the stranger it felt. What kind of family stays up in the middle of the night with three people making a racket? And that woman had been lying on the floor the whole time without moving. It was terrifying to look at.

Since I couldn’t sleep anyway, I climbed out of bed and went to the living room to open the north-facing window. Just then, the people in that apartment also opened their living room window.

With the light from the residential compound, I could make out the young man who had been standing in the bedroom earlier. He looked like he was about to throw something outside, but the moment he heard me opening the window, he instantly crouched down and pulled the thing in his hand back inside.

That was when I got scared. It was pitch black, and I couldn’t see clearly anymore. The man disappeared from sight, and I was afraid he might come over to our building. My husband was working the night shift, after all. Thinking of that, I hurriedly shut the window and locked the front door.

After being frightened like that, my stomach hurt even more, so I called my husband. Less than half an hour later, he found a car and came back to take me to the hospital.

But when we returned home three days later after being discharged, we discovered our place had been burglarized. The entire house had been turned upside down. Every glass object had been smashed to pieces. The whole place was a complete wreck.

I was afraid my husband would worry, so I didn’t dare tell him about it. Later, I heard someone in the compound had died, but I didn’t even dare ask for details. I quickly terminated the lease, took the baby, and returned to my hometown to recover after childbirth.”

The woman’s somewhat disjointed account instantly sharpened everyone’s attention.

Ji Heping’s apartment was Unit 201 in Building 16, the easternmost unit. The east-facing window happened to belong to the master bedroom. Meanwhile, this couple had lived in Unit 301 of Building 18. Looking downward from there, they could clearly see Zhu Lixiang lying on the floor of the master bedroom.

Zhou Hai pulled two photographs from the case files: one was a family photo of Li Zhongzhi’s family, and the other was a family photo of Ji Jianguo’s family. He placed all the photos in front of the woman.

“Think carefully. When the curtain lifted, was the young man among these people?”

The woman picked up the photos and examined them for a long time. After all, five years had passed, and everyone was worried whether she could still recognize him.

But at that moment, the man beside her tugged on her pants leg and winked at her. Not only the woman, but everyone around them understood his intention immediately.

He wanted her to brush it off carelessly.

Huang Zhongsheng instantly looked ready to explode, but Xu Biao forcefully stepped on Huang Zhongsheng’s shoe and gave the woman a thumbs-up.

“Big Sis, you really have a strong sense of justice. You were probably the one who organized today’s trip to the Criminal Police Unit too, right?

Big Brother here isn’t trying to stop you. He’s just worried that you’ll run into trouble later on. But don’t worry, both of you. I’ll personally guarantee your safety. Even if this case requires testimony later, we’ll protect you properly.

We’re the People’s Police. If we can’t even protect ordinary citizens, and people with a sense of justice like you end up getting hurt, then that would be our dereliction of duty. Rest assured, nothing like that will happen. We’ll also make sure the Mocheng City Public Security Bureau strengthens its protective measures.”

The woman waved dismissively at Xu Biao and slapped her husband’s hand away.

“No need to call me Big Sis. I’m probably younger than you anyway. I’m from a rural area near Mocheng City. I’m not educated, but everything in life has to follow reason. Back then, I didn’t know this was evidence related to a murder case. If I had known, I would’ve come forward long ago.”

As she spoke, she picked up the four photographs again and pointed at Li Zhongzhi and Ji Cheng’an in the group photos.

“These two both look somewhat similar. What I remember most about that person was those narrow, long eyes. At the time, he looked skinny and wore black-framed glasses. He had on a hooded jacket, hunched his shoulders, and had a vicious expression on his face. When he glanced at me from the living room, it made my skin crawl.”

Zhang Chao also stepped closer, looked at the photographs, then moved behind Zhou Hai and Huang Zhongsheng.

“We got these photos from Li Zhongji. They were probably taken before 2010. At seventeen or eighteen years old, someone’s appearance can change drastically in just half a year.”

A thought flashed through Zhou Hai’s mind.

Every detail of the clothing and appearance the woman described perfectly matched Li Zhongzhi’s outfit when he left the residential compound that night.

This testimony was practically flawless.

Zhou Hai found the surveillance screenshots Xiao Hu had brought earlier and handed the papers to Xu Biao, who quickly spread the photos across the table.

Pointing at the two images, Xu Biao asked:

“Big Sis, take another look. Can you tell which one it was now?”

The woman didn’t hesitate for even a second. She pointed directly at Li Zhongzhi’s photo.

“It was him. That’s exactly how he was dressed, with the hoodie and glasses. Look at those narrow little eyes.”

Her certainty made everyone in the room breathe a sigh of relief.

Zhou Hai glanced at Xu Biao, signaling him to take the couple away first to record their official statements.

It was also to buy time while waiting for news from Huang Zhongsheng’s side.

As soon as the couple was escorted out, Huang Zhongsheng immediately called Da Zhao without waiting for Zhou Hai to ask.

The phone connected after only two rings.

“Chief, we caught him, but he’s changed so much I’m not even sure we arrested the right person.”

Huang Zhongsheng narrowed his eyes and lowered his voice.

“Didn’t you go with the household registration information and photographs? What do you mean he’s changed a lot? Explain clearly.”

“The household registration info is definitely his. We confirmed his identity, even checked his fingerprints—everything matches. That part’s correct. It’s just… his appearance has changed drastically.”

“Stop rambling. Bring him back immediately. You have half an hour. I want to see him here!”

“Yes, sir!”

With that response, Huang Zhongsheng hung up.

“One bunch of little brats after another. Who knows what nonsense they’re stirring up now? Causing trouble for me at a time like this. We’ll talk once they bring him back.”

Zhou Hai understood Huang Zhongsheng’s frustration.

Investigating cases outside their jurisdiction meant coordinating with local authorities, but the local police already had fixed assumptions about these old cases. Changing their thinking was extremely difficult. At moments like this, it was still more reliable to depend on the people he had personally brought along.

After arranging accommodations for the couple, Xu Biao returned to the room, smacking his lips as he silently drank water. That behavior was rather unlike him.

Huang Zhongsheng bumped him with his shoulder.

“Hey, Xu Biao, wipe my shoes for me. You stepped on them twice just now. My toes still hurt!”

Xu Biao rolled his eyes.

“Wipe them yourself. You haven’t even thanked me yet. You look so fierce that the moment you open your mouth, people get so scared they forget what they were going to say.”

The conference room instantly erupted into laughter.

Soon afterward came Xu Biao’s exaggerated cries and pleas for mercy.

Meanwhile, Zhao Xinli, who had been curled up in a corner flipping through the case files nonstop, caught Zhou Hai’s attention.

When Zhou Hai walked over, he discovered Zhao Xinli was comparing the original autopsy reports. On them was Gao Forensic Doctor’s criminal profile of the murderer.

Looking at it now, some parts seemed rather biased.

After all, there had been too little evidence at the time, so even logical deductions had inevitably deviated from reality.

“What are you studying?”