After the discussion, Zhao Donglai made the final summary.
The motive for the killer's crime could be twofold: either a spontaneous crime of passion, likely committed by an unemployed youth from society; or a premeditated revenge killing.
Additionally, judging from the scene, there should be more than one perpetrator, and based on the shoe prints left at the scene, one of them should be between 172-175 centimeters in height.
Subsequently, Zhao Donglai formulated corresponding investigation directions based on these two different criminal motives.
The first direction is to investigate the circle around the victim to see if the victim had any enmity or conflicts of interest before their demise.
The second task is for the technical team to work overtime. Firstly, they need to test the collected items from today to see if they can extract DNA. If DNA can be extracted, they can match it with the DNA database. Secondly, they should compare the fingerprints collected today with those in the fingerprint database to see if there's a matching DNA.
As for the other criminal police team members, they are to continue searching Walnut Mountain because the most crucial weapon is still missing. Zhao Donglai believes the weapon should still be on Walnut Mountain.
At around ten in the evening, Luo Fei received a notice from Zhou Weimin in the group chat, instructing all police station personnel, except those on duty, to have breakfast at the station canteen at six-thirty the next morning and set off for Walnut Mountain at seven sharp.
In the morning, Luo Fei arrived at the police station around six ten, and the chief Zhou Weimin and Zhang Haiyang were already having breakfast in the canteen.
Luo Fei got a bowl of porridge, three steamed buns, and a plate of pickles at the canteen window. Zhou Weimin beckoned Luo Fei over, signaling him to sit, so Luo Fei went over with his buns and porridge and sat next to his mentor Zhang Haiyang.
"Only three buns? Luo Fei, your appetite is really lacking! At your age, your mentor and I could eat seven or eight buns! Young people should eat more. When you reach my age, you'll wish you could eat more," Zhou Weimin said warmly to Luo Fei, as amiable as one could be.
Zhang Haiyang, sitting nearby, chimed in, "Chief Zhou, can it be the same as our time? Back then, being able to fill our stomachs was a big deal, and there wasn't any fat in our meals. It's no wonder we ate a lot. I remember eating ten bowls of noodles in one go once; thinking back, it's unbelievable."
"True," Zhou Weimin nodded in agreement and then instructed Luo Fei, "Luo Fei, after breakfast, get thirty steamed buns and put them in the car. Today's mountain search is hard work; don't let everyone faint from hunger."
"Alright, Chief Zhou." Luo Fei nodded.
After finishing the meal, Luo Fei went to get the buns — thirty steamed buns and a large bowl of pickles.
At seven, the Songxi Town police station mountain search team officially set out for the mountain search.
By eight, they arrived at the crime scene, thinking they were early enough, only to find the criminal police team had already arrived earlier.
The team was still led by Zhao Donglai, but compared to yesterday, the criminal police team had fewer members today; at least Luo Fei didn't see Yang Mei or Wu Xiaoyue.
After a simple greeting, they began the mountain search based on the areas assigned to each team.
Mountain searching is tedious and dull, a physical challenge. Although there was no sun in the morning, the air was very dry and hot, making everyone sweat profusely not long after starting the search.
By ten in the morning, when the sun completely illuminated the mountain, the temperature became even hotter and more intense.
Luo Fei noticed several veteran colleagues from the station began to slack off, frequently taking breaks under the shade, with their break durations gradually extending over time until some just sat down.
By around eleven o'clock, the mountain search team members seemed visibly lax both in action and attitude, especially the police station officers, while the criminal police members held up relatively better.
Luo Fei didn't bother with these. He focused on doing his own job well. Throughout, Luo Fei might have been the most dedicated and meticulous mountain search participant at the scene.
"Uh," as Luo Fei parted the bushes ahead, a sudden foul odor wafted over, hinting that he might have found the murder weapon. A glimmer of excitement appeared in Luo Fei's eyes.
Luo Fei stepped over the bushes, carefully tracked the foul smell in the air, and quickly pinpointed the direction the foul smell was coming from — Wu Wei's direction on the left.
Luo Fei pursued for about twenty meters and finally found the source of the odor in a thicket — an already rusty large wrench.
The large wrench appeared deliberately hidden in the bushes, with dried blood stains on it, suggesting this wrench was likely the weapon the suspect used to commit the crime.
"Chief Zhou, I've found the murder weapon." Luo Fei shouted to Zhou Weimin, who wasn't very far from him.
Luo Fei's voice traveled in the sultry air, instantly re-energizing the previously lethargic crowds upon hearing Luo Fei's announcement.
Upon hearing Luo Fei's words, Zhou Weimin jogged over.
Zhao Donglai also received the news immediately and hurried over.
"Judging by the fresh bloodstain on it, it's most likely the murder weapon. The suspect probably used this wrench to deliver the fatal blow to the victim," Zhao Donglai's serious face revealed a rare smile; finding the weapon meant they were one step closer to solving the case.
Afterwards, Zhao Donglai instructed the criminal police team to pack up the weapon and send it to the technical team for examination back at the station to check if the bloodstains were those of the victim.
With the weapon found, the mountain search team withdrew.
Luo Fei and his team returned to the police station around two o'clock. Considering the day's hard work, Zhou Weimin allowed everyone to go home without insisting they wait until five to clock out. He was quite considerate of his subordinates in this regard.
When Luo Fei got home, only Wu Yan was there; Luo Hao and Luo Xiaoxiao were out playing somewhere and hadn't returned yet.
Luo Fei casually ate something and went to his room for a rest.
He woke up at three-thirty.
"Luo Fei, if you are free later, take the pickled vegetables I made to your second aunt and uncle's house," Wu Yan told Luo Fei.
"Okay, I'll wash up and take the pickles over right away,"
Luo Fei nodded in response. Each year, Wu Yan pickled a few jars and sent some to her second aunt and uncle's house, a gesture perhaps to thank Wu Xiaohui and Wu Zhiwei for their help to this family.
After a brief tidying up, Luo Fei took two jars of Wu Yan's pickled vegetables and set off.
The second aunt's house was closer, so Luo Fei went there first. However, both the second aunt and her husband were at work, leaving only their daughter, who was in high school, home doing homework. Luo Fei left the pickles there and left.
His uncle's house was a bit far, so Luo Fei took a taxi there.
When Luo Fei got out at the small junction, he happened to see his cousin, Wu Yu, talking with a guy sporting a mohawk.
In Luo Fei's memory, his relationship with this cousin wasn't great; there was a mutual sense of disdain. After Wu Zhiwei and his wife lent them money, Wu Yu had seemingly never visited Luo Fei's house again.
"Big cousin, are uncle and aunt at home?" Luo Fei walked over and asked.
Wu Yu glanced at Luo Fei, then at the jar in his hand, and resumed his conversation with the mohawk guy, evidently unwilling to engage with Luo Fei.
Luo Fei didn't mind. If it weren't out of respect for Wu Zhiwei, he couldn't care less about Wu Yu.
As Luo Fei was about to head towards the house, a familiar smell suddenly hit him — the same scent from the Tang Youquan murder scene.