Back in the office, before Xu Nian could even settle into her chair, a detective from Daqu County rushed in eagerly. Spotting her, he exclaimed, "Captain Xu, we've got a lead!"
Though they were outsiders, Captain Tan had long treated them as part of the team, so Xu Nian was accustomed to stepping forward. She took the documents from the detective before he could speak, flipping through them casually. "What’s the discovery? Have you reported it to Captain Tan yet?"
The detective nodded. "Yes, Captain Tan said he’s tied up and asked me to brief you."
Xu Nian acknowledged with a hum. "Go ahead."
The detective continued, "This was uncovered by the tech team. After Captain Tan and you apprehended Wu Zhiming last night, they conducted a routine check on his electronic devices. They found something in his WeChat chat history—he knew the victim’s mother, and their conversations were frequent."
Guan Xia’s eyes widened in surprise. Unable to resist her curiosity, she moved closer to Xu Nian, joining Pang Le and Wang Yu as they craned their necks to see.
Xu Nian placed the thick stack of documents in the center so everyone could examine them. The first page showed printed WeChat messages, with the earliest timestamp reading September 27, 2022.
The date startled everyone. Pang Le remarked, "They’ve known each other since 2022? Unless the victim’s mother was lying, Wu Zhiming kept this under tight wraps. Despite knowing her for so long, he never revealed anything about himself."
As they pored over the records, it became clear the two had indeed chatted often. Initially, their exchanges revolved around gaming, but after a few months—perhaps because Wu Zhiming was skilled or they played well together—the topics shifted to personal matters.
The victim’s mother occasionally vented about difficult customers or financial struggles, while Wu Zhiming shared stories of clients skipping out on payments for his game-boosting services. Though gaming remained a constant, their rapport grew noticeably warmer. The victim’s mother gradually let her guard down, inadvertently disclosing personal details.
Even from a cursory glance, Guan Xia could piece together that the woman lived separately from her husband, had a child in kindergarten, and ran a busy shop. Fortunately, her child was well-behaved, and with hired help, she managed.
In contrast, Wu Zhiming—unemployed—mostly discussed his gigs or passed along gossip he’d heard. Whether by coincidence or design, he meticulously concealed his own identity. Even if they’d met in person, unless he admitted it, the victim’s mother would never have connected him to her online acquaintance.
At this point, Guan Xia suddenly recalled something. "No wonder Wu Zhiming refused to speak when the victim’s mother approached him while picking up his nephew, Wu Bowen. He was afraid she’d recognize him!"
Wang Yu caught on too, quickly flipping back through the records. She pointed to a page. "Look here. From this day onward, Wu Zhiming’s tone and content changed."
Guan Xia checked the date—October 27, 2023. From then on, Wu Zhiming became more proactive, peppering his messages with concern. Instead of bland exchanges like "What are you up to?" he’d write, "Busy today? Don’t forget to eat and take care of yourself."
Pang Le pieced it together this time, inhaling sharply. "Was this the day Wu Zhiming recognized the victim’s mother while picking up Wu Bowen from kindergarten? That’s why he started this act."
"Most likely," Guan Xia agreed, scrutinizing the records further.
It was evident Wu Zhiming had developed some kind of fixation. Beyond verbal concern, he began sending frequent red packets, accompanied by messages like, "You’ve worked hard—have a milk tea on me," or, "It’s late, treat yourself to something good."
The victim’s mother declined the money and ignored the overly familiar remarks, only responding when the conversation returned to normal. Yet Wu Zhiming persisted, eventually probing her plans—divorce, remarriage, child custody.
Though never explicit, he shared articles about the psychological toll of single-parent households, his intentions glaringly obvious.
Perhaps because of this, the victim’s mother replied less and less, eventually going silent. Guan Xia noted the timing—just days before the murder.
The thick stack of messages, spanning nearly a year, laid bare Wu Zhiming’s shifting mindset and his motive.
After finishing, Guan Xia exhaled heavily, her emotions tangled. Based on the victim’s mother’s testimony, she’d imagined all sorts of motives for Wu Zhiming—never expecting something so starkly simple: unrequited feelings.
Recalling the woman’s genuine confusion when Wang Yu asked if she knew Wu Zhiming, Guan Xia’s heart sank. She’d done nothing wrong—just chatted openly with a gaming buddy, neither flirting nor encouraging him. Yet she’d suffered an unimaginable loss. Her five-year-old child, killed for this absurd reason. Guan Xia couldn’t fathom her reaction upon learning the truth.
Lost in thought, she was jolted by Xu Nian’s question: "Has this discovery been relayed to the interrogation expert Captain Tan brought from Quiming City?"
The Daqu County detective nodded vigorously. "Another colleague has already reported it."
Xu Nian checked her watch. "Then we should have the suspect’s confession soon. By the way, is the DNA match back yet?"
