Chapter 113: Dead Body in the Car

The youngest, Lao Yao, quickly recovered the data from the hard drive. There were tons of videos. He casually clicked one and suddenly screamed, "Holy crap! These videos are intense!"

Huang Xiaotao wore a stern expression. "Can you step outside for a bit? Song Yang and I need to review these. They're internal files — not for leaking."

"Alright, alright. I'm heading out for food. Condoms are in the drawer," Lao Yao said as he slipped on his slippers and left.

I hadn't fully processed it, but once I did, I grabbed a tissue box and tossed it at him. "Get the hell out."

Lao Yao smirked devilishly as he disappeared at the door. Huang Xiaotao quickly shut it behind him.

Though there were many videos, finding the right one wasn't hard — just check the dates. We quickly located the surveillance footage from that night. Because it was filmed in low-quality night mode, the image was grainy. Huang Xiaotao told me to fast forward, then said "Stop!" pointing at a car window. "It's this car!"

"Way too blurry. Let's have Lao Yao enhance it later," I said.

Huang Xiaotao chuckled, "You watch too many American movies. Real life doesn't have that tech. At best, you can tweak colors or sharpen a bit. I'll handle it."

I sat down at the computer, and Huang Xiaotao leaned close on my left, taking over the mouse. Her body pressed warmly against me. Even through clothes, I could feel the softness of her chest. My face flushed instantly.

...

After a few tweaks, the image was much clearer. She glanced back, teasing, "Hey, why's your face red again?"

"Nothing, just watch the video," I stammered.

She smiled, pulled a chair close, sitting almost against me. The subtle scent of her feminine perfume wafted into my nose, making me even more nervous.

Fortunately, once we started watching the footage, my focus shifted. We watched the couple in the car going at it for twelve minutes, then watched again. Nothing seemed unusual. I frowned, "They barely change positions."

Huang Xiaotao punched my arm jokingly. "What are you thinking about?"

"Don't you think the woman looks dead the whole time?" My face darkened.

I rewound and zoomed in on the video. Despite the blurriness, the woman's eyes were wide open the entire time.

I asked, "Normally, would a woman keep her eyes open during sex?"

"No, she'd be enjoying it and close them," Huang Xiaotao said.

We'd already switched to crime discussion mode, so no holding back.

"Also, this is a parking lot near the company. He's parked here many times. Wouldn't he know where the cameras are? Even if he didn't, he should have turned off the interior lights. I think he was doing it on purpose, just to prove his wife was alive at that moment."

Huang Xiaotao suddenly understood, "You mean, while they were 'having sex' in the car, the wife was already a corpse!"

"Exactly. That's why he needed Viagra," I said.

She bit her lip, looking at the screen. "Disgusting. To fake insurance money, he'd do something like this?"

I copied the videos to a USB, deleted all recovered data, and removed the hard drive. As I left, I bumped into Lao Yao, who smirked, "Done already?"

Huang Xiaotao asked, "Hey, want to join the police bureau as a consultant, like Song Yang?"

"What kind of consultant?" Lao Yao was confused.

"Technical consultant," she said.

His first thought: "Does it pay well?"

"There's allowance and transport subsidies, but not much," Huang Xiaotao replied.

"Then I might as well hack accounts," Lao Yao said.

She reasoned patiently, "Sure, not much reward. Lots of hackers out there, but how many have helped solve police cases? This experience will shine on your resume and help your future. Most importantly, you'll be using your skills to benefit society."

Lao Yao was unmoved: "No money, just work for free? You think I'm a dumb mule?"

I asked, "Can you graduate?"

He scratched his head, "Not really. The counselor wants me to repeat a year."

Huang Xiaotao smiled, "Perfect. Help us solve a few cases and I'll give you a special certificate proving your contributions to Nanjiang City. That'll get you enough credits to graduate. Call me if you're interested."

She gave him her number, he silently noted it. As we turned to leave, he shouted, "Miss Huang, I'll think about it and get back to you."

Going downstairs, Huang Xiaotao grabbed my arm, "You're good at persuading people. I said all that and you didn't say a word."

I smiled, "You gotta hit their pain points."

I wasn't sure if Lao Yao would join — the kid was all about profit.

We quickly returned the hard drive, lucky no one noticed. It was past seven, and Huang Xiaotao's temper meant she immediately wanted to find the suspect. On the way, she texted Wang Yuanchao, asking him to dig up some info.

The suspect's name was Zou Wei. One year after his wife's death, he used the huge insurance payout to start a securities company — now he was the boss. When we arrived, the receptionist said, "Please wait, I'll call."

She made an internal call and said the manager was not in. I laughed, "You're at the front desk. Don't you know if the manager's working?"

Huang Xiaotao snapped, "Obstructing police work. Want to come with us for some tea?"

The receptionist nearly cried, "The manager told me to say that. I'll call him again."

We then went to the manager's office. A disheveled female secretary hurried out, fixing her hair on the way. Huang Xiaotao remarked, "Looks like someone's living well."

"He won't have many good days left," I sneered.

We entered and saw a slightly overweight man behind a big desk. Before we spoke, he said, "Officers, my company operates legally. No tax evasion. You've got the wrong person."

"We're not from the economic police. We're criminal investigators," Huang Xiaotao showed her badge.

"Criminal police? What do you want with me? I'm a law-abiding citizen," Zou Wei said smugly.

I explained, "Your wife died in a car accident a year ago. You collected a huge insurance payout. We're here to investigate that."

He laughed, "Are you joking? That case was closed. Why reopen it?"

"Because we found major doubts," I said firmly.

He raised an eyebrow, "You police can't just accuse innocent people. You investigated me for a whole month, and the insurance company did too. It was a nightmare. Xiaoli's death was a heavy blow. Just because she was my wife, you won't let it go. Now you're causing trouble again. I want to see your search warrant, or leave!"

I thought this guy was tough to handle. Of course, we had no search warrant. Just then, Huang Xiaotao cut straight to the chase: "Your wife was murdered by you. She was already a corpse before the accident. You had sex with her corpse in the parking lot under the surveillance cameras to prove she was alive then."

I activated my "洞幽之瞳" ability. Under Huang Xiaotao's intense interrogation, Zou Wei panicked immediately — sweat broke out on his forehead, his fingers trembled, Adam's apple bobbed, and his nose turned red. This man was undoubtedly the murderer!