CH 221

They changed their clothes quickly.

The shirt that Secretary Chen brought wasn’t quite the right size, so Lin Chen rolled up the cuffs. However, he had difficulty moving his hand due to the wound in his palm. Without hesitation, Xing Conglian held his hand and took over.

When Xing Conglian’s rough and calloused fingertips brushed over his wrist, Lin Chen’s fingers trembled slightly.

Xing Conglian chuckled and said softly, “Why so nervous? You took off my clothes so easily earlier, didn’t you?”

In the darkness, Lin Chen could only vaguely see Xing Conglian’s hands, which were steady when holding a gun, carefully rolling up his sleeves. Lin Chen said in a low voice, “Maybe because I prefer to take the initiative.”

Xing Conglian pretended not to hear and took his other hand. After he finished rolling up the sleeve, he suddenly leaned in and kissed the corner of his lips. “From now on, I’ll take the initiative.”

Lin Chen smiled helplessly, feeling more composed. They didn’t have much time alone, so he quickly changed the subject.

“What about Wang Chao?”

Xing Conglian replied, “There was strange interference in the communication system at that time, and Wang Chao stayed at the scene to investigate what happened.”

Lin Chen found it hard to understand. “Interference? The killer is so smart that they can even hack into the police communication system? And was the arrest operation leaked in advance? Otherwise, how could Shen Lian react so quickly and create such chaos in such a short time?”

Xing Conglian shook his head. “I don’t know. We have to wait for Wang Chao’s investigation’s results. However, I think our channel was being monitored, so when we reacted, Shen Lian’s reaction would have been faster than ours.”

Lin Chen’s heart skipped a beat. The swift response process couldn’t be simply explained by being prepared. He continued to ask, “So, do you think Shen Lian really caused the trouble at the barbecue stand?”

“It’s hard to say, but we all know what those Gaomeng people who received drug trials are like. Today’s sudden madness among the barbecue customers is similar to that of those Gaomeng people. And both are involved. Besides Shen Lian, it’s either Duan Yang or us. I can’t think of any other suspicious person for now.”

Lin Chen nodded and quickly asked, “The next question is, how did the poisoned drugs get into the crazed customers?”

“It happened suddenly, and I didn’t think it through at first. But I suddenly realized that when the incident occurred, all the people who went crazy were very close to the barbecue stand… If it wasn’t food, then…”

Lin Chen suddenly realized, “Was it smoke?”

Xing Conglian neither confirmed nor denied it. “We still need to examine the scene to determine, but most of the smoke was blown into the sky. So when you explain it to the media later, you may need to remind nearby residents that if they feel any physical or emotional abnormalities, they should seek medical attention as soon as possible.”

“Let me think about it,” Lin Chen interrupted. “If we hastily notify the public of this news, it could easily cause panic. Human imagination is endless, and we’re not even sure if the problem really lies in the smoke from the barbecue stand. Should we wait for the relevant test results to come out before making a decision?”

Xing Conglian said solemnly, “We may not have time to wait for the test results. Since it may be a new type of drug that we have never seen before, the chemical substance will be difficult for us to detect. It will take a lot of time to determine the exact composition of this drug. If it were that simple, Lu Jia wouldn’t have gone through so much trouble to kidnap Duan Yang to Dana.”

“I understand, but let me think about it.” At this point, Lin Chen suddenly thought of something and said, “You’re right, we may have something else that could be useful.”

“What is it?”

“Since Shen Lian once sent research data on the new drug to Duan Yang, there must be a backup at Duan Yang’s place. Regardless of whether it’s true or false, the original data at that time may help us figure out what Shen Lian is up to.”

Xing Conglian asked, “So where is the original data? After Duan Yang was kidnapped, didn’t Shen Lian go to clear the scene?”

“In fact, I asked Duan Yang to hide his stuff in the beanbag on the second floor of the pet store where he used to work. Hopefully, the owner didn’t just throw it away.”

“I hope not.” Xing Conglian leaned in again and kissed Lin Chen on the forehead, then sighed. “Why are you so clever?”

Lin Chen was stunned. Xing Conglian’s sweet gestures were irresistible, and he could only steady his mind and say, “We still need to find an expert who can understand and analyze these things. Can we ask Mrs. Jiang Chao?”

“I will find someone who is relatively trustworthy. Don’t worry,” Xing Conglian said. “But this won’t help you solve the problem you are about to solve now. The responsibility is on me.”

Xing Conglian was referring to the issue of the swarm of media. Lin Chen frowned. Since Duan Yang’s appearance, all the problems kept piling up and turned into a very complex mess. The death of Professor Duan was more like a sharp sword, directly cutting through the tangle and leading them to the culprit. Unfortunately, they missed the best opportunity to catch Shen Lian during this process. Lin Chen could understand why Xing Conglian was so rarely frustrated and even self-blaming. He patted Xing Conglian’s shoulder and said seriously, “I’m not saying this just because I love you, but I think your judgment from beginning to end was correct. Shen Lian is extremely dangerous, and we must arrest her as soon as possible without hesitation. If there were problems during the arrest, that’s unpredictable…”

Xing Conglian lifted his head slightly and looked at him. ” Consultant Lin, what you’re actually saying is you’re blinded by love and think that I’m always right. That would make me even happier, really.”

Lin Chen felt that his worry just now about Xing Conglian being under too much pressure was a bit unfounded. But he couldn’t help but hug Xing Conglian again for what he had just said. “So, I’ve decided not to solve the problem you mentioned for the time being,” Lin Chen said.

