The crackdown on organized crime began with the arrest of the mother-in-law.

Chapter 1296 Suspect Liu Jianjun

"Who does Zhang Jianxue usually hang out with? Has he ever had any conflicts with anyone?" Xiao Zhou asked the workers in his dormitory. One worker replied, "He's usually quite introverted and has never argued with anyone. But a few days ago, he had a fight with another worker on the construction site, Liu Jianjun. Apparently, it was because Liu Jianjun borrowed 2000 yuan from him and hadn't paid it back. Zhang Jianxue had urged him several times, but Liu Jianjun kept dragging his feet and the two almost got into a fight."

"Liu Jianjun? Is he at the construction site now? What's the situation?" Xiao Zhou keenly caught this information and immediately asked. The worker said, "Liu Jianjun came to the construction site today, but he didn't do much work this morning. He just stood there in a daze, as if he had something on his mind. Like Zhang Jianxue, he is also responsible for tying steel bars. He usually lives in another temporary dormitory. You can go and ask him."

Xiao Zhou immediately searched for Liu Jianjun at the construction site and eventually found him in the steel bar processing area. Liu Jianjun was about 35 years old and about 170 centimeters tall. He was wearing a black jacket. When he heard Zhang Jianxue's name, his eyes flickered, and his hands unconsciously clenched. "I... I just had a fight with him, nothing else. His disappearance has nothing to do with me!"

"Where were you on the night of the 18th? What were you doing? Can anyone testify?" Xiao Zhou asked, his eyes fixed on Liu Jianjun's reaction. Liu Jianjun's eyes darted around, and he stammered, "I was sleeping in the dormitory on the night of the 18th. No one can testify... I live alone in a single room. Everyone was in their own dormitory, and no one saw me."

Xiao Zhou didn't press further. Instead, he noted down Liu Jianjun's information and dormitory location, deciding to wait for the DNA comparison results before conducting further investigations. He then visited a small eatery near the construction site entrance. The owner reported that Zhang Jianxue had come to the shop around 6 PM on the 18th, ordered a bowl of noodles and a plate of vegetables, and left after eating, saying he was going to "talk about something." He didn't specify who he was talking to.

This information perfectly matches the findings of Zhang Lin's autopsy, which revealed that "there were noodles and vegetables in the stomach, and the person died 1-2 hours after eating," further confirming the possibility that Zhang Jianxue was the deceased.

At 3 p.m., Zhang Lin's forensic team sent a message: "Xiao Zhou, the DNA comparison results are in! The DNA sample from Zhang Jianxue's relative matches the deceased's DNA perfectly, confirming that the deceased is indeed Zhang Jianxue!"

Upon hearing this news, Xiao Zhou breathed a sigh of relief. After a morning of investigation, the deceased's identity was finally confirmed! He immediately reported the results to Li Ming: "Team Leader Li, the deceased's identity has been confirmed. His name is Zhang Jianxue, 38 years old, from Zhoukou, Henan. He was a steelworker at the Xingfu Jiayuan construction site in the southern suburbs. On the evening of the 18th, he ate at a snack shop near the construction site entrance, then went out to 'discuss business' with someone, and was subsequently murdered. The time of death perfectly matches the autopsy results. In addition, we have learned that Zhang Jianxue had a dispute with his coworker Liu Jianjun over a 2000 yuan loan. Liu Jianjun had no alibi on the evening of the 18th, and his behavior today is abnormal and suspicious."

Li Ming instructed over the phone: "Okay! Immediately list Liu Jianjun as a key suspect, detain him for questioning, and at the same time investigate Liu Jianjun's social relationships, his whereabouts on the night of the 18th, and whether he matches the car thief's characteristics of wearing a black jacket, a baseball cap, and a black watch on his left wrist. In addition, investigate Zhang Jianxue's other social relationships to see if there are any other people with whom he has conflicts, and make sure that no clues are missed."

Xiao Zhou immediately took action, leading his team to take Liu Jianjun to the construction site office for initial questioning. During the questioning, Liu Jianjun consistently denied any connection to Zhang Jianxue's death, but when Xiao Zhou asked, "Who was the person who talked to Zhang Jianxue on the evening of the 18th?" fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and his answers became increasingly flustered.

Meanwhile, during a search of Liu Jianjun's dormitory, the team found a black baseball cap and a black watch, which closely matched the characteristics of the car thief! Xiao Zhou, holding the baseball cap and watch, walked up to Liu Jianjun: "These were found in your dormitory. How do you explain this? The person in the car thief's surveillance footage was wearing a similar baseball cap and watch. Moreover, you have a loan dispute with Zhang Jianxue, and you have no alibi for the night of the 18th. What else do you have to say?"

Liu Jianjun looked at the baseball cap and watch, his face instantly turning deathly pale, his body beginning to tremble, and he could no longer maintain his composure: "I... I didn't mean to kill him... He forced me to!"

Xiao Zhou knew that the case had finally made a major breakthrough. He immediately arranged for his team to bring Liu Jianjun back to the Criminal Investigation Detachment for detailed interrogation. At the same time, he sent the baseball cap and watch found at the scene to the technical department for comparison with the car theft surveillance footage and the DNA from the cigarette butts at the scene, further confirming Liu Jianjun's criminal facts.

As the sun set, Xiao Zhou stood at the entrance of the Xingfu Jiayuan residential construction site, watching the police cars drive away in the distance, a sense of accomplishment filling him. From determining the direction of the investigation at the case analysis meeting, to finding clues by visiting safety equipment stores, to identifying suspected individuals at the construction site, confirming their identities through DNA comparison, and finally locking down the suspect, every step was fraught with challenges, but the final breakthrough made all the efforts worthwhile. He knew that the upcoming interrogation would be crucial; only by getting Liu Jianjun to truthfully confess to the crime could the truth of Zhang Jianxue's murder be fully revealed, giving the deceased and his family closure.

At 7 p.m. that evening, the lights in the Criminal Investigation Division's interrogation room pierced the darkness like sharp swords, their cold white light fixed firmly on Liu Jianjun, who was sitting in the interrogation chair. He was wearing faded work clothes, his hands were handcuffed to the armrests of the chair, his hair was disheveled and plastered to his forehead, and his eyes were full of vigilance and unease. Xiao Zhou sat opposite him, with a thick stack of case files spread out in front of him, and the recorder Xiao Li had already prepared paper and pen. The only sound in the interrogation room was the faint hum of the air conditioner, and the atmosphere was so oppressive that it was hard to breathe.

"Liu Jianjun, do you know why I brought you here?" Xiao Zhou's voice was calm but carried an undeniable power. His eyes were fixed on Liu Jianjun's eyes, trying to find a flaw in his expression.

Liu Jianjun's Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily. His eyes darted away, avoiding Xiao Zhou's gaze, instead staring at his knees. "I... I don't know. It's just an argument with Zhang Jianxue, isn't that illegal?" His voice carried a hint of deliberate composure, but his slightly trembling fingertips betrayed his inner panic.

"Arguing?" Xiao Zhou picked up a photo from the table and pushed it in front of Liu Jianjun. The photo showed a burial pit in Beishan Park and Zhang Jianxue's body dug out of the pit. "Zhang Jianxue is dead. He was buried in the bushes of Beishan Park, and you are currently the prime suspect."