Chapter 24: The Nancheng Case (XVII)

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“Were you never discovered?” Li Rui’s voice was low and composed. His gaze fixed on Yu Meili like a torch, as though he meant to see through every corner of her heart.

Yu Meili answered without hesitation, her tone edged with helplessness and self-mockery. “When you do that sort of thing often enough, suspicion is bound to arise.”

“Back then, the families living nearby were constantly finding things missing. Once, someone even made off with a quilt from a clothesline. Eventually, several old men and women blocked the entrance to the police station with kerosene lamps, demanding that they catch the thief king who had come from the city.” She suddenly raised her head, a sardonic flush appearing at the corners of her eyes. “Little by little, everyone began to suspect Jia Wenming. Once, the police even brought him in for questioning. But without evidence, they couldn’t convict someone based on a mere accusation, could they? Besides, it was difficult to investigate. The cattle and sheep had already been slaughtered and sold, while Jia Wenming flatly denied everything. In the end, after investigating again and again, nothing came of it.”

Her fingers twisted together unconsciously, the knuckles whitening with the force. A flicker of unease passed through her eyes, as though the memory still filled her with dread.

“And you still dared to keep committing crimes under those circumstances?” Li Rui remained calm, but there was a note of inquiry in his voice.

Yu Meili gave a bitter smile, complicated emotions flickering in her eyes. “Anyone else would have stopped, but Jia Wenming insisted on going against the tide. After he was reported several times, the police station placed him under special surveillance. He, however, was so pleased with himself that he didn’t take it seriously at all.”

Her fingertip traced invisible circles across the tabletop. “One night, he carried half a stolen leg of lamb and swaggered right past the patrol officers. He even laughed and said it was a gift of thanks from a fellow villager. The meat was still dripping blood.”

Li Rui frowned slightly. The tip of his fountain pen left a blot of ink on the statement paper as he continued, “But from my preliminary calculations, the proceeds from your thefts don’t seem to have been much greater than before. Why take such risks?”

Yu Meili sighed, fatigue and resignation in her voice. “Who could deny it?”

“That was why he brought Li Fuping into it as well.” Yu Meili suddenly let out a mocking laugh, the sound like shattered glass scraping across sheet metal.

“Li Fuping?” Li Rui’s brows drew together even more tightly, a hint of confusion in his voice.

“Yes. His nickname was Li the Sixth. He usually drove a horse cart for people. If there was work, he took it; if there wasn’t, he simply wandered around.” Her tone was laced with contempt, as though she were ridiculing Li Fuping’s stupidity.

“How did they meet?”

“It was because Jia Wenming was from the city. In those days, he always gave people the impression that he had money to spare, so Li the Sixth followed him around, eager to serve him.” Yu Meili sneered. “That idiot cart driver was completely won over by Jia Wenming with just two bottles of sorghum liquor.”

“Did he know that Jia Wenming was stealing?”

“At first, Li the Sixth had no idea. But once, when Li the Sixth was short of money, Jia Wenming planned to take him out to steal cattle and sheep. Li the Sixth hesitated at first, but in the end he was desperate for money and had no choice but to agree. That was when he learned what Jia Wenming was doing behind the scenes. But he did make money from it, so he said nothing. Besides, the two of them only did it once or twice. They weren’t together every day; Jia Wenming only called for him when something came up.” Recalling that wretched period, Yu Meili looked haggard.

“You’re sure it was only once or twice? You just said Jia Wenming brought people in to expand his gains. That doesn’t add up.” Lei Chen’s voice suddenly rose, his tone stern.

Unexpectedly, Yu Meili did not panic in the slightest. She explained calmly, “That winter—I believe it was January—I went home for the New Year. When I came back, I told Jia Wenming that we had to break up. He asked why, and I told him, ‘You have a family, and you refuse to divorce her. If I keep following you in this ambiguous relationship, my life will be ruined. We have to end it.’ So I don’t know what they did after that.”

“Oh, I remember there was one more occasion. On the twenty-third day of the twelfth lunar month, the two of them sneaked into a pasture under cover of darkness, and Li the Sixth was chased by the guard dogs straight into a manure pit. That probably doesn’t count…”

“Yu Meili, don’t try to minimize your involvement. Do you think we’ll believe you just because you put it that way?” Lei Chen’s voice carried anger, his eyes sharp as knives.

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Faced with Lei Chen’s accusation, Yu Meili did not answer at once. Instead, she looked toward Li Rui and pleaded, “Officer, may I have another drink of water?”

Li Rui said nothing. He silently picked up the water jug, poured a glass, and held it to her lips. Yu Meili nodded gratefully and drained it once again.

Then she asked, “Officer, do you believe me?”

Li Rui nodded, his tone calm but firm. “I do.”

“Just because you said that, I’ll tell you everything I know.” Gratitude colored Yu Meili’s voice, as though she had finally found someone she could confide in.

When Li Rui returned to his seat, she continued, “Jia Wenming and I really were apart for some time. Li Fuping can testify to that.”

“Although Jia Wenming was ruthless, he was sincere toward the women he loved. So after we broke up, he was miserable and depressed for a while. But that man could never live without women. At the time, he and his wife were already separated, so he went out looking for prostitutes. For the next few months, Jia Wenming drank, gambled, visited brothels, and squandered his time. He stopped doing business and abandoned his other work. Within a few months, he had blown through all his savings.”

Her voice held helplessness and regret, as though she were recalling a past she could barely bear to face.

