Ning Yanran drove Xu Lang to the door of Lu Ye's house, and when the car was parked, the two got out of the car.

There was a cordon in front of Lu Ye's house, outsiders could not enter the scene, the two people lifted the cordon and walked into the yard, Xu Lang stood in the yard, looking at the flowers and plants in the yard that had already been taken care of for a long time because no one had taken care of them, and the scene was bleak, Xu Lang couldn't help but sigh, these withered flowers and plants were Lu Ye's favorite things before his death, among them, Xu Lang found that there was a pot of orchids placed at the door, but the leaves of the orchids had already withered and yellowed, and they were dilapidated.

This pot of orchids was Xu Lang after going to Zhuxi County, specially went to the nearby countryside, dug up in the deep mountains and old forests, three years ago, when Xu Lang returned to S City, he brought back the gift to Lu Ye, Lu Ye was particularly fond of and took care of this pot of orchids at that time, and now it has become this bleak situation.

Ning Yanran stood beside Xu Lang, and she found that Xu Lang's eyes had been staring at the pot of orchids, so she frowned and asked, "Did you find anything?" ”

Xu Lang shook his head and said, "No." ”

"Is there anything strange about that pot of orchids?"

"Nope."

"And what are you staring at it all the time?"

"Because I gave him that pot of orchids three years ago."

"Oh."

Hearing Xu Lang say this, Ning Yanran didn't ask anything.

Xu Lang also shifted his gaze, and did not look at the broken orchid again, but looked around and looked at everything in the yard.

The layout in the courtyard has not changed much from what Xu Lang saw when he came back three years ago, that is, the position of those flowers and plants is a little different.

After entering the door, Ning Yanran said to Xu Lang: "Director Lu's body was found in the study. ”

Xu Lang stood in the living room on the first floor, looking at the things around him, and hearing Ning Yanran say this, Xu Lang subconsciously raised his eyebrows and asked, "Who found the old man's body?" ”

"It was discovered by a former subordinate of Director Lu, named Bu Liang." Ning Yanran explained.

"Bu Liangcai?"

Hearing this name, Xu Lang stopped and frowned, in his impression, there seemed to be no such person as Bu Liangcai, so he cast a puzzled look at Ning Yanran.

Ning Yanran saw Xu Lang's doubtful look, so she said to Xu Lang: "Bu Liangcai is not a native of S City, but a native of Fengyang City, he used to be the deputy director of the Public Security Bureau in S City, and worked under Director Lu, and was later transferred back to Fengyang City to work, and now he is the director of the Fengyang City Public Security Bureau. ”

After listening to Ning Yanran's explanation, Xu Lang knew who this Bu Liang was, but Xu Lang still asked, "What did Bu Liang come to find the old man for?" ”

Ning Yanran said without thinking: "According to his account, he came to S City to find Director Lu this time, first, to visit the old leaders, and secondly, to ask Director Lu for help. ”

"Help? How can it help? Xu Lang asked casually.

"Bu Liangcai has been the director of the public security bureau in Fengyang City for twelve years, and now it is time to change the leadership team, he wants to ask Director Lu to help talk, he wants to go further." Ning Yanran said.

Xu Lang's brows became more and more frowned, he was very disgusted with this kind of person who climbed up by relationship, but disgust was disgust, he still didn't say anything, but said: "The old man's foundation is in S City, Bu Liangcai is in Fengyang City, although the two cities are adjacent, but, what can the old man help?" Besides, the old man retired a few years ago, and you don't know the rules of officialdom. ”

Xu Lang's words are very unruly, and very naked-naked, Ning Yanran also smiled helplessly after hearing Xu Lang say this, Xu Lang said these are the truth, although Ning Yanran is now the deputy director of the Public Security Bureau, although she is a criminal policeman, but she still knows the rules of officialdom, after all, Ning Tianhua is still working in the province, for the second generation of officials like Ning Yanran, she has seen a lot of things since she was a child, and she can't refute Xu Lang's statement, because, what Xu Lang said is the truth, However, she still explained: "Although Director Lu's foundation is in S City, he didn't go to work in the province before he retired, and he has some connections in the province, Bu Liang is Director Lu's old subordinate, so he naturally knows this situation, and he is looking for Director Lu for this reason." ”

After listening to Ning Yanran's explanation, Xu Lang shook his head and said: "Let's not say that the old man is no longer working in the province and has retired, even if the old man is not retired, he has only been in the province for less than a year, what help can he give Bu Liangcai, besides, don't you know the old man's temperament, will he help Bu Liangcai?" Definitely not. ”

"Why not?" This time it was Ning Yanran's turn to be curious.

