Chapter Forty-Six: Back to the Cement Factory

In Uncle Wang’s room, we found him busy filing paperwork. He was surprised by our arrival and quickly, with great courtesy, offered us seats.

It was hard for us to believe that such a warm and welcoming old man could be a murderer.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, we stated our purpose.

“Uncle Wang, we’d like to ask you a few questions. We hope you’ll cooperate with us,” I said.

Uncle Wang nodded. “Go ahead. I’ll answer whatever I can.”

“What were you doing yesterday between eleven and one?” I asked.

Uncle Wang replied, “From eleven to twelve, there was a meeting in the bus company’s logistics department. I gave a brief speech. At half past twelve, I went to the tea restaurant to have tea with Director Wang. He left after taking a phone call.”

“Is there anyone who can confirm you were at the meeting?”

“Everyone in the logistics department can vouch for me,” Uncle Wang said. “And there’s a camera in the conference room. It can prove it.”

“We’re going to conduct a little investigation now. Can you wait here for a while?” I asked.

Uncle Wang agreed.

He didn’t even ask about the purpose of our questions, which struck me as odd and made me all the more certain that Uncle Wang might be the culprit.

We all left, and I wondered if Uncle Wang would use this time to escape.

On the way here, we had already anticipated this outcome. To lure Uncle Wang into revealing his true colors, we decided to leave him alone for a while and then call Li Hong over to watch him from a hidden spot. If Uncle Wang tried to flee, he’d be arrested immediately.

We headed to the logistics department and interviewed the staff, who all confirmed that Uncle Wang had been in the conference room at the time. We checked the security footage as well, and sure enough, Uncle Wang was there throughout, never leaving the room. The meeting lasted until eight minutes past twelve, when Uncle Wang finally left.

From twelve-oh-eight to half past twelve, there were only twenty-two minutes—hardly enough time for a crime.

I was still unwilling to let it go, so I asked Li Xingchen to calculate how long it would take to walk from here to the tea restaurant. Since the distance wasn’t far, Uncle Wang could have walked.

Li Xingchen estimated it would take less than ten minutes.

“So what did Uncle Wang do in those twelve spare minutes?” I asked.

Old Lin sighed. “Those twelve minutes aren’t crucial. In that time, he couldn’t have gotten to the cement factory.”

Old Lin was right.

When we returned, Uncle Wang was still busy with his paperwork. I walked in, and Uncle Wang stood up with a smile. “How did the investigation go?”

I shook my head. “Uncle Wang, sorry to bother you.”

“No problem, no problem,” Uncle Wang said kindly, smiling.

Before we left, Old Lin suddenly remembered something and turned to ask, “Brother Wang, I noticed everyone in your company wears a uniform. Why don’t you wear one?”

Uncle Wang sighed. “Ah, nothing I can do about it. The company never issued me a uniform because they don’t have my size.”

Old Lin chuckled and led us away.

Once in the car, Old Lin opened his phone and instructed Li Hong, “Keep watching Uncle Wang. If anything happens, contact us immediately!”

Li Hong quickly replied, “Understood.”

I hurriedly asked, “Old Lin, what did you mean by that question?”

“What was Uncle Wang wearing last time you saw him?” Old Lin asked.

“This same outfit,” I replied.

“What was he wearing when he met Director Wang yesterday?” Old Mo pressed.

“I don’t know.”

Old Lin said, “Call Director Wang and confirm.”

I immediately called Director Wang.

Director Wang thought for a moment and said it was a work uniform.

“A uniform? Are you sure?” I double-checked.

Director Wang nodded. “Yes, definitely a uniform. Did you discover something?”

Old Lin interjected, “Uncle Wang said he never received a uniform.”

Director Wang hesitated. “I know Uncle Wang has a habit. He likes to wear two jackets—not for warmth, but so if the outer jacket gets dirty, he can take it off and use the inner one as the outer. He’s a very proper person.”

Old Lin’s eyes changed. “Alright, Director Wang. We understand.”

After hanging up, Old Lin immediately shouted, “Let’s go back and arrest Uncle Wang! He’s the murderer!”

I was shocked. “Why?”

Old Lin explained, “When he committed the crime, he wore the uniform underneath and today’s clothes on top. After the fight at the cement factory yesterday, he took off the outer jacket and met Director Zhang in the uniform—it was all very rushed.”

I protested, “But the timeline doesn’t fit.”

Old Lin replied, “My understanding of the timing was off. If I’m not mistaken, tonight, Uncle Wang will return to the cement factory—or perhaps another suspect will.”

“Oh?” Tang Jingjing was deeply intrigued by Old Lin’s suspense. “Old Lin, what’s really going on? Can you explain?”

Old Lin explained, “Do you know how I determined the timing yesterday? I saw an old clock at the cement factory. Its time had obviously been adjusted, at least half an hour fast.”

“So, before the meeting, Uncle Wang had already taken care of us and hurried back for the meeting. Clearly, he prepared carefully!”

I was confused. “So Uncle Wang never intended to kill you?”

Old Lin nodded. “That’s right. He tried to change the clock’s time to mislead us, giving himself a perfect alibi. Time itself can’t be changed—only our biological clocks.”

Tang Jingjing slapped her forehead. “I knew it! How could we have been locked up for so long? If that were really the case, I would’ve escaped ages ago with my wits.”

“Arrest him, quick!” Li Xingchen was furious. “Who would have thought even a veteran could be a rotten apple, daring to kill a SWAT officer? If he’s caught, does that mean his sentence will be even heavier?”

Old Lin called out, “Hold on, let’s not arrest Uncle Wang yet. Have Li Hong keep a close watch! Let’s go to the cement factory—I believe the other suspect will try to adjust the clock. Report to Director Wang immediately and request SWAT support. Surround the area near the cement factory; the suspect should be about to change the clock now.”

“Right, hurry!” Li Xingchen started the car and headed for the cement factory, while I called Director Wang.

Director Wang immediately issued orders: this operation must succeed; if it fails, don’t bother coming back to see him.

We soon arrived at the cement factory. To avoid alerting the suspect, we parked a kilometer away and walked to the warehouse.

A squad of SWAT officers had already arrived, keeping in touch with us via their phones. They surrounded the area within a kilometer of the warehouse, stationed snipers on high ground, and sent a team to support us.

We waited until the SWAT team arrived, then proceeded together to the warehouse.

Upon arrival, we checked the old clock and found its time matched ours.

Old Lin said at once, “Looks like the suspect has already been here! Check behind the clock—the time must have been adjusted.”

The clock was as large as a grown adult, with adjustment knobs on the back in a cramped space. I crawled behind and found the clock covered in cement, but the adjustment knob was clean, with visible texture.

“Old Lin, I found fingerprints,” I immediately reported to Old Mo.

Old Lin climbed over and took a look. “These aren’t fingerprints, but fibers from cloth rubbed against it. The suspect was careful—not touching the knob directly.”

I was disappointed. “I think the suspect hasn’t gone far. Let’s search the area!”

Old Lin nodded and instructed the SWAT officers to tighten the perimeter, letting no suspect escape.

The clock was so old that every movement produced a loud click and faint noises.

Old Lin and I joined the search, scouring the surroundings. There were no footprints, and it was unclear how the suspect had approached the clock to adjust its time.