Chapter 504: The Identity of the Killer

"I... I know..."

"What do you know?" Ling Chen asked eagerly.

But as soon as the words left his mouth, he saw Kaelina close her eyes and fall back into a deep sleep.

Seeing this, Ling Chen couldn’t help but let out a wry smile. At times like this, he couldn’t force Kaelina to say too much.

Just then, Jiang Yunkai walked into the hospital room from outside and said, "Ling Chen, the police have arrived."

"Got it."

Leaving the hospital room, Ling Chen saw Xia Mutong standing in the corridor with more than a dozen police officers, each armed with a gun. It was clear that after watching the murderer’s violent actions, Xia Mutong understood the danger and had made preparations in advance.

"Officer Xia." Ling Chen stepped forward to greet him.

Xia Mutong pointed at the security guards in suits and asked, "Are these people arranged by you?"

"That’s right."

"Have them step back. From this point on, that lady’s safety is fully the responsibility of the police."

"Okay." Ling Chen nodded and replied with a smile, "Then I’ll leave it to all of you."

With these armed police officers for protection, Kaelina should be safe. No matter how fierce the killer was, he would not be faster than bullets, especially with so many police officers around.

On the way out of the hospital, Ling Chen noticed plainclothes officers positioned all around the hospital’s hallways and corridors; it seemed Xia Mutong had the whole hospital under surveillance.

"Kai, you take everyone back first. I’ll contact you if there’s any trouble."

"Alright."

After watching Jiang Yunkai and the others drive away, Ling Chen hailed a cab by himself, planning to return to Wealthy Manor.

But just then, his cellphone rang in his pocket.

"Hello! Fatty, got any leads?"

"I’m in the Old City, come quick."

"I’ll be there within half an hour."

After hanging up, Ling Chen immediately took a cab to a courier company located in the Old City, which was Jiang Hao’s main intelligence station in the Old City. All intelligence gathered would be processed there.

After going through several layers of security, Ling Chen walked into the office as if familiar with the place. Hu Fei was sitting at a three-meter-wide desk, focusing on six computer screens, typing rapidly on the keyboard.

"Fatty, did you find the person?" Ling Chen leaned in and asked.

Hu Fei pointed at one of the screens and said, "Following the method you provided, I had the taxi companies reach out to the drivers who picked up fares near the library at noon today, and I’ve collected all the footage from their dash cams. And wouldn’t you know it, your method actually worked. Look! A taxi just happened to pass by the library entrance at that time and caught this on camera."

As he spoke, Hu Fei zoomed in on the footage, locking the cursor on a person.

"You said before that the person was wearing a grey down jacket and a hood, and it should be this person here."

Ling Chen stared at the image of the murderer on the screen, who blended into the crowd and disappeared into an alley in the blink of an eye.

"Is that all?"

"Don’t rush it, keep watching." Hu Fei said, "I checked the map for that alley’s exits and it connects directly to the street opposite. You reminded me that this individual is very professional in his actions, and since I consider myself somewhat of a professional as well, I theorized from a professional standpoint that the person would have changed his appearance as quickly as possible after entering the alley, including his clothes. As I expected, my men went to check the alley and, sure enough, they found a grey down jacket in a trash bin."

Continuing, Hu Fei brought up another image, grinning and saying, "That guy thought he could disappear without a trace, but he still missed a step. Across from the exit of that alley, there was an ATM. This is footage from that ATM; take a look. This is the only person who came out of the alley at that time, and the timing matches perfectly."

Watching the enlarged image on the screen, Ling Chen’s mouth curled into a smile as he patted Hu Fei’s shoulder, "Fatty, nicely done."

With a look of pride, Hu Fei said, "Of course, who do you think you hired?" After a pause, his tone shifted, "But speaking of which, those few people you trained are pretty good, smart enough to use the courier and taxi companies to establish an intelligence network. If it weren’t for the dash cam footage, we wouldn’t have found the murderer so quickly."

"Their ideas are good, but they are not professionals. Since you specialize in intelligence work and have experience, I brought you in this time in hopes that you could help refine it and prevent any leaks."

"Don’t worry, give me a month, and I’ll have the intelligence network covering the whole East Sea City, but well..."

Hearing Hu Fei’s tone at the end of his sentence, Ling Chen could guess what he was going to say next without even thinking.

"Ling Chen, clear debts make close friends. You brought me in for this job, so don’t skimp on the commission. Also, setting up the intelligence network is going to need a significant investment; you can’t expect me to foot the bill."

"Cut it out, you won’t be left short. I’ll call Jiang Hao in a bit; just ask him directly for whatever financing you need. He’ll fully support you."

Ling Chen knew the importance of intelligence and couldn’t be stingy in this aspect; he was willing to spend whatever it took.

After chatting for a bit more, Ling Chen got back to the point, "Fatty, can you help me find out where the killer is?"

"I’ve checked the person’s background. His name is Jiang Xinwu, thirty-eight years old. Ten years ago, he invested in opening a Martial Arts Academy in a northern city, but for some reason, he suddenly disappeared without a trace, and even his family reported him missing, but he was never found. Years later, the police concluded that Jiang Xinwu might be dead and stopped the search."

Ten years ago...

Ling Chen mulled over it for a moment and then said, "First, help me find out where this person is living. Also, look into how many people have gone missing across the country in the past ten years, and how many of those missing are martial artists. I don’t need an exact figure, just an estimate."

"Holy crap!"

Hu Fei’s eyes bulged as he exclaimed, "Are you trying to run me into the ground?"

"Cut it out." Ling Chen joked, "Gross, who’s trying to run you into the ground? That’s a woman’s job, and I’m not about that."

"No, it’s just..." Hu Fei rushed, "Do you have any idea how many people go missing in the country every year? Trying to look that up like you suggested, I’ll work myself to death. I won’t do it, even if you kill me..."

"One million."

"Don’t write checks you can’t cash."

"Okay! No problem." Ling Chen grinned, understanding Fatty’s character all too well - as long as there’s money involved, everything is negotiable.

"Alright then, get going if there’s nothing else. Don’t disturb me while I’m working."

Leaving the courier company, Ling Chen strolled along the street, looking up at the darkening sky. It was almost evening.

He had initially set out to pick a birthday gift for Nanrong Wanqing, but instead, he ran into all these troubles, which was really worrisome.

"Ling Chen!"

While pondering, a pleasant voice suddenly came from the side of the road.