Chapter 119: Mo Jiangsheng

For the criminal investigators surveying the scene, identifying the killer who had fallen to his death was not particularly difficult. The weapon found near the body was a Heckler & Koch USP pistol equipped with a silencer. Such a firearm could not have entered the country through legitimate channels; once authorities discovered this type of Western-standard equipment, the investigators knew the situation had escalated significantly.

An armed assassin would not fall to his death for no reason. Moreover, the pistol’s standard magazine capacity was ten rounds, but only six remained. It was impossible for an assassin to be carrying a half-empty weapon; the only logical conclusion was that four shots had already been fired.

The police immediately searched the entire Hilton Hotel, and before long, they discovered Mo Sinan, who lay dead on the bed in the presidential suite.

An eighteen-year-old youth, gunned down in a presidential suite by a professional assassin using an imported, non-domestic firearm—the implications of the crime scene left the Jiangcheng police feeling overwhelmed. The most pressing question now was: what exactly was the identity of this dead teenager?

The hotel provided the police with access to Mo Sinan’s personal files. Lü Chengxun, captain of the Jiangcheng Public Security Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, arrived at the scene personally. Upon reading Mo Sinan’s information, his brow furrowed deeply.

He was unfamiliar with the name "Mo Sinan," but the surname "Mo" was rare. Combined with the fact that his identification indicated he was from Yanjing, Lü felt a sense of foreboding. Jiangcheng had produced two highly prominent families: the Su family and the Mo family. Both were now immensely powerful and prestigious clans based in Yanjing. Could this Mo Sinan be a member of the Yanjing Mo family?

Sensing that the situation was dire, Lü instructed his subordinates, "Have the bureau’s information department look into the specific details of this Mo Sinan. It would be best if you could find the identity information of his parents."

Soon, a clerk hurried over, pulled Lü aside to a secluded spot, and lowered his voice: "Captain, the information department says that accessing the records for Mo Sinan’s parents requires authorization. Unless approved by the Bureau Chief, it would be considered a violation of protocol, and a record would be created in Yanjing."

Lü’s brow furrowed into a deep frown. When many high-ranking officials and dignitaries reach a certain level of status, their personal files are encrypted within the public security system. For those of lower rank, access requires the authorization of a division-level official or higher. For those of even greater status—bureau or department level—every access attempt must be reported to the provincial or national ministry. That the files of Mo Sinan’s parents required authorization from the Municipal Bureau Chief—who, as a member of the Municipal Party Committee, held a vice-departmental rank—confirmed that the family was undoubtedly the Mo family from the capital.

The Mo family’s influence in Yanjing was immense. Having a member of their family die on his turf meant that the entire leadership of the Jiangcheng Public Security Bureau would inevitably be implicated. Shocked, Lü immediately pulled out his phone and called the Bureau Chief, Liu Xiyun.

It was 3:30 in the morning—the hour of deepest sleep. Liu Xiyun ignored the first three calls, but by the fourth, his mind had cleared enough to realize that if Lü was being this persistent, a major incident must have occurred.

"Hello, this is Liu Xiyun."

As the call connected, Lü breathed a partial sigh of relief. "Chief, a major incident has occurred. Could you come to the Hilton Hotel?"

"What happened?" Liu asked bluntly.

"A young man named Mo Sinan has been shot dead at the Hilton," Lü reported. "I asked the team to check his family background, but the information department said it requires your authorization. I suspect he is a member of the Yanjing Mo family."

Liu Xiyun sat bolt upright in bed. "Check it! Have them check it immediately. Tell me the results the moment you have them, and I will personally write the report authorizing the access."

Lü acknowledged the order. "Understood, Chief. I will have them look into it right away."

Once Liu gave the go-ahead, the information department quickly pushed the brief data on Mo Sinan’s parents to Lü’s phone. It contained only their names, ID numbers, ancestral homes, and household registration addresses.

Lü relayed the information to Liu, and when the Bureau Chief heard the name "Mo Jiangsheng" over the phone, a cold sweat broke out instantly.

Mo Jiangsheng!

Anyone in Jiangcheng with a modicum of experience and connections would know that name. Decades ago, two legendary figures had emerged from Jiangcheng; Mo Jinyang was one of them. Mo Jinyang had five children, but only one son: Mo Jiangsheng. Over the last twenty years, as Mo Jinyang faded from the public eye, Mo Jiangsheng became the pillar of the entire Mo family. He chose business over politics, controlling several publicly traded conglomerates spanning real estate, energy, and biochemistry, with assets exceeding ten billion.

Though he chose commerce, Mo Jiangsheng maintained an expansive network of connections in the political sphere. In Yanjing, he was a giant who possessed both power and wealth. That his son had died in his city was not just a stain on his reputation—it was equivalent to throwing him bodily into a septic tank.

In a state of panic, Liu Xiyun blurted out, "I’m on my way!"

Back at the Hilton, the police had sealed off both crime scenes. The coroner had arrived to examine the bodies.

Upon arriving, Liu’s first question was about the identity of the assassin. Hearing that the killer had fallen to his death and was likely a professional sent by an overseas organization, Liu felt a small measure of relief. He had spent the drive over praying that the killer was not a local, as that would have made his responsibility significantly heavier.

Lü provided an update: "The assassin is dead, and the murder weapon has been recovered. The assassin’s identity was found to be forged. Whether he is a domestic national or not, we cannot confirm until we know his true identity."

