The evening breeze carried the mist from the sea, the air was moist and cool, tinged with a hint of the sea’s scent.
In the past, Liu Jiaming would have smelled this and clamored to eat seafood, but tonight he was as silent as a closed clam.
Fang Zhenyue wiped his face, his hand cool and damp, and went over to pull up Uncle Jiu, whispering:
“The ground is cold, if you sit here any longer, you’ll have a stomach ache.”
Uncle Jiu’s gaze, somewhat bewildered, met Fang Zhenyue’s worried eyes, and he smiled gently.
Then he looked around, his face gradually becoming solemn as if he had just realized where he was and what he was doing.
Jiayi had initially interviewed three eyewitnesses and came over to look at Uncle Jiu, wanting to say something but felt that words were inadequate to start.
At that moment, lab technician Diane came over and asked Uncle Jiu in a low voice, “Uncle Jiu, may we collect some material from under your fingernails?”
“Um.” Uncle Jiu nodded, exhaled softly, and followed Diane towards the police car.
As he started moving, everyone noticed that Uncle Jiu was limping a bit, and his right trouser leg at the knee was also worn out. It was evident that he had fallen during the chase after Xi Ming, and had injured his knee.
Jiayi’s gaze followed Uncle Jiu’s figure until Fang Zhenyue called her back.
Clearing her throat, Jiayi spoke:
“The three eyewitnesses are unemployed vagrants who claimed to have been sitting under the steps at the entrance of the alley, watching the lights and people, drinking beer, and chatting. They heard a noise and turned around to see Uncle Jiu chasing Xi Ming down from the uphill, down the stairs.”
Glancing at the record book in her hand, Jiayi gritted her teeth, somewhat reluctant to speak about what came next.
But after a few seconds of hesitation, she continued:
“One of the eyewitnesses, named Zhao Zhicheng, claims he saw Uncle Jiu forcefully push Xi Ming, causing Xi Ming to fall over the stair railing in the middle of the staircase, from which Xi Ming tumbled down the stairs to his death.”
“…” Fang Zhenyue furrowed his brow, “He said he saw Uncle Jiu push someone?”
Jiayi nodded, “I’ve asked repeatedly. I questioned the three witnesses separately, another also seemed to have seen Uncle Jiu pushing someone, but his words were not very certain, and another witness said they didn’t see the push, but saw Xi Ming roll down and then saw Uncle Jiu rushing to Xi Ming’s side and shouting at Xi Ming’s body.”
Jiayi lowered her eyes to the record book, where the words recounted by the eyewitness were recorded:
“Why did you betray me? Have your conscience hurt over these years? Why aren’t you dead yet? How are you still alive?”
“Bring him back for another questioning, make another record,” Fang Zhenyue ordered.
“Yes, sir,” Jiayi nodded.
At this point, Sanfu also came over, and Jiayi paused to listen to what Sanfu had to say.
“Sir Xu is inspecting the body, and he found a wallet in the pocket of the deceased, Xi Ming. The ID inside indicates the name Liu Fuqiang, aged 39. There’s also a badge from a police report in the Baishana Community of Hung Hom, and the keys on his waist have the Baishana Community logo on them, so he likely lived there,” reported Sanfu News.
“Go back and check this Liu Fuqiang’s background and situation,” Director Fang instructed.
“A fake identity?” Jiayi raised an eyebrow.
Sergeant Fang nodded, “Let’s go over and see the initial examination of the body.”
Jiayi nodded and immediately followed.
As she approached, Jiayi was pulled into a flow of consciousness.
The extended visual fast-forwarded, taking Jiayi through many streets in Sham Shui Po.
Uncle Jiu kept chasing. Despite his age, he couldn’t outrun Xi Ming, but whether he fell or gasped with his mouth wide open, Uncle Jiu never stopped.
Perhaps it was hatred, or perhaps some other obsession Jiayi couldn’t understand, that kept Uncle Jiu running relentlessly like a pit bull that never lets go of its prey and feels no pain.
Finally, the scene turned into a narrow alley with stairs. As Xi Ming ran down, tears streamed down his face. He was extremely emotional as he wiped his face and tried to jump over the railing in the middle of the stairs. Suddenly, his expression changed to one of pain, and in the moment his body was in mid-air, his wrist went limp, and he then fell headfirst.
At the moment of impact, he made a subtle movement that was hard to spot: his left hand pressed against his chest, his right hand reaching into his pocket.
But as he fell on the stairs, all his movements were shattered by the subsequent tumbling fall, and by the time he rolled to the flat ground at the end of the alley, he was motionless.
The next moment, Uncle Jiu caught up, pounced on him, and furiously reprimanded him for a while. Only when his sanity partially returned did he realize that Xi Ming, with his eyes wide open and lifeless, was already dead.
