Zhang Shunmin immediately relayed the news back to the Huaxia Military District.
When Deputy Commander Li Minjun of the Huaxia Military District received the message, it was already 6:00 a.m.
By the next day, all major TV networks, newspapers, and media outlets were reporting on the major incident. It caused a nationwide uproar and became the center of attention across the country.
Upon receiving the call, Li Minjun was stunned. He slammed his phone on the ground in a rage, smashing it into pieces. Without hesitation, he put on his uniform and drove straight to the military district.
Meanwhile, Zhang Shunmin picked up his ringing phone and answered anxiously, "Hello?"
"Political Commissar Zhang, I want a full and detailed report on the incident. I'm on my way right now. Do you hear me?" Li Minjun's voice on the other end was full of urgency and fury.
"Yes, Commander Li. I'll handle it right away."
After hanging up, Li Minjun summoned Tian Jiang early that morning and gave him a direct order: no matter what, keep the truth from Shi Kai until he returned. If not, Tian would face a court-martial.
Tian Jiang asked nervously, "Commander Li, why must we keep this from him?"
Li Minjun clenched his jaw. "You want to know why? Fine, I'll tell you. Shi Kai's father… was Commander Shi."
With that, Li slammed the door and stormed out, leaving Tian Jiang frozen in place, stunned.
No wonder, Tian thought to himself. "The first time I met Shi Kai, I felt like he resembled someone… I just couldn't place it. So he's really Commander Shi's son. Damn it, this is bad. If he finds out…"
Not daring to delay, Tian Jiang rushed to carry out Commander Li's orders. He prayed they could keep it under wraps until the commander returned.
Under Li Minjun and Tian Jiang's temporary cover-up, the entire military district went into lockdown. The incident was secretly reported to the central government. Shi Kai remained unaware of what had happened. Perhaps he was the only one in the entire military district who didn't know.
Everyone else already knew the truth: Shi Kai was Shi Tianqun's son. Such a good kid—no one had the heart to break the news to him. But as the saying goes, no secret can stay hidden forever. They could only hope the truth wouldn't surface before Li Minjun returned.
Shi Kai continued his daily training as usual.
After settling matters in the military district, Li Minjun rushed to W City in Z Province.
There, he finally met with Zhang Shunmin. Inside the hospital morgue, Li Minjun clenched his jaw as he slowly approached the bodies. He gently lifted the corner of the white sheet. Staring back at him were Shi Tianqun's wide-open eyes—eyes that refused to close in death, blood dried on his forehead.
Li Minjun's eyes welled with tears. He looked up and took a deep, painful breath. His fists clenched tightly, and with a roar of anguish, he slammed them down hard against the side of the metal table.
"Everyone out. Now!" he shouted.
Startled by the outburst, the others in the morgue hesitated for a moment, then quickly filed out and shut the door behind them, leaving Li Minjun alone inside.
He slowly pulled back the remaining sheets. The bodies of Wang Xiuzhen, Shi Ting, and the taxi driver were revealed, cold and still.
Li Minjun shook his head in grief and staggered back two steps. His eyes were hollow. With a choked voice, he looked at Shi Tianqun's corpse and cried out:
"Brother Tianqun… you're really gone? How could you just leave like this? How could you bear to leave your son behind? Say something! Didn't you tell me you'd be back in a few days?!"
As he spoke, Li Minjun slowly slid down along the edge of the morgue table and sat on the floor, his eyes empty and lifeless. He continued, "We've been friends for forty years… Do you remember the days we went to war together? Ha… those were the days. I really miss the past."
With that, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, took out two, lit them, placed one between his own lips, and gently laid the other beside the body.
"Old Shi, I know you were addicted to smoking… Let me keep you company for one last cigarette, brother. I failed you… If you must blame someone, then blame me. I've been hiding this from Shi Kai all along. He's still young—I was afraid he couldn't handle the blow. But I can't keep it from him much longer. Anyway… let's smoke. After this cigarette, I promise I'll make things right for you."