Xu Lang and Ning Yanran walked towards the second floor, and said as they walked: "More than ten years ago, Bu Liangcai was the deputy director of the S City Public Security Bureau, and he was transferred back to Fengyang City and served as the director of the Public Security Bureau, which could have been regarded as a step forward, but you also said just now, he has been sitting in the position of the director of the Public Security Bureau for twelve years, think about it, what is the concept of a person sitting in a position for twelve years?" He is not the kind of person who can be promoted but doesn't want to be promoted, he wants to be promoted very much, but he still hasn't been promoted, why? ”

"Why?" Ning Yanran asked subconsciously.

"Ability, conduct, leadership, etc., these places must have great deficiencies, Huaxia is a very democratic-dominated country, if Bu Liangcai really has real talent and hard work, the superior leaders will definitely promote him, even if he doesn't want to be promoted, the superior leaders will arrange for him to be promoted, but he has not been promoted, why? It's not that the ability is insufficient, it is very important to help the country promote and cultivate talents, but it also depends on whether the other party has the ability to stay in that position, if I don't guess, the position of the deputy director of the Public Security Bureau of Fengyang City is vacant, right? Bu Liangcai came to the old man this time, just for the position of deputy director, right? Xu Lang stood at the staircase on the second floor and looked at Ning Yanran and asked.

Ning Yanran glanced at Xu Lang with complicated eyes, then nodded silently, and said: "What you said is not wrong at all, the former director of the Public Security Bureau of Fengyang City retired a year ago, and the deputy director was naturally promoted to a level and became the director, and the position of the deputy director was vacant, and the directors of several public security bureaus in Fengyang City were staring at that position, and Bu Liangcai was one of them, he has been sitting in the position of the director of the public security bureau for more than ten years, and naturally wants to go further, but it is similar to what you said, There is nothing wrong with Bu Liangcai taking the position of director of the Public Security Bureau, but it is not suitable for him to become the deputy director of the Public Security Bureau, and his ability is indeed insufficient. ”

Xu Lang nodded, not on this topic, but asked, "What did Bu Liangcai come to find the old man?" ”

"The morning of January 18th."

As they spoke, the two of them came to Lu Ye's study, most of the things in the study had not moved, but there were a lot of things missing on the desk, which should have been taken back by Ning Yanran and them for inspection.

"When Director Lu's body was found, Director Lu was sitting behind the desk, lying on the table, his eyes were wide, one hand was covering his chest, and the other hand was still holding his mobile phone, as if he wanted to call the emergency number, but before the call could be dialed, Director Lu died." Ning Yanran introduced.

Xu Lang nodded and said, "When is the specific time of the old man's death?" ”

"It was around January 15th." Ning Yanran said.

"The body was found on the eighteenth, and the old man died on the fifteenth, that is, three days have passed from the death of the old man to the discovery of the body, right?" Xu Lang asked.

Ning Yanran nodded and said, "That's right." ”

"The last mobile phone the old man was holding, is the number dialed an emergency number?" Xu Lang walked behind the desk, looked at the chair behind the desk and asked.

Ning Yanran frowned, thought about it, and said, "Not sure." ”

"Not sure?"

Xu Lang raised his head and looked at Ning Yanran in surprise.

As if she knew what Xu Lang was thinking, Ning Yanran explained: "After we found Director Lu's body, we checked the mobile phone and found that Director Lu's last dialed number was not pressed, only a 1 was pressed, and the rest was gone. ”

Hearing Ning Yanran say this, Xu Lang immediately understood why Ning Yanran said that he was not sure, Huaxiaguo's phone number all opened with 1, whether it was a police call, an emergency number, or a private phone, it was almost the same, except for landline phones, and in addition, the first question arose.

Before Lu Ye died, did he call the emergency number for help, or call the police, or call someone? It's not clear yet.

Xu Lang thought of this and asked, "Did you find anything else in the examination of the mobile phone?" ”

Ning Yanran nodded and said, "Yes." ”

"What discovery?"

"In the past half a month, Director Lu has made five calls from an unfamiliar phone on his mobile phone, and each time the call time is not short, and the longest call time was on December 27 last year, and the call time was 47 minutes."

"December 27th?"

Xu Lang repeated, and then, he remembered that when he was in the detective agency before, Liao Yi had told himself that at nine o'clock in the evening of December 28, a strange man came to Lu Ye's house to find Lu Ye, and it was Lu Ye himself who opened the door to the strange man at that time, and this strange call came the day before the stranger came, and the two sides chatted on the phone for so long, so the second question appeared.

Who is this person who called Lu Ye? Is it a strange man who came to find Lu Ye? If so, then why did the other party call Lu Ye before coming? If not, then who is calling? Who was the stranger who came to find Lu Ye? Is there any relationship between the two parties? Xu Lang didn't know.

"When was the first time this strange call came?" Xu Lang asked.

"It's three o'clock in the afternoon on December 27th." Ning Yanran said.

"When was the last time you called?" Xu Lang asked again.

"It was the day Director Lu died, and the time was more than eight o'clock in the morning on January 15."

"When exactly did the old man die?"

"According to the results of the autopsy by the forensic doctor, it should be around 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on January 15."

Hearing Ning Yanran say this, Xu Lang frowned and fell into deep thought.

