Criminal Investigation Notes

Ye Xincheng looked up under the dim emergency light.

The young boy in front of him looked very much like Tao Yingxu. Their height and body shape were similar, and their hairstyles were almost identical. However, upon closer inspection, the young boy’s features were more delicate than Tao Yingxu’s, and he appeared thinner and weaker.

Currently, the young boy was breathing heavily, and the red birthmark on his forehead had been soaked in sweat, spreading and smudging. It was evident that the birthmark had been drawn on, further proving that the person in front of him was clearly not Tao Yingxu.

“Yes, I’m not Tao Yingxu. But what difference does it make?” The young boy held him tightly and gritted his teeth. “We came up with this plan together, so I know the details. I know you’re here. I will carry out tonight’s live broadcast plan and fulfill Tao Yingxu’s promise to you. I’ll give you the money! For you, nothing changes.”

The young boy’s hand gripped Ye Xincheng’s neck, and his fingers exerted force, causing his joints to crack, as if he wanted to strangle him right now.

In the darkness, his expression was ferocious.

Ye Xincheng coughed under the pressure. He struggled with all his might. The person in front of him seemed like a madman, and he couldn’t believe it. “Who are you? Why didn’t Tao Yingxu come?!”

“Tao Yingxu has more important things to do.” The young boy refused to let him go. He lowered his head, asked with a rough breath, and said, “He has already told me about your situation. If you don’t agree to the live broadcast, what will happen to your mother? Will you let her die on the sickbed? You have a sister too, right? They’ve been waiting for this ten thousand yuan, haven’t they?”

Mother, sister…

Ye Xincheng’s resistance suddenly stopped. His father was a gambler, and he had lost all the family’s money. His mother was seriously ill in bed, and he desperately needed this money. If he couldn’t get the money, what would happen to his mother? What about his sister?

They had borrowed from all the relatives they could. For a long time now, they had been robbing Peter to pay Paul. This ten thousand yuan might not be able to save his mother’s life, but it could temporarily alleviate their crisis.

Qin Ange felt the person beneath him gradually calming down, and the struggle ceased.

Ye Xincheng gave in. He slumped down, silently crying. He looked at Qin Ange and said, “Give me the money, and I agree to the live broadcast.”

Qin Ange breathed a sigh of relief. He had known all along that this was a desperate and pitiful person who had no confidence to resist him. In the end, he would definitely agree.

He glanced at the time. The live broadcast would start in five minutes. He had to prepare. Li Xiaonan handed him a rope, and he tied Ye Xincheng’s hands. Then he covered his mouth, preparing to blindfold him with a cloth. “If you want to get the money, don’t play any tricks.”

Money…

The word filled Ye Xincheng’s mind, but he also recalled the live broadcasts he had seen earlier in the evening.

He had seen Kong Tao several times before. He knew he was on the basketball team. In the live broadcast, he sat on a chair, engulfed in fierce flames…

He also knew Mo Xiuxiu. As she gradually got submerged in water, he could sense that feeling of helplessness

.

It felt too real!

This realism made his whole body tremble, his blood run cold, and his breathing become difficult.

No amount of timely stopping or using video methods could recreate that kind of authenticity.

This was completely different from what Tao Yingxu had initially told him about safe and reliable live broadcasts.

And why hadn’t Tao Yingxu come?

In the third live broadcast, he saw the end, where Tao Yingxu was hanging from the curtain rod, his face pale.

The red mark on this young boy’s forehead, was he pretending to be Tao Yingxu?

So, the third live broadcast was very likely to have problems.

While watching the videos, Ye Xincheng had thought more than once that those people might have actually died.

This was murder, perhaps even a massacre…

The next one should be his turn.

He needs money, but he also wants to live. He can’t die yet. If he dies, his mother and their family will truly be finished.

Ye Xincheng suddenly woke up. He realized he was making a deal with the devil.

These people were too strange and too dangerous. Thinking of this, Ye Xincheng suddenly kicked the emergency light, causing it to flicker but not completely go out.

Taking advantage of their slow reaction, Ye Xincheng hurriedly ran outside.

As he ran forward, he left the range of the illuminated area. It was pitch black around him, with only the moonlight casting faint outlines of the abandoned buildings in the distance.

“Damn it!” Qin Ange cursed. He had underestimated the situation.

Li Xiaonan also followed, trying to stop Ye Xincheng.

The two of them chased after him, relentlessly pursuing him as Ye Xincheng desperately ran for tens of meters.

The three of them chased through the dark and dilapidated building. The night wind brushed past their ears, and all they could hear was their heavy breathing and the chaotic sound of footsteps.

In front of him, darkness stretched out. Ye Xincheng suddenly stopped, braking his body abruptly. It was then that he realized he had unknowingly reached the edge of the dilapidated building. His body swayed for a moment before he regained his balance.

