Chapter 695: Why Did He Come Here to Die?

Gao Zhun’s unexpected arrival took Chen Xiao and the others by surprise.

Chen Xiao had never met Gao Zhun, but he knew what Gao Zhun looked like; his photo was posted on the duty roster at the police station.

The latter was very tall and sturdy.

Just as Liu Dayou described, his brow was prominent, and his hair, even his eyebrows, were quite sparse.

When he noticed someone looking his way, Gao Gong, who was about to head to a private room, immediately turned his gaze.

He first recognized Liu Dayou and then remembered Chen Xiao and Qin Fei:

"Brother Dayou, what are you doing here? Are these two Advisor Chen and Captain Qin?"

Chen Xiao and Qin Fei exchanged glances and nodded with a smile, then Qin Fei stepped forward for a handshake:

"Hello Gao Suo, I’m Qin Fei from Shencheng City."

"Hello, hello!" Gao Gong immediately smiled and warmly grasped Qin Fei’s hand, looking very enthusiastic.

After a bit of small talk, Gao Gong found out that the three were also here to eat, so he shouted to the restaurant owner:

"Boss, put these folks’ bill on my tab later."

Qin Fei quickly said, "There’s no need to, Gao Suo."

"Oh, Captain Qin, don’t be so polite with me. And looking at what you’ve ordered, it’s not even worth much. Xiaozhuang South Town might be small, but it certainly knows how to treat guests!"

Qin Fei didn’t insist further and nodded with a smile: "Alright, but is Gao Suo having dinner with friends tonight?"

"Yes, just off work, some childhood friends arranged to meet and catch up." As Gao Gong said this, a few middle-aged men walked in from outside, greeted them with a wave, and used the chance to leave.

Watching Gao Gong’s figure heading into a private room, Liu Dayou said:

"Captain Qin, having just shaken hands with him, did you feel anything?"

Qin Fei thought for a moment and replied, "No special feelings, but his hand is really large and very rough."

"Yeah, why does a township police station director have such farmer-like hands? Does he have extensive farmland he needs to help cultivate, or does he like crafting and playing with something?"

"Moreover, the way he looked at us, I always felt uncomfortable."

Listening to Liu Dayou, Chen Xiao felt gratified.

This guy’s progress is really rapid.

Although his personal abilities seem to remain stagnant, his thinking is certainly overactive compared to before.

"When he first saw us, his gaze briefly dodged. Then realizing we were watching him, he quickly reacted." Chen Xiao added.

Liu Dayou nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, yes, I couldn’t pinpoint it earlier, but now that’s clearly a guilty look."

"He seemed guilty when he first saw us, only later remembering how he should present himself."

Chen Xiao and Liu Dayou’s back-and-forth made Qin Fei think of something, saying:

"Before coming here, I learned a bit about the Xiaozhuang South Town Police Station staff; Director Ye Changhuai is a good-natured person. Perhaps due to his older age, he sees little chance for career advancement, and much of the station’s affairs are handled by Deputy Director Gao Zhun."

"At the station, Gao Zhun’s style is famously flamboyant. But ever since the task force arrived, he’s been exceedingly low-key."

"Previously, I thought Gao Zhun’s discretion was understandable, given that everyone in the task force is younger, and some hold higher positions than him, making it hard for him to be ostentatious in front of them."

"But now it seems more like he’s withdrawing, trying to make sure people don’t notice him?"

"Sounds reasonable, though we still have to keep watching Yuan Keyu’s case." Chen Xiao said.

Liu Dayou patted his chest hastily: "Bro, leave it to me! Let me investigate if Deputy Director Gao has any skeletons in his closet!"

Chen Xiao nodded, smiling, exactly what he intended!

"Then it’s in your hands, but keep in mind this is someone’s territory, so you know that a mighty dragon cannot suppress the local serpent, right?"

"Don’t worry, while handling things officially might be tough for me, making connections and building social ties is my forte."

Chen Xiao didn’t say more, making a gesture of invitation: "Captain Qin, let’s get back to our meal."

"Alright." Qin Fei replied.

Just a meal without further exchanges.

When the meal ended, Qin Fei went to settle the bill.

However, the restaurant owner informed that Gao Zhun had already settled it.

Taking the opportunity, Qin Fei grabbed a bottle of beverage and went into the private room, using it to make amends to Gao Zhun in lieu of alcohol.

When he came out, Gao Zhun was quite pleased and walked Qin Fei to the door.

As Chen Xiao and the others drove away, Gao Zhun was still standing at the restaurant entrance waving them goodbye.

Chen Xiao did not dwell further on Gao Zhun’s matter, now curious whether Wen had uncovered anything.

He was most excited about Wen investigating the social circle of Sang Yupeng’s son, Sang Xiaoming.

In his view, Sang Xiaoming should be an important figure in Yuan Keyu’s case.

Though due to Sang Xiaoming’s youth, and being in school, this significant figure requires someone else to clarify certain things.

Only after clarifying things, can Sang Xiaoming’s memory connect with any unusual interactions with Yuan Keyu.

Aside from Sang Xiaoming, Chen Xiao wanted to ascertain the identity of the person in Xiaozhuang South Town known for cruelty to animals.

The degree of cruelty displayed by that person, though currently seen as confined to animals, made Chen Xiao believe it was only a matter of time before he turned on humans!

Chen Xiao wanted to find out who he was!

And whether this person had any link with Yuan Keyu’s case!

With many questions swirling in his mind, Chen Xiao returned to the crime scene.

Upon stopping the car, Chen Xiao spotted Cao Xiuyuan and Wen sitting together.

Each was holding a portion of fried river noodles, eating and chatting.

Seeing Chen Xiao return, Wen extinguished his cigarette in the noodles, threw it into the trash bin, and walked toward Chen Xiao.

Cao Xiuyuan remained squatting, evidently cherishing food more than Wen.

Chen Xiao glanced at him before asking:

"Have you discovered anything?"

Wen directly shook his head: "I didn’t need to look into his family, Cao Xiuyuan’s team already thoroughly checked that. My focus is on his school relations."

"From his teachers to classmates, and the tenants staying here during the fire, I’ve assigned people to investigate, but none of those relationships seem able to connect Sang Xiaoming, Yuan Keyu, and the other person."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xiao was somewhat disappointed, albeit not entirely surprised.

"Even you couldn’t unearth their connections?"

"I thought with all the information you laid out so clearly, my investigation would surely identify a couple of suspicious individuals. But the end result is every relationship seems unrelated to Yuan Keyu."

"Chen Xiao, I’m really puzzled. Why would a talent like Professor Yuan come to such a small town to meet his end?"