I See Murders Before They Happen

Chapter 237: Chapter 235: If I’m Going Down, I’m Taking Him With Me

Zhuang Yanzheng quickly and meticulously replayed the scene Su Miaoyi had described in his mind.

Whenever Su Miaoyi spoke, she was always meticulous, never missing a single detail.

And he always carefully committed it all to memory.

"How did Ding Ruoyan treat you?" Zhuang Yanzheng asked.

At this question, the vicious sneer on Zhang Bai’s face suddenly froze, then slowly faded.

He fell silent.

Zhuang Yanzheng could tell from his expression that Ding Ruoyan must have been very good to him. "She treated you well."

Zhang Bai snorted. "She was almost forty when she met Zhang Yan Yu. Back then, she wasn’t thinking about having kids; she just wanted to date him."

"A guy like Zhang Yan Yu always liked keeping women on the side, played the field a lot. But then he met Ding Ruoyan and started playing the ’true love’ card. The two of them just kept dating, year after year."

"Ding Ruoyan knew I existed. She was always very good to me, treated me like her own son. She really was a good person. A very, very good person."

"They dated for all those years and never married, but then she got pregnant, close to fifty. The kid’s timing was terrible. Just when I had taken control of everything here in Jinghai and was ready to get my revenge on Zhang Yan Yu, the kid came along."

As he spoke, Zhang Bai let out a faint sigh. "I guess she was just unlucky, getting stuck with a guy like me, and another one like Zhang Yan Yu. I hope she finds a good man in her next life."

Zhuang Yanzheng saw not a hint of remorse in his eyes.

"When was the drug lab in Qin City built, and how long did it take?" he asked.

"About a year after Changyue Garden was demolished. It took five or six years to build," Zhang Bai recalled. "By the time we were operating in Qin City, the garbage disposal plant had already been built. The Qin City location was just working out fine, so we used it for a few more years. We were worried about being discovered if we stayed in one place too long, so we eventually moved to the disposal plant. The plan was to move to another new location, but we were still scouting sites when Kang Hong got caught."

Zhuang Yanzheng watched him. He didn’t seem very surprised about the Qin City situation. Compared to his reaction to the disposal plant being raided, he was far too calm.

He thought for a moment, then said, "You leaked the Qin City location to Kang Hong."

"That’s right." Zhang Bai nodded. "I hinted at it a little, so subconsciously he always believed it was in Qin City. Why?"

He started laughing again. "You searched in Qin City for a long time, didn’t you? A very long time? Kang Hong could never stop using. I tried to help him get clean a few times, but he never managed it. I was worried he’d get caught someday, so I intentionally leaked a few things to him. Must have been a real pain in the ass for you guys, searching so hard. HAHAHAHA..."

"All these years, our product has always been shipped out, never staying near Jinghai. Maybe that’s why nobody ever found us. It’s so boring. I actually quite enjoy dealing with you people. I love watching you do all these pointless things, like raiding some minor hideout. But you can never find the source, just letting me run you around in circles."

Zhuang Yanzheng ignored him and continued to ask, "Did you bury Xie Lili’s body?"

"I did," Zhang Bai admitted freely. "Kang Hong was scared to death. He pissed his pants and called his parents over. By the way, did you arrest his parents? They were in on it too."

"Did you also kill Liu Shitang?" Zhuang Yanzheng asked again.

"Yes. In fact, if you all hadn’t tracked down Liu Shitang, I would have forgotten all about him," Zhang Bai said. "That man was dumb as a rock. Most people, if they saw someone secretly moving this kind of stuff, would pretend they never saw a thing and stay as far away as possible. But him? He came right up to me and tried to threaten me."

"I’d never met anyone that stupid before, so I got curious. I wanted to see just how far his stupidity went, so I played along. I gave him whatever he wanted. Let him live the high life for a bit before sending him on his way. See? I’m such a kind person."

Zhuang Yanzheng couldn’t even stand to look at him anymore. He gathered up all the files in his hands.

Zhang Bai watched him gather his things, watched him finish and prepare to leave.

"Where are you going?" he suddenly asked.

Zhuang Yanzheng looked at him.

"You’re just leaving?" Zhang Bai asked again.

"I’m finished with my questions. If I don’t leave, am I supposed to stay and have dinner with you?" Zhuang Yanzheng’s tone was one of utter bewilderment.

Zhang Bai frowned. "You’re finished?"

"Am I not?" Zhuang Yanzheng countered.

Su Miaoyi and Lu Zhishen, listening from outside, had identical expressions of speechlessness.

"Aren’t you going to ask about Zhang Yan Yu?" Zhang Bai asked.

Zhuang Yanzheng looked at him.

"What, did you catch him?" Zhang Bai pressed. "That’s impossible. He’s not even in Jinghai, so how could you?"

"So, judging by your tone, you know where he is?" Zhuang Yanzheng said.

"Of course I know."

Zhuang Yanzheng sat back down in his chair.

"I’m not getting out of this alive anyway. There’s no way I’m letting him run free and enjoy life out there," Zhang Bai scoffed.

"Where is he?"

"First, you tell me how you knew all those things. How did you find the garbage disposal plant, and how did you know Ding Ruoyan was dead?" Zhang Bai said.

"Why are you so obsessed with this? I’ll say it again: what difference does knowing make?"

"It wouldn’t make any difference. I’m just curious. The narcotics unit checked that place out a few years ago and came up with nothing. But last night, they went straight for that specific room. Why?" Zhang Bai was intensely curious. "It couldn’t have been a tip. Anyone who knew about it also knew they’d be signing their own death warrant if they were exposed. Why would they ever report it to you?"

"Besides, your focus should have been on Wanxiang Village and Qin City. Why the sudden shift to that disposal plant?"

Zhuang Yanzheng was silent for a moment before saying, "Retribution."

Zhang Bai frowned.

Zhuang Yanzheng said, "You’ve killed so many people and destroyed so many families. Your day of reckoning has come."

Zhang Bai started laughing. "I don’t believe in that retribution bullshit."

"You’re already sitting here. Believe it or not, that’s up to you," Zhuang Yanzheng said.

Zhang Bai fell silent once again.

"Where is Zhang Yan Yu?"

Zhang Bai remained silent.

Zhuang Yanzheng didn’t say anything more.

After a moment, Zhang Bai spoke up, as if accepting this explanation of ’retribution.’ "Dian City. He has a safe house in Dian City. From there, he’ll cross into Country D."

"The specific address."

Zhang Bai gave them the specific addresses—one in Dian City and one in Country D.

Zhuang Yanzheng asked, "Anything else?"

"That’s all I know. We haven’t been in contact for a long time," Zhang Bai said. "Good luck to you."

Zhuang Yanzheng got up. Just as he was about to leave, he looked back at him. "A moment ago, you said you enjoyed watching us do pointless things. Well, I have something for you, too. I’m very much looking forward to watching you break down and lose your mind."

With that, he walked out of the interrogation room.

Zhang Bai sat in the interrogation room. A moment later, he thrashed violently and let out a loud scream...