Jiayi took a deep breath; Uncle Jiu did not push Xi Ming.
…
Xu Junhao squatted beside the body, lifted the palm to inspect it, and looked up at the investigators:
“The fingerprints are gone.”
Sergeant Fang frowned and crouched to take a closer look.
Indeed, the deceased’s thumb and forefinger had their fingerprints burned off by several cigarette burns, and the fingerprints on the other three fingers had also been erased through some means, leaving only calluses.
Xu Junhao lifted the other hand of the deceased, the same method, the same cigarette burns and thick calluses.
“The only proof of the deceased’s identity now lies in those documents,” Xu Junhao stated gravely.
“But this only proves that the deceased is Liu Fuqiang, not that the deceased was once Uncle Jiu’s informant, Xi Ming,” Fang Zhenyue continued.
Jiayi’s eyes shifted slightly, then she realized, “Then Uncle Jiu no longer has a valid reason to chase and capture Xi Ming…”
If the deceased was Xi Ming, who once provided false information for a major case leading to the failure of a police operation, Uncle Jiu’s action of capturing him would be justified as lawful enforcement. When Uncle Jiu ordered Xi Ming not to run and to surrender, and Xi Ming died from falling while being apprehended, the responsibility would solely lie on Xi Ming.
But if the deceased wasn’t Xi Ming, and just an ordinary citizen Liu Fuqiang, then Uncle Jiu’s reason for the capture is unfounded, and Xi Ming’s death from the fall… this would be very unfavorable for Uncle Jiu.
Moreover, a man named Zhao Zhicheng insisted on giving false testimony, claiming that Uncle Jiu pushed someone down the stairs to their death.
“I’ll look into this Liu Fuqiang right away,” Sanfu said seriously.
“Okay,” Fang Zhenyue nodded.
“Sir Fang, we found a bottle of ‘Ren Zi’ brand lifesaving pills,” Brother Da Guangming said as he carried the bagged medicine down the stairs, showing it to Sir Xu and Fang Zhenyue.
“The deceased might have died from a heart attack, but it’s uncertain whether the heart attack caused the fall which led to death, or if it happened after being pushed down. Other causes of death will also need to be ruled out through a thorough autopsy and tissue examination,” Xu Junhao stood up, nodding towards the other forensic experts.
A junior forensic expert marked the position and posture of the body on the ground with chalk, then proceeded to place the body in a coffin and carry it away.
Xu Junhao removed his gloves and mask, turned to look at Jiayi and Fang Zhenyue, then looked up towards the gently sloping staircase path, and said:
“The implications of the two possibilities are completely different. If it’s the former, then Uncle Jiu was likely just involved in an accidental encounter during law enforcement, which is no big deal.
“If the death was caused by a heart attack after falling, combined with an eyewitness claiming to have seen Uncle Jiu push someone, and the victim was just an ordinary person, not Xi Ming, then it would be extremely detrimental to Uncle Jiu.”
“I know, thank you,” Fang Zhenyue patted Sir Xu’s shoulder, then walked over to Brother Da Guangming, “Is it possible to conclude something favorable for Uncle Jiu based on the footprints?”
Brother Da Guangming scratched his head, hesitating:
“The footprints of Uncle Jiu are at the spot where the deceased fell, but based on the clarity of the footprints, they don’t look like those left by forcefully pushing someone.”
Brother Da Guangming demonstrated a pushing motion, pointing to his own feet:
“If I were pushing someone forcefully, the sole and heel would show a specific pattern. We haven’t found such footprints of Uncle Jiu, but being a police officer, if it’s pointed out in court that Uncle Jiu might be familiar with forensic footprint science and intentionally erased such footprints, leaving behind ordinary ones…”
“Hard work,” Fang Zhenyue patted Brother Da Guangming’s shoulder again, then turned to Jiayi and the others, “Let’s head back to the station.”
“Yes, sir.”
After responding, Jiayi took Liu Jiaming to invite three eyewitnesses to return to the police station together for statements.
Uncle Jiu, being the only suspect, had no choice but to be handcuffed and taken back to the station in a police car.
Upon hearing the news, reporters who arrived flashed their cameras and jostled for angles to sneak photos. Fang Zhenyue pulled a hat from his jeep, placed it on Uncle Jiu’s head, patted his shoulder gently, and then silently went to drive.
Several cars roared back to the police station, and the public relations department was also temporarily called from home to deal with the media who heard the news…
Everyone felt heavy-hearted, only the reporters were wide-eyed with excitement at this moment, about to drift into sleep.
Headlines like “A detective unjustly pursues an ordinary citizen, causing his death” seemed to excite all the reporters.