Chapter 863: Confirming the Identity
Lu Chuan and his team rushed to Zhang Manman’s residence.
In the car, Wang Zhaokai briefly reported the relevant situation.
Of course, whether the deceased’s identity can be confirmed is still just speculation.
At 123 Nanping Road, Southern Home District, Lu Chuan and Wang Zhaokai met Zhang Manman.
"We lived together at the time and had a pretty good relationship, but then Chen Huihui disappeared, and couldn’t be contacted."
Zhang Manman looked very young, not like someone in their forties, more like thirty at most.
Her speech was gentle, naturally giving a sense of closeness.
Wang Zhaokai was asking her some questions about her friend.
"Disappeared?"
Zhang Manman shook her head: "I wouldn’t say disappeared. At the time, there were two types of girls working in KTV. We sold drinks; they were different."
"Many people just left inexplicably, and no one could reach them. It was a normal thing."
"Chen Huihui... That’s what we called her, but I’m not sure if that was really her name."
Zhang Manman spoke carelessly: "Otherwise, she wouldn’t have used my identity at the hospital."
Wang Zhaokai kept questioning, while Lu Chuan listened from the side.
"Have you been in contact since?"
Zhang Manman shook her head: "I only worked in that KTV for a year and then left."
"But I once heard Chen Huihui say her hometown was in Liangzhou in a village called Three Gaps, but that’s all I know."
The inquiry was quickly completed.
Zhang Manman didn’t like to mention the events of back then much.
She was even less willing to talk about her own matters.
But fortunately, Wang Zhaokai still got some useful information.
Liangzhou City, a place called Three Gaps, might be Chen Huihui’s hometown.
"Captain Lu, should we send people over?"
Currently, the identity of the deceased cannot be confirmed because the body’s appearance is unrecognizable, and Zhang Manman couldn’t directly confirm the identity either.
So, we can only find her relatives in her hometown and confirm through DNA comparison.
"In that case, over in Liangzhou... You take people there."
Lu Chuan pondered and decided to let Wang Zhaokai go there and take a look.
"Since the name Chen Huihui isn’t even confirmed, we can only compare it with the missing persons over there."
That’s the main reason Lu Chuan asked Wang Zhaokai to go.
"There may not be a missing report, but we have to check the personnel situation in the Three Gaps Village over the past decade or so and see if there’s any breakthrough."
"Yes!"
After leaving Nanping Road, Wang Zhaokai took three of his team members and drove off.
On the other hand, Lu Chuan thought about it and called Chen Jiang over.
The KTV where Zhang Manman worked years ago no longer exists, but the boss hasn’t disappeared.
He’s now running a massage parlor in Haizhou City.
Lu Chuan instructed Chen Jiang to investigate the KTV and Zhang Manman from those days.
While Wang Zhaokai was questioning Zhang Manman, Lu Chuan, though silent, was observing her reactions.
She seemed unwilling to recall the past.
Lu Chuan could understand that.
KTV sells drinks, but how?
It’s more like accompanying drinking.
Yet, regarding Chen Huihui, despite living together back then, Zhang Manman knew very little about her situation.
This seems abnormal.
Of course, this is merely speculation.
Whether the deceased’s identity is indeed the Chen Huihui mentioned by Zhang Manman remains uncertain.
Everything is just under investigation.
Solving cases is like this, finding the possibilities related to the case among many potential ones, then there might be breakthroughs.
If not found, the case remains unsolved and other clues need to be sought.
In Liangzhou City, Wang Zhaokai, and his team have arrived at the Three Gaps Village mentioned by Zhang Manman.
"No missing persons."
The response from the village chief left Wang Zhaokai feeling disheartened.
For years, there hadn’t been any missing persons from Three Gaps Village.
Except for an accident five years ago when someone died in a car crash outside, there haven’t been any incidents.
"We don’t have anyone named Chen Huihui either."
Names and addresses have no leads.
Did Zhang Manman provide false information, or did Chen Huihui not mention any personal details?
"Village Chief Li, are there any nearby villages with similar names to yours?"
Similar?
Village Chief Li shook his head: "Our village is unique because of its location at the intersection of three roads, so it’s called Three Gaps. There’s no village with a similar name within a hundred miles."
No...
"Captain Wang, should we go back?"
Go back?
Wang Zhaokai thought about it, then asked: "Village Chief Li, could you provide information on all the women who left your village in the last sixteen years?"
"Including those who went out for work, those who married elsewhere, we need all of them."
"No problem, I’ve been the village chief here for over twenty years, and I know the details of every household."
"Wait a bit, I’ll organize it and have it for you by the afternoon."
Thanks to a heads-up from the local police station, Village Chief Li was very cooperative.
While Wang Zhaokai continued his investigation in Three Gaps Village, there were unexpected findings regarding Zhang Manman from the Criminal Investigation Team.
Chen Jiang obtained some information that surprised Lu Chuan.
"Captain Lu, this Zhang Manman wasn’t selling drinks back then. She, like Chen Huihui, worked as a hostess."
Although the KTV boss from back then didn’t remember these people well, several of his henchmen from those days were familiar with them.
Also, Zhang Manman didn’t work at the KTV for just a year but rather for two years.
Later, she met a wealthy man and left with him.
"We’ve done a detailed investigation into Zhang Manman’s situation. She got married five years ago, and her husband is a school teacher."
Lu Chuan was taken aback: "A teacher?"
Chen Jiang nodded: "Yes, an elementary school teacher, a stand-in partner."
"From what we’ve gathered, Zhang Manman and Chen Huihui lived together, and they should be quite familiar."
Lu Chuan flipped through the documents Chen Jiang brought back, asking in confusion: "Familiar?"
"Yes, according to a former staff member at the KTV, when Chen Huihui left, it was Zhang Manman who introduced her to a wealthy man, and she was never seen again."
If that’s the case, then Zhang Manman lied?
According to what Zhang Manman said, Chen Huihui left suddenly.
Now, we’ve learned that Chen Huihui left because Zhang Manman introduced her to a man?
Meanwhile, in the Three Gaps Village, Liangzhou.
"There are only these twelve people."
From eleven to sixteen years ago, there were only twelve women who left Three Gaps Village.
Wang Zhaokai’s attention was caught by a name, Chen Meimei.
"Village Chief Li, this Chen Meimei... died thirteen years ago?"
Village Chief Li nodded: "She was working outside back then, found a wealthy husband, but died of illness."
Wang Zhaokai continued, "Are her family members still here?"