RBCT Chapter 29 makes the suspicion even greater.
Chapter 29 makes the suspicion even greater.
After get off work.
Cao Dahua then called Wu Song to the cafeteria for a meal. After placing a piece of spare rib on Wu Song's plate, he asked, "Disciple, what do you think?"
"I still don't think Liu Jianshe has any murderous intent," Wu Song affirmed. "And I'm confident enough in my judgment that he's most likely not the one who killed Li Ailian with his own hands."
"Um?"
Cao Dahua took note of Wu Song's statement.
"Not by his own hand? Does that mean he can't be ruled out as a suspect? Do you think someone else helped him kill Li Ailian? Was it a case of a kill-for-kill exchange, but he didn't actually kill her, or was it a hired murder?"
"That's right." Wu Song nodded. "So I want to investigate his social connections. If we immediately conclude that Liu Jianshe is the murderer, wouldn't that just let the person who did the deed go unpunished?"
"Hmm, that makes sense, but!" Cao Dahua frowned. "All the evidence points to Liu Jianshe committing murder; it's practically irrefutable. Why is Liu Jianshe unwilling to implicate the person who killed him in order to gain leniency? What's the point of just saying he didn't do it? Is it out of loyalty? Or is he simply unwilling to implicate that person?"
"Let's investigate his relatives first tomorrow," Wu Song said.
"Mmm!" Cao Dahua nodded while stuffing his mouth with rice.
……
The next day.
Shangrongshu Village.
The first people I met were Liu Jianshe's parents.
"We're from the criminal investigation team, here to find out what's going on."
"Officer, my son couldn't possibly have killed someone." Liu Jianshe's parents, a middle-aged couple in their forties or fifties, knew Cao Dahua and Wu Song's identities and their knees buckled.
Seeing that the situation was not good, Wu Song grabbed one of the people's arms with each hand, lifted Liu Jianshe's parents into the air, and then exerted force to pull them up.
"Hey, if you two keep going like this, we're leaving right now!"
Wu Song had already examined the two men; they were not shrouded in black mist.
The most important purpose of meeting Liu Jianshe's parents today has been achieved.
If the two of them insist on making things difficult for themselves.
Wu Song felt that he really didn't need to stay here any longer.
"Yes, if you keep doing this, we won't come back." Cao Dahua sighed inwardly at his disciple's strength, and put on a stern face to cooperate with Wu Song in his act.
"No, no, no!"
"Is it still like this?"
"No, please let go." Liu Jianshe's parents both stood up straight and invited the two into the house.
Liu Jianshe's father's family was also doing well.
It's much better than the situation of ordinary farmers in Gaotan now.
"Your family is quite wealthy!" Cao Dahua looked around.
"He occasionally goes to Gotham to sell snacks, it's alright, much better than farming," Liu's father chimed in, pouring Cao Dahua and Wu Song a glass of water. "Officer, we know my son's situation. He does have quite a few minor flaws, and we won't cover for him. He's impulsive, loves to drink, and beats his wife when he's drunk. But he's always accurate. Go ask around, when has he ever beaten his wife so badly she ended up in the hospital? When has he ever beaten her so badly she can't get out of bed?"
"You're quite proud of yourself, aren't you?" Cao Dahua shouted.
"No, no, I just wanted to say that my son wouldn't dare to kill anyone. He simply doesn't have the guts. And why would he want to kill someone? Was he dissatisfied with his wife? He could just divorce her and find another one. It's not like we can't afford to marry her. Why would he kill someone?"
"What if Li Ailian refuses to divorce?"
"Ha." Mr. Liu laughed. "She doesn't want a divorce? She wants one more than she wants one. She's been educated enough that she doesn't even look down on my son. It's just that her family can't afford the bride price, so she went back to her parents' home. She has to come back to me the way she went back."
How much is the bride price?
"Five thousand!"
"What?" Wu Song and Cao Dahua were both shocked.
For the two of them now, this is not a high amount, especially for Cao Dahua, it's less than a year's salary.
However, Liu Jianshe and Li Ailian got married seven years ago.
What was the concept of 5,000 yuan back then?
The average income of rural households across the country is only two to three thousand yuan.
It would take a family two years of not eating or drinking to earn that five thousand yuan.
It's impossible not to eat or drink.
There's also the agricultural tax, with three levies and five unified taxes. How much can you save after paying all of them?
Forget about saving money, just not being in debt is considered a good outcome.
"Why do you need so much?" Cao Dahua asked instinctively.
"Her father is in poor health, and he has three older brothers. His family needs to find wives for his three sons. Ha, if it weren't for my five thousand yuan dowry, all three of their sons would still be bachelors! Oh, by the way, if my son really did kill her, and I used money to get his family's forgiveness, would my son not have to die?"
"You just need to answer our questions!" Wu Song turned a page in his notebook. "Tell me, who are the people your son plays with the most?"
"Hey, his friends are all scoundrels."
"What we need is the list of his cronies," Wu Song emphasized.
"You mean my son might have been misled? Yes, that must be it. Even if my son killed someone, it was because he was led astray by those bad friends. My son isn't the mastermind!" Overjoyed, Liu's father immediately started rattling off a string of words, "My neighbor Zhang Laosan's son, named Tiedan, and Hei Xiao from the east end of the village..."
After rattling off ten names in one breath, Liu's father finally stopped. "That's all. It must be the people here who corrupted my son. They weren't married, and they were jealous that my son got married. They are the main culprits."
"Alright, could you take us to find these people first?"
"no problem!"
……
When they arrived next door, they met the young man named Tiedan.
Wu Song didn't see any black mist on him, but when he asked him questions, he could clearly sense that Wu Song was stammering.
Wu Song and Cao Dahua then called him aside and questioned him privately.
"Do you have any leads regarding the murder of Liu Jianshe's wife? Just tell me."
"It was Liu Jianshe who killed her! It was about three months ago. I was drinking with Liu Jianshe, and he said that he would kill that barren hen sooner or later. I thought he was just saying it casually, but I didn't expect that this guy would actually kill someone. He's too bold."
"Any other clues?"
"Then I'm really done. I didn't hang out with Jianshe much after that, just occasionally had a few drinks."
"Okay, thanks! Do you know any other people Liu Jianshe is close to?"
After comparing his list with the one given by Liu Jianshe's father, and adding one more person, Wu Song and Cao Dawei went to meet the others.
"Well, the more we investigate, the more suspicious Liu Jianshe becomes!" Cao Dahua said, sitting on the motorcycle. "To be honest, in my opinion, we can basically close the case at this point."
"Something's not right. He's definitely not the one who did it." Wu Song took out his notebook, glanced at the ten names besides "Tie Dan" whom he had just seen, and narrowed his eyes slightly. "Which one of you is it? Let's go through them one by one. If you did it, you won't escape my eyes!"