By the time they returned to the Bureau, most of the team had just finished dinner and were trickling back in.
Han Huaixiao said, “Everyone, organize the leads you’ve got. Meeting in ten minutes.”
As Xia Hang sat down, a sharp-looking woman with a short bob strode over, asking: “So, how was your first field mission with Captain Han?”
“It was fine,” Xia Hang replied. “You must be Xia Ling?”
“I must be older than you,” she grinned while answering, “and we share the same surname. Shouldn’t you call me Sister Ling then?”
Xia Hang followed her lead easily, greeting her, “Sister Ling.”
Xia Ling chuckled and dropped a few packs of instant coffee on his desk. “A little welcome gift,” she said. “You’re gonna need it.”
At another desk, Wen Yu, known for her exceptional computer skills, was leaning back, applying eyedrops. “Another round of all-nighters… I wonder how long this one will take to crack.”
Cases that reached the Major Crimes Unit were never simple. They were always high-profile, serious ones with major social impact, so the higher-ups would be breathing down their necks to solve them fast. And now, with social media so widespread, it didn’t take long before a case hit the internet, adding another layer of pressure. Long nights and overtime were simply part of the job.
Even the ever-so-frivolous Ling Yue leaned over and gave Xia Hang a word of advice. “When you’re working a case, grab every chance you can to rest,” he joked. “On the drive out, while waiting for food to come, anytime. Otherwise, you’ll burn out fast. The longest stretch I’ve had was three weeks without going home, and I only slept three, maybe four hours a night. When that case finally closed, and I walked out of the Bureau, I felt like I’d just been released from prison.”
But before he could share more of his “wisdom,” it was time for the meeting.
Back in the conference room, Xia Hang again chose a seat near the back. At the front, Han Huaixiao’s expression was all business, focused and serious. “All right, let’s go over what we have so far. Sister Yan, you start.”
Liu Yan from the Forensics team nodded. “After reexamining the site,” she answered, “we can confirm that the West District team’s earlier conclusion was correct. The elevator’s upward speed system and the relay system had been tampered with, which caused the loss of control. We found multiple fingerprints at the scene. After comparison, therewere matches to Hou Xin, a newly hired employee at Yuan’an, and to several residents. But we didn’t find any belonging to Yuan’an’s senior technician, Zeng Guoyong. There’s also half a print that hasn’t matched anyone yet.”
Su Zhao, the Trace Evidence specialist, continued, “At Zeng Guoyong’s home, we did find signs that another person had been there, but no usable fingerprints or DNA to identify a suspect.”
Kong Qinmao, who had gone to Zeng Guoyong’s home for field inquiries, added, “The building’s security camera shows that the night before the accident, Zeng Guoyong went home and never came out again. At six in the morning, a man wearing a hat and mask entered the building and left fifteen minutes later. The old cameras are blurry, so we couldn’t see his face clearly.”
Wen Yu spoke next. “I compared that footage with the video from Mingcheng Community and showed it to Hou Xin. We can confirm that the man who entered Zeng Guoyong’s building was the same one who went to Mingcheng to ‘repair’ the elevator. That basically rules out Zeng Guoyong as a suspect.
“As for Hou Xin,” she continued, “I checked all his social connections and his online records, but there’s nothing suspicious. He used to work at another company before joining Yuan’an. His brother-in-law was recently promoted here, and he helped Hou Xin transfer over with a pay raise of a thousand yuan. So, he’s likely clean too.”
Xia Ling chimed in, “Brother Hua and I went to Yuan’an. Only the maintenance team leader in charge of Mingcheng knew about that elevator job, and he assigned it directly to Zeng Guoyong and Hou Xin. The guy himself didn’t seem off, but Wen Yu and the Tech team did find something.”
“His work computer had been hacked,” Wen Yu continued.
Han Huaixiao looked up. “Can you trace the hacker’s location?”
“This one’s skilled,” she answered. “We’re still tracking.”
Han Huaixiao’s gaze swept across the team. “Given what we have so far,” he summarized, “we can tentatively rule out Yuan’an and the two employees assigned to Mingcheng. The suspect hacked Yuan’an’s maintenance department system, impersonated one of their staff, and used the elevator repair as a cover to deliberately cause the accident. The question is, why?”
