Animal Detective

Chapter 322 - 263: Outdated People

He Wei looked at Shen Xin, quite speechless. His gaze seemed to say, ’You’re really putting me in a tough spot, kid.’

"An expert?"

He mumbled the word to himself, thought for a moment, then said with a sigh, "Kid, you really didn’t need to come to me."

"I came in a long time ago, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know what’s going on outside. I watch the news every night; I’ve never missed it."

"To be honest, after all these years, my generation is obsolete."

He shifted his position and continued, "I’m not going to get into that stuff online about how my generation had more rules, and this new generation is all about individuality, has no morals, and just does whatever they want."

"But the reality is, everyone from my generation is old now. I mean, look at me—I’m almost sixty."

"The guys who ran with me before I came in... more than a decade has passed. They must be in their forties or fifties now, with families of their own."

"The ones who were really making it big back then, honestly, they all ended up in here. A few I knew were even executed. Their kids are probably in middle school by now."

He even threw in a little joke.

"And the ones who weren’t doing so well? At this age, what can they do? You think they’re still out there fighting and killing like the young guys?"

"That whole lifestyle doesn’t work anymore. So really, I don’t think coming to me is a reliable plan."

Shen Xin thought for a moment and said, "Uncle Wei, alright. Since you put it that way, I’ll drop it."

"We’ve gotten to know each other now. How about this: in a bit, I’ll ask the prison ward when you’re getting out. I’ll make a note of it. Six years from now, if I’m free on that day, I’ll come pick you up."

After speaking, he stood up, began gathering his things, and prepared to leave.

He Wei’s eyes widened. "Hey, you’re playing me, aren’t you, kid?"

"Fine. Since you want to know, I’ll talk. It’s been many years, so I can’t guarantee it’ll be useful."

Only then did Shen Xin sit back down, gesturing for He Wei to speak.

He Wei gestured for another cigarette. "It’s not like I’m afraid of you knowing this stuff. Anything I could confess back then, I already did."

"Back then, most of the time, we wouldn’t go for the kill. It was too much trouble. Usually, we’d just find some guys to teach you a lesson."

"There were a few guys I knew who were really ruthless, good fighters. But basically, they all ended up in prison."

As he spoke, he rattled off eleven names in one go.

He wasn’t young, but his memory was still quite good.

He also mentioned their general hometowns to make it easier for Shen Xin to investigate.

"When it really came down to life or death, we’d usually hire out-of-towners. They’d do the job and run, so they weren’t afraid of you investigating."

"I’ve heard about some cases and know a few things. Anyway, you can look into it. The details I know aren’t very clear."

Then, he rattled off another seven people.

He could only give the names of two of them.

For the rest, he didn’t know their names, only describing them by their origins, nicknames, and how ruthless they were.

"Oh, right."

He Wei remembered something else. "Back in the day, we had a forum in Nanjiang called Luminous Pearl. You know about it, kid?"

Shen Xin nodded. He actually did know.

He recalled how internet cafes started becoming popular in the early 2000s, and how he’d often go online with his classmates on weekends.

He had even been on that Luminous Pearl Forum to shoot the breeze back then.

He Wei smiled and said, "I heard that some outsiders looking for work would find it on there. The owner of the forum, Ah Xing, might know some things you’re interested in."

Shen Xin nodded and took a note, then asked He Wei if he had anything else.

"That’s all."

He Wei shook his head, then said, "Kid, let me tell you, if there’s one thing I hate in this life, it’s a snitch, a traitor."

"I’m only telling you all this because you seem like a decent kid, you know how to handle things, and I know you’re in a real bind."

"You’d better remember this favor. Go back and find... who was it... Du Yong. Right, that guy."

"That guy’s probably moved up in the ranks by now, right? He’s the one who arrested me personally back then. Have a good talk with him for me, and don’t you dare trick me."

Shen Xin smiled and nodded, signaling to the guard that he could take the man away.

He Wei casually pocketed the carton of cigarettes, shot a suggestive look at Ding Yuwei, then pointed a finger at Shen Xin before walking out of the interrogation room.

Ding Yuwei ignored him. She looked at the names she had written down and said, "Shen Xin, this counts as a decent haul, right?"

"A haul?"

Shen Xin scoffed, getting up. "If I’d known this was all we’d get, I wouldn’t have bought such expensive cigarettes. What a waste."

Ding Yuwei was taken aback and asked what he meant.

Shen Xin didn’t explain. He went outside, first thanked Xie Guohu, and then took his leave.

After leaving the prison, Shen Xin didn’t rush to the car. He called Zhang Hancheng and relayed all the names He Wei had given him.

"Chief Zhang, not a single word out of that guy’s mouth is the truth."

As soon as he heard his phrasing—words like "I heard," "I know," "it seems"—Shen Xin knew that even if the guy really knew something, he wouldn’t say it.

The people he mentioned were likely ones the police already knew about and had cracked down on.

Clearly, while He Wei talked a big game about being helpful, he was holding back the whole time.

He probably hadn’t fully believed Shen Xin’s story and suspected he was just trying to trick him into revealing information to dig up some old, unsolved cases.

Moreover, Shen Xin suspected that Zhang Hancheng had probably anticipated this outcome.

That’s why Shen Xin said it was a waste.

On the phone, Zhang Hancheng also seemed at a loss for words. "That Luminous Pearl Forum... it’s true, like he said. Some people were making deals on there back then."

"But in the second year after he went in, we shut that forum down. The owner, Yang Xing, was arrested long ago. I remember he was sentenced to ten years. He should be out by now."

At this, Zhang Hancheng laughed. "Xiaoshen, it’s actually not bad. The old fox still revealed a few things."

