Chapter 54: Kindred Spirits? (Additional Chapter)

Therefore!

When Gao Ya entered the alley at that time, she must have spotted Yin Tingxue.

"What happened after the two met remains unclear for now.

However, both of them were subsequently seen in the northern part of Changguan Village, particularly at the intersection of Anyan Road and Shengli Road.

Though at different times..."

Shen Ting frowned.

The exact time Yin Tingxue passed through the intersection is currently uncertain.

Yet it is certain that it occurred during the period when the surveillance footage was blurred.

As for Gao Ya appearing in that vicinity, it was when Shen Ting called her.

Meaning after one o'clock in the afternoon!

Yet her figure was likewise absent from the surveillance footage.

Shen Ting had long since repeatedly checked the surveillance cameras there.

"The locations where they appeared overlap, but the times differ.

Furthermore, was Gao Ya deliberately avoiding the surveillance cameras?"

Shen Ting's sense of foreboding gradually grew stronger.

There was no reason for her to avoid surveillance for no apparent reason.

Especially since, if she had encountered a criminal, shouldn't she have headed straight toward the cameras instead?

Why did Gao Ya do the exact opposite?

Shen Ting recalled his previous hypothesis again—that Gao Ya might have accidentally killed Yin Tingxue...

"Surely it wouldn't go that far!"

At this moment, Shen Ting dared not be certain anymore.

Nor did he dare to continue thinking along this line of reasoning, so he resumed reviewing the case files.

Aside from screening the small escort cards, Xiong Beibei had also focused on investigating the residents who received those cards as well as individuals with criminal records in the surrounding area.

Unfortunately, no suspects had been found there either!

Just as Shen Ting finished looking through all the documents, the police car happened to pull into the courtyard of the Public Security Bureau.

After stepping out of the vehicle, the two walked directly outside the interrogation room to check on the interrogation status of the gang engaged in underworld activities.

Seeing Shen Ting approach, the officers stationed outside the interrogation room all stared at him in astonishment.

Xiong Beibei asked curiously:

"Shen Ting, how on earth did you discover this underworld gang?

These fellows hid themselves so deeply!"

Zheng Yuanqiao was equally curious: "Indeed!

We dug around for a long time based on the clues you provided before we managed to round up the entire gang."

Qin Shan also chimed in: "Anyone still daring to engage in underworld activities nowadays is extremely cautious.

To make matters worse, they also organized loan sharking, coerced prostitution, and so on.

Normally, it would be extremely difficult for us to even investigate them.

Shen Ting, thanks entirely to you and the clues you provided, we were able to sweep them all up in one fell swoop so effortlessly!"

Without offering a lengthy explanation, Shen Ting asked directly:

"Can it be confirmed that they are connected to Yin Tingxue's disappearance?"

The three exchanged glances, the excitement on their faces fading away as they shook their heads and said:

"I'm afraid not!

Most of them have alibis for the time Yin Tingxue went out of sight."

"Judging from the current interrogation progress, their connection is likely minimal."

"Although this underworld gang has committed numerous crimes, Yin Tingxue's disappearance probably truly has nothing to do with them.

Primarily, they had no motive, nor would they dare to do such a thing!"

This final remark came from Captain Qin.

Having briefly examined the interrogation records, Shen Ting understood what he meant.

They lacked a motive because this gang had, in fact, already controlled Yin Tingxue.

The usurious loans she could not repay and her cerebral palsy son served as leverage.

There was simply no need to further restrict her freedom and cause her disappearance!

As for not daring to touch Yin Tingxue, it was naturally because their boss, Xu Songguo, had taken a fancy to her.

At least on the surface, they lacked the guts to lay a finger on Yin Tingxue.

And Xu Songguo had already been apprehended with the assistance of the Harbin police.

He had been vacationing up there recently, making it even more impossible for him to have caused Yin Tingxue's disappearance.

As Shen Ting pondered, Xu Xinyi stated:

"We shouldn't completely rule out their suspicion either.

Just because Xu Songguo had his eyes on Yin Tingxue doesn't mean his subordinates would willingly submit.

If everyone followed the rules so obediently, how could they survive in the underworld?"

Shen Ting nodded; what Xu Xinyi said made sense as well.

He proceeded to share his own discoveries with Zheng Yuanqiao and the others.

The focus boiled down to just two points—

First, determined via the SIM card, was the color-coded circle where Gao Ya had once appeared, as deduced by Kiko.

Second, discovered by Qin Feng, were the fragments of a prostitution card at the intersection of Yingxiong Road and Anyan Road.

Upon viewing the videos and pictures provided by Shen Ting, the officers were all startled.

Compared to their own investigation into the underworld gang, these two clues provided by Shen Ting were far more crucial.

Not only were they highly directional!

Furthermore, without Shen Ting needing to explain, they could easily guess that he must have employed numerous highly sophisticated techniques to acquire these two clues.

At the center of the former red circle lay a communications base station.

The latter consisted of overwhelmingly blurry surveillance footage!

None of this could have been processed casually to arrive at a conclusion.

The officers shared a lingering sensation that these two clues pushed the investigation several steps further than the underworld gang itself.

Had they been tasked with looking into it themselves, goodness knows how long it would have taken them to find anything.

