1993, Pengcheng Police Affairs

Chapter 28 Heart-to-Heart Talk

Yongxing Village, Zhang Shengli's home.

Tonight, the Zhang family was incredibly lively, with the entire house packed with people.

But Zhang Shengli definitely didn't want to experience this kind of excitement a second time.

Thanks to Gu Huai's arrangement, Zhang Shengli did not go to the fire scene, but stayed at home to comfort his nephew's widow.

Seeing that Liu Yanni was crying so hard, Zhang Shengli had no choice but to call on relatives and neighbors to help comfort her.

He could only squat outside the courtyard, watching the distant flames soaring into the sky, smoking one cigarette after another in frustration.

Gradually, more and more cigarette butts appeared at his feet.

But his smoking speed did not slow down.

He seemed to want to use the smoke to carry away the bitterness in his heart.

Just as he finished his fifteenth cigarette of the night and was about to take his sixteenth, a hand gently patted his shoulder.

"Mr. Zhang, stop smoking. The cigarette butts are piled up like a mountain."

Upon hearing the sound, Zhang Shengli immediately withdrew his hand from the lighter and looked at the source of the sound with expectant eyes.

"Officer Gu, how is Zhenhua's family? Were they rescued?"

Seeing Zhang Shengli's expectant eyes, Gu Huai slowly shook his head. "I'm sorry, I couldn't save him, but the fire is under control."

Zhang Shengli's eyes darkened considerably after hearing this. "It's good that it's under control. If it's burned out, it's burned out. Anyway, Yanni isn't going back to live there."

Ever since Zhang Zhenhua's death was confirmed, Liu Yanni has refused to go home.

Zhang Shengli assumed she was afraid of being reminded of painful memories, so he took the three of them, grandmother and grandchildren, to his home.

He originally planned to stay for a few more days until Liu Yanni was in a better mood before discussing whether or not to move.

Unexpectedly, after less than a day, the issue was no longer worth discussing.

My home is gone.

Thinking of this, Zhang Shengli clenched the cigarette pack in his hand tightly, as if he wanted to crush it.

Gu Huai, unsure how to advise him, patted him on the shoulder, took out a lighter from his pocket, and handed it to him.

"Clatter".

The lighter clicked, and the smoke dissipated.

After finishing his cigarette, Gu Huai finally revealed the purpose of his visit: "How is things going with Sister-in-law Yanni?"

"I'm feeling better," Zhang Shengli replied in a low voice, his head bowed. "My relatives and sisters-in-law comforted me, and I'm not as agitated now."

"Um... if it's convenient, could I talk to her about Zhang Zhenhua?"

"Zhenhua?" Zhang Shengli looked up abruptly. "Is there any progress in the case?"

"This is a confidential matter, and I can't tell you yet." Gu Huai shook his head. "It's just that we haven't had a chance to ask Yan Ni since Zhenhua died. There are some things that only she knows, and this information is quite important to the case."

After receiving a semi-affirmative reply from Gu Huai, Zhang Shengli stood up abruptly. "Officer Gu, please wait a moment. I'll go and talk to Yan Ni right away."

After saying that, Zhang Shengli walked into the inner room without further ado.

Not long after, Liu Yanni's crying and other people's persuasion could be heard from the inner room.

Gu Huai paced back and forth at the door, pondering how to ask the question tactfully later.

Just as he was pacing, Ling Yue rushed over. "I'm not late, am I?"

"No." Gu Huai gestured towards Zhang Zhenhua's house. "We're trying to persuade them right now, it'll probably take a while."

The reason for this is that the police department has regulations that require two or more officers to be present during any form of questioning or inquiry during an investigation.

Any form of private questioning will not only render the content of the questioning invalid, but the person asking the question will also be subject to punishment.

To ensure procedural compliance, Gu Huai instructed Ling Yue to contact the bureau and return as soon as they parted.

"What did the bureau say?" Gu Huai asked.

"I'm in direct contact with Chief Wang, and the brigade will send people to conduct a preliminary investigation soon."

Looking at Ling Yue speaking calmly, Gu Huai felt a sudden toothache.

[She's definitely a fierce woman; she described reporting to a higher-ups as if it were a trivial matter.]

However, despite his complaints, he didn't reveal his true thoughts.

Since ancient times, capable people have always had privileges.

Ling Yue, on the other hand, belongs to the group of exceptionally capable individuals, so naturally she enjoys greater privileges.

Just as Gu Huai was lost in thought, Zhang Shengli came out of the house. "Officer Gu, you can go in now."

Gu Huai nodded and quickly walked into the house.

Just as the two of them entered the house, people kept leaving.

Everyone who saw Gu Huai wore a hesitant expression, clearly wanting to get some information about the case from him.

After everyone came out, Gu Huai stood up and instructed Zhang Shengli, "Master Zhang, please keep watch outside and don't let anyone get close to this house."

As he spoke, Gu Huai glanced at the other people in the room and added, "It's not that I don't trust you all, it's just that this is the rule. If the case information gets out, I won't even be able to work as a policeman anymore."

Seeing Gu Huai's seriousness, Zhang Shengli repeatedly assured him that he would never let anyone near the house.

After receiving Zhang Shengli's assurance, Gu Huai and Ling Yue went into the house.

The room was small, with only one bed.

There was a small cradle on the bed. Liu Yanni was sitting on the bed with her head down, sighing softly. Inside the cradle lay Zhang Zhenhua's newborn child.

