Chapter 68

Shen Kechang nodded in agreement. Today, he was the one leading the conversation, and he was naturally more aware of Xu Yan's feelings. Although it seemed that everything Xu Yan said today was reasonable and made sense, both of them were elite agents of the National Security Bureau, experienced and with sharp intuition. While listening to Xu Yan, both had a strong feeling that the young man in front of them was clearly evading the important issues and was avoiding something.

Shen Kechang turned off the engine, took out a notebook from his bag, and flipped to the pages where he had recorded the conversation with Xu Yan: "Old Xu, let's cross-check and analyze where things don't add up."

"Sure! You go ahead, I don't need to look. I remember everything we asked today."

"Alright, the first part, we asked about his family situation."

"That should be fine. When he answered that, his expression was very relaxed, and his eyes were very candid. There shouldn't be any problem."

"Good, the second part, Old Xu, you probed whether he had any martial arts training..."

"That's definitely not a problem— you could tell he really hasn't practiced martial arts or qigong."

"The third question... we asked about the incident when he encountered the murderer... his account seems to have some subtle differences from the police report, but overall, they are consistent."

Xu Jiaoguan raised his right hand and gently pressed it, as if pressing a non-existent soft object in the air. He pondered and said, "I've also read the police report, and it differs significantly from Xu Yan's account. According to Xu Yan, he fought the murderer for three hundred rounds—this is clearly not credible. The police version is more reliable, and Xu Yan is not telling the truth!"

Shen Kechang said, "But this can be explained: young people like to exaggerate and boast about themselves. Even if Xu Yan is lying, it's understandable, right?"

Xu Jiaoguan knew that his partner wasn't really opposing his opinion; this was just their usual way of discussing, where both sides would present arguments from different perspectives to broaden their thinking and opinions.

Xu Jiaoguan shook his head, "He's already a college student, not a child. He should know the gravity of the situation. He should understand when it's appropriate to exaggerate and when it's not. It's common sense that one shouldn't lie to the police, and as a college student, he shouldn't be ignorant of this."

"But the new generation is different from ours. Even among college students, there are many who are unreliable and irresponsible, and who talk nonsense."

"Old Shen, do you think Xu Yan is such a person?"

Both recalled Xu Yan's behavior when they first opened the door: he politely asked to see Shen Kechang's credentials, took them with both hands, and returned them with both hands—these details revealed a person's character and upbringing. Both National Security Bureau agents felt that Xu Yan was not a frivolous person from his appearance and eyes.

They both shook their heads, and Shen Kechang said first, "It doesn't seem like it! He shouldn't be such a boastful and superficial person."

"Exactly, his demeanor and later conversation are too different and unnatural—his act is too exaggerated, and it backfired."

Xu Jiaoguan pointed at the conversation record with his finger, "Old Shen, when it comes to the incident, there are some things he acted abnormally. The police mentioned from the beginning that Xu Yan used his girlfriend's sword during the fight with the murderer. But in Xu Yan's account, he never mentioned his girlfriend or the sword, as if he was very reluctant to talk about his girlfriend."

Shen Kechang nodded, "That's right! He has been avoiding talking about his girlfriend. When we directly asked about her, he reluctantly answered, and his response was very forced— he said a lot, but there wasn't much useful information."

"Moreover, when answering questions about his girlfriend, his attitude was particularly frivolous and exaggerated, as if he was deliberately trying to act like a brainless new person. But at that time, his eyes never met ours, clearly indicating he was lying!"

"Right! About his girlfriend, we only know her name, but we don't have her address, workplace, or contact information. Although he gave us a phone number, if I'm not mistaken—"

Shen Kechang took out his phone and dialed the number, listening to the message, "The number you dialed is invalid. Please check and dial again." Both nodded silently, understanding the situation.

Shen Kechang sighed, "It seems that's the case."

Both were experienced investigators and knew that what the subject tried to hide was often the key to the matter. Now, Xu Yan was trying to downplay his girlfriend's existence, which caught the attention of the two investigators.

"Zhu Youxiang?" Shen Kechang slowly read the name from the notebook and shook his head, "I don't know if this name is real or not... Why don't we report it to the internal affairs department and have them check the name online to see if there's anything unusual?"

As he spoke, Shen Kechang called the internal affairs department and reported the name, asking them to check the girl's information on the internal network.

Xu Jiaoguan nodded, "Also, I have a feeling—Xu Yan's room was overly tidy, not like a typical male student's room. He said his girlfriend hasn't been there for a long time, but how could his room be so clean and tidy?"

The two National Security Bureau agents looked at each other, and Shen Kechang slowly said, "Old Xu, did you notice that when we entered, one of the inner room doors was always closed?"

"You mean Xu Yan's girlfriend was in the room?"

"Right. Did you notice that when he talked about his girlfriend, his eyes often glanced at the empty room... This happened several times."

"Wow!" Both National Security Bureau investigators took a deep breath. Now, it was clear: Xu Yan deliberately hid his girlfriend's existence during the investigation, which was definitely abnormal and must have some purpose. This unusual situation needed further investigation, which depended on the judgment of the investigators.

Xu Jiaoguan looked up at his partner and said in a deep voice, "Old Shen, what do you think? Should we continue to follow up?"

Shen Kechang was silent for a moment. As an experienced investigator, he knew that in previous investigations, the subject often tried to hide certain aspects, such as personal issues, taboos, or past criminal records. This was quite common, even in investigations by the National Security Bureau, not every subject would willingly disclose all relevant information.