Especially those shredded papers within the surveillance footage!

Had Shen Ting not sketched out the contents of the scraps and merely handed them the raw footage, they could have strained their eyes until they popped and still failed to realize the paper fragments were part of an escort card.

"Little brother Shen has quite a few secrets!"

"His investigative methods are somewhat terrifyingly proficient."

"Cracking communications base station data requires formidable computer skills.

Discovering paper scraps from surveillance demands exceptional observational prowess.

And restoring surveillance imagery calls for top-tier image processing capabilities.

These are not feats ordinary police officers can pull off.

No wonder little brother Shen attained the status of consultant at such a tender age!

Truly remarkable!"

Hearing this, Qin Shan glared at the officers who had spoken:

"What nonsense are you blabbing about?

The surveillance and base station data were obviously obtained by us contacting telecom providers and the traffic management center through official applications.

Shen Ting merely processed them!"

He shot a glance at Zheng Yuanqiao, who immediately stepped in to cover the gap.

Shen Ting continued:

"Both Sister Xu and I went to investigate the color-coded zone on the map and the intersection today.

Yet the harvest was meager!

Currently, the most crucial piece of the puzzle is the card fragments at the intersection.

They were most likely left behind by Yin Tingxue.

Moreover, she surely left more than just that single piece.

By conducting a thorough search, we might unearth more.

At that point, we can map out Yin Tingxue's trajectory of movement.

Perhaps we can pinpoint the location where her body was dumped or where she was hidden.

This train of thought is currently the most reliable.

Since the underworld gang has already been rounded up, tomorrow most of the team members should head to the intersection, shovel through the snow, and conduct a grid search!

As for myself, I will continue patrolling the surrounding area to see if we can directly pinpoint a zone with a higher probability of harboring suspects."

Captain Qin Shan immediately nodded: "No problem, we'll do as you say, Shen Ting.

Tomorrow I will personally lead the team to that intersection!"

...

After wrapping up the discussion, Shen Ting returned to his workstation.

He directly shared the files of all members of the underworld gang.

He attempted to ascertain whether anyone might have defied Xu Songguo.

Or harbored an obsessive infatuation with Yin Tingxue.

He read through documents at lightning speed, whereas other officers meticulously searched for every trace of a clue.

As for Shen Ting, a single glance per page was all he required.

Even so, it took until late into the night to finish reviewing every single file.

"At least judging from the existing records, none of these individuals dared to defy their boss, Xu Songguo."

This Xu Songguo was ruthless and vicious.

Back in middle school, he had hacked someone into severe injuries during a gang fight and served multiple prison terms.

He treated his subordinates with zero leniency.

The slightest dissatisfaction was met with flying beer bottles or ashtrays.

Yet when it came to money, he appeared remarkably unsparing.

He was exceedingly generous to his underlings.

Whenever his thugs needed cash or had family members fall ill, he would provide assistance.

It could be considered a management model combining the carrot and the stick!

Risking Xu Songguo's wrath over a woman was something those men simply lacked the guts to do.

Furthermore!

Yin Tingxue had also deliberately kept her distance from them.

Aside from working to pay off her debts, she had minimal contact with the members of the underworld gang.

There was another piece of information of critical importance!

Shen Ting had initially suspected the underworld gang because they controlled numerous women forced into prostitution.

And most of the individuals who vanished on snowy nights were likewise female!

Yet identity verification revealed no overlap between the women engaged in prostitution and those who disappeared on snowy nights.

The women controlled by this gang were primarily debtors unable to repay usurious loans, or their female relatives.

"Viewed in this light, the suspicion surrounding this gang is relatively low.

They were simply rather unfortunate to have gotten entangled in Yin Tingxue's disappearance and consequently got completely wiped out."

Of course, their downfall was entirely deserved!

Shen Ting frowned in contemplation:

"If we rule out the underworld gang, could someone else be responsible for the disappearances of both Gao Ya and Yin Tingxue?"

Gao Ya possessed virtually no social circle.

As for Yin Tingxue's network of relations, the underworld gang—which held the highest suspicion—was now essentially discounted.

As for others, they either lacked motives or possessed solid alibis...

Shen Ting rubbed his temples.

Generally speaking, when one cannot proceed by way of interpersonal relationship networks, things become rather troublesome.

He logged into the crime-solving chat group and initiated a discussion with its members.

Guan Hongyu: "This is turning tricky!"

Tang Ren: "What's so tricky about it, it's super simple~~

The criminal is just committing crimes at random~~"

Tong Detective Qin Feng: "L... Little Tang, it's not quite that absolute.

If it's not a crime committed by an acquaintance, only two possibilities remain—

The criminal killed on impulse, temporarily selecting a target last night.

Or, the criminal handpicked a target in advance, tracked them continuously, and waited for an opportunity to strike."

Kira: "Ruling out crimes committed by acquaintances, regardless of which possibility it is, this criminal harbors malice toward ordinary people with whom they share no grievances.

Hah, sounds like I've run into one of my own kind!"

Hannibal: "Ongoing for years, and invariably committed on snowy nights.

A snowy night might well be the trigger for his crimes.

That aligns precisely with the traits of a serial killer!"

Jigsaw: "Fascinating!

Who is it, and what traits drew this kindred spirit in?"