At this, the group perked up, eyes fixed on the detective. If the results aligned and the interrogation expert secured Wu Zhiming’s confession, the case would be closed.
The detective’s expression mirrored their anticipation. "Not yet, but I checked earlier. The results should be ready in two or three hours."
After sharing the news, the detectives from Daqu County quickly disappeared through the door with the case files. The remaining team members settled back into their seats. Jiang Yingyao refilled his thermos with hot water as he remarked, "With this case wrapped up, the only one left is the August 14th case where the victim's identity hasn't been confirmed yet. But if things go smoothly tonight with Zhou Yiyang's confession, we should be able to head back by the day after tomorrow at the latest. If we don’t return soon, I might just leave the group chat. That kid Qi Bai—I don’t know where he gets all that energy. He helps out with the third squad during the day and then howls in the group chat all night."
Having spent most of her time recently with Xu Nian and the others, Guan Xia had muted the group messages as soon as they arrived in Quming City. Qi Bai was simply too noisy—the constant pinging of notifications was unbearable. Every time she gave in and checked, it was just him asking about the case and when they’d be back.
At first, Guan Xia had replied, but eventually, she couldn’t take it anymore. She followed the others’ lead, ignoring the messages during the day and only responding with a few placating words at night. That finally brought her some peace.
Xu Nian mentally calculated the timeline and said, "The day after tomorrow sounds about right. Qi Bai’s just too used to being around us. He was transferred to our squad not long after graduation, and we’ve barely been apart since. Now that he’s suddenly left alone, with his personality, of course he’s howling."
Wang Yu’s expression was a mix of exasperation and amusement. After a moment, she chuckled and said, "Let’s hope everything goes smoothly so we can go back the day after tomorrow. Otherwise, I might leave the group too."
Wu Zhiming’s confession was obtained an hour later, aligning closely with Guan Xia’s earlier deductions. Initially, his relationship with the victim’s mother had been purely as gaming partners. Even though he knew she was well-off—running her own store—the fact that she had a son kept him from entertaining any other ideas.
That changed one day when his sister, Wu Yue, was too busy at her shop to pick up her nephew from kindergarten, so Wu Zhiming went instead. While waiting, he recognized the victim’s mother and was immediately struck by her.
There was an element of attraction, but what truly captivated him was how effortlessly she interacted with others—confident, poised, and warm. Reflecting on their year of casual chats, a thought took root: compared to living with his sister and nephew, a life with this woman, given her cheerful and kind nature, would be far more pleasant.
So he made his move. He had assumed that, being in her thirties, she’d be easy to win over—after all, he was young, tall, and decent-looking with minimal effort. But to his frustration, nearly a year of pursuit yielded no progress. Instead, their relationship grew strained.
Frustration turned to resentment. He obsessively analyzed their conversations and concluded: she loved her son too much. With him occupying her heart, she had no room for romance, focusing solely on her career.
After days of brooding, a twisted idea took hold: if the child were gone, she’d divorce her husband, leaving her vulnerable—and he could step in.
He wasn’t without hesitation, but his wounded pride refused to accept that he simply lacked charm. He convinced himself the child was the obstacle. So he resolved to remove it.
Eavesdropping on his sister’s conversation with the victim’s mother, he learned her husband had returned, demanding a divorce and repeatedly taking the child without warning to pressure her. Wu Zhiming saw his chance.
Having lived in Meilin Community for years, he knew every corner. Disguising himself, he slipped out through a gap near the side gate and lurked near her stationery shop, watching for an opportunity.
He hadn’t planned to act so soon, but then the boy wandered out alone, trudging down the street as if heading somewhere. Wu Zhiming followed, confirming no adults were nearby before removing his hat and mask in a secluded spot. Approaching the child, he feigned delight, calling him by name and claiming to be the uncle of his kindergarten friend, Wu Bowen.
Hearing his friend’s name, Yuan Ruixing didn’t suspect a thing, especially since he vaguely recognized Wu Zhiming from school drop-offs. The boy explained his father had promised to take him out but never showed, so he was going to find him himself.
Seizing the moment, Wu Zhiming offered to help, successfully luring the boy home. That night, he strangled him with a piece of plastic cord from a discarded package—quick, effortless.
His original plan was to dump the body far away using his electric bike, but fate intervened: his sister, after a fight with her boyfriend, returned home unexpectedly by taxi in the middle of the night. Panicked, he hastily stuffed the body into a sewer near the side gate, intending to relocate it the next night. But before he could, the body was discovered.
With the neighborhood buzzing over the murder, he couldn’t dispose of the luggage bag meant for transporting the corpse. By the time the police knocked on his door, he was sweating bullets.
After reading Wu Zhiming’s confession, Guan Xia was speechless. While the motive aligned broadly with her theory, the details were even more chilling. She’d assumed it was revenge—but no, the child was merely seen as an obstacle to his delusional fantasy.
Pang Le, equally stunned, finally muttered, "Men really are a bizarre species."