Hearing that the professional killer had also accidentally fallen to his death, Liu felt a mix of absurdity and rage. "A professional assassin dies by falling while climbing a building? It’s laughable. If this is the kind of person who has the nerve to act as an assassin and cause me this much trouble, I really..."

After the forensic teams finished their examinations, they reported to Liu. "The victim upstairs died of gunshot wounds. He was hit four times, each shot being fatal."

"The deceased downstairs died from severe internal injuries and a shattered skull. He landed feet-first, the bones piercing his internal organs, before his head struck the ground. His skull was shattered and his neck broken. Death was instantaneous."

Liu nodded. These were only the coroner’s conclusions; the key now was whether the investigative team would uncover any substantial leads.

The meticulous search lasted until the following morning, but no new clues were found. All evidence indicated that the assassin had scaled the balcony to reach the ninth-floor suite, executed Mo Sinan, and then attempted to return to the eighth floor via the window, only to fall to his death during the process.

In room 8018, the police found the assassin’s flight case. Its contents shocked everyone: passports from China, the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom—all for the same person, yet with completely different identities. This proved the killer possessed highly sophisticated false identities, convincing enough to pass through any customs. Inside were also a spare pistol, two magazines, one hundred rounds of ammunition, daggers, tranquilizers, and neurotoxins.

More mysteriously, the hotel had no video surveillance records. Security claimed the system was functioning normally, but for some reason, the hard drive had failed to record anything.

Police also learned from staff that the assassin had been staying in a seventh-floor suite for several days. It was only because the power system in that room had failed the previous night that he had temporarily moved to 8018.

This confirmed to the police that the assassination had been meticulously planned. The killer’s level of foresight was truly chilling.

By nine in the morning, Liu Xiyun went personally to the provincial department to report to Director Han. Director Han had personal ties to Mo Jiangsheng and immediately called him to explain the situation. Han, however, was clever with his wording: he framed it as Mo Sinan being assassinated by an international killer who had subsequently died in an accident, while expressing his deep concern for the Mo family’s safety and speculating that an overseas organization might be targeting them.

In this way, while Mo Jiangsheng was engulfed in shock and grief, he was forced to rack his brain wondering who he had offended that would target his son.

Mo Jiangsheng, accompanied by his distraught wife and several trusted aides, flew to Jiangcheng on a private jet. They were joined by the best forensic experts in the public security system.

To preserve the scene, the Jiangcheng police had sent the bodies to a hospital morgue. Normally, forensic examinations were conducted there, but in this case, no autopsy was needed; the causes of death were clear.

Mo Jiangsheng and his wife entered the morgue like ghosts. Before the coroner pulled the body from the freezer, he warned, "The victim was shot in the forehead at close range. The killer used hollow-point bullets; the trauma area is extensive."

His wife trembled violently, but Mo Jiangsheng forced himself to remain calm, suppressing his grief and rage. "Pull it out," he said.

The coroner pulled out the drawer, unzipped the body bag, and revealed the corpse.

There was a coin-sized bullet hole in Mo Sinan’s forehead, while the back of his head had been completely blown away. Even though the blood had been cleaned, it was a harrowing sight. Mo Jiangsheng’s wife fainted on the spot, but Mo Jiangsheng stared at his son’s face—still frozen in terror—without moving, tears streaming down his cheeks.

A minute later, Mo Jiangsheng pushed the drawer back himself. He turned around, his expression shifting from grief to a bone-chilling coldness.

He revived his wife, steadied her, and said emotionlessly, "Lanzhi, rest assured. Whoever killed our son, I will make them pay a thousandfold. Not only will I kill them, I will leave no one close to them alive. I will root out that assassin organization entirely, and I will tear the mastermind behind this to pieces!"

The coroner, unaware of Mo Jiangsheng’s background and having been denied the company of high-ranking officials, simply offered a standard reminder: "Sir, this is a society ruled by law. Our public security department will do its best to catch the culprit and secure justice for your son."

"Justice?" Mo Jiangsheng turned his blood-red eyes toward the coroner, startling him.

The calm mask shattered, replaced by the ferocity of a predatory beast. Mo Jiangsheng kicked the coroner to the ground, stepped forward, and pressed his foot hard against the man’s head. "I don’t want justice! I want revenge!"

He kicked the man’s head repeatedly, screaming hysterically with every blow: "It’s revenge! It’s revenge! It’s revenge!!!"

The coroner lost consciousness under the brutal assault. Mo Jiangsheng did not stop until staff members rushed in and, with great effort, dragged him away. The coroner was rushed to the emergency room.

Outside the hospital, Mo Jiangsheng ordered his aides, "Take the experts from the ministry to re-examine the scene. Investigate the killer’s identity and the organization behind him. Report any findings to me immediately."

"Understood." His men left to carry out the orders. Mo Jiangsheng then took his wife to the provincial department, settled her in Director Han’s office with a doctor to provide care, and sat on the edge of the Director's desk, smoking one cigarette after another.

Director Han was overwhelmed. He couldn’t fathom what Mo Jiangsheng intended. Did he plan to reside in his office? In other words, if there wasn’t a resolution that satisfied him, was he going to haunt the office indefinitely?

Just as Han struggled with how to respond, Mo Jiangsheng said coldly, "Old Han, don’t worry. It’s quiet here. Once my people find out who is behind that assassin, I’ll have other things to attend to!"