The Unseen Motive

"You should have been more cautious with his testimony since you knew from the start that he was a criminal defense lawyer. Remember, the job of a defense attorney is to poke holes in your evidence," Yan Liang said with a smirk, looking at Zhao Tiemin.

Like most people, Yan Liang had first learned about Zhang Chao through the news. At the time, he too had believed the police had coerced a confession, but when Zhao Tiemin repeatedly assured him that there was no such pressure from the police, Yan's interest in the case was piqued. After Zhao Tiemin relayed a couple of words from Gao Dong, Yan agreed to get involved in the investigation.

Scratching his head, Zhao Tiemin said, "I checked with the district bureau. The deputy director specifically told the criminal police team to verify his testimony carefully. But after checking, they found no issues. The victim, Jiang Yang, was killed at seven in the evening, and the surveillance footage outside the community shows Zhang Chao's car entering at that time. But the footage was blurry, and it was dark, so we couldn't make out the face. After his confession, Zhang Chao claimed that he had lent the car to Jiang Yang, so the person in the car wasn't him—it was Jiang Yang. He admitted to the murder, and the time the car entered the community matched the time of the murder. How could the criminal police have known that the person in the car wasn't him? They wouldn't have thought to check his travel and accommodation records at that point."

"Why would he take the subway to dispose of the body? There's security at the subway, and he would have had to go through a metal detector with a dead body..." Yan Liang laughed.

Zhao Tiemin sighed, "His excuse was quite plausible. He said he was terrified and hadn't slept all night after the murder. The next day, he decided to dispose of the body to cover up the crime. Before doing so, he drank some alcohol to calm his nerves, but then realized he couldn't drive because he would risk being caught for drunk driving and possibly having his car towed, exposing the body in the trunk. So, he dragged the suitcase and took a taxi. However, the taxi was rear-ended near the subway station, and the two drivers argued. He panicked and ran into the subway station. He was exhausted from the lack of sleep and drunk, so he didn't think twice about passing through security. The taxi driver confirmed his account, and when he was arrested, he was indeed drunk. Even his rambling at the subway station proved this."

Yan Liang nodded, "That excuse makes sense. No wonder the police didn't consider anything further at the time."

Zhao Tiemin sighed again, "If they had thought further, they still wouldn't have imagined that the man who had been caught in the act of disposing of a body, confessed immediately, and whose testimony and evidence perfectly matched, wasn't the killer. The murder occurred in Hangzhou, and he was in Beijing a thousand kilometers away."

Yan Liang smiled, "Such a case has never happened before. It's understandable that the criminal police were tricked. Now that he's retracted his confession, how does he explain the coincidence between his testimony—saying he went to meet Jiang Yang at seven, and the surveillance showing his car entering the community at the same time?"

"His explanation is simple: it's just a coincidence," Zhao Tiemin said helplessly. "He insists that when he first confessed, it was because of invisible pressure from the police. He made up the details, and the matches between his testimony and the facts are nothing but coincidences."

Yan Liang flipped through the file and compared it to the testimony, frowning slightly. "He was in Beijing that day, over a thousand kilometers away, yet his testimony perfectly aligns with this case. The probability of that being a coincidence is extremely low. Can you be absolutely sure it wasn't him?"

"Absolutely sure," Zhao Tiemin replied firmly. "The autopsy results were clear: the victim was strangled with force, which required the presence of another person at the scene. But Zhang Chao has a solid alibi for that time."

"Still, there's one certainty: even if Zhang Chao didn't kill Jiang Yang, he knows everything about the crime scene. His testimony couldn't be so accurate unless he had been there watching someone else strangle Jiang Yang," Yan Liang mused.

Zhao Tiemin shrugged. "That's what we think too, but since his retraction, he insists his testimony is just a coincidence. We're stuck with him."

Yan Liang chuckled. "Hard to imagine the criminal police being at a loss with a man locked up behind bars. I heard once a suspect is in custody, there's no case that can't be cracked. When did our national enforcement agencies become so gentle?"

"What else can we do, strangle him?" Zhao Tiemin grumbled. "Since he retracted his confession, representatives have been coming to check on us every few days, asking if we've used any illegal means to extract a confession. The prosecution's oversight team is inspecting the detention center regularly to ensure we're not retaliating. The whole country already suspects the police of using torture. Now we're afraid to even touch him. The lawyers and journalists are practically begging him to accuse us of torture. If he has any marks on him, the media will have a field day. Foreign outlets are on the lookout. If we try any heavy-handed tactics, it'll become an international human rights issue. Right now, he's eating well, sleeping well, and just talking nonsense in every interrogation. The only thing we're allowed to do is bang the table a few times and try to intimidate him. We can't even lay a finger on him—he's practically treated like a saint."

Yan Liang couldn't help but laugh, then sighed. "Well, at least it's civilized. Letting a bad guy go is better than wrongfully imprisoning an innocent one. You remember the Xiaoshan uncle and nephew case, right? Half a year ago, the provincial high court overturned their convictions. That case was also a mess from your team. Those two spent ten years in prison for nothing."

Zhao Tiemin became serious. "I want to make it clear that I had nothing to do with that case. I only joined the team a few years ago. I was with the general team ten years ago. I've never been involved in torture or anything like that. Our team's way of handling cases now is all about evidence, very civilized."

"I believe you," Yan Liang said with a smile. "Which is why we're good friends." He paused before continuing. "Alright, back to the case. If Zhang Chao didn't kill Jiang Yang, but voluntarily confessed and entered prison, what was his motive?"

Zhao Tiemin paused, then said, "I suspect he confessed to cover for the real killer. By confessing right away, the police would overlook the true culprit. He knew that after a few months, the alibi proving he wasn't there would clear him. This way, both he and the real killer would be safe."

Yan Liang shook his head. "That's unlikely."

"Why?" Zhao Tiemin asked, confused.

"Because he voluntarily went to prison. Where did he get the confidence to withstand the police's intense interrogations without making a mistake or revealing the truth? As a lawyer, he knows that even if he tricks the police at first, he'll be questioned again in a few months. False reporting of a bomb threat is a crime, and he would be sentenced to several years. You'd still interrogate him every day. If he slips up once, both he and the real killer will be caught. According to your investigation, his family is wealthy, his career is successful, and he has a loving wife. Why would he throw all of that away? The cost is too high."

Zhao Tiemin looked frustrated. "I really can't think of any other motive."

Yan Liang thought for a moment, then said, "I want to see him. Talk to him face-to-face."

"We've interrogated him daily, and he's never confessed," Zhao Tiemin said, not hopeful.

Yan Liang smiled. "If he's not protecting someone, and there's another reason behind his actions, I believe he'll reveal something that will help us understand his motive. The problem is, we haven't fully deciphered what he's trying to tell us."