Chapter 246: Was Ghost Once Imprisoned? Su Ming’s Bold Deduction

Torturing cats?

The entire car was covered in blood, the skin peeled off while still alive, bones removed, eyes gouged out.

As Wang Hao recounted this, Chen Sheng and Xu Changsheng both narrowed their eyes simultaneously, a sense of unspoken admiration in their expressions.

Earlier in the meeting room, Su Ming had made an incredibly bold deduction based on mere scraps of evidence and signs…

Lan Cai’er had been captured, her mouth covered, with the brutally tortured orange cat used as a threat to her family’s safety.

In other words, Ghost was sending a message that he could easily infiltrate the neighborhood, abduct and kill her family’s cat. Similarly, he could sneak into her parents’ home and behead her closest relatives. This was what truly terrified Lan Cai’er, the tension that stretched her nerves to breaking point.

Chen Sheng quietly marveled, finally understanding why the seemingly young Su Ming could become the deputy leader of the task force.

Then he turned to Su Ming beside him, asking seriously.

“Team Leader Su.”

“What direction should we take next? It feels like we’ve hit a dead end with the trail from the van.”

“The van has been dismantled into scrap metal, and Brother Long, who knew a lot, has permanently shut his mouth.”

“Although we’re unsure if Ghost was involved in his death, this lead seems to have run dry.”

Indeed, as Chen Sheng pointed out, the lead from the van discovered through the neighborhood elevator surveillance had reached its limit.

Overall, the findings weren’t insignificant.

They had identified Wang Hao, who was involved in criminal activities, and his testimony further confirmed the case’s progress as previously speculated.

Nine days before Lan Cai’er’s incident, Ghost had already taken control of her.

The delay in action was merely to find the perfect opportunity to minimize exposure.

But this was as far as the investigation had gone.

Ghost’s identity remained elusive, yet to be uncovered.

At this moment, Su Ming didn’t immediately respond to Chen Sheng’s concerns but gestured towards the interrogation room door, suggesting softly.

“Chen Ju, Brother Sheng.”

“Let’s not discuss the next steps and breakthroughs here.”

“After all, we’ve asked enough questions. The rest, about online gambling, solicitation, and drug trafficking, as well as those buying from him, can be handled by other officers.”

Hearing this, Chen Sheng quickly caught on, realizing that Su Ming had already deduced a new breakthrough. He promptly stood up.

“Yes, indeed.”

“Let others handle Wang Hao’s interrogation. We don’t need to waste time on minor gambling and drug trafficking issues.”

“Team Leader Su, Captain Xu, shall we head back to the meeting room now?”

With that, Su Ming nodded and left the interrogation room without another glance at Wang Hao, heading to the previous meeting room.

Chen Sheng assigned an experienced officer to continue probing Wang Hao’s criminal activities.

…

Back in the meeting room, before Su Ming could speak, Xu Changsheng impatiently asked.

“Xiao Ming.”

“From what Wang Hao said, did you discover something?”

“I feel like we’ve hit a dead end with every lead.”

This was not only Xu Changsheng’s question but also Chen Sheng’s current confusion. They had all heard Wang Hao’s statements together, and it seemed there were no other leads.

How did Su Ming find something new?

Su Ming didn’t keep them in suspense, thoughtfully explaining.

“I haven’t uncovered anything new.”

“However, by integrating all previous clues, I have a rough guess about Ghost’s identity.”

He paused for a moment, then looked at them with narrowed eyes.

“Do you think…”

“Could Ghost have a criminal record and have been imprisoned?”

At this, Chen Sheng and Xu Changsheng were stunned, their brows furrowing as they tried to reconcile this conclusion with previous clues.

But Su Ming didn’t want to waste time and quickly explained his reasoning.

“Chen Ju, Brother Sheng.”

“Firstly, we know that both One-Eye and Brother Long were connected to Ghost. Brother Long clearly knew more about Ghost and was also the first to die.”

“So, the question is.”

“How did Ghost determine that these two could be recruited to assist in drug trafficking and other special tasks?”

“And why did Ghost accurately assess that the simple-minded Brother Long was easier to control and eliminate than One-Eye?”

“I deduced this from Ghost’s order for Brother Long to find the van and his early decision to silence Brother Long permanently.”

Chen Sheng, experienced as he was, understood Su Ming’s point but asked with more confusion.

“Team Leader Su.”

“If I’m not mistaken, your current judgment is…”

“Ghost met One-Eye and Brother Long in prison, and after being released and selected by K, he recruited them?”

“But that doesn’t make sense.”

“Based on current intelligence, K should have the capability to select suitable subordinates for Ghost, without Ghost needing to choose himself…”

At this point, Chen Sheng suddenly widened his eyes, slapping his thigh.

“Wait!”

“I forgot something!”

“K probably didn’t initially plan to expand into Jiahe City but was forced to recruit Ghost because of Lan Cai’er.”

“This can be inferred from Jiahe City’s distance from other cities.”

Su Ming nodded in agreement and continued with narrowed eyes.

“Because Lan Cai’er’s situation was unexpected.”

“K likely didn’t have personnel ready, and sending other members could cause more trouble.”

“So, the best option was… to choose the most suitable person from among the criminals, using the allure of joining the Drug Trafficking Organization to immediately silence Lan Cai’er!”