Qin Ange caught up and reached out his hand to grab him.

Ye Xincheng struggled, his hands still bound, unable to maintain his balance. He suddenly fell down.

His mouth was sealed, and his fall was soundless. His pupils widened in fear.

The entire process happened in an instant.

The young boy’s body soared through the night sky and then made a loud thud as he landed on the open ground in front of the dilapidated building.

Under the moonlight, Qin Ange cautiously poked his head out and saw Ye Xincheng lying on the ground, a dark stain of blood spreading from his head.

Time seemed to stand still for a moment.

Li Xiaonan also peered down. From this height, there was a drop of about seven to eight meters. Falling from such a height, the outcome was likely grim.

Qin Ange muttered another curse under his breath.

Both of them used their phones for illumination as they stumbled their way down the stairs. Ye Xincheng lay on the ground, and the air was filled with the scent of blood.

Trembling, Qin Ange reached out and touched Ye Xincheng’s nose, but he couldn’t feel any breath.

There was less than three minutes left. What should they do about the next live broadcast?

Ye Xincheng is most likely dead, or at the very least severely injured.

Qin Ange stood up, feeling anxious. “We need someone right now, a living person.”

As he said the words, he realized that he unconsciously thought Tao Yingxu was still by his side, that he could discuss things with him. But that person could never answer him again…

With time running out, where could he find someone willing to do a live broadcast at such short notice?

In the previous live broadcast, he had already impersonated Ye Xincheng using his own identity. This time, he couldn’t pretend to be Ye Xincheng again…

His head turned, and his gaze suddenly fell on Li Xiaonan beside him.

Li Xiaonan stood up, and when she saw Qin Ange turning to look at her, his gaze gave her an eerie feeling. She suddenly realized something and took a step back, saying, “Qin Ange… You said I only needed to help you… I will help you… Please don’t kill me…”

She looked at the young man in front of her. Although they had been living together for over half a year, she felt he was a stranger. She couldn’t help but feel afraid of him.

Her feelings toward the Qin family were complicated. She couldn’t describe what kind of feeling it was.

She would always remember that day when Zhang Bo, in charge of the project, suddenly told her, “Your father had an accident.”

She ran over and saw her father lying on the ground, covered in blood.

She was just a girl, her mother had passed away long ago, and her father, who she relied on for survival, was now dead. In that moment, Li Xiaonan felt that the whole world turned dark.

She remembered that Qin Chengsheng pulled her to his side and caressed her shoulder, saying, “Although your father has passed away, I will treat you as my own daughter from now on.”

If it weren’t for the Qin family, her father wouldn’t have died inexplicably at the construction site.

If it weren’t for this family, she wouldn’t have a suite and be living here.

They were her enemies… but also her only hope.

She still remembered what her aunt said before she died, holding her and Qin Ange’s hands, “From now on, it’s just the two of you relying on each other. Take care of each other…”

Taking care of each other…

The two of them were more like strangers living under the same roof.

She had never called him “brother,” and he had never called her “sister.”

Sometimes, she would follow behind Qin Ange, feeling lost without adults.

At the beginning, Li Xiaonan strongly opposed helping Qin Ange. She was terrified of it, but Qin Ange said that by doing so, people would know the truth about her father’s death.

It wasn’t Qin Chengsheng who killed her father, but Long Xiaoxuan, who had purchased inferior protective gear.

Qin Ange said many things, threatening her and tempting her.

She followed him involuntarily. In the room scheduled for demolition, she witnessed him killing Tao Yingxu in front of her. Later, she watched him kill Kong Tao and drown Mo XiuXiu.

At that time, she trembled and cowered in the corner, afraid to defy the young man in any way. She was scared, to the point where her brain almost ceased functioning, and she could only obey his commands.

Perhaps the next one to be killed would be her…

In the third live broadcast, she assisted him in tying himself to the chair. She had thought about escaping, but she knew that the rope was only hanging around his neck, and his hands were not bound. In an instant, he could break free and capture her.

She now regretted helping him. This person before her would not hesitate to kill her, just as he killed Tao Yingxu. In his eyes, their lives were nothing more than pawns.

Bathed in moonlight from above, Qin Ange looked at her with cold indifference, closing in on her step by step. “I am not your brother, we have no blood relation. Moreover, I have already exposed Long Xiaoxuan’s purchase of inferior safety helmets. Soon, the cause of your father’s death will be thoroughly investigated, and perhaps, with some luck, you might receive some compensation. The Qin family owes you nothing. Just cooperate with me, and you may not necessarily die…”

“No…” Li Xiaonan trembled all over, shaking her head.

This person had already lost his sanity, devoid of any humanity even before he started tonight.

