Chapter 368: The Suspect Revealed

2022-05-20

The others still weren’t sure if Zhang Zijun was the killer, but to me, there was an eighty percent chance he was. Not many people in this town fit my profiling, but Zhang Zijun checked every box for the murderer I’ve pictured.

First off, Zhang Zijun is a man in his thirties with a child. That’s the most basic condition and means he could easily overpower two kids at once. Second, he lives alone and his place is close to the highway, where the noise from outside is loud and there aren’t many neighbors nearby. That makes it easy for him to act without drawing attention.

Beyond that, Zhang Zijun divorced his wife a while ago and their child, Zhang Zuochen, used to attend Taishan Elementary. From what Zhang Zijun told us, he claimed the reason for the transfer was that their rocky relationship had affected their child. But after leaving Taishan Elementary, Zhang Zuochen didn’t go to any other school at all.

Apparently, Zhang Zuochen’s homeroom teacher was Sun Qingqing, and he was in the same class as Hu Ningning.

The sheer number of coincidences here seemed suspicious, which left me wondering if Zhang Zijun owned other properties, where he committed his crimes, and where his car was parked. Yet every time we questioned him, Zhang Zijun just brushed us off, saying it was personal business.

Someone with so many suspicious details, who fit my description almost perfectly, is definitely a prime suspect.

For now, we had a few steps to take. First, keep Zhang Zijun under surveillance. If he really was the murderer, he’d eventually call us looking for answers. But this time felt different from the previous two. In those cases, right after the killer called us, he’d always drop a clue, and by the time we followed up, there’d be another corpse.

But this time, there was no body. Why did the killer contact us before killing anyone? Usually, he’d only call once the body was taken care of. If I were in his shoes, I wouldn’t make life harder for myself like this.

So, what exactly is influencing the killer’s actions now?

I said, “Let’s eat first. After that, we’ll investigate Zhang Zuochen, and tonight we’ll keep a close eye on Zhang Zijun. Mary, do you think you could monitor Zhang Zijun’s phone?”

Mary nodded. “That’s doable, as long as I have his phone number. But the killer probably won’t use his real ID’s number. Even if he does, he’ll never say anything incriminating. If you want to catch his voice, you’d need professional equipment, and that’s beyond our reach. If we ask Uncle Chen to pull strings, it could take a while. Given what we know of Zhang Zijun, he’s probably realized we suspect him by now.”

And if Zhang Zijun really is the killer, tonight is critical. We know he uses lots of SIM cards, each for a single outgoing call. Who he’ll call, what he’ll say, maybe even if he’s calling us from his own apartment—none of that is clear.

I nodded. “Alright, let’s check out Zhang Zuochen. Uncle Chen, take someone to make the arrangements. Judging by the killer’s pace, we’ll probably find another body soon. But if we uncover a lead before he kills Guo Li, there’s still a chance we can save a life.”

Gu Chen shook his head. “Maybe it’s not such an innocent life.”

I clapped Gu Chen on the shoulder. “Whatever Guo Li was thinking when she did those things, we can’t know. Whether she meant to kill or not, what matters now is stopping the killer. Intentional murder is a line you just can’t cross. Let’s not get bogged down—let’s move.”

Gu Chen stayed quiet and moody the whole way. From his face, I could tell he wasn’t happy. It seemed like he had his own hang-ups about all this. Honestly, I never really figured out what was bothering him. I’d already realized the comforting words Gu Chen once gave me were all made up on the spot.

Now, I wasn’t sure what he was really thinking.

Zhang Zuochen had spent a year at Taishan Elementary in Sun Qingqing’s class. When we found Sun Qingqing, she seemed down. Li Jun had been brutally killed, and as his homeroom teacher, she felt responsible. At the same time, no one knew where Hu Ningning was.

Sun Qingqing had temporarily left work to rest at home. Since Zhang Zuochen transferred schools not long ago—just about six months back—it was unlikely she would forget him.

Thanks to her, we learned what kind of kid Zhang Zuochen was in her eyes. She’d met both his parents, and both were better educated than most in town, with solid jobs.

Given his family background, Zhang Zuochen could easily have transferred to a better school, and his mother Guo Limin wanted that. Zhang Zijun refused, though. Sun Qingqing still remembered how he’d once said, ‘If you’re gold, you’ll shine wherever you are. I made it out of a rough school too.’

But after just a year, Zhang Zuochen switched schools anyway.

Sun Qingqing remembered him as polite and from a comfortable family—he always brought plenty of toys, comic books, and treats to school. But his personality was a bit shy. If you didn’t engage him first, he’d usually just keep quiet.

I asked, “Ms. Sun, was Zhang Zuochen ever bullied by other kids in class?”

Sun Qingqing frowned, leaning weakly against her bed. “There were definitely mischievous kids. I told you before about Li Jun—he was trouble from the very start. Since Zhang Zuochen always had snacks and toys, some of the kids liked hanging around him, but he’d never refuse if they asked for something.”

“So he got along pretty well with the other kids?” I asked.

Sun Qingqing nodded, then hesitated and shook her head. “He was quiet, so nothing about him really stood out. The other kids were mostly there for the snacks and toys. But Li Jun—he couldn’t stand anyone, always bullying others.”

“Like what?” I pressed.

She sighed. “Like, Li Jun would spit in his snacks or deliberately break his toys.”

I nodded. Honestly, this sounded more like minor mischief than serious bullying.

Sun Qingqing went on, “He never told me or his parents. I only found out from another kid in class.”

“Who?” I asked.

“A girl named Li Feiyan. She’s pretty smart and always willing to come forward when there’s a problem.”

Hearing her mention Li Feiyan brought back a memory—a little girl tugging on my sleeve and reporting on Hu Ningning. Back then, she’d told me about Hu Ningning accidentally breaking a window during cleaning, but Hu Ningning said Li Jun did it.

“Did she ever mention Li Jun bullying Zhang Zuochen?” I asked.

Sun Qingqing glanced at me, then shook her head. “I really don’t know. If I had, maybe things wouldn’t have gone the way they did. If Li Jun was the kind of kid to kick a pregnant woman, I wouldn’t put anything past him.”

She paused, then asked, “Any updates on Hu Ningning?”

I tried to reassure her. “We haven’t found Hu Ningning yet, but she’s safe.”

Sun Qingqing breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good. Li Jun is dead now. Whatever he did, the dead deserve peace. I don’t want to discuss it anymore, but Hu Ningning must be all right. She’s such a good girl—helpful, hardworking, destined for great things. It would be such a waste if she died so young.”

Looking at her, it was obvious that Sun Qingqing held Hu Ningning in high regard. Everyone has their own perspective though. From others, we’d heard a different side of Hu Ningning. Just who was she really? And what about Zhang Zuochen?

It struck me that hearing only Sun Qingqing’s side of the story wasn’t enough. We needed to find someone else who knew them.

Sometimes, after all, it’s the kids who understand each other best.