966 Various Charges
“Don’t move! All of you, sit properly! Raise your hands and don’t move! Stop what you’re doing!” Zou Ming, the police officer in charge, shouted at them.
Thank you readers!
Everyone raised their hands in unison and waited for the police’s next instructions. This was not a grave offense. If they were arrested, they would just need to pay a fine and sit through an education session.
However, the thing was these people could not afford the fine of 100 dollars. It was equivalent to their entire family’s food expenses for half a year! If they did not have money to pay the fine, they would be imprisoned for a year before being released.
“Brother… we’re just friends having some fun together. We’re not gambling! Can’t friends play mahjong together?” one of the neighbors asked softly.
Zou Ming walked over and looked at their mahjong table. “Do you think I’m a fool? Are you sure you’re not gambling? It’s not the new year or any festive season today. How much money do you have in your pockets? Do you need me to search you one by one?”
!!
“No need! No need! I’ll confess! I’ll confess! I’ll confess to anything! Don’t take my money!” said a person squatting on the ground fearfully with his hands behind his head.
He was the richest person among them. Furthermore, he had withdrawn a sum of money from the bank today and made a detour here before he returned home. He did not expect to be arrested by the police!
Zou Ming looked around. Everyone had lowered their heads so he could not see their faces. “Which one of you is Su Yang’s mother?”
No one said anything. At this moment, Old Madam Fan was also very afraid. The police officers she usually met were those who did not carry guns. Now, there were at least 10 police officers surrounding them in the house. Old Madam Fan was very scared that the police would shoot her if she made them agitated.
“Which of you is Su Yang’s mother? Step forward yourself and don’t let us screen all of you one by one,” Zou Ming said as he looked at the crowd.
One of the neighbors suddenly stood up, pointed at Old Madam Fan and shouted, “It’s her! Arrest her! She’s Su Yang’s mother. Arrest her, don’t arrest me! Let me go!”
The police pinned him to the ground again. Everyone felt that they would be safe as long as they pointed out Old Madam Fan. All eyes were fixed on her.
Seeing that she could not avoid it, Old Madam Fan stood up in fear and said, “Me… I’m Su Yang’s mother…”
Two of the police officers walked forward and handcuffed Old Madam Fan. The rest of the people were told to go back to their original seats. The police station would arrange for a bigger vehicle to come and pick them up.
“You come with us. Fatty, the two of you stay here and keep an eye on the rest. Someone will come and pick them up later. Don’t let any of them escape! If even one of them escapes, you can forget about keeping your job!” Zou Ming said.
“Understood!” Fatty shouted.
Along the way, Old Madam Fan lowered her head and did not dare to say a word. She did not know what she had done. Even if the crime was her gathering everyone to play mahjong, the police would not have mentioned Su Yang’s name. Could it be that something had happened to Su Yang?
When they arrived at the police station, Old Madam Fan behaved differently from her usual threatening manner and followed behind Zou Ming obediently. It was not until they reached the interrogation room that Old Madam Fan looked up. This was her first time here.
“Do you know what your son, Su Yang, has done recently?” Zou Ming asked as he opened the interrogation records.
Old Madam Fan shook her head and said, “I don’t know. What has my son done?”
These were phrases which Qiao Mei had taught Sun Juan to say. If she only described what happened to the police officers, they would deem it to be a fight caused by personal grudges. At the end of the year, all the government departments would tally their work achievements for the year. It was not only the train station which needed to submit their yearly results for appraisal. The police station would also need to do the same and they would even be appraised more stringently.
Generally, the police would not want to pursue matters which could be settled among the parties involved. If both parties were willing to settle, it would be purposeless for them to insist on putting someone in jail. There would always be people who were willing to give up their rights and interests for money. It was a tough job being a police officer.