For example, in this investigation of Xu Yan, the main purpose was to confirm whether he had any abnormal abilities. Now, the purpose of the investigation was basically achieved: they had confirmed that Xu Yan did not have any abnormal abilities or superpowers; he was just an ordinary college student. As for why Xu Yan hid his girlfriend's information, there could be many reasons—perhaps he had broken up with her and didn't want to mention her; perhaps his girlfriend was in some trouble and he didn't want to involve the police; or there could be other reasons.

No matter how you looked at it, Xu Yan's girlfriend seemed to have little to do with the main investigation. Even if the girl had some issues, it was the police's job, and the two National Security Bureau agents were not particularly interested.

Shen Kechang hesitated, remembering Zheng Qiuyi's request to take care of Xu Yan. He hesitated for a moment and said, "It seems that Xu Yan is indeed a bit strange, but the higher-ups only asked us to check if he had any special abilities... Since we've confirmed he doesn't, we can report back. There's no need to get involved in other trivial matters. Even if his girlfriend is strange, it's not our concern—there are still fifty to sixty leads to investigate, and we don't have much time to waste on this guy."

Xu Jiaoguan slightly lowered his eyes—actually, if it were up to him, he would have wanted to dig deeper into Xu Yan. During the conversation today, although he spoke little, he had a strong feeling that the young man in front of him knew a lot but was unwilling to speak.

However, his partner had made a decision, and it was reasonable—there were still many leads to investigate, and compared to them, Xu Yan was just an ordinary witness, not an important lead.

He nodded, "Alright, let's report back to the bureau."

Before he finished speaking, Shen Kechang's phone rang. Shen Kechang took it out and glanced at it, saying, "It's from the internal affairs department, Xiao Zhang—"

He pressed the answer button, "Hello, Xiao Zhang, it's me—oh, did you find it... wait, let me take notes—there are thirty-five people named Zhu Youxiang nationwide, and five in our Shudu Province... oh, in Jincheng City, there are two... I need the ones between fifteen and twenty years old... so there's only one left, in Xinqing District..."

Shen Kechang winked at Xu Jiaoguan and whispered, "Good, the kid didn't lie about the name—Zhu Youxiang does exist—Xiao Zhang, read me the information on Zhu Youxiang... her family situation... what? There's no record of her parents in the household registration? No other relatives either? What does she do, which school does she attend... no school records? Good heavens, did Zhu Youxiang just appear out of nowhere? Where does she live... Xinqing District, Jianghua Road, Meihua Community, Building 8, Room 401... huh?"

Shen Kechang covered the phone and exchanged a glance with Xu Jiaoguan. Both of their eyes were bright—this address was the same as Xu Yan's residence. This meant that Xu Yan's girlfriend didn't even have her own place to live.

"Xiao Zhang, check when this household registration was transferred to the city and the reason for the transfer—what, it was transferred just the day before yesterday? From where... the transfer-out location is blank? The transfer-in certificate is also blank? What was the reason for the transfer... the reason is for education, but there's no school enrollment or acceptance letter... got it—oh, which police station processed this household registration? Xinqing District Chang'an Road Police Station... got it."

After hanging up, Shen Kechang's eyes were full of excitement. He looked at Xu Jiaoguan, and both saw the excitement in each other's eyes: a college student scaring off a mad murderer was not a big deal, it could just be a coincidence; the college student deliberately hiding his girlfriend's information could also be explained, perhaps it was just a coincidence; but his girlfriend being a completely mysterious person with no background—this third coincidence could not be explained as a coincidence!

Shen Kechang looked at Xu Jiaoguan and said excitedly, "I remember, when Xu Yan scared off the murderer, his girlfriend was also there... the sword he used to fight the murderer was from Zhu Youxiang..."

Xu Jiaoguan, who had worked with Shen Kechang for many years, was very默契 (in sync). As soon as Shen Kechang said half of it, he immediately continued, "There's a possibility: the one who scared off the murderer might not be Xu Yan, but his girlfriend, Zhu Youxiang! The murderer might have fled because he was wary of Zhu Youxiang being there!"

"Right, from the beginning, we were wrong! The truly valuable subject of investigation is Zhu Youxiang, not Xu Yan!"

"We need to report back immediately! This lead is very valuable, and we need to start a comprehensive and in-depth surveillance of Xu Yan, and we must find his girlfriend, Zhu Youxiang—ah!"

As they were speaking, a sudden and unexpected event occurred. A large truck loaded with goods suddenly veered across the double solid line in the middle of the road and crashed toward them. Shen Kechang was terrified and screamed, "Ah!!"

But at that moment, there was no way to avoid it! The sound of the emergency brakes screeched, followed by a loud crash as the truck hit the car they were in. In the moment of impact, both police officers instinctively protected their heads, but the destructive force of the crash was terrifying. The steering column pierced Shen Kechang's chest, severely damaging his heart, and he almost died instantly.

Xu Jiaoguan's luck was even worse. He suffered a severe fracture in his neck and head from the impact of the truck's front. More fatally, several pieces of shattered glass cut his neck's arteries and trachea.

In his last moments, Xu Jiaoguan's consciousness was unusually clear. He leaned helplessly against the shattered seat, struggled to raise his fractured arm, and endured the immense pain, using his own blood to write a few words on the sleeve of his blue shirt... He wanted to write more, to provide more detailed clues for the colleagues who would take over the case, but his life force was rapidly draining, his consciousness was fading, and his arm was too heavy to lift. The loyal National Security Bureau officer's head fell heavily, and he fell into eternal sleep.

...

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