Seeing Ling Yue enter, Liu Yanni quickly wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, looked up and said, "Ah, Officer Gu, I heard from my second uncle that you have something to ask me?"

Gu Huai nodded slowly and said softly, "You don't need to be so nervous. I just have a few questions about Zhang Zhenhua that I want to ask you. Officer Ling will just be taking a routine record later, so don't be too nervous."

Looking at Gu Huai's serious expression, Liu Yanni nodded and said, "Okay, then ask away."

Gu Huai nodded and said, "Ms. Liu, through my previous investigations, I heard that Zhenhua owes the contractor some money?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanni visibly tensed up slightly and replied, "Yes, Zhenhua does owe some money, but I don't get involved in such important family matters. As for whether he has paid it back yet, I'm not sure."

Seeing Liu Yanni's response, alarm bells rang in Gu Huai's mind.

At this moment, Gu Huai saw her micro-expressions as signs of nervousness.

Gu Huai had always felt that Liu Yanni was hiding something from him.

Seeing this performance, Gu Huai became even more certain.

So Gu Huai said, "Ms. Liu, I'd like to ask, the contractor said that Zhenhua promised to pay within two days on the 28th of the lunar year. Does Zhenhua know anyone? Or did your family borrow money from someone?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanni's hand trembled slightly, but she quickly suppressed it, shook her head, and said, "I don't know, Officer Gu. I really don't know. I don't concern myself with these things."

Seeing that Liu Yanni was a little agitated, Gu Huai immediately softened his tone and said, "Ms. Liu, don't be nervous. This matter is over, and Zhenhua has passed away. Don't worry, I'm not here to collect debts on behalf of the contractor."

Hearing this, Liu Yanni's emotions calmed down a bit.

Then Gu Huaicai continued, "Ms. Liu, I was at the fire scene when it broke out. Based on my initial assessment, the fire started at your house, and since you didn't leave anything important behind, right?"

Liu Yanni shook her head and said, "There's nothing of value left in the house. We sold almost everything to build the house."

Upon hearing this, Gu Huai slowly nodded.

Although, from Gu Huai's perspective, Zhang Zhenhua's actions were quite farsighted, and it could even be said that if he succeeded in this gamble, he would never have to work again for the rest of his life.

However, from a modern perspective, it is absolutely incomprehensible to spend almost everything to build a house.

However, looking at it from another perspective, even if Zhang Zhenhua went all in, Liu Yanni was willing to support him, so it seems that their relationship should be quite good.

Unlike the other people who hold us back, they would absolutely not agree to such a thing.

Gu Huai nodded slowly and said, "I see. Well, that's a stroke of luck amidst misfortune."

Then, Gu Huai changed the subject, asking, "Ms. Liu, does Zhang Zhenhua have any enemies?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanni shook her head. "Zhenhua shouldn't have any enemies."

"If that's the case, then why would someone set fire to your house? Was anything in your house targeted by someone?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanni immediately tensed up, looked up at Gu Huai, and said, "What? You mean... the fire wasn't an accident, but arson?"

Hearing this, Gu Huai nodded and said, "Yes, the fire started in your house. No one lives there. When I went to your house last time, I didn't see any particularly high-powered appliances, which basically rules out a short circuit."

"However, the fire started suddenly and then got out of control, which can only mean that someone deliberately set the fire and wanted to burn your family to the ground."

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanni immediately lost control of her expression. "But we don't have anything at home! Zhenhua didn't leave anything at home! Nothing, nothing..."

Hearing this and seeing Liu Yanni's expression, Gu Huai had an idea in his mind.

In this situation, a normal person would immediately read out the names of the people they don't get along with.

After all, he was a police officer, and as long as he provided ideas, someone would help him with the investigation.

They wouldn't repeatedly deny having any enemies or possessions like Liu Yanni did.

This is clearly abnormal.

Judging from Liu Yanni's behavior, it was quite clear to Gu Huai that what she said was different from the truth.

Zhang Zhenhua must have left something behind, and Liu Yanni must have known about it.

Liu Yanni must have some unspeakable reason for not speaking out.

With this in mind, Gu Huai decided to give her a strong dose of medicine.

So he looked up and said, "Ms. Liu, please don't get so agitated. Calm down first."

"Zhenhua is dead, and many things have been put behind us."

"Even if Zhenhua commits a crime, it won't implicate you."

"And if you refuse to say anything now, Zhenhua will die with his eyes wide open in disbelief."

"Someone is trying to cover up evidence by burning down your house, which means someone is watching your family."

"You must tell the police everything you know now. Only in this way can we help Zhenhua, and only in this way can we help you! Stop hiding anything."

However, the more Gu Huai spoke, the more Liu Yanni buried her face in her hands and cried.

In situations like this, Gu Huai would usually let her cry for a while and ask her questions once she had calmed down.

But this time was different. Seeing that Liu Yanni's heart had been opened and only one final spark was needed, Gu Huai naturally could not give up easily.

So Gu Huai gave Ling Yue a wink, and Ling Yue nodded in understanding. She walked to Liu Yanni's side and whispered to comfort her, "Yanni, Officer Gu is right. Don't worry about what happened before. The most important thing now is to find out who killed Zhenhua."

You wouldn't want Zhenhua to die with regrets, would you?

You wouldn't want Zhenhua to die a gruesome death, would you?

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanni was stunned, as if struck by lightning.

She painfully raised her head, looked at Gu Huai with sorrow, and said with tears in her eyes, "Officer Gu, Zhenhua seems to have killed someone."