"Of those eleven names he gave you, there are a few I’m not familiar with. That means you did your job well. You found the right approach."

To be able to deal with an old hand like He Wei and still manage to get information out of him—Zhang Hancheng felt Shen Xin was already very impressive.

Shen Xin was surprised and quickly looked back at the eleven names.

’So that means He Wei actually believed some of what I said.’

’Or rather, he dared to give these names because he was sure they wouldn’t implicate him, and he also wanted a chance to earn a reduced sentence.’

Shen Xin asked what the next step was and whether they should investigate these people.

"I see one of them is nearby. Why don’t Xiaoding and I go check it out first?"

One of the eleven names was located nearby, maybe three or four kilometers away, which wasn’t far.

Zhang Hancheng thought for a moment. "Okay, that works. Send me a photo of the list, and we’ll verify it as soon as possible."

"And you two shouldn’t go alone, I don’t feel good about it. It’s this Wang Yinshan, right? I’ll contact the Lishan side and have them send someone to go with you."

He wasn’t sure if these people were the culprits, but it was always better to be safe than sorry.

Zhang Hancheng wasn’t comfortable letting two young officers investigate on their own.

Shen Xin nodded in understanding. He and Ding Yuwei immediately set off by car for Jie Wan Village, where this Wang Yinshan lived.

On the way, Ding Yuwei used her police-issued PDA to look up Wang Yinshan’s information.

Age 47. His most recently updated address was still in Jie Wan Village.

Parents still alive, married, one son and one daughter. In ’03, he was sentenced to five years for intentional assault causing grievous bodily harm.

He received no sentence reduction and was released in ’08.

Shen Xin turned to look at the ID photo.

Monolids, lean cheeks—he looked pretty average.

But according to He Wei, this guy was once a famous name in Nanjiang, the top enforcer for some boss in Lishan District.

He’d supposedly practiced Sanda and even won awards; two or three ordinary people couldn’t get near him.

They drove along Qian’an Avenue for about ten minutes, then turned left onto a village road. Jie Wan Village was just ahead.

The two of them didn’t rush into the village, waiting at the entrance for a while.

Before long, a police car pulled up.

It was their colleagues from Lishan.

It was another senior-junior pair, both in plainclothes. The older one was named Xi Fenghua, and the younger one was Chen Benxuan.

Xi Fenghua knew it was a special case with a deadline, so time was tight. Without wasting words, the group of four went straight to the door.

It was a very ordinary, even somewhat dilapidated, civilian house.

It was just after three in the afternoon. The sun was dipping toward Xishan, and there was no one to be seen in the village.

The main gate of Wang Yinshan’s house was closed. They knocked, but there was no answer.

His older son was already 21, college-aged.

His daughter was 17, likely in high school. It was a Thursday, so it was normal for them not to be home at this time.

Just as Xi Fenghua was about to knock on the neighbor’s door, Shen Xin stopped him and pointed to a pile of junk in a corner under the eaves.

Among the items were several blue fruit baskets and a tattered sign with the words "Honey Peaches" written on it.

"I remember at the intersection where we turned off Qian’an Avenue, there was a fruit stand set up on the roadside selling strawberries. A man was tending it. Could that have been Wang Yinshan?"

Along Qian’an Avenue, there was a range of mountains to the south, collectively known as Li Lake Bay.

That’s why there were quite a few pick-your-own orchards and such in the area.

Xi Fenghua was a little surprised by Shen Xin’s observation skills and said he’d go ask the neighbors.

He knocked on the neighbor’s door and asked. Sure enough, Wang Yinshan’s wife worked at a factory, while Wang Yinshan himself sold seasonal fruit from a stand at the intersection.

The group immediately headed back.

The stand at the intersection was still there. A car was parked on the roadside, and a woman was in front of the stand picking out strawberries.

A thin middle-aged man was serving the customer.

Shen Xin got out of the car and took a look. It was Wang Yinshan.

When the two police cars pulled over to the side of the road, Wang Yinshan was clearly startled. He had just been haggling with the woman, insisting he couldn’t make a profit at 25 a box, but now he immediately agreed to sell them for 20 a box cheap.

After the woman got in her car and left, Wang Yinshan hesitated for a moment before looking toward Shen Xin and the others.

"Officers."

His voice was a little hoarse.

Shen Xin noticed a faint scar near his Adam’s apple.

’Did someone try to slit his throat once?’

Wang Yinshan’s expression was calm. "Are you looking for me for something?"

He had just seen the police car drive in and hadn’t expected it was coming for him.

Shen Xin stepped forward and said, "It’s nothing much. We just want to ask you a few questions."

Wang Yinshan seemed a bit resentful. "Officers, it’s been a full ten years since I got out of prison."

"I served five years. I’ve atoned for my crime. I’ve turned over a new leaf and am just trying to live a quiet life."

"You can’t keep doing this—running over to suspect me every time the slightest thing happens."

"Besides, look at me. What more could I possibly do?"

He lifted his right leg.

Only then did Shen Xin notice that his right leg was stiff, as if it couldn’t bend.

As for his emotional outburst, Shen Xin figured the local precinct probably questioned him often.

With his prison record, he was bound to be a person of interest under close watch.

Shen Xin gestured for him to calm down. "Don’t get agitated. We haven’t even said what we want to ask you about yet."

His whole rant seemed to paint him as a sympathetic and wrongly accused man.

But the reason he went to prison in the first place was for beating a man to within an inch of his life, right in front of the man’s wife and child.

He even threatened the mother and child, vowing to burn their house down if they called the police.

’Throwing his weight around back then, and now he’s crying foul?’

Shen Xin didn’t waste any more words. He asked in a low voice, "Where were you on March 19th, and where were you last night?"