Li Minjun stood up, wiped away his tears, straightened his uniform, and gave a solemn salute. "Don't worry. I'll treat Shi Kai like my own son."
As he turned and walked out of the morgue, Li Minjun faced the people waiting outside and asked coldly, "Is the autopsy report ready?"
The hospital director, who had been waiting nervously nearby, was startled by the blunt question and quickly replied, "The preliminary results are in, but the full autopsy requires a family member's signature."
Li Minjun snapped, "Do you know who the deceased is? He was the Commander-in-Chief of the Huaxia Military District. His entire family is dead. Who do you expect to sign? I want a full report, and I don't care how you get it done—just get me that report. Fast."
The hospital director's face turned pale. But with the deceased's status being so extraordinary, even the central government would handle it this way. He had no choice but to give the necessary orders.
"Who's the mayor? Bring him here right now," Li Minjun demanded coldly.
Mayor Zhao, hearing this, rushed forward wiping the sweat off his face and said obsequiously, "Deputy Commander Li, hello. I'm the mayor of this city—Zhao Ming."
"I don't care who you are. Our military district commander died in your city. I want an explanation. If you can't give me one, go home and plant vegetables."
Mayor Zhao went limp at those words, nearly collapsing to the floor. He stammered out repeated promises.
Li Minjun didn't stop there. "What the hell is the Public Security Bureau doing? Still no progress?"
Director Yang Wengan of the Public Security Bureau saluted and replied, "We've already formed a special task force and are conducting a thorough investigation. We'll have results very soon."
"Oh, really?" Li Minjun sneered. "I want answers by 7:00 tonight. I need to see that you're working—not brushing me off."
Everyone present was on edge, frightened by Li's imposing authority. After hearing his orders, they all scrambled to conduct their respective investigations.
Later, Li Minjun and his aide arrived at the Grand Hotel. Inside Zhang Shunmin's room, they began discussing the case.
Time passed quickly.
By 7:00 p.m., Yang Wengan arrived with the head of the task force, Mayor Zhao, and the hospital director. They gathered in Zhang Shunmin's room to present their findings to Li Minjun.
First, the hospital director gave a summary of the autopsy report:
The deceased included Shi Tianqun, Wang Xiuzhen, Shi Ting, and the taxi driver He Qiang.
He Qiang died instantly from a massive impact to the head caused by a violent collision. His body had multiple abrasions. Estimated time of death: approximately 12:50 a.m.
Shi Tianqun had visible signs of head trauma caused by a hard object. There was a knife wound on his chest—according to the forensic examiner, it was inflicted by a long blade. The cut was clean and straight, a result only achievable with a combination of sufficient speed and force. The fatal wound, however, was the one at the center of his forehead, where a sharp weapon had pierced directly through the skull. From a medical standpoint, such a clean and precise wound could only be made with tremendous power and exceptional accuracy. His body also had several abrasions. Estimated time of death: 12:50 a.m.
The deceased, Wang Xiuzhen and Shi Ting, besides having multiple abrasions on their bodies, suffered fatal wounds identical to Shi Tianqun's: a sharp weapon pierced through the forehead and exited from the back of the skull. The wounds were identical in size, force, and precision. Estimated time of death was around 12:50 a.m.
In summary, it can be concluded that this was a case of murder—and it's highly likely that the killer was the same person in all four cases.
At this point, a rough outline was beginning to take shape in Li Minjun's mind. He nodded and said, "What information does the Public Security Bureau have?"
Yang Wengan immediately summoned the head of the special investigation unit responsible for the case. The team leader took a deep breath and quickly began his report:
"The crime scene was well-preserved. After our examination, we concluded that the tunnel was the primary crime scene. First, a truck loaded with rocks began dropping stones along the road two kilometers before the tunnel entrance, blocking traffic. The same was done at the tunnel's exit. Clearly, the killer had been watching the victims closely. When they were returning to the hotel and passed through the tunnel, the killer drove the truck head-on into the vehicle carrying Shi Tianqun, resulting in the driver's immediate death.
