Unexpectedly, Xu Xiaodong actually brought back a large group of people, including a cameraman carrying a video camera.

Chen Shi asked, "What happened?"

Xu Xiaodong said, "When we went down the mountain, we met a TV crew who came to film a variety show. They brought a ladder with them.”

"Don't shoot! Turn off the machine!" Chen Shi roared.

The two finally got rescued. The crew provided them with water and food. The thirsty and hungry Chen Shi drank a full bottle of mineral water, ate a bag of bread, and gave Zheng Zhifei some. This time, he obediently ate and drank the food.

The director of the crew said, "Oh, we didn't expect any unexpected gains. Where did you come from?"

Chen Shi countered, "Where did you come from?"

"We are from the xx satellite TV station. We came here to shoot a variety show. It’s a new idea where we pick a child from a poor mountainous area, and then find another in the city. After that..."

"Ten years ago, there was already this kind of show. Is this also called a new idea?"

"It's fine! Our show pays more attention to entertainment. Ah, yes, you’re an officer here to arrest a criminal, right? Can you do a few shots with us?"

Xu Xiaodong asked excitedly, "Is there money if we are on the show?"

The director said, "We can negotiate the salary later! But, you have to follow the script. Take a break here and I’ll discuss with the screenwriter to arrange some lines for you... This isn’t fake. It’s essential for the effect of the program and the ratings!"

Chen Shi dragged Zheng Zhifei up and said, "Let’s go. Don't play with them!"

When they left, the director rushed over and said, "Officer, we can negotiate if something’s wrong!"

Chen Shi and the others just responded with their cold backs. Zheng Zhifei sneered. "City people love to look at our broken mountain village to show their ‘generosity’ and ‘kindness’. How disgusting!"

After spending the night at the local police station, Chen Shi texted Lin Dongxue. When she learned that the suspect was arrested, she was very happy and told Chen Shi something. Another person's DNA was found in the mouth of the deceased. If it was confirmed that it was Zheng Zhifei’s, it would be solid evidence.

Chen Shi asked Zheng Zhifei, "You kissed Li Mengran?"

Zheng Zhifei desperately denied it, but the subsequent DNA test results confirmed that it was indeed his. Chen Shi thought that if Zheng Zhifei didn’t hang the head at the door of the Li family, but instead threw it out into the wilderness, this case might not have been solved so smoothly.

But of course, he just thought about this in his heart and couldn't say it out loud.

On the way back, Zheng Zhifei seemed absent-minded. He only cared about a few questions. "Is there meat in prison?", "Is there a TV in prison?", "Are there cigarettes in prison?"

Chen Shi replied, "They have all of those, but I promise that you’ll definitely miss the free life you had in the village when you go to prison."

After returning to Long'an and delivering the criminal, Chen Shi and Xu Xiaodong rushed to a restaurant and ate to their heart’s content. After this chase, the third team looked at Chen Shi in a new light. They let go of his words "spicy chicken"[1] and even asked Lin Qiupu in a roundabout manner, "When is your consultant Chen free? There are several cases in our team that haven’t been solved and I want to hear his opinions on them."

On June 10th [2], the police took Zheng Zhifei to the suburbs and found the body of Li Mengran buried under the soil. When he saw her body was already a little bit rotten, Zheng Zhifei tightened his face, but his eyes flashed with tears.

Chen Shi gave him a piece of paper and Zheng Zhifei exclaimed after reading them, "What is this?!"

"The letter Li Mengran wrote to you when she was eleven years old. Actually, she wrote ten up, but not a single one of them was sent out. Her father was afraid it would affect her studies."

"What’s the point of you showing me these now?! Why did you show me these now?!" Zheng Zhifei looked very agitated. Chen Shi was afraid Zheng Zhifei would tear the letter up, so Chen Shi rushed to snatch it back.

A car was stopped by the roadside. Li Mengran's father had somehow received the news, came, and knelt in front of the corpse, weeping and crying. Chen Shi looked at this scene and felt a headache coming on. He greeted Lin Dongxue, "There’s nothing else for me to do, so I’m going to head off first."

"No loyalty!"

On the way back, Chen Shi received a text from an unfamiliar number. "Detective Chen, there’s something in the refrigerator in unit 2, 5th floor, building 4 of section 3 at the Garden Estate. The key is under the doormat."

His mood fell, hesitated for a few seconds before driving over to the apartment. Chen Shi really found the key under the doormat and pushed the door in. The house was extremely messy and there were some dark red stains on the floor.

Realizing something was wrong, he picked up the newspaper on the table, wrapped his shoes, and walked into the room.

When he opened the lower part of the refrigerator and saw the contents, his pupils contracted unconsciously. He immediately called Lin Qiupu. "Captain Lin, is the case over?"

"It's over. The materials have been submitted to the prosecutor's office."

"Sorry, I'm afraid you guys can’t today. There’s a new case!"

1. It has the same pronunciation as “trash”

2. Editor Conspiracing’s Note: The date here should be June 13th but is left unchanged in event of consistency issues later on.