Chapter 117: I’ll Never Let You Go!

The youngest said the two visitors were Zou Wei and a Taoist priest. Apparently, Zou Wei was afraid his deceased wife's spirit was haunting him, so he hired the priest to perform an exorcism.

Of course, we didn't care much—whether the priest was real or fake, neither could handle a ghost impersonated by a living person!

After they came in, the youngest started setting things up. The projector and speakers we installed were connected to a computer in the room, remotely controlled by him.

Suddenly, blood seemed to ooze down the walls. The corridor echoed with eerie ghostly sounds mixed with horror movie background music. If we weren't standing outside the scene, it would've been genuinely terrifying.

Zou Wei let out a panicked scream, shouting, "Master Tao, Master Tao, hurry and take action!"

The sound of bells jingled in the corridor. The youngest told us the priest was performing the "Ta Gang Step," wielding a peach wood sword and scattering glutinous rice to ward off evil. The youngest scoffed, "This guy's a fake Taoist. Only amateurs scatter rice for zombies—that even I know."

"Execute plan B!" I ordered.

Wang Yuanchao and I raised a plastic board and quickly approached through the corridor.

The projector cast an image of a car on the board, and the speakers played the harsh screeching sound of a crash. On the other side of the plastic, Zou Wei's hysterical screams came through: "Don't come near me! It wasn't me who killed you!"

...

...

Peering through the small hole in the plastic board, I saw Zou Wei collapse to the floor, and the fake priest was so scared he wet himself and scrambled away.

As we moved forward, Huang Xiaotao followed closely behind. When Zou Wei shut his eyes tight in terror, the 'Ma Xiaoli' that Huang Xiaotao portrayed suddenly appeared right in front of him.

I told the youngest to cut the sound effects and started recording on my phone. Huang Xiaotao spoke in a mournful voice, "Zou Wei, look at me."

Zou Wei opened one eye, trembling violently, then screamed, kneeling and banging his head hard on the ground, "Xiaoli, please forgive me! I had no choice—I only did this to pay off debts!"

Debts? My mind raced—finally, a breakthrough.

Huang Xiaotao suddenly covered her face and sobbed, her chilling voice sending shivers down our spines. Zou Wei, already weakened by the sedative, wet a large patch on his pants, releasing a pungent stench. Through her tears, Huang Xiaotao said, "Zou Wei, you're so cruel. I'll haunt you to death, never letting you rest in peace!"

Zou Wei whimpered, "If it weren't for Hei Laowu constantly hounding me for repayment, I wouldn't have done this. I loved you so much!"

Huang Xiaotao asked, "Did he have a hand in killing me?"

Zou Wei quickly shifted blame, "Yeah, yeah, it was all his plan. You should go find him—I'll give you his address."

He really gave out Hei Laowu's address. Obviously, he was lying, but Hei Laowu was an important witness.

I made a signal to Huang Xiaotao. She slipped inside, and we sealed the door with a plastic board matching the door's color. The dim lighting made it impossible for Zou Wei to notice from outside.

We watched quietly through a hole in the plastic. When Zou Wei walked by, I gestured to Huang Xiaotao. She grinned, "You're so mean!"

I said, "You gotta play the part fully!"

At the right moment, I let Huang Xiaotao out. Silently, she crept up behind Zou Wei and tapped his shoulder. Zou Wei jumped, his legs shaking uncontrollably as he slowly turned around. Huang Xiaotao spoke mournfully, "I'm going to find Hei Laowu. After I kill him, I'll come for you!"

She made a clawing gesture, and Zou Wei's eyes rolled back as he fainted.

Seeing him unconscious, we quickly packed up and headed to Hei Laowu's place. Wang Yuanchao went upstairs, grabbed Hei Laowu, and threw a bag on the floor. It looked like rock sugar but was actually drugs.

Hei Laowu was pretty unlucky—just about to enjoy himself at home when Wang Yuanchao busted in.

Huang Xiaotao picked up the drugs and weighed them, "Oh, about 100 grams, huh? The Criminal Law says over 50 grams means the death penalty!"

Hei Laowu trembled and kowtowed, "Please spare me! I haven't used any myself. Take it all away!"

Huang Xiaotao was bluffing. Chinese law punishes drug trafficking of over 50 grams with death. Using drugs is illegal but not a crime; it results in a 10-15 day detention or forced rehab for 3-6 months for severe cases.

She stood up, arms crossed, cold as ice: "I'm Officer Huang. Do you know me?"

"Of course! Everyone in the underworld knows Officer Huang's name. And Officer Wang here too. What can we do for you?"

Huang Xiaotao questioned him about Zou Wei's wife's murder. At first, Hei Laowu pretended not to know, but when threatened with the drug charge, he confessed: "Alright, alright, Zou Wei killed his wife a year ago. He owed me 5 million yuan in high-interest loans..."

"Did you order it?" Huang Xiaotao demanded fiercely.

"No, no. I'm just a rough guy, didn't even finish middle school. I couldn't come up with something that clever. He did it on his own."

Hei Laowu revealed the whole story and gave us evidence—a handwritten IOU signed by Zou Wei. It was indirect but still valuable.

The IOU, autopsy report, and Hei Laowu's testimony were enough to convict Zou Wei. Chinese law favors physical evidence, but human testimony combined with it is still highly credible.

Huang Xiaotao called Chief Sun. He scolded her for acting recklessly but also praised her. Luckily, Director Cheng was in Nanjiang for research and promised to back us up the next morning.

Early the next day, we brought Hei Laowu to the station. Captain Lin's eyes widened, "Huang Xiaotao, what are you doing again... Ah! Director, you're here?"

When he saw Chief Sun and Director Cheng behind us, his expression was priceless.

Director Cheng said sternly, "The car accident case from a year ago was reported to me by Chief Sun. Now, with Officer Huang's investigation and evidence, it's confirmed to be a heinous murder-for-insurance fraud! I hereby order the case reopened immediately—no culprit will escape justice."

Captain Lin wiped cold sweat and nodded frantically, "Yes, yes, I'll apply for arrest warrants right away." Then to Huang Xiaotao, "I hope you understand my earlier criticism. As captain, I had my reasons."

Huang Xiaotao stood at attention, saluting, "Captain Lin, I disobeyed orders and acted on my own. I accept any punishment!"

Chief Sun laughed heartily, "Captain Lin is just doing his duty. Huang Xiaotao hates evil. Let's drop the punishment, okay? No need to hurt morale."

That broke the tension perfectly. Captain Lin relented, "Chief Sun is right. As a cop, this is how we should be. If everyone was like Huang Xiaotao, bad guys would have nowhere to hide. Nanjiang's security would be so much better!"

Huang Xiaotao winked at me with a smile.

Zou Wei was arrested and confessed to all crimes. Soon he was handed over to the judiciary, awaiting trial.

Not only did Huang Xiaotao make a major breakthrough, but she also made police history with a case reversal! At the commendation ceremony, Captain Zhang personally took off his badge, admitting his failure a year ago allowed the culprit to roam free and the innocent wife to die in vain. He asked for punishment, but Huang Xiaotao pleaded on his behalf, and he only lost one month's salary as a symbolic penalty.

Huang Xiaotao excitedly invited me to dinner, saying her annual leave was coming soon and she wanted to go to Wuyi Mountain to thank me properly. I agreed.

At this moment, little did we know a storm was about to hit!