Binjiang Police Affairs
Chapter 223 - 171: Also Need to Learn Business_2

Chapter 223: Chapter 171: Also Need to Learn Business_2

The moment he stepped below the deck, he heard a passenger say anxiously, "I had it when I was eating just now, otherwise I wouldn’t have had the money to buy a meal!"

"Comrade, don’t panic, check again."

"It’s gone, I only have these two pockets on me."

"Open your bag and check, see if the wallet is in there." Onboard police Old Jin reminded.

The passenger squatted down, rummaging through his bag with a pained expression, "It can’t be in the bag, I haven’t opened it since I got on the ship."

Old Jin pressed on, "Where did you go after you left the dining room?"

"I went to the bow to enjoy the sea breeze for a while, and then I came back. I didn’t go anywhere else."

"Did you sit here after you came back?"

"Mm, I didn’t go anywhere else."

"Comrades, please make way, everyone check around your feet, see if there’s a wallet."

"It’s not here by me!"

"Nor by me!"

...

A lost wallet may not be a major case, but for the owner, it’s a huge deal.

Old Jin looked around, signaled the passenger to stand up, and checked his pants pockets again to confirm they weren’t slit by a blade, reminding him, "Think again, after you left the dining room, did you buy anything else, did you use any money?"

The passenger pondered hard for a long time, scratching his neck and said, "No."

"What does the wallet look like?"

"Black, this big."

"How much money was in it?"

"A little over two hundred."

"How much is a little over two hundred, be more specific."

The passenger glanced back at his companion and hesitantly said, "Around two hundred and sixty-five."

It is now impossible to tell whether it was inadvertently lost and picked up by someone, or stolen.

If it was stolen, then it’s a criminal case; if it’s not solved promptly before disembarking, it would bring great difficulty to the case resolution.

The Marine Police Bureau is responsible for solving criminal cases on passenger ships by levels. That is, after the occurrence of the incident, the onboard police team is to organize the investigation immediately; for cases not solved before arriving at the port, the Criminal Investigation team of the Marine Police Bureau will continue the investigation in conjunction with the onboard police team.

In short, if the case can be solved on the ship, it must be solved on the ship.

Old Jin kept reminding, kept questioning, asked the victim, then the victim’s companion, and then the other passengers sitting around the corridor.

Han Yu observed the reactions of the surrounding passengers, especially their expressions, and couldn’t help but feel that a middle-aged woman seemed suspicious.

She hid in the corner, eavesdropping and watching stealthily, not daring to meet Old Jin’s gaze, even deliberately avoiding his line of sight more than once.

With so many scattered-seat passengers in the corridor, it was obvious Old Jin hadn’t noticed her.

Just as Han Yu was about to step forward to remind him, he was suddenly grabbed by someone.

Looking back, it was Special Commissioner Xiao, also in plain clothes.

"Officer, we two went to the dining room to eat together, stayed at the bow for a while after eating, and then came back together. We really didn’t buy anything else or go anywhere else, we didn’t even go to the restroom."

"Did anyone chat with you, did anyone bump into you?"

"No."

"Alright, pick up your luggage and come with me to the onboard police office to make a statement."

Old Jin noticed Special Commissioner Xiao and Salted Fish had arrived, thought for a moment then turned back and said, "Comrades, please don’t move around until the wallet is found. I’ll be right back after the statement."

A bespectacled passenger asked, "Officer, do you suspect us?"

"It’s not about suspicion; it’s about asking for everyone’s cooperation, and please try to understand. It’s over two hundred dollars we’re talking about. If you lost that much money, wouldn’t you be anxious?"

"Okay, we’ll cooperate, we won’t move around."

"Thank you, excuse me, please make way."

Old Jin had just left with two passengers when a short traveler muttered, "Anyone here is a suspect. They’re definitely going to call for more people. They’re certainly going to search us soon."

"What are they searching for?" another passenger asked.

"A body search, of course. They will search everyone one by one and talk after that."

The woman who was previously evasive seemed a bit panicked, bent down to pick up her bag, and tried to leave without attracting attention.

"Where are you going, you stepped on my foot!"

"Sorry, I’m going to the restroom."

"There is one inside, there are fewer people, why go to the one outside?"

"The restroom inside is dirty, sorry, excuse me, please."

The woman ignored the other passengers’ dissuasion and continued to push her way through.

Han Yu was almost certain that she was problematic. When she almost squeezed her way to the front, Special Commissioner Xiao grabbed her: "Where do you think you’re going?"

"What’s this, are you trying to play the rogue!"

"I am the police, don’t make a scene."

Special Commissioner Xiao scoffed, bent down, pulled a wallet out of her bag, and held it up before her, "Whose is this?"

The woman was so frightened that she was beside herself, stammering: "I... I don’t know, I found it."

"So it was you who stole it. Woman comrade, there are better things to do than to steal."

"Can’t judge a book by its cover, turned out to be a thief."

The passengers regained their composure and began to condemn in unison.

The woman was criticized to the point of humiliation, insisting that she found it, not stole it. Special Commissioner Xiao didn’t want to be watched by so many people and took her to the onboard police office.

He never spoke to me from the beginning to the end; he even pretended not to know me.

Han Yu realized that the task of "observing words and expressions" did not end with the discovery of the wallet. He glanced back at Special Commissioner Xiao and continued to observe the reactions of the scattering passersby gathered here.

Without settling down and quietly observing, he wouldn’t have known, but after observing from inside quietly for a while, indeed, there were discoveries.

Some passengers lost their wallets, some crowded over to watch the excitement, while others stood on tiptoes to see Old Jin asking questions.

Then Special Commissioner Xiao caught the woman and found the wallet, which made the passengers even more interested—they not only crowded over to watch but also discussed aloud.

However, one of the travelers in his thirties reacted strangely. In such a noisy environment, with a wallet theft occurring, he was sitting in the corner pretending to sleep as if he heard and saw nothing.

Is he really that tired and sleepy?

Can anyone really sleep in such an environment?

Han Yu saw clearly that he was pretending to sleep, as he opened his eyes more than once, peeking through the gaps in his hands.

Other travelers carried a lot of luggage, large and small, but his was very little, just a carry-on bag. His white shirt collar was very dirty, his shoes were even dirtier, and his hair was messy...

Han Yu, pretending to check Firefighting equipment, quietly observed for a while. He confirmed that the man had no companions, then immediately turned and went back the way he had come.

The ship was out at sea; as long as he remembered this man’s facial features, he couldn’t escape even if he wanted to.

Back at the door of the onboard police office, Special Commissioner Xiao happened to come out and saw him: "Salted Fish, how come you’re back so quickly."

Han Yu quickly said, "Uncle Xiao, there’s a passenger who’s very suspicious..."

After Xiao Zhengfa figured out what had happened, he couldn’t help laughing: "Well done, seems like having you as a backup wasn’t in vain."

Han Yu grinned and said, "That person is only suspicious, not necessarily a problem. Besides, ’listen to their words, watch their actions, observe their expressions,’ all of this is what you taught me, Uncle Xiao."

"You learn quickly, and you learn well." Xiao Zhengfa patted him on the shoulder and laughed: "Old Jin and Xiao Wu are inside taking statements, come on, I’ll go with you to have a look."