There were no signs of a struggle at the scene. It was obvious the killer acted swiftly and precisely. About thirty meters from Shi Tianqun's body were the corpses of Shi Ting and Wang Xiuzhen. The fatal wound in both cases was to the center of the forehead. No physical evidence was left behind—no murder weapon, not even a single footprint.
The first call to the police came from a taxi driver stuck in traffic caused by the debris. He reported the case at exactly 1:00 a.m.
We believe the killer acted alone. However, there must have been accomplices—judging from the condition of the road, this could not have been done by one person alone."
After hearing the brief report, Li Minjun's heart sank.
"Time of death: roughly 12:50 a.m… just ten minutes before the report came in. The killer was a pro—an elite assassin. Shi Tianqun had been through countless battles in his life, and yet he was taken down without a sound."
He stood up and said firmly, "Continue the investigation with full force. I'll report this to the central government."
With that, Li Minjun walked out of the room.
The murder of the military district commander soon spread like wildfire, causing widespread panic and an extremely negative public impact. The central government issued a direct order to fully investigate the case. Meanwhile, an official statement was released to the media to clarify the situation and reassure the public.
As a gesture of goodwill, the central government gave Li Minjun full authority over the case, out of respect for his forty-year friendship with Shi Tianqun. They hoped he would find the killer quickly, and also instructed that Shi Tianqun and his family's bodies be returned to their hometown for burial as soon as possible.
Li Minjun instructed local officials to handle the situation properly and report any developments immediately. After staying in W City for a day, he rushed back to the military district the next day.
He knew full well: if this dragged on any longer, there would be no way to keep it from Shi Kai. He needed to find the right moment to tell him.
Meanwhile, Shi Kai had just completed three days of military training. His entire body was sore, and he was suffering from serious sleep deprivation. He was constantly exhausted and had completely lost the excitement he had when he first arrived at the military base.
That evening, Li Minjun sat alone in his office back at the base, smoking one cigarette after another in silence. He didn't know how to break the news to Shi Kai. He didn't know how Shi Kai would react. Worst of all, he didn't know whether the young man would still have the will to live after hearing the truth.
But this was something that couldn't be kept secret forever. The funeral had to be arranged. And a tragedy of this scale… could never be hidden from Shi Kai.
He hoped that after Shi Kai found out, he could bravely face the life ahead.
Li Minjun's intentions were good. But a twelve-year-old child losing his entire family in one day—that kind of heavy blow, could he bear it? Moreover, the murder remained unsolved, and the killer was still at large. The whole situation was a tremendous shock for Shi Kai.
Just as Li Minjun was troubled by this, Tian Jiang hurried over and gave a proper military salute: "Commander Li, the situation is very complicated. Everyone is quietly discussing it behind the scenes. If we don't announce Commander Shi's death soon, the secret won't hold."
Li Minjun exhaled a plume of smoke and stubbed out his cigarette. "Let's hold off for now. Tonight, you take Shi Kai to my house—no more training for him. We can keep this under wraps a little longer. He's too young. Announcing it now would cause a huge impact on his future."
Tian Jiang worriedly said, "Yes, Shi Kai is still so young. Such a happy family has been destroyed. He definitely can't handle this huge shock. Who knows what he might do?"
Li Minjun continued, "After Commander Shi's funeral, I'll find time to tell him."
Tian Jiang was puzzled. "Are you saying you don't want Shi Kai to attend the funeral?"
"I originally planned to tell Shi Kai and let him go," Li Minjun replied, "but on second thought, it's not appropriate. Shi Kai is the only bloodline left of the Shi family. I really fear something might happen to him. Besides, the killer hasn't been caught, and I doubt they'll spare Shi Kai. After thinking it over, for his safety, it's better that he doesn't attend the funeral."
In Li Minjun's mind, protecting Shi Kai was the only thing he could do for the Shi family now. For Shi Kai's safety, he had to resort to this measure.
Tian Jiang nodded and immediately followed Li Minjun's instructions.
He went to Shi Kai's dormitory and called out loudly, "Shi Kai!"
Shi Kai, who was resting, immediately stood at attention and saluted, saying loudly, "Reporting!"
