A ringtone rang, and Su He groggily picked up the phone, squinting at the caller ID display, it was Zhou Bing from the Criminal Investigation Team.
"Hey, Officer Zhou, who died again?"
Don't ask, it's just morning temper.
There was a brief silence on the phone, and Zhou Bing's voice came: Su He, come to the Public Security Bureau.
Rubbing his hangover forehead, Su He crawled out of bed. Ma Mingzhe and Dong Yong were snoring loudly, while Pan Zhigang was hunched over the toilet vomiting violently.
It looked like they wouldn't be able to run errands today. After instructing Pan Zhigang a few words, Su He rode his e-bike and arrived at the Public Security Bureau.
He had just parked his car when two policemen walked over.
"Su He, please come with us."
This time, it was finally not the interrogation room.
In the office, Zhou Bing looked at Su He solemnly and asked, "Where were you and what were you doing from 2 to 3 am on the 25th?"
Su He frowned. 2 am on the 25th, last night...
"After delivering food, I ate noodles at the husband and wife noodle shop on Ruitong Road...then I went back to the hostel to sleep..."
Zhou Bing continued to ask, "After eating noodles until you got back to the hostel, did anything happen?"
"Nothing happened! Oh, you mean the thing about Qi Zhenguo falling down. I can prove that it was the responsibility of that off-roader. He was speeding and cursing people. Also, he fled the scene. Doesn't that count as a hit and run?"
Seeing the expression on Officer Zhou's face, Su He was stunned, "Did Qi Zhenguo die?"
Zhou Bing didn’t answer. He stared into Su He’s eyes for a long time before saying, “You really don’t know?”
Su He shook his head.
"On the morning of the 26th at 9 am, you delivered a meal to Jinghu Community. Do you still remember it?"
"Mr. Zhang?" Su He remembered it very clearly. A man wearing a facial mask who spoke sarcastically and almost gave him a bad review.
Zhou Bing nodded.
"He died?" Su He breathed a sigh of relief. He thought something had happened to Qi Zhenguo.
"Oh? You don't seem surprised at all?" Zhou Bing kept observing Su He's expression. As a veteran detective, he could tell if Su He was lying or not.
"Well, Officer Zhou, this has nothing to do with me. I have the delivery record. There are surveillance cameras everywhere in Jinghu Community. You can check the footage... I..."
"The surveillance showed that after you got out of the elevator, it took you a full six minutes before you got back in the elevator. Why did it take so long?"
Su He quickly took out his phone and found Mr. Zhang's order. He said, "Look, he said he was masking his face and told me not to rush him. I waited five minutes before knocking on his door. As soon as he opened the door, he started swearing. I put down the food and left."
The order did have a note. Zhou Bing asked the police next to him to take a picture of Su He’s phone screen. He continued, "Mr. Zhang was found dumped in a trash can by sanitation workers this morning. Do you have any clues?"
Su He shook his head. He just delivered food normally and didn't even get a good look at Mr. Zhang's face.
Just then, two options suddenly appeared before his eyes.
"Option 1: Assist the police in solving the case. Reward: Truth Serum"
"Option 2: Do nothing and wait for the police to solve the case. Reward: Wipe out all assets (bank cards, WeChat, Alipay, cash...)"
Su He rubbed his eyes. If he didn't see wrongly, the second option could make him go bankrupt!
System, get out here! You call that a reward?
The system was clearly trying to get him involved in solving the case. Su He smiled bitterly to himself. I'm just a delivery guy, how would I solve a case!
If even delivery guys can solve cases, what do the police do!
Seeing Officer Zhou looking at him in confusion, Su He sighed and said, "Officer Zhou, can I join you in solving the case?"
Zhou Bing was not surprised at all. He took a document from the table next to him and handed it to Su He, saying, "Considering your special circumstances and talents, the bureau has specially approved this letter of investigation for you. Here is also a letter of recommendation. If you are interested in becoming a policeman, you can study at the China University of Public Security. With your abilities, I believe you will become an excellent detective in the future."
Go to college? Su He didn't even get into high school. His teachers also praised him as a talented person, but that didn't stop him from going to vocational school to study excavators.
After graduating, after much ups and downs, he ended up delivering food. If I had known earlier, I should have just delivered food from the beginning. All that time was wasted taking so many detours.
Zhou Bing took Su He to another office. More than a dozen policemen were busy working, merely glancing at Su He before continuing with their tasks.
"In less than 10 days, three homicide cases. On April 17th, the first victim, Wei Qiang, unemployed, made a living by hunting in the mountains. He was found killed at home. The murderer cut open his belly, pulled out his intestines and inserted this iron rod, then sutured the abdomen closed...”
On the projector were a series of horrifying photos. The victim's facial expression was very peaceful, and the sutured wound on his abdomen was very neat. With one glance, Su He, a food delivery guy skilled at suturing, recognized it as the simple interrupted suture commonly used in surgery.
The murderer was a surgical doctor!
"On April 24th, the second victim, Ma Yihong, President of Capital People’s Hospital, was killed in his office. The murderer took out his heart, also leaving behind an object like this."
There were bronze markings on the stone and iron rod, which seemed to be related to some kind of religious offering.
"Today, April 27th, at 5:28 in the morning, a sanitation worker called the police after discovering the third victim, Zhang Dada, a well-known host, dumped in a trash can. The murderer took out his tongue and put a piece of iron in his mouth...”
Mr. Zhang?
Su He looked at the photos, Zhang Dada's mouth was sutured shut, his eyes wide open, his fingers bloodied. When the sutures were removed, there was an iron piece in his mouth, also marked with those symbols.
"Forensic examination showed that all three victims had large doses of anesthetics in their bodies. For the first and second victims, they were already dead after their intestines and hearts were removed. As for the third victim, he awoke from anesthesia, and was choked to death alive..."
"The police initially determined that the murderer is around 170 cm tall, between 35 and 40 years old, male, with surgical experience. Monitoring from multiple locations failed to identify the murderer's facial features. To prevent the murderer from striking again, we must identify the suspect within 24 hours."
"As for the motive, it is suspected to be related to some kind of sacrificial activity. Experts are working on deciphering those markings...”
Intestines, heart, tongue... Su He suddenly exclaimed, "This is no ritual sacrifice! This man wants to attain immortality!"
Attain immortality?
All the policemen looked at Su He. This guy is really crazy!
Cases caused by feudal superstition happen frequently, but they had only heard of sacrificing to evil spirits and deities, never someone wanting to become a deity himself.
"You guys don't watch movies?"
Seeing the police look at him incredulously, Su He said helplessly.