60s: I have a store

Chapter 500: Caught and brought to justice
Zhou Yimin immediately said, "Youde, go call the police. Dapeng and I will go to the water station to ask if anyone was sent to deliver water this morning. If not, we can help rule it out."

"After all, the sooner the thief is caught, the greater the chance of getting everyone's stuff back."

This was the first time for everyone in the courtyard to encounter such a scene, so no one had any ideas.

After hearing Zhou Yimin's arrangements, no one had any objections.

Li Youde quickly got on his bicycle and rushed to the police station.

Then Zhou Yimin took Dapeng, got on a motorcycle, and headed to the water station.

The two men came to the water delivery station and saw the water delivery workers busy counting the buckets. When they saw Zhou Yimin and others walking in hurriedly, they couldn't help but frown slightly, and vigilance instantly appeared in their eyes.

Zhou Yimin stepped forward and tried to make his tone sound calm: "Hello, comrade, we want to find Liu San, is he here?"

The worker continued his work, looking them up and down, and asked casually, "Comrade, who are you?"

Nowadays, people are still quite wary of strangers, so they didn't sell out all of Liu San's information right away?
Zhou Yimin hesitated for a moment and did not want to rashly say that he suspected Liu San of theft. After all, the matter had not been confirmed yet, and spreading it casually might have a great impact on Liu San's reputation.

He tried to evade the question by answering vaguely: "Oh, we have something personal to discuss with him. Do you know where he lives?"

The worker became more alert when he heard this. He put down the bucket heavily, folded his hands and said, "That won't do. You didn't even tell me why you wanted to see him. How can I just give you his address? Nowadays, you can't tell a person's true heart by his appearance."

Then he shouted loudly: "Someone come!"

Soon, all the workers and leaders of the water supply station came out.

Naturally, they surrounded Zhou Yimin and Dapeng.

Dapeng had little experience with such "big" scenes and was very nervous.

He was still calculating how many he could beat, when he saw the water delivery worker, with his muscular body, and it seemed like he couldn't beat any of them.

He could be knocked to the ground by a slap in the face in a matter of minutes.

Seeing this, Zhou Yimin thought that if he didn't tell the whole story, he would probably be treated as an enemy spy by the people at the water supply station and sent to the police station.

In order to avoid this embarrassing situation, it seems that we have to speak up.

Zhou Yimin had no choice but to take a deep breath and recount in detail the theft in the courtyard and how they suspected Liu San.

After hearing this, the people present widened their eyes, their faces were filled with shock, their mouths slightly open, and it took them a long time to come back to their senses.

You know, in their eyes, Liu San is not such a person, but others are just suspicious now and are not sure.

At this time, the stationmaster came out and said, "Everyone, go away!"

Then he invited Zhou Yimin and Dapeng to the office to talk. This kind of thing was indeed not suitable to be discussed in public.

The stationmaster poured a glass of water for Zhou Yimin and Dapeng, then sat down.

He thought for a moment and felt that Zhou Yimin and the others were not unreasonable in their suspicion, so he softened his attitude and said, "So that's how it is. Alas, I didn't expect this to happen. Liu San lives in a small bungalow on West Street. I don't know the exact house number, but he's the only water deliveryman in that area. I should be able to find him if I ask around."

"Also, there are a few places that Liu San often goes to. Please take note of them!"

Zhou Yimin said at this time: "Stand, can you write it for us?"

He was afraid that if he remembered it wrong, wouldn’t that be troublesome?
The webmaster didn't say much, he just took out a piece of paper, wrote down a few addresses on it, and handed it to Zhou Yimin.

Zhou Yimin took it and prepared to leave in order to find Liu San as soon as possible.

The stationmaster didn't say much, but just watched Zhou Yimin and the others leave silently.

But in his heart, he still hoped that the thief was not Liu San, otherwise, if Liu San was caught, he might also be implicated.

Otherwise, your hopes of getting promoted in the future may be slim.

After Zhou Yimin and Dapeng learned this information, they couldn't wait to go find Liu San.

Dapeng followed Zhou Yimin out and said excitedly, "I didn't expect that under such circumstances, I would be able to ride the motorcycle I had always dreamed of."

While Zhou Yimin started the motorcycle, he asked, "Dapeng, from what you said, has everything in your house been stolen?"