To save time, Tian Jiang was brief: "You have five minutes to pack your things and come with me. I have a new mission for you."
Shi Kai felt puzzled—after only three days of training, what mission could there be? But since the company commander said so, he cheerfully replied, "Yes, sir!"
Shi Kai quickly packed everything and followed behind Tian Jiang. When they reached the door, they got in the car, which sped off.
Shi Kai asked cautiously, "Company Commander, where are we going?"
Tian Jiang replied firmly, "Your job now is to obey, not to ask questions."
Shi Kai stuck out his tongue but remained quiet, waiting for the destination.
The car stopped right at Commander Li's house. Li Minjun had been waiting at the doorstep.
Shi Kai got out of the car and cheerfully walked over, kindly calling, "Uncle Li!"
Then he quickly stood at attention and saluted, "Hello, Commander Li!"
Li Minjun mechanically returned the salute. Looking at the son of an old friend, he painfully patted his head and said, "Shi Kai, this isn't the military base, no need to be so formal. Tonight you'll stay at Uncle Li's house. Uncle Li has something to tell you."
With that, he walked straight over to Tian Jiang, who was behind Shi Kai.
Tian Jiang immediately gave a standard subordinate salute to his superior.
Li Minjun returned the salute and said, "Tian Jiang, you may go now."
Tian Jiang immediately got in the car and drove away.
Shi Kai watched the car's taillights fade into the distance, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart.
He quickly asked Commander Li, "Uncle Li, if it's something important, why can't you talk about it at the base? Why did Company Commander Tian bring me here?"
Li Minjun placed a hand on Shi Kai's shoulder, then turned and headed inside the house. "No rush. Let's go in and eat first. We can talk while we eat."
Li Minjun's wife had already prepared a table full of delicious dishes, knowing Shi Kai was coming. Her husband had also informed her in advance to keep the matter about Shi Tianqun hidden from Shi Kai for now.
When Li Minjun's wife saw Shi Kai enter, she happily came over and called out, "You must be Shi Kai, you've grown so much! Training must be hard—come on, come eat!"
Hearing this, Shi Kai quickly responded politely, "Hello, Auntie."
"All right, come eat now, everything's ready." Seeing how sharp and polite Shi Kai was, Mrs. Li smiled warmly.
After washing his hands, Shi Kai began to eat voraciously. Since starting training, his appetite had grown day by day. Now, seeing a table full of delicious food, he realized how hungry he really was and no longer cared about manners.
Li Minjun and his wife exchanged knowing smiles as they watched Shi Kai eat, occasionally putting more food into his bowl.
Only after eating his fill did Shi Kai remember that Uncle Li had something to tell him. He had been so focused on eating that he had forgotten the Commander's instructions—how could that be a good soldier?
With that thought, Shi Kai quickly wiped his mouth, swallowed the food, and asked, "Uncle Li, didn't you say you had something to tell me? What is it?"
Li Minjun, who was putting food into Shi Kai's bowl, and his wife both changed their expressions upon hearing this. They wished Shi Kai would just eat and forget about these questions.
Li Minjun gently placed the food down and fell silent, struggling inwardly.
Shi Kai noticed their reactions and cautiously asked, "Uncle Li, are you hiding something from me? These past few days at the base, I've felt people looking at me strangely."
Mrs. Li hurriedly tried to smooth things over with a smile. "Shi Kai, just keep eating. What could your Uncle Li possibly be hiding from you?"
Shi Kai thought about it and nodded. After all, he was still young—what big secrets could there be to hide? Maybe he was overthinking.
Then Li Minjun spoke, "Shi Kai, starting tomorrow, you won't be training at the base anymore. For the next few days, stay at Uncle Li's house."
"Why?" Shi Kai exclaimed.
Li Minjun quickly put on a smiling face. "Oh, it's nothing serious. It's just that some senior leaders from the central command will be inspecting the base these days. It wouldn't be appropriate for you to be there, and you're not an official soldier yet. If anything happens and they blame us, your father and I would have a hard time explaining. After the inspection is over, you can continue training, okay?"