In less than ten minutes, Su He was poured two more bottles. He slumped over the table, mumbling, "You guys are my best friends... In the past I...urp..."
Suddenly, several policemen walked in.
"Who's Su He?"
When Su He heard someone calling his name, he turned his head and saw several policemen. He chuckled and said, "Officer Liu, you got here really quickly. Come, have a seat... Elder Sister Liu, fry up some more dishes and bring out some more sets of bowls and chopsticks..."
"Su He, we suspect you are involved in a murder case. Please cooperate and come with us to the police station." One of the male police officers said.
Su He looked blurrily at that male police officer, not recognizing him.
Murder case!
Dong Yong, Ma Mingzhe and the others were dumbfounded. Su He, who was usually tight-fisted, was unexpectedly treating them today. Could it be that Su He killed someone and was here drinking to celebrate?
"You've got the wrong person, haven't you?" Ma Mingzhe stood up and said.
When Su He heard the words "murder case", he was not surprised at all. On the contrary, he looked excited and said, "Has the reward notice been issued yet? How much is the reward money?"
What kind of twisted mindset is this? The few policemen were completely confused. Only Liu Wen beside them showed a wry smile. For this Su He, it really was money over life.
"Urp..." The moment he stepped out the door, a gust of wind blew over Su He and he immediately threw up.
"Take him to the hospital to sober up first..."
At the hospital, Liu Wen stepped forward and said to one of the policemen, "Captain Qiu, you guys go back first. I'll stay here and take him to the police station after he wakes up."
Qiu Qiang glanced at Liu Wen and smiled, "I've read this Su He's file. He really is quite unusual. Coming to Jin Nan City this time, he was able to find an important eyewitness as soon as he arrived, and it did relieve some pressure on our task force. It'll be tough on you tonight then."
That night, Su He was lying in bed asleep while Liu Wen sat on a chair staring blankly at Su He's face.
When you try to understand someone, their shadow lingers in your mind. Some people's shadows slowly fade, while others' silhouettes become clearer and clearer until they remain permanently.
At the beginning, Liu Wen saw Su He as a criminal suspect. But through the cases, Su He's shadow was always there. She gradually came to understand this sentimental and responsible man who did not fear danger.
"You really know how to stir up trouble!" Liu Wen put Su He's exposed hand back under the blanket. She couldn't help but murmur, "Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence. I can't find the right words anymore to describe you, coming to the police station every so often, it's unbelievable yet laughable."
In the morning, Su He opened his eyes to find himself lying in a hospital bed, and Liu Wen sleeping with her head on the bedside.
Not finding his phone, Su He looked around for it. Liu Wen woke up then.
"Su He, what are you looking for?"
"Officer Liu... sorry for the trouble last night, I drank too much and even needed you to send me to the hospital... Have you seen my phone?"
Su He scratched his head. He remembered Liu Wen calling him last night, then Ma Mingzhe and those beasts got him drunk. He didn't remember anything after that.
"Your phone is at the police station. Let's go, now that you're sober, come with me to the police station!"
Liu Wen bought Su He breakfast downstairs before bringing him to the police station.
This time, it wasn't the interrogation room at least.
"Officer Wen, you're back!" Su He smiled and greeted Wen Jie, but noticed there were a lot more police officers in the station.
Wen Jie nodded and said to Su He, "Su He, you're a regular here at our station... This time we need you to tell us what you saw, heard, and did around 12:30am the night before last, on June 20th, at the small supermarket in the middle section of Huang Huai Road."
"The night before last?" Su He carefully recalled that because of the housing issue, he had filed a report that night. After giving his statement, it was nearly midnight when he left the station since he had beaten up those people.
His e-bike was still at Xing Fu Li community, so he had rented a shared bike. Midway, he urgently needed to use the toilet... He went into a nearby small supermarket to buy toilet paper because there was none, and the boss gave him a pack...
Huang Huai Road, small supermarket?
Su He looked up in surprise and asked, "Someone else died?"
In the corner, Yang Lin covered his forehead in distress. He lamented silently, not knowing if Su He did it intentionally or not, but with just one sentence, everyone was on high alert.
Someone else died? Look at what he just said, as if he knew something. But don't assume he really knows anything. He will definitely end up saying: Isn't this how it always goes on TV shows?
But since the task force seniors were here, Yang Lin didn't dare speak up. So the familiar scene played out once more.
"Someone else died? What do you mean by that?" Qiu Qiang glared at Su He.
"Sir, I was just guessing. Seeing your large squad here, one look and I can tell it's no trivial matter. Everyone here is a detective. From your expressions, I'm certain my guess is right!" Su He calmly said. He was already used to interrogations, completely unperturbed.
Qiu Qiang laughed, "You're smart, no wonder you were able to provide clues in previous cases. Looking at your file, you were an auxiliary police officer before, so it's not surprising you have these skills."
Hearing the officer praise him, Su He grinned and said, "You're praising me so much I'm getting embarrassed. I really just guessed blindly, isn't this how it goes on TV?"
Hearing this, Wen Jie couldn't help coughing twice, and said, "Whether you guessed right or not, just tell us first what you did, saw, and heard."
"After leaving the station last night, I remembered my e-bike was still at Xing Fu Li community. I rented a shared bike, planning to go ride my e-bike. Midway, I needed to use the toilet urgently, and found there was no toilet paper, so I went to the supermarket to buy some. The boss kindly gave me a pack. After using the toilet, I came out and the supermarket boss had closed up and left. I thanked him before he left..."
The police checked the nearby surveillance recordings which matched Su He's account.
"Can you describe the boss's appearance, what he said, and his accent?" Wen Jie continued asking.
Su He thought about it. He had been so desperate for the toilet then, where would he have the state of mind to notice all these details? He replied, "I only remember he wore a dark baseball cap and mask. Height and build similar to mine. I pushed the door open and asked 'Anyone there?' Waited over 10 seconds then someone inside replied 'What do you want to buy?' I said toilet paper. The boss came out and gave me a pack of toilet paper. I asked how much. He said it's on me, go use the toilet, don't wet your pants. Then I went to use the toilet. As for accent, his voice was muffled. I can't place which accent it was."
"Was the boss male or female?"
"Male."
"Can you estimate his approximate age?"
"25 to 40 years old I guess. After all, he had a cap and mask on, I didn't pay special attention."
After Wen Jie finished his questions, Qiu Qiang continued asking, "The surveillance recording shows you spent 10 minutes in the toilet. What exactly did you do inside?"
Su He was startled. Two options appeared before him.
"Option 1: Tell them you shat your pants. Reward: Advanced excavator operating skills"
"Option 2: Say to the officer: Hey officer, you can't be serious. Obviously I was shitting inside the toilet, could shitting also be against the law? Reward: Advanced cooking skills"
"What? Need to think so hard about this too?" Seeing Su He staring blankly ahead, seeming to be pondering something, Qiu Qiang reminded.
Su He looked at the few policewomen in the distance and had to give up his most coveted advanced excavator skills. He said, "Hey, Officer, come on, going to the bathroom is obviously to take a shit, how could taking a shit be against the law?"
With the same expression and tone, Yang Lin was dumbfounded as he watched Su He from the corner. Has he always been so brave?