Chapter 168: Teeth Marks

Hu Xiong was smoking when, suddenly, his cell phone rang once again.

The call was from Bai Chuan.

"Why are all of you calling me one after another?" Hu Xiong yawned, answered the phone, and asked, "Old Bai, what is it?"

Bai Chuan's voice sounded somewhat urgent: "Where are you?"

"At the bureau, in my own room," Hu Xiong said with inward confusion, "What's wrong?"

Bai Chuan lowered his voice and said, "Xia Yi is dead. The surveillance footage shows that you are the killer."

"What? Xia Yi is dead?" Hu Xiong was stunned for a moment, but then he reacted, "What kind of nonsense are you spouting? I've been sleeping all day, where would I go to kill Xia Yi?"

"I called you in advance just to give you some psychological preparation."

"I've already notified Changqing and Li Minghao, and we'll be right there."

As they spoke, the door suddenly opened. It was Zhang Guichuan who pushed it open, followed by four members of the second team.

The gazes these four members directed at Hu Xiong were all tinged with malice.

Zhang Guichuan walked up with a hint of hesitation on his face and said, "Hu Xiong, Xia Yi is dead. Because you are implicated, you need to cooperate with the investigation."

Since he had done nothing of the sort, Hu Xiong wasn't worried. He extended his wrists, and soon, handcuffs were snapped on him.

The members of the second team even produced two iron nails, preparing to seal Hu Xiong's magical powers.

Zhang Guichuan raised a hand and glared back over his shoulder. "That's enough. Hu Xiong is a veteran of our Bureau Thirty-Six; cooperating with the investigation is enough. Besides, in these troubled times, we cannot rule out the possibility that someone else disguised themselves as Hu Xiong to commit the murder."

Before long, Hu Xiong was escorted into the interrogation room.

"This is the footage recorded by the surveillance cameras." Zhang Guichuan took out a stack of photographs and slowly placed them in front of Hu Xiong. "Take a look at them yourself, and then tell me if you have anything to say."

Although his hands were cuffed, Hu Xiong leaned forward and picked up the photographs.

In the pictures, Hu Xiong's own face was clearly visible as the perpetrator.

"Director, you know me. Can a few photos be enough to make you suspect me?" Hu Xiong chuckled, tossed the photos aside casually, and said, "Director, toss me a cigarette."

Zhang Guichuan expressionlessly took a cigarette from Hu Xiong's own pocket and handed it to him.

At that moment, Zhuo Qingqiang, the most senior member of the second team aside from the team leader, stepped forward.

Zhuo Qingqiang was in his early thirties and also a formally trained investigator from the bureau. He had a relationship with Xia Yi that was half-mentor and half-friend; ever since he joined Bureau Thirty-Six, Xia Yi had been the one mentoring him.

"What cigarette? Answer the questions and come clean first." Zhuo Qingqiang's gaze carried an indescribable fury as he pointed at the photographs. "Where were you between five and six o'clock this afternoon?"

Hu Xiong took a drag from his cigarette and glanced sideways at him. "Sleeping."

"Sleeping where?"

"Are you blind? I was sleeping right here in Bureau Thirty-Six. This matter is obviously a frame-up. Old Zhuo, don't glare at me with those dog eyes of yours; I've got a belly full of fire myself, getting dragged here by you guys the moment I woke up." Hu Xiong said impatiently.

Zhuo Qingqiang let out a cold snort. "In other words, you have no witnesses?"

Hu Xiong couldn't help but retort, "What? Is it a crime for me to sleep alone? Am I supposed to embrace a beauty to sleep every day from now on just to find a witness?"

"Director, such an obvious frame-up—there are surveillance cameras everywhere in the bureau, you can go check if I ever left Bureau Thirty-Six."

Zhuo Qingqiang countered, "Given your familiarity with Bureau Thirty-Six, wouldn't it be a piece of cake for you to slip past the surveillance?"

"Hey now, Old Zhuo, did I provoke you? Xia Yi is dead, I know you're hurting, and I'm not feeling great either, but you can't just throw baseless accusations around like this."

"Director, say something will you?"

Zhang Guichuan frowned without saying much. At that moment, Zhuo Qingqiang stepped forward and flipped over the cuff of Hu Xiong's right wrist.

He slammed Hu Xiong's right hand down hard onto the table. "And you're still trying to argue!"

Zhuo Qingqiang used considerable force, causing Hu Xiong to wince in pain. "Hey, have you gone rabid?"

Zhang Guichuan stepped forward, saw the bite mark on Hu Xiong's wrist, and furrowed his brow slightly. "Hu Xiong, before Xia Yi died, he bit the killer's right hand."

"What a coincidence?" Hu Xiong was startled, then quickly explained, "This wound was suddenly inflicted by Miss Ziyan..."

"Keep making it up, keep making it up." Zhuo Qingqiang clenched his fists, itching to step forward and resort to violence.

With a bang, the door of the interrogation room was kicked open.

"What do you think you're doing!" Li Changqing, Bai Chuan, and Li Minghao all rushed in.

Seeing that Zhuo Qingqiang was about to attack Hu Xiong, Li Changqing shoved him straight to the ground.

Zhuo Qingqiang struggled fiercely, roaring, "Director, look at this! The people from the third team are staging a rebellion!"

"All of you, stop right now." Zhang Guichuan kept a dark expression and demanded, "What Miss Ziyan? Explain yourself clearly."

Hu Xiong said, "Today when I escorted Miss Ziyan home, she suddenly bit me and left a tooth mark."

"Zhuo Qingqiang, go to this Miss Ziyan's home and check if this really happened." Zhang Guichuan glanced back at Li Changqing, Bai Chuan, and the others. "And you lot, settle down."

Li Changqing had been summoned by Bai Chuan as well, and upon hearing the news, he was completely bewildered.

It was absolutely impossible for Hu Xiong to have done such a thing.

"Director, you and Hu Xiong also know each other..." Bai Chuan began slowly.

Zhang Guichuan raised a hand, his expression grave. "Precisely because I have known Hu Xiong for so long, I will report this matter to the General Investigation Bureau and let them send someone to handle it."

"Lock Hu Xiong up. Without my orders, no one is allowed to approach his cell." Zhang Guichuan instructed, "The task of guarding Hu Xiong will be handled by your second team."

"Yes." Zhuo Qingqiang and the others quickly agreed.

Zhang Guichuan turned around and strode away. In a very short span of time, all members of the first team had perished, and now, Hu Xiong was suspected of murdering the second team leader.

Zhang Guichuan was left with a massive headache.

Naturally, he wanted to believe Hu Xiong, but right now, all the evidence was working against him.

Xia Yi had bitten him before dying, and a wound had indeed been found on his body.

Everything now hinged on the result of Zhuo Qingqiang's inquiry with Ziyan.

If it was indeed Ziyan who bit him, the situation would be much more favorable for Hu Xiong.

If not...

Zhang Guichuan's expression darkened. Although in his heart he believed in Hu Xiong, his years of experience dealing with demons and monsters had taught him to rely entirely on evidence.

In handling such matters, personal emotional factors must be avoided as much as possible.

Before long, Hu Xiong was locked up and guarded by the second team.

Inside Bai Chuan's office, Li Changqing, Bai Chuan, and Li Minghao sat together on the sofa, exchanging bewildered glances as they discussed countermeasures.

"What on earth is going on here?" Li Changqing couldn't help blurting out, "There is no way in hell Hu Xiong did this. He was doing fine, why would he kill Xia Yi?"