Sweeping Mouse Ridge – Chapter Five : 2

Ma Xiaozhong and Guo Xiaofen arrived at the building where Zhou Liping lived. The five-story building, judging by the peeling paint, was quite old. Entering the building, a strong smell of septic tank hit them. They climbed the crumbling concrete stairs, almost every floor incomplete, when suddenly they heard a shout from above: “What are you doing? Show me your ID!” Ma Xiaozhong hurried up, and as they neared the top floor, they saw two people standing in the doorway of Zhou Liping’s room. Inside was a large-bellied detective, and outside was Huyan Yun.

“Old Pu!” Ma Xiaozhong called out to the large-bellied detective.

Old Pu immediately grinned: “Hey, Police Chief Ma, the boss just told me you were coming. I was thinking of treating you to lunch somewhere!”

“Lunch my ass! Lately, I’ve been getting all worked up!” Ma Xiaozhong pointed at Huyan Yun, spouting a lie. “This is a criminal investigation expert from the police academy hired by the bureau to help check out Zhou Liping’s house to see if they can find any new evidence. Don’t block the door.”

Old Pu reluctantly stepped aside.

Huyan Yun went inside and carefully examined the not-so-spacious one-bedroom apartment. Besides the chairs and folding tables, he paid special attention to opening the wardrobe doors and turning out the pockets of every piece of clothing. He lifted the curtain of the closet and took out the few miscellaneous items piled up inside, examining them one by one. Then, with his gloved hands, he smoothed out every nook and cranny of the closet. He meticulously examined the detective novels by Jeffrey Deaver, Michael Connelly, and Paul Holt on the bookshelf. Of course, he did not overlook the old-fashioned double-door refrigerator in the corner, which was buzzing loudly. He unscrewed the lids of almost every pot and jar inside, filling the room with the smell of fermented bean curd. Finally, he crawled under the bed, used his phone’s light to illuminate the room, and rummaged around for a while before emerging with a layer of dust on his face. Guo Xiaofen handed him a wet wipe, which he seemed to be pondering, quickly wiping his hands before stuffing it into his pocket.

Just then, his gaze fell upon a dark green trash can next to the folding table.

He crouched down, looking at the trash can lined with a plastic bag. Inside, besides a few crumpled flyers, sausage casings, tissues, and two empty 330 ml cans of Yanjing beer, he ignored them. Instead, he picked up a crumpled plastic package: “There’s an instant noodle wrapper here. Where’s the empty box?”

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“It seems Officer Chu from the Municipal Criminal Investigation Department took it when he was collecting evidence,” Old Pu said.

Ma Xiaozhong added, “Zhou Liping himself said that on the night of the Sweeping Mouse Ridge Case, he went home first and ate instant noodles for dinner.”

Huyan Yun said “Oh,” picked up two empty cans from the trash can, and suddenly noticed a note stuck to the bottom of one of the cans—a receipt from the supermarket cash register. He read every word on the receipt over and over, gradually frowning.

“What’s wrong?” Guo Xiaofen asked, squatting down beside him.

Huyan Yun pointed to a line of time on the receipt and said, “It shows that on the night of the Sweeping Mouse Ridge Case, he bought instant noodles, beer, and sausages at this Good Neighbor convenience store that evening, around 6 p.m.”

Guo Xiaofen was startled and stared wide-eyed. “Is it possible he came back after committing the crime…?”

“Unlikely,” Huyan Yun shook his head. “He wouldn’t have been hungry for that long. There wasn’t any other food in the store, and the receipt doesn’t show that he bought anything else to eat that night.”

“Maybe he bought two but only left one in the trash can for us to see?”

“If that’s the case, then this opponent’s terrifying…” Huyan Yun pondered for a moment, then looked up at Old Pu and said, “Officer Pu, could you please take this receipt and go to the nearest Good Neighbor convenience store? Ask them to pull up the CCTV footage from around 6 p.m. that night to see how many items Zhou Liping bought?”

Old Pu grumbled, his face showing a look of dissatisfaction that said, “Who do you think you are, ordering me around?”

“Hurry up!” Ma Xiaozhong pulled out a wad of cash and shoved it into Old Pu’s hand, saying, “Buy some snacks and drinks while you’re at it. Guarding the scene’s not like going to jail. Why should our Elder Brothers have to suffer?”

Old Pu declined a couple of times but couldn’t refuse and went downstairs.

Ma Xiaozhong said to Huyan Yun and Guo Xiaofen, “You two, stop pretending in front of me! Tell me what you found; I’m completely baffled.”

Guo Xiaofen said, “According to the time and items on the receipt, combined with Zhou Liping’s statement, he bought these things on the night of the incident, ate and drank them, and then received Xing Qisheng’s call to pick him up at Tongyou Nursery.”

“So what?” Ma Xiaozhong said. “Can’t you even let someone have a decent meal before doing something bad?”

“He had no problem eating instant noodles and sausages; the problem lies with those two cans of beer… Putting aside the fact that such a big case requires absolute concentration and meticulousness and cannot allow alcohol to interfere with his consciousness in any way, even from the perspective of an ordinary driver’s professional habits, if he knew he had to drive that night, he shouldn’t have drunk alcohol.”

Ma Xiaozhong suddenly realized, “So, Zhou Liping, at least around six o’clock that evening, had no idea he would get a job that night, so he ate and drank, preparing to wash up and go to sleep?”

“Do not forget he committed a shocking crime before he was eighteen; do not forget he served eight years in prison. In a large sense, he’s a professional criminal, possessing superhuman calmness and rationality, so he would absolutely not drink two cans of beer knowing he was going to kill and burn a body on Sweeping Mouse Ridge that night,” Huyan Yun stood up and said.

“Since he drank beer, why didn’t he refuse when Xing Qisheng asked him to drive, using the excuse of avoiding a DUI checkpoint?” Guo Xiaofen asked, somewhat puzzled.

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“Two cans of beer. Many drivers would be embarrassed to use that as a cover, especially since Xing Qisheng called him at nine o’clock, three hours later. Even someone with a good metabolism wouldn’t be able to snort.” Ma Xiaozhong turned to Huyan Yun. “Is it possible that he knew the police would search his room if they found out he was involved, so he specifically bought two cans of beer, ate only instant noodles and sausages before the crime, and drank the beer after returning home, deliberately leading the police to think he wouldn’t commit a crime under the influence?”

“As it turns out, the police didn’t think in that direction,” Huyan Yun said, frowning. “However, every possibility should be ruled out…”

Just then, Old Pu returned carrying a plastic bag of food, panting, and said, “The Good Neighbor Convenience Store is right behind the building. I found the surveillance footage; I recorded it with my phone.”

Surveillance footage shows that around 6 p.m. that evening, Zhou Liping entered the convenience store, casually browsed the shelves, picked out instant noodles, sausages, and beer, paid at the counter, and, perhaps because he was thirsty, opened a can of beer and took a big gulp before leaving.

“Damn!” Ma Xiaozhong could not help but exclaim, “This brother had absolutely no intention of committing a crime.”

Huyan Yun frowned, remained silent, and quietly went to the kitchen and bathroom. He came out and said to Ma Xiaozhong and Guo Xiaofen, “Let’s go; we won’t find anything else here.”