Chapter 543: Chapter 543: Lu Chuan’s Judgment

As it turned out, Lu Chuan’s judgment was correct; Chen Ya was at the hospital working all day the day Zhang Huiru disappeared.

Many doctors and nurses at the Second Hospital could attest that Chen Ya was indeed working at the hospital on the day of Zhang Huiru’s disappearance, and there was surveillance footage to prove it.

"Those over at Crime Scene Investigation really are quite adept."

Old Chen sighed slightly in admiration.

Old Sun smiled, patting Old Chen on the shoulder: "We’re just here to take a look and get a sense of things. Lu Chuan’s crime scene analyses haven’t been wrong in any case so far."

"Alright, we’re not young anymore; it’s the youngsters’ world now."

Old Chen sighed: "Back in the days when I was solving the Song Mountain Head Case, I was quite spirited, wasn’t I?"

The Song Mountain Head Case Old Chen referred to was a case that happened twenty years ago in Haizhou City’s Song Mountain.

Back then, someone found a human head on Song Mountain and reported it to the police. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

When the police arrived, they almost turned over the entire mountain but did not find any other body parts.

It was Old Chen who made a significant contribution back then by finding a body wrapped in plastic and thrown into an abandoned pond at the foot of the mountain.

"Are you really proud of that? You hadn’t been a police officer for long back then and dared to sneak off to wild swim after being dispatched. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have had the luck to find that thing."

Old Sun was scornful of this matter. Both men had transitioned from the military to the police in the same year, and both had participated in the Song Mountain Head Case.

When it came to going out, Old Chen had invited Old Sun to wild swim, but Old Sun, fearing reprimand, did not go, which ended up giving Old Chen a lucky break.

However, in addition to receiving a third-class merit for that discovery, Old Chen also received a public reprimand.

Finding the hidden torso of the murderer provided the Criminal Investigation Team with crucial clues to solve the case, so they had to apply for a third-class merit for him.

But because Old Chen went swimming unsupervised and undisciplined during the investigation, he was publicly reprimanded by the team once.

After leaving the Second Hospital, the two men organized a detailed report of the investigation results.

In the meeting room.

"According to Zhang Huiru’s roommate, Chen Ya, the victim’s social circle is quite simple, mostly classmates, and doctors and nurses from Maria Plastic Surgery Hospital."

"Additionally, although Chen Ya’s height somewhat matches the perpetrator’s height given by Crime Scene Investigation, it’s different. After investigating the Second Hospital, Chen Ya had no opportunity to commit the crime, so she’s not a suspect."

"What about the others?"

Old Chen continued, "On the day Zhang Huiru disappeared, she had planned to eat spicy hot pot with Chen Ya."

"Moreover, she had mentioned going to work in the morning and didn’t say anything about asking Chen Ya for leave."

Old Sun added, "According to the clues obtained from Chen Ya, it appears that Zhang Huiru had no intention of taking leave when she left the apartment that day and had no other plans for the evening."

Zhang Hui nodded, confirming this judgment was correct.

Otherwise, Zhang Huiru wouldn’t have arranged to eat spicy hot pot with Chen Ya in the evening.

"Therefore, it seems highly probable that going to Five-Flower Mountain was a spur-of-the-moment decision for Zhang Huiru."

"We’ve checked, and in most cases, Zhang Huiru took the bus to work."

"Should we investigate the bus surveillance? There might be some findings."

After Old Sun and Old Chen finished their report, the person tasked with checking Zhang Huiru’s call records returned.

"Half a month ago, at 8:50 in the morning, Zhang Huiru called the hospital’s dean!"

Hmm?

Called?

When Zhang Hui was in contact with the dean, the latter hadn’t mentioned this.

Zhang Huiru’s work start time is 9:00 a.m., and the call was at 8:50 a.m....

If not to ask for leave, what else could it be?

"Summon the dean of Maria Plastic Surgery Hospital immediately!"

"Yes!"

An hour later.

"Officer Zhang, I’ve already told you everything I know, you’re..."

"Dean Wu, are you sure you’ve told us everything you know?"

"I..."

"Hold on," Zhang Hui interrupted Dean Wu: "Dean Wu, since we’ve brought you here for questioning, it means we’ve collected some evidence, so I hope you can truthfully explain whether you had contact with Zhang Huiru on the day she disappeared, and if so, what did you discuss, and where did she go that day?"

Dean Wu’s expression changed, seeming uncertain and restless.

"Dean Wu, you may not fully understand the significance; Zhang Huiru is not just missing now—she’s been murdered!"

"We’ve checked the call records. On the morning she disappeared, at 8:50, she called you."

"What exactly was said?"

"I..."

With hands interlocked, Dean Wu, after a while, spoke: "I’ll tell...I’ll tell everything..."

"Actually, Zhang called me that day indeed to ask for leave."

"Why didn’t you say this when we asked you at the hospital?"

"I... I was afraid..."

"Afraid?"

"Yes, although I’m the hospital dean, I’m just an employee; the hospital’s actual boss is someone else."

"And Zhang Huiru asked for leave that day because the boss’s daughter was looking for her..."

"Daughter?"

"Yes, the boss’s daughter came to my office that morning at 8:30, specifically asking for Zhang Huiru. I told her Zhang hadn’t arrived yet, and she said she would wait downstairs."

"The person arrived at my office at 8:30, and then at 8:50, Zhang Huiru called to tell me the boss’s daughter was looking for her and asked for half a day’s leave, which I granted."

"What else do you know? Explain everything clearly!"

"Yes, yes, I’ll tell everything..."

It turned out that Zhang Huiru and the hospital boss knew each other; according to Dean Wu, they had known each other even before Zhang Huiru started working at the hospital.

Zhang Huiru was able to become a nurse at the hospital because the boss personally arranged it.

"I’ve inquired discreetly before about Zhang Huiru’s relationship with the boss, but she was evasive and wouldn’t reveal anything."

"However, judging by the situation, I knew there was definitely something going on between them."

"Something going on?"

"Yes, after Zhang Huiru graduated from college, she came straight to work with us, so I guess she might have started seeing the boss while still at university."

"I’m well aware of our boss; he’s got a notorious reputation for chasing college girls, particularly those who look pure and clean. I know quite a few myself."

"So, you mean the boss’s daughter came looking for Zhang Huiru that day because she might have known about the affair between Zhang Huiru and your boss?"

"Daughter, actually, well... she isn’t his biological daughter, but an adopted goddaughter..."

Zhang Hui: "..."

This boss was really playing games.

Once Dean Wu said this, Zhang Hui immediately understood: that wasn’t just a goddaughter, but another companion.

Dean Wu continued, "I believe Zhang Huiru’s disappearance is definitely connected to the boss’s goddaughter, but I didn’t dare speak up, and since I wasn’t an eyewitness... I just..."