Good and Evil Chapter 114: The Fog-Shrouded Case

Based on the victim's account, the police initially classified this homicide as a vicious case where a burglary escalated into a crime of passion, eventually evolving into robbery-homicide. They launched their investigation based on this premise.

The police precinct first pulled the surveillance footage from the Xishan Villa district. Upon reviewing all the footage from that night, they failed to find the man in the duck-billed cap and mask described by Yan Wanyi. This left the police deeply puzzled; they theorized that the perpetrator might have lurked in the complex beforehand, waiting for an opportunity.

With this hypothesis, the police pulled the surveillance records for the entire week leading up to the incident, yet they still came up empty-handed. Only residents and their guests were seen entering and exiting the gated community; no suspicious individuals were identified. This led the police to start doubting the veracity of Yan Wanyi’s statement.

Given these doubts, the police needed to investigate further, so they questioned Yan Wanyi once more. However, just like the first time, her account remained identical, without a single discrepancy. This caused the police to trust her story again.

The police were convinced this was a burglary gone wrong for several reasons:

First, Han Xingchang had indeed been stabbed from the front with a dagger. Analysis of the wounds and the angle of the strike indicated that the killer was taller than the victim. Han was 1.73 meters tall, while Yan was only 1.61 meters, making it physically impossible for her to have committed the act. The assailant described by Yan was approximately 1.8 meters tall; police simulations confirmed the wounds were indeed consistent with a perpetrator of that height.

Second, the police found marks on the floor where the bloodied dagger had been dropped, a detail that matched Yan’s testimony.

Third, a significant amount of valuables had been stolen from Han’s home. Cash and jewelry from the nightstand, precious items from the study, a million-dollar watch from the victim's wrist, his wedding diamond ring, and Yan’s platinum necklace, diamond earrings, and diamond ring were all missing. The total value of these items was at least several million, confirming that a robbery had taken place.

Fourth, during the crime scene investigation, police found footprints belonging to a third person—a size 42 shoe—in the bedrooms and study, distinct from those of the victim and his wife.

However, the investigation stalled. Despite finding the third-party footprints, there were no fingerprints. It appeared the perpetrator was a seasoned criminal with a record and counter-surveillance awareness. Furthermore, there were no traces of the intruder’s exit.

According to their neighbor, Mr. Chen, he found the front door wide open when he went to check on the house. If the perpetrator had walked out the front door, the security cameras at the entrance should have captured them, but the footage showed nothing.

After further investigation, the police raised several questions:
1. How did the intruder enter and leave?
2. If the motive was merely burglary, Yan stated that the perpetrator’s travel bag was already bulging when they were discovered. If the thief had already stolen so much, why would they risk exposure by confronting the couple instead of fleeing? Was it premeditated murder? If so, why bother with the theft? And who would want Han Xingchang dead?
3. Why did the intruder only kill Han and not Yan? If the intent was to silence witnesses, why leave the wife alive? This defied logic.
4. Medical examinations revealed that Yan had not been sexually assaulted. For a burglar in such a situation, leaving a beautiful woman like Yan unharmed was highly unusual.
5. After the incident, Yan’s behavior was strange. She was eager to handle Han’s estate, despite the fact that they had no children and Han had no other close relatives.

Despite their suspicions, all physical evidence pointed toward Yan’s innocence. They considered the possibility that she hired a hitman for the inheritance, but a background check revealed she was a housewife and a moderately successful writer. She had married Han shortly after graduating, and he had doted on her.

The police noted that in the articles published under her pen name, "Housewife in the Boudoir," the writing style felt more like that of a man than a woman. However, they dismissed this as a mere stylistic quirk.

After a month of no progress, the precinct escalated the case to the Public Security Bureau. Ning Yanran and the Second Criminal Investigation Team, having just closed the Liu Maocai case, arrived to take over.

They reviewed the files and immediately suspected Yan Wanyi, but they lacked evidence. Yan’s rush to transfer Han’s assets looked highly suspicious, though it was characteristic of the cold, transactional nature of the wealthy.

Ning Yanran maintained the original theory but began investigating the victim’s background. She discovered that Han Xingchang had visited the Lang Ge Detective Agency a few months prior. Upon learning the case was linked to Xu Lang, Ning felt a sense of dread, viewing him as a harbinger of misfortune.

Ning visited the agency and was received by Jin Enpei. She found Xu Lang in his office, staring at his computer. After a brief, prickly exchange, Ning laid out the case. Xu Lang noted that he had seen the news.

As they discussed the case, the conversation turned to Han’s visit to the agency. Ning asked what business Han had conducted there. Xu Lang instructed Jin Enpei to retrieve Han’s file. As Jin left, Ning noticed her odd expression—a look that suggested she had misunderstood the nature of Ning’s relationship with Xu Lang. Ning, however, chose to focus on the case at hand.