“What do you mean?” Xing Conglian asked bluntly.

Lin Chen said, “I have decided not to disclose any information about Shen Lian to the media, pretending that we have not identified the suspect.”

“Why?” asked Xing Conglian straightforwardly.

“Because we don’t know what Shen Lian is up to,” Lin Chen said calmly, though he felt increasingly uneasy. “She used Duan Yang to set up a chain of false evidence against Professor Duan Wanshan, assassinate Tan Kang, and falsify Professor Duan’s DNA and fingerprints. While these actions might have been motivated by personal grievances, listening in on the police radio, poisoning people in a crowded market, and endangering public health have turned this into a highly complex social event. Assuming that Shen Lian was powerful enough to set up all these schemes in advance, it means that she was fully aware that the police would eventually find out and was prepared to escape while throwing us off her trail. Her modus operandi reflects her inner state; if she was behind the barbecue stall incident, it means she has a deep-seated hatred for society and is ruthless. Therefore, she is extremely dangerous.”

“If Shen Lian is so dangerous, shouldn’t we make the public aware of how dangerous she is and warn everyone to be on guard?” Xing Conglian asked.

“I believe that the public’s right to know is a delicate matter,” Lin Chen said seriously. “Everyone claims that they have the right to know the truth, but that doesn’t mean we have to report every step we take to the public. The key is that even we, the police, don’t know what’s going on. How can we explain it to the public? In uncertain situations, we must weigh the pros and cons. Let’s analyze the benefits of telling the public the name of the suspect, Shen Lian. First, we have a target to alleviate the pressure, and everyone will focus on Shen Lian rather than the police. Second, we can use the usual tactic of swarming people, drowning Shen Lian in the sea of the masses, and exposing her whereabouts. Does that make sense?”

“It can be said so,” Xing Conglian said.

Lin Chen nodded and asked, “We don’t need to release pressure, but what about the latter? Shen Lian not only managed to assassinate Tan Kang under the surveillance of the amusement park but also evaded police surveillance. It shows that her counter-detection ability is not only advanced but also sophisticated. I’m afraid that even using the usual tactic of swarming people, we can’t find Shen Lian in a short time. Moreover, if we make her feel tremendous pressure, she may suddenly use the toxic drugs in her possession to create a greater public safety event. What should we do?” Lin Chen paused, stood up, opened the curtain covering the hospital bed, and turned to Xing Conglian. “I remember that you used code names during the arrest operation, right? Therefore, we probably never explicitly mentioned the name ‘Shen Lian’ from beginning to end, did we?”

Xing Conglian was silent for a moment and then said, “As far as I remember, that’s right. We never mentioned ‘Shen Lian’ specifically from start to finish, but Lao Zhang whispered ‘Shen Lian’ to me in the police car. He turned off the microphone and spoke softly, so it’s unlikely that it was transmitted from my microphone.”

Lin Chen said, “Since that’s the case, I think we should hold off for now. First, we need to try and deceive Shen Lian, making her doubt that the police aren’t targeting her as the suspect. If we can’t do that, I need to see what Shen Lian is planning to do next.”

“You’re gambling!” Xing Conglian’s voice rose slightly.

“Psychologists are all game masters.” Lin Chen pulled Xing Conglian up from the bed. “If the enemy doesn’t move, I won’t move. Even if she does move, I can choose not to. Trust me. Otherwise, how could I have won you over?”

Lin Chen attempted to evade the issue with his last sentence, but Xing Conglian suddenly realized the problem. “Wait a minute, don’t think I don’t know that by choosing not to disclose information about Shen Lian, you’re taking responsibility for any problems that arise.”

Lin Chen looked at Xing Conglian in confusion. “What responsibility do I have? Don’t you have my back?”

Xing Conglian was at a loss for words.

Lin Chen continued, “So, during the time we can barely deceive Shen Lian, we need to first analyze the specific composition of this new drug or poison, and secondly, quickly track down Shen Lian’s whereabouts.”

“I understand, Consultant Lin,” Xing Conglian said helplessly.

“Then that’s settled…” While speaking, Lin Chen was about to leave the hospital bed to open the door, but Xing Conglian grabbed his wrist.

Lin Chen’s heart inexplicably skipped a beat. He thought it was some kind of farewell kiss or something, but Xing Conglian remained silent for a moment before asking in a calm tone, “One last question. Do you think this case has anything to do with the White Sand case? I mean the fruit vendor who went crazy and started attacking people.”

Lin Chen’s heart skipped a beat again. “I don’t understand what you mean. There is no evidence to prove any connection between these two cases. In the White Sand case, the fruit vendor’s body had a clear presence of stimulant ingredients… If you’re not sure, we can also compare the test results from back then.”

“I’m not unsure,” Xing Conglian said. “What I mean is, they’re both incidents of going crazy, and they both happened in Hongjing. If a journalist asks about Feng Peilin, how will you answer?”

“Occam’s razor*,” Lin Chen replied.

*Problem-solving principle that recommends searching for explanations constructed with the smallest possible elements. It advocates that when presented with competing hypotheses about the same prediction, one should prefer the one that requires the fewest assumptions, and that this is not meant to be a way of choosing between hypotheses that make different predictions. || In this context, he’s basically saying, even if the White Sand case is related, he’s treating them as if they are not, as he’s choosing the path with the least number of variables. It will make the current case less complicated and easier to solve (in a sense).

“If there are no necessary entities, do not increase them?” Xing Conglian paused. “Philosophy can be more convincing than your psychology.”

“Indeed,” Lin Chen agreed.