Dapeng nodded helplessly and said with a look of annoyance: "Yes, I thought the courtyard would be safe, so I kept the meat and other things you usually gave us at home, but I didn't expect that we would be wiped out this time."

Dapeng then asked back: "Yimin, where is your family?"

Zhou Yimin was driving his motorcycle while he told Dapeng all the stolen things. The more he listened, the more shocked he became. He opened his mouth wide and couldn't help saying, "I feel a little sorry for this thief now. He was so bold to steal so many things at once. I guess he could have gotten away with just a peanut."

Zhou Yimin drove his motorcycle and soon arrived at the West Street that the water station owner mentioned.

They asked around in the area about Liu San's residence and finally found Liu San's home.

Zhou Yimin went forward and knocked on the door, but no one answered for a long time.

At this time, the neighbor next door heard the noise and came out, looking at them warily: "Who are you?"

Zhou Yimin quickly explained: "We are Liu San's colleagues. The stationmaster asked us to come here to talk to Liu San about something."

After hearing this, the neighbor did not immediately let down his guard, but continued to ask some details about Liu San's work.

Zhou Yimin answered fluently and accurately told most of Liu San's information. The neighbor gradually let down his guard and said helplessly: "Liu San, he hasn't come back since he went out this morning."

After hearing this, Zhou Yimin realized that there was no point in continuing to wait here, so he quickly took Dapeng away and prepared to go to other places mentioned by the water supply station manager.

They searched carefully near the address on the paper, leaving no corner untouched, but after searching everywhere around, they still could not find any trace of Liu San.

Zhou Yimin and Dapeng had no choice but to go back first. It seemed that they could only place their hopes on the police.

When they returned to the courtyard, they saw that Li Youde had called the police. When the police learned that a serious theft had occurred in the courtyard and that Zhou Yimin's courtyard was involved, the chief of the police station immediately took it seriously and quickly organized the police station's personnel to go to the courtyard.

Some young policemen were taking statements from the residents of the courtyard house, carefully inquiring whether there were any suspicious persons entering or leaving the courtyard, while the experienced older policemen went into the homes of the residents to check if there were any clues left behind.

When the police station chief saw Zhou Yimin, he hurried forward and asked with concern, "Section Chief Zhou, is there any loss in your family?"

Zhou Yimin described in detail the things that were lost in his home.

The director was shocked after hearing this. He did not expect so many things to be missing from Zhou Yimin's home. He quickly made a promise: "Don't worry, Chief Zhou, we will catch the thief as soon as possible and get back all the things you lost."

He knew that the previous directors were promoted with the help of Zhou Yimin, and he also heard that Zhou Yimin was one of the people who had connections with the bureau when it was able to capture so many enemy spies some time ago.

Moreover, Zhou Yimin also controls the channels that can get the meat, so they dare not offend him and have to get closer to him.

It can be said that the opportunity for his promotion is also in Zhou Yimin's hands. Zhou Yimin said at this time: "I have a situation here, that is Liu San..."

He told him everything that had just happened, including why he went to the water delivery station to inquire and why he suspected Liu San.

After listening to the story, the director felt that Liu San was indeed very suspicious and that he was fully capable of committing the crime given his conditions.

So the director immediately ordered: "Old Li, take some people to find this Liu San."

Old Li took the order and set off quickly with two police officers.

They searched carefully around South Street, not missing any suspicious places.

Then I saw someone coming out and mentioned Liu San.

After hearing this, Mr. Li immediately guessed that there must be a casino here.

"Look around to see if there's a casino."

Young police officer, take action.

Finally, in a hidden corner, Liu San was found gambling enthusiastically at the gambling table.

Liu San was concentrating on the cards in his hand with an excited look on his face, and he didn't notice the arrival of the police at all.

Seeing this, Lao Li rushed forward and shouted, "Liu San, you are under arrest!"

Liu San was startled by the sudden sound and almost dropped the cards in his hand.

He turned around and saw that it was the police. His arrogant attitude instantly disappeared without a trace. His legs began to tremble slightly, and he said tremblingly: "Police...Comrade, what law have I broken?"

Old Li ignored his question and quickly called the police station for reinforcements to take everyone in the gambling den back.

Seeing that the situation was not good, some of the other people in the gambling den wanted to escape in the chaos.

Old Li was quick to pull out his pistol and shouted, "Don't move! I'll shoot anyone who dares to run!"

