Accidental Hero: The Rookie Who Outshines the Force - Chapter 55

Outside the interrogation room, Lu Cheng’s mind raced. Wu Hao’s words—“I only hit her once” and “I dropped the hammer and ran”—made his heart skip a beat. It was as if another layer of the case’s truth was slowly peeling away.

Wu Hao had already admitted to killing Lin Xiaoman. So why quibble over whether he hit her a few more times?

No—he wasn’t quibbling. He was telling the truth. He really had only struck her once.

But the autopsy report said the victim had multiple injuries to the back of her head.

If Wu Hao was truthful, and corpses don’t lie, then there was only one possibility: the later strikes were made by a third person.

And the fingerprints of that third person had been left on the window hook.

But why weren’t the third person’s fingerprints on the murder weapon?

Did the killer wear gloves?

Then why leave fingerprints on the window hook?

Lu Cheng thought furiously, feeling like he was close to a breakthrough but missing just one clue.

Inside the interrogation room, Qin Mian’s patience was wearing thin. He slammed the claw hammer from its plastic bag onto the table.

“Wu Hao, I warn you—my patience is limited. I don’t have time to play word games with you. Evidence is clear, yet you keep lying over trivial details. Are you trying to get yourself a heavier sentence?”

“Were you drinking that night?”

Many impulsive murders happen under the influence of alcohol.

“No, officer. I wasn’t drinking. I’ve already confessed. I have no reason to lie. I only struck Lin Xiaoman once.”

Qin Mian rubbed his forehead, deciding not to get stuck on that point.

“Then tell me about disposing of the body.”

Wu Hao’s face went blank. “Disposing of the body? I didn’t do that!”

Qin Mian slammed the table. “You didn’t? So… was it me who did it? Try lying once more!”

Wu Hao shook his head, almost crying. “Officer, at this point, why would I lie? I didn’t dispose of the body. That night, I panicked after one strike and ran to hide. I never went back!”

“So the body jumped off Binjiang Bridge by itself? And the hammer just wandered to the bottom on its own?”

“Binjiang? No, officer, I don’t even know what you’re talking about. My mind is all scrambled!”

Qin Mian exhaled and stood up to pour himself some tea.

He entered the next room, where everyone was waiting for the interrogation results. They expected Qin Mian’s questioning to be over in minutes, but time had already stretched longer than expected.

Pointing to the monitor, he said, “This guy’s a bit conflicted. He looks like he’s about to confess, then tries to pull a stunt. Let him stew for a while.”

Xiao Zheng whispered, “Captain Qin, is he just too nervous from committing murder? Could it be affecting his mind?”

Xiao Hu said, “The evidence is right in front of him, yet he won’t confess. Is he just messing with us?”

Then Lu Cheng calmly looked up.

“Could there be a third person at the crime scene?”

Qin Mian, Yang Zheng, Su Qingwu, Xiao Zheng—all turned to him.

“A third person?” Qin Mian frowned lightly.

Su Qingwu’s beautiful eyes narrowed. “The third person’s fingerprint on the window?”

If Wu Hao confessed, the case would be closed—but what about the fingerprint on the window hook? A coincidence? A burglar? A voyeur? Normally, a fingerprint in that spot was impossible.

Qin Mian pondered, and Lu Cheng’s question opened the door to a new possibility.

Su Qingwu’s brows furrowed as she considered the scenario.

Xiao Zheng whispered, “Lu Cheng, Wu Hao admitted to killing Lin Xiaoman. Are you seriously suggesting a third person disposed of the body?”

“Just based on a fingerprint? That’s far-fetched. Most likely a coincidence,” muttered a few seasoned officers. Young people just loved to show off, and this rookie was no exception.

“Maybe… the victim wasn’t killed by Wu Hao at all, but by someone else,” Lu Cheng suggested, pretending to entertain doubt.

Inwardly, he was certain. Wu Hao had indeed struck Lin Xiaoman with the claw hammer, then panicked and fled. He thought she was dead—but she wasn’t. The owner of that fingerprint had snuck in afterward to finish the job.

“Someone else? And your evidence is… one fingerprint?” Yang Zheng asked.

“The clue is Wu Hao’s contradictions,” Lu Cheng explained. “He doesn’t seem to lie. He already confessed to murder, so why deny other actions in his testimony? That’s the inconsistency.”

Xiao Zheng piped up, “He acted on impulse, panicked after the murder, hid in a small inn, and now he’s been caught. Naturally, he’s under stress.”

Lu Cheng shook his head calmly. “That’s a weak excuse.”

Xiao Zheng snapped, “And your explanation isn’t weak? You’re conjuring a whole new killer out of thin air!”

Su Qingwu frowned. “Focus on the investigation, not arguing.”

Xiao Zheng muttered, “Just discussing.”

Qin Mian, however, liked this energy. Imagination sometimes led to breakthroughs.

He glanced at Lu Cheng. “Any other reason?”

“Yes,” Lu Cheng nodded.

Su Qingwu’s eyes widened slightly, fixing on him.

Everyone else also looked toward Lu Cheng.

Qin Mian’s smile faded. “Explain. What else?”

“Wu Hao’s clothes and shoes match exactly what’s seen in the surveillance footage from the night of the crime. He must have worn them while moving the body. But it rained heavily that night, washing away footprints along the riverbank—yet his shoes are completely clean.”

An officer muttered, “Simple—he washed them.”

Su Qingwu frowned at him. “Look at Wu Hao’s shoes in the interrogation room. If he cleaned them on purpose, why are they still so dirty?”

Everyone peered at the monitor. Wu Hao’s white leather shoes were caked with dust and stains—evidence of long-term neglect. If he had washed them that day, they wouldn’t look this filthy.

A collective gasp. This was a critical clue.

Even Qin Mian’s expression shifted subtly. “Anything else?”

Lu Cheng nodded. “Yes. And it’s obvious.”

Obvious?!

The officers tensed. What obvious clue did they all miss, but this rookie already saw?

Su Qingwu had been thinking too. Following Lu Cheng’s reasoning, she increasingly suspected a third person at the crime scene.

First: the rogue fingerprint. Second: the obvious clue Lu Cheng mentioned.

She realized it. “The shoes.”

Lu Cheng nodded with a smile. “Exactly. The shoes.”

Qin Mian’s eyes gleamed. More accurately—it was the footprints.

Footprints left below the window sill and on the walls of the crime scene!