pjbooks Chapter 33 Waterway
Chapter 33 Waterway
An ironclad case?
Gu Huai kept repeating those two words to himself.
He racked his brains trying to recall his memories from his past life, hoping to find any clues about the case.
But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't remember anything.
Come to think of it, according to Ling Yue, this case is basically a taboo subject that cannot be mentioned at all within the bureau.
Those who handled the matter all kept it a secret.
If Ling Yue hadn't been in charge of archiving all the case files for the entire brigade, she wouldn't have known about this case.
Gu Huai knew very well that even if there were problems with this kind of case, it would not be made public.
Even if he had no recollection of the case, he made a judgment based solely on his most basic understanding of society.
There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.
Thinking of this, Gu Huai solemnly pulled Ling Yue aside and lowered his voice, saying, "Sister Ling, I still insist on my opinion. I want to see the case file."
Ling Yue was actually quite curious about the case, but she still shook her head: "Ah Huai, it's not that I don't want to help you. The main problem is that the case file for Haozi's father has been sealed. To retrieve it, we need the approval of Captain Wu or someone higher up..."
Although the words were not finished, the meaning was already clear.
To reinvestigate, the original organizer's approval is required.
Gu Huai can be quite reckless at times, but he's not stupid.
If you rashly initiate a reinvestigation of the case without any new evidence in your possession, it would be tantamount to slapping Wu Feilin in the face in public.
At that time, not only will no one speak up for him, but they will also call him a madman behind his back.
Having figured this out, Gu Huai abandoned the idea of immediately returning to the bureau to review the case files.
Since this case involves Hou Hao, he is a key figure if we want to reopen the investigation.
As the son of both the deceased and the suspect, there would be far fewer objections if he requested a review of the case.
But Gu Huai couldn't help but shake his head when he thought of how Hou Hao acted like a mouse before a cat whenever he saw Wu Feilin.
It seems this matter needs further consideration.
For now, let's focus on handling this case first.
"Officer Gu, Officer Gu!" Ali's voice called from afar. His voice arrived before he did, "Officer Gu, so you're here! I've been looking for you everywhere!"
"What's wrong? What happened?"
"Nothing's wrong, nothing's wrong..." Ali waved his hands repeatedly. "The fire is almost under control. My great-uncle wants to invite you to the ancestral hall so he can thank you in person."
"No need for that," Gu Huai waved his hand repeatedly. "I was just doing my duty, no need to thank me."
"Officer Gu..." Ali rubbed his hands, looking troubled. "Everything is ready at the ancestral hall. If you don't go, my great-uncle will definitely make me kneel in the ancestral hall all night."
"Everything is ready?" This was something Gu Huai hadn't expected.
Generally speaking, this refers to the preparations for the ceremony.
If it's just a regular invitation, then refusing it is fine.
In Guangdong Province, if the other party says that the ancestral hall is already prepared, it would be considered disrespectful to refuse to go.
Although I don't know exactly what they prepared, it's their kind gesture, and it would be inappropriate not to go.
Ling Yue, who was standing to the side, was afraid that Gu Huai would not understand the local customs, so she quickly whispered to him, "Ah Huai, go ahead, but be mindful of the relationship between the police and the people."
Gu Huai pondered for a moment, then slowly nodded: "Alright."
Seeing that Gu Huai had relented, Ali's face lit up with joy: "Then please come with me."
"Wait a minute." Gu Huai waved his hand, telling Ali to wait a moment, then turned to Ling Yue, "Sister Ling, come with me."
"Me?" Ling Yue pointed to herself with a blank look. "Isn't that inappropriate? They only invited you, so I won't go."
"Sister Ling, you really can't not go." Gu Huai winked at her, "There's a rule in the department that two people must go on a mission together."
The reason Gu Huai hesitated just now was because he was thinking about how to handle this matter properly.
If he went to the Zhang family ancestral hall alone, it would be difficult for word to spread, and if someone made a big deal out of it, it would be troublesome for him to explain.
But it's different if Lingyue goes along; it'll be easier to explain things afterward.
After all, I just offended someone, so I should be careful in my actions.
Although Ling Yue didn't quite understand why Gu Huai insisted on involving her, she still nodded: "Okay."
The two followed Ali's footsteps and arrived at the entrance of the Zhang Clan Ancestral Hall.
Upon arriving, Gu Huai noticed a gleaming golden plaque hanging above the ancestral hall's entrance, bearing four large characters.
"Qinghe Yanpai".
The couplets on both sides read, "Pure air gathers in Kuiyuan, literature and morality are lofty and profound, we offer a sincere incense," and "The river light shines in the Purple Palace, a prosperous time is reached, may the temple food last for a thousand autumns."
Seeing that Gu Huai was looking at it intently, Ali took the initiative to explain: "This 'Qinghe Lineage' plaque is shared by all Zhang families in Pengcheng, explaining the origins of our Zhang family. Every surname has its own lineage, like Officer Gu, whose surname is Gu, so that is... so that is..."
"The Kuaiji branch," Gu Huai continued, "but Kuaiji is the main branch of the Southern Gu lineage, while I am from the North, and my ancestral home is the Wuling branch. This Officer Ling, on the other hand, is from the Hejian branch."
Gu Huai had done a lot of research on these ancestral homes in his previous life in order to conduct business.
These kinds of niche yet interesting things are often the best for casual conversation at the dinner table.
Talking about this can not only break the ice, but also subtly flatter the client. It's a two-pronged approach that always works.
Ali's eyes lit up: "I didn't expect Officer Gu to be from the North and know this. That's rare."
Gu Huai ignored his praise and instead pointed to the dragon and phoenix carvings on the ancestral hall, changing the subject: "Our ancestral hall is quite grand. It seems fishing is very profitable."
Yinhu Village is located by the sea, and many villagers have ancestors who made a living by fishing.
However, Gu Huai's words were clearly not just about fishing; there was a deeper meaning behind them.
Ali felt a little embarrassed after hearing this.
He scratched his head: "It's all thanks to the good national policies that we're able to earn a little money. Now that everyone has money, we should naturally contribute to repairing the ancestral hall."
Gu Huai smiled but didn't say anything.
It's true that Southerners often build ancestral halls first when they make money.
But how they make money is another matter.
Others may not know, but Gu Huai is fully aware of all the ways to make big money in Bao'an, whether they are legitimate or illegitimate.
Besides running factories or becoming landlords, many local residents earned their first pot of gold for building houses by "waterway".
The so-called waterway naturally refers to illegal activities such as smuggling. In those days, smuggling was an unavoidable topic for people along the coast who wanted to get rich overnight.
The content of smuggling varies greatly. Some honest smugglers smuggle ingredients, while others are more daring and smuggle in-demand goods.
These are actually not too bad. Most of the time, when they are caught, they just confiscate the stolen goods. As long as the incident doesn't get too serious, they generally won't go to jail.
If smuggling only involved these kinds of things, Guangdong Province wouldn't have been so chaotic in the 90s.
Some criminals use these smuggling operations as a cover to smuggle firearms, ammunition, and other illegal items.