Judging from what Ning Yanran said, Lu Ye should have died after receiving a call from the other party, so what did the other party say to Lu Ye on the phone? Why did Lu Ye die suddenly? Xu Lang couldn't figure it out.

"Did you check the phone? Any clues that are not? Xu Lang asked.

"We went to the telecommunications company, retrieved the relevant information of this mobile phone number, and found some things, but it didn't mean much." Ning Yanran said.

Xu Lang looked at Ning Yanran and asked puzzledly, "What do you say?" ”

"The owner of the mobile phone card is called Mao Qi, a foreigner who came to S City to work, working on the construction site, we also found Mao Qi, according to Mao Qi, his ID card was lost as early as last summer, because the ID card is not often used on the construction site, he temporarily made a temporary ID card, and originally planned to reissue an ID card when the New Year passed."

"Are you sure Mao Qi is okay?" Xu Lang asked.

Ning Yanran shook her head and said, "The investigation is very detailed, everything is the same as he said, his ID card is indeed lost, and the colleagues around him know about it." ”

"When was the calling card issued?" Xu Lang asked.

"It was handled in a small business hall in October last year, and we also investigated it." Ning Yanran said.

"Did you find any clues?"

Ning Yanran shook her head again and said: "No, although there is a surveillance video in the business hall, the coverage time of the surveillance video is very short, and it is generally covered in seven days, and we also brought the surveillance back for restoration, but we still didn't find any relevant information, and, according to the salesperson's recollection, she couldn't remember the physical characteristics of the other party, only knew that it was a woman who came to handle this mobile phone card, and in addition, she didn't provide us with any useful information." ”

"Then after the incident, did you call this mobile phone card?"

"I have beaten it, but it can't get through, so it should be discarded." Ning Yanran said.

Hearing this, Xu Lang showed a look of disappointment, he knew that if he wanted to track down the clue through the strange phone, it seemed unrealistic now, the other party handled everything very cleanly, and Xu Lang believed that no matter whether the salesman in the business hall remembered the appearance of the woman who came to apply for the mobile phone card, even if the police found the woman, it is estimated that they would not get any useful clues, it seems that everything has to start with the strange man who came to find Lu Ye, but Ning Yanran also said, The investigation of the strange man has not yet yielded results, so it seems that it is unrealistic to investigate the truth of Lu Ye's death in a short period of time.

However, although the truth of Lu Ye's death has not yet been investigated, Xu Lang can be sure that Lu Ye's death is definitely not a natural death, it must be related to the strange phone call and the strange man who came to find Lu Ye, and these two clues have not made much progress for the time being, looking at the current case, Xu Lang has a sense of déjà vu.

That's right, it's déjà vu, this modus operandi that doesn't leave any useful clues for the police, reminds Xu Lang of the organization that makes Xu Lang grit his teeth and chill whenever he thinks of it, 'Master Chang'.

They are back, Lu Ye's death may be a good proof, after five years, this organization has reappeared in S City, what does this mean? It shows that they have come out of the heavy blow of the year, and what is the purpose of their appearance this time? What kind of turmoil and disasters will it bring to the coastal city of S City? Xu Lang didn't know, but he had a hunch that the reappearance of 'Master Chang' would definitely mean that they were about to make a big move, and as for what this action was, Xu Lang didn't know yet.

Xu Lang carefully investigated in the study and other rooms, but no new clues were found, and the things that were basically related to Lu Ye's death at the scene were taken away by the police, and Xu Lang believed that Ning Yanran's ability to handle the case would definitely not let go of any suspicious clues, if Xu Lang came to the scene of the crime for the first time and found something that the police ignored, then, Xu Lang's case-handling level and case-handling ability of the S City police would have serious suspicions, but, fortunately, This kind of thing didn't happen, and it can't happen.

After the two of them walked around the scene, Xu Lang and Ning Yanran walked out of Lu Ye's house, but when Xu Lang was leaving, he went to look at the portrait of Lu Ye's wife, he stood in front of the portrait and was stunned for a long time without speaking, his eyes were very complicated, obscure, I don't know what I was thinking, Ning Yanran didn't feel strange after seeing this scene, after all, Lu Ye has no children and no daughters, Xu Lang is equivalent to their son, and Xu Lang treats them like his own parents.

After the two of them walked out of Lu Ye's house, they got into the car, Ning Yanran started the car and asked, "Where are you going now?" ”

Xu Lang thought for a while and said, "Let's go to the Public Security Bureau, I want to see the old man's body." ”

Ning Yanran nodded, didn't ask anything more, just stepped on the accelerator, and the car drove away.

And after Xu Lang and Ning Yanran left here, on the balcony of a house not far from Lu Ye's house, a person walked out, he looked at Ning Yanran's distant vehicle, looked at it, then turned around and went back to the house, took out his mobile phone and dialed a number, and the man said in a very hoarse voice: "Xu Lang is back." ”