"Secretary Wu, there was an incident last night."

Once the call connected, Captain Shi reported the events of the previous night in detail to her.

Wu Qiangwei had already learned from Song Guanchao, but Captain Shi provided more details.

For example, Song Guanchao's fingerprints were found on the cash and gold.

There were also his fingerprints on the body and the murder weapon.

All of the evidence points to one thing: Song Guanchao is the murderer!

"Has the victim's identity been confirmed?"

"Yes, it's a second-year female student from the Teacher's University."

Captain Shi seemed to have something to say but wasn't quite comfortable doing so.

"Come to the office."

"Okay."

After hanging up the phone, on the other side, Qu Xiangru had also ended a call.

Jiang Yiren was also reporting the issue to her.

Half an hour later, Captain Shi arrived at the City Committee, where he re-reported to the two secretaries and shared his suspicions.

"According to the forensic analysis, the victim has been dead for over a week."

"Before, District Chief Song had me investigate the number of missing persons from the school, and this female student was among the missing ones. She had been missing since last year and her whereabouts were unknown."

"I suspect this has something to do with the Yunhai Club."

This is clearly a case of false accusation.

Just as they were investigating illegal lending and the Yunhai Club, this incident happened.

Moreover, the deceased was a female student missing due to the illegal lending case.

No one would believe it if it was said to be a coincidence.

But solving a case requires evidence, and it doesn't help even if everyone knows Song Guanchao cannot be the murderer.

The current evidence is very unfavorable to Song Guanchao.

Qu Xiangru said, "Go back and continue the investigation."

"Secretary Qu, there's one more thing."

"Go ahead."

"District Chief Song seems to have fled."

They had a call last night where Song Guanchao mentioned he needed to deal with some matters and would thereafter go to the precinct for investigation.

But after that call, Song Guanchao stopped answering.

This morning, his phone was directly turned off and unreachable.

To him, cooperating with the police investigation would be the most appropriate course of action for Song Guanchao now.

He couldn't understand why Song Guanchao would run away.

Secretaries Qu and Wu would ensure the fairness of this case, so there was no need for him to flee.

Qu Xiangru asked, "According to protocol, what should we do next?"

"Issue a warrant."

"Then proceed with the warrant. Limited to the police system only," Qu Xiangru said.

"Understood."

After he left, Qu Xiangru said, "You should go back as well, I'll be heading to the provincial city later."

Wu Qiangwei said, "I'll go with you."

"I can handle it, and someone needs to manage things here in the city."

Qu Xiangru calmly said, "I know you're worried about him, but now that things have reached this point, worrying won't help. Staying calm and finding a solution is what's important. Don't let personal feelings interfere."

Wu Qiangwei knew she was right but couldn't help feeling worried inside.

"Let's keep this matter under wraps for now, and we'll discuss it in a meeting when I return."

Qu Xiangru didn't waste time and immediately headed to the provincial city.

Secretary Gao displayed unusual seriousness when he heard about the situation.

He hadn't expected Song Guanchao to fall into this trap.

"Secretary Gao, I suggest the provincial department establish a task force to investigate this case, led by Provincial City's Mayor Liang."

Secretary Gao asked, "Is this your idea or his?"

Qu Xiangru knew that by "his," he meant Song Guanchao.

"It's his idea."

"So, does he not trust the provincial department?"

"It's not about distrust, but rather unfamiliarity. Mayor Liang's character has been tested."

"I understand, you can go back now."

Secretary Gao said, "Be careful and stay safe during this time."

Qu Xiangru had told him everything that happened last night, including that she and Wu Qiangwei had been drugged.

Secretary Gao was taken aback upon learning this.

If something had indeed happened to the two women last night, the consequences would have been significant.

He hadn't expected Zhang Yan from the provincial city to have such guts.

Completely lawless!

Qu Xiangru made a round trip to Lingjiang and the provincial city in the morning and returned to Lingjiang just in time for noon.

She grabbed a quick bite and then asked Jiang Yiren to inform the standing committee members to convene a temporary meeting in the afternoon.

After notifying each member, Jiang Yiren leaned back in her chair, looking somewhat dazed.

This morning, as usual, she went to the precinct, waiting for Song Guanchao to arrive, only to learn from Captain Shi that Song Guanchao had killed someone.

In that moment, she was completely stunned.

Even though the information she had was limited, she could be sure that Song Guanchao was framed.

She was extremely worried about Song Guanchao, making numerous phone calls, but his phone was off, and she couldn't reach him.

She wanted to go in multiple times to ask Qu Xiangru, but held back every time.

At this moment, Qu Xiangru must be busy dealing with this situation.

All she could do was wait patiently.

2 PM.

The City Committee meeting room filled with all standing committee members.

Additionally, Captain Shi was also present at the meeting.

Upon seeing Captain Shi, some people seemed to sense what was coming.

"Captain Shi, the floor is yours," said Qu Xiangru, not presiding over the meeting, suggesting this was more of a special meeting than a regular standing committee meeting.

This unusual format piqued the curiosity of the committee leaders.

Captain Shi said, "Last night, the police received a call reporting a foul smell from Building 16, Room 101 in the Worker's New Village."

"Police dispatched and found the decayed body of a woman in the room."

"Through comparison and investigation, the identity of the deceased was confirmed as..."

The participants listened with little patience but could not stop listening.

If it was just an ordinary murder, there'd be no reason to bring it up at a standing committee meeting.

So, this case must be crucial.

A few minutes later, Captain Shi finally finished summarizing the case.

He paused for a few seconds, then said, "Building 16, Room 101 in the Worker's New Village is the rented residence of District Chief Song Guanchao."

"What?"

The committee members were taken aback, instantly understanding why a seemingly ordinary murder case was brought to this meeting.

It was related to Song Guanchao…

The next second, nearly everyone instinctively turned their gazes to Jiang Yuan.

This sudden attention made Jiang Yuan's face twitch uncontrollably.

He couldn't help cursing internally, Why are they looking at me!

This has nothing to do with me whatsoever!

They realized their actions were inappropriate and quickly averted their gazes.

But inside, suspicion lingered.

If anyone here had the biggest suspicion, it had to be Jiang Yuan!

Annoyed, Jiang Yuan said, "Captain Shi, aside from the body and the money, was there any other evidence that could identify the murderer at the crime scene?"

"Yes."

"Fingerprints!"

Captain Shi said, "Fingerprints of Song Guanchao were found on the scene, on the cash, gold, the body, and the murder weapon."

"All evidence points to one fact, Song Guanchao is the murderer..."

Before he could finish, his phone suddenly rang.

He was about to ignore it but saw the caller was from the evidence appraisal department, so he said, "Secretary Qu, may I take this call?"

"Go ahead."

"Hello, what did you say... Are you sure?"

Captain Shi's voice suddenly rose, as if he had heard something shocking, and everyone's curiosity was piqued at once.

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