Ling Yue ventured, “A personal grudge against Yuan’an? Revenge?”
However, Zhang Tianhua frowned. “If it were revenge, Yuan’an handles elevator maintenance for more than one residential complex. Why target Mingcheng specifically?”
“Random revenge then?” Xia Ling suggested.
Now, it was Han Huaixiao’s turn to shake his head. “No. I asked the property manager,” he answered. “After repairing the elevator in Unit 2, it was the suspect who brought up that the elevators in Units 1 and 3 were making strange noises. He volunteered to ‘check them out.’ The property manager even asked if he wanted to look at Buildings 2 and 3 while he was at it, but he said he didn’t have time since he had other assignments. That means his target was clear from the start: Building 1 of Mingcheng Complex.”
“So why Building 1?” Ling Yue asked. “Did he have some kind of grudge against the five victims?”
Han Huaixiao replied, “If that’s the case, how could he have been sure those five specific people would be the ones in the elevator after the repair?”
Zhang Tianhua leaned forward. “So, what you’re saying… he chose Building 1, but not the victims themselves. The victims were just random residents of that building, right?”
Han Huaixiao turned to Xia Hang. “When you contacted the hospital where Nong Yu worked, what did they say?”
Xia Hang had been quietly listening to their conversations when his name was called, catching him off guard for a second. “She was a pediatric nurse,” he recovered quickly and answered. “Sometimes, when a child gets sick, parents panic and lash out. Her head nurse said she handled those situations calmly and never argued back. Serious, gentle, good worker.”
Han Huaixiao nodded slightly. “Wen Yu, did you and the Tech team find anything unusual about the five victims’ social networks?”
“Nothing so far,” Wen Yu said. “Their social lives, work, and family backgrounds all look normal.”
“Keep pursuing the hacker who broke into Yuan’an’s maintenance system,” Han Huaixiao ordered. “And continue tracking the suspect after he left Mingcheng. We need his location as soon as possible. Work with the Tech team, don’t waste time.”
“Got it.”
“Also,” Captain Han added, “look into someone else for me. Around New Year, a young man was found frozen to death on the rooftop of Building 1 in Mingcheng. Check him and his family background, I’ll send you the file.”
“Okay.”
Hearing that, Zhang Tianhua looked surprised, asking: “Someone froze to death on that rooftop? What’s the story there?”
Han Huaixiao turned to Xia Hang again. “Tell everyone what we found out at Mingcheng.”
Xia Hang rarely spoke up in front of so many people, but he wasn’t the nervous type. He took a breath and organized his thoughts, answering: “Captain Han and I talked to the neighbors of the five victims. None of them was the kind of person to make enemies. Other than that, we found partially burned joss paper on the rooftop, and the property staff said she’d been burning it on behalf of a former coworker.”
“Apparently, last winter, during roof repairs, that coworker forgot to lock the rooftop door. That same night, a drunk man went up there, locked himself out, and froze to death. Recently, that coworker had nightmares about it and asked her to burn some paper offerings. The man who died was named Yang Xiaoyu and lived right above Nong Yu, one of the victims.”
“Frozen to death?” Ling Yue frowned. “Could it be that his family held a grudge against the property and staged this ‘accident’ for revenge?”
Han Huaixiao passed around a folder. “The property did call the police back then. Here’s the case file on Yang Xiaoyu.”
Kong Qinmao flipped it open, only to say, “Our suspect is about 1.8 meters tall. Yang Xiaoyu’s parents are around 1.6 and 1.7; the height doesn’t match.”
“From their statements,” Ling Yue then added, “Yang Xiaoyu’s parents were heartbroken but calm. They didn’t argue or sue and just accepted the compensation. Doesn’t seem like they held a grudge…. They also run a small restaurant, both with middle school education. Not exactly the type who could hack into a company’s computer, unless they hired someone.”
“I had someone look into it,” Han Huaixiao shook his head while answering. “Not long after Yang Xiaoyu’s death, his father was diagnosed with cancer. The treatment drained all their savings, including the compensation money. He’s been borrowing from everyone he knows ever since.”
“The file also shows the victim didn’t have a partner.” Kong Qinmao said. “Given his parents’ situation, it’s unlikely anyone would commit a revenge attack for him.”
“So we’re back where we started,” Ling Yue sighed. “Still no clue why the suspect picked Building 1 of Mingcheng.”
The conference room fell silent. Then, hurried footsteps echoed from the hallway, and the door burst open. A young man from the Trace Analysis team rushed in, breathless and excited.
“Captain Han, Sister Yan! That half-fingerprint we couldn’t match, we got a hit! It belongs to a man named Ou Wei, and he’s got a criminal record for aggravated attempted murder ten years ago! Released three months ago!”
Han Huaixiao shot to his feet. “Wen Yu, locate Ou Wei immediately. Qinmao, pull his case file.”
At last, there was a glimmer of progress, and the whole room buzzed with renewed energy. Wen Yu quickly pinpointed Ou Wei’s location, and Ling Yue’s team headed out to arrest him. The rest of them finally relaxed, some collapsing over their desks for a breather.
Xia Hang rested his head for a moment. When he looked up, he noticed that the captain’s office was dark, but the conference room light was still on. He poured a cup of water and walked over.
Han Huaixiao sat at the head of the table, case files spread out before him. A glass ashtray beside him was already filled with six or seven cigarette butts, while another one burned between his fingers as he stared down, his expression heavy.
Xia Hang set the cup of water in front of him as he asked, “Something wrong with the file?”
Han Huaixiao glanced at him, stubbed out his cigarette, and downed the water in one go before sliding the file toward him.
Xia Hang opened it and understood why the captain still looked troubled. Ou Wei’s height and build matched the suspect’s, but his old case didn’t fit the pattern. Ten years ago, Ou Wei had indeed been convicted of aggravated attempted murder, but it was a crime of passion1. He’d gotten into a fight at a bar, was stopped by security, and after leaving, he stewed over it, went home, grabbed a fruit knife, and waited outside to stab the man he’d argued with.
That kind of impulsive rage didn’t line up with the meticulous planning behind the elevator incident, the careful setup, the controlled execution, the clean getaway. That type of modus operandi2 clearly belonged to a completely different mind.
Xia Hang hesitated, then said quietly, “Ten years is a long time. Maybe he’s changed.” But Han Huaixiao didn’t reply. After a while, the faint sound of a car drifted up from the street, and he stood up.
“I’ll go check on the interrogation. If you don’t want to drag behind tomorrow, get some rest.”
With that, he left the room.
The interrogation, however, didn’t go as smoothly as expected, as Ou Wei wasn’t cooperating at all.
………………
Han Huaixiao stood outside the room, watching through the one-way glass as Ou Wei sat calmly in the interrogation chair, his expression unreadable.
Inside the interrogation room, Zhang Tianhua started, “Ou Wei, where were you on the morning of the 5th, between eight and ten?”
Ou Wei answered evenly, “I haven’t done anything wrong since I got out. What’s this about?”
“Just answer the question,” Zhang Tianhua said.
“I was home, asleep.”
“Have you been to Mingcheng Complex recently?”
At that, Ou Wei’s calm finally cracked, and his eyes flickered nervously. “No. Never been there.”
“Then why were your fingerprints found on the Mingcheng elevator?”
Ou Wei dropped his gaze and went silent. No matter what Zhang Tianhua asked after that, he didn’t respond.
Half an hour later, Zhang Tianhua and Ling Yue stepped out of the room. Both of them looked frustrated when they noticed Captain Han waiting in the hallway, saying, “He won’t confess a word. When he went to Mingcheng, what he was doing there… nothing. Can’t pry his mouth open.”
However, Han Huaixiao had been skeptical that Ou Wei was the culprit since the beginning. Now, faced with the man’s evasive behavior, he was even less certain. After a long moment of thought, he only said quietly, “Leave him be for now. Go and get some sleep.”
- In popular usage, “crime of passion ” refers to a violent crime, especially homicide, in which the perpetrator commits the act against someone because of a sudden strong impulse, such as anger or jealousy, rather than as a premeditated crime. ↩︎
- The term is often used in police work when discussing crime and addressing the methods employed by criminals. It is also used in criminal profiling, where it can help in finding clues to the offender’s psychology. It largely consists of examining the actions used by the individuals to execute the crime, prevent its detection, and facilitate escape. A suspect’s modus operandi can assist in their identification, apprehension, or repression, and can also be used to determine links between crimes. ↩︎
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