“Of course, there’s another possibility… that after killing those nine people, the murderer didn’t have time to commit a second crime before being taken by illness.”
At this point, Xu Mo shifted the tone of his speech:
“But that’s clearly impossible. It’s highly unlikely that someone would be on the verge of death right after committing a murder, leaving no time for another crime. Even a final burst of energy before death wouldn’t work like that.”
Han Fei pinched his chin.
“So, as of now, Qiu Yuanhang is the most suspicious?”
“He’s been donating to charity frequently afterward. Is it because he feels guilty? Is he trying to atone for his sins?”
After hearing Xu Mo’s words, Han Fei also felt that Qiu Yuanhang was highly suspicious.
However, he didn’t jump to conclusions and immediately declare Qiu Yuanhang the murderer. Instead, he instructed the officers to continue investigating other potential suspects.
“Send me this person’s information. Keep digging and see if there are any other individuals who fit the criteria.”
Later, the officers identified other potential suspects.
Most of them could be cleared of suspicion due to certain special circumstances.
The remaining few, while not entirely cleared, were far less suspicious compared to Qiu Yuanhang.
Looking at a list of suspects that the officers had spent over two hours compiling, Han Fei assigned tasks to his team.
“Chen Ke, Li Chen, you two lead teams to bring in suspects Guo Ming and Li Qifeng. Old Zhang, you’ll also need to make a trip…”
As for Qiu Yuanhang, the most suspicious one, Han Fei and Xu Mo decided to handle his arrest personally.
This guy was the prime suspect, potentially responsible for nine lives. He was extremely dangerous and cunning, and Han Fei feared that sending others to apprehend him might lead to complications.
To ensure safety, Han Fei chose to accompany Xu Mo to arrest Qiu Yuanhang.
…
The police discovered that Qiu Yuanhang had opened three noodle shops on Dazhi Road, all of which were thriving. Almost every mealtime, the shops were packed with customers.
The money he used for charity also came entirely from the profits of these three noodle shops.
It was a little past 10 a.m., and unless something unexpected had happened, Qiu Yuanhang was surely at one of the shops.
The two parked their car outside one of the noodle shops and got out.
Although it wasn’t yet lunchtime, the shop already had quite a few customers.
The staff inside merely glanced at them before continuing with their work, showing no intention of greeting them.
Small shops like this usually had menus posted on the walls and at the ordering counter. Customers were expected to order on their own, without being asked by the staff.
Han Fei and Xu Mo walked straight to the counter.
They flashed their badges to the cashier: “We’re police officers. Your boss is Qiu Yuanhang, right? Is he here right now?”
The cashier was momentarily stunned, then shook her head.
“No… he’s not here. He’s at the branch across the street.”
Upon learning that Qiu Yuanhang wasn’t at this shop but at the one across the street, the two didn’t waste any time and immediately left.
“Across the street, it should be that one.” After stepping outside, Han Fei glanced across the road and pointed at one of the noodle shops in the row of storefronts.
Although there was some distance between the two shops, they shared the same name, as both were owned by Qiu Yuanhang.
They walked across the street to the other noodle shop, where they finally spotted Qiu Yuanhang.
Having seen his photo beforehand, they recognized him immediately.
“You’re Qiu Yuanhang, right?” Han Fei approached him and said, “We’re from the Sanyang Road Police Station. We need to ask you a few questions. Come with us.”
Upon realizing who these two were, a fleeting look of surprise and panic flashed in Qiu Yuanhang’s eyes.
He slowly stood up, pursed his lips, and repeated “Okay” three times: “Uh… okay, okay, okay. Let me just tell my staff, and then I’ll go with you.”
“By the way, officers, can I ask what this is about?”
“You’ll find out when we get there.” Han Fei shook his head, refusing to reveal anything.
Qiu Yuanhang then turned to his staff and said, “Xiao Li, I have to step out for a bit. I’ll be back soon.”
And just like that, Qiu Yuanhang followed them.
Contrary to Han Fei’s expectations, Qiu Yuanhang didn’t try to run or resist. Instead, he obediently accompanied them back to the police station.
On the way back, Qiu Yuanhang didn’t cause any trouble, though he seemed visibly nervous, fidgeting in his seat as if sitting on pins and needles.
Not long after they returned to the station, the other officers who had been out apprehending suspects also came back with their targets.
“Captain Han, we’ve brought them in. Do you want to interrogate them?” Li Chen asked.
Han Fei shook his head: “You handle it. I’ll take care of Qiu Yuanhang.”
Among all the suspects in this case, Qiu Yuanhang was the most suspicious, so Han Fei delegated the interrogation of the others to his team, as he and Xu Mo couldn’t handle everything themselves.
In the interrogation room.
“Qiu Yuanhang, right? Relax. Just answer our questions. No need to be nervous.”
“Okay, go ahead.” Qiu Yuanhang said this, but his palms were already sweating.
Xu Mo, who had been polite and smiling just a moment ago, suddenly turned serious.
He didn’t start with casual questions to ease Qiu Yuanhang’s guard. Instead, he went straight for the jugular, pulling out nine photos from the case file—images of the victims’ “suicide scenes” taken at the time—and slammed them onto the small table attached to the interrogation chair.
At the same time, he fixed his gaze on Qiu Yuanhang and asked:
“You should be familiar with these photos. I won’t waste time explaining them. Tell me, why did you kill them?”
Hearing this, Qiu Yuanhang’s heart leaped into his throat. He swallowed hard and quickly shook his head in denial.
“No, I didn’t kill anyone. I didn’t… You’ve got the wrong person.”
“Considering you’ve been doing charity work for the past three years to atone for your sins, I’ll give you a chance to come clean,” Xu Mo said, his intense gaze never leaving Qiu Yuanhang, creating a strong sense of pressure.
By now, beads of sweat had formed on Qiu Yuanhang’s forehead.
But he still shook his head: “I didn’t kill anyone. You really have the wrong person.”
“So, you’re not planning to confess? If you won’t talk, I’ll do it for you. We wouldn’t have come after you if we didn’t have evidence. Holding onto hope is useless.”
Xu Mo had learned the details of the case from his sources. Even if Qiu Yuanhang didn’t speak, he could reconstruct the events with precision.
When Qiu Yuanhang heard this, he would realize that everything he had done years ago had been exposed. He would think the police had all the evidence and had come for him. Out of fear, he would surely confess.
“Three years ago, you were diagnosed with liver cancer…”