Qin Ange approached the young girl in front of him, his gaze fierce. Unconsciously, he licked his lips, like a starving wolf facing a rabbit.

If it were someone else, he could deceive them, claiming that the live broadcast was fake. But she knew what had happened tonight. Several people had already died this evening.

He knew very well that for the authenticity of the live broadcast, everything was difficult to fabricate. The previous broadcast had already pushed their limits. Repeating the same thing would raise suspicions among everyone, undoing all their efforts.

They had already planned the execution method for this live broadcast in advance…

Li Xiaonan turned around and ran frantically. Qin Ange quickly caught up to her, grabbing her and pulling her back.

Li Xiaonan struggled with all her might, lowering her head to bite the hand that Qin Ange was holding.

Qin Ange slapped her across the face and gritted his teeth, saying, “Great things require sacrifices. Your father would be happy to know that you exposed the real culprit today!”

“Monster! You’re a murderer!” Li Xiaonan screamed. “Help! Help!”

She desperately reached out with one hand, trying to grab onto something…

But this was an abandoned building area, and there was no one around for hundreds of meters. Her voice was drowned in the darkness, and then Qin Ange covered her mouth…

Li Xiaonan’s gaze turned into despair.

He half-dragged, half-carried her back into the abandoned building.

The fourth live broadcast was about to begin…

Su Hui sat in the car and opened the live stream on his phone.

He coughed for a while, his body aching with a sour sensation from his fever. Cold sweat continued to pour out, and everything in front of him seemed to darken.

Lu Junchi sat beside him, looking at Su Hui’s pale face. He reached out to touch Su Hui’s forehead and could feel that the temperature was abnormal.

Su Hui avoided his hand. “I’m fine, it’s not serious. I can hold on… You don’t have to worry about me.”

Each case was a draining process. Su Hui felt like a burning candle, and he suddenly thought of the phrase “burning the candle at both ends,” smiling bitterly at his self-deprecating thought.

Lu Junchi’s heart was filled with distress. At this moment, he felt that Su Hui needed to take a rest, but circumstances forced them to make the most of their time to handle the case.

He only hoped that all of this would come to an end as soon as possible.

Right on time, the live stream in the studio lit up once again. This time, the environment had changed. It was an desolate unfinished building, clearly not a residential area.

The unfinished building was empty, with only a small emergency light illuminating the scene. Within the frame was a bound teenage girl. Her hair was disheveled, and she was tied to a pillar behind her.

The girl had short hair, and it was evident that she had a slim figure and was not tall. Like the previous boys, her eyes were covered, and her mouth was sealed.

This time, there was no liquid poured on her body, and there were no facilities like water tanks nearby.

Clearly, the execution method had changed again.

The camera captured the girl’s hand, and there was an intravenous tube connected to her wrist. At that moment, the tube contained red liquid, which flowed and gathered on the ground beside her.

Drop by drop, the red blood, representing life, gradually pooled on the floor.

Under the illumination of the light, the girl’s face appeared particularly pale. Tear streaks marked her face, and she sobbed incessantly. She struggled and writhed, making whimpering sounds, but the tape was tight, and she couldn’t break free.

The people watching the video realized that if they couldn’t complete the task this time, the girl before their eyes would die from excessive blood loss.

“Damn it, why haven’t they caught this bastard yet?”

“The police aren’t superheroes. Look at this background; it’s just a limestone wall. How can they tell where it is?”

“So, who is this for this time?”

“You’ve been fooled by this lunatic all night. It’s all just deception. This deranged live broadcast is meant for killing.”

Qin Ange stood aside, using a voice changer to announce, “The fourth live broadcast begins.”

Then he took out a prepared piece of paper and hung it around Li Xiaonan’s neck. “This man’s name is Mu Zhenyuan, 52 years old this year. You need to uncover his crimes. I hope he can publicly apologize in front of the media within an hour…”

“Mu Zhenyuan?”

“Am I not mistaken? Did he say Mu Zhenyuan, the boss of Zhongshan International?”

“What’s wrong with Mu Zhenyuan? Isn’t his company known as a conscientious developer? What was their slogan again, high-quality houses that ordinary people can afford?”

“Yeah, it’s his houses. Has he done something wrong too?”

The comments flooded in rapidly.

Meanwhile, Lu Junchi and Su Hui were on their way to the Wanhun Sub-Bureau. Everything was unfolding as they had previously investigated.

The police had also found information about Qin Ange.

Qin Ange, male, eighteen years old. He used to study at Huadu Foreign Language School but took a leave of absence a few months ago after his mother passed away.

Since then, he had cut off contact with his friends, relatives, teachers, and classmates. His life had deviated from its normal course.

No one knew what he had been up to…

Lu Junchi looked at the information in his hand. This teenager had transformed into a murderous demon tonight.

This time, they had to make it in time.