Cheng Qian was not the murderer?
This meant the competition was far from over.
Lu Qingqing still had a chance!
No, not just a chance; it was a sure thing. Tong Meng would never have anticipated a reversal.
Lu Qingqing and Guan Jinsong interrogated Ren Canglong overnight.
Outside the interrogation room, Ouyang Wen exchanged a glance with Hu Jia, who understood instantly.
The two walked towards a secluded spot.
Ouyang Wen lit a cigarette and remained silent for a long time.
Seeing that he hadn't spoken, Hu Jia didn't rush him. Just as Ouyang Wen was about to light a second cigarette, Hu Jia stopped him.
"I know what you're thinking."
Ouyang Wen first looked at Hu Jia in surprise, then immediately relaxed.
Finally, he gave a bitter smile.
"It seems we're thinking the same thing."
Hu Jia paused for a moment, then a faint smile touched his lips. He put the cigarette in his mouth.
He took a deep puff. "You think it's him too?"
Ouyang Wen glanced at Hu Jia. "There's no one else."
Hu Jia added, "It seems the enemy is formidable."
Ouyang Wen nodded. "Indeed. I never expected even he would fall."
"Yes, he's no longer our Uncle Qiao," Hu Jia said with a sigh.
In fact, from the moment Tong Meng suddenly stepped forward to accuse Xiang Qian, Ouyang Wen and Hu Jia had started to feel uneasy.
Logically, even if Tong Meng had gone to Chengdu and found Huang Jin, knowing about Cheng Qian, she had no reason to be certain Cheng Qian was the murderer.
Yet, she had accused him and proceeded to apprehend and search for evidence ahead of time.
The reason she was late for the case analysis was that she had been interrogating someone at the last minute.
Only Lu Qingqing, Hu Jia, Ouyang Wen, and Qiao Huali knew that Cheng Qian was the murderer. For Tong Meng to have apprehended someone beforehand, someone must have tipped her off.
The first three would never have leaked the information, which left Qiao Huali.
Over the past two days, Hu Jia and Ouyang Wen had been discussing the repeated leaks of information. Initially, they thought Tong Meng and Tong Hua were simply too resourceful. Now, it appeared that Qiao Huali had been orchestrating everything.
Take the news of Feng Si's return, for example. They had never figured out how it got leaked. But thinking back, when Feng Si returned, Ouyang Wen had submitted an application to restart the case, and Qiao Huali was the only one besides Lu Qingqing and a few others who knew about Feng Si's existence.
And that time they chased the killer in the teahouse, Gao Liang was framed for colluding with the enemy. Now, they realized the plan was devised by Qiao Huali and other high-ranking officials, so the leak must have come from him.
No wonder Qiao Huali hadn't helped Hu Jia and the others this time, and instead made the decision for Tong Meng and Lu Qingqing to compete. They had thought he wanted to resolve everything overnight, but now it seemed his true intention was to help Tong Meng.
Also, on the day they were vying for positions, Xie Xi had said to Qiao Huali, "Tong Meng's appointment was also your decision." At the time, they thought Qiao Huali had merely signed off on it, but now, Xie Xi's words seemed to mean exactly what they said.
"So, Uncle Qiao was bought off by the other side long ago."
"Please call him Deputy Director Qiao."
He was no longer their Uncle Qiao.
Daybreak arrived. Tong Meng and Tong Hua still had an air of smug victory, while Qiao Huali's expression was unreadable. If they hadn't known the truth, Hu Jia might have thought Qiao Huali was lamenting Lu Qingqing's loss.
"For the two weeks since the Criminal Investigation Department and the Special Operations Unit merged, one position has remained vacant: the leader of Group 2. I believe everyone knows there were two candidates for this position, and there was only one way for them to secure it: by cracking the riverside body-burning case."
Qiao Huali called everyone together and began. "Now that the real culprit has been apprehended, the competition's outcome has been decided. I will now introduce the leader of Group 2 of the Criminal Investigation Department..."
"Wait." Hu Jia interrupted Qiao Huali in time.
Seeing Hu Jia step forward, a flicker of impatience crossed Qiao Huali's eyes. "Captain Hu, please respect the outcome of the competition."
"Captain Hu, you're not going to go back on your word, are you?" Tong Hua said more directly. "You're happy when your person gets the position of Group 2 leader, but you obstruct when someone stronger than him takes it. Are you trying to turn the police bureau into the Hu family's private property?"
A hint of disgust flashed in Hu Jia's eyes. "I, Hu Jia, will always respect the outcome of a competition, as long as that outcome is fair, just, and flawless. Only then will I be the first to welcome the winner of this competition as the leader of Group 2."
"Then what are you doing now? Making trouble?" Tong Hua sneered. "If everyone in the team acted like you, only choosing the results they want, then should we continue working? Should we continue leading the team?"
After speaking, Tong Hua looked at everyone present. "Do you want to live in a team that lacks fairness and justice, filled with selfish desires?"
"No, law enforcement requires strictness. Since Tong Meng has won the competition, she is the Group 2 leader in my eyes." Li Han was the first to voice his support.
"Yes, I support Tong Meng."
"We need fairness. If Tong Meng cannot become the leader of Group 2 under everyone's watchful eyes, then how can we work with enthusiasm in the future? We will also have no fair and just channels for competition."
"Please step back, Captain Hu!"
"Tong Meng is stronger than Lu Qingqing!"
Suddenly, several people chimed in. Ouyang Wen scanned the crowd and noticed that those speaking in support of Tong Meng were all former members of the Criminal Investigation Department.
What surprised him slightly was that these people usually didn't have close ties with Tong Meng, so why were they willing to step up this time?
"Silence!" Ouyang Wen shouted.
Silence fell over the assembly. They still held some fear for their former captain.
"Hmph!" Qiao Huali snorted. "What? Are you going to join the chaos too?"
Ouyang Wen said nothing. He glanced at Hu Jia, who received the signal. "Deputy Director Qiao, it's not that we're causing trouble, nor that we don't respect the competition's outcome. It's that this competition is not yet over."
Generally, Deputy Directors disliked the prefix "Deputy," so people would call Qiao Huali Director Qiao. Only in formal settings or when the relationship wasn't close would they call him Deputy Director Qiao.
Now, Hu Jia openly addressing Qiao Huali as Deputy Director surprised him.
Had he seen through my identity, which is why he changed his address?
But then he thought, that's unlikely.
Tong Meng did indeed go to Chengdu. Even if he had informed Tong Meng beforehand that Cheng Qian was the murderer, it could still be explained.
Tong Meng had suspected Xiang Qian, so she investigated him upon her return.
However, this was not the time to dwell on it. "You say the competition isn't over. Isn't the murderer already caught? It's Xiang Qian, and you yourselves admitted this outcome." Qiao Huali asked Hu Jia.
"No, we only admitted that Xiang Qian was related to the murderer, but we haven't made a final conclusion that the murderer is Xiang Qian," Lu Qingqing stepped forward. "Because in my investigation, the murderer is someone else."
Since their investigation results differed, the competition was not over, and it was necessary to ascertain whose findings were correct.
"You say the murderer is someone else?" Tong Meng was displeased. "Haha, what a joke. Lu Qingqing, are you going to invent a murderer just to win the competition?"
Tong Meng scoffed. Did she think she was like her?
"The real murderers are Ren Canglong and Ren Cangying!"