“One night in July 2008, Jia Wenming went out for a walk. Before long, his handsome appearance attracted a prostitute who approached him to ask for a light. Seeing how brightly she was dressed, Jia Wenming struck up a conversation. Under the spell of his sweet talk, the two of them soon returned home together. Afterward, when they were preparing to settle the bill and go their separate ways, Jia Wenming noticed that she had quite a lot of money in her bag. That was when the idea of murdering her and taking her money occurred to him.”

“Those prostitutes were not locals, and no one would care whether they lived or died. Just as the woman was preparing to leave, Jia Wenming strangled her.” Yu Meili’s voice trembled slightly, as though the memory still terrified her.

What Yu Meili had described coincided remarkably with Li Rui’s earlier hypothesis. Lei Chen looked at Li Rui, disbelief in his eyes.

“She was the first person he killed, and he did it solely for the money in her purse.” Yu Meili’s voice was heavy, as though she were recounting someone else’s story.

“You weren’t with him at the time. How do you know all this?” Lei Chen challenged.

Yu Meili did not answer directly. Instead, she continued, “After that, he began to think things through. Ordinary people usually didn’t carry much money, while prostitutes liked to flaunt their wealth and tended to have more cash. They were easier targets and offered a better way to make money, so he decided this was an excellent path to riches.”

“But…” At that word, Yu Meili’s body trembled involuntarily, and a trace of fear flashed through her eyes.

“But what?” Li Rui asked gently.

“But if he wanted to keep doing it for a long time, he couldn’t afford to be discovered. So he needed someone as a cover.” Sorrow tinged Yu Meili’s voice, as though she were recalling a nightmare.

“So he thought of you?” There was a deeper meaning in Li Rui’s voice as he watched her intently.

Yu Meili nodded, sobbing softly. “He called me and said he couldn’t let me go. He even promised to divorce his wife, so he tricked me into coming back from my hometown. But I never imagined that he hadn’t brought me back to marry me. He wanted me to cover for him and serve as bait.”

“Be specific!” Lei Chen barked.

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“As a single man, if he went looking for prostitutes all day, the neighbors would certainly notice. Once people began watching him, he would have nowhere to escape. So he came up with a plan. He rented apartments in my name and made me go out to solicit customers, while he brought the women back after dark, drugged them unconscious, then murdered and robbed them.” Yu Meili’s voice was full of accusation, as though she were pleading her own case. “That’s why I’m the victim! I was forced into it! I’m innocent!”

“How did he murder and rob them?” Lei Chen pursued every detail without letting up.

“After killing them, he stripped them of their money and jewelry, then tossed their bodies into the potato cellar beneath his house. That was all there was to it.” Yu Meili spoke with lingering fear.

In the monitoring room next door, Wen Rou suddenly tightened her grip on her coffee cup. The brown liquid rippled against the sides, reflecting the distorted face of Yu Meili beyond the one-way glass.

Qi Wei’s nails dug deeply into her palm, while the corner of her notebook had been crushed into stark white creases.

Watching Yu Meili confess her crimes through tears, Wen Rou felt a turmoil of conflicting emotions.

“Yu Meili, like Liu Meixin, was also a victim coerced by Jia Wenming.” A complicated emotion flickered through Wen Rou’s eyes.

“That’s right. Jia Wenming is truly despicable. I wish I could tear him limb from limb!” Anger colored Qi Wei’s voice.

“Little Qi, although I hate Jia Wenming as much as you do, what matters most now is analyzing the psychological process by which he descended step by step into the abyss of crime. We need to find the point of leverage that will help us break through his defenses.” Wen Rou remained calm and thoughtful.

“Sister Wen Rou, do you have a plan?” Expectation colored Qi Wei’s voice.

“Not a mature one yet.” Wen Rou shook her head. “But we can see that after Jia Wenming was fired, the first evil thought that arose in him was simply the desire to get more money. Once committing evil became a habit, however, his desires expanded. That is why his crimes continued to escalate.”

Li Rui continued questioning her. “Yu Meili, tell me this: have you ever killed anyone?”

Yu Meili shook her head, her tone resolute. “No!”

“Officer, speaking from the heart, Jia Wenming and I are not the same kind of people. I never murdered anyone in cold blood, never willingly lured people to their deaths, never ate human hearts or livers. I was entangled with a group of demons and could not break free.” Her voice was filled with anguish, as though she were defending herself. “Now all I can do is hate and blame myself. I hate myself for being too weak and too innocent, for failing to see the darkness in people. I blame myself for knowing nothing of the law and believing the lies of wicked men. I was deceived and cheated, and that was how I ended up on the path of crime.”

“How many people did Jia Wenming kill between 2008 and 2013?” Li Rui’s voice remained calm.

“Um…” Yu Meili froze for a moment, visibly hesitant. “About seven or eight. I can’t remember the exact number.”

“Did he dump all the bodies in the cellar?” Li Rui’s voice held a deeper significance, his gaze fixed sharply on Yu Meili.

“That’s right. He threw all the bodies into the cellar. But there were so many of them that it was almost full. To make things more concealed, he kept digging until it was four meters deep.” Yu Meili’s voice trembled, as though the memory still filled her with dread. “Jia Wenming said that the deeper the potato cellar, the cooler it was below, and the less likely the bodies were to decompose. After he finished digging, he would throw the bodies down, arrange them in layers, and cover each layer with soil.”

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