Chapter 24: Digging, Digging, and Digging, Right Before Everyone's Eyes

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Qian Cheng carefully went over Yu Dazhang’s words.

It should have appeared, but it hadn’t?

What kind of nonsense was that... Qian Cheng scratched his head.

It itched so badly. He felt as though a brain were about to grow inside it.

.

Back at the Criminal Investigation Brigade, Yu Dazhang and Qian Cheng once again entered the room beside the interrogation chamber.

The same few team members were there, almost exactly as they had been when the two men left.

Which meant...

The interrogation was still going on.

“Why has it been going on for so long?” Yu Dazhang asked.

He estimated that they had spent at least two hours at the crime scene.

Adding in the time spent interrogating the suspect before they left, the interrogation had already lasted more than three hours.

Under normal circumstances, an interrogation would not last more than twelve hours.

This was to prevent the suspect from becoming fatigued or being subjected to unnecessary pressure during an overly prolonged interrogation, which could affect the truthfulness and voluntariness of his statement.

By comparison, three hours was not particularly long, nor had it exceeded the prescribed limit.

But for an initial interrogation, it had already gone beyond the normal duration.

The purpose of a first interrogation was generally to obtain the suspect’s basic information and understand his psychological state.

Put more simply, it was to see whether the suspect was willing to confess voluntarily or intended to resist.

Afterward, the information would be compiled, and the team would hold a meeting to formulate an interrogation strategy.

That was why a first interrogation usually lasted around ninety minutes. Even when extended, it rarely exceeded two hours.

Interrogations came one after another.

They were not like what ordinary people imagined, where a single session could make everything about a case perfectly clear.

If that were really possible, few suspects would be able to hold out. They would simply be worn to death, and there would be no need for subsequent trials and verdicts.

So the current situation was definitely abnormal.

“It’s because the suspect has started talking,” explained one of the team members at the computer.

“Not long after you left, Kong Lingjie suddenly lost control of his emotions. He kept saying that he couldn’t take it anymore and that he hadn’t wanted things to turn out this way.”

“When an opportunity like that presents itself and you see a breakthrough, of course you keep interrogating him.”

Yu Dazhang frowned at that.

Kong Lingjie was most likely trying to prevent the interrogation from ending.

He was stalling, keeping the people interrogating him occupied.

The longer an interrogation lasted, the greater the psychological pressure on the suspect.

But the reverse was also true for the interrogators.

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As time passed, the interrogators would develop a kind of habitual mindset, believing that everything remained under their control.

That was when people were most likely to make mistakes.

Yu Dazhang watched for a while longer, and became even more certain of his guess.

Kong Lingjie was digging a pit little by little—a pit for Lu Zhongxin, right in front of everyone on the task force.

Whenever Lu Zhongxin touched upon something crucial, Kong Lingjie acted extremely resistant, yet each time he still managed to reveal some piece of substantive information.

For example:

“You claim you don’t know Zhang Yan. Then why did you single her out?”

“I—I, I, I never said I singled her out, did I? Ah, I suppose I did say that. She looked a lot like the classmate who used to sit beside me at school. No, wait, I never met her. Who’s Zhang Yan? I don’t know her. You’re misleading me.”

He appeared resistant, but in reality, he was luring Lu Zhongxin into the trap one step at a time.

He was making Lu Zhongxin feel that if he only pressed a little harder—just a little harder—he could make the suspect confess everything.

Yu Dazhang watched Kong Lingjie on the monitor, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

Feigning reluctance while secretly inviting pursuit.

This was clearly the sort of trick a manipulative flirt used to bait a gullible fool, yet Kong Lingjie had actually brought it into an interrogation room.

In Yu Dazhang’s eyes, both men on the monitor were talking complete nonsense.

It was almost like this:

Lu Zhongxin: “Why did Qu Yuan jump into the river?”

Kong Lingjie: “I didn’t know him. I’m not really sure.”

Lu Zhongxin: “Did you push him in?!”

Kong Lingjie’s eyes darted away, his expression panicked.

“This—this—how did you trace it back to me so quickly? N-No, I didn’t do it.”

Was it clearer this time?

That was right. Kong Lingjie was baiting Lu Zhongxin.

At this point, even if Lu Zhongxin asked him, “Were you the one who burned the Old Summer Palace?” he could immediately put on a guilty expression and provide some piece of substantive information.

There was no point continuing the interrogation...

Yu Dazhang now had a general understanding of how Lu Zhongxin had been ensnared in his previous life.

A simple, honest appearance. Meticulous scheming. And remarkably convincing acting during questioning.

Most importantly, Kong Lingjie was following Lu Zhongxin’s line of thought.

You want me to confess?

Fine. I’ll cooperate with you. I’ll cooperate completely.

I’ll take responsibility for every crime, but we have to make this performance convincing.

What kind of acting was the most genuine and easiest to believe?

Without a doubt, it was playing oneself.

Only someone who had been beaten down by society and had grown accustomed to shrinking timidly through life could portray guilt, fear, and weakness with such realism.

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The person plotting behind the scenes had taken every aspect of human nature into account.

Master, you truly had no one but yourself to blame for falling into this trap in your previous life...

Yu Dazhang reached his final conclusion inwardly.

He picked up the microphone beside the computer and spoke quickly.

“Master, ask him how he kidnapped Zhang Yan and brought her to the rented apartment. Get him to describe the process in as much detail as possible.”

Inside the interrogation room, Lu Zhongxin paused when he heard Yu Dazhang’s words through the miniature earpiece. Then he raised his head and looked toward the surveillance camera to one side.

After considering for only a second, he gave a slight nod.

This was one of the task force’s methods of cooperation.

If someone observing from outside noticed a problem, they could promptly remind the interrogator.

In more professional terms, it was called filling in the gaps and correcting omissions.

Lu Zhongxin changed his line of questioning.

“Did Zhang Yan go home with you willingly?”

The moment the question was asked, Kong Lingjie fell silent.

He no longer answered every question as he had before. He seemed to be hesitating, or perhaps avoiding the issue. His entire face flushed red from the effort.

Aha. He had run into a blind spot...

Yu Dazhang guessed that the person behind the scenes had never taught Kong Lingjie how to answer this question.

That person probably had not expected the police to raise such a logical question after the suspect had already started talking.

“Master, stop for now.” Yu Dazhang picked up the microphone again.

“Let the suspect rest for a while. We should hold a meeting and discuss things as well.”

The other team members all turned to look at Yu Dazhang when they heard this.

Whose side are you on?

How could you bring yourself to say that the suspect needed a rest?

At the same time, they noticed that this chubby trainee seemed to have quite a few ideas of his own.

Even more astonishingly, Lu Zhongxin actually stopped the interrogation.

As they watched the suspect being led out of the interrogation room, question marks filled the team members’ faces.

Which one of these two was the master, and which one was the apprentice?

Why did Lu Zhongxin, the deputy team leader, obey this newcomer’s every word?

Amid everyone’s astonished stares, Lu Zhongxin walked in.

“Dazhang, did you discover something?”

Look at that—he was asking the fat kid again!

Everyone in the room shifted their gaze back to Yu Dazhang.

“I did discover some new clues.” Yu Dazhang nodded. “Let’s go to the conference room. It’ll take more than a sentence or two to explain.”