When everyone saw the black muzzle of the gun, they turned pale with fear and put away their thoughts. They knew that guns had no eyes, and if they were shot in this panic, it would be an injustice.

If you participate in gambling, the worst that can happen is you’ll be detained and your workplace will be notified, but if you’re shot or even killed, it’s simply not worth it.

So everyone stood there obediently, waiting for the police to deal with the situation.

Soon, the backup police arrived and took everyone in the gambling den back to the police station.

After returning to the police station, Liu San was taken to the interrogation room alone for interrogation. At the same time, in the interrogation room of the police station, a tense interrogation was going on.

In the interrogation room, the walls were gray and a solitary lamp was swaying overhead, emitting a dim and unstable light, casting Liu San's curled up figure on the ground, making him look particularly lonely and helpless.

Liu San sat on the interrogation chair with his hands tightly bound with handcuffs. His body was trembling slightly and his forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat, which kept sliding down his cheeks and wetting the table in front of him.

His eyes wandered, sometimes glancing at the interrogator nervously, sometimes looking away panickily, trying to avoid that piercing gaze.

Old Li looked serious, staring at Liu San with a sharp gaze, and said loudly: "Liu San, tell me exactly how you stole in the courtyard."

Liu San's heart skipped a beat. He didn't expect the police would suspect him so quickly.

He knew that he had stolen so many things, and if he confessed, he would definitely spend a long time in jail, so he decided to bite the bullet and deny it: "I didn't steal it."

After hearing this, Lao Li slammed the table so hard that the documents on the table shook. He said angrily, "You still refuse to plead guilty? Do you think we will arrest you if we don't have evidence?"

However, Liu San was like a stubborn bull. No matter what Lao Li said, he refused to plead guilty.

At this time, Lao Li continued, "Since you said you didn't steal, why did you appear in the courtyard?"

Liu San's face turned pale as paper in an instant, his lips trembled, but he was speechless and couldn't say a word.

After a long while, he stammered in response: "I... I was delivering water today and passed by the courtyard. I was really just passing by and didn't do anything bad."

"I saw someone I knew, so I went in and said hello, and then I left."

Seeing that Liu San was still resisting stubbornly, Old Li frowned and decided to find another way to break through his psychological defenses.

Old Li slowed down his tone, his eyes revealing a trace of concern: "Liu San, you also know the seriousness of this matter. Taking the initiative to confess now and strive for leniency, and continuing to resist to the end, the consequences of these two choices are very different.

You have elderly parents at home. If they knew you were sentenced to a heavy sentence for theft, they would be very sad. Do you have the heart to let them worry about you and have no peace in their old age? "

When Liu San heard the word "parents", his body shook violently and a trace of pain and struggle flashed in his eyes. He lowered his head and remained silent. His hands clenched unconsciously, and his knuckles turned white due to the force.

Old Li continued to persuade him: "You are still young and have a long way to go in life. As long as you confess and hand over all the stolen goods, the court will definitely take these positive factors into consideration when sentencing you. You still have a chance to start over. Don't ruin your life because of a momentary confusion."

Liu San was in extreme confusion and struggle. His breathing became rapid, his chest heaved violently, and more and more beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Finally, after a fierce ideological struggle, he raised his head, but did not say anything. Now he had no choice but to go down this path to the end.

When Old Li saw Liu San's expression, he knew that he would say nothing without evidence.

Just when he was at a loss, the door of the interrogation room was pushed open and a young police officer walked in.

He came to Lao Li and kept talking in his ear.

When Liu San saw this scene, he suddenly had an ominous premonition in his heart.

Old Li's originally gloomy face revealed a smile, and then he said loudly: "Liu San, the people in the casino just said everything."

"I owed the casino a lot of money before, and just this morning, I paid it back all at once. After paying it back, I lost a lot of money again."

"Tell me, where did your money come from?"

Liu San didn't expect that the people in the casino would tell the truth so easily. It was useless to continue denying it, so he could only hand it over honestly.

Old Li then asked, "There are so many courtyard houses, why did you choose this one?"

Liu San swallowed his saliva, his eyes full of regret, and whispered: "When I was delivering water, I often chatted with people in the courtyard and also went into Zhou Yimin's house.

Among the courtyards where I delivered water, the one where Zhou Yimin lived was the richest.

I lost so much money gambling that I had no choice but to give up. When I saw that they had so many things in their yard, I just… I was suddenly bewildered and became greedy.”

(End of this chapter)