Chapter 708: Upheaval! Upheaval! Upheaval!

Chen Xiao put down the phone.

An expression of rare disdain flashed in his eyes.

He was genuinely a bit disdainful of Wen.

However, despite his disdain, Chen Xiao didn’t dwell on it.

Perhaps it’s a habit or rule instilled in Wen by his profession.

But why Wen canceled his number, that made Chen Xiao seriously think.

Chen Xiao could be very certain that Wen’s number was new.

And there weren’t many contacts on this number.

Wen abruptly canceled the number at this time, making Chen Xiao have to suspect that the other party had found crucial information.

Moreover, it was related to his professional taboos, so he directly canceled the number, cutting off any inquiries.

"What exactly did he find?"

"Could it be that there’s a change in the case?"

"Even so, did we all guess wrong? Is the root of the case tied to the victim returning to serve the country?"

"If not, then why did Wen cancel the number and sever contact with me? This is clearly telling me that things have changed, and it’s no longer an ordinary criminal murder case."

The more Chen Xiao thought, the heavier his heart grew.

Eventually, he had to inform Cao Xiuyuan and Sun Zhou about Wen’s issues.

Even though the two had already given him decision-making power over the special task force.

"Captain Cao, Captain Sun, Wen is out of contact."

Cao Xiuyuan’s face changed first upon hearing this: "You mean that guy with an unclear identity who’s been following you?"

"Yes, it seems Captain Cao has already guessed his identity." Chen Xiao nodded.

Cao Xiuyuan frowned deeply.

But the longer he thought about it, the more his expression changed.

"How could it be, could it be that he also went to the city last night? And then after the killer murdered, he captured him first?"

"What do you mean, Old Cao, who are you talking about?" Sun Zhou, who had only met Wen once, was completely confused.

Cao Xiuyuan, looking troubled, replied: "It was someone who appeared at the crime scene. I’ve seen him twice before and have always been suspicious of his identity. Later, I realized the victim’s special identity would definitely alarm some special departments."

"But he never contacted me, so I didn’t bother him. But now, his disappearance is a very troubling signal. His disappearance means he’s already found what he’s looking for."

"The result he wants and the result we want lead to the same destination."

"Which means, he now most likely has already captured the killer! If he’s caught the killer, then what do we do? He’s from a special department, and they probably won’t report back until they’ve thoroughly investigated. But during the time it takes for them to report back, what do we do?"

Cao Xiuyuan was clearly baffled.

This unexpected turn was less cruel and unacceptable than the fact that the killer tortured Dou Zhihai to death, but completely unforeseen.

Sun Zhou, upon understanding, also looked shocked:

"Then... shall we consult with the leadership?"

"Consult? Consulting the leadership at this time is asking for scolding, and consulting them is useless unless the leadership already has feedback from him. But if the leadership had information, how could they not tell us?"

Cao Xiuyuan, though bewildered, still had clear logic.

Finally, it was Chen Xiao who spoke up, "Since Wen is out of contact, and there’s no feedback, we should just proceed with what we’ve confirmed."

After speaking, Chen Xiao specifically added a reminder:

"It’s crucial to remember that we must not think the case is already solved, nor assume we’re doing futile work. Of course, if someone’s child really goes missing, that’s worth extra attention."

Cao Xiuyuan and Sun Zhou both nodded.

They couldn’t stop now; nothing could be left unfinished, and their mindset needed to be adjusted quickly.

Sun Zhou continued driving.

Chen Xiao stopped overthinking and closed his eyes to rest.

Another half hour later, Chen Xiao and the others returned to Xiaozhuang South Town Police Station.

Qin Fei was somewhat surprised to see them return so quickly.

But Cao Xiuyuan and Sun Zhou had tasks, leaving the explanations to Chen Xiao.

After explaining what happened in Zhushan City and why they returned, Chen Xiao also mentioned Wen’s disappearance.

Upon hearing Wen was missing, Qin Fei was instantly furious:

"Damn!"

"I knew that guy wasn’t well-intentioned. Even if they found something, giving us a heads-up would be something. Now we’re in an even more passive position."

Qin Fei scolded Wen’s inconsiderateness.

Chen Xiao patted his shoulder and said, "Alright, there are still many inquiries to be done and the case must proceed systematically."

Qin Fei nodded helplessly, but suddenly seemed to remember something and pulled Chen Xiao back:

"Wait, after you went to the city, I looked for some of Xiaodou’s relics. Guess what I found?"

Chen Xiao was very curious, Qin Fei promptly returned to the office and took something out of his bag:

"Look, this is a list of people to be interviewed. Xiaodou was always doing his inquiries based on this list."

Chen Xiao looked at the list, a bit puzzled.

Sun Zhou had assigned Dou Zhihai the task of interviews.

Although Dou Zhihai faced an incident, it couldn’t be blamed on Sun Zhou.

Police officers sacrifice their lives every year, and Sun Zhou wouldn’t have guessed a simple interview task would cost Dou Zhihai his life.

But Qin Fei’s next words shocked Chen Xiao.

"The handwritten list, I recognize it as Brother Xiuyuan’s handwriting."

Chen Xiao’s eyes widened: "How could it be Captain Cao?"

"Yes, I’m also surprised why it’s his handwriting! Of course, as the head of the special task force, Brother Xiuyuan has the right to assign work to everyone in the unit."

"However, aside from authority, there’s human relations. I don’t think Brother Xiuyuan would deliberately assign work to Captain Sun’s subordinates. Besides, Captain Sun always said Xiaodou’s work was his assignment."

"That being the case, how do you explain this list?"

Chen Xiao fell silent.

In just one or two hours, he encountered too many upheavals.

First was Wen’s disappearance, and then the list, leaving Chen Xiao unable to process it all at once.

He thought for a moment, and rarely felt his head aching.

"Just tell me what you think, I have too much on my mind to calmly analyze it," Chen Xiao said frankly.

Qin Fei shook his head: "I have no opinion, I’m not even sure if I should directly ask Brother Xiuyuan. Of course, if Xiaodou hadn’t had an incident, this list wouldn’t be an issue. But Xiaodou became the killer’s target, and the original target was him because he’s the only one whose phone was bugged. So, putting all this together, there’s too much to consider deeply."

Qin Fei was also in a tough spot.

Chen Xiao took a deep breath, looked in the direction where Cao Xiuyuan left, and said:

"Avoid him, and then specifically ask Sun Zhou to confirm that everyone Dou Zhihai sought was arranged by